gawai!

I thought I had just escaped holidays that kill missionary work when I left Penang (aka Chinese New Year, Vesak Day, Thaipussam...) then I come here to Gawai.  It's a big deal.  It's the festival to celebrate the harvest in Iban and Bidayuh cultures and it means a lot of eating, drinking, and balik-ing kampung (going back to the village where you were born).  What does that mean for us?  No one to teach and a lot of Word of Wisdom problems for our investigators and members.  We visited a family last night and when we walked in, there was a man passed out in the middle of the floor.  After he woke up, he just laughed and said, "Mabuk mabuk.  Gawai!" Translation...."I'm drunk.  It's Gawai!"  Apoooo.  The Branch President chewed him out pretty much and reminded him that we wouldn't even have Gawai if it wasn't for the Lord, so the guy reached down to show him the cross hanging around his neck and President basically told him not to use that as an excuse.  He listened attentively for the rest of the lesson :)

There's been crazy rain lately also, a lot of floods in the kampungs. It's not so fun to ride bikes in.  But better than being stuck in the traffic when it's raining like we had to do last week with the senior couple.  Two hours in the car to go about 5 km. 

We're teaching an awesome family right now, Acha and her kids, then her sister and kids, and their dad.  We'll just call them Acha and co. because it's 7 plus all together and I'm still trying to get down all the names.  They are getting ready to be baptized at the end of June, just working on some Word of Wisdom stuff now. They're so good though!  I love going to their house.  We pull up and all the kids run out yelling, "Sister!!"  So I'm in love.

We found a girl last week (Jong) who is part Iban part Chinese and we've taught her a few times.  Yesterday while teaching her about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and baptism, she remembered that she was baptized when she was 12.  (When we first met, she said she was Buddhist, not Christian.)  Apparently one night, a guy came through her kampung calling out for people to follow him and be cleansed...so yeah.  All she remembers is she was cold and didn't know who Jesus Christ was.  So we invited her to get baptized again the same way Christ did and she's on date for the end of July! Same day as Jessica...a girl we found a few days after I got here, who is already half-way through 1 Nephi!

In other news, my companion got hit by a car! And I was behind her so I watched it all happen.  It was so scary!  I looked up and saw a car hit a bike and the girl on it going tumbling across the road.  I thought it was some random lady on a moto and freaked out, thinking, "Oh my gosh that lady just got hit!"  Then I realized that lady was a white girl...not too many of those around here....and that's when it set in that it was my companion.  She's ok…miraculously, just a bruised butt, which isn't so good when we sit on the ground for all of our teaching appts.  But she'll be ok.

That's all I have time for.  I love you all and hope you're well. Selamat Gawai!

Sister Norton

HFI

one of our investigators and their home

acha's family 

one of acha's kids. 

he's adorable.  doesn't talk but getting better at his high 5

the sidewalk near a member's house :)

kampung where one of the members lives.  

a view of the main govt building and the sarawak river