The Most Humble and Funny People

Me and my companion Elder Xiong

Hey yall

So this first week in the mission has been the funniest and coolest week of my life so far. I thought that they were sending me to minnesota but I think that they put me on the wrong plane because this place is crazy. So first of all my companion and I are in east side st paul. When we were driving to our apartment the first night my companion told me that our area was the most ghetto area in the mission and at first I didn't believe him but then I saw the apartment and I started laughing so hard. And also the first night I fell asleep to police sirens and like thirty gun shots so yeah it's pretty sweet. Hahaha just kidding mom I'm perfectly safe and I love it here. One of the things that suprised me was how many Hmong people are here. Almost everyone that I live around is Hmong. They are defintiely the most humble and funny people I have ever met. My companion is actually a native Hmong and I absolutely love him. His name is Elder Xiong. He is from Miluakee and has been out in the mission for 5 months. Him and I are the 2 youngest missionaries out here and he is the missionary with the least experience besides all the new missionaries but he is such a stud. He is a super hard worker and loves to serve. It has been so crazy because he doesn't really speak english. He came over from Thailand a few years ago but he didn't go to school so he never learned how to read and write or anything like that. So during language study he teaches me Hmong for thirty minutes and then I teach him english. We have a lot of fun together and so I'm really happy about it.

     So my first full day in the field was really cool. We have a rule in our mission that you have to commit someone to be baptized within the first 24 hours of your plane hitting the ground. So my companion and I were tracting and it was about 3 o clock(and my plane had landed at about 6 the day before) so we didnt have much time left. We found a man who was raking his leaves and started to help him. We taught him the full restoration and I invited him to be baptized and he said yes!!!!! I was so excited. We came back 2 days later to teach him some more but he was having a shaman party so that one kind of fell through. One thing that they should have told me is that when someone says they will be baptized it doesnt mean that you got it in the bag. But it's all good though because it was a good experience. But the first day my companion and I invited 3 people to be baptized it was so crazy. One of them actuallly has been progressing and has a date in mid january.

     My favorite experience so far this week was teaching the Tswv Tuam family. The dad is a member but his wife and three kids are not members. My companion and I went over to teach them the plan of salvation. (Also side note they are married in the Hmong way not the legal way.) So at the end of the lesson we invited all four of them to be baptized and they all said yes. Also the wife and the husband are talking to the branch president on sunday to set a date for their wedding!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. It was so crazy and the spirit was so strong in the lesson. We are so excited to keep teaching them and their family loves us. It turns out that all hmong people love white people who try and speak hmong so we get in to almost every house and the whole family comes and just stares at me because they dont really believe it and it's pretty funny to see their face when I start speaking. The Hmong people are really funny and they love to feed you as well. The Tswv Tuam family fed my companion and I some traditional Hmong food and my tongue almost caught on fire because they put like three thai peppers on my plate that I had to eat. 

Things are going well and I am loving it here. thanks so much for all your letters. 

Elder Muaj Zoo

My name got changed because I got adopted by one of the grandmas here

My companion Elder Xiong and I doin' the Hmong pose