Last transfer in the mission!

Hi family!

Thank you for all the emails this week C: Sounds, as always, like things are fun and exciting at home! Well, maybe not so fun in the surgery aspect, but my prayers are going out for you and I know everything will work out okay.

 

This week in a surprising turn of events, my companion Tada Shimai and I got an emergency transfer. A sister in another area got sick enough to go back to America, so Tada Shimai went out in her place, and for the week I'm in a threesome with Wylie Shimai and her trainee Lowry Shimai. It was a huge relief for everyone involved. Now I'm just waiting to see what happens next. It's been a fun few days in a threesome, of course---our first together, we got caught in a huge downpour and came home absolutely drenched. Photos follow, of course.

 

Another fun thing we did this week was visit a less-active who lived way up in the mountains. She taught us how to make giant rolls of sushi and then we ate them. I still don't like sushi because of the seaweed wrapped around it, but when I'm a guest I eat whatever's put in front of me. (Except the shellfish soup she served with it. I had Tada Shimai eat it when the less-active wasn't looking.) We had another sushi adventure recently: we went with our investigator Dai-san to a conveyor belt sushi place where they charge you by how many plates of sushi you stack up. I didn't eat sushi because there were also plates of salad, egg, rice, and cheesecake rolling around. I feel like Japan has some of the most fun dining experiences in the world.

 

This week was a slow week for missionary work, but we had our Tuesday Temple P-day today and I got to talk to all the sisters around the mission, especially those serving my old areas. It's always a bittersweet experience; sometimes they talk about how your investigators are doing really well, other times they've been dropped for not progressing, and sometimes you get to offer advice on how to help because you know them a bit better. One thing I'm so grateful for is to be a missionary in such a technologically advanced place and time. I get to email many of my old investigators frequently and encourage them to keep trying.

 

I'm grateful I get to email all of you too! I'm sorry P-day fell a day late to wish you a HAPPY FATHER'S DAY but know that I love you Dad! On Sunday in Primary we helped the kids sing "I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home" (in Japanese of course) and it brought back some fond memories. Thank you for all you do and especially for being patient with all that I do!

 

I love you all very much and hope you enjoy the pictures! Good luck this week and keep me posted on your summer vacations C:

愛しているよ

Long Shimai