Watermelon and Napoleon Dynamite!

Something that I have definitely learned here so far is that offense is only an offense if you make it be one.   

Me and Hawkins choro are getting along really well.  Yesterday we taught Kato San and it went very well.  A couple days ago we taught Muraoko San, and I was getting really frustrated with the language barrier, and then we showed him the Easter video, "Because he lives" and during that, i prayed soo hard that I can express what the lord wants me to, and then after the video I was blessed, I spoke what I felt and the holy ghost carried it to his heart.  It was sooo awesome!! I met a girl who knew Drew  in Tahiti!! She has a crazy story. She got hit by a car when she was almost done with her mission, and ended up serving a 3 year mission!! I can’t remember if i told you or not, but I met Napoleon dynamite's Grandpa in the temple last week!! (a man came up to him in the temple and asked Haydon where he was going, when Haydon said Japan he said that his grandson went there. He then said do you know who Napoleon Dynamite, he’s my grandson!) 

Lowry Shimai got a watemelon in the mail from her neighbor so we all ate it in class.  

Every night me and the other chorotachi share stories about just whatever it’s great. I love them all!! 

The cookies were such a nice surprise! We still haven’t eaten them all, mainly because I hid them away under my bed so nobody will steel them.  But I should probably share haha.  My companion, Hawkins Choro is the new District leader but that doesn't give me any leadership roles. So we thought we were getting kohai on Wednesday but we didn’t.  (IF ANYONE KNOWS WHAT KOHAI IS PLEASE TELL ME)  But the zone down the hall got a ton and we went down there and like they were wild animals locked up in a cage.  I can't believe it has already been 3 weeks! After the 2nd week they rotate the food again so now i have realized how bad the food is here.  The first 2 weeks it seems fine but then you have it all over again and it is awful haha.  But it’s ok!  So the other night I prayed that the night would be calm and quiet, and NOBODY snored at all. I have been sick twice so far.   A couple weeks ago we had Gerald Causse speak to us and he played the piano and he play Come Come Ye Saints.  He played the intro in different octaves like 10 times. At first it bothered me and then I started singing the words that would have gone with the music and it is "We'll find the place, that God for us prepared."    I found this poem: 

"Doubts and fears may oft set deep into our mortal hearts, 

We may be lost in our own ways, but in the lord we're not. 

Futures dark unknowns, may seem too much to bear,  

But courageous faith in Christ will bring us safely there. 

There is a place prepared by he who is divine, 

For each of us this place exists, Savior be our guide." 

The spirit really has been pressing on me that we each have a plan, and the Savior is preparing the way to obtain that Promise Land. 

I love you all so much and I know that this church is true!! Please look for opportunities to share the gospel with somebody this week.  Our job is not to convince. It is to invite them to come unto Christ. We explain it in a way that is specific to their needs, and the Holy Ghost will testify the truth of it to them. 

I love you all!! 

Draper Choro 

Konnichiwa

So today was interesting.  We woke up at 6 to get to the temple at 7. When we got back Gatherum Choro's bed was all messed up. But it was made before we left.  so we reported it to the front desk. They had him call our president, and then I was interviewed by security to get all the details so they could be on watch.  Then they gave us a new room!!!! Not expecting that! So we went to change rooms, but then this crazy old guy like yelled "Don’t you move rooms!"  and we are all like " the lady at the front office told us too!"

But then he told us that he had moved the mattress. He replaced it. But you know he didn’t bother to leave a note, or even re make his bed.  So that was crazy.  We got excited to move because we wanted to remove everything before Nelson Choro and Franks Choro got back to freak them out. Ya Tan left Last night at 3 am.  He gave me a spoon from the cafeteria as a goodbye gift.  But last night we were cleaning a building and it happened to be Tanners building so I talked to him for 10 minutes.  He gave me food that he didn’t want to bring. I met his district, well some of them.  But it was cool! I have a picture of him, me and Dallin. Colt left Monday.

So we are done teaching our first investigator, Yoshida Taizou.  That was hard. Now we have 2 investigators. Kato san and Muraoko Ryuma.  Muraoko is somewhat receptive, he said he would pray.  But Kato San is really tough.  He actually made Price Shimai cry.  She was really upset because that’s how it is going to be in the real field.  But I love it! I can seriously understand sooo much Japanese! The gift of tongues is real.

So I’m getting pretty used to everybody snoring all the time. that’s a good skill to have haha. . (He asked me to send earplugs, he said the sound like a den of bears at night) I’m going to send a bunch of pictures right now.  I’m trying to figure out how to send videos. I took some of our district singing in Nihongo. And we’re all pretty good singers so it’s awesome!  I’m playing Joseph Smith medley next Sunday. I’m excited!!  Haha that’s awesome about Krue and Tripp. (I told him the boys got ahold of string and ran around the outside of the house twice. It took me ½ hr. to clean it up)

 I  talk in Japanese in my sleep!! hahaha but everybody here sleeps differently than I usually do. (He also wrote me a letter: he mentions his district all got sick with fevers and chills, but they’ve recovered now. He said his companion uses the “D” word a lot, he’s from the UK and that’s not a bad word there, so they are working on that. He loves his companion and his district.)

I love you I’ll have more details in the next email

I love you all! 

minasa ai shite imasu!

Draper Choro

1st real email

Konnichiwa!
I've been working harder then I ever have on anything ever ever ever before hahaha.  I wake up, study, breakfast, personal study, companion study, language study, addition study, lunch, classroom study, teach an investigator in nihongo (Japanese), study for like the next 3 hours, then dinner, then study, then Home, then study, and write in my journal, then we pray in Nihongo.  I can pray, testify, introduce, carry basic conversations, share scriptures, read scriputres, ask questions, ask if someone will be baptized.... etc.  I love it here so much! My companion is Hawkins Choro, he is from Reading UK and is very British.  I am actually loosing my Amercian accent to a British/ Japanese one.  Also in our district is Choro (Elder).... Nelson, Franks, Stacey, Gatherum, and Hawkins and myself.  The for the shimai (sisters), Price from UK as well, leppanen from Finland, and then Lowry and Gillepsie. 

Since we are the Kohai in the zone (the greenies) all of the senpai (older people) come to our room and RAID our room and try to trade ties with us.  They are the tie dealers. They're aren't supposed to trade ties so its like a black market haha.  They are super cool but it is so hard to concentrate when they are in there for like 20 minutes bartering their worst ties for our best ones.  Nelson choro is the only one who has ever traded anything with them. Sorry for the bad spelling I just don't have a tone of time to worry about it hahaha. You get the jist. But our district leader is Franks Choro, he is super cool.  I love everybody in my district, I have come to be super super good friends with them all.  We just got done teaching our investigator Yoshida Taizou, it's all in Nihongo.  From the very first day, we speak Japanese like 100%.  We didn't understand anything at all for about 3 days. But i am starting to get it a lot. Its so fun! I love you guys so much! 

kono kyokai ni kansha shite imasu. kyokai wa shinjitsu da to shitte imasu. Watashitachi wa sukuinushi ni yotte machigai kara kaiho suru koto ga dekimasu. (We have no clue what this means, but we are very happy he does)

Elder Draper

 Draper Choro

Quick email

We received a quick email from Haydon on Thursday. His P Days are Thursdays while at the MTC and he said he loves it and that he's alive! I guess that's all we can ask for! The following picture is from Elder Sessions!

MTC!

Today Elder Draper entered the MTC! He was greeted by his best friend Tanner (Elder Sessions, who will be serving in the Philippines). Haydon is so happy to finally start his mission and serve the Lord. We are so proud of him and can't wait for his first letter!

We spent the evening at Olive Garden as a family. When we were there another Elder who was entering the MTC was there and he just so happened to be heading to a Japanese Mission as well!