How are things?  Well yesterday was good at church.  Lameck was
confirmed, I also performed that one.  We had his friend Sam at church
who also is progressing well, but we can only see him on Saturdays and
Sundays.  We saw JJ on Wednesday and had a really nice lesson.  He
couldn't come to church because he had to go out of town but he should
be back tomorrow.  I said that he had been prepared because even
though he had been taught only one lesson he told his family who were
giving him problems about us being Satanist that he would keep coming
because he knew this was the right church to join.  We never really
got a chance to go to Mandevu this week because my companion doesn't
really like bikes so we were walking but then he got a blister so
during the time we were going to go there we needed to get one of the
bikes fixed so we could use them.  Now it is good but we were waiting
for it to get fixed for a while.  So it just never really worked out.
We also attended the wedding of the branch clerk in our branch so that
took up our Saturday.  But instead of being at the reception my
companion and I went and witnessed a baptism for the Lusaka and Munali
Branches.  I actually have taught one of them when I was on exchanges
with Elder Hewlett.  President Taggart Gave the welcoming remarks and
he talked about his own baptism.  He was baptized in the Salt Lake
Tabernacle.  I didn't even know there was a font there.   Well we are
halfway through the transfer so we have 3 weeks until the new
missionaries come and then we will see some real shake ups.  We are
all excited to see what happens and which areas get opened or
reopened.  It will be interesting.  That is about all that has changed
and/or happened to us.  It has been pretty uneventful besides that.

That is crazy to hear about that Earthquake near Karl.  But I think
that you are right Dad, about the mission president's wife meaning
that they get to provide service and help in the cleanup.  Especially
since they are all safe.  Maybe her son is new on mission and she is
still in the mode where she is afraid of being away from her son.  I
was given an epipen on Tuesday, I feel much safer now.  I think that
they have another one at the mission office in case I have to use it.
I am happy to hear about Ryan Gurr working on his papers.  Even though
he may be dragging a bit it is still a start.  I was wondering do you
know when Austin leaves for his mission?  I am glad that the Temple
went well.  I can hear Dan saying that to that guy.  It sounds just
like him.  It seems like things have really been changing in the ward
since the new Bishopric was put in.  I sent a letter to the Woods a
long time ago but I have a feeling that it didn't get there.  So I am
planning on sending a new one.  I think that the mail is a lot faster
now than it was in Zim, even than when I was in Harare.  People have
been getting packages in just a few weeks so I think the ones you sent
should be here in the next week or two.  Well winter is now leaving,
not that it ever really felt like winter but now that it is turning
back into summer I can really tell the difference.  It is getting
really hot in the daytime.  But I hear that it is the worst in October
and November.  We still only wear our suits on Sundays at church and
at District Meeting on Tuesdays.  It was crazy, today while my
companion and I were shopping at the Zambeef there was this white guy
who is one of the Managers of the company there.  He saw our name tags
and asked where we were from.  So then he told us that he and his
family had been looking for a church to join and he wanted to know
where he could find the church.  That is the first time since I have
been here that I have talked to a mzungu who was interested in the
church.  It is too bad that he doesn't stay in our area.  But maybe he
will go to church in his area and will get taught and baptized.  Well
that is all I can think of now.  I hope you have a great week.

Love,

Elder Cecil

My companion is the second from the left and my former companion Elder
Munguri is two people from him in the blue tie next to the sisters.

So first off the baptism with Lameck went well.  He is a really
powerful guy.  He asked me to perform his baptism so my baptism
clothing got its second use outside of the temple.  Our week went
okay.  We are still trying to find new investigators but I feel that
we are going to be able to do it more effectively because we are going
to move to a different part of our area.  This idea came to us
yesterday and also is the reason for me putting a subject on my email.
 So we went to a member's house yesterday for a lesson in the Mandevu
compound and the lesson was great.  The guy is named JJ Phiri (the h
is silent so it is pronounced Piri) and I am sure that he has been
prepared to receive the Gospel.  But anyway afterward when we left we
decided to walk back a different way to see if there was a shortcut.
So as we were walking there was this big ravine in front of us and we
saw a guy in front of us go down it and a minute later he came up the
other side so we were like well there is a way to get there.  Then we
got down inside.  There was this drainage stream which is completely
filled with rubbish and looked like it was solid except about 1 1/2
feet of it.  It looked like our shoes would get a little muddy but
nothing else, as many of them are.  So my companion goes first and he
takes a few steps and things looked exactly as I have described.  Then
the next step came.  He stepped and his foot started to sink so he
quickly takes another step and now he is really starting to sink.  So
he tries to jump out and instead of going up he went down.  He falls
on his stomach and kind moves like a polar bear on ice.  Then he gets
to the edge of the stream at the other bank and the rubbish completely
breaks and he goes about waist deep and his feet are not touching the
bottom.  He is frantically trying to grab something to keep him from
sinking because the thickness of the mud is sucking him down.  He was
able to find one root that would hold but he was still continuing to
sink.  These two little kids who were with their friends nearby ran
over.  My companion is shouting for help and then they grab his hand.
Then the other kids ran over so there was maybe ten of them and they
are all really small like no bigger than Adam or smaller.  So my
companion is not a small person and they should not have been able to
pull him out of that mud which was sucking him down.  But they got him
up and out of the mud.  Then they all start looking for a better way
for me to cross because I was a good 15 feet from them.  They found a
spot that I could jump over so that was good.  But my companion was
absolutely amazed that they were able to pull him out and to be honest
so was I.  He said that he felt like he was made light and that he
couldn't feel his weight any more.  I don't know if the kids felt
anything but Elder Mangumta sure did.  This whole time I am standing
on the other side of this stream thinking, "My companion is sinking
and I can't do anything to help him."  Now as we look back at it, it
is absolutely hilarious.  But at the time it was really intense.  The
really interesting thing is that there was adults who just sat and
watched this whole thing while the children came to his rescue.  I
guess that is why the Savior said, "of such is the Kingdom of Heaven."
 I am planning on writing an article about it and then if my companion
approves of it then I will send it to the Church Magazines.  There are
so many things that you can learn from this.  So sometime this week I
am going to sit down and do some writing.  But anyway the member's
whose house we were at, the Kabeya's, are awesome.  They are really
searching for referrals for us.  We will be teaching a family from
them soon.  And I think that we can really find some good people there
in Mandevu.  Brother Kabeya is from the Democratic Republic of the
Congo and when he was baptized in 1993 one month later he was called
as Branch President because the current one was about to be chased out
of the area because of political unrest.  So he served for six months
without even holding the Melchizedick (or however you spell it)
Priesthood.

Well as for my weight I have not gained or lost anything since I left
home.  I weigh my self occasionally and I am still the same.  And we
do have member dinners more often than in Malawi.  We maybe get one
per week or at the least e get one every two weeks.  Mom you should be
proud of me I have been cooking with tomatoes, onions (cut up
extremely small however), carrots, and green beans.  They have been
good meals too.  I had actually heard about Tyler Hughes getting
called to Ukraine from Rhett in a letter.  It really suits him if you
ask me since he loves languages.  I was surprised to hear about Austin
Caldwell though.  I didn't know that he was planning on going.  A few
of the guys in my MTC Group are in Durban.  That was really funny to
hear about the bat in the church.  I can see Bishop Pace trying to hit
the bat with his coat.  I was also shocked to hear about Scott
becoming a bishop.  That was a surprise, but I guess not really if you
think about it since he has been a high counselor there for a while.
That was too bad to hear about Brother McCulley.  I hope that the
others heal well and are handling it well.  I would take either the CD
or the DVD or both.  Nicole I hope you enjoy your weekend in the
Temple.  I wish I could be there.  In fact I wish that I could go to a
temple at all.  I will have new appreciation for the temple when I
come home have spent two years away from it.  I will be going as often
as possible.  Don't worry Mom I feel your pain about Dad's announcing
and I am on the other side of the world.  Well talk to you next week.

Love,

Elder Cecil

Well Zone Conference was great I really enjoyed it.  The Lusaka Zone
(my zone) and the Woodlands Zone (also in Lusaka so we see them all
the time) met together for the conference.  President Padovich talked
for a while on looking past diversity in ourselves as the missionaries
as well as though that we teach.  Then he talked about how we need to
LOOK like a disciple of Christ, ACT like a disciple of Christ, and BE
a disciple of Christ.  It was really good.  We had a presentation by
the Assistants on different ways to study and also the importance of
it.  Elder Wilson did an activity where he handed out a piece of paper
to a few people telling them to prepare a presentation on what
something is.  One was about black bears, one about basketball, and
one about rugby and he gave them to people who would have no idea how
to explain them.  Then he had them gve their presentations.  They had
no idea what to say about any of them.  The purpose was to show us
that our studies are preparing us to teach because if we don't know
what to teach how can we teach it?  Then we had some short
presentations by Sister Padovich and Taggart.  After that we had Elder
Taggart give a presentation on pondering.  He gave some examples of
things to ponder about.  Some were funny.  Why doesn't the the glue
stick to the inside of the bottle?  Different things ike that.  He
went on to talk about the imprtance of us pondering because that is
often how we receive revelation.  Sometimes when we pray we go through
laundry list of things that we want but forget to take the time to
listen.  He said that the things we put into our minds can either be
the weapons that destroy us or the tools that build us.  It was a
great presentation.  My interview with President was so powerful.  I
loved it.  He just asked some simple questions about me at first like
where I am from and how old I am.  Then he asked my opinion about some
things in the mission.  He then went on to tell me that he was going
to lean heavily on me in the future because he knows that I can handle
the weight.  My interview probably lasted about 10 minutes longer than
most of the other ones because we just got talking.  He talked about
how he has a lot of family in Southern Utah.  The only name I can
remember is Leavitt but there was a few more that are Parowan names
that I have forgotten.  He said that his mom still emails him every
week to tell him to keep praying and studying the scriptures and so I
said so does mine.  I really enjoyed that experience.  He said that he
wants to be able to do it every few months so I am glad about that.
We had an okay week, the only problem was that we were getting bounced
everywhere we looked for lessons.  No one would answer their phones
and no one was at home.  But one really good thing is that Lameck is
ready for baptism on Sunday which I am excited for.  Tamika will be in
a few weeks because she has to go to Kitwe for two weeks but then she
will be back for good, or at least until the end of the year.  But I
really like Elder Mangumta.  He is a man of few words but he is a
really good guy, and when he does speak in our casual conversations he
is funny.  He is one of the most humble people I have ever met.  I am
excited about this transfer.  I don't have much else to say about this
week because we didn't get to do much teaching.  We have been waking
up at 6:00 to read a chapter in the Book of Mormon as a companionship
before we get ready for the day.  I really enjoy that because it gets
our minds moving before we actually have our real studies.

School is the pits but hey a least you are back in Parowan.  I think
that that will make it nicer because you won't have to get home so
late.  It sounds like you are getting really close to getting kids
into the school, Dad.  I have been keeping you in my prayers.  I know
that things will work out for you.  That is good to hear that Nic is
getting endowed.  She had told me a long time ago that she was
planning to do it but then she never kept me updated even though I
asked about it.  Shame on you Nic.  Just kidding I am happy for you.
Oh hey I was wondering, do you remember when I was in that play
Through the Eyes of Mary?  Well I heard a few of the songs in that
play while in our Zone Leader's car the other day and thought about
that.  I don't know if this is possible but maybe you could talk to
the Leavitts about getting a copy of the DVD and sending it in your
next package.  I think that that would be a nice thing to have.  I am
still really looking forward to trying to play baseball after mission.
 I inherited a band from Elder Shabangu and I do my exercises almost
every day.  Elder Wilson says that it has been hard to be away from
the game for so long but hey at least we are doing something much more
important.  Anyway I guess that I will talk to you later.

Love,

Elder Cecil

So this week has gone okay.  First things first because I know this is
what you are looking for.  I now have a step-son (first companion
after the father), Elder Mangumta from Johannesburg.  I am excited for
to be with him.  Because I am continuing to train him and also for a
change.  He will be good, and even though I don't know a whole lot
about him yet he seems like we will get along well.  He has only been
a member since last year April.  But one thing I know is that he will
follow the mission rules, especially the schedule.  I think that that
really hurt us last transfer.  But I am grateful to have been with
Elder Munguri though because I really was able to learn patience.  I
know that everything happens for a reason known only by him that knows
all things.(2 Ne. 2:24)  Which we have to find for ourselves.  I have
found my lesson with him so I am grateful for that.  So our week went
kind of slow because he wanted to say goodbyes and things.  But we did
get 9 lessons so that was okay.  Elder Gonza told me that they had an
investigator walk 7 hours to get to church yesterday.  That man has
real faith.  They are also getting Lilongwe prepared for a zone.  A
zone needs at least 8 missionaries so they will have 4 others soon.  I
could possibly go back to Lilongwe if that is the case.  I hope so.
That would be powerful.  Also my transfers were the only ones in the
whole mission.  President is preparing for 15 new missionaries in
September.  So really we don't know how they will go because we got
them tuesday but it was kind of a special case.  We are planning to
have Lamick and Tamika baptized on the 21st of August.  I saw Tamika
yesterday, she will be giong back to Kitwe for one week but then she
thinks she will be back for a while.  So I hope that things will work
out for her and for us.  I am praying that they will.

Well my bag only had our house keys and my epipen in it so that is
okay.  Only someone from matero would know where we stay and even then
most don't know where it is.  So I think that we are safe that way.
As for the epipen I will be able to get two of them when President
goes to South Africa in like 2 weeks so that will be good.  I will be
able to get a new bag here so don't worry about that.  I was keeping
my camera under lock and key so it was safe.  And I was able to get a
few pictures but not as many as I wanted because I spent so much time
sooking for my bag.

We have Zone Conference this week on Wednesday so I am excited for
that.  That is partly why we got the Transfers on Tuesday because
President went to Malawi to do theirs on Wednesday.  I also have an
interview with President tomorrow.  I am really excited for that.

I love President Hinckley.  I also can hear him saying that.  I read a
talk by President Packer the other day that had a powerful quote in
it.  It said something along the lines of, "We do not need to defend
the Prophet Joseph Smith.  The Book of Mormon does it for us."  I
really liked that.  I thought about it all week long.  I feel like I
want to put a lot more emphasis on the Book of Mormon now.

Adventure City would be a lot cooler if we could swim, but we had fun
anyway.  They have a nice soccer area with smaller goals so we could
play on a smaller field.  We had three teams playing one would sit out
while the others played first goal wins.  I was our keeper.  My team
never lost and I actually did make some nice saves so that was good.
You can tell Kim that she can send emails, and I can give short
replies and answer any questions they might have.

Man the Phillies must be doing really well to be that far ahead when
the Braves are 17 games over .500 but what happened to McCann.  One of
our branch missionaries tempted me the other day though.  He said that
the Sox and Yankees were playing and asked if he should record it.  I
wanted to so bad but I  resisted.  That was a hard one to resist.  I
talked a little bit about playing in college with Elder Wilson,  he
said that judging by my arm strength and accuracy of my throw downs
that I could be a catcher if I wanted to.  The package you sent should
still get here but all you need to do is put Zambia Lusaka Mission
before the rest.  Well talk to you later.

Love,

Elder Cecil

Hey,
So this week was a very different week from normal.  Tuesday we didn't
have our normal District meeting because of a leadership training.  So
we had to try to find lessons in the morning since we had none
planned.  That didn't work out so well.  Wednesday was a good day we
taught some nice lessons.  Then on Thursday I was a Zone Leader for a
day.  My companion and Elder Hewlett's companion had to go for a
driving test so I went with Elder Hewlett.  We were supposed to go to
the border to get the rest of the suitcases from Zim, but they ended
up not coming until Friday so we spent most of the day shopping for
the food for Family Fun Day.  Friday I went on exchanges with our
District Leader Elder Chikenge, I really like him he is powerful.  I
was able to get a camera it is a Samsung with 12.2 megapixels and 5x
zoom.  It is pretty nice.  I had to by rechargeable AA batteries for
it but it worked out well.  It cost about $145 including the batteries
and charger.  Saturday we had the Family Fun Day.  It went well, we
actually had a bigger turnout than the branches expected.  There was
over 550 people.  We had a few investigators there, including George
but then he wasn't at church.  But all of the branches had low
attendance this week, people didn't come because they were all so
tired.  They had soccer, basketball, netball (generally played by
women, it is like a mixture of ultimate frisbee and basketball), sack
races, food, and music.  I got to play catch with Elder Wilson, one of
the AP's who used to pitch for BYU but he blew his arm out and they
had to cut him but he wants to try out again when he gets back.  My
bag was taken though and it had my Epipen in it.  But Elder and Sister
Taggart are going to try to find me one this week so I will let you
know if they can't find it.  So you can send a new one.  I had been
playing catch with Elder Murdoch during the Lunch break and then we
went to put the gloves away and I realized I had left it and it was
gone.  It was left unattended for maybe a minute.  I searched for like
three hours, but never found it.  Then we lost power at our house and
couldn't cook, bath, or basically anything so we went and stayed at
the ZL's house then they took us to church.  Elder Munguri was feeling
dizzy so he stayed with them and I worked with a Branch missionary.
And today we have our Zone Activity so because transport is a pain to
get to town we stayde with the ZL's again.  So I slept and their house
three times this week and didn't work with my companion for four.  But
it was a good week though.  Yesterday we were visiting a recent
convert family outside their house and this drunk man came to talk to
me because I am white.  He then wanted to help the family, who at the
time were only the females, but I don't know what he wanted to help
them with.  As he walked to them he looked more like he wanted to hug
them or something.  They were kind of just running away from him.  So
I started to call him in Nyanja, "bweda, bweda."  (come, come)  So
then he started to come to me.  When he got to me he started to tell
me that he was born in 1966.  So I would respond by telling him that I
was born in 1903.  He would again tell me when he was born so then I
said a different number.  Again he told me when he was born only this
time he could not remember the 66 part.  He got out, "19 uhhhh"  so I
finished for him and he gave me this look as if to say, "how did you
know?"  He proceeded to start yelling, " Look a prophet, look a
prophet, he knows when I ws born."  It was hilarious.  I haven't had
an interview with President yet but I hope it will be soon.

The bike is okay, it isn't real fast and it is a little to small.  The
handlebars need to be about two inches forward, but the full
suspension is a really nice feature, especially on these "roads".
Tamika didn't make it home last week so the baptism will have to wait.
 So right now I am not sure when a baptism will take place but
hopefully soon because we have some really good investigators right
now.  They may take a little longer than we want but they will get
there eventually.  Brother Hatuma wasn't ever available this week.  He
got a work call to go to the Northern Province but should be back
tomorrow.  We have Zone Conferences once a quarter.  So I have had two
so far.  One in January and then one in April, that one was moved
forward a little because of Elder Pearson's visit.  I think that
President wanted to keep Elder Inzabula close too but I am not sure.

I did received the package you sent when I was in Lilongwe, as well as
a letter from Rhett.  They came with the bags.  I was surprised
because the letter was written on 11 July.  It came fast.  You asked
what kind of treats would be good.  Reece's pieces would be sweet,
Grandma sent me some and they were really nice.  Transfers come
sometime this upcoming week but I don't know how President will do it
because every president does it differently, but I am pretty sure that
it won't be on Tuesday.  It sounds like you guys had a good time in
SoCal.  I've actually seen a picture of the beach painting for that
temple.  It looked cool.  Well I need to get going for our Zone
Activity.  Oh and by the way we are going to a place called Adventure
City, I don't know much about it but I will tell you next week.  Well
I will talk to you later.

Love,

Elder Cecil