Oi,

Well, to be honest it has been a fairly quiet week. Not a lot going on. The week after zone conference is always a good one. Things slow down a little bit. We did do one division this week. Elder Smoot went to Munhava with Elder Smith and I took his companion, Elder Crapse, in our area. It was a fun division. This was Elder Crapse 2nd transfer and so he's still fairly new. It’s always fun walking with a new kid. We knocked on a couple of doors together and taught a 1st lesson and it was a little funny because Elder Crapse taught a principal, and no one really understood, and so I had to go back and teach it over and then I asked a question, and one of the investigators started to answer, and Elder Crapse jumped right in and answered the question for him. It is great to see the excitement of a new elder. Elder Crapse comes from a family of 16! We ended up having a flat tire and so had to change it, but then after changing it and taking off the jack, we learned that the spare was also flat, so we ended up calling Elder Paradise (the other missionary couple here) and he came over with his truck and we borrowed his spare. Later that day, we went and got the tires fixed. The spare was fixable, but the other tire was slashed on the side, and so we weren't able to repair that... the rest of the day was fine though. We have some really interesting new kids in the mission. I got an interesting call from Marromeu the other day. It was from the DL up there, informing me that they were heading back to the house, because there was a storm and they didn't feel good about being out... and so I was fairly concerned, because the last time we had a bad storm in Morromeu, the 4 Elders up there ended up getting evacuated by Canoe.. So I asked if there was lighting or rain or whatever, and turns out that the "clouds were really dark" and there was "an unusual amount of wind"... I just said ok to that, but luckily nothing happened. 

This next week we'll be flying down to Maputo for another ZLC. I'm excited for that. It’s always a fun time. President Packard has been a little sick apparently, and so hopefully he'll be better by ZLC. Bad time for him to be sick, with transfers happening and all. We have Transfer meeting on Saturday and I'm about 98% sure I'll be transferred. I've done 4 in this area, 12 in Beira, 2 with my companion and President asked me who would make a good ZL for Beira in my interview, and so all indicators are telling me I'll leave. So that means on Saturday, I'll know where I will be going. 

Glad to hear all the tree chopping went well and that the house is decorated. The Christmas tree mom sent me last Christmas is still in Munhava and I told them if I'm still in Beira for Christmas, I'd be robbing that from them... I know for sure, that one package is in Maputo. I don't have it yet, because it’s still stuck in customs, so at least one made it. Yes, all my stuff has been holding up very well. I do have a huge advantage with a car. We don't walk a whole lot anymore. We drive and then park, and then walk a few feet to our appointments. Being a ZL does have its perks. It has been hot. The past 2 days have been bad, but today and the other days weren't so bad. I've just got to get used to being wet all of the time again. And so other than that, it'll be fine. Well, good to hear from all of you. Glad that things have gone so well in the Christmas season. I'll write next week and let you know where I'm going... have a great week!!!

Elder Okazaki