Hello my people!

Well this week was usual. ABSOLUTELY CRAZY is becoming a usual thing.

We were able to baptize 6 amazing people this week in 3 different branches. The highlight of the week was on Saturday-Sunday.

The baptisms were going to be in Kade at 9 AM and then at Asamankese at 5 PM on Saturday. Duel baptism day KABLAM! However our branch President in Kade forgot that there was a leadership training meeting on Saturday morning that he had to be present for. We were baptizing 3 of his children (3 nephews who he has legal custody over and has raised, pretty much his kids) and wanted him to be present. Postponing prepared people's baptism is never a good idea, so we decided to do it Sunday morning at 8 AM before church and then have them confirmed one hour later at church.

Let me tell you how it went.

We baptized 3 at Asamankese, a mother, her 15 year old son and a man who works at a palm oil plantation/corn mill. The mother is Victoria (quite a Ghanian name eh?) and her son is “El-Na-than”
(means something in Muslim speak. None of his direct family is Muslim, but whatever cool.) Victoria has been investigating for a long while.

Her brother is a member. We visited her brother who is now an old man who had a stroke. He is blind and can’t speak English. I can speak Twi well enough to communicate with him and he understands. He is a good man. Well Victoria liked her brother’s example so she decided to join the church. She just moved back to Ghana from Mali, her husband will return soon and join. Her boy El-Nathan is a smart boy and can speak French, English and Twi. They moved from Mali so her son can get a better education.

We also baptized Stephen A. He has been investigating the church for about 5 years now. He has been taught by many missionaries and knew everything already; however he had never been baptized. He came to church and our branch president told us to baptize him. I taught him at his corn mill, about 10 min tro tro ride away. We also taught him with his Rastafarian brother named “Philadelphia” sitting there for lessons as well.

Those Rasta guys are potentially smart, however too much Bob Marley influences. “Ya Mon.” Well we scheduled for the Zone Leaders to interview him on a Tuesday. The Terry’s came down to interview Nathaniel and Victoria and they saw me and said, “you look pale and you sound really sick.” I still felt really poopy. Well by 6 PM my head felt like it was going to explode and I was having a coughing fit type of thing and my snot was thick and a yellow/green color and it was just coming like crazy. We decided to go inside and have my companion go with the Zone Leader to interview Stephen. I went inside and called Sister Smith who called the mission doctor and read off my symptoms. She said it was unusual for me to call because I only call for things like Malaria or something serious. Turns out the Doctor said I had a sinus infection and I went to buy my best friend drug AMOXOCYLLIN. Yahoo. Well it started to clear up later and as of now I’m pretty okay, I’m still coughing and blowing out yellow infection globulues but at a manageable rate, no major headaches. Well anywho Stephen wasn’t there for the interview. My companion forgot what he looked like and didn’t see him at church where they were supposed to interview him (smacks head against wall. WHY?!?!?). Anywho I split with the Zone Leaders the next morning, still feeling like major poop because I only slept for some small time because of the headache of the century again but we found him and got him interviewed. They were all confirmed on Sunday.

Yahoo!

Well on Sunday morning we woke up at 5 and left to Kade by 6 as the baptism had to start by 8. Well we waited at the tro-tro station for an hour waiting for the car to fill up. WHY?!?!?! I prayed so hard for us to get there on time. Then our tro-tro driver was driving so slow, probably listened to a lot of Bob Marley the night before and had lost the ambition to do anything productive or prompt. Old cautious grannies driving with baby on board stickers would have put him to shame. Anywho we got to the church by 7:58. I have no idea how it happened. Power of prayer I guess. Well I baptized the branch Presidents kids in the outdoor bucket filled font. He was so happy as were the kids. They will be a bunch of great stripling warriors. As of right now they are 8, 10 and 16. They are pretty goofy like all normal little kids. The 16 year old will be very strong. The branch President was so happy and I dunno, I just know he is a great man.

Hopefully his wife will join very soon.

After the baptism we tried to stop and enjoy but we had to run, literally, to the tro-tro station to make it back for the Asamankese branches Sacrament meetings etc. Man no time to enjoy eh? I did enjoy every min of those precious moments I had. When I get home I will promise myself not to overbook myself, I mean it this time… Well it was an overall success. Everyone that wasn’t baptized will be baptized in the up and coming months. Nobody was lost but was either pregnant and wanted to wait, sick at the hospital, needs to be taught more etc. They will all still get baptized.

I have a great paper to write you about “The Washing Machine” but don’t have enough email time today. I’ll transcribe it next week. You will laugh.

I love you all so much. Thanks for the stories mom. I’ll try it out.

Met with president smith this week. He is proud of me and wants me to train my companion up. Training up some of the young guys is tough.

Well glad the little doggy is doing okay. I love you all. Gotta run!

The church is true, I know it is.

Elder Bills