MOCHI PARTY!

Hey everyone! Hope you are all doing good! I have felt a lot of love for all of you this week I hope you felt my prayers! This week has been well it's been pretty great actually! We have been visiting members and I have been so happy building better relationships with them! One this that I learned this week is this is such a small world! Especially in the church! I have just made so many connections and seen so many people randomly and heard different things that just blow my mind! I love being here in Japan and although lately I feel like I haven't been helping people I know it will come soon and I just have to keep on going! Here's a little about my week! 

We visited the guy in the hospital Hoshi Kyodai again! We were really excited because he just gets so happy when we visit. Last time he kept telling us through Our savior anything is possible and the amount of hope he had was crazy! This time however... Things were a little different. He kept on saying well that's what I think might happen and maybe. He was talking about how he misses things and is sad he won't get to do them or is sick of not doing them. He can't even go out side...There was little hope in this mans heart...I tried telling him some things to comfort him but... Nothing really worked. I said Hoshi Kyodai! Let's talk about happy things then! Trying to get his mind off of it for a sec. I asked him what he likes, he told me music! Perfect! Because I was planning on playing him a song! I played Come a Thou Fount for him on my Uke. He just cried and cried he was so happy! After we asked him if there is anything else we can do for him. He said nothing, but I asked if he wanted a blessing! He said oh please please! I gave my first Japanese blessing! It was really great and the spirit was so strong! He just was so thankful and crying the whole time and saying thank you thank you! I'm thankful for yet another reminder that we need to be thankful for what we can do. Even going outside or walking is a blessing always remember that!

So we have been helping a Kota Kyodai who is 21 years old and he kinda is thinking about going on a mission. I might have talked about him before but he was in a huge accident where he was supposed to die. I talked to him a while back about that he can use his experience to lift other people like he has helped me. I told him maybe he was given that to help others and maybe that's what is gods plan for him. I told him no one should or can make the decision for you. I told him about my experience not leaving with everyone and making sure I knew I was going for me and he was really liking that. This week we had a preach my gospel class and he came and after we had dinner. We were talking and he said I think if all goes well with my medical stuff I want to go on a mission in April! what!? That's so cool! I'm so stoked! I know that he needs to go for the right reasons and I think he is going for the right reasons! He's going to help so many people! Also his English is pretty good I'm so excited for him! 

One day when we were having a long day with not much success I decided to ask a guy about his case he had. It was for a kendo sword which is like a bamboo sword popular in Japan. I got to talking to him and it was really cool! After a while we were talking like friends and I told him all about what we are doing here. I asked him if we could chill again and talk more about how we can make his life happier through God and then he was like yes! Ahhhh I was way happy! It was exactly what I needed after a reeeeeally long day with no success. It really made me realize that I forgot my way of dendo (missionary work) I forgot my style and the way I work best! I think I figured it out and since then... It's been so much better! 

For New Years since that's a month long celebration in Japan we made MOCHI! Which is rice cakes! They first take some special rice and make it. Then you have to mash it up. Then you start SMACKING IT WITH A GIANT HAMMER! I've honestly wanted to do this my whole life and it was so sweet! Me and a Shin (my friend who always comes to eikaiwa (english class) went hard! I wish you could see the video because it's pretty intense! We just kept yelling AISO! And YOSHA!

Today was temple Pday which means we went to the temple! We go every week before transfers so every 6 weeks as elders! It was really fun! I had a blast seeing everyone and also saw Usui Kyodai and elder Clark from the south! After we went to Shibuya and harajuku and had a lot of fun! It was weird I felt way normal.... Haha but it was definitely a way fun time! 

Challenge of the Week!

Well this week I just have been thinking a lot about how people kind of lose who they are. If you feel like you are in a rut and forgot who you are or what your purpose is.... GO DO SOMETHING! Sometimes we need to do something we love or something for us in order to remember who we were... Also I love you all and you forgetting yourself would make me sad so go be you! 

Tweeeeets!

Certain words I've typed in all caps now get autocorrected every time... Making me seem a lot more stoked for things like JAPANESE and CHRISTMAS...

Japan does not freaking mess around when it comes to stationary! #stationarygameup #imgettinpaper!

For English class this week I taught my class "I'm a pretty pretty princess" (cuz we learned the word pretty...) I told them to say it to everyone after class it was the funniest thing ever! We played do you love your neighbor and one of my students was like no... But I love people who are pretty pretty princess! #bestenglishteacherEVER! #iloveeikaiwa! #yuikoandhiraiarethebest!

We walked around trying to find somewhere to eat... I asked like ten people where somewhere good was and got to talk to them that way... I like to call this hungry dendo (missionary work)

In case you were unaware.... JAPANESE children are the cutest! 

Just wanted to let you know that Shin is the coolest :) 

Got my first gray hair... Well it's white so that's terrifying :/ #growingupneverlookedsogood #oldman #ogichan 

You know how I said last week some old guy thought we were the police? Well we were around his area because he told us he lives in this neighborhood which was huge... Well we rode our bikes there with faith to find him and he walks out of his driveway as soon as we rode down the street.... MIRACLE! We talked to him for a bit and it was freaking awesome! #thatstuffdoesntjusthappen! #churchistrue 

Went on an exchange this week.... And well all I can say is I'm happy I've had companions that are out here for the right reasons and want to help people. It's one thing to be annoying or different but not wanting to be out here, not wanting to share the gospel, not representing the lord the right way, and non stop talking about when I go home...That would be miserable to be with a companion like that... I'm just very thankful my companions even though I've only had 4 have all wanted to be on a mission and I'm grateful for that! 

Found out who our new mission president will be in July! President Nakano! And guess what! He's my friends dad! He is serving in Tokyo south right now! What!? 

Much love to you all! Hope you have the best week ever! Love youuuuu! 

Love, MOCHI, and AISO!

Elder pretty pretty princess!