Celebrating Thanksgiving and Serving in Summerset

(Elder Cummings)

This week I made the decision to stop numbering my emails by week.  I was studying in the Book of Mormon this week about the story of the sons of Mosiah preaching to the Lamanites.  This story is all about missionary work!  One of the first things I noticed when reading was the Aaron, probably the most well known of Mosiah's sons, went on his mission to the Lamanites without an end date.  I don't quite have the liberty of serving a mission indefinitely, but I decided that I could do more to at least lose track of time.

Elder Ballard and I have been all over Fresno this week...again.  We have had the opportunity to serve the local Hmong community by translating for a relief effort that is currently going on.  One of the major Hmong apartment complexes in Fresno, Summerset, has had the gas shut off for a few weeks, with a few weeks to go before repairs will be made.  We have taught and contacted A LOT of people in that complex and we were beginning to feel that it had been worked out.  Now doors are opening again, and not just for the chicken and rice we are bringing around!

We got into contact with Kenjie again (he lives in Summerset).  He was happy to sit down and talk about the Bible.  We had a long talk about characteristics of God with him.  He still isn't ready for us to try teaching him again.

One of my favorite people that we visit also lives in Summerset.  Her name is Niam Txhooj Vam, which translated is "Song Vang's woman."  There isn't a word for wife in Hmong.  It is part of the culture to quite literally take your husband's name, or as Hmong puts it, your man's name.  She speaks with a THICK accent and for the most part I haven't been able to understand her.  This week that changed and I had a conversation about how her children are doing, how she is doing with the gas shut off, and what she remembers about Laos.  The missionaries can never visit her and her husband without her going off about how our church "sib hlub sib pab"/love and help  like no other church.  She is great.

Her husband has been going for walks too.  He is a very frail old man who is very, very sick.  Or at least he was.  Elder Ballard gave him a blessing that promised him that he would live to accept the gospel.  His health has improved!

Thanksgiving was great.  Hmong know how to eat!  There was so much food!!  There had to be at least forty pounds of pork belly, a couple of gallons of one of the soups the make, and a dish I hadn't seen before that turned out to be uncleaned intestines.  Honestly, you wouldn't have been able to tell.  It made me grateful for the wonderful people I am here to serve.

Speaking of wonderful people, that is the exact same way my setting-apart blessing to be a missionary described the Hmong.  I was getting excited for the Christmas season this week and studying Jesus the Christ when it occurred to me that "Wonderful" is one of Christ's titles and it suddenly became profoundly significant to me that I am here in Fresno serving Wonderful people.  I have definitely come to know my Savior better in serving them.

The next transfer starts on Wednesday!  Elder Ballard and I will be staying in the Pioneer Park Area BUT we will be co-training a new missionary!!  I am very excited.  Twelve weeks ago I came into the Fresno Mission and twelve weeks later I get to welcome someone new!  We are excited for that!

Thank you all for the love and prayers that you are sending my way!  I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

love,

Elder A. Jared Cummings

This week Elder Ballard and I had the opportunity to talk to some very nice Hmong people in Laos from the comfort of our investigator's living room!  The gospel really can reach into every nation whether or not the governments allow missionaries in their borders!

Here is Elder Ballard reciting traditional Hmong poetry in the central market of a nice little village!

The intestines are in the dish with the big wooden spoon up and the to right a little bit.