I am writing from underneath the house of the Lord here in Fukuoka!  Yep, the mission offices are right underneath it.  This weekend has been absolutely amazing!  We were able to attend every single session of conference…holy cow was it incredible.  I listened intently to every single word. I felt like I was truly listening for the first time.  I guess what I mean is that it finally has started sinking into my heart.  Oh how grateful I am for this experience.

I am thoroughly loving my new companions.  It is amazing what you can learn from others.  These two don’t really speak for much English, so I hear a lot more Japanese.  It is a blast!  Oh yeah, we cover two wards, Nagamine and Kumamoto.  We are kept very busy, last night we had a big curry party at our Stake Pres house.  How grateful I am for members who help us!

Life here in Japan is flying right by.  I loved Pres. Monson’s talk about enjoying the journey, how true that is!  I can’t really believe that I am almost half way done.  I feel like my mission is just starting, now that I actually understand the people!  Ah well, I will just have to make up for it by working harder!

Last week I met a lady on the street as we were headed home, and just doing some streeting on the way.  We talked for about 20 min.  We have  a meeting tomorrow night!  I am so excited!  She has a lot of interest.  She went to Catholic schools her whole life.  I will let you know how it goes!

I have really come to realize that there is no place for fear on a mission.  I know the Lord is with me.  I can know what to say.  My favorite scripture is D&C 68:6!  Be of good cheer everyone!  No matter what the economy does, just remember that we all have mansions on the other side. 

I love you all!  Rachel and Spence!  Holy cow a little BOY!! Congratulations!  Omedeto!  Pap, thank you so much for all of the pics, they were so fun!  I can’t wait to go to the cabin and roast a real hot dog!  I am glad to hear the yard is going well.  Oh yeah, the mission office has had the package for the last week and a half or so.  Thank you! Mel, good luck!  I hope your tiny runt comes soon.  If Mom and Pap are gone, someone please write me!

OK, must run up to the temple!  I love you all.  Remember, the work is true.  Good luck this week with the snow, its still in the 70’s here! In the morning.

Love,

Sister Haymond

Hey everyone!  Yep, I am still here in Kumamoto, I survived the transfer.:)  Nishino shimai headed back to Hokaido after serving a faithful 1.5 years.  Omori shimai was transfered to Nakatsu, just North of Fukuoka City.  I am now with Sasayama shimai (she was my trainers comp before I came!), she is from near Tokyo, is very sweet,  and a very hard worker.  I am grateful for this chance to learn much about being a senior from here.  And yet again, I am with a beanchan…her name is Bunya shimai, from near Sendai, Japan.  Even though she is brand new, she took a lot of missionary prep classes before coming.  She is almost like an old pro!  We are going to have a blast together!

We get to watch conference this coming Saturday and Sunday.  I am so excited I can hardly stand it!  It is true Pap, when I watched the last session in the MTC I held my breath at every single word that was said.  I can only imagine how much more that is going to be this time!  Plus, next Monday we get to go to the Fukuoka temple!  It is *sports day*, so it is the stake temple day.  I am so excited!  It seems like forever ago that I went for the last time in the Provo temple.

This past week we were so busy packing and transfering it just flew right by…lets see…Eri chan is still progressing along nicely.  Her brother is absolutely amazing.  He joints with the lessons and always bears the strongest testimony.  He has decided that his mission is the Kumamoto Mission. So he is doing his part to bring everyone he knows to the gospel. It is so fun to see all of the members here.  They have to work so much harder at being faithful latter-day saints here in Japan.  Not saying that anyone has it easy, but they are surrounded by tea (its in the culture), most jobs work on Sundays, however, this past week my district leader shared a portion of a talk that President Eyring gave when the Tokyo shinden (oops!  temple) was dedicated.  He prophecied that one day the people in Japan will be proud to talk about Jesus Christ.  That their kids will talk about Him to their friends.  And that many will come into the waters of baptism.  He said, `I don`t know how it will happen, but it will occur`.  It was a very powerful testimony meeting that we had afterwards. I know that through the faith of the wonderful members here in Japan, this place will explode with baptisms.  If anyone ever tells you that Japan doesn`t have many baptisms, tell them to read D&C 4…if we have the faith, the `field is ready to harvest`!

Kare-I am glad to hear that Creed is using one of my favorite words!  I even got my last two companions to use it quite frequently.   Our langauage was quite the mix of English and Japanese…oh it was soooo fun! My two comps right now hardly know any English, so i am learning the langauge even more now. Good luck with twins, tell Ains to give them a love from me!

Pap and Chum- Thank you for letting me know about the elections a little more.  I am leaning towards McCain (elder Bodily`s sister works back in DC and sent a specs sheet on each of them)  I am glad to hear the high school crowd is doing well.  Tell them hello if you see them again.  Oh, I did get the letter, but not the package yet.  Thank you for all of the pictures and stickers!

Deb- I am so glad to hear you are doing so well!  I am absolutely loving my time here in Japan. I can`t even begin to describe how much I am learning; my love for my Savior seems to double each and every day.  I can`t believe that I have the chance to tell these people of His love for them.  Thank you, thank you for your lettter!  I do think my eyes are getting a little more squinty too!

Everyone, I love you all so much.  Please write anytime. Let me know when anyone is born…and send pictures!!!!! I would like to see at least one of Ode and Jess`s wedding, please.

The gospel is true!  We all accepted this opportunity and our Father`s plan before we came to this earth…I get the privelige of helping others realize that.  How cool!!

Ai shite iru da yo! Kono dendo suru keiken wa tanoshii sugiru! I love you all!  This mission experience is too fun!

Love,
Sister Haymond

Hi everyone there in the hot, dry Salt Lake area!  It sure has been rainy today, with the weather even getting a little bit cold!   For now it is a nice break, but apparently Kumamoto is one of the coldest places in Kyushu.  There are mountains surrounding it so there is a bit of a “bowl effect”.

Today has been a blast!  It is the last P-day of the transfer so we tried to do it up big!  For starters we had basashi, in layman terms that is “uncooked My Little Pony”!  Yep, good ol’ raw horse meat.  And I know you are wondering and yes, I did, I neighed before eating it!  Really the taste wasn’t bad at all.  The worst thing was the texture.  A little too chewy!

We then all headed for a nearby onsen, a Japanese traditional bath.  OK, it was fun, however, they have something against wearing clothes!  You can only wear your birthday suit!  Oh, it was weird as could be!  (the mens and womens are separated)  I pretty much stared at the ceiling the entire time.  But I did enjoy being in a hot pool again.

Tonight we have a talent show with the YSA.  We are going to perform a traditional Japanese Samba (yep, sounds like an oxymoron, but it’s true), with a few American twists thrown in.  i.e. the cotton eyed joe, macarana, and the hula…I am planning on taking video of it.

This week we saw many miracles.  For starters, Eri chan, the 19 year old girl we have been teaching for the last month, finally made it to church for the first time.  She quite her job because they wouldn’t give her Sunday’s off, her faith is amazing.  She absolutely loved it!  She has become so much happier and friendlier since we first met.  I love seeing the joyful change the gospel brings into peoples lives.

Plus, on Saturday, after our child english class we decided that sushi sounded good, so we headed off streeting on the way.  I talked to a Mom and her little girls, they were super nice but nothing much happened. However, they showed up to church on Sunday!  And even stayed for the entire block!  Talk about how the spirit can guide us to the right place at the right time!  They are planning on coming next week.

The cool thing is too, I had to give a talk in Sacrament meeting, so I really tuned it to them; how each of us can  learn for ourself that Jesus Christ’s teachings are true.  It was really fun!  I didn’t even right out my talk at all!

Here is a little Japanese tidbit:   In the old days, if someone farted infront of someone else, the had to commit suicide!  It’s true!!  It was very, very bad manners!  I know you boys will all get a kick out of it!

Well, next week I will have more time to include some pics.  But we have to run and find our kimono’s!  Oh yeah, I will have a new companion this time next week!  I don’t think I will transfer, but it is Nishino shimai’s last transfer.   We have had a blast!

Good luck to all of you.  Mel and Jess…Happy belated B-day!!!!!!  Sorry about that, time got away from me!  Thank you all for your notes.  I have not gotten my package yet, hopefully tomorrow.  I love you all so much! Please read the scriptures everyday!  Love them!  Oh yeah, Al or someone, please tell me your thoughts on Obama and McCain.

Love,

Sister Haymond

P.S. I think I’m turning Japanese!

Hello one and all!

Wow,  this week went by sooooo fast!  We had many lessons with our favorite investigator, Eri chan, a 19 year old who is changing as she embraces the gospel.  We taught her Mon., Tues., Wed., and Friday.  On Friday I was able to do Yoga in the morning with one of our investigators and that same night we did a YSA activity of Billy Blanks Boot Camp.  I had soooooooooo much fun.  Geez, I do miss regular exercising. 

I have really come to realize how important it is to keep the commandments.  All of our happiness truly comes from our Heavenly Father and He desires our happiness, hence the commandments.  Eri chan is desiring to keep all of the commandments and it is truly helping me see the importance of them.  When she doesn’t understand one she asks questions until we explain it completely.  She will be baptized on Nov 11, but hopefully earlier.

OH YEAH!  I past off all of my lesson masteries!!!!!  I had to teach all of the 5 lessons (5 min, 15 min, and 45 min), remember, these aren’t all memorized.  I have to create them.  I must thank my Father in Heaven that my language skills are really improving.  I had to teach most of them to members, less-actives, and recent converts..it was actually quite fun.

Well, there are 4 elders waiting here to write emails so I must make this short.  I love all of you so much!

chum, thank you for the package!  I am way excited for it.   You can send all of my letters to the mission home, it only takes about 1 more day to get to me.   I would still like to see some pictures of the wedding.

Pap, thanks for the pic of the fam!  Wow, everyone is so big!

The church is true.  It does teach of about kazou no taisetsusa (the importance of families).  How grateful I am we can all be together in the eternities.

Love,

Sister Haymond

I haven’t been very good at posting Kelsie’s mission letters, so I have decided to be better. Here is her letter from Aug 25:

I say hello from the wonderful city of Kumamoto!!!!  Yep, I was transfered! I just about cried with joy when the call came.   It was very sad to leave the Kihara’s, but they saw me off at the airport.  Oh how I love them!

 My new companions are sister Nishino from Hokaido and a new bean, sister Omori, from Tokyo. Yep a threesome!  Let me just say how much I love it! We all get along great!  I finally realized what was wrong with last transfer…Takemure shimai was a number counter, not a people lover.  Not a fun way to dendo!

I must make this short…our email time was cut a little short today because an elder had his appenidix out this week.  I am writing from the Prisby couple’s apartment (on a MacBook), so from now on I can email pictures home!  Starting next week of course!

 Thank you all so much for the pictures, letters, and most of all for your prayers!  They were answered!  Just to let you know, I might have to become senior either next transfer or the one after.  But the Lord has blessed me now with an AWESOME companion, so I have no fear!  Only faith.   I think it would be just fine if the bishop emailed me.  I will ask, but I think he should be just fine doing it.  If anything I can receive it and then write a letter!

Ok,  gotta run.  I love you all so much !  Next week I will tell you all about the blessed city of Kumamoto.  Oh yeah, we have a baptism this Friday!  We extended the committment the night I got here last week!

Love,

Sister Haymond

Drop her an email at KelsieHaymond@myldsmail.net!