More typhoons are a coming!

Apparently that was my ninth taifuu! Well I guess throughout Japan. The other ones if they were in Tokyo weren't very bad. But number 9 was pretty big! We weren't allowed to go outside. I think they called that one Mindulle. But there is supposed to be an even bigger one coming on Monday at 15:00! 

The twenty two missionaries was pretty crazy! That missionary who didn't send me his info and I thought was going to be a punk turned out to be like the nicest one there! I was excited about that. The new couple missionary in the office (Loftus) came. The Yamashita's are here until the 28th. That's going to be so sad when they leave! I'm not looking forward to that day. 

 I love my nephews so much! That picture is adorable. 

I sent out transfer call emails this week. I was freaking out because something wasn't working how it usually does. I freaked out and called president Warnick and we tried to get something to work. He didn't know what to do. If we didn't figure it out I would have had to send each one like individually and that would have take hours! I prayed and then had the idea to use old information and then just change what needed to be changed. It ended up working fine. I actually sent them early. But I am now district leader and tech staff! Did I already say this last week? I don't remember. That will be and but I'm excited for the challenge and to learn a lot. I love my district! They are all really hard working obedient missionaries so that makes it easier. 

The  Sapporo Temple was dedicated! It was so awesome! I feel so strongly the importance of temples and a much deeper love and appreciation for Japan. They went through a lot to get the church here! The war broke out and the church was banned in Japan. When Heber J Grant opened Japan for missionary work he baptized two people the whole two years. He felt like he didn't do anything. The next time President Hinkley came there were about 100,000 members! The work is slow but it is going! I love Japan! 

I love the atonement of Jesus Christ. No matter how dirty you may feel, whether you be red like Crimson, Christ can make you whole again, white as wool. I know that's true. 

I love you all! 

Elder Draper

He's a district leader!

Hello!

Well it's taifuu season finally! We haven't had a real taifuu yet like with all the wind and everything but we sure have had ALOT of rain! And lots of thunder and lightning! I love it! Partly because I'm in the office looking out haha. But it's still very cool! 

It sounds like Allie is a fantastic teacher! I saw her Facebook post about her kids were sad to leave class haha. I thought that was cute. That's good that Tripp loves school. It helps I’m, sure that he has friends already there! Was he nervous?

I love the cannery! Jared and I went once and he was further up the line than I was so he would carve messages or faces in the peaches and I would see them. Then I would put some in the middle belt so he could see them. Then someone got mad at us and we stopped. Haha good times!

So there are actually 22 missionaries coming now. Some got moved to the October date. They come in three days! So exciting!

This week was really good. We had zone meeting and I was preparing to receive revelation in the meeting through scripture study and prayer. That morning I woke up and prayed that I would be given an opportunity use the gift of tongues and receive revelation for how to help
Sajad, our friend from Israel. I walked in to the meeting and Elder Richardson said to me “ドレーパー長老通訳よろしくね。“ which basically means Elder Draper you have the interpretation today! So I interpreted for the whole meeting and it was probably one of the best jobs I've done! I
know I was blessed with that opportunity. Then later I was on the tech staff computer and found a way old conversation between an old tech staff elder and a guy who translates for the church into Persian. In
that conversation it had the contact info for a man who could get us Persian resources about the gospel! Sajad speaks Hebrew but he also speaks Persian so I thought this would help!

Yesterday a whole slew of amazing missionaries went home. Some parents picked them up. It was so sweet to see missionaries hug their parents! It made me realize that it really isn't long before I that is me! I
miss you guys so much. But that doesn't mean I'm not focused and working hard. It's interesting how Japanese people react when they see their parents after two years. They don't. It's so strange. An elder
saw his mom and barely sad hi to her. No tears or hugs or even shaking hands!

So I got my transfer call and I will obviously be staying here for another transfer! Elder Hattanda and Elder Uemura are my companions and I will be both the tech staff and the district leader! Tech staff
is already busy enough! It will be an interesting feat trying to manage both responsibilities.

This week was so good! So many ups and downs. Lots of rain and one earthquake.

We went to the temple on Tuesday as well! I was pondering the reason for commandments and I went in and just pondered about it the whole time. I opened up the scriptures and found DC 130:20-21. God wants to bless us so much. The reason is because he is our father and he loves
us. But because of the irrevocable law that was decreed in heaven, there must be a commandment upon which the blessing is predicated. God does not give us commandments just for the sake of making us do
things. We have them so that we can receive the blessings prepared for us. In order to receive all the glory that is waiting for us in the celestial kingdom, we must go through some preparation. God has given
us commandments to prepare us for that glory. I was reading a scripture that said "...Be faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments of God, and I will encircle thee in the arms of my love."
(DC6:20) and I realized something. God's love is ALWAYS there. It's not that God will only love us if we keep the commandments. It's that God loves us and I order for us to allow those arms of love to be
encircle us, because of what is declared in DC 130:20-21 we must be obedient to the commandments given. God gives us commandments because he loves us very much.

I love you all too very much! But always remember the source from which the most purest loves emanates. That is our Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ. Learn of them and draw close to them and learn to trust them. They will abide near you.

Elder Draper

ドレーパー長老

 

He wrote this on Friday. Last night we received an email from the mission office, (he probably even sent it since that’s kind of his job) about a typhoon (hurrincane as we know it) hitting Tokyo. He appears to be fine since he just posted on face book. He sounds pretty excited about Typhoon season, let’s see what he thinks about it in his next letter after living through his first one. 

 

If you don't separate the trash, the garbage man won't take it...

Hello mom!

Oh man those little boys better not grow up too fast while I'm not there! They sound like their doing so good. I'm so happy for them! 

Yep no earthquakes this week. I did have like two more dreams about earthquakes! They’re not that scary when their small but as I'm just walking around big buildings I'm like, "man if there was a big one, I would die" haha and then I have dreams about them! 

The ocean was so nice! I miss water! But it was very very good to stand by the ocean again! That island is COVERED in temples though, it's crazy!  It was so so so hot though! We ate some I'm rice at a small shop out on the island. It was a way fun pday. 

This week we had a fun surprise! Well it was exciting to us because nothing ever happens in the office. So in Japan you have to separate the trash but somebody hasn't been doing that. They just out it in the dumpster and the garbage now man hasn't been taking it. So there's been Nasty trash in there for like 3 weeks or something and Elder Rose went to throw something away and came back with a video of maggots everywhere. It was the most awful thing you've ever seen or smelled. So Elder Rose and Elder Hattanda out on face masks and big rubber gloves on and cleaned it right then for like an hour! They would take turns running in and out so they could get away from the smell! It was kind of funny. But it was a change so it was fun! (I didn’t edit this paragraph so you could see how his words are becoming confused)

We had zone conference this week. It's so awesome to be able to meet with the zone and president and sister Warnick and receive the most awesome trainings! They taught us a lot of cultural things and things about Japanese that like no one had heard about! It was awesome!

Yesterday Elder Matsumoto came in from Hibarigaoka to replace Elder Frischknecht as the new AP. Elder Uemura, the elder I lived with in Tokorozawa, came in from Kohoku to encode the new recorder so Elder Nichalson will leave. So Elder’s Hattanda and Uemura will be my companions.  There will soon be three Japanese and 2 Americans! I've never heard so much Japanese! It will be very good for my Japanese! Well kind of, I learn lots of Vocab but almost everything else is informal Japanese haha. The Yamahsita’s (the older missionary couple in the office)  have been here for like 4 years. They had their first mission before Wada’s came in. He came. Then after a year or so sister yamashita got sick and went home for surgery. A month later they were called back! They will finish on the 28th. That will be the harder than the Wadas! I know them way more personally than the president! 

This week I come to find so much strength in prayer and scripture study. Helaman 3:27-30 and I read it and just felt the eternal importance for prayer and scripture study! Everyday we have so many distractions and Satan is trying hard to put things in our way to block our eternal progression but as I read this scripture I realized that even though those things are out there, God has prepared a way to keep us safe. As we come to love the scriptures and realize that they give us strength against satan and all evils of the work then we will truly be happy. There was never a man who was truly happy unless he was keeping the commandments of God. I know that's true and I love to share from the scriptures the gospel of Jesus Christ and see it help and bless their lives. I know the Book of Mormon is the word of God and we will get closer to God as we study it and pray about it!

I love you!

Elder Draper 

ドレーパー長老

(We asked him about the Olympic and if it was popular there. ) No it's not a huge deal here haha. I've only heard like two people talk about it. And that was conversation class in English class!

He saw the ocean for the first time in Japan!

The reunion should be so fun!

(Referring to the video he sent last week about teaching English, you have to look at it on the blog) The week before at dendo we told them that there was a word with 35 or so letters. We gave it as homework for them to figure it out. Then we taught it to them. We spelled it all in Japanese and it was way funny. (It was supercalifradulisticexpealidous) But no they all knew he was taking a video and everything we were all having a good time. I love them! ( I told Haydon I was going to meet Elder Belnaps mom this week and this is his response about Elder Belnap) I love him so much. He is one of the most dedicated, goofy, fun loving, loves to scatter the sunshine kind of guy I know. His favorite hymn is scatter sunshine. We sing it a lot I love it! 

I saw the video of Shay. That was so sweet! I didn't realize she missed me so much for me to be the one she cries for when she's all loopy. I love her! It was very sweet to watch. Only 13 months left Shayla! I hope all is well for you. I'm loving what I'm doing here. I love that I get to help people everyday and to look back on everyday and realize how much I've changed even in one day. It's so humbling to be able to introduce people to their Heavenly Father for the first time. It's like helping a baby learn to walk. Please take time to get to know God. He loves you more than any of us can right now. And we all love you so much, so that just goes to show how much God loves you. 

Wow. I can't believe people are already coming home! I still feel like I just got here! It's the most amazing feeling to feel the atonement of Christ work in your life. Conversion is not an even. It's a process. It is not something that takes place overnight but rather the journey of a lifetime. It's hard but it's our purpose in life to change, to overcome. We came here knowing that it would be a tough road but we knew that by going through challenges and temptation and overcoming we could be eternally perfectly happy. More than we can even now fathom. Sometimes life feels impossible, like everything is against us, like there is no end to our trials  I promise and testify that Christ lives and wants to help everyone of us. The question is not will he let us, but rather will we let Him help us. 

This week I had the opportunity to spend quite a bit of time with my friend Sajad from Israel. He's taught me a lot about the Middle East in general. At first we kind of thought he was a bit 不思議 but as we have got to know him we found that he is a thoughtful kind loving person who wants happiness in life. We met  at 一圓 a famous gyoza shop here with huge gyoza. 

It was president Warnick's birthday on the fifth. We didn't do anything other than sing to him. The other day in staff meeting we sang and had cake. The Yamashita's always make a cake for the birthday of the one who is working in the office at the time. They are so kind to us. 

This week I've been working on not getting angry at anything. So the area office took away my laptop while I was using it with out my even knowing what was going on. We can only have 4 church owned computers in the office. But president Wada gave us the laptop so it should be good. While I was using it yesterday I was prompted to restart it. I did. Then nothing. Everything I was doing, the very account itself, everything that was saved for three years was gone. I felt something weird though. The natural part of me felt like I was justified in being angry, but I just wasn't. I would even go as far as to say that I even wanted to be angry, simply in spite of the fact that I wasn't, but I just couldn't. It was amazing. 

An hour after the computer incident Elder Hattanda drove us to Hachioji so I could give my Facebook training to all the newest missionaries. We got stuck in traffic for two hours. We finally got out there and I gave my training all from my iPad because well I didn't have a laptop. After that we went and picked up a bike from the takao church. It's all foresty and jungly out there. It was great! The mountains were really steep and covered in fluffy green trees and bamboo. 

The next missionaries come in about two weeks! I gotta get started in their iPads! That will take a long time!

I can't think of anything else haha. We're going to Enoshima here pretty soon. I will take lots of pictures. I finally will see the ocean! 

I love you! 

Elder Draper

ドレーパー長老

Pokemon Go has helped Missionary work.

Hello woman! (That was really polite in the time of Christ)

This week we had staff meeting and I've started already for the next wave of missionaries and their iPads. There are 26 coming in hot! Last time there were 15 and it felt like a big group. I have no idea what this will be like! Although I have already got two Elders in the MTC being stubborn about giving me their information to set up their iPads. I wanted to just send them a real short message saying, "look kid if you don't give me your info right now you ain't gettin an iPad, aight?" But instead of that I said the exact same thing with a bit more professional language and a bit more explanation. Oh well if they continue to be stubborn I just won't give them an iPad. I have the power to hold iPads from people! They are not a right, they are a privilege. They aren't even ours they are the churches! 

I'm so glad to hear that the calf is doing better! 

Hahaha. The icecream truck. Good times. People always think it's pretty cool that my job was an icecream man. It's a lot like dendo in a way. 

Wow they are already doing the music festival thing again? Was that already last year??? That's so cool! That would be something I want to go to someday. You can just have a random huge massive country festival in your tiny town that no one knows about without going to it once right?

I haven't felt any earthquakes lately. But a 5.4 is pretty big! They say at 6 is when buildings start collapsing and stuff starts going down. (there was another one but he didn’t feel it I guess)

The other day we were in yodobashi camera buying air cons and the whole building started shaking. It went on for like ten minutes! Nobody else reacted though. Hattanda choro didn't even notice it. I'm not sure if it was a 地震or not but it sure felt like one! 

By the way, yes the mosquitoes here are rather large! I'm sure the bugs here aren’t as big as the Philippines but they are definitely bigger than America’s! The suzumebachi (the giant hornets) are still around. Nobody pays attention to them. As long as you mind your own business they don't attack. I guess. I'm still screaming like a little girl inside. 

 I've only seen like three lightning storms. It rains a lot but usually nothing more than just a lot of rain. But taifuu season is coming up soon! I'm pretty excited. Partly because I'll be in the office and I can just watch through the window haha. 

Ya so this week was way fast! I swear everyday I wake up and then BOOM it's already time to sleep. It's so crazy! 

This week we had a lesson with Hideki San. His baptismal date is still set for September 27th but he still kind of views it as a legend. But we're working on it with him. He's about to go to kamawa for work so he will be gone for three weeks or so. Please pray for him!

We have found a couple cockroaches in our apartment so we need to be cleaner. Not that that's entirely our fault. Cockroaches are just common in Japan. 

So ya this week we needed to go take out the dryer from the Fussa apartment and take it back to the honbu (mission office). It took almost 4 hours. It's so weird to see my first Japanese apartment with nothing in it! We got the dryer out and then I took elder Hattanda and elder Nichalson over by the train station to get root beer out of a vending machine( which is way rare here. The Japanese HATE rootbeer unless they are from Okinawa for some reason.)   Then we got some yakitori which just means fried bird. It's on a stick. It was raining a bit and we didn't have umbrellas but it was so nice to be back in my Japanese hometown! 

I love my companions so much. I have been so blessed! We have all become much closer lately. It's fun to have Elder Nichalson be from Idaho because we know what each other is talking about when we talk about the weather or like the fire seasons or the potatoes or whatever it may be! Elder Hattanda is just the happiest missionary you could ever find. He is a transfer and is already in the office with by far the busiest job in the office. He feels no stress. He says he is 喜びだらけwhich means he is covered in joy! Haha. He always tells me I stress too much. It's true. He gives me massages to get rid of the knots in my back. Every night I go out in the kitchen to pray.  Every time I come back into the room he is hiding somewhere. He always tries to scare me haha. He's pretty good! Then he gives me a hug goodnight and then goes to bed. Man seriously everybody in the office right now is just so great. Elder Rose and Elder Freschknecht are both amazing and so kind. 

We had splits this week. We completely forgot.  Elder Richardson and Elder Matsumoto showed up after MLC (mission leadership council) which got over at like 9:45pm and then they showed up to split with us. So elder Nichalson went to Hibarigaoka. Elder Matsumoto came here. We planned to go through the park and walk about an hour to get to mitaka. We used Pokémon Go as a way to talk to people. It scares me how widespread it got so fast. But it is seriously helped missionary work SO MUCH. We've been able to talk to so so many more people by asking about their Pokemon.! It's HUGE there were hundreds of people at a complete standstill in park. Hundreds! But yes while we were talking to this one kid I saw an old man staring at me. Then he came closer. Then he backed away to the other side of the road. Then he left so we kept talking normal. I look over my shoulder and he is literally like 2 feet behind me! Elder Matsumoto was like"can we help you?" He said "do you know elder Belnap?" Apparently he had plans to meet him today. We waited with him. After Belnap Choro came the old guys friend came and talked to us for about 40 minutes about who knows what. Literally didn't understand anything he said. Old men are so hard to understand. It's like a different language. We found some other potential investigators who were all Chinese. It was way fun! 

This week I've been trying to focus on serving others out of love for God and for them without any complaining thoughts at all. It's been so humbling. Like tonight we had planned out our PDay and everything and then right in the middle of emailing we get a call that the one week new senior couple got a flat tire over in Zama. After realizing they didn't have a jack we decided we needed to drive the two hours to go help them. It was a good thing too because they don't speak any Japanese what so ever. He's a very stern military man. Quite intimidating really. When we got there he mainly just told us all the things to prepare for in the future so nothing like this happens again instead of saying thank you for driving two hours in the middle of our pday to save them. But I felt really good about being able to help someone in need. He drove us as we guided him to a nearby tire store. That was terrifying. He drove way slow and got honked at, almost hit a wall, almost rode on the wrong side of the road, and scraped the bottom of the car all in about a 5 minute drive! But all is well in Zion. I was glad to be able to help somebody! We stopped by Costco on the way home. 

The year has felt like a week, the weeks feel like seconds and the days feel like weeks. Time is weird out here. It literally doesn't make any sense to me but I am grateful for ever minute the lord has allotted to me to be here. I love these people and I love my Father in Heaven. I want everybody to know that He loves them. That's why I'm here. I love it so much. And I love all of you! 

Elder Draper

ドレーパー長老