"Island"

We received a letter, not an e-mail, from Andy yesterday. Here are some excerpts:

Cow fait? That's how's it going in french creole. Today has been awesome We just finished zone conference with Elder Vinas of the Seventy. He trained us for a day; it was unreal. Talk about someone just having a spiritual glow around him! He taught what we missionaries need to do to build the church here & build strong branches with strong members so that we can eventually get a stake here. Right now it will be a long process. There is not much priesthood strength and that is the foundation of the church. But, he planted such a vision of how the work needs to be done here.
We have been teaching these elderly couples who are Catholic and we taught them tonight and set a baptism date with them. For one of the couples it was their first lesson. I snuck in at the end of the lesson that I was excited they could be starting down the road of baptism (haha... I think it kind of took them off guard to mention that so quick in our teaching).
It's funny, Elder Garotta and I have been using my lack of french to an advantage. I'm the one who asks the hard questions or commitments or for a member to teach with us. If they say no I just say "I don't understand" what they are saying until they say "yes". They underestimate the sneakiness. We have some really good investigators right now who are on the right track. It's hard here in Guadeloupe to get investigators 'cuz there is a very, very small percentage of the people living the law of chastity. So, it will take some patience.
One brother, Mitchlot, is probably the nicest man I have ever met, but he is scared to death to get baptized and then mess up with the law of chastity after baptism. It's all comin' together though. It is awesome to see the hand of the Lord in His work.
The food is amazing. Although I have not tried tons of the creole, I have been pounding as much fruit as I can. I can't get enough. I don't know if you can get tubby off fruit, but I might find a way to do it. I talked Elder Garotta into buying tons of fruits and vegetables from now on. I don't know why vegetables, I really don't like 'em, but just to make you proud, mom). We bought apples, pineapples, kiwis, bananas, and bunch of yogurt for the mornings. We don't have money for much junk food which is good. Food is really expensive here. It's probably 50% higher prices, but it makes us good budgeters. But, by far the most important fruit here is coconut. One family gave me this coconut milk (warm) and I about threw up. Then my companion, seeing my attempt at pretending to like it, told the family I wanted more (he knows most missionaries can't stand it). But, I have to be honest, the coco here has been growing on me. We have this amazing coconut jam and ice cream right now. Okay, well that was a lot of writing about food.
Last week we did some service for a man in the ward who owns a bunch of cows and pigs. We got to help with them, but the best part is after we helped him in his yard with machetes! Yipee-kai-yay! It was so sweet! I am going to have to buy one this week, cuz I think the zone is going to a waterfall on Preparation Day... I don't know why I need a machete for that but trust me... it is necessary.
Everything is dandy here. I hope everything is well at home. How are ya Hill and Ash? I miss my sisters. Are you getting pumped for Christmas? I know I am. My companion just got a Christmas CD that had one Christmas song sung by my boy Michael Buble', "I'm Dreaming of A White Christmas". So that's sweet.
Tuck, how are the ladies? I suggest using the creek a little bit, we have one in our backyard... such a setup. I need some pictures of the family. Investigators love to see our families, too.
Love you all, Elder Andy Neff