Hey, y'all! Yes, the moment has arrived-transfers!-dun dun dun!
Transfers came, and my comp, Sister Shek, and I got the text to go print off
the instructions at a 7/11 for leaving and picking up a new comp. We both
didn’t know who will go and who will stay (Toy
Story anyone?). So we went, and it turns out that Sister Shek was going to
the promised land of Tucheng, where a ton of miracles and baptisms take place
(pretty much the Zion of Taiwan) to finish training a missionary who's trainer
had to leave early for medical issues. (I think about 5 sisters went home this
transfer because of medical issues.) She was excited. So that means I'm a “dad”
(when your companion is training someone in the next transfer)! It was good; it
had been a hard week for Sis. Shek. Last Pday, she got an email from her family
in Hong Kong notifying her that her 4-year- old cousin died of pneumonia all of
a sudden. Her cousin was from a Buddhist family (as well as her grandparents)
so her cousin’s mom may be grieving a lot. Made me glad I know about the plan
of salvation. Sis. Shek was super amazing; she was just quietly sad but was
still focused on the work. She was such a great example to me for that.
The day after she got the news, we had dinner with a
returned missionary who knew her dad the bishop in Hong Kong. He and his wife
are waiting for his wife’s US visa (she’s Canadian), and the process goes
faster if they lived out of the country so they live in Taiwan. We ate really
expensive (about $30US) Beijing duck as well as a ton of other good food. One
dish reminded me of the really expensive lunches we eat weekly with the zone
leaders’ investigators, which included turtle (turtle is pretty good). So far I
have eaten in lung, intestines, duck, turtle, cuttlefish, chicken feet, and
stinky tofu.
It's insane with these transfers. A ton of missonaries went
home this transfer (7 of them I knew), and more will leave, so we will lose
about 40 missionaries total in two transfers and gain about 40 in two
transfers. We have about 194 missionaries, so we lost 1/5 of our mission and
gain 1/5 new people. That means a ton of training. It’s crazy! My MTC comp is already training in her fourth
transfer, and just got done breaking!
That’s insanely young! She just got done breaking (3rd transfer) and her
breaker is only 6 weeks or one transfer older than her and she is now a Sister
Training Leader! I am not kidding, we are short on sisters. It seems like a lot
of missionaries, especially sisters, are either training or being an STL. I'm
just breaking again, which I am glad I'm doing. I'm afraid I will train next
transfer, which is insanely young, next transfer will be my fifth transfer. My
trainer trained me in her 6th transfer, and that was kinda young.
I have a new companion I am breaking. Her name is Sister
Cullen from California. She is super awesome and super smart (her dad’s an
engineer and her mom’s a chemist)! Her Chinese is suuuuupppperrrr amazing! She
didn't know any Chinese before the mission. She is only one transfer younger
than me. She entered the MTC about the same time I was about to leave. She had
a Taiwanese trainer, so she speaks Chinese really well, even better than me! She
speaks only Chinese a lot, so I definitely think she will really help me
improve. I am so excited to see what is in store. She is so amazing!
You've heard of golden investigators (people ready for the gospel), but she is
a golden missionary. She is training/breaking me. I’m just showing her the
area, members and people. She just got done training as a temple sister in Taipei
(giving tours about the temple). She is the easiest breakee in the world, I
swear. Even in sacrament when they had her speak when we got to church, her Chinese
was so amazing and then she was like, I’ve
been in taiwan for 3 months, and everyone gasped and whispered, amazed,
"3 months?!?" She’s being friends with the ward members already, she’s
breaking me, I’m not breaking her. I’m so grateful for the Lord to let me be
with her instead of having her train right now. I really needed her. I really
wish I could have her with me for another transfer, but a ton of new missionaries
are coming in, so my guess is that she will train. She is teaching me a
lot and humbling me. I feel like it’s training all over again, it's awesome. Speaking
of which, I am still living with my trainer in the same apartment for another
transfer. I think I break the record for being with my trainer the longest;
everyone pretty much is separated from their trainer, but not me! Guess I
still have a lot to learn.
We have a ton of investigators right now, but we still need
to help them progress towards baptism. seen miracles lately, it's been good.
David Archuleta is coming to Xinzhu next month. The ward is
super excited! I hope to see him in a car and wave to him sometime.
I think a mission ruined Mulan
for me, because in Mulan she worships
her ancestors, or baibai, and it wears on you after you are told a million
times a day by people that they don't want to listen about our church because
they are Buddhist or worship their ancestors. So long story short, I don't know
if I can watch Mulan again.
Grateful for the gospel.
Gotta go! Love you all!
-Sister Brinkerhoff
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