BEANS AND RICE
     Hello all 

 

How is everyone doing?? I know its been a while since I could write but so much has happened!! I left South Africa Tuesday morning and I fly to Botswana. The flight was about an hour long and then we went to the mission presidents house and did a little orientation and then we got our companions!! My senior companions name is Sister Gerhing and she is from Texas and she has been out for about 5 months. So yeah once we got to Gaborone the mission told us the area is spilt into like 5 areas and he assigned me to Monarch which is 5 hours away from Gaborone so me and my companion had to drive a 5 hours away to our town and I moved in and everything! Its so crazy here. We live out in the middle of nowhere and its just me and companion so a it will take forever to get used to it. We live in a really nice apartment though. It has like a remote gate to get into and everything so its pretty fancy!!! Before I forget this is my NEW address again!!!

 

Sister Krystal Janel Scott

Botswana/Namibia Mission

P.O. Box 301797 Selepa

Francistown

BOTSWANA AFRICA 

So yeah things are way different. Since this is a new area we don't have very many people we are so small that its not even a ward, or a branch its just a group. We meet in a house and we have about 50 people maybe so you cam imagine how much work we will have to do. So far we have been training and ive been meeting tons of people and teaching tons of lessons. ITS so hard. I cant pronounce anyones name or even remember it for that matter and then 90% of the people don't even speak English so im still trying to figure out why I was called English speaking. I know im going to have to work that much harder and when we teach the people most can understand what im saying so I struggle to explain things and teach so im hoping as time goes on I will get better. Oh good news... WE HAVE A CAR. Yes girls are not allowed to walk and so we drive everywhere and we cant be out after dark which is 7 so we have to be in our apartment by then so it makes it so hard to teach because we don't leave home until around 10am so we only have a few hours a day but I know im going to have to just work that much harder.. This week has been kinda hard just not knowing to speak Swana and then driving!!! We drive on the left side and everything is opposite so its been a little overwhelming so prayers are needed even though ive been doing mighty praying. So yeah since im getting trained That last for 12 weeks so that means I will be here in Monarch Botswana atleast until November 12. Then transfers happen and all that kind .

Also we get 1400 Pula a month which is our missionary money and that's about 140 so can you say budget??? Not to mention everything is so expensive! We went to the grocery and got like 10 things maybe and spent like 700 Pula. That's half of our money already so eating is definitely not a priority. Its crazzzzy. But we'll survive. Who needs to eat anyway? Anyway even though this week has been super hard I know that it will get better. We teach a lot of great people one of them is name Malebogo (Molly-boho) and she is so great. I can literally feel her spirit when we sit with her and she tells us how much the gospel has changed her life and its so amazing! Most of the time when we teach we just sit on whatever is around like broken seat chairs, wood, or on the cement floors. A lot of people just live in one room shack houses and so we get all they've got. I guess when you've never had more you don't want more. I think its just very humble to see. Some people walk miles and miles just to get to church on Sunday because its way across town and so many are tired when they get their but theyre so happy and makes me wonder if I would be that determined and dedicated to walking hours to get to church. Its something that really is amazing! So we have 2 baptisms coming up on Saturday. Isago and Derby and they're both kids. Im really excited. They were already taught when I got here but im excited to have my own investigators that I can call mine! I also got to do my first tracting this week and its so weird! There are animals walking around and not the African animals you expect. Its cows, donkeys, chickens, roosters. They walk around everywhere, on the side of the road and in front of our cars and everything so its quite different. My real problem is that im BLACK. You want to know why? Because everyone thinks im from Botswana! Everywhere we go people talk to me in Swana and when they talk to my companion and she doesn't know what they're saying they look at me to translate!!! Its so crazy! And the bishop or president of our group already told me im no longer from America im from Botswana and my name name is Warrona which means "ours" because they said i'm theirs now! Its so cute but people actually call me that now so its very different. Anyway i'm super excited to be here and im hoping we get some more investigators soon because free time is not good for me! I start thinking of family and being home and then it all goes downhill! So i'm ready to get to work!!! I miss everyone tons though!!!!!!  Anyway Im emailing in an internet café in downtown Africa so we have a time limit so i'll talk to you all next Monday!! love ya!

Hello Family and friends,

So yeah we only have a short time to email so im going to try to tell you as much as I can in my short time!!! So yeah we got here last thursday and so much has happened since then!!! We get up every morning around 6:30am and then we have breakfast at 7 and then we start class and we have class all day until lunch and then class again for a few hours and then we have sports for an hour and then we have dinner and more classes!!!!! And yes I have two companions! Its been great ut sort of hard having three different people thinking and trying to teach together so its definitely teaching me how to work with others. So everyday we get to teach "investigators" which are our teachers so we bascially role play but it is far from easy! They ask us so many different questions that are kinda hard but me and my companions work wll together so we usually can answer them and still have the spirit in the lesson. We have two investigators one is Pule and the other is Grace. We have been having a hard time with Pule because he doesnt believe God answers his prayers and he says he's been praying for 11 years with no answer! So we have tried to teach him and help me but mostly it's the spirit. I feel it so strong its so weird. I just dont know what im saying half the time and it just comes out right. Sometimes I will just have a feeling that something will happen and I tell my companions and it DOES! I just know its the Lord showing me that he knows us and he is there. I pray for everyone and I hope all is well!!

Anyway did i say im having sooooo much fun! I love it here! My companions are Sister Stephens and Sister Jones and they are awesome! Sister Stephens is from Hawaii and Sister Jones is from Utah and we have so much fun!!!! We already decided we make a zebra and we are the same person! We just laugh all day and have so much fun together that it is just making the experience the greatest. So the food is actually amazing! Alot of it is the same as America like chicken and spaghetti and whatnot but I have tried porridge which we have for breakfast and it was surprisingly good. It tasted like malt o meal and then we have pop which is very common in africa. You basically boil water and put in salt and something called maize? It doesnt taste that good and people eat it everywhere so I'll have to get used to it soon!!! So how is everyone? Sister Reber the presidents wife said packages take about 3 weeks to get to us and most of the time they dont get to us so im really not sure what to say about that! And letters take about the same time! I'll just have to email you when I need something so we can figure out how I can get it! I miss you guys alot but im super excited im here! I just am really happy I made the decision. We had a lesson on patriarchal blessings and I made a chart with blessings, commandments, and warnings and went through my blessing and organized it. It really put it into perspective! Everyone should try to do that for theirs. I never really saw how many times mine talked about misisonary work! Oh yeah tuesday we got to go to the temple and its closed down for cleaning so we couldnt go in but we took lots of pictures! I have pictures so I'm going to try to put them in the email, hopefully it works! It was a really great experience though. The way the MTC is since its in Johnannesburg we're in the most dangerous city ever so the mtc has a gate around the whole things and we have guards around it and everything so we have only go to leave two times! Once to the store and once to the temple but anyway what I was saying was how we never got out and so going to the temple we finally got to see the real AFRICA. the MTC is pretty american but when we went down the streets its so weird! They drive on the opposite sides of the road and the steering wheels on the opposite side too! Its so freaky!!! It reminds me of a rundown town. There are just people walking everywhere and they have gates on everything and some streets you look down and you just see trash and people burn stuff so its just fires all over and just real poverty. I was kind of scared at first but I just have to remember that the Lord will take care of as long as we are doing what we're suppose to be doing you know? So yeah the temple was beautiful though. Oh yeah! We also got to go to the distribution store after the temple and it was awesom! Its african everything! They have everything in animal skin and you can only get it here in South Africa you cant even order it so I bought an African mini hymbook and a little Book of Mormon! It has anmial skim but then it has real zebra hair too!!! I wanted a scripture bag but they only had elephant skin, giraffe, and water buffalo stuff like that so I didnt but hopefully I will get one some day!

So one of my teachers is from Botswana and his name is Brother Maarman. He is the coolest guy ever! He has been teaching me tons of Swana (the language in Botswana). Ive learned alot and here's a few:

Dumela: Hello

Okae: How are you

Ke teug: I'm Fine

Ke Kopa Meisi: Can i have some water

Kae Leboga: Thank you

Serviet: Napkin (if you say napkin it means diaper here)

I know some more but thats just some of the ones we use most often! Im so excited to lelarn the language and just get out there and teach! I feel like im not 100% the best teacher and I dont know everything but I know that I have to trust in the Lord and when your on the Lords errand he will always make a way for you and as long as I love my life worthy and try my best the Lord will take me the erst of the way so Im just so grateful. This is been the best experience already and even though I know things will get hard and I might have alot of bad days I know this isnt my mission, its the Lords so I just have to give it all i've got! .Today is Thursday around 2 in the afternoon (7 hours ahead) so I will be leaving the MTC Tuesday morning and I have to fly to Botswana! Its too far away to drive so I only have a few more days and I'll be on the streets! I feel pretty excited and ready so tell everyon not to send anything here anymore because I wont be here and any mail you send wont get here until the end of August/ September so yeah!  Tell everyone at church I said hello as well! I dont know when I will get to email again so I guess I'll email as soon as I can!

DAY ONE

So I made it! After my 14 hour layover in London our plane left the airport around 10pm and we got here around 9am and then we got picked up at the airport and came to the MTC. Let me just say, Africa is beautiful!! We're in Johannesburg which is more urban and it looks just like back home except they drive on the opposite side of the ride and everything is on the left side which is totally weird!!! The MTC director picked us up and he is from South Africa. He is hilarious! He said we come from the "Land of the free and home of the take outs!" We passed a KFC and a Mcdonalds on the way so thats as fast food as it gets! I'm super excited though I really haven't gotten nervous I guess it's just all this anticipation and now the time has finally come! I had to go ahead and get 3 shots already on the first day and we still haven't slept or showered that was definitely no fun. We have alot of elders maybe 30 and 5 sisters. All of us are from the US except one who is from Kenya but she is not here yet because of a fire at the Kenya airport, but hopefully she will get here soon! I already feel ready to just go out and teach people! 
           Oh and this is also what they sent me! For all letters and packages using international postage: Letters can be sent in envelopes using appropriate international postage. Packages should be kept small, clearly marked "Missionary Supplies" and be valued less that P300 ($40) to avoid high custom fees.. Also packages sent by surface mail take about 2 months to arrive in Botswana/Namibia, whereas packages sent by air take about 3 weeks to arrive. Anyway ,Tell everyone I said hello! I will be taking lots of pictures and trying to figure out how to send them  probably Monday so yeah love you guys!

Ta Ta For Now :)

Well.... this is it! I cant believe that this time last year I was getting ready for my "big" adventure going away to college and now I'm getting ready to take an even bigger step and even further away! I think a part of me is still in awe and I'm just amazed at how much I have grown in just a few short months. I never thought about going on a mission. Ever. But here I am and I'm so glad that I made this decision. Spencer W. Kimball once said, "Sharing the gospel brings peace and joy into our own lives, enlarges our own hearts and souls in behalf of others, increases our own faith, strengthens our own relationship with the Lord, and increases our own understanding of gospel truths." I am leaving for my mission in hopes that I will be able to accomplish all of those things and more! I'm so grateful to be able to have this opportunity because I know it will be one of the hardest yet rewarding experiences in my entire life. Someone once told me that this wont be the best 18 months of my life, but it will be the best 18 months FOR my life and my biggest convert should be myself. If I can share even a little bit of the happiness that I feel for the gospel with others I think I will have done well. Well time is definitely winding down and seeing as to how I still have to pack i'm going to get out of here!!! Until we meet again! Love you all!!! See ya in 18!

                                                                                                            Sincerely,
                                                                                                               Sister Scott