August 29, 2011

Hey Everyone!

This was a great week. Mail call was successful somewhat, I got a letter from Gabi she sent 2 months ago from Honduras I hope I didn’t make anyone feel bad, I didn’t mean to. So here’s a story for the week, I think the Lord has definitely prepared me to serve in this area at this time. Last Tuesday evening my companion informed me that we were doing an assembly for 750 elementary school students in the morning. “What are we going to do?” I asked “I don’t know.” He replied . It seemed like no one really knew what to do and the clock was ticking. Because of my experience as Rally commissioner in highschool and doing assemblies and things at the elementary school i was able to, merely hours before, create an assembly complete with musical numbers, skits, and games to keep the children involved and interested for the whole hour. Afterwards the principal invited us back the next year and many of the teachers complimented us on how well prepared we were. It was a blessing for sure. Attached is a car wash sign I painted for a guy named Lawrence, he's trying to turn his life around and this is part of his small business. The Branch here is getting stronger everyday, and we're led by a great Branch President. His name is President Zuma and he loves Jazz and refuses to cut his dreads, he's awesome and inspirational. I'm still struggling to get peoples names down so if anyone has any tips on memorizing peoples names when they are in a different language they would be greatly appreciated.
Some things I could use/have been craving that I can think of at the moment would be:
Twizzlers
Pop-Tarts
A new sketchbook
if its possible a Sotho English Zulu dictionary.

I Love you all I wanted to write more but time is very short today,

Elder Brazee

August 19, 2011

Well I'm getting used to my new area, It's warmed up A LOT this last week we are diffiently headed into summer. My companion is Elder Nthombela not elder Kaseke BUT he does know the family Sis McCombs taught, they arnt related though just same surname. Things are going well here, It's way busyer than my last area the branch is growing at a rapid rate. Nothing really that exciting happened this week. I can just tell you that this place has really been prepared. Oh and some girl just proposed to me in Sotho like 8 minutes ago and my companion had to explain to her the impossibility of that particular situation. It's strange being in a place where everyone is speaking a language that you don't understand. But the thing is they all understand English so they know what I'm saying to them but they have no clue what I'm saying to them. I'm learning though, at least I'm trying to learn. Later tonight we're going to Lesotho for a Zone Meeting so I'm going to get a shiny new stamp on my passport, one of many so I'm told. I'm adding on to my countries I've been to that you've probably never heard of list, right now it's at one. I also might get mail tonight so that's exciting as well whether anyone has sent anything or not I haven't gotten any mail in about 12 weeks now, so we'll see if anyone sent me anything tonight. Africa is a beautiful place full of beautiful people. I can feel the Lords love for them more and more everyday. They are so humble. Also I'm teaching a lot of gangsters, no one really grows up in a stable home around here and most young men are in 'gangs' before they hit 12 and most of them have no idea what they re looking for or where they are going. There's one guy named Lawrence who just got baptized a few weeks ago and he's pulling up all his friend's with him its cool to see. He built a little Tuck shop (which is like a road side stand that sells sweets and chips and stuff) and he wants me to paint his portrait on the front so I'll be doing that in the next week or so I'm pretty excited.

The Church is true, but don't take my word for it.

I love you all,

Elder Scott Milton Brazee

August 15, 2011

Hello Everyone,

Well remember when I got my call and it said South Africa and I thought I wouldn't so much as need a long sleeved shirt and than how today I woke up and it was snowing. Yeah, me too. Don't worry though I'm staying warm. The official spelling of my area is Phutaditjahaba in the Qwa-Qwa province. It really is beautiful here it reminds me a lot of the high desert or southern Utah. Except everyone speaks Sotho (pronounced soo-too) and I'm the only white kid with in a hundred K's. My companion is Elder Ntombela from Jo-burg. He's a great missionary really wants to work hard, which is good. The Branch I'm in is very very new, in fact it was only established two weeks ago, before that it was just a group. This Sunday we ordained five guys to the Aaronic priesthood, the growth here is amazing and I am grateful to come here at such an exciting time. I've got a very warm welcome so far the people here are very very nice. I'm struggling a little with the language barrier but I know its just a short matter of time before I hop over it. We live in an old house with two other missionaries one of them Elder Apuna is from Hawaii. The other is Elder Kaseke from Zim. We've meshed really well so far. I think I've answered all your questions so far. Sacrament meeting was very powerful yesterday we meet in a school house down the street from where we live. IT'S AMAZING no matter where you go in the whole wide world no matter how new the Branch is no matter how few there are, or how many the feeling is still the same. I love Sundays so much because no matter where I am I feel at home. I try and send some pictures next week.

Love Elder Brazee

August 8, 2011

Well we got transfer news yesterday and I'm outa here next stop Puthajigaba (not sure if that the spelling but its pronounced pu-ta-ji-jabba) Its way up north near Lesotho where it snows. I didnt think I would need any snow gear in Africa but I guess I was wrong, dont bother sending any though I'm sure by the time it gets here itll be to late apparently its relentlessly hot in the summer which is just around the corner for us. Good byes have been sad and I have about a billion pictures but I dont have time to load them all so it will have to wait.

I did load one though this is a picture of one of the most beautiful people I've ever met, her name is Nsikilalo, or Princess if you can't pronounce that. I have to tell you about her. As you can see she is in a wheel chair. She only has one leg the other one is just some wire and cloth she stuffs in the pant leg. she wasn't born that way. To hear her tell her story is indescribable. She would tell it to you if she could she wants to be an example to the world.

When she was about 13 in 1996 which was not a great time to live in the rural area's of South Africa. There was a lot of political unrest the two parties the IFP and the ANC where more like gangs than anything else and debates and demonstrations often ended in violence. Nsiki and her family sat in there house one night waiting out a local riot. They could hear the gun shots in the distance. Then there was a knock at the door. Nsiki's mom sent her to open in the door. In came a man. He asked for food. Nsiki was told to make him something to eat. They sat there until the man was done. Then he turned to to Nsiki and asked her "Do you like plays?" The truth was Nsiki did, she loved them she wanted to perform on stage at school. The man asked her if he could teach her a new play. It was late and she refused, she told him he could come back tomorrow. He insisted and told her it was a short one. So she agreed. "This play is about a man and his wife" he said "This wife doesnt like her husband because he is always drinking. So she kicked him out of the house." They began to act out the "play" He would say a line then he would tell her what to say. They went back and forth for a little bit and then he told her to say "If you wont leave than just shoot me" and he pulled out a gun. Nsiki became very frightened She asked him to put it away. He told her it wasn't loaded and not to worry just say the line. So she said it, he raised the gun aimed at her heart and pulled the trigger.

The next few hours she was in and out a consciousness bright lights, pain, darkness, pain. Her family called the ambulance so they wouldn't come, it was too dangerous. Then weeks later she woke up, she doesn't know how she got there. She trys to sit up, she can't. Her body wont move, she's paralyzed. That was the first day of nine years she would spend in the hospital. Her mother came to visit only once in those nine years, to disown her. she worked through pain and suffering and loneliness, she lost one of her legs due to the poisoning from the bullet and the other one is not far from going. after nine years she was able to gain control from the waist up. The hospital gave her a house and a grant, and then her family showed up, she was no longer useless to them. she married a man she knew from before the accident but he left her because she couldn't have children. She fell into a deep depression she had a child with a young man. The child's name is giftee as soon as I saw him I could tell he had downs syndrome but I don't think she knows that.

When I met her she was bitter, addicted to drinking and smoking and willing to make any day her last.

I wish I could explain every detail but I'm out of time. She no longer that women today, she knows her worth she knows who she is. She's turned her life around and she wants to be an example and leader in her community. I cant wait to tell you more about her, hers was my saddest goodbye.

I love you all, I'm happy and healthy and I cant wait to start a new adventure!

Elder Scott Milton Brazee