2007 April 2--Excursion and Year Mark

I just got back from probably the longest excursion I have ever taken in this country, and I say again, this country is beautiful. It's nice to think that Antananarivo is only a spec on the surface of a much more interesting and beautiful island. However, I am really tired from the whole experience, which took a lot longer than planned. It started at 5:00 this morning and I've only just got back now at around 8 PM (luckily, all of our appointments had already canceled on us earlier today via cell phone). I guess my "salut" story was not completely understood as a joke, in that "salut" (or the simple "hello" in French) sounds like "Sally", especially when Malagasy's say it and that every other Malagasy cheerfully and happily greeted me with the respective titles "my lord" "friend" and "brother". However the last was a cold and apathetic greeting where based on the pattern of greetings preceding it, he either gave me the title of "Sally" or was saying "hello" in French, which in turn identifies me with what he considers to be his country's oppressors. Oh well, maybe next time.

Anyway, this week went good. I'm starting to work a lot better with Elder S, I think he's really started to try and make it work too, which has made all of the difference. There have been a few "moments" were I have been obliged to keep silent for lack of having anything "nice" to say (this is following the wise council of a rabbit on a cartoon about a deer who's mother gets shot half way through the movie). This has helped me out of further "moments" I might have had were I to actually speak my immediate thoughts out loud in a "moment" of frustration.

I feel so strange that this Thursday, it will have been a year to the day I said "good bye" to all of you and started my mission. I have lots of thoughts. I sincerely hope that I have improved, but if not, I suppose there's always this next half. I'll see what I can do. I really don't have any more time to write. But I'll do what I can to write you a legitimate letter next week. And hopefully you'll get the gist of what I'm trying to say, (I think that learning all of the this Malagasy and French is only managing to destroy what capability I had in expressing myself in English more than anything else:) ok then, Veloma!
Elder Draper