Merry Christmas!

Hi family.

It was really good to talk to you too on christmas. I think the postal service might be running a bit slow. We haven't recieved the package yet. And transfer calls are this week. so I will let you know next week how they go.

Well, I feel about the same way that you do. I talked to you all a few days ago and nothing has really happened since then. we did some knocking on doors the other day and the security gaurd made us leave. It was... interesting...

We also met with this family that wee met two weeks ago. The wife is vietnamise and we gave her a vietnamise Book of Mormon. I think she will read it. She seemed really cool. She was like "let's go to church" and "make an appointment to meet again". The dad is less interested but he likes meeting us at least. Unfortunately the woman isn't the best at korean and when we teach she doesn't really have the patience to be a part of it. she instead takes care of their son. but we will keep at it and see if anything will become of it.maybe keep em in your prayers kim-nam-joe is the name.

Also, this week the mongolian that came to church about a month ago came back and I had the privlage and task of translating during church on sunday. It was a task. but I got through it alive. It was fun.

well have a happy new year and keep us in your prayers.

Bye bye

Love you all!

Elder Shumway

Korean Christmas

hi Family!
I would first like to give a shout out to Daddy-o and commend him on his 51st birthday! wow, you're still ahead of all of us. I get one year closer to you every October and just when I think I might have a chance to pick up the pace and catch up to you, you always seem to pull ahead... well maybe things will be different next year...
I am sorry I didnt write anything in a letter yet. To tell you the truth, I wrote a handwritten letter two weeks ago and just barely a few days ago, sent it off. sorry I have not mentioned anything in the actual e mail. It has been a pretty good christmas season so far. we went caroling to some members and made christmas cards for them. It was pretty good. We are doing an actual Christmas party for our ward tonight and I am doing a dance to jingle bells with some other missionaries. and me and my companion are singing "silent night" with a some single adults in our ward. I, of course, am tenor. But I have to say, it doesnt quite sound as fluid as our family's rendition of "Silent night". It'll be fun though. I'm excited.Christmas is actually pretty widely celebrated here. There are a lot of Christians here. In fact, last night we were knockin on some doors and saying Merry Christmas as our introduction. It was really cool because we started and the first door we knocked on a lady came out, talked to us for a bit, was really nice, but then left us and went back inside. But the second door we knocked on was a family that was just like "yeah, yeah, come on in!" And they proceded to give us some bread and juice. We talked with them for a good amount of time. We shared the 1st vision and the spirit could be felt. it was a good lesson and we gave them a book of mormon.But yeah, christmas is here too and it can lighten people up just like in America if you smile and wish them a merry Christmas.
No package yet. thanks for it in advance though...
I know how it feels to have those sprained ankles. Looks like Kendric got a better story to tell though. I bet it got some high fives and pats on the bum from teammates. :-) Hey maybe even coach Soto gave you a pat on the bum too. If not, pat yourself on the bum for doing a good job. And give yourself a wet-willie for me, would ya. :-) I only have potholes and dodgeball to blame for some of my bad sprains.
OK I will call the day after Christmas here and that will be christmas night in America. I will call sometime between 7-9AM (Korean time) I think that puts you at what... 3-5PM on christmas (Arizona time). is that ok?
Keep praying for pak- gun. he's a good guy.
Love you,
Talk to you on Christmas!
Elder Shumway

Scrooge

well family,

This week was a bit better than last week.It started off with a really good zone conference. Our president wanted to do something special for the christmas season so we went to a really good resturaunt, had some really great talks prepared by other missionaries, and watched a movie. We actually watched Scrooge! It brought back a lot of memories. Singing "hark the Herald" in English accents, calling people "crums of musterd" and "old potatoes", and of course, the ending where he has that change of heart and blesses all those around him. It was really good to see and it calmed a lot of stress and brightened my day.

This last week we set up the christmas tree at the church. It needed some repairing as well (just like when we used to have our "annual repairing of the tree" festivities back in Arizona) People were complimenting me on how well I did in repairing the tree and making it look nice. I have to thank you guys for all the years of practice in refining this talent. It's nice to know "christmas tree repairing" is a valued talent to the people of korea. :-)

so as for calling on christmas, would it be better to call on christmas night arizona time? We are told to call at the convinience of the family, and I know our family is always really busy on Christmas Eve. Or have you already made arrangements for that since I last emailed. let me know. Yes, I baught a phone card. no worries there.

Also, some new news... if or when I go to a biking area, I will need to buy an actual bike. So is that bike fund still there? They were having a problem with expenses, people not treating the bikes well, and whatnot...

We are still trying to meet with "pak- gun" (he's kindof a mix between 2-PAK and tommy-GUN) :-o he is a college kid that is pretty busy and pretty cool. We have really seen the hand of the Lord in meeting him and how his Buddist kindof antichurch parents have opened up to us. Now we need to start focusing on the message. We have become pretty good friends and want to help him. And knowing that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the most beneficial and happiness- instilling thing in the universe, It appears to us that that would be the next step.

Well I love you all, I gotta run

Pray for Pak-Gun

Love you, Elder Shumway

Snow in Busan!

Hi family.
Well there is one picture of the baptism. but I am not in white like the pictures you normally see from baptisms. Probably cause it actually wasn't our investigator and there wasn't a lot of priority. sorry. but I can get you the picture of the group later. At least the one being baptised is in white.
well there is news about christmas. It looks like we will call on christmas here meaning it will be christmas eve there. so... yeah. that's what's going down. I want to see if I can get a card here first cause that will be easier. they aren't giving us cards this year. anyway. I will keep you posted on that.
Things are good here! Im holding up pretty well. On saturday we got a phone call from a girl speaking English and she said she wanted to come to church. She is from mongolia, only 10 days younger than me, and doesn't speak Korean at all. But luckily she was pretty good at English! She is the only member of her family and has been living on Yeoung-Do for a couple months already. She aparently has been trying to find the church for a while now and through a lot of phone calling, finally got our phone number. She came to church and it was really cool. It totally made our week. We had to translate. That was fun! And really hard! I tell you what... Nothing really lets you see how much you dont know than when you have to try and translate. I started, but gave up. And my companion took over. But he had a really hard time with it too. We ended up just giving up on the "direct translating" and doing more of a "So this is what they basically said.."-type of aproach. Yeah it was hard. But I think if I start translating to myself, I can use it in a good way to improve my Korean. I learned a lot just by trying to translate. But it was really cool to have her there. She even bore her testimony and my companion went up to translate for her. It was really good. she sat down and my companion bore a short testimony. And I translated back to English what he bore in Korean. Missionary Korean is a lot easier to translate that Korean Korean. Sadly, she is heading up to Gumi to see some relatives on Friday so I dont know if we will ever see her again. But we already gave her the number of the missionaries there, so it should be a smooth transition.
Well, I gotta go. Have a merry Christmas!
Love, Elder shumway
Oh, We also saw a little snow this week. not enough to stick to the ground but it was cool to see. It almost never snows in Busan area (so I hear)

Thanksgiving Dinner!

Hi family
How are you? I am good. we actually had a thanksgiving dinner as a district. It was really good. I sent you some pictures of a "squatter" as us missionaries call them. It was actually my first time using one. And will probably be my last. Almost all the bathrooms in Korea have become a little more westernized. So they all put in the regular ones. It reminded me of camping... I'll just leave it at that. :-)
I dont really have any super news. The Asian Studies professor from BYU came and talked to us as missionaries. He is a friend of the mission president (they served together in Korea a while back) And also a former mission president of Our mission. He talked about the different religions of korea and how we can connect with them and use them as a springboard to the gospel. It was really good. He is a really intelligent guy. he was using a white board and started writing some chinese characters and all the Koreans in the room just gasped.
Do you think you can send some UNO cards? Its a good way to build some friendships with some of the kids here. But neither me or my companion have some. And as for Christmas, maybe send a gift or something for my companion. He is american and his family normally does pretty well with packages. So maybe just a small gift or something. That would be great.
Love you all! I gotta go! Elder Shumway

BYU, Christmas, Exchange Rate, Investigators, Oh Yeah, and a Baptism!

Hi family.
Well that is sad news to hear that BYU lost. good thing I did remember the kleenex! :-) That was a close one! So I actually didn't get transfered! I am kinda excited. It shouldd be fun. As for us and investigators, we only have a couple. It can get frustrating but we're keepin' the peace. :-) Just pray really hard for the people of Korea to open up to the gospel.
As for Christmas, I really dont care. It would be nice to withdraw some money out while the exchange rate is really good right now. like 1 USD for 1.8 Korean Won. so it would be nice to spend some while the money is cheap. I might take a little today out. I hope that is OK. The only other thing I think would be nice is a copy of the new EFY CD. As far as thanksgiving. I dont even know if they grow turkeys in Korea. The word on the street is you have to get them for like $70. So I dont think turkey is really in season right now. maybe in a couple years. But there aren't really any plans at all. just missionary work. We might eat lunch with our district or something. Yeah but just praY for the people here to recieve the gospel. We have a couple investigators here but they are really slow on progressing. It would be nice to teach someone who is just really prepared. So keep it in your prayers and we'll keep workin' out here! :-)
Oh! So yesterday the sister missionaries had a baptism. (a 9 year old niece of a member) And I was actually given the opportunity to preform the baptism! It was nice. Well, I love you all. I dont have much time.
keep praying hard!- Elder Shumway

Splits

Hi family.
Well sounds like you have some good news over in Arizona. Wow, a dog! We've never had one of those! Sounds great! Well this week was really good. I went on splits with our zone leader and I really learned a lot. This Elder is a great missionary and works really hard. He taught me a lot about making every moment count and how there are people all around you that you can talk to. It was really fun, and I think it lit a little more fire in my to do the work. We split back on Sunday morning and had an amazing day putting what we (me and my companion) learned during splits. It was a good Sunday.We also did some group proselyting that was a lot of fun earlier on in the week.Well, you bought a puppy, and I bought a hard drive. It was at a really good deal. And with the exchange rate right now it is even cheaper over here.
So we were riding the bus one day and I sat strategically beside a university student and started talking about the book he was reading. We started talking about the gospel. He said he was going to Go Sheen University (which is a religious university that is known among missionaries as one that really doesn't really like us). This young lad was actually studying to be a pastor or minister. He was really cool and We talked about the Book of Mormon. Surprisingly, he was really nice and open. I offered him the Mook of Mormon and he was like "wow! really?! Thank you!" He said we couldn't meet because of the hatred toward the church in his school, but he said he would read it and was really enthusiastic about it.
I love the gospel!
I love you!
-Elder Shumway

New Investigator!

Hi ya family!
Well, I dont have much time. (again). Well I am good. And alive. (alive is good)
It is a bit sad because I have one of my best friends in the mission going home in a couple weeks. (right now he's our Distric leader). But I am doing well. We've had a bit of rain here which is always good. But over here the rain is COLD. So it isn't nearly as pleasant as Arizona rain. I never thought I'd ever use an umbrella, but I've started carrying one around.
The other day we ran into this drunk guy that wanted us to teach him english. We told him to give us his address and we would come by and talk sometime. He said to come later because he "ate a lot of alchohol" and we were more than fine with that. We came by his house a few days ago and told him that we wouldn't teach him english one on one, but he could come to our English Class. He agreed and then said "so how is your church different?" One thing led to another and now we are teaching him the gospel and he is a new investigator... Well, The Lord works in mysterious ways! Can't wait till we get to the Word of Wisdom~! That should be fun. :-)
Gotta go. Love you all lots.
Keep prayin' Elder Shumway

Shortest Letter Yet

Sorry.
The internet glitched on me as I sent the email and it deleted it.
I am out of time now. :-(
I got the package.
Thanks!
I'm alive.
Sorry I cant write the letter again.
Love you.
Bye, Elder Shumway

No Longer a Teenager

Hi.
Well this was a pretty good week. I am hearing a lot about the economy kinda taking a downslope. like some banks and states going bankrupt or something. I dont know.
So this week was pretty good. We did a good amount of knockin on doors and we think we might have found a new investigator. I went on splits with my District Leader and that was a lot of fun. We met with his investigator in his area and had probably the most spiritual lesson of my whole mission. This investigator is thinkin' about baptism. It went really well! Well, I gotta run. I am alive. Thats all that really matters, eh? HaHa, no I am doing fine.
To tell you the truth, my birthday came and left and I still dont feel any different, but I guess that's kinda how birthday's come. It was good though, we worked extra hard that day. And it rained. (My favorite weather) A member had us over for dinner and she bought a cake that was pretty good. I am sending you a picture.
I love you all. Thanks for your support
Elder Shumway
Ps- I guess technically I'm not a teenager anymore

Happy 20th Birthday LeGrand!!

Hi family!
Thanks for wishing me a Happy birthday! So I am sending a package but it is by slowboat. I hope to send it in the next couple days. There is a gift in there for Jordan. Sorry I didn't get it to him in time for his birthday but oh well, he'll gat it when you get it. So today guess what I got in the mail? my votin' ballot. So that was pretty exciting. Well my companion is really cool. He is a kid from Utah in some small town. he's a pretty smart kid. he knows korean really well and koreans like him pretty well. This last week I think I've progressed a lot in the language. So my new companion (Elder Sprosty) is a new senior. He is 3 months older than me as a missionary. And because he is a new senior, coming into a new area, I've had to pick up a lot of slack and kinda fake senior up until now. Yes, he's senior. But there are some things that I have just needed to do (mostly just communication) and it has really helped me grow in the language.
Well we went to a wedding ceremony yesterday. it had a lot more traditional things in it than American weddings.
Well, I will talk to you later, Thank you!
Tootle- lue (in a darth vader voice)
Elder Shumway

Hey Hey
Thanks for the letters. Last week I tried to something a little tricky. I tried typing two letters. one to Caleb and one to the Family. But I realized that took a little too much time. So even though I would like to write on a more individual basis, I am sorry to say that time does not permit it. Thanks for sending me the package. The way they do it is the post office recieves the mail, they then deliver the mail to the mission office daily, and from there the office forwards it to the missionary. And if it is close to transfers, they hold all the mail and forward them after all the tranfers are done. I'll have to ask the mission president about his son. That seems really exciting though! (His son, Ken Jennings was the smartest one on Jeopardy for a long time, and he recently participated on "are you smarter than a 5th Grader?" and earned 1/2 million dollars)
So if you want the news, tranfers are in and I am still staying in yeoung-Do. Elder Heubsch is leaving to another area. I have a new companion, Elder Sprosty. He seems really cool. He is a new senior so his experience in Yeoung-Do should be really good. This transfer looks really promising though. As for investigators, just keep praying for the ones you have. And pray for us as missionaries to find some really prepared people to teach.
I am sorry to hear all these deaths and bad health problems in the family. But I am happy for Neal (Stanfield) and whoever he's marrying.
Oh man! General Conference was awesome! I think you enjoy it more as a missionary. I think you are just more spiritual minded during this time. But it was really good. I felt, for lack of a better word, filled. I missed the Sunday afternoon session though. We watched it in English and after the morning session we booked it down to our little island, expecting to see it in Korean with our members, but they ended up not showing it there. I was a bit dissappointed. But was I saw was really uplifting.
The other day, we met this guy on the street that just started talking to us in pretty good English. We stopped and he bought us ice cream. He was really cool and was really into Boy Scouts. He got the Tiger (the equivilant of The Eagle) and told us to come by and have lunch with him sometime. On Saturday, just before conference, we went early to a hospital with the branch president, his councelor, and an inactive. We went to see the inactive's friend and her severly handicapped teenager. He looked like he was in really critical condition. Both of them were crying, but we gave a bleesing. I anointed and My companion blessed. He blessed him that he would fully recover.
Anyway we gotta go.
There are other people 3that nee2d the 8compu9t62er.
I will talk to\ you later.
*L*o*ve* you*!****/*-+Elder -*S/humway
PS- I wan/t* /t*o/ */*t/a*/k*e /*o/u*t/ */*so/m*e /m*o/r*e /*mo/*/n*e/y* /*f/r*o/m */*m/y* /*ca/*r/*d/*./ */*/I* /*/*/*/h*op/*e that's alright. Maybe like 100 do/l*a/r*/s*. Love Ruddy. Sorry that was another Elder with all the numbers and the dashes. They are getting pretty anxious. :-)
Love you all!
Respond back to the money question ASAP!
Thanks!

General Conference

Hi Family,
Well, if I do say so myself, Jordan's spained pinky was a bit funny, especially the way Jordan told it. Thanks for the letter Bro! I got to go so I'll make this fast! So down in Yeoung Do, it is going pretty good. we had a big stake activity. It was a lot of fun. I realized that there are a lot more members in the Busan area than I thought. I played soccer for the first time in a long long time. Yep, I still stink. But this time it was worse. I ran a lot, that was refreshing.
We came home, my companion did 2 baptismal interviews ( there were 2 kids baptized on Sunday (not our investigators)). So this week was pretty good. We had a great lesson with one of our investigators. He knows what he needs to do, it is just a matter of time until he gets the courage to be baptized (for him, it would mean turning away from a lot of things). So pray for him. Kim-Teh-Won. Other than that, We have met a few really cool people and they might turn into investigators. It is pretty exciting. My companion is really awesome. I have been with him for two transfers so far, but transfer calls are Friday, And we think one of us will go. But we'll find out then... I hope you had a really good conference! We see it this week, it needs to be translated first. I am pretty excited. As far as my birthday, whatever. The EFY CD would be nice. And maybe another block of that Cedder and Pepperjack cheese. That was really good. Love you lots Elder Shumway
PS- Dad had that really awesome book about... the doctrine and covenents?... I am not sure. its the one that talks about the second coming and how everything plays out... do you know what I'm talking about? Well, If you could somehow get a copy and send it really slow, cheaply to korea (like by boat or something) that would be really cool.

Thanks!

"I Love the Gospel! I know it's true."

Hi.

Well thank you for the package! It was a really nice surprise! So far I have really anticipated the packages, and so far you are doing a really good job. Thanks again for this last one! So I finally got my dictionary. And if you look at the account, I made the withdrawal. I took out 200000 won. which is about $200. but let me know what the account says. when you take into account the exchange rate and fees and the price of the dollar, it changes. Let me know what it Actually took out in american Dollars. As far as the dictionary, it is really cool! It has a really nice setup and is pretty "top-of the line" when it comes to dictionaries. And I bought it off of another missionary for a really good deal. Thanks.

So, this week went really well. we met a few new people and we think they are ready for the restored gospel. We are still trying to do a lot of this inactive work. Our mission President pretty much told us that he really wants us to focus on raising the wards up. There are a lot of details about how and why. But the long end of the short of it is that there are so many inactives and so many people that embrace the gospel and fall away. His goal is to raise the wards, to build them up and get them to trust the missionaries a lot so that they get excited about missionary work, about this church, and about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We want to build that atmosphere where those who are new converts, can find so much strength and really feel the friendship of the ward; this is something that has been desperately needed in the wards of the Busan Mission. It is a little different and we are still a little unsure of the best way to approach this phase of missionary work...I love the gospel! I know its true.
The atonement is real!
Always share it!
Love you.Elder Shumway

(I am happy that Greg and Michelle got married. That must have been really cool! I know they are both really happy! But the news of Scott Fleming's death is really sad... And Grandma in the hospital isn't good either.)

"Passed Off"

Hi!
Thanks for the Email. Kedric sounds like he's doing pretty good on the football team. I wish he would have played a little before I left so I could've had a reason to go to the games more. way ta go!

well, we did go to a Puma store and they informed us that Pumas run anywhere from $70-120. I dont know how much the package was, but they cost a lot here. Thank you for sending them! I bought a dictionary (well, sort of). I bought it from another elder and he is sending it in the mail. It should get to me today or tomarrow. I am pretty excited. It should be really good.

Well, yes. It was a good Choo-Suk. Even though It got in the way of proselyting, we built some good relationships with the members. This week I finally "passed off". We have a Pass-off Program here. You have to memorize a bunch of vocabulary and get to a certain level in teaching the lessons. There are 3 passoffs: 1st, midway, and Final. And just this week I did final. It doesn't really mean much other than now I can technically go Senior. Woah! Yeah, I little scary! I think I'm more scared about it than you might be though. I still dont feel like I would be ready... I dont think it will happen quite yet though. In my opinion I have at least a couple transfers until I have to really worry. But, there are a lot of new missionaries coming in this next transfer and quite a few ending their missions. Which means they will be needing quite a few seniors to take their places. We'll see... I think I'll go when I'm good and ready...

So the other day we were traveling and this guy coming off the bus stops us and starts talking to us in English. "Hey are you two Mormon?" We started talking to him. He was this old chinese man. He was a citizen of the US but he had to renew his visa to China in Korea. He didn't speak any Korean and was really confused about how to get to his hotel. We pointed him in the right direction, showed him how to use the subway system, gave him our number in case he got confused again, and after thanking us, he left. We didn't expect to see him again. But a few days later, he gave us a call and said he wanted to meet treat us to coffee. Not really caring too much for the coffee, we met and had a really good talk over some orange juice. To make a long story short, we shared some stuff out of an English Book of Mormon and gave him a copy. He really liked it. He had some great values and some longing questions he wanted answered. He expressed his desire to read and study the book. He gave us his address in China (he plans to live there) and we separated.
All of this from just telling him how to use the subway. There are a lot of opportunities out there.

Love you a lot! Elder Shumway

Choo-Suk!!!

Hi family.

So there is a holiday in Korea called (choo-suk). Anyway as far as holidays, this is the big one in Korea. It's pretty big. It started on Saturday and Ended on Monday night. But it was fun. As far as missionary work though, it really cuts into it. You cant really go procelyting because everyone is inside celebrating with their families. And if you do, they would just come to the door and be like " hey, what are you doing? it's (choo-suk). go away." They suggested that we use this time with the members and try and build our relationships with them. So on Saturday, we went over to this member's house that is really lonely ( her husband abandoned her, she has 1 daughter, and no real relatives.) And we spent Saturday just preparing traditional Korean Food with her. It was a good experience.

On sunday, we tried to find where some less actives live through a map at the church. We had a really short meeting and spent the rest of the day with members. It was good. But here's the killer... We got a full P-Day on Monday. Nothing was open, so we didn't have the chance to E mail then (hence the Email now). So we played football on the Beach, played basketball, and I had my 1st encounter with Ultimate Frisbee since I was in Arizona! It felt so good! After, we went to a Bath house and then watched "Robots" and had pizza. It was a lot of fun, but I am feeling pretty sore from all that activity.

So so so, this holiday season kinda destroyed the typical weekend, and our procelyting time was really minimized. :-( Thanks for all the updates! Well as far as the language goes, I am still not very comfortable. But I am still trying. It really helps when I shut out English and only speak Korean. But sometimes it's hard. But I need it. Pray for me to be better at the language and to keep studying hard.

Sounds like BYU will do pretty well in football this year! Thank you Caleb for the updates and pictures! Looks like you're having a lot of fun at BYU! Love you all! Sorry I can't respond back to everything as in depth as I want to.

Till next week! Elder Shumway

A New Investigator!

Hey

Well It seems as though you do have some big news in Arizona.

to answer the questions- yeah weather is changing a little bit. but I dont need anything. I brought warm stuff with me. Thanks though. Maybe send me a lot of those listrine packets or something. If it is too much dont worry about it. As missionaries, they dont like us chewing gum in public. But in Korea, that's kinda the only way to freshen breath. they dont offer much alternative. they do sell altoids, but thay are really expensive and they make your backpack all "powdery". Anyway, Thank you.

so right now I am at a place called sfun z ("spoungie" as Koreans pronounce it) its just a place with a bunch of games (ping pong, bowling, etc). it should be pretty fun. I am emailing on a computer here. so as for myself, I am fine as always.

Today I cut my own hair for the 4th time in Korea. And I accidently cut the bangs way too short! Haha. But it is alright. Everyone says it looks fine. I think I just look at it with a more critical eye...

As far as news... These inactives are proving really hard to find. Korean addresses are really confusing. they give houses numbers in the order that they are built. So in an area, all the numbers are jumbled up together. so it can be difficult. and the area book is 5 years old...

But one interesting thing that happened this week. We were finding an inactive and all of a sudden, we ran into a guy from our english service project. We talked a little. At first, we were just trying to get out of there but we started talking a little bit and it started from trying to leave to giving him a pass along card to giving him the first discussion at the church! And the first went really well. We had another and that went well too! So it turns out that we found this investigator from one of the people we see every week. The circumstances were just right. But the Lord prepares those kinds of people all the time. We always just need to take advantage of those oportunities!

Gotta go!
Love you all!
Peace,
Elder shumway

Here is a photo of me and a member of my district.

Knocking Doors & Visiting Members

Well let's see what happened this week...
Well this week we did a lot of knockin on doors this last week... Like it went ok. we got in a lot of them. There was this one lady that we ran into a couple nights ago. She invited us in and we just started talking. She was talking about how she drinks a lot and howshe wishes she could stop. I dont really know what we should do with her... But My companion commited her to stop that day and any alcohol she had, to dump it out. she wanted to give us lunch, but we set up another appointment instead... We'll see how it goes...
We have some investigators here in yeoung-do, but we've started putting a lot more emphasis on work within the ward. we have this book of a couple hundred members but there are tons of less-actives... we have started working with a few and visiting a lot. It is turning out pretty well. we had a few of those less-actives come out to church this week! Anyway, we bought this huge map so we can find about 75 addresses that never could be found. I'll let you know how that goes. Well, I am not transfering, and I am staying with my companion! :-) It should be a really good transfer.
Of course, I'll keep you updaded with that stuff as well!
Gotta run!
sorry it was so short!
Love you all!
Elder Shumway

Where's Waldo?/Dad?

Oh my... Oh my... nothing could've prepared me for that. Wow! That's one good disguise! Good job! Did anyone find him? (This is a photo of Daryl before going to the mall where the youth of our ward had to find him and several other adults in disguises. An activity that we like to call "Where's Waldo?")
So as you know, Elder Bednar came to speak to us! It was amazing! He did a question and answer session for about 3 hours! I learned a lot of really interesting stuff! Anyway, The Olympics here were pretty exciting. Of course we didnt see much, but everyone was talking about it. Korea is really excited that they beat Japan, (they want to beat Japan at everything) and they were super excited at winning baseball. And of course, they knew about Micheal Phelps (in Korean it sounds like "pel-pus") But they sounded really fun!

Well, to be honest, there isnt a lot of new news this week. We had a lot of meetings. We finally started our service project again. ( We go to a care center and sit in with a class that is learning English songs. so we sit there and when they need us to, we sing "mary had a little lamb" or "humpty dumty" or any other carol. It is ok. It can get a little boring, but most of the time it is fine. other than that, like I said, We have just done some proselyting and a ton of meetings. Its fun though. Thanks for the package again. My compainion just got some food from his family and we are eating both little by little. Pray for 3 things: Park Gun and his family, Yee Gee Won that he will attend church, and for the people of Yeoung- Do.
Thanks Alot!
Love you!
Elder S

6 Months Already!!!

Well Family,
It has been a great day in the beautiful Yeoung- Do. Well I dont really know where to start.
1. Last P-day was pretty cool. I dont remember what we did but it was fun... I am pretty sure.
2. Then on wednesday, it was my 6 month mark! we had a district meeting. It was good and fun!
3. Well on Thurday, we had interviews with president. Man I love that Guy! He has a lot of changes in the mission! It should be exciting! After, we had lunch and went to get Ice cream. It was pretty cool. We also met a couple of really cool guys. I think both can turn into investigators. We just have to approach things in the right way. They are pretty old and one doesn't really understand us that well. Haha.
4. Friday, wehad a big ward picknic. It was pretty cool. So we showed up to the meeting place and we went down to our spot. And... Lo and Behold, They chose a swimming pool! To make a long story short, we did a lot of sitting Korean-style of course, (otherwise known as Indian-Style). I had made the mistake of assuming that I didnt need sunscreen that day. And well. . . Well, well, well... I've never blistered on my knees before...Haha just kidding. It wasnt that bad. But I did did a little red. Nothing bad though. After that, we went and visited this inactive family. They were way cool and let us in. We talked for a bit, shared a message, and they came to church.
5. On saturday, we met those two old guys we found and continued our discussions. I think we will refer one to the sister missionaries (they're Korean and can communicate a lot better than us). But the other one said he would come to church on the 31st! After that, we didnt know what to do. We had a few options and we decided to visit some people that expressed a little interest in this one apt. SO we visited like 5 doors, and they either didn't answer or weren't home. But the last door was this like 23 year old awesome kid. And he was home. He let us in. He told us that his family is really buddist and doesnt like missionaries. But After we first met him (a couple weeks ago) he has been talking about us to his family about us and saying how cool and awesome we are. So he let us in. It turns out that lately, a lot of tough things have happened since we met him. His Grandmother has cancer, he got food poisoning, he lost his cell phone and so he cant call any of his close friends or anything (cell phones are pretty important in Korea). We shared alma 7:11-12. He really like it. And he said he'd meet us at church the next day!
6. Sunday, we had a great meeting with that kid. He is so humble. He said that for the past day, he has been thinking about that scripture we shared with him. Sometime this week we will go to the hospital with him.

Well, yes I got the package, thank you. We have already used the frisbee once or twice. Flies great!
As for music, I have to admit that it can get tough here in Korea. They have some pretty good techno. haha. I first I was struggling to not think of music. I always had some kind of beat in my head. It took a while, but I think I've got it under control. :-) I still have a beat in my head but it stays pretty mission- standardy. Like "come thou Fount" or something.
Stay pretty!
Keep the faith!
Stay righteous!
Love ya's!
Elder Shumway

Elder Bednar to Visit Korea Soon

third time I am writing this letter... **&%$# That's a potty word in Korean. no just kidding it's not even Korean. But this letter got deleted twice already and I am pretty frustrated. So for lack of time, and lack of will power to try typing the amazing letter again, I will just lay it out...

Well Congrats to Michelle on getting engaged! Good Luck! I hope everything goes well! And another Congrats goes to Aj! Cara's going to Argentina! Hot Dang! That's exciting!

There are a lot of changes while I'm gone! That's good! Maybe things will change for me too! (like maybe my height will increase a few feet or I will grow a bum-chin!) ...I'll work on the Bum-chin.

Well there is good news and bad news. I guess you heard the news that Elder Bednar is coming to Korea. He is! But unfortuanately he is speaking in Deagu and Deagu is really far away from Yeoung-Do. If I was in Gumi still, I would be able to go. But I am not...But I did promise you good news... He is coming to speak to the Busan Mission as well! And I will go to that one! It is really exciting! As far as prayer goes, pray for Yeoung-Do. Pray that the people here will open their hearts to the glorious message of the gospel. I know it's True! It is True! Never be afraid to share it!

Love you all,
Elder Shumway

An Answer to Prayer

So this week is good. My companions name is Heubcsh. He is on splits right now cause he needs to register in the immigration office again. So I dont know his parents names. All I remember is he lives near the 17 and Northern (that's like where the DI is). Well things are all fine and dandy in young-Do. The only problem is that we dont have too many investigators left over after we killed English. Haha. But it is OK. we will find some. there is a lot of potential in this city. Thanks goes out to everyone to helped with the "bike-fund". And like you already know, I am out of the area. But thanks. I think I could use it to get that electronic dictionary. Those things run pretty high. It feels a little akward that I recieved all this money all of a sudden, But again thank you. Well I have to admit, there were a lot of things that changed once I transfered. And not having a lot of teaching and a lot of rejection was a bit to adjust too. But I know that God is in the work. And even some dont accept you or the message, It doesn't make it any less true. The other day, I was feeling a little down, but I prayed, and felt really good again. I prayed to find. I prayed for a little miracle. we went back out for work, and I saw this one guy on the side of the street. But the spirit picked him out from the crowd. For some reason, I really felt like I should talk to him. I said to my companion "hey, lets go talk to that guy!" He just said "go ahead." Looks like I'm flying Solo on this one. (well, that's not true, the spirit was there) So I just started talking to him. We just kinda chatted until the end when I handed him a BOM pass-along card. He was really accepting! Not only of a foreigner like me, but also of the gospel and of the work. It was really cool. I dont know what will happen to that guy, but it was definately an answer to my prayers. He was one of the most accepting people I've met, and the spirit pointed him out.
Love you lots!
Elder Shumway

New Area

What's up Fam! So yeah, I'm with Huebschy right now. He's super cool! Actually it turns out he is also from Phoenix, AZ. But I hadn't seen him at all before. Unusual coincidence, eh? But yeah, he's tight. and he is pretty funny too. Question time! ... or not really a question but more of a request...Request time! I bet you would probably rather it be question time than Request time. Questions are a lot easier to answer... okay, okay, I'll try and make it into a question...
Question time! So my companion and I live in an apartment overlooking a bay? And it so happens that I was looking outside and there was a slight breeze? I started humming the song from the christopher columbus animated stories, "the wind's blowin' my way"? anyway, I was wondering if you ever saw a cd with any of those animated stories songs, could you please send it? Also, (and more prioritaly(if that's a word), is the new EFY CD)!...? I really want that baby? Anyway, if you could do that, that would be awesome? I dont know if anyone decided to go to EFY this year, but nevertheless, I really want that CD? Thanks?
Statement time! Or the reat of the letter...young-Do is a neat area. I like it. There are soo many people and so many that are ready for the gospel. It will be sweet! We are working pretty hard. You know how I told you we would teach English to investigators? Well, for a while, I have really not liked it. It takes a lot of time and some of the investigators you get are not at all interested in the gospel. The progress really slow and you can tell that they only "play along" just for the Free English. We would teach English for half an hour and then gospel for the last half. And depending on who you're with, sometimes it feels like the Gospel is taking the back seat. Anyway, I've always been a little critical of the English/ Gospel program for a while now. Yeah it can bring some good investigators, but you have to spend time with some of the not interested ones as well. But there's good news. Our new mission president just this past week told us to cancel the program mission-wide. We can have a weekly English class, but no one-on-one English Gospel appointments! So I am pretty excited about that. And my companion is too. A lot of missionaries dont like it because that's all they have done, but We're pretty excited! I trhink this is the first time a mission in Korea didn't prosylyte through English. More news to follow...Anyway, it's good. We have lots of time to procylyte and we are in a good area with lots of potential.
Love you all,
Elder Shumway

So I almost forgot. I found out my suitcase isnt as durable as I wouldve hoped. Haha. We traveled a lot and I had to drag this sucker all the way. Haha. It was ok though. I will see if it is fixable. and the other pictures are of the veiw from our apartment.

First Transfer

Hi family!
Today is transfer Day! And guess what?! I am being transfered! Everyone thought that I would stay and lead Gumi but nope! I am leaving. I am writing to you from Young-Do. it is actually and island off of the coast of Busan. technically it is an island, but it isnt very far away. ANyway, I am really excited about it. I have my first American companion in the feild. They are pretty common but It is a little exciting none the less. His name is Elder Hebsch. (Yeah, a little weird spelling). But he's cool! I'll send some pictures later.
Right now I am sending you a few pictures from last P-Day. It was pretty sweet. This is in Kimchon. Actually FYI, this transfer was really weird. There were a lot of new changes that have never happened before. There were quite a few areas that were "white-washed" and there were wierd things that happened all over the place. But now I am on an island. When I got my transfer call, the AP told me, "you're going to a beautiful island". I automatically thought of Che-Ju-Do, the island that everyone considers "paradise". then he said,"...but not Che-Ju-Do". It was kinda funny. But this next transfer looks cool. I am pretty stoked!! :-)
Thanks for all your prayers! I haven't gotten the package yet, But It should probably come by next week. It was good to get your letters. These pictures are of "the beach of Kimchon". Its just a big river bottom. but we took some sweet pictures there. it was fun. In the video, I am trying to skip a rock.

So anyway, things are really crackin' over here in Korea. I like it! The language is still way tough and I can't wait till I can speak it like some of these other missionaries! Some of them are way good! It's exciting! I do my best to do my part and hope that the Lord will make up the rest!

It was pretty cool, because while I was packing and stuff, I was listening to my BYU choir CD! (Awesome cd, and I haden't pulled it out in forever!) But I was listening and just thinking and It started playing track 4 ( I think) "this is the christ". And while I was listening, things just started flooding over me. This is the Christ. This is His work. I really listened to the words and I thought of those in the Book of Mormon, who really saw him. And What they must have thought when they felt the marks upon him, and the wounds that were borne in behalf of them. thinking back to myself, I realize that before his name was engraven upon my Nametag, I was engraven upon His hands.

I'm in good hands.

Love you all! Peace out, Homies! Elder Shumway

Ba Bamp!

Today we were able to have an email conversation with LeGrand once again! We happened to be emailing each other at the same time. Here are some highlights.

Alright, I am on the computer for a while and I am not really planning to go anywhere..

Today I am actually coming to you from a nearby city called Kimchon. We have two companionships in our district and we do splits quite often.Anyway, to make a long story storter, One of the Elders in Kimchon found out that his sister died just last week. He was given the advice to just take it easy for the next week or two until he heals from this tragedy and can start working with full force again. Our house in Gumi has AC but the one in Kimchon does not. We have been doing splits for almost a week now, but anyway, this was President's advice to us.



It gets a bit "lainy" around here. And yes, I still love it. They tell me the weather is taking a break for a while and then hopefully we'll see some good flooding. Tell Sister Turville hi for me, and tell here I've learned to use chopsticks pretty well. :-)Wow! That's great. Kendric is working already! Does Jordan work? Probably not. Haha. I remember when I applied at Johnny Rockets and they pretty much just threw my application away. Haha yeah I dont do well when it comes to those "typical jobs" All of my jobs have come from people I knew. Those scout camp pictures were really cool! I enjoyed them. Looks like you went to a pretty cool spot this year. haha. I wish I could've seen Dallen catch a fish!...well looks like you can type a hecka lot faster that I can! hunt and peck, Hunt and peck...

Tell Ethan to send me a letter. (I hope you read this Ethan)



Thanks for the recipe! Most of the houses have stoves AND ovens, but our house in Gumi is a bit Ghetto and only has a stove. But it has AC!Yes, I am living in Kimchon right now. But I didn't move here. Just brought enough clothes to last a few days.earlier, you asked about a dictionary. Right now I have a small book dictionary that I really like. They give them to all Korean speaking missionaries when they enter the MTC. So for a While I will hold on to that one. But later, I want to get an electronic one. They are a bit pricy (like around $200). So just make sure there is some money in my account when I decide to go after one. It will probably not be for a couple more months.

We are teaching Kim-gyung-ho. He is this really cool guy in Kimchon that came to church, is really progressing, loves English, and really wants to go to BYU ID in 2009. But pray that he will gain a testimony of the Book of Mormon....

Our bikes got stolen but I dont think we'll ever find them. I plan on buying a couple new bikes. I can save up on some MSF and the mission will refund me 50%. And when I leave Gumi, the bikes will stay there. But in the longrun, it will save on cab-fare, be good excercise, and help out the next missionaries. ;-) But I was looking around, and we will probably not get some with shocks. If we do, we need to find a place that will sell 'em cheap. No Thrift stores in Korea . :-(....So how's that band coming? (Caleb, Jordan, Kendric, and Kevin Pooley have started a band! Mainly just for fun. They plan on making their debut after institute on August 5th. So look out!)I'm not sure what to expect. If it's good, go for it. It'll be fun. But I am also thinking, "where in Davey Jones did this Idea come from?!" But keep me posted. It sounds exciting!

Don't worry about money for the bikes. it's covered. I have been depriving myself of some of the more luxury items (aloe vera juice, melon bars, etc). If I was buying it for myself, I would need money but since it isn't for me, I am just saving.

haha. well now that I've heard from all of you, I think I will stop writing. It's been fun! My companion is still typing away, (he's a popular guy) and I will be sitting by the computer for a while but probably not typing. This new mission President is really awesome. We had interviews this last week and I can really feel his spirit. At the end, we all gathered around to give a blessing to the Elder whose Sister just passed away. I dont remember excacly what was said, but I remember that the spirit was there. And as our mission President was pronouncing the blessing, I can truly say that he was called of God and had the Spirit with him. These next two years will be really good! Our mission is in good hands.



I've been reading a lot from the Book of Mormon. The closer you read and the more focused you are makes all the difference. I read a scripture that I really liked this morning. I don't have my english scriptures with me but I memorized the verse since I really love it! 2 NEPHI 33:6 "I glory in plainness; I glory in my Jesus, for he hath redeemed my soul from hell." It's so true! Truth is simple. The way it is, is the way it is. Satan is the one who works in darkness. And Jesus Christ paved the way for all of us. He has saved every soul from Hell. I know that this gospel is true and it leads to true Happiness!

Thanks so much! Thanks for all the pictures, emails, and support! Love you all!

Elder LeGrand Shumway

Happy Independence Day!

Today we emailed LeGrand at the same time he emailed us. So we have a few here to share with you.

Alright family!

It has been a great two weeks since the last time I wrote to you! Last P-Day, We went to Busan because our mission president was leaving. There were a lot of missionaries that decided to gather at the train station and say one last goodbye to President. So we had to take the two hour trip down to Busan. It was really cool. We surprised him as he turned the corner to go to the platform and broke out with a hymn "Each life that touches ours for good". It was really cool. But as you can tell, we didn't e mail.
Today, we have a lot of shopping to do in another city so we are getting a head start on the day.I ate Dog! it was pretty good. not SUPER good, but good. I have some pictures. There was one part that wan't so good though. It was like a big fat block that looked like the ear but might have been skin or something! Yuck! But I downed it so i could say I finished the whole soup. But the rest was good!
The new mission president is really cool. Him and his wife are really funny and are excited for the work. I think it will be good to have them.

(Next email)
Hey I just got your letter!
Alright, so this last week i feel like I have been truly blessed. I finally decided that instead of relying on some really hard praying and a lot of waiting for the Gift of Tongues, I decided that I would instead just work at it and see what happens. it seems like that is what i should have done the whole time. Don't get me wrong, I am always working hard for the language, but I finally decided to work at it with full vigor. 110%. Every spare minute is study time. Memorize vocab and such. And since i really stretched out and really showed that i wanted it, the blessings have come. And I have seen them. These last couple weeks, my learning has accelerated and my mind has truly been quickened. I can understand people so much more now. And they can understand me better as well. But it still isn't anywhere close to where it should be... Got to pick up any extra slack and work even harder. I really think blessings and work/ desire are proportional to each other.Anything you want, you have to work for.
Yes I got Sarah's letter. it got here just fine. I will reply shortly.
Wow. that's a lot of news! I will respond next week.
Tell Bryndan I am mailing a letter today. And to not expect it for another week or so. Things have been pretty hectic on P days here you see...I will make a video but send it next time. I will respond to everything next week.

Love you,
LeGrand

(Next Message)
Gold leader, signing off---(wow that's dorky)Haha

Father's Day!!

Wow!
Looks like you have a lot of stuf going on at home! If you keep it up, I'll always have really exciting P-Days! ...But, on the other hand, if things keep changing this fast, Caleb will be married, You will live in Utah, The Cats will gow two heads, and Dallen will have become a mountain man (hunting Gorillas, Raccoons, and stuff). Actually all of those sound really cool except the first one! :-) (PS- if one of the cats does grow two heads, keep it until I get back)... Such tales bring an all-to-familair song to mind....

SO HAPPY FATHER'S DAY DAD! You're the BEST dad! Sorry, but I didn't send any package or anything your way. (insufficient funds) But I will make sure to hit you extra hard when Dec 8 rolls around (Gosh, I hope that's right). But the date doesn't really matter. I cant time these things very well anyway... But Know that I really love you and the example you have set for me. Not everyone has been as lucky as I have.

I bet Girls' Camp was a lot of fun! I didn't have to read very far to know that Mom was not the author. But thanks Bro for sending that to me! Love ya man! (PS- you're dating too hard) As for my password.... I'll never tell! Wah haha! Just kidding, It's in a letter I mailed on Wednesday. you should get it soon.

Spencer just got my letter! Finally! I figured he just forgot about me. HaHa, just kidding.

That's awesome that Ashlee accepted the missionaries! I hope everything goes well! I'll send a letter to her soon!

As for Korea, Yoon sang mee (however i spelled it) Is going to China for a couple months. Her sister lives there and she will come back after the Olympics. So things will have to wait util she gets back. I am with the same companion. We think this next transfer he will go and I will stay (we dont REALLY know. but that seems to be the typical pattern in the mission. we'll see...) Whoever stays might be able to see her when she gets back. She comes back about 3-5 days before a transfer date. We extended baptism a bunch of times but she says she needs more time. Im Jee hoon (i dont know how I spelled it) has gotten more busy as time goes on, we have met a few more times but his progress is slow. Keep praying for him and pray that we will find more people that are really ready to hear the gospel. (I think there are many that are mainly interestest in just learning English).
But other that that, things are going really good! I started a "40-day fast" which is a fast from anything that gets in you way as a missionary. Some of it is more physical (such as "being tired") but most is your mental focus. It has proven to be very difficult so far. But The end result is theoretically, a more purified-from-the-world missionary and a deeper commitment to the work. So we'll see how it turns out. :-)

Well, that's all for today. We have some shopping to do and a few errends to run. Tonight we (my companion and I) are organizing a ward home Evening. So I have to prepare for my 5-minute talk. (if it was English, i dont think i'd give hardly any thought until I was up on the stand. but its not. And I am no master at Korean)

Thank you. I love you so much!
Happy Father's Day, Dad!

Elder S

Transfers!

Hi Family.Sorry I didn't Email last week. We went to the mission headquarters to "drop off some books". HaHa. Me and my companion went to a nearby printing shop and had about 80 PMGs (Preach My Gospel: A guide to missionary service) made. But we made them super small. like a fourth of a normal PMG. Talk about black market quality! Now these babies are portable. The only problem is they are not in color except the cover. But they are pretty sweet nonetheless!
Anyway, I say "drop off some books" because that was kind of the excuse to make the trip down to the mission office on transfer day. Transfer Day!!! What!? What!? Did you say, "Transfer Day"? Already! But you just started your mission young lad ( and fat lad, (and ugly lad))... Yes, I jolly well know, but the 6 weeks are up and it is time for your first transfer in the field.

The good news is, i am staying with my companion ( my "papa", if you will) That is kinda that nickname for trainer over here. Any way, no transfers for us, actually none for our whole district... But there were a couple of Elders "dying" that he wanted to see. (more mission lingo: "dying" means going home).
And i also found out that when I die, I will either die 3 weeks before or after the start of my mission (Late Jan, 2010 or Early April, 2010) Since I was in the MTC for 12 weeks instead of nine like Caleb, I have 3 weeks that can fly either way. We'll see when we get there.
Maybe you understand that last paragraph, maybe not. Either way, I am moving on. We can talk about that later.

also, I realized I will have my "Golden Birthday" 2 times. Since I am technically 21 right now in Korea, my next birthday will be "golden" and when I come home, I will be 21 again and the next birthday after that will also be "golden".

Anyway, I am super excited to Email today! We had that trip last week. The train ride was 2 hours each way and we spent some time with the Elders at the mission home. (HaHa i realized that I used 3 words to describe the mission home (home, office, headquarters)) I say some friends from the MTC. That was really cool! Because of transfers, the mission held all packages and letters. So I picked up the package (thank you!) at the mission home, but I got your letter just today. (looks like stamps went up 3 cents). Since we ran out of time, I've been anticipating Email ever since then. I spoke during church and while i was speaking, I realized I would be Emailing in 24 hours. it was exciting....
Any way... HaHa. Happy birthday Kendric! Looks like you were caught unprepared and underdressed! [Sidenote: We had Kendric's surprise 16th birthday party early in the morning on Monday the 9th. All his friends were hiding in the basement and he got tricked into walking down there. He had just woken up and he usually sleeps in his undies, so he was quite surprised!)
The Cats sound Awesome. And I really enjoyed the letters and all the info on the latest stuff that's happened with the family. Thank you!
Love you lots!
Elder Shumway

Woops!

Alright. Something really interesting happened this week... No, no
baptisms (but our new convert got the priestood)...
...Anyway, so I was at a member's store (where I made new namecards) and I wanted to make a CD with my camera card (i didn't want to lose them, you see)... So I was going through my camera and found where it said how much space I had taken up. I wanted to find out how many CDs It would need (I am now equipted with a 2 GB card). It turns out that I had used up about 1.7 GB! So I was like "wow! That's a lot of pictures! Those are lotes of memories that I would not want to lose! That's my last part in te MTC and my first 5 weeks in the feild." Those pictures are of a lot of firsts. First time on a plane, first baptism, first time landing in Korea, etc. Yeah... so it turns out that my camera can also format cards... and... yeah. Bad news. On the screen where
I can see how much memory is used, I can easily format the card. One little slip of the finger destroys everything. No warning or anything! And Thats what happened....


But wait, the member says, "Dont worry, I have a program that can restore formated things! Horray!" So he worked his magic... However, My camera is all-powerful. The "omipotent
camera". When it does something, it does it right! It gets the job done! So when I said, format!", It did it well. And my card was formatted well. In other words, the program couldn't fix it...


Long story short, I dont have any pictures. Sorry. I'm sad too. So I want you to cherish those pictures I did send. You have the only reminants of my 1.7GB of pictures. Especially cherish "Russia". HaHa. of all the pictures, I sent you one of Russia. HaHa.
Any way, that will be alright. I am working on filling up the memory card again and soon I will have another 1.7 GB that i can format! HaHa just kidding. (Here is the Photo of Russia LeGrand is talking about. Taken from the airplane window.)



Today we hiked a mountain! Well, it wasn't really hiking. More of "walking up a bunch of stairs" but it was fun! We had 3 investigators come with us so it turned out well! I will send those
pictures next week.


Anyway, I'm glad you liked the package. How much do you think it costed me to send that thing? .... nope... guess again.... right. 22 bucks! i dont know why it was so expensive! moral of the story, If you send things from Korea to the USA, Send it via envelope. That was a sad
day, those types of things, you have to use personal money for.


Thank you for sending the package so promtly! I have not recieved it yet, but i anticipate it soon!
Thank you for your prayers!
Love you all!
Elder Shumway

ABC's, Pop Rocks, Mail & Birthdays

Okay, (this is Cecile writing)...I have slacked off in my posting. I also lost a week or two due to LeGrand flying to Korea and establishing a regular email again. Maybe I will dig out his letters and transpose them onto this blog, but for now I have posted a few more letters as well as some cool photos from LeGrand. So check out the old letters, as I have added in the photos that were taken at the time of his writings.

Hello Family

I was wondering if I could get an update on the package. there is a member in our ward that teaches a pronounciation English class to 1st-4th graders. She is really anticipating that cassette tape. oh, and do you think you could put some "pop rocks" in there as well? The mail system in korea is really fast and really cheap! Sending that package to Arizona costed me about $2.50. And whereas it costs 41 cents to send a letter that will arrive 2-3 days later. It costs 25 cents to mail a letter that will get there the next day! So the Koreans do well with mail. I got that letter from Caleb about 2 days ago and it was postmarked on the 5th. Anyway, the point is, I can send stuff to you a lot faster than you can send to me...

Alright, not much happened this week. I've had some ups and downs with the language. But I know it will take time. Our teachig pool is starting to dry out so we need to do some more finding...I really dont know what else I can write. DearElder is terrible when it comes to attatching pictures. And since my camera setting is on "the best of the best" quality, it is also set on "the biggest of the biggest" in size. But I think i will just copy the whole thing and put it on a CD and send that to you. It is too slow this way. Congrats of the promotion Dallen! And Happy birthday to you, Anneliese!

Love you lots!

First Baptism!

Hello Family!

Well as you know, I wasn't able to Email after I called. There's a lot to talk about and from the letter you sent, there is a lot to respond to. I have about 20 minutes to write and attatch pictures. We have to catch a train at 4:15 and it is 3:40 right now..Yes. The baptism went through! It was really good. The other companionship in our district had a baptism two days after ours so it was exciting!

As for Email, I will email sometime after 9 oclock on Monday mornings (Korean Time). So expect them then. Today, was an exception. I am 6 hours late because I had to register as an alien. (One of those Green, black- eyed, big headed Aleins). Soon I will be one of those.

I really want that tape of the ABCs and their sounds. (" A says A or ah, B says b ....etc") That will really help over here.

OK... Gas is about 1.70 a liter. So its a little steap. Right now Arizona is cheap.

Flight Plans!!! Time is Almost Up!

This Last Thursday was one exciting day!We didn't expect flight plans until Friday, but they came a day early! This event marked the start of the end of our stay here at the MTC. It was a sign that Time was still in motion and that we would soon be out of the MTC and in Korea! Yes, it was an epic day!Yes... This also means that I will have a chance to call home at the airport. I tried to give Caleb my flight plans but the transaction never fell through. So now I have a copy of my plans right in front of me and any minute now, I will tell you when I can call....
My visit with Caleb was really awesome! I was anticipating some fat guy to come waddling in and claiming he was my brother. I think if that would have been the case, I would have spent the few minutes we had together taking fingerprints and asking really hard interigation questions. But to my surprise and delight, Caleb was not 45 lbs overweight as the letters claimed to be. But we had a nice chat.... We pulled out the punpkin juice and had a toast or too to the king of England... Shmashing reunion! Jus' Shmashing!....
So you wanted an update on the laguage, well here it is:We taught the first discussion for the last time on Saturday and it went really well, It was probably our best one so far! We teach the Second lesson this week, so we'll see how that goes... Since Saturday night, I am speaking only Korean. This was supposed to be a District goal, But my companion and roommates have resorted back to English. So that is kindof a letdown. But for the most part it is going good. I, for the most part, (if given time) can say what I need to say in Korean, but understanding is not up to par. My companion is kind of opposite. He can understand really well but has a tougher time saying what he wants to. So I guess that makes us a pretty good team!
Oh! Flight plans!....So I leave Salt Lake at 9:40 Utah time, but I will have some time before to call. ( I think we are at the airport for a couple hours) And then we get to LA at 10:38 LA time. we have another 2 hours at that airport. Ind then we fly to Korea at 12:30 LA time and get to Korea at 5:15 Korea Time. I will send my plans in the mail today. Just be ready at these times so I can call when I can.

Love you all,
Elder Shumway

Flight Plans (Almost)

So on Saturday, I, along with the other two Elders going to Pusan, got our "flight plans" from our mission president all the way from Korea! I say "flight plans" because it was not our actual flight assignment. but It was a letter telling us that we would flight from Seoul to Busan at 8 PM after we got to korea. We were pretty excited, Probably just because it was a confirmation that we were really going to Korea soon and that the mission president was makeing preparations for our arrival. The real flight plans, however, come this week! So hopefully, when Caleb comes, I will have a copy ready to send home with him. This will give the details on the layovers I will have, etc. Oh! Speaking of layovers, I need a phone card to use in the airport.
Alright... Caleb can visit Friday of Saturday, but if it doesn't matter to you, make it Saturday. My Korean teachers would be completely fine if it landed on Friday night. I also would probably want to sent a few things home since I leave in Two Weeks for Korea. So if he can take some things that would be really nice. (I need to send a couple jackets and some extra letters home.)
This week, a couple Japanese districts went home. We would always sing "called to serve" on saturday nights with them. Next time we sing, I will record it. If you can, send that other memory card back so I can send you another one.
:-)Love you all,
Elder Shumway

New Missionaries!

We finally have new blood in the Korean zone. After the older group took off a couple weeks ago, we were fealing a bit lonely and our floor was unpleasantly quieter. But this week, new Korean speakers came in. Koreans come in almost every 6 weeks and they always come in a group. Unfortunately, this group only had 4 Elders and one Sister. So their presence didn't make too much of a difference. But we are happy they could join us nonetheless! The next group comes in about a week after we leave and thet group is about 32 missionaries! Alright... Yesterday was the first gym that I didn't do any running. I got caught up in a great game of volleyball.
I think I have gained about 4 pounds in the MTC so it's not looking good. Most of my gym time is trying to stay fit. But the Missionary's schedule is not anywhere near as active as I would be if I wasn't a missionary. I am really excited for Caleb! And I am excited when You guys can come up so I can see him!
Well, I'm glad you liked my Korean "translation guide". But as I said before, dont rely on it for too much. for the most part it holds true. But there is almost always at least one sound change in almost everword. So dont think you are now "certified" or anything in Korean writings. I've been here for 7 weeks and am still learning new rules! I'm glad you got the memory card. Once you upload them to the computer, send that one back and I'll send you a new card. I envy the time you have to spend with G and G Creek! And I am excited for Joey!......
The talk given by W. Douglas Shumway was pretty good! It wasn't really based on one particular topic. It was mostly just a bunch of quotes and insight on a lot of stuff. It snowed again up here! I was pretty excited! It looked really amazing! I took some cool pictures (as always :-) !) Oh... As for packages, just send 'em when they are convenient. Any missionary would like to recieve as many packages as people would care to send him. But I realize that what will come will come. Thanks for your packages! Send them when you can! Fill them with anything you want. I really dont care. Maybe mints, They dont let us chew gum.
Love you all,
Elder Shumway

First Discussion in Korean

Hello out there!Sorry, I dont feel like opening this one with anything exciting. But what is exciting is that Just this last week I've gotten really excited about Korea and preaching the Gospel there! Before it was just like, "Ill deal with that step when I get to it". But now it's like, "Send me over there!" All we do in the MTC is in preperation for the next two years.

Oh... It looks like I have almost a month left in Provo. But Im sure that those of you who are keeping a tally already knew that as well. I was really hoping that they would do an MTC choir for General Conference. And they are!!! HaHa just kidding. No choir this time. But Choir here is great nonetheless! My fist week in the choir we sang "Come Thou Font" like the arrangement that the Mormon Tabernacle Choir does. That one has been my favorite so far. But I've been going ever since. Tuesdays are thus pretty hectic since we go to the temple and then, right after, go to choir and then right after, have dinner, then right after that, have a devotional by someone from the 70 or Maybe a member of the quorum of the 12.

My new mission president is a guy by the last name of "Jennings". Apparently, his son won a couple million on Jepardy a while back. You might have heard of him. Everyone up here has. They say that the only people who could beat him were his parents, so it looks like my new mission president of Busan, Korea is a bright lad!

Yes, I got the Easter package you sent me. My roomies really apreciated the cookies. Thank you for the egg hunt. I think I will need to just hide them around our room, however. I just don't think the schedule has time for a full out treasure hunt. Oh! Speaking of treasure, I finally found the treasure of "Nimrod". But it was a lousy treasure anyway. Not worth the time.

The first lesson in Korean was alright. It was really slow, but me and my companion stumbled through it nonetheless. This week we give it once more. It should go better. :-)

Love you all!
Elder Shumway

"Almost P-Day!"

Its another beautiful Preperation day in the MTC. Every day prior to this blessed day is given the title "almost P-Day". Thats kinda the slogan around our disrtict. When we wake up, we say "It's Almost P-day!" When someone holds the door for us, you say, "Its almost P-day!". The phrase can be pretty much exchanged for any common phrase. Even if you're mad at someone or are getting a little frustrated, you can yell, "It's ALMOST P-DAY!!!" and people will understand what you are feeling. But today IS P-Day, and it is only a week until the next P-Day!
Yes, I got your package. Thank You very much for it. I tried the homemade stuff and like it. So yes, thank you. Unfortunately, I've realized that that sweater doesn't go too well with any of my 2 suits so I might have to wait till I'm out in the field to sport it.
Wow! I've been gone a month and you're already planning a Disneyland trip. That is pretty exciting! I envy how little time Caleb has left, but I know I will feel differently once I actually get out there.
This Saturday, me and my companion are teaching the first lesson in Korean. All of it. 35 minutes worth. In Korean. I think we can do it. They say we can take notes in if we need to, but I think that's cheating so I wont do it. I'll let you know how that goes. The next week is general conference so we wont teach that week.
We have a couple awesome teachers! Brother Wells and Sister Lee. They are both really great! But Sister Lee is pregnant and this is her last week. So we get one new teacher.
The two districts that were above us left. That was a little sad but it means that we are that much closer to leaving... They gave a bunch of candy to the younger district (us) and a lot of pass downs. There is a drawer in our room that is completely full of candy. It is pretty wild, and with all the new packages coming in, There is no way we will run out of junk. So thanks for sending more healthy snack stuff in the package. That stuff is hard to come by.
Well, now I see why I normally waste time in the beginning of emails. I have 6 minutes left, and nothing to write about.

Love ya, Elder Shumway

Japan Declares War!

(radio crackle)......
This just in...
Japan declared war on Korean on the seventh of March, 2008.........
in foursquare...
(radio crackle)
Yes, As of only a few days ago, Korea is officially at "war" with the Japanese.
Let me give you some background information...
First off, No one plays foursquare except those who cant play anything else well. So if you can imagine a group of kids who are not coordinated enough to play the regular sports (basketball, Volleyball, running, or even Jump rope)... those are the people one the foursquare court. (no offense to anyone that likes foursquare. That is just the way things go in the MTC.) For some reason, all of the Koreans are pretty cool kids. The Elders speaking Japanese however, have a dozen or so of "foursquare kids".
Alright, so anyway, a couple Koreans decided to try and play one time during gym and they dominated the court...
So the Japanese declared war...
in foursquare...
As lame as that sounds, that is the peak of excitement in the MTC. You might imagine that not too much happens out of the ordinary here, so when something like "war in foursquare" is declared, people get excited.

Alright

The

more

spaces

I

Put,

The

longer

the

letter

is.

I have a measly 13 minutes left and I dont know what to talk about...
Oh, Korean is getting a bit better! Thank you for your prayers on my behalf! But by no means, should you give up now... I am getting a lot better at managing my MDT (Missionary Directed Time) and because I can manage it better, I can study more.
Ethan is almost out, that lucky dog. I saw him once more at a breakfast and we talked for a little bit. And although I am not ready, I sort of want to leave for Korea already. I dont like to sit for a while in one spot, and Although the MTC is really great and uplifting, It is very repetative. The food is good, but fattening. They do everything to their food to make it taste good. I dont really think they put a lot of effort into it being healthy. So the sooner I can leave this food, the better. I really like Korean! it is a really fun language to learn! I would write more, but I am almost out of time. Plus, when I am under pressure, and there is a countdown flashing at the top of the screen, I cant remember all the questions I need to answer and all the details I want to include. I will reread some letters and send a regular letter today.

I love you all,
Elder Shumway

I still have
thirty seconds left.........................................,..................................................................

Life in the MTC

Yesterday, I finally saw my fellow comrad, Elder Larry Ethan "Superman" Milton! It was pretty exciting! He reminded me that he gets out in a couple weeks, and I get out in like 9. Thats a long time to be in the MTC. They have a clever saying here: "the weeks go by days and the days go by weeks." Days are long, thats for sure. I sit in class almost all day everyday. I count down the hours until I can crawl back into bed. When the day is finally over and I can retreat to my bed in my room, only to wake up really crankily and start the next day.All of these days kinda mash into one. Every day is almost the same as the one preceding it. But before you know it, P-day is almost here.
And so, here it is, right now... And I am sitting in the computer room typing out this letter, knowing perfectly well that what I want to say is too much for my "hunt N Peck" typing technique is able to handle. So rather than try, I like to add a little variety and have fun with my letters. I like to ramble off and take a while to actually say anything about my week. This, as you might have guessed, is what I am doing right now.
And with half of my time wasted, I think it is time for me to cram some of my week into the rest of my letter...
The Week:
Hi,Well this week was really great! Thank you for your letters! They were great!
Yes, Sundays are really awesome days and the Devotionals can be really amazing! So far it has only been members of the 70 and an MTC branch president that have spoken to us, but that have been really good and uplifting!We go to the temple every P-Day and I think I look forward to that the most. I will mail you a copy of my schedule.
I think I am beginning to see the difficuly in Korean. I can not seem to memorize very quickly at all. The goal is to memorize at least 25 words every day, and I am lucky if I can get even 10. Things just aren't clicking as fast for me as they have been for others.
oh well...The food is still pretty good. I think they try to make us fat, but if I watch my weight, I will do OK. Gym is really cool! I start off with running a couple miles at the beginning and that really makes me feel good the rest of the day!
One of our sister missionaries was choking the other day and an Elder had to do the Heimlich Maneuver! That was kinda cool to see!
Love ya

Hidden Treasures

HELLO out there!
This is Elder Shumway speaking....Alright, before I begin, I want to clear up some important matters... It seems as if some of you have been mighty skeptical about my ability to read Korean after the first day. You would be.... wrong. You see, the Korean alphabet is amazingly simple. It is composed of only about 30 or so characters. Each part of a word is made up of only one vowel and at least 1 consenant. So yes, I can now read and write Korean! As slow as I might be, I can do it. And I dont need notes to do it either. Right now, they consider us to be on week three. And instead of Korean being a 10- week program as I first thought, It is a 12- weeker by MTC standards. So yes, I am here just as long as any other person here ( Japanese and Chinese included). Apparently, the experts here consider Finnish to be the toughest to learn and they keep telling us that Korean is second hardest. (I dont think that is right. It seems easy enough so far). Who knows?
The Sunday devotionals here are amazing as well as the Tuesday Devos! I feel like Indiana Jones here or Nickolas Cage! The group before us, hid a junk-load of treasure everywhere! and they left maps to all of it! I am working on a treasure map now. I still haven't found the treasure itself but I am hot on the case! It is pretty Exciting I must admit. The Pirate goes by the name "Nimrod" (his real name was Elder DeCamp) and so far he has blessed our residence hall with many gifts and footballs! I will write some more in a letter and mail it today along with some pictures. I don't think this letter made much sense to you anyway. HaHa. But the next should clarify.
Love ya, Elder Shumway

MTC/Hogwarts

Mail is the highlight of the day here at the MTC! It reminds me a little of Harry Potter at Hogwarts! The District Leader goes off and gets the mail and while we eat breakfast or lunch. Everyone waits for them to come back and they all scream, "The mails here" in an English accent. Then the District Leaders spread their suit coats and swoop in the Great Hall where we eat to deliver them. Sometimes they jump onto the table and "help themselves to some of our pumpkin juice." By the way, I don't know about you, but pumpkin juice does not sound very tasty. I didn't even know pumpkins had juice in them. Yuck!...Needless to say, that story was a bit of an exageration. Most of the time they don't do that stuff. But everyone looks forward to the mail! Mail and gym period...But mostly it's just mail!
I'll develop some pictures and send 'em to you next P-Day. I still need to order them. And if your lucky, I might attatch some to the email as well!

Love, Elder Shumway

Shumway "Chongyong"

That's how you say Elder Shumway" in Korean. I wont get you started with the characters. They are insane!

First letter from the MTC and I only have 24:29 left on the clock... wait no. 25:15 left... No, thats not right. 23:46... Arg! now its 23:24. Dang, I have a countdown from 30 minutes and I am a SUPER slow typer!

Well, Ill make it as long as I can with the time I have and as you can
see, so far I've gotten nowhere with this letter and the time is still
clicking away! only about 21 minutes right now, so I'd better get
started...

...Ahem...

The MTC is WILD! The food is really good and really fattening! But not
to worry, I made a goal after like the third day (and five pounds
heavier) to eat healthy. So far I do well. No soda. Only water and skim milk
and lots and lots of salads and fruit! Yum!

My schedule each day: Wake up at 6:30 sharp and get ready for the day.
Report to class for 45 minutes of personal study at 7 and brekfast at
745. Then back to class to be taught Korean. somewhere in there, we
take a break for lunch and a gym period. Back to class for more of my
soon-to-be favorite languge, Korean, and then break for dinner. after
Dinner, back to class for 3 hours of personal study (scriptures, companion
study, language study). After that (now we are at 9PM) is planning
until 930. Back to the room! lights out at 10:30 followed by a goodnight's
rest!

So as you can tell, there are not many opportunities to burn off any
fat I might pick up. So I'd better leave off the pounders or suffer with
them through the mission! :-P
My Companion is a cool guy from Cali. We'll be good friends in no time!

Anyway, the CTR ring is said something close to "Joung- euee- pan". but the "euee" is one syllible and the "pan" is a mix between a P and a B sound. I guess it means more like "Righteous Class" which isn't very close to "Choose the right"

2 minutes. Now I wish I used the Beginning time more wisely. Maybe
you'll have to publish a written letter if I send one today.
Anyway, I learned how to read and write in the First Day! It is not too
tough. I am just memorizing things now! less than a minute.

Love you guys,
Elder LeGrand Shumway