Re-inventing the Wheel (Fake It Unless you Make It)

That is probably the best way I can describe this past week, re-inventing the wheel.  Now, by doing so, I have learned a lot more about wheels but nevertheless, following the blueprint is a lot easier.  Now being the full-time go-to-guy in the companionship, it has made me rethink a lot of things.  In planning, I have always been able to say, `Let`s go see this Less Active and invite her to do roleplay lessons with us to help us teach!`  Easier said than done.  Then we would go, me and my companion, and I would say hello, have some small talk, and then my senior companion would take over and get the good stuff done.  Sadly for me, I don`t have a senior to do that anymore.  So, when I say let`s visit this less active, well, now I need to know what to say and how to do it.  Let`s ask for this in Ward Mission Co-ordination Meeting, well, now I have to know how to say it.  So while I could have learned how to do simple stuff like that or calling people on the phone, now I have to relearn how to do it.  Sometimes I don`t know how to say stuff in Japanese and other times I don`t know how to do stuff in English.  So yes, the stress is real.

Now more about my bean.  There were three elders coming in, one from Japan, a half-Japanese elder from Utah, and a bean from Portugal.  Guess right now which one I got and you have only a two in three chance of being wrong.  I thought I might get the Japanese elder to improve my horrid ability (or lack thereof) to speak Japanese or the half Japanese so that he could be almost as good as me, but, instead I got the one that had no clue of what was going on from Portugal.  Probably the Lord knows that the best way to improve is to just be thrown into it.  Elder Silva (apparently the Smith of Portugal) thinks I am pretty fluent so, on the plus side, I don`t have to worry about my companion judging my crappy language skills!

Left to Right:  Elder Siedschalg, Elder Shawn Hall, and Elder Silva. Shawn was trained by Elder Siedschalg and now Shawn is training Elder Silva.

Apparently he is the third Portuguese missionary to come to Japan but I heard that about Chile too so I don`t know exactly how accurate that is.  But, it sounds cool so I believe it.  He actually is not in a Japanese speaking mission but is instead in a Portuguese speaking misson, which makes no sense whatsoever to my lower than His thoughts human self because I don`t know anyone who speaks Portuguese in my area.  Maybe we will find a bunch.  I have been tempted somedays to just find a bunch of Portuguese and Brazilian investigators so I could just sit back and let my companion do his job but I have a hard enough time finding people to speak Japanese instead of English with me anyways.

We still haven`t been able to buy Elder Silva`s bike because of some of his card problems he has recently been having with the bank so that has put a halt to a lot of things we could be doing because the apartment is in the middle of a bunch of factories where no one lives.  But, we have just been talking to people on the street.  I was doing pretty much all the talking last night so I remembered what the assistants told us about giving our bean good experiences while they are young to speak and testify.  So, I turned to Elder Silva and said, `You got this next one.  Don`t worry though, I got your back.  When you can`t go anymore and don`t know quite what they are saying, I`ll step in.`  So, I stopped a guy riding his bike towards us and he went for it!  Nothing necessarily different was said, just basic stuff about God being our Heavenly Father and us coming to Japan, but it turned about to be the best conversation we had that night!  He wouldn`t give us his phone number but at least we had a good talk and gave him our phone number so he could call back.  So beanchan power is real and I got to use it before I lose it!

Today`s mantra comes from a comment I got from a certain friend on the outskirts of Colorado next to the border of Nebraska: fake it until you make it!  With his permission, I`d like to change Elder Bacon`s words to, fake it unless you make it!  Maybe it is my training experience or just a pessimistic view of life but I don`t think everyone quite knows what we are doing, even 93 years olds or transfer 16 missionaries!  God has always got it though and we are nothing compared to him.  All we need to do is perserver and do what we know how to do and rely on God for the rest.  I guess what I am trying to say is, keep pushing, don`t give up, keep putting forth your effort to live the gospel and help others in your life, and don`t quit because you don`t know everything because you won`t ever make it 100% of the way in this life.  

Keep being awesome everyone, love you all and have a great week!