Yokwe, it’s Sunday today and P-Day
is tomorrow, so I thought I could write a letter so I can send it when I go to
town tomorrow! Trying to give you the
most updated news on what’s going on with me!
It’s going great out here. The
language is so hard, most days I feel like I don’t understand anything, but I
pick out words and try and grasp the meaning of it. I never realized how incredibly tiring it is
to bike 10-12 miles a day! I know the missionaries
back home probably know about that… but
with it being 85-90 degrees… I’m
sweating like no other…. I have a nice
tan though! Maybe the last week of my
mission I will tan for a couple days and even it out! You guys all will look like ghosts! My stomach is as white as my Sunday
shirt! But, not really any sunburns yet! I’m a ri-major (Marshallese) so of course
there aren’t any sunburns with me.
Hahahaha. That sentence made no
sense.
FoB = Fresh off Boat; a term we use
for when we use Marshallese grammar with English words! FoB!
Bet you can point that out a lot in my writing! The other day I jammed my finger and I
yelled, “My finger pain!” Haha, that was
probably the best FoB I have ever done!
After you learn a bit of Marshallese, it’s fun to mess with the people
and teach them wrong English words!
I taught them that “eno” which means
“delicious” is “disgusting”, so when they like a food, they say it’s
disgusting! Hahahaha, it’s amazing! Sometimes, I will teach them that it means
something else! So… I was thinking about
throwing my letters in a bottle and see if they would work, so I found a
bottle, threw in the ocean as far as I could… (Probably 2 football fieldsJ)… or so…haha, and it
ended coming back within a few minutes.
So I’m not gonna risk it! So
airmail it is!
I was wrong when I email, I believe
it’s the first P-Day of the month… So not necessarily after Fast Sunday! So hopefully I get some e-mails April 1st! If I were you I would send little updates in e-mail
once a week, or questions, etc. And
still mail letters! I haven’t got any
that recently! I need some! But I’m sure they are coming! The mission office gets them, and then
eventually they get to us on Sundays or P-Day!
It’s a long wait, but with the amount of patience I’m receiving! (a
lot), I know this is good for me! It
will come someday. That’s basically all
I can say! So Watkins went out teaching
with the Bishop and I stayed with his son…he didn’t speak a word of English to
me even though he knows it… We had some
pretty silent moments, but wow, did I grow.
You learn a lot when you are forced to use it! It’s fun, learning the language is like a
game to me and I want to do my best and win!
I’m gonna start working really hard at it.
Kinda weird… last time I had fast
food was two months ago… I miss
McDonalds and Chipotle! But, they are
waiting for me! Which is good! My favorite food out here… (I’m not lying) is
lime-salted raw fish. Wow it’s good! I can’t eat a lot, but I do like it! I don’t have those exotic foods as much as I
thought. We usually eat with members two
or three times a week. When we eat at
home, we usually have spaghetti (Dallin-style, no sauce), chicken, rice, tons
of peanut butter, more rice… and
toast. Toast for every meal! I haven’t weighed myself yet, but I guarantee
I have not gained a single pound out here!
Few missionaries do, according to President Shaw.
I never thought I would gain such a
love for reading. When your library is
limited, the stuff you can read, you read over and over again, which is
good. We got to read Seminary manuals
and some BYU religion-history books.
It’s awesome! I learn a lot. It’s nice that I have time on my mission to
read about that stuff, because after I know I would be busy! I learn a lot of cool stuff! Like stupid reasons members left the church,
one—Joseph Smith spelled their name wrong in an announcement…Dang. Crazy what people got offended by!
I love all the cats and dogs that
are here. Little month-old cats and dogs
and chicks are everywhere. Holding them
is so therapeutic! I love it. Basically every day I get to hold cute little
puppies and kittens. It’s neat. I’m not homesick, but I do miss you guys so
much. I think about you guys a lot. I miss being in the comfort of my friends and
language, but I’m growing so much because of it. I hope to get a letter from you guys
soon! I wanna hear from you soon! But I can wait! ß (see, I’m patient now!) I love you guys a lot and I think and pray
for you daily! Stay safe in
Minnesota. The Church is true here in
the Marshall Islands! Send my love to my
friends! Post all the funny stuff on my
blog or something. Read the scriptures
every day, bear your testimony once a day, and never start your day without
prayer! Three steps to a better
day—Dallin-style.
With love, Elder Dallin Ingalls
(3.0+) P.S. I love you!
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