Happy New Year!

What a crazy past couple of weeks, Christmas and New Years. Its been funish, almost everyone has family over or is in the rural area so it is harder to teach people lessons. It was a big change having Christmas be sunny and hot. There was no Christmas feel for the most part, cause it was so dang hot and no one really celebrates it here. New Years was alright. People pounded music all night and got super drunk. So teaching lesson the next day really wasn't an option because everyone was out cold. I saw so many guys laying on the ground with bottles next to them. The alcohol here is dirt cheap, $1 for a big big bottle so drinking here is an issue. There was a time this week when we went to teach a lesson to two young investigators who are being baptized this coming Saturday, and their father and father's friends were super drunk. They came out of the house and kept trying to offer me alcohol, and wanted to take pics with me. They tried to get me to hold their cigarettes and alcohol in the picture but I had to keep telling them, "I cant do that." When men here get drunk, they get very grabby with key wahs (white people). So they hung all over me and kept blowing their cig smoke in my face. They were so grabby and wanted attention so bad we couldn't even teach the lesson so we just left. On New Years we went to the field and played American football which was really fun. I was able to see the New Years fireworks and it was cool, but falling asleep was hard because the music was so loud.

Children here don't understand how dangerous fireworks are. They literally throw firecrackers at each other and run around chucking them. These are 6-10 year old children who have no idea what they are doing.

We get $280 a month which seems like a lot, but it's not, because the banks only allow you to pull $40 at a time. And they charge money every time you pull and half the time they don't have money, because this is Zimbabwe. So money is really hard to get. It's enough money, and I felt comfortable until all the banks are closed cause there is no money.

I just feel super off today, yesterday was the same way. Even in lessons I stutter and can't think strait. I feel sick and light headed and I am drinking enough water. I just need to keep pushing and hope it will pass I think.

 

 I am praying a lot and reading the scriptures a ton and learning a lot as well. I just finished the Book of Mormon for the first time in my life cover to cover. Finished it the day before the year ended too!

 That was my week! Happy New Year everyone!! Elder Cazier!