Two Years in Ghana: Letter and Photos from January 9, 2017

Daniel Buchanan <daniel.buchanan@myldsmail.net>Jan 9 at 11:07 AM

Hi, all!

This week was definitely interesting. Here's a little bit of what happened.

-This last Monday was kind of cool. We had a ward New Year's party/Family Home Evening that we went to. The Haatso elders were also invited, so the four of us went and we had a pretty good time. We got there late because last week we had to go to three different internet cafes because they were all closed. They had some snacks there which were nice, and then we grabbed some food at Peter Pan again which is always enjoyable. I'll include a picture of the four of us there.

-We have one member in our ward who's a returned missionary, and we often go to visit her family and a friend that stays with her that hopefully will be baptized this month. She sometimes will tease me and say things like, "Elder Buchanan, you're dreaming too much of BYU." So one day I had Elder Hanberg wear one of my BYU ties and I wore the other and we wore them when we went to her home and she laughed and said that I was teasing her about BYU. She's going to start the BYU pathway program soon, so I've indoctrinated someone here to BYU, so I consider that a success on my part, haha!

-Alright, here's the embarrassing story of the week. And I can promise this didn't happen because I'm fat, because I'm actually starting to lose weight, but take it how you will. When I got to this area, I had some pants fitted because they were super baggy. They came back snug, but no problem. Lately, our apartment has been doing a workout regimen which has been going really well. It's technically a 6-week plan, and last week was week 5. So my legs have been getting a little bigger as a result. So this last week, we visited a member and just as we were leaving, I go to get on my bike, and I hear what almost sounds like a muffled pop. I look down and realize that my pants split at the seams right between my legs... luckily, we were still at the members' home. So we go and we ask if the father has any extra pants around. Unfortunately, they are way too small for me. So here's what ends up happening: Elder Hanberg gives me his pants which are also pretty snug, but manageable, and he wears a pair of black sweats that belongs to this member and we finish proselyting for the day like that. So I'll be sure to attach a picture of our outfits, haha! But the coolest part of the experience is that this kind sister took my ripped pants and went to go take them to a nearby seamstress without me even asking. That's one thing I do like about the culture here. Everyone is almost like family here. She was just so willing to help out a poor little white missionary with no pants, haha. The seamstress wasn't around, so that's why Elder Hanberg ended up wearing sweats (which he is a real bro for, by the way), but she was still so kind and willing to help, which was awesome. That's one thing I love about the culture here, but it's also something I love about the gospel. We are all part of one big family—God's family. And as we follow the Savior, Jesus Christ, our love for Him increases as well as our love for those around us. As we show that love for those around us, we can do a little bit every day to make their lives a little better and to uplift them. That's what the gospel is for—to make our lives better, and it's here for every single one of us.

I love all of you so much. As always, I hope you're all doing great and that I hear from you all soon!!

With love,

Elder Buchanan