I wouldn't want to be anywhere else!

President Ostler, Cody's mission president posted this on the mission Facebook page : "As we were leaving Bo, we came across this great looking group - headed to their proselyting areas after church, with Elder Ogden, Beckett, Ameworlor and Manzini".

Ahoy Mates! Howdibodi? (how is the body? or how are you?)

Dang I got boku (alot) of mail this week! I got two pakages, the one from mom full of cake batter and cookie dough mixes and a sweet letter and the other from Jana....the one with the Nuetella, the Snickers, Air Heard and the Sour Heads. Thank you so much for the packages!! I love all the stuff inside ... especially the Snickers and the Payday. I am saving them for a day when I don't feel good! So with packages, don't be afraid to send letters in them or even pictures of what you are doing with your lives. The 5 elders in our apartment had a contest to see who could spray the most Sour Head spray stuff in our mouths! Elder Tucker won!!

 Dang I love our ward!  The Activity Day girls sent me some letters... I was so stoked to see those! I will have to write back to them. I got your question and answer letters, those are really cool, keep them coming! I also got some letters from friends, thank you Spencer Ford, Connor Lee, and Jordan Rex for the letters and the post cards. I got some sweet Dear elders from grandma Neecie and from grandma and grandpa Richins and the ones you sent on Dear elder from all the missionary friends out ... so sweet! Its crazy, Elder Carlile, Carter and Gold are old missionaries and are going home soon! I will write all of you back, just give the mail system a month and you will have your letter. I get some emails from people asking for my address. So here it is:

Elder Cody Beckett

Sierra Leone Freetown Mission

P.O. Box 263

Freetown Sierra Leone

West Wfrica

 I love letters! Keep sending them whether through http://www.dearelder.com/ or by hand.

Dad, thanks for the advice and stuff! Its sweet to hear about your mission. Dang, the surfing sounds so sweet! Can you send me some pictures of the ocean? Do you ever go with Caleb? Is Zac going with you or is he to busy with skateboarding?

 Who would have thought that I would be a marriage councelor..jk(I can't spell anymore, this Krio messes me up). For a little while I thought that Abdule was serious about the gospel, he even took down some pictures of Mecca.... but he put them back up. I think he just enjoys talking to some well dressed servants of the Lord or he wants money or something.  That was a dissapointing part of the week. His wife Conte wants to join but he doesn't and she can't unless he does (tradition for the Muslim - wife has to take on the husbands religion) so I guess her sins will be on him... stinks!

We have some sweet families we are teaching. We had 10 investigators at church on Sunday, which is average-ish.. we met this sweet family, their name is the Luciney family. Its really funny how we met them. We were just walking to an appointment in Brima town when this 15 year old guy comes up to us. He starts speaking in a crazy deap Philly accent. He saw a white guy and figured I was from the US so he came and talked to me. Ends up he lived in the US for 8 years and he was getting into trouble so his mom brought him back. I love talking to him because I can use all of my English slang with him, its almost weird to do now. So we started teaching his family, and they all grabbed onto it really well. They came to church and they even bore their testimonies!! They will be baptized! They are one of my favorite families to teach. When I teach people I like to think about what it will be like to baptize them. For the mother in this family it will be a struggle ... she has a big body (the people here are proud of that. It means that they eat well!) I don't think I could lift her back out of the water. Maybe we will need two people to do it.  The lord works in strange ways. .. he brought Hindulo (the Philly boy) back here so we could meet their family. We are also teaching the Blango family, the Caulker family, the James, Samuel, and Comander families. Tons of families to do work on! 

So church was really interesting, or really apostate this past week! This member who doesn't really know the doctrine came to church. He decided to bare his testimony, which really means he is going to brag about his life. He starts to talk about his Jeep Liberty and how God has blessed him with it. After he is done boasting he says to the congregation, "can we get a round of applause for that?" and the whole congregation starts clapping! I think there was a lot of non members there, but even the members were doing it. Another testimony goes, more clapping. ... the branch presidency doesn't do anything so a powerful member of the church goes up and chastizes them and tells them how we worship .... then the sacrament meeting was way good after that! 

There are times that I think out here that I wouldn't want to be anywhere else! All of the sweet people that I have met, all the crazy spiritual experiences, all the companions and elders I've made friends with, all the crazy weird stuff that I eat, all the things I learn in the scriptures are so awesome! All these things beat being at BYU Hawaii, where I would be right now if I didn't come here. Everyone needs this experience! 

As I have been out I have grown to love and appreciate my family more .... even though I am really far from you guys! I can see how you have raised me and the things that you had me do to help me. I miss family home evening, I wish I had come home for more of them. Even on my tag I represent my family and Jesus Christ! That makes me work hard!

"Welp that's all folks"

Elder Beckett