Gong Xi Fa Cai!
Shannon congrats on ending your impressive basketball career, dad kept me informed. Kristin I met a kid here named Cholo, thought of you. Dad, I hope your shoulder is ok. I'm depressed to hear it hasn't really snowed much since Christmas.
Happy Chinese New Year Eve everybody. It's finally here, and the Chinese New Year Music is going non stop. You probably don't know what that is, I didn't before I came here. Let me try to describe, Chinese New Year music is annoying beyond all reason. Every song sounds the same. You would have to hear to understand I guess. Sister Wong loves it....
We are having a great time trying to find people to teach this week, and time to teach those we already found. You would think that we wouldn't be too affected since this is a holiday for only the Chinese, but not so. You see, the Chinese play the role of the boss, the big guy, the man in charge; the Chinese take the entire week off of work, some even two weeks; therefore, the ibans, the kenya, the kayan, the indo's also have the whole week off of work because the companies close down. Which means they are all going back to kampung. So it's a holiday for everyone to get drunk-- isn't that great!
The fireworks will be going off tonight, I'm looking forward to that. We still have lights out at 11pm but I'm sure the sleep won't come. Last year the fireworks went off all night long. We were excited to celebrate Chinese New Year with a member from the Chinese group here this evening but last night we got word that her neighbor and relative passed away yesterday. Poor girl. It seems like people are dying all time here, I don't say that jokingly. Something in the water....
I got the shock of a lifetime this week, like big time. I'm still spinning. Miracles happen people! Let me tell you about it.
Remember Karen? Karen with the worst situation in the world, who dumpster dives, can't talk right, no job, etc. Remember her husband, the scum of the earth, the drunk? This is crazy... Yesterday, we went to teach Karen and her kids one of their Recent-Convert Lessons but Karen was out hunting for food with two of the kids. Only Teo and the little one Asing were home. We talked with Teo for a bit and decided we would try coming back later to try and catch her mom. As we were talking though Teo randomly offered up, "my dad's been reading the Book of Mormon".... After I got back up off the floor I asked, "What? wait, what??" She said ya her dad's been reading the Book of Mormon for the past few days, he got a job, and he wants to come to church on Sunday but is shy because all his clothes have holes in them. After I picked myself up off the ground, yet again, I asked again, "WHAT!!!" Little 9-year old Teo was getting frustrated and rolled her eyes. She started saying it all over again thinking I just didn't understand her language. Oh I understood alright, I just couldn't believe it. I mean, this is the guy I wished dead a few weeks ago. This is the guy that caused Karen's huge black eye last week. This is the guy Teo told us tried to throw knives at her in a drunken rage. The guy who refused to work. WHAT???
When we came back later that night to teach the family we asked Karen. She started laughing and told us on Saturday she had caught her husband flipping through the BOM, reading here, reading there, stopping to look at the pictures and reading the page next to all the pictures. She said she called Teo over and pointed out that her father was reading the book. They were laughing at him but he didn't know he was being watched. Then Karen said again on Sunday morning her husband was lying there, reading the BOM again. They were getting ready to go to church so Karen walked over to him, told him they had to go and needed the book. Teo says on Monday and again on Tuesday she saw her Dad reading.
I don't want to get my hopes up because this could still mean nothing but I'd say baby steps were being made wouldn't you? We asked Karen about her husband finally getting a job and she just rolled her eyes. She said tomorrow he would be back to drinking and smoking even though he worked that day. I think she too didn't want to get her hopes up. This is all just crazy. Karen did say her husband would come to church but just didn't have any clothes.
We are going to have to be careful how we handle this whole situation, I am still very much afraid of that man. But geez! He's reading the Book of Mormon. That's what it's all about right there.
Mission's must be good things because even if you have weeks and weeks and weeks of nothin, of rejection. One tiny little thing like this, or like someone's first attempt at prayer, or meeting a nice random person on the road, or any other tiny thing, makes it allllllll seem like the best thing you have ever done in your entire life.
Love you guys
sister viehweg
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