Dear Family,
Well, i can't believe that by the time you read this, i will have been in Japan for 2.5 weeks. that just blows my mind! Japan is really fun, interesting, and VERY different. My first couple of days were super fun because I was in Japan. But as that wore off the culture shock hit me. Everyone here looks the same. That drives me nuts. I do not think I will marry an Asian. Everyone here has the same facial structure. It makes me frustrated but I know I have to love these people so I can prosper and the work of the Lord can prosper. I just have to put my shoulder to the wheel and push this work along. Seeing cars drive on the opposite side of the road is pretty mind blowing too! All the cars here look the same also. So all this is piled onto the factor that I don't speak Japanese! So it has been a very overwhelming week 1.5. But I have been praying very hard every single night. You know I thought that these thoughts of homesickness were gone after the MTC. But the thoughts of coming home have never been more pressed in my mind. I hate having these thoughts of inadequicy or how ever you spell that flippin word. I was filling pretty confident on my Japanese that I learned before I left the MTC. But it SUCKS here! I have no clue what anybody says and it feels lke i have forgotten all the Japanese that I learned in the MTC. It is going to be a long next couple of months. I am not looking forward to it in anyway possible! Your prayers are greatly appreciated. Anyway, i know i should not focus on this subject too long, it does not invite the spirit and makes me focus on other things. i love you guys so much! i really do. i miss you guys more than anything.i know that satan is trying to put false thoughts into my heard about you guys. he knows that that is my weak spot. he puts thoughts regarding your guys safety and health. i care about you so much that i wonder if these will all come try. and it makes me want to come home. i want all of you to be at my homecoming. so please do not die or do anything stupid!!!! i love you all so much. i really do worry about you! it has to be the hardest thing for me to not focus on. but i hope that the first week is the hardest. that's what everyone tells me. so hopefully it will get easier.
brothers or anyone( sorry sisters, but the bros and dad have been in my shoes before!) if any of you have advice, i would love to hear it. i miss talking to all of you every night. your advice really helps me out. i love getting to read what you guys have to say. so please send me some advice. DAD, i would love to hear advice that you have for me. i only get to read e-mails once a week and that ain't enough. you are my father. i know i need to be a man, but i love having advice so i can improve. i try so hard to keep my spirits up, but getting funny looks, not speaking the language, and getting rejected brings my spirit low. i really do miss talking to you and just telling my life to you. i love you and look up to you a ton! i fasted today so i can more fully focus on my purpose and get the language faster! i hope it was successful! i love fasting and exercising my faith to get the things i need. i hope all is well at home. i miss it so much! japan is great but i would rather be with my best friends over being in another country. but i know the lord needs me here and i need to realize that and just go to work. i look forward to reading e-mails and letters from all! Kamas, thanks for the card. it meant a lot! it smelled nice too! tell Dirty Mike and the Gang i say " Whad Up". tell Karli, that one girl that we hung out with, the one that is 19, i say what up and she should write me! thanks again for the card! i love you bro. i love justin, janalyn, kolter, tank, gunner, cannon, dagen, kelly, hunter, holden, hudson, hastings, kamas, boo, marilyn, kendi, bug. MOM and DAD, i love you guys more than anything!! you guys are the nectar to my flower! i look forward to hearing your letters and voices in the near future! :) i'll pray for you always. please do the same for me. i hope you enjoi the pics and video. glory be to our God! may he be with you always!
PEACE
Love your brother and Son,
Elder Kurt Arie Van De Graaff
Called to serve in the Tokyo-Japan Mission
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Kurt's Emails!
Hey! I decided to create a blog for my brother who is on his mission! I am a couple months late on his emails, but it is better late than never.
Pops!!!
I am glad that this past week went by fast for you. it went kinda slow for me. it was a rough one here in Tokyo.
i had a hard time with the language. i reallly get down on myself cause i cant communicate with anybody. i really want to talk with people but i just dont know waht to say. i am always at a loss of words when the moment comes for me to speak. its like i just forget everything that i was ever taught or what i studied. i also am having a hard time finding what to study. its seems that everything i study i forget. so studying is super hard for me. i read from the BOM in japanese then review words and grammar patterns. but it just doesnt seem effective. then i get down on myself. so that is pretty much how my week went down. just alot of frustration and prayer. i dont think i have ever prayed so hard in my life before. i am really hoping that this week is better and goes by smoother which it should.
This upcoming weekened is transfers. Yup. i have been out for a full transfer. i cant believe it either. Even though some days or weeks have gone by slow, the big picture has really gone by fast. i cant believe taht in like 15 days i will have completed my 4th month of my mission. Crazy!!! Anyways transfers.... i hope that i get transfered... The city has been alot of fun for me but i really dont like it. i really wanna be out in the inaka ( Counttry side) or in the mountains. and im in luck. they are reopening 1 and a half zones this upcoming transfer and it is all inaka and mountains. so im hoping that i will be moved out and into the country side. i think i will really like the country side alot more cause i have more of a background with it. and i will be able to see Gods Creation more and it will make me happy. all i see is city. no mountains, hills, ocean, anything. its kinda depressing. i have also had people tell me that they have asked president personally to send me to one of the new areas to be in their district. so. my fingers are crossed and i am praying super hard to be moved out of the city and into more of a homey area. i will be able to do alot more manual service in the inaka too. i am excited about taht too. so i really wanna go their. please pray that i do.
i miss you and the family a whole bunch. i really wish that we could skype home or something. that would be so cool. thanks for the report on how everyone is doing at home. its good to hear that everyone is safe and are doing good. i pray for you guys all the time. I love you all so much. i wish i could see you. it would make things alot easier on me. but i have to carry my cross. everyone does. Can you bug Bug on sending me some of his art work? i have asked him a whole bunch but he jsut seems to iqnore me. i really want some of his stuff. it really makes me feel good and gives me a good laugh everytime i see it.
well not to much more to report on. Oh, i was thinking today after my personal study. another elder called me into our room to read a joke. i did. we laughed and then got into a serious talk about our missions and how hard they are. he was explaining something to me and qouting somebody. and he used the term Endeavour. I immediatly thought of you and yoru sayings and the end of every email. i also thought of the movie and the old indian saying it. that made me laugh inside. anyway, i really thought about it. i have always read that qoute of yours Endeavour to Persevere but i never really knew what it meant. so i looked it up. i liked it alot. the word Endeavour means to attempt to do something, especially something new or difficult and the word Persevere means to continue trying to do or achieve something despite difficulties. so i thought about myself. and how i am Endeavouring to Persevere. well i accepted to come to japan and learn the language so i am definatley doing something new and challening or Endeavoring. all i have to do now is to Persevere. or in other words all i have to do now is Endure to the End. which is the 5th doctrine of Christs Gospel. so i thought about that today and it made me pretty happy. thanks for always having taht qoute. it really helped me out. i hope you can share taht with some of our family. it could help them out too. but those were my thoughts this morning.
i love you tons and wish you the best at work and at home. i hope the animals can survive this summer. especially Chewy. Is this his first Az summer? i think it is. i hope he will survive. i love taht pup. i miss cuddeling with him. haha. its my first summer here in japan. the raining seasnon is just about over and summer is about to come into full effect. the other day it was 102 and 80 percent humidity. and it is only the begining. so i will be hating the humidity here but i love the heat. so hopefully when i come back to AZ the heat wont be taht big of a deal to me. Oh, how are the fires and stuff doing in AZ??? i hope the rains will come and drown them out. i pray that it rains over there.
anyways. i hope all is well. I think this week will be good for me. i hope so. i hope that it goes by fast too. i cant wait to read your emails next week. they always make me happy. Until then, God Be With You Always!!!
Love your Son,
Elder Kurt Van De Graaff
Pops!!!
I am glad that this past week went by fast for you. it went kinda slow for me. it was a rough one here in Tokyo.
i had a hard time with the language. i reallly get down on myself cause i cant communicate with anybody. i really want to talk with people but i just dont know waht to say. i am always at a loss of words when the moment comes for me to speak. its like i just forget everything that i was ever taught or what i studied. i also am having a hard time finding what to study. its seems that everything i study i forget. so studying is super hard for me. i read from the BOM in japanese then review words and grammar patterns. but it just doesnt seem effective. then i get down on myself. so that is pretty much how my week went down. just alot of frustration and prayer. i dont think i have ever prayed so hard in my life before. i am really hoping that this week is better and goes by smoother which it should.
This upcoming weekened is transfers. Yup. i have been out for a full transfer. i cant believe it either. Even though some days or weeks have gone by slow, the big picture has really gone by fast. i cant believe taht in like 15 days i will have completed my 4th month of my mission. Crazy!!! Anyways transfers.... i hope that i get transfered... The city has been alot of fun for me but i really dont like it. i really wanna be out in the inaka ( Counttry side) or in the mountains. and im in luck. they are reopening 1 and a half zones this upcoming transfer and it is all inaka and mountains. so im hoping that i will be moved out and into the country side. i think i will really like the country side alot more cause i have more of a background with it. and i will be able to see Gods Creation more and it will make me happy. all i see is city. no mountains, hills, ocean, anything. its kinda depressing. i have also had people tell me that they have asked president personally to send me to one of the new areas to be in their district. so. my fingers are crossed and i am praying super hard to be moved out of the city and into more of a homey area. i will be able to do alot more manual service in the inaka too. i am excited about taht too. so i really wanna go their. please pray that i do.
i miss you and the family a whole bunch. i really wish that we could skype home or something. that would be so cool. thanks for the report on how everyone is doing at home. its good to hear that everyone is safe and are doing good. i pray for you guys all the time. I love you all so much. i wish i could see you. it would make things alot easier on me. but i have to carry my cross. everyone does. Can you bug Bug on sending me some of his art work? i have asked him a whole bunch but he jsut seems to iqnore me. i really want some of his stuff. it really makes me feel good and gives me a good laugh everytime i see it.
well not to much more to report on. Oh, i was thinking today after my personal study. another elder called me into our room to read a joke. i did. we laughed and then got into a serious talk about our missions and how hard they are. he was explaining something to me and qouting somebody. and he used the term Endeavour. I immediatly thought of you and yoru sayings and the end of every email. i also thought of the movie and the old indian saying it. that made me laugh inside. anyway, i really thought about it. i have always read that qoute of yours Endeavour to Persevere but i never really knew what it meant. so i looked it up. i liked it alot. the word Endeavour means to attempt to do something, especially something new or difficult and the word Persevere means to continue trying to do or achieve something despite difficulties. so i thought about myself. and how i am Endeavouring to Persevere. well i accepted to come to japan and learn the language so i am definatley doing something new and challening or Endeavoring. all i have to do now is to Persevere. or in other words all i have to do now is Endure to the End. which is the 5th doctrine of Christs Gospel. so i thought about that today and it made me pretty happy. thanks for always having taht qoute. it really helped me out. i hope you can share taht with some of our family. it could help them out too. but those were my thoughts this morning.
i love you tons and wish you the best at work and at home. i hope the animals can survive this summer. especially Chewy. Is this his first Az summer? i think it is. i hope he will survive. i love taht pup. i miss cuddeling with him. haha. its my first summer here in japan. the raining seasnon is just about over and summer is about to come into full effect. the other day it was 102 and 80 percent humidity. and it is only the begining. so i will be hating the humidity here but i love the heat. so hopefully when i come back to AZ the heat wont be taht big of a deal to me. Oh, how are the fires and stuff doing in AZ??? i hope the rains will come and drown them out. i pray that it rains over there.
anyways. i hope all is well. I think this week will be good for me. i hope so. i hope that it goes by fast too. i cant wait to read your emails next week. they always make me happy. Until then, God Be With You Always!!!
Love your Son,
Elder Kurt Van De Graaff
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