Matsudo

January 18, 2016

SNOW!!!

First snowfall in Matsudo.

Two happy Missionaries!

Time out for Ramen.  Yum, my favorite!

 My Church in Matsudo

This church is 5 stories high

Front doors to the church

Playing basketball on the 5th floor of the church.


> Wow this has been a really good week!  It has been full of lesson and
> lots and lots of fun!  So this week we actually had three lesson in
> Chinese!  I dont know about you, but I have no idea how to speak or
> understand Chinese!  Lets just say, I felt like I was back from the
> MTC and that I was learning a new language.  hahaha The lessons went
> well though and one of the investigators is looking forward to meeting
> with us again.  He was amazing.  He showed so much interest in the
> Gospel and he wants to learn so much more about it.  He especially
> wants to learn how to pray.  That is what our next lesson is going to
> be about!  Elder Chou is amazing and he is an amazing companion.  I
> have learned so much from him and he continues to show so much love to
> me.  He loves to talk to everyone on the street and even though my
> Japanese is fluent and it is really hard for me to talk to people, he
> shows a lot of patience towards me and helps me along the way.  He has
> never complained about my Japanese and he continues to encourage me.
> He is amazing and I love him so much! :)
> This week we also had some sport nights and it did a toll on my body.
> It has been a long time since I have played sports and keeping up with
> all the in shape people put a toll on my body.  But it was so much
> fun.  Next time I am going to have to take it a bit more easier
> because my muscles were so sore the next day!  I wish I could have
> slept in! haha
> The members here are great.  They have shown so much love towards me
> and continue to help me with my Japanese.  I am trying to talk with as
> many members as I can because I think that is the best way to practice
> your Japanese.  But man is it hard.  I know that through the Lord I
> can learn this language.  He has blessed me so much and he continues
> to bless me everyday.  I love this Gospel so much.  It is amazing!
> Last week when I went to the temple it was a really good experience.
> I felt the spirit a lot and I felt a lot of peace and comfort.  It
> recharged me and got me ready to go another transfer.  I am so
> thankful for the Temple and the blessings it give me in my life.  But
> I think they are going to close it down soon for refurbishments.  So
> this will probably be the last time I get to go on my mission.  Sad
> huh.  I guess I am blessed to go at least 3 times! :)  I love the
> temple so much! :)
> As it goes for weather in Japan today was crazy.  Last night it snowed
> so there was snow all over the ground when we woke up and went biking.
> It was scary because the wind was also blowing really hard and it
> almost pushed me off my bike.  We went to buy umbrellas and Elder Chou
> bought one for like a four year old.  It was funny watching him try
> and keep himself dry.  Half way to our destination, he gave up and let
> the rain pour on him.  I was smart and got a really big umbrella.  Not
> smart, the wind picked me up and spun me around.  I never though an
> umbrella would pick me up!  Man I need to start gaining some weight on
> these bones!  Not!!!!  I dont want to get fat on my mission! hahaha
> But fun fact, I have grown a little bit on my mission.  My MTC
> Companion Elder Watabe pointed that out to me.  I wondered why my
> pants felt shorted and my long sleeve shirt didnt go down to my wrist
> anymore....  Well life is good and luckily my clothes still fit enough
> to pass as a missionary! haha
> This week we also had Zone Conference and that was really good.  Lots
> of fun trainings on finding and how to be a better missionary.  I
> always love those meetings because I get to see everyone from my zone.
> I love my zone so much.  They are amazing.  It is full of old friends,
> companions, and friends to come.  I love Matsudo so much.
> Probably one of the best things I love about my mission is how much I
> can focus on the Savior.  I love reading the Book of Mormon and Jesus
> the Christ.  They are amazing books and if you havent read them and
> want to come to know Christ better, read them.  I am currently in 2
> Nephi in the Isaiah Chapters and they are way hard to understand!  But
> I have learned so much from them and I continue to learn from them
> every day.  One thing that I learned is that we need to rely on the
> Savior.  He came to this earth, performed the Atonement and wants us
> to rely on him.  Through him all is possible.  My Japanese has become
> so much better now that I have recognized that I cant do it by myself.
> Through prayer and trust in the Lord my Japanese has improved
> immensely.  I love the Savior so much and I have felt His love so
> much.  I love my mission, I love the Scriptures, and I love the
> Savior.
> Well time is cut short today.  Sorry that this email is kind of short,
> but know that I love you all so much.  I love hearing from you and I
> hope you are going online and seeing my blog.  My mom has been doing
> an awesome job with it and she just updated it.  She put some new
> photos on it!  I love you all so much and I hope you are doing well.
> Take care and have a safe week.  Cant wait to hear from you next week!
> あいしています!!!!!!!!
>
> Elder Unsworth