Sho sho gents
That's what you're going to hear if you pass by a group of high-school kids lol, apparently, I'm a gentleman so.. that's cool.
I know you've been deprived of joy in your life for a while, (I didn't write an email last week) Let me tell yah, this whole weekly email thing sucks. It makes me do stuff like thinking and remembering. I'm not all about that life, but honestly the days just get away from me too fast to write stuff down in an email.
I'll keep it short and just tell you guys about some cool people.
- Isiphile: On date for baptism next week!
- Maneli: November 24th!
- Gilbert: November 24th!
Your boy Elder Cottrell is getting transferred on Friday, so I won't see any of these wonderful people get dunked. I was pretty surprised that I'm getting transferred because it's only been 12 weeks of me being in this area and people usually stay for 6-ish months. So, I guess the Lord has other people prepared for me, right?
As I'm writing this it's already way past my bedtime, so I'll try and think of one funny story. But first one not so funny story - my Branch (church) finding out I'm leaving. Everyone was so sad, especially the primary kids. I can't remember if I've written it here, but I have a special handshake for each kid in the primary. They were really sad to see me go. One of them looked up at me with watery eyes and said "how can you leave me?"
Ok, first of all, I'm just some 18-year-old child from Las Vegas and you have no right to make me feel so sad about leaving 😭 Secondly, how in the world do I respond to that?
But on the flip side of all the sad stuff, I'm excited to see what it's like in different areas of Durban!
Funny story -
On exchanges with my District leader, Elder Ngele, we were sitting at lunch and talking about what his parents did for work. His mom had a butcher shop and he was telling me how he would never buy ground beef because he legit thought it came from a PLANT in the GROUND. This guy is 22 years old. He learned that it was in fact from an animal ON HIS MISSION. His mom literally worked with this stuff all day, every day and he never knew.
Ok that story wasn't that funny, so I'll try and think of another one lol.
Oh, my goodness, the story about the mafia boss in my ward, aka brother Benny. He's a 76-year-old Indian man and he called me last Sunday. Well, I say called only because it was over the phone, but this man was yelling at me. (Read this with an Indian accent and it'll make sense.)
"Elda Cottrell, you owe me vedy vedy much money to pay fo da books you took."
First off, I didn't take any books from this man. He gave them to us. Second off, I wasn't even the one he gave them to. It was my last companion, Fergo! So here I am, getting put on blast for something I had no part in. I can't type the stuff he told me because my mom taught me if you don't have anything nice to say then don't say it at all.
But hopefully those little stories were enough to cover the last two weeks, I know there was funnier stuff but y'all I'm tired.
Spiritual thought:
Go study the signs of His second coming. It's happening sooner than you think. 😉