Mom and Dad,
Genki desu!
It seems like the weeks are going by faster and faster. Last Friday we had a
Zone Training Meeting. After the meeting ended, one of the Shimai in the zone
pointed out that even though it was the 5th, due to the time difference it would
have been the 4th of
July in America. I didn't even think about the 4th of July when it was
the 4th of July
in Japan. It's crazy to think that it came so quick! It sounds like the usual
party at Grandma Hutchings' was good.
It's been really rainy and crazy here this last week. Still very, very
mushi atsui. Some days it's absolutely poured for hours, and there's been
plenty of thundering and lightning. Yesterday was pretty weird - we came back to the apartment
for dinner and nothing was going on outside. All at once it started downpouring
with thunder and lightning. Then after about 10-15 minutes it settled down.
After another 15 minutes or so it suddenly started pouring and raging again.
Then things cleared up and there was a rainbow, and not too long later it
started up again. I was told that rainy season is supposed to end in mid July,
so I hope that's not too far away.
It's been bit of a slower week with work. We've been working hard despite
the weather, but a lot of our investigators cancelled appointments because of
the weather. We're still trying our best to keep a good attitude and serve as
effectively as we can despite the circumstances.
We had a weird experience on Friday. During Zone Training Meeting we received a phone
call from a man who said he knew one of the missionaries who used to serve here
(we remembered the missionary's name from the teaching records) and wanted to
meet with us that evening. We weren't really sure what to think - we didn't
know if it was a former investigator or a potential investigator from a while
ago. We went to the church building and he walked up shortly after we had
arrived. It turns out he was an inactive member who was baptized 30 years ago.
He wanted us to send a woman's watch, some stamps, 1962 American quarter, and
an Indonesian coin to the missionary who baptized him. He gave us those items
and then left. We were left scratching our heads and not really sure what to
think. We're still not really sure what to do with the stuff because he only
gave us the old missionary's first name. Sometimes, really weird things happen
when you're a missionary.
In any event, I'm doing well. It's been difficult sleeping at night
because of the heat and humidity, but it really hasn't been too much of a
problem.
Thank you for all of your love and support!
Elder Kyle Hutchings
