hey

Hey, so like all the missionaries are getting like free money from President Bush, did I sign up for this free money?

oops

I forgot to mention something amazing that happened! Okay one day this week my comp and I just bith woke up dead, not really much of that burning desire to preach, it was hard to walk out that door at 10h00, but it got better that day, we had a good day and right before we were going to go home for the night, we decided to stop by a members house and ask for a referral, we got into their compound an dwe saw a young boy laying on a mat, we kinda was whimpering, so we asked his mom if he was sick, yep sure enough, and we looked at each, elder Picard and I and knew what we needed to do, we ask the member to help us, his wife made him put on a white shirt, that is a great wife there, and he had never anointed so we taught him how, it was really dark that night and after the benediction we just kinda sat there waiting for something, I wanted to tell the kid to stand up, rise and be healed but, seconds after thinking this the kid started moving around and asking for things to eat. The mother thanked us and we left and was talking with Frère Augustin, he said the boy has been sick for three four days and something about bowels and stomach problems, he said something that really touched me, he said, Now they know that God is with us! How true is that! GOd is really with us!!!! I jsut wanted to share that! have a good vaction!

LEEtter haha

This week is fourth of july, I remember the last time I spent fourth of July in Africa, it was in Benin and wed got to go to a Celebration at the US Embassy, I specially remember thinking at that time, hey I got only one more Fourth of July here! And its here! Crazy! Well this week has been fun, we have had two sick elders, 4 baptisms, tons of rain! Kinda sounds like David had the same thing, its starting to become a favorite pastime for us, trying to navigate our way through maze of lakes and mud to find our friends! Its really funny cause a lot of the time we had to runn and do a long jump to get across some parts, its a good thing I pretty dang good at that! We had four baptisms this week, one was a family that does gardining out on the beach, there places is so ideal, its what I thought mission would be like, quiet, tranquil, green and African! They are a good family! I dunno what else to talk about, you will be seeing the southams so they will fill you in! and Idaho! Say hi to everyone of me! well Things are good, its hot and humid and rainy and hope all is well and take of care of yourselfs! i Love ya! Remember who you are!

pic-some cute kids with a Texas a&m shirt, made me think of you in Texas!

HAppy, Akossiwa,Moi, Rose, her Dad Elder Gillis , Laméssin, Elder Picard and the two cutest girls ever!!!!!

happy

This week has been crazy always something new!! Well the Southams have went home,  sadly I wasnt able to return and see them in Bénin again, but I have lots of time after the mission to visit with them.  They stopped by the apartment on p-day and said their adieux, it was good to see them again.

Well then this week I recieved official news that one of my buddies from BYU was actually coming here last wednesday.  I was going have to find a companionship to put him up for a couple of days. I wanted him to be with us, but president said he needed a bed, anyways it was really wierd to see him! It was a collision of two worlds! Of all the places here in africa, I meet him.  To defy the odds, his comp in the mtc was a kid from my football team back in the day! The world is ridiculously small I find out!

The other day, we were trying to find a taxi, and someone offered us a ride, he was a muslim and said that he usually doesn't do stuff like this but he ahd a good feeling about us, turns out that he lives in Austin,TX a good part of the year, and was just here visiting his family!

We got about 6 baptisms this week, which means a lot of paper work this week for me. We met with the branch president this week, seeing what we could do to help him and his branch.  He told us the first thing is attend PEC and ward council, which makes sense but the ZL hasn't been doing that for two years.  So I attended this week, and wow, wow there is a lot of wokr here still to do.  I cant believe this branch works.  We didn't get one thing done in either meeting.  So we going to help them be more effective!

So much work, never have time to rest.  We got up a little early so that this afternoon we will have time to sleep a little and just relax cause if not, my mind will explode! This week we have been looking up all the non actives in the branch.  Wow there are a lot.  We even met with the guys who brought the church here from Denmark.  The guy doesn't even care anymore, which is really sad.   I think he is a little jealous too of the others that help started it here.  Very sad.  After the meeting with him, the scripture from 1 nephi came to mind, its better than one man to perish that a whole nation to dwindle in unbelief, Elder Picard and I had a good laugh over that one! Its soo nice to have a comp who actually likes, sorry LOVES to work! it soo much easier and better attitude, I love elder Picard, we work really well together! We gave a record high of 6 blessings this week, I love being able and worthy to use the priesthood to bless the lives of others, really there is no greater joy than that in the the humble service of our Lord! Well that a whole lot hope.  As you read every word of this know that I love this work and this people.   I love Him who sent me here and and I Love all of you!!! Have an amazing week and remember who you are!!!

Love
elder Lee

Time is ticking‏

Well it sounds like everyone is doing amazing! My family is going to Idaho, Dad's winning me free stuff, Idaho is warming up, Elder Luebke is finding what is means to be a real missionary, Alyssa is now a Senior Comp, Jayne is swimming with scout, Southams are going home today, we had five baptisms this weekend, and it raining! Life is so good! So the Southams are coming through day before they head home, I remember thinking when I left Bénin that they still had a long time until they left, but they are already going home! Well this week was awesome, I really love my new comp. he actully likes to work and he is everythign a good missionary is! such an example to me! We worked really hard this week, I think we taught like 32 leçons and gave 4 people baptismal challenges and dates! I think 11 came to church, it really pays off to work hard and be humble! I love this work, there are some days I just want to run around telling everyone that Its here again!! Its here its here its here! The gospel of JESUS CHRIST is here, not this polluted doctrine skewered(smart word) by men, but His Church AGAIN! Usually when this happens people just give me wierd looks why some yovo is gleefully skipping down the streets talking with everyone, but whatever its true! I wish people could just grasp that concept, even a lot of the members dont even grasp that! I dunno, its a good life! God is great! I have been trying to listen to that CD that mom sent me, the Called to Serve by MOTB, and our CD player has its own mind, but teh other nite I got it to work, and I am in Love with the Song He Sent His Son, seriously, children songs are the best, so simple but so powerful, it really has made me think of Gods love for us and the sacrifice of His son, I have never really truly understood the atonement, nor will I ever fully comprhend it, but everyday I find a new way, a new appreication for this sacred sacrifice, the most powerful moment in the history of eternity! I hope I can continue on this path, using, testifying, and learning about the Atonement! anyways love you all, hope you are all as happy as a clam and remember who you are! I love you so much!!!!

Love,
Elder lee

Boom boom boo!‏

I Moved. So I left the good old branche de Tokoin and now in the branche de Lomé! I got a new companion Elder Picard from Tahiti! I think if I could of picked my comp this transfer if would of been him! He is an amazing guy! Ideal missionary I think, just he way he acts and talks, really a good missionary! So now when I go and visit Bora Bora I can see one of my old companions! Im liking the change cause now I have no idea where we are when we are walking, last area I was there for 7 months in that quartier, I could walk blind folded up and down those roads! Its good for my head! And I get to meet some other amazing people! So far the investigators I have met are really good, they have about 4 people for baptism saturday, and another 7 in two weeks, so that means we got to fidn some new people to teach! Anyways along with this move President Dil called me to be the Zone Leader for the two countries, yikes. That was a suprise hopefully I can serve him well. It was a pain moving cause, mostly its two new missionaries who never had done my quartier and so I had to carefully detail every friends house so that they could find it, usually one elder stays but me and elder stucki bith moved out! The nex apartment we moved into is not an apartment, we called it 'le chateau' meaning HUGE HOUSE in french! seriously this thing is way too big for us, it an entire house two stories, we have a entire room for our pressing board! But the worst part is, that is only half of it! This house has what we call the slave quarters, there is four room, two bath slave house just past the 'gardin' Its pretty ridiculous, I feel ashamed walking into this place cause its so big! It was kinda hard to leave my quartier cause I love the people so much! But I like change, anyways its been raining alot here, last nite we were out  visiting some people and we got caught a members house because of the rain storm, and it poured as usual, it was about dark and we decided to brave it and go for it, elder picard and I we puddle hopping trying to find a way through the lakes that covered streets and houses, it was quite the adventure cause it was dark and it was really hard to see, but we finally found a way and worked out way back to the chateau, things are going pretty good here, got lots to do so I will see ya later remember that I love yoo so much and remember who you are!!!

Love
Elder Lee

So when we see another yovo here, this is the typical face that is displayed, yovos are wierd.

this is another family, english speaking from Nigeria

Cassandra, Emeka, Alice, and ma fiancée Angela(babé)

Alyssa Email

hola familia!!!
¿qué tal? so i know that you are all going to think that i forgot about you because it´s been almost 2 weeks since last wrote! and even still time here is for sure the most precious thing that we have so i am going to make this quick! so we went on our conference tour and it was really neat! we got to go to coban which is a place really famos for waterfalls and rivers stuff like that and also there are a lot of women there who still use the typical clothing! so i bought a corte and it´s really really pretty!!! that is what the skirt thing is called and it´s really not the most flattering dress but the lady i bought it from made it BY HAND!!!! it´s really neat i love so much the culture here! in other places in central america they don{t so much still have that...a lot of it has been modernized ect, but it´s so amazing i can´t even describe it! so that was coban it was pretty much a normal conference but oh we played with the cuttest little kids while we were waiting for the AP´s to finish interviews! we weere outside with them catching zapos!!! very fun and the kids we so nuts i loved it! so next we rode up with president to peten! that is where tikal is and all the tour sites by flores! it´s pretty and it my first zone so i felt perfectly at home (althought i had forgotten a little about how hot it is up there!) our presentations were pretty cool i{m not going to lie! maybe next week i´ll send ya a copy of a¨scripture¨ we made up....president wanted us to talk about the basic problems we have here as a mission, fungus, parasites, rashes, ingrown toenails and then emphasize cleanliness (spiritual, fisical, y su ambiente aka enviroment) so we made up a MOCK dyc section 4 for everone to recite like you do at conferences. anyawy it was really neat to be able to do all that and to get to know president as a real person! i think before i was a little intimidated because---well, he´s the president but to see him as a normal person and how he treats his wife is soooooo cute! we stopped at rio dulce which is just outside the polochic valley! there is acutally an area for the hermana´s there that i would love to go to when i leave the capital called elestor° if i went there i would get to learn some Ket´chi! that would be sooooo sweet!!!! so i{m going to put in a good word with the new president! speaking of he is supposed to be here the beginning of july! we are also getting a new dr. for the missions, well he´s an eye doctor so i guess i{m going to have to remove the ingrown toenails haha but yeah so i guess that is about it....really things have been so much fun! we have been so busy with nursing stuff that it´s been hard to really focus on the area and the ward so that isn´t as good as i would like....not sure if i mentioned it last time but we have now sent home two elders for testicular cancer! not sure if there is something in the water here or what but i think with all the medical problems we have been having, it´s a little hint from above just reminding me to go back to school and to finish my RN! also to never stop learning no matter where you are! i mean if i want to be a goddess someday i have to be ´allknowing´ right? haha well i am really excited for my next comp...we have an ehrmana that hurt her knee really bad, and only has one change left so i{m thinking she might be with me and die in the office....but anyway i{m excited becuase she is really good and i can learn a lot from her! also we are starting a more sigudo agenda de divisiones con nuestra barrio so we will be having more participation and help and references from them! yesterday we made divisions with the youth, they are soooo much fun! well anyway it´s always great to hear from you guys! i love and miss you all!!! hasta luego
-hermana collette

La nouvelle dés l'elder!

Well mom you can say your prayers have been answered cause Im still as roudy and rumbustious as ever! Seemed just to last just that day! So twenty one isnt all that bad! It was an interesting day cause at 18h00 p-day ends and we go out teaching, at this time I still wasnt feeling very well at all, we had no rendez-vous or nothing really to do but I decided to go out anyways, putting a little faith and we found three people that we have been trying to contact for a LONG time!! I can say, God works miracles everyday around me, I just hope that I can write them all down and remember them! Anyways we had our last Zone Conference with Pres. Dil, I am going to miss him! He is such a good man always diligently working for the Lord, like the other day, after Zone Conference they went over to Bénin, did the Zone conference over there, came back and at 22h00 he was at the church here doing temple interviews, it really shocked me to see him there, but gives me a good example of one I need to act like him! Week was really stressful, more than usual I guess just being soo old, dont move quite like you used to, but the yoga stretching is helping for old folks like me! We added another person with a baptismal date, Kossi, he was an old investigator, who brother got robbed and mobbed, left him half brain dead, and so Kossi was working overtime as Zimijian, and I havnt seen him for months but we finally caught him one nite and after a good discussion he wanted to continue cause he felt something was missing in his life, THE GOSPEL! Sadly there are alot of people like that, hopefully I can be an instrument utile entre the hands of God! It is sucha blessing to see people light up when they finally come to know the true meaning of the word LE retablissement, or THE Restoration! I love it! Kaka and Celestin, some people who jsut started coming to church had that experience this week! It was a bitter week but the sweet experiences of these two healed those wouns quickly! I feel so tired like today, I jsut wanted to sleep for 24 days and then I could maybe sleep another 6 then I would be well rested and prepared! Transfers are this week, we will see where I end up, could be in another country! I love this mission! Where else can you say that at transfers you could be switching countries! So I think I might let you guys go, cause I could catch a few z's before tonite, donc have a good week and remember who you are and that I love you sooooo much!!!!!


Love
Elderlee