The life in 전주 (Jeonju)

Hey everyone!  I've moved to a new area a few weeks ago!  A nice big city called "Jeonju" and famous for having delicious "Bibimbab" (비빔밥)  which I still have yet to eat here!  But anyways, my new companion is Elder Peterson from somewhere near Spanish Fork, Utah and who's been a missionary about 7 months longer than me.   We get along very well and have an awesome ward here ('중앙 와드').

Just last week, I got my Christmas package! Yeah, not a typo, my Christmas package!  I guess it got lost in the mail somewhere and finally resurfaces 7 months later! I also got some new white shirts from Mom, so those are super nice! Compared to my other shirts they're just so white and clean!!  I'm really enjoying my new area and the missionaries in my zone are all awesome!!

Hope you all are doing well and what not!!  Stay safe!  Enjoy the rest of your summer!!!

My Christmas package!!

The most recent converts in the ward comparing their Pokemon cards :)

Well, It's Been a While!

Hi everyone!!! Sorry it's been so long since my last entry!!  I had to learn how to better prioritize my time!!   Hope you are all doing well!

Soooo to sum up the last little while:

I am going on my sixth month in Nonsan ('논산'), a little country city kind of close to Daejeon.  I am on my 9th week with my super awesome companion Elder Burton (he's included in this email list... ;) haha but really, he is awesome!)

In our little branch of 25+ members (including the primary kids), 3 of the kids were baptized last week!  We went to the city Gongju ('공주') for the baptism (because their building has a baptismal font!) and it was such a sweet spirit filled experience!!

The rainy season started last week in theory....but it still has only rained once!  But it is pretty overcast a lot and very, very humid!!  I'm starting to keep my eyes peeled for new white shirts at the stores because mine are starting to be quite worn out!

The rice fields are all planted and green and growing - along with all of the bugs that live out there too!!

We're learning how to be very creative in finding new investigators.  We have the belief now, that no idea is a bad idea until you've tried it!  And it's usually those new ideas that bring miracles and success.  God knows when we're really trying and makes up for our shortcomings!!

We saw a really cool miracle last week in a small countryish town in our area called Buyeo ('부여').  We had effectively gotten ourselves lost after we had gone for a while.  But we found the bus stop that went back into the city, and after waiting a little while, a car pulled up.  The woman and her husband in it asked where we were going and if we needed a ride.  As we talked to them in the car, we found out that the woman's older sister is a member of the church in Daejeon.  Although they didn't have much interest in the gospel, we had a nice conversation and were able to give them our number and tell them that if they ever needed anything or wanted to learn about the church, to go right ahead and call us and we'd love to help them.  So that was a really cool miracle~!  God truly knows all of His children and where they are and what they're doing.  There are just too many 'coincidences' for them to be coincidences :)

I hope you all have a wonderful week and I want you all to know that I love you and I love this work!  It truly is the Lord's!!

~Elder Woods

Just Some Pics

 Here are some pictures of some cool things in Nonsan!  

We have some pretty nice hiking trails surrounded by graves and cool Asiany things right by our house!

 

 

9 months and going strong!

Can't believe that I've already been serving for 9 months!!  I've been very terrible about updates on my status here!  But let me explain - ...no there is too much. Let me sum up:  

 

I have been in a countryside city called Nonsan for a month and a half with my awesome companion Elder Baker from Farmington, Utah who has been out for 6 months now.  We have a cute little branch with about 35 members.  

 

We walk a lot everyday (miles and miles) talking to the people on the street who for some reason have either seen us countless times, or for the first time.  We occasionally will run into foreigners on the streets and just wonder why in the world they are in a small city like Nonsan.  

 

We met some new investigators this last week that are college guys and we played basketball with them - we were way out of shape and practice but they still thought that we were incredible haha.  

 

I am ever slowly learning the Korean language and I love the people here!!!  I'm really excited for the next transfer with Elder Baker and the chance I have to be serving in this awesome area!!! 

 

Hope you are all doing great!!! Love you all!!

Transfers!!

This last week we got our transfer calls and then we transfered! I am now in Nonsan (논산) with Elder Baker (who has been out for 5 months on his mission).  We are the only team here in Nonsan (which is a countryside-y city) and we're getting ready to tear it up together on the streets!!!  Sorry my emails have been sooo lame lately!! Sorry!!! ㅋㅋㅋㅋ  (the Korean "hahaha" -  sounds like a bunch of K s)

 

Hope you're all doing well! Love you!!! This church is true!!!

Happy New Year! ~ 새해 복 많이 받으세요!!

I found this soda at the store! It's Psy!

Well this week on New Year's we went to bed the normal time and got up about the normal time, but in the morning, we went out into the winterland of falling snow to try and watch the sunrise with one of my investigators.  Unfortunately it was too cloudy for such an endeavor, but we stopped at a convenience store and had a "fancy" new year's breakfast there!

Us chilling on New Year's morning!

For family night we did minute to win-it games and I wrapped up an investigator like a mummy!

We used coupons and bought Pizza Hut (it would have been about $60 without the coupons! Pizza is expensive in Korea!)

Me and the church and the moon!

I don't have much time for things beyond this, but have a great New Year's everyone! You're all awesome!

MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR

Wow.  It's weird when you realize that Christmas already happened. And then weird when you realize that it happened recently.

This last week one of the sister's investigators got baptized, and it was such a nice baptismal service.  Her family was referred by a member and her (the one who just got baptized) mom and little sister will probably getting baptized soon!  When she came out of the water and got cleaned up and came back out, it was incredible to see just how bright she was.  It was almost as if she was glowing.  She was so happy, and her family was so happy, and it was awesome!

The baptism

This week my investigator gave us chicken and I found the feet~! And so of course, I ate them! At least, I had a few bites before my investigator realized and made me stop....Dang it... ^^

Eating chicken feet!

Also, our ward had its Christmas party on Christmas Eve and I was recruited to be Santa and give the primary kids presents.  They gave me the gifts, bag, and clothes, and I got suited up and did an excellent job (in my opinion at least).  In Korea, Santa speaks English and doesn't know Korean, so that was a lucky break for me!!!  They call him "산타 할아버지" which basically means like "Grandpa Santa" in English.  So that was fun!

My santa getup!

My loving family sent me a Christmas package back in November....But as of yet, I have not received it.  And the mission office hasn't either...So maybe there are some kids in Africa having a super awesome Christmas right now with my package!! ^^

Our Christmas

On Christmas day, after studying, we went over to a member's house and spent the day with them.  We had 6 American missionaries all skyping home, and so we had to coordinate well with times and the few computers available to us there.  That was super fun (and kind of bizzare) to get to see my family again! But I really felt super strong as soon as they were on the camera, how much I love them all to death.  In my 6 1/2 months of serving so far, I haven't seen or heard them, so it was so new to talk to them again.  Mom and Dad are just as awesome as ever! Holly and Justin were, well, Holly & Justin.  Roger is turning into too much of a stud for his own good, and Henry was just as fun and energetic as ever.  It was literally the fastest hour of my life.  Every time I checked the clock, 10 minutes had gone by. Crazy!  SO basically this is their shoutout from me; that they're the best and I LOVE THEM!

SKYPEing the family!!! (They're the best!!!)

On that lovely note (get it? "LOVE" ly??? Sorry if my level of wit has declined after speaking mainly Korean...), after Skyping we played cards and Settlers of Catan (the Korean version) along with eating, which was super fun.  And I guess that basically covers the big stuff.

The intense hour+ long game of Catan

So, I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas and that you all have a MARVELOUS NEW YEAR!!!!

Elder Calvin Woods