Awesome April - Week Three

Dear Family,

There's been a lot that's happened this last week. I'm just going to talk about two.

First off, this last week, our focus for Awesome April was the contacting day on the twentieth. That day we were supposed to commit the entire day, if possible, to finding. As it turned out, we had two appointments set up that day, but we made sure that they were later in the day so that they would interfere with the finding day as little as possible, because prime finding time is more during the day.

One fun story from the finding, we were out walking around talking to people and we were walking along the path next to the river and we saw some JWs talking to a couple girls on a bench. Elder Vomocil wanted to just stick a contact card in their hand and keep walking, but was just being a little silly, but wanted to talk to the girls. We ended up passing them by and felt a little put off that we didn't talk to them. We continued our lap and the next time that we walked past the same place, the JWs were gone. The girls were still sitting there but we passed them again. We kept going and Elder Vomocil kept saying that he wanted to talk to them, but we just hadn't yet. We ended up passing them another time at the same bench. This time we continued on and he was really determined to speak with them if he saw them again. As we were crossing the bridge going to the path, we saw the girls walking on the bridge, going the same direction as us. We followed them a way and we were planning on going up some stairs to the park up above on the hill. As we got to the stairs, the girls, whom we wanted to talk with and who were in front of us, took the stairs! Instead of being really creepy and weird, we continued straight and got some ice cream and then went up the stairs. The girls didn't make very quick progress up the stairs, because once we got to the top, they were only a little ways in front of us. Now we felt like stalkers. So we followed them and they went into a little off-shoot part of the park and sat down and we continued down the park to talk to some people, a few of whom were interested in coming to English class and then made our way back up the park to that little off-shoot so that we could talk with them. We finally went up and started talking with them. We told them that we were talking to people about Christ, and they said that they had already spoken with someone about that earlier. We started talking and they were pretty interested. When we offered them a pamphlet about the Restoration, they said, "Oh, well, we'll take that and you can take these," offering us the Watch Towers that the JWs gave them, "maybe they'll be interesting to you. Really what you're saying is more interesting." We ended up exchanging numbers and hopefully we'll be able to meet and speak with them more later. One of them is only here once or twice a year but the other is studying here in Trebic. They're both from a small town in southeastern Moravia. We walked away and Elder Vomocil felt like we had done what we were supposed to.

Then on Sunday, we had Easter Sunday and had a special sacrament meeting - basically I played violin with all the hymns and then I had a solo piece between the speakers. All the members really liked that. Then came the special Czech Easter tradition on Monday. (That's why I'm emailing today - everything was closed yesterday due to holiday.) Here in the Czech Republic, for Easter, the guys prepare whips made of intertwined willow branches the day before and then on Easter, before noon, the guys go around whipping the girls on the bottom saying a little poem. Basically they do this because the willow whip is supposedly used to transfer fertility to the woman and the poem basically goes along to say the same thing:

"Hody hody doprovody,

dejte vejce malování,

nedáte-li malování,

dejte aspoň bilý,

slepička vám snese jiný."

"Feasts Feasts and entourages,

give me colored eggs,

if you don't give colored,

at least give white,

and the hen will bear you something else."

Basically, on Sunday, all the members were asking if we were going to visit and whip them. We said of course and then they asked if we had a whip. We forgot to buy one... and they all acted like it was the end of the world! Then remembered that there was one at the house from last year so we told them that it was alright. Well... you have to get all the whipping done before noon or else the women can pour water on you. I don't particularly know why, but that's the tradition. We left the house at eight o'clock and didn't finish whipping until four, because we had to walk all over Trebic and everyone wanted us to stay and eat and talk. Luckily no one poured water on us. Some of them were pretty funny, and others were really funny and awkward. Oh, also, the girls are supposed to run away while the guys are whipping them, but most of the time they're too "awkwarded out" to run, so they just stand there and take it. He-he. I attached a video of me doing the first one to President Pohořelický's fifteen year old daughter. Yeah... that was way awkward. I don't know if you can watch the video, but if you can, you'll know a little of how fun this tradition is.

Other than that, this week has been good. We've been working hard and we've been seeing blessings. I love you all and I'm looking forward to talking to you on Mother's Day, which I guess is right after transfers! Oh NO. Last phone call home of the mission. That makes me feel old.

Love you all tons,

Starší Monk

Awesome April - Week Two

Dear Family,

Yes, another week is gone and it seems shorter and shorter each week.  I remember something that Elder Price told me the end of my first transfer.  I think that it was either the last or second to last p-day that we had.  We were walking around Zlin and he looked at me and said, just as a kind of passing comment,  that the mission just gets faster and faster with each passing transfer.  I responded that this transfer was pretty fast for me and that the MTC even felt pretty quick.  He just gave me this weird look and said that I might as well say goodbye to my mission now!  How true that is.  It's been way fast.  Elder Vomocil and I this morning were talking about this being the very end of this transfer.

Anyway, that doesn't matter.  This last week was week two of Awesome April, and yes, it was awesome.  This last week was focused on giving the members their part.  President prepared a little trifold with a few things that members can do, and then it was up to us to give it to them and speak about how they could do it, if they didn't know how they could fulfill a few of the points.  Perhaps the hardest point was, "I can invite a friend to my home for family home evening and bring the missionaries."  For some of us that may not sound too hard, but it was the hardest on the list, and many members are afraid of doing so.  We gave them advice on how they could accomplish it and then committed them to doing it.

Elder Vomocil and I visited the Fejtovi, Kutilovi and the Červeňovi.  Also we're going to meet President Pohořelický and his family and the Houzarovi on Tuesday because they didn't have time this last week.  It was the first time that I had met with the Fejtovi in their home and I realized, I've been here for nearly four months and they don't really know that much about me.  That showed me that I wasn't doing my best to friendship with the members.  How could I expect to gain their trust, teach with them and have them give me referrals if I didn't know them?  I can't.  They're really quite open, but I just hadn't taken the time to go and talk to them that much.  I'm going to fix that.  They both served in Utah on missions, so they know how missionary work goes, but I think that they just need a little bit of support and encouragement to do missionary work here, because it doesn't yield as much results as Utah right now.

Then the Kutilovi: they live in a town that's about a thirty minute driving distance from Trebic, so we met with them after church.  They're really sweet.  There's a little calendar on the tri-fold and every time that they do one of the twelve things (there are twelve suggestions of things they can do) they're supposed to put that number down on the calendar.  They just made a joke and said, "If we all do number one (pray every day for a missionary experience), can we put down seven ones?" (they have five kids).  They're really cool and seem really determined to do all twelve of the things.  They were brainstorming the entire time among themselves to see how they could do each of the points.  They're even going to try and set up a time that we can meet with them again later this week.

Then we met with the Červeňovi (Jiři and Lenka).  They're a newly wed couple and they're really awesome.  We're pretty good friends.  The entire time that we were giving the program to them, we were cracking little jokes, but keeping it very serious, if that at all makes any sense.  They were keeping the mood light-hearted while seriously considering how they could fulfill the twelve points as well.  Jiři served a mission here in the czech republic about five years ago and so he knows how the work is here and how he should be doing his part as a member.  Lenka has been a member for about four years now, but is really solid.  We had a really great time with them, then they fed us dinner and then we played some chess.  I've become alot better at chess this transfer because that's what Elder Vomocil and I have turned to do when we're bored and have nothing else to do on p-days.  We were there for a quite a while, but it was okay because it was after call-ins on Sunday, so there wasn't a whole lot that we could do other than that.  Otherwise we would be at home staring at the ceiling or something.

We're really looking forward to this next week.  It's going to be the full finding day on Wednesday.  We'll see how that goes.

I hope that you're all doing great and you're all in good health.  I love you all,

Starší Monk

Awesome April - Week One

Dear Family,

Here we are sitting at the end of the first week of Awesome April and it has very much so been "awesome." This week was the 181st anniversary of the Church this last Wednesday (6 April 1930 - 6 April 2011) and President Irwin gave us the challenge to give out twenty pamphlets of the restoration and get ten numbers with follow up meetings attached.

The week leading up to Wednesday was pretty normal, but on Wednesday we really had the determination to go out and meet that lofty goal that was given to us. We thought about it and said, "Oh, that's more than accomplishable in Prague or Brno, or maybe even Ostrava, but here in Trebic? That's going to be hard. Perhaps we should only have personal study and then just go out and hit the town so that we can have as much time to work as possible." Yes, we were considering not having companionship and language studies so that we could have two more hours to work. We got a text from the zone leaders that morning saying that we should read through the pamphlet together before we go out and work, so we did that too.

As soon as we set out to start working, there was a new and greater devotion to contacting people, finding the ones that would want a pamphlet, want to meet with us and would want to hear about the restoration of the gospel. About twenty minutes into our finding, we were in a little park (more like a path next to the river) and Elder Vomocil told me to talk to a lady who was approaching us. As she got nearer, I contacted her - probably not the contact that I would usually use to start talking with Czechs. I asked, "We're here talking to people about God. Do you believe in God?" Usually when I do that, they get really freaked out and just run away, shaking their hands, saying, "No, no, not about God. I don't have any interest/time," but this lady said, "Yeah I do." As we continued talking with her, we found out that she believes in God, but doesn't know what or who it is. As we testified to her, she would say, "Yeah, I believe that." Her name is Lenka Kočiřová. She told us about how twenty years ago she developed schizophrenia and only seventeen years she started taking medicine to control it. She expressed to us that she has no one to talk to about God, because she feels that as soon as she does, they'll think that she's gone crazy again and will lock her up in the looney bin. I think that she really felt a relief to speak to us, because we understand. She also spoke a lot about how the world has changed so much, for the worse. No one cares about love or friendship, but only about money and power and receiving. She said so many things that related to the pamphlet, I just had to whip one out about three minutes into the conversation, and I just stood there holding it until she stopped talking enough that I could get a word in and give it to her. We also got her number, but we didn't set anything up with her. She's just so open and we're very sure that she's going to be a great investigator, but more importantly, she's going to find what she's been looking for. I called her yesterday and set up to meet on Friday. She picked up the phone just so happy and enthusiastic - she can definitely feel that we want to help her and she wants someone who she can talk to. She'll be awesome.

Then later, after things weren't going so hot anymore, we were walking on one of the streets along the town square, and we were both kind of burned out. I looked at Elder Vomocil and said, "Hey, let's play a game. Whenever one of us snaps our fingers, the other has to contact someone within ten seconds." He said okay. Then I saw a pretty good crowd of people coming, not three seconds after I finished explaining the game, and snapped my fingers. The group passed us, and afterward, there wasn't really anyone. I looked at Elder Vomocil a little sad that the group passed and that it was so much smaller than it had seemed. I stopped counting and kept walking, but Elder Vomocil was still counting. Randomly, it seemed to me, he contacted a younger girl a little way down the street. We started talking and she said, "Já nemluvím česky." (I don't speak Czech.) She told us in pretty decent Czech, but you could tell it was difficult, that she was from Russia and that she doesn't speak Czech very well. Well, us as missionaries, know at least two languages: Czech and English, so I asked her if she knew English, in English. She looked at me and said, "Of course." We continued to speak with her. The more the conversation went on, she got a little on my nerves because she was trying to tell us that no one can know about these kinds of things and that we shouldn't believe them, that we should live our own lives. That's a pet-peeve that I've come to realize this transfer: when someone tries to tell me what I believe - it gets under my skin really fast. Elder Vomocil, on the other hand, was completely fine with it and just kept bearing testimony about the things that we do know, and that she could find out too. We challenged her to hear our message because we promised that it was something that she hasn't heard before. She agreed and seemed really excited to meet with us. Whether it be because we're two American boys, or because she can't do anything here in Trebic, because, as she explained it, "after five o'clock, it's like a nuclear bomb went off." She's from Moscow, so she's used to the larger cities. Her name is Valerie. The next day, we saw her on a patio of a restaurant with a couple of guys and we remembered that she told us that it would be her birthday. We said hi and kept going. She looked really surprised to see us and responded, "ahoj." As we got down the street a little way further, we sent her a text saying, "Happy Birthday, even though the bomb in Trebic has already gone off." She wrote back and said, "Dík :)" (thanks). We called her yesterday and asked if we could meet later in the week and she told us she's in Prague right now, so we'll call her tomorrow to set something up later in the week. At least she said that she wants to meet with us. Pretty cool.

Then a little later, the same day, I really wanted some ice-cream because we had been walking around town all day, and had probably been on our feet about six or seven hours at this point. There was a little ice cream place that I had seen a few days earlier kind of back off the river-walk park and thought, why don't we go there. We went there and the guy said, "Well hey guys. It's been a while since you've come. Your friends used to come all the time, and I just thought you guys stopped liking ice-cream or something." We had a fun little conversation with him. Perhaps we'll go there more often and slowly give him pamphlets or something to read, because I'm sure he doesn't get a ton of business. After we got our ice cream, we went and sat on one of the benches in that river park and were maybe sitting there ten minutes when a guy stopped and said, in Czech, "Hard work guys?" Elder Vomocil said, "Not really. We're just sitting eating ice-cream taking a break. That's not very hard work." The guy laughed a little and asked if we were the guys who walked around town talking to people about our religion. We said yes. We started talking with him, and he was really cool. We eventually ended up in English, and he speaks really well. His name is Milan. We ended up giving him a pamphlet and asked him to read it because it's our unique message. He said he'd like to meet with us but didn't know when he'd have time, so we exchanged phone numbers and said that we'd call some other time to set something up. We also told him to read the pamphlet and that we'd talk a little more about it next time. He said that he'd do it and that he was looking forward to next time.

That day was just filled with big and small miracles. Elder Vomocil and I have been waiting for us to get cut some slack and I think that the Lord finally gave us some. We didn't reach the twenty pamphlets goal or the ten numbers with meetings goal, but we did give out three pamphlets and got three numbers and we felt that we worked our very hardest that day. All three of these people, Lenka, Valerie and Milan, are all so cool and we just can't wait to meet with them all again.

We got conference this last week and watched the Sunday morning session for church. It was fantastic. Dana was there and she seemed to like it as well. We went over to her place afterward for lunch and a meeting. She's doing well. She's still really stressed out with school because it's coming down to the final few weeks and wrap-up for everything, but she did come to church! She's also making other progress in other ways, but that's too long of a story to write up here and now. Basically, she told us that she knows exactly what it's going to mean to start investigating the church more fully, because she knows it's true, and she knows that she needs to change a lot of things in her life to come in line with the gospel. She's doing very well. She knows what she has to do, but she's a little afraid of it, but for good reasons. She knows it'll be tough, but she also knows it'll be worth it.

I'm so happy to be here as a missionary right now! I wouldn't be any other place than right here. People sometimes say that we're crazy to let the church drive us around and control us for two years, but really, the church just gives us the calling, and then we drive ourselves and we do it because we want to and know that it's what the Lord wants of us. I love you all very much and hope that everything is going well for you as well.

Much love and prayers,
Starší Monk

Awesome April!

Dear Family,

We have some really cool things coming up this next month. I don't know if I've told you anything about the "Awesome April" program that we have. At the meeting that we had in Prague last week, President gave us a program that the entire mission is going to be doing each week of April.

Yesterday (Sunday the third) we all fasted for missionary work, especially for the month of April. Then this upcoming Wednesday (the sixth), which will be the 181st anniversary of the church being organized, we're going to have a special contacting day where each companionship is going to try to give out twenty restoration pamphlets and receive ten phone numbers with a follow-up meeting. That's going to be really hard here in Trebic, but we're both really excited for it and we have really high hopes.

Then the next week (the entire week the eleventh through the seventeenth) is going to be focused on members and meeting with them. President and the office elders have put together a trifold brochure with challenges for the members to do-- things like praying every day for missionary work and inviting a friend over to meet the missionaries. The trifold comes with a one month commitment and has twelve different things that they can do. The goal is to have them do all twelve things within the month. It means a lot of work for us because we have to visit them multiple times to follow-up on their progress but at least it gives us something a little new to do!

Then the next week, on Wednesday (the twentieth) will be completely devoted to finding. We're supposed to set up meetings around that day, if at all possible, and leave that day completely open for just finding people.

Then the entire next week (the twenty-fifth through the first of May) we're going to try to have each and every companionship in the entire mission give out one new baptismal date. If that were to happen, the mission would have around forty new baptismal dates! That would be amazing.

Elder Vomocil and I are really excited to start this month. This last week we worked harder than we have before, and we made a lot of laps on Trebic, we spoke to some cool people, we got a few potentials, but nothing too solid. Mainly, our feet hurt but we know that we did our best. We've had really beautiful weather this last week. We had one or two "Texas rainstorms" but nothing too bad. Yesterday the weather was in the high twenties to low thirties Celsius (so like sixties to eighties).

Other than that, we had sports day on Saturday. It's fun to spend time with the youth here. They always raise our spirits.

Love you all. Hope you're all enjoying spring! It's started here too.

Starší Monk