Last week:
Monday—I wasn't feeling good and neither was Elder Carling so we stayed at the chapel and hung out while the others went to the sand dunes.
Tuesday—Not feeling well all day. We had district meeting, tried by a few people, then a member tried to take us to a walk in centre. It was a complete and utter wild goose chase. We first went to the hospital in Southport. They were no good. So we end up trying to find a place in Liverpool. We get there and all they are doing is triage. We then go back to Southport. I call this healthcare advice number thing and they tell me I need to go to the A&E (ER). So we go back to the Southport hospital and they have an 8-12 hour waiting list. I wasn't about to wait all night in a waiting room so we opt to go home, sleep and then come back in the morning.
Wednesday—We get up and Francesca comes and picks us up, takes us to the A&E where we find people who were there the previous night, so glad we decided to sleep at home. But after 5 hours I finally get into the doctors. Can I just say that the NHS (National Healthcare System, we think) is the biggest waste of money I've ever seen? A 5 hour waiting time and then I'm back with the doctor for less than ten minutes. They didn't really even do anything. They took my vitals, listened to my breathing, and gave me a cream for my eyes. That was it. I would think that if someone had been sick for 3 months they might look a bit harder as to why. But anyway, rant over. The rest of the day I came home and slept.
Thursday—Pretty normal day, I still felt absolutely sick but President had committed me to work through it. So I did. I totally fell asleep in a few appointments and every time we got on the bus, but I did go out. We went and saw Hetty who is one of my favorite people. She is less active because her husband has Alzheimer's disease and so she can't leave him for long. The care centres here aren't very good for Alzheimer's so she wants to avoid that for as long as possible.
Friday—Henry came out with us to try and see what it was like to be a missionary. That was interesting for sure. We took him tracting and we went and visited some people. It was a pretty good day and I think he found it interesting. Luckily, everyone was relatively nice to us that day. We were able to talk about his baptism as well. He compared it to a marriage and said that he didn't want to commit until he knew his wife and that he knew he would be able to stick to it.
Saturday—We went and saw Henry in Ormskirk, and besides that it was kinda a waste of a day. We have those way too much.
Sunday—We had Magy come to church! It was fantastic!!! She did start swearing like a sailor in Gospel Principles but for her, she was on best behaviour. She has a good sized swearing problem. Dinner at the McManus's house. They are one of my favourite families for sure. They are so nice and treat us so well. I love them to bits, they are just so good to us.
This week:
Monday—We went to the Temple. It was a good session, but I think everyone in the room (the session was completely full) was really sick of my coughing by the time it was over. I coughed the whole time. After the temple, we had our interviews with President, it was a good interview. I love both President and Sister Ulrich. They have been so good and loving towards me through my seemingly endless problems. Sister Ulrich especially, she just acts as a mother to all of us which is great cuz I really miss my own. Francesca then took us on a mini historical tour of Preston which was pretty good.
Tuesday—I woke up, not sick at all. It was fantastic! No cough, no runny nose, nothing!! We went to the Temperance and helped out there after District meeting. It was pretty fun, Chyrol has some issues getting rid of stuff so she has all kinds of treasures to be found all through the building. That evening we went to the Smiths. They are a fun family and they have grown on me a lot. Another of my favourite families probably. It is just fun to talk to them. I have gotten the nickname of "adorkable" from them. Not quite sure what that means but it makes me laugh.
Wednesday—We went and helped Magy rearrange her flat for some new carpet to be laid. While we were there we learned that she is totally crazy (in a fun way) haha. She has full conversations with herself. It's hilarious. She also is so sassy to us. She is so sarcastic and just takes the mic out of us all the time. She's good fun. We then went and saw Hetty. She is just like a grandmother to us. We get there and she has gotten us some Easter eggs and she is just so relaxing to talk to. Side note: They don't have plastic eggs here. They have chocolate ones that are hollow, they are so strange.
Thursday—We had weekly planning, then we had coordination. We then went and visited Nanavati. That man is really fun to talk to. It's just a good conversation and I always learn so much. He is a retired doctor who has done quite a lot with his life and so he is very very smart. We talked about the miracle of our bodies, specifically the heart. He has heart problems and so he was teaching us how all the heart works and what not. It was fascinating. We also saw Gabriel and Ana. They are doing well they have been reading the scriptures that we left them. It was fun to talk to them, and their oldest son Daniel is so stinkin smart. He will sometimes translate for his parents and he can read both Portuguese and English. It's incredible. He said the closing prayer and it was so nice.
Friday—Nothing too major happened. We had set up to play football with Gabriel but he didn't show up. So we wasted all afternoon doing nothing. That is something that I struggle with and need to work on, I don't think about it until the time is already gone.
Saturday—We went and helped the other Elders deep clean their flat because it was nasty and they had a mouse problem. So we went in the morning and helped them clean. That flat has gotten pretty gross in the last transfer or so. We then went out to Ormskirk to see Rachel. She fed us lunch and then Elder Carling and I went on a mini exchange to see some investigators. Meanwhile, Elder Pape and Elder Singsam took her dogs on a walk. We then went back to Southport and watched conference. I absolutely loved the talk about "How Firm a Foundation." No matter what we are going through, the Lord is right there with us and hasn't left us alone. He has been through it all and he is now giving us the opportunity to learn. Loved it.
Sunday—Got up and went to conference. Such a wonderful experience, conference as a missionary. I did manage to see some faces from home in the different choirs. My favourite talk (possibly) was Elder Utchdorf's last talk. Although I did love both of President Monson's short messages.
So that's been my past two weeks, sorry again for the lack of email last week.
Love you all!
Elder Tarbet
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