Saturday was the first experience of transfer calls. If I had to describe it to someone who is not a missionary, I would pretty much say it is just like that time in Middle School when the teacher was assigning group projects and was reading off the list of the pre-assigned group of people. Am I going to be in the group where I have to do all the work, where the cute girl that is across the room from me is in, or am I going to have a group of all of my friends where we can slack off and joke around until the last minute? But instead of getting assigned a project on the Great George Washington, you are being assigned missionary work with another person who you could possibly be assigned to work with someone else besides your current companion and live with them for at least six weeks. So that is the basic feeling as you wait to see if the phone rings.
It started right after personal study or at 9 a.m. and we were told to not leave the apartment for the duration of transfer calls. I was hoping to not be separated from my trainer and I thought the other two elders who just got here as well wouldn`t be transferred so I wasn`t expecting the phone to ring. After transfer calls were over though, Elder Martini, who we live with, was suppose to call the other people in our district in Fuji and there we thought there would be a couplewho would be transferred from the four. So, I waited for two hours so we could call the Fuji Elders. So, as soon as they texted us at around 11 a.m. that transfer calls were over, Elder Martini called and find out nothing had changed. So, in my district, no one was moved so another transfer with everybody staying put! One of our zone leaders did get transferred out though and a couple of people in the zone were transferred but no one close by so Transfer 2 will be pretty close to transfer one, except for the fact that I know a few more things about mission life and Nihongo.
This week has been pretty futsu (normal) expect for the fact a older gentlemen in a Hyaku Yen Shop (dollar store) asked me if I was American and then he started to proceed by talking about American atrocities in World War II which was definitely unusual.
This past week I have been reflecting a lot about my first transfer as it had been coming to a close. And as I was thus reflecting during Fast and Testimony meeting, I was getting a bit down because I hadn`t progressed in my Nihongo as much as I wanted to. So, to ease my mind, I turned to my English scriptures as I couldn`t understand anything anyone on the pulpit was saying. A couple minutes into that, I think the Lord somehow rebuked/blessed me when I suddenly heard English over the pulpit. What the heck, is this what the gift of tongues really means!?! So when I looked up I half-expected/hoped it was someone speaking in Nihongo but it was one of the two gaigen (foreigners) in the ward, Campus Kyodai. So I put away my scriptures and began to listen. He was saying how his daughter was this last week unable to compete in the Shizuoka Stake`s English contest because of her father being gaigen. He and his daughter were really excited for it and were expecting great things from it but it was disappointing when they learned she couldn`t compete. Then he talked about how God sometimes doesn`t let us achieve our dreams or He lets us face setbacks. And that's where I was then as I sadly looked on the lack of progress I made. Campus Kyodai then said Einstein`s quote `That there are two ways to live life, to see nothing as a miracle or to see everything as miracle.` And then I started thinking. Four months ago I was sitting on my couch eating Cheetos unable to speak a lick of Japanese. Now I am out here living in Japan and speaking to people in Japanese. Yeah, my Nihongo isn`t great but isn`t just being here a miracle in of itself. So I have been trying to see my progress as what I have done instead of what I have yet to do. Yeah I need to set goals and work my butt off but it is easy to become a little distressed. We just sometimes need to be really grateful for the little things we have instead of asking why we don`t have more. Even if the glass is only a 1/10 full, doesn`t mean it has to be 9/10 empty. It is still better than 1/100 full I guess. So hopefully this next transfer can be spent improving and learning instead of wondering when I will get it all because I am far from that.
Hope everyone has a good week and is getting geared up for the lovely season of Autumn.
Love you all!
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