ShengDanJie Kauile! (Merry Christmas! Literally: Holy Birth Day Happy)

Dajia Hao.

 

Merry Christmas!!!! This has by far been one of the sweetest, most memorable Christmases of my life. We are taking a shorter time for emails today since both of us are calling home so soon (SO EXCITED!) but I will tell you a little bit about how my Christmas has been.

 

First, the missionary choir was performing all weekend. I have barely been in my area at all, which is actually hard in a lot of ways. I still feel so new to this place and I feel like I haven't quite figured out how to be a missionary in this new area and ward, etc.

But, the missionary choir performances have been so fun. There is such a comraderie among us, and we have basically been getting a tour of all of Northern Taiwan, traveling to all these different places by car, bus, metro, or on foot. Have I mentioned before how much I adore Taiwan? I know I still have a year left but the thought of leaving makes something inside me go cold. There are a lot of difficult things about being a missionary, but I have never been happier in my whole life.

 

Speaking of missions, JEFFREY!!!! Congrats on your mission call!!! I am so excited for you!!!

 

Anyway.

President and Sister Day, I think, are very sensitive to the fact that many of us are spending our first Christmases away from home. Today (Christmas) is a P-Day, (and after P-day ends at 6, we have a baptism--best day ever, right?) And yesterday we had a special zone conference. Before lunch, we had some training. Then we had a huge, home-cooked, American Christmas dinner. Turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, sweet potatoes, rolls, salad, fruit... It was so good. After lunch, we had a talent show that was one of the most fun, and also most touching talent shows I have ever been to, for sure. All the missionaries who wanted to find some talent to share could participate. Some people did goofy/entertaining things--like juggling, performing comedy monologues, or solving a rubix cube. I told everyone about the little street performing band I was in a couple summers ago called, "Triforce" where we made money in downtown Salt Lake playing Mario and Zelda music, then I played those on my violin. I didn't play it super well because I had zero time to warm up, but it's funny to think how little I cared! All of us made tons of mistakes, but all it showed was that we have more important things to be doing than practicing instruments and worrying about what people think of us. One of the most touching performances, for me, was a Taiwanese Elder who simply played Sweet Hour of Prayer from the hymn book. So many Americans would feel they would have to do something fancy to merit playing in a talent show, but you could tell he was proud of himself for being able to play just the simple version.

 

Isn't that the way it should be? I have learned so much on my mission that the goodness of things is found in the intention behind it rather than what it is.

Another example--there is an Elder in my mission who has a severe leaning disability. He is a little slow, when you talk to him. But he is absolutely the sweetest person you will ever meet. Several times he has written me notes--and I don't even know him!--encouraging me to keep working hard, or thanking me for playing the violin. He does things like that for everyone. I know his Chinese can't be that great, I know he probably recognizes how much harder things come for him than for other missionaries, but he doesn't seem to let that shame him into not trying.

For the talent show, he sang a song that he wrote in the MTC. It was one extremely out of tune, had horrible rhymes, and borrowed nearly all its lyrics from previously-existing hymns or scriptures, but it was absolutely my favorite performance. He sang about Christ's love for everyone, and how we need to do the same, because "Perfect love casteth out all fear." It moved me so much, thinking about him as a person--his individual challenges and how he deals with them so bravely and cheerfully. Later, he was part of a choir group that sang "The First Noel" on stage, and he started crying while he was singing. I felt the love of Christ so strongly, and I couldn't stop crying either. I never, ever want to forget his example. How silly it is that I complain at times about my own Chinese, about my own insecurities and challenges, the things that hurt me--and I at times use them as excuses to bury myself. Bury my talents in the sand. He is one who perhaps has much less, but does all that he can to be a good person. Wow.

 

I have to go soon, but really quick I want to tell you about my Christmas Eve Dinner! Sister Duggar were so full of Christmas spirit that on our way home last night we decided we wanted to buy dinner from some of the poor people selling street food. I saw a rather old woman huddled up in the cold and looking rather bored and pitiful. She had a wooden box on her little metal food stand. I didn't know what she was selling that she had inside it, but I wanted to buy something from her. So I gave her my 25 kuai and she pulled out of the box one of those pigs-blood rice patties on a stick, which she then preceded to dip in a spicy sauce, then crushed up peanuts and cilantro. She smiled and something in Taiwanese I didn't understand, while I cheerfully took from her absolutely the last thing in the world I wanted to eat for dinner. But it made my day. I loved that lady so much! Haha.

 

Sister Brown