Elder Collin Park

Elder Malondera and Elder Park

 

Collin's bed is by the window

 

the kitchen in his apartment

 

Many thanks to the Mission Presiden'ts wife for posting these pictures on the mission blog, so good to his face!

 

Things I learned from the Mother's Day phone call:

 

His schedule:

6:30am wake up, prayers,   start carrying buckets for your shower

7:30am shower (using a cup and a bucket of water), eat bread for breakfast, take malaria pill

8am personal scripture study

9am companion scripture study

10:30 first appointment

teaching

1pm lunch

teaching

6:30 head home (LOTS OF WALKING EVERY DAY - he thinks about 7 miles a day)

7pm planning and prep for next day

8pm eat dinner - usually rice with some kind of stew, a spice called pepe (sp? that burns going in and coming out, but he can't stop adding more), stew usually has some sort of fish for protein, sauteed onion, tomatoe paste, and kidney beans.

 

- He thinks there are about 60 missionaries serving in Liberia, they are in Monrovia, Liberia,  Currently Collin is in the farthest east part of Monrovia.

- Rainy season is just getting started there

- they have to have their water delivered to holding tanks outside the apartment, but there is a well nearby.  The water from the shower head is more like a drip - no water pressure there. The last shower head that he saw that actually worked was at the MTC.  They use buckets of water to "shower"

- his apartment now is in a compound with a wall around it.   The other rooms in the compound are rented out, more like a hotel.  They share a generator with the owner of the place who lives next door which they run for a few hours every night.

-with generators running and the noise coming through open windows, he has learned to sleep through a lot of noise.

- money isn't everything, the people there don't have any and they are the happiest

- some people live in "homes" with metal roofs and metal walls, dirt floors.  If you have money you can afford to have homes made out of cement blocks.

-FM's - free meals  - they are sometimes invited to eat at someone's house.  They are not allowed to eat dog, monkey or cat which are common food sources there.  However, they also do not ask about what they are eating.  Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm...........

- he is excited for his friends, Megan and Heidi who just got their mission calls, Congrats!

- He loves getting letters  (I'll give anyone a stamped and addressed envelope if they will write to him!)

 

It was sooooo good to hear his voice, he had a funny accent at the very beginning, but then he started sounding more like himself. Can't wait for the next phone call at Christmas! only 224 days away.

 

Thanks to all of you who ask about him and keep him in your prayers. 

Dianna Park