Monday, February 23, 2015

February 23, 2015 Happy Chinese New Year!

*Note from mom: This was the first time EVER we didn't get photos.  Maybe next week.

I'm so blessed to have the opportunity to be serving in China during Chinese New Year. It truly is the coolest experience ever. WE started off the year of the sheep with a bang! Everyone you see everywhere is always saying four character phrases, such as "Santai ginhong!" (have health) "Gung hei faat choih" (have wealth) and "Sam seung sih sihng" (something about getting all your heart's desires). It's pretty cool. People also give out these things called "red pockets" with money in them. I got quite a few from members and random strangers on the street, and all the money goes back to the general missionary fund. Who'd have thought that the random strangers on the streets are helping out the missionaries? Haha. We also got to see a lion dance. People wear this big lion costume and dance around and light off MASSIVE firecrackers in front of stores- supposed to bring luck or something for the new year.

Thursday we had the chance to clean out our house. And I mean literally. It took us like.... all day. We finished studies, ate lunch, cleaned, ate dinner, cleaned, planned, and cleaned. But now our house is beautifully sparkly clean and it's SO GREAT. Man, I never thought I'd say this, but I miss deep cleaning things! You just feel so good afterwards. (That and it's a good stress relief.) It's been pretty rainy for the last few days, and the humidity level has skyrocketed. my hair is like a lion's mane. It's great.

Sorry I don't have a ton of time today to write, or a lot of exciting things... both our investigators are doing well. Lan Yi is on track to have a baptismal interview this week! Woo.

Oh, also transfers are this week. So next week I may or may not be in Tsing Yi. So that's fun.

Yep, that's the end, folks. Thanks for the love and support!

Love Sister Crook

P.S.
(about the progress of our new house): House is looking good. I'm sure I'll be excited to come home, but right now my focus just really needs to be on the people I'm serving here... I can't tell you how much I love the people here. Chinese people are the best. Especially when they speak English. super funny. I've become really close to the members, and Cherry (recent convert) has become an awesome friend to me. I'd come back to Hong Kong just for her in a heartbeat. she's hilarious. She'll have to visit us sometime.

Oh that reminds me. Some members here may come visit us someday... apparently they have good family friends like, right outside of Boise and promised to stop by to say hi when they visit Idaho. They go every couple years or so to America to visit their daughter. so you better learn some Chinese so you can communicate! haha.​

oh I forgot. I ate chicken feet yesterday.​  Skiny. Haha. not very good. you literally slurp the skin off the bones, and that's it. super... mahfaan... umm, inconvenient? to eat. really hard to eat. yep. can't speak English anymore.​

Monday, February 16, 2015

February 16, 2015 Don't Tell Kenny!

We have a new investigator this week, and lo and behold we're teaching a pohpo. It's the best thing in the whole world. Lan Yi is a little pohpo (grandma) that has been exposed to the church for many, many years. Her daughter went to school in Taiwan and met the gospel over there and came home already having been baptized. Her daughter died some years ago, but that daughter left behind two sons- both of which are active members. One is preparing to leave on a mission in March. Lan Yi has many, many friends in the Tsing Yi ward and is a regular at the weekly gospel class. A member came up to us last week at church and said Lan Yi said she wants to be baptized. The best part is Lan Yi wants to get baptized before her grandson Kenny goes on a mission........on March 12th. WAH. Our entire first lesson was fun, and she stressed "Don't tell Kenny! I want to surprise him!!" What a cute little grandma. I'm so excited to have the opportunity to teach her. She's adorable. I think I'll adopt her someday as another, Chinese grandma. She's so so so cute.

Found a praying mantis (tohng lohng) while finding the other day. So that was fun. No fear. Just picked it up. I wanted to take it finding with us but Sister Killpack said no...

Went shopping in Mong Kok for the first time last week. that was INSANE. but way fun. Sister Cheng (from TY ward, just finished mission) came to be with us on her last day. She told me my hair isn't blonde, it's mango colored. Pretty funny. Haven't heard that yet. Taught Cherry and took her finding with us and we just love her a lot. She's doing SO well. Also really grateful to spend my valentines day with my companion! It was great. Love you all, so much! Thanks for the support!

-Kuk Jimuih

PS- HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR. More stories to come next week, I'm sure. Basically everyone is migrating to Mainland to celebrate, but it will be okay. No worries. Should be fun. Santai ginhong! (have health!)

Wow, sounds like everything is going good. (About choosing to serve a mission) I didn't want to serve either, and then one day it just hit me that there's someone somewhere that needs my testimony. Now, I see Cherry preparing to go to the temple and I understand why I'm here. It's cool. Glad to hear everybody's doing good. Anybody can serve a mission. Even if it's just online in the MTC, it's still a calling.  I wondered for a long time why I was here, because I felt I needed to serve a mission but didn't know why, and why here. but now I do. and it's all good.

I'm grateful that you taught me to be righteous. Its amazing to see so many of these members here, almost all of which are converts, and how they raise their families. The church is the same worldwide- moms still love their kids and want the best for them. And the examples of people make such a difference in people's lives. I'm so blessed to serve here. Thank you for sacrificing so much so I can be here.

(About a missing package) Yeah it had my glasses. oh well. it'll be alright. we're on KT today again so we'll check the mail. we're baking with sister hawks again for p day... best thing ever. she can cook like nobody's business. today we're making homemade lemon poppy-seed muffins from scratch.

Speaking of. the cookie mixes you send don't really work very well... they taste good but they are super flat- don't rise here. but the muffin mixes are super yummy. thanks!

(About the weird warm weather here) WEIRD. haha. the weather here has been really warm, but that's because there's this massive rain cloud just sitting on us and it's been super hot and very humid. sticky. it's gross. it's a good time to visit Hong Kong though- not too cold. just shoes, really. that's all. I really can buy almost everything but shoes here.

P.P.S. I found the COOLEST stuff in Mong Kok last week... your Christmas present is gonna be shweeeeeeettttt.












Monday, February 9, 2015

February 9, 2015

**Note from mom: Sister Crook has the opportunity to "email chat" for about an hour each Sunday night with us.  Many of the questions we ask and the often funny responses are the result of the "P.S.'s" at the end of each weekly email.  Sister Crook is also able to send a lot of photos each week thanks to her access to Dropbox.  To see more, we post most of those on her mission blog site at www.sistercrookinhk.blogspot.com.

Dear Family and Friends,
Last week on exchanges, Sister Dudley and I met this cute little lady who wanted to learn about the church. But her friends that she was running with came back and wanted her to keep running with them. We took a picture together really quick (she's from Mainland...mainlanders love to take pictures with white people) and she went on her way after giving us her number.

So when I called her the first time, she was super super sick and couldn't meet us. But she was still wanting to meet us! So I called Thursday and invited her to English class. After running halfway around the island to try to find her (apparently I can't give directions in Chinese...) we brought her back to English class and taught her afterwards.

Her name is Kelly and she's a mom of an 8 year old girl. Kelly came in contact with a Restoration pamphlet years ago on a trip to Hong Kong from Mainland, where she lived at the time. When we gave her a Book of Mormon and a new pamphlet, she had an overwhelming "really hot" feeling. She said she distinctly remembers having had that before, because of the picture of Joseph Smith receiving the priesthood. She said she didn't know what that picture meant but she knew it was good and could feel it. Our lesson was so spiritual. Kelly is so prepared to hear the gospel! She couldn't make it to church this week but said she'll definitely one next week. She's excited we will let her bring her daughter with her.

Wah. She's literally so prepared. She's so cute too! She barely comes up to my shoulders and has this cute short hair and she's got a fireball of a personality. She's so humble and willing to learn. We're so excited to start working with her! She's so so so so so cute.

Last week for P Day we went to 10,000 Buddhas and literally there are that many. It was so cool. You can't take pictures of the temple, obviously, but even just walking up the massive hill was incredible! I loved it. I got some sweet pictures with lots of Buddhas. When Sister Robinson and I were talking at the top, though, some crazy man came up and lifted his hand to the square as if to greet us, and then proceeded to curse us in some sketchy language that definitely wasn't Chinese. He was chanting and waving his hands at us and doing all sorts of crazy stuff. So that was fun. We got outta there pretty quick...haha. Good times.

FYI, Elder Ballard is coming to HK on the 25-26, and is doing a special meeting just for the missionaries. President Hawks had the assistants call me and ask me to play piano for that, so that'll be fun. The presiding bishop will also be there, and Elder Easband, and probably the Asia area people. Cool huh?  And transfers are the 26th. I will probably be leaving my area but no idea where.  I want to serve somewhere new and be ready for a new adventure, but I'm going to be sad about leaving the ward (Sister Lau is like, my mom in Hong Kong) and leaving Cammy and her kids and our new investigator Kelly.

It's been a good week. Thanks for the prayers and love! (:

-Kuk Jimuih

P.S. So I know nobody here celebrates Valentine's Day, but I wanted to wish you all a happy valentine's day and tell you that I love you! (: Ngoh ngoi leihdeih!

(In reference to some videos we sent of our dog): Haha the videos of the dog are funny. Hope you enjoy my many Buddha pictures this week- I took a TON. and we went to Ikea. that's the first time I've ever been to Ikea and it is AMAZING. I could live in that store for eternity.

(In reference to a question about transfers and if she is excited about something new and where she might go): No idea. I don't think so, but I really don't know. My little island is in the boonies. I really want to serve in the new territories like, really really bad, that would be so cool. I've actually been to the Disneyland train station a few times on my way to Tung Chung, so that's fun. I've actually been a lot of places. Been on the far east end of the Island, Wan Chi, been to Ma On Shan (far northeast corner) and Tung Chung/Lantau Island, where the airport is. just haven't been up to the northwest corner yet.

(In reference to a possible trip to Orlando next winter to see Aunt Tam if they move there): I'm all for whatever you want to do, just give me time to sleep a couple days and get a pedicure. My feet are looking pretty sad, haha.  Yeah, my feet just look like I walk several miles a day in shoes.  SPEAKING OF. Can you send me new shoes for my birthday? I checked out the Clarks store here and they don't carry stuff big enough for my feet. I uploaded pictures of my shoes on dropbox- those are the ones I want. mine are just worn and falling apart. I don't know what size they are (the inserts have worn off the size) but they're just over 11 inches long. if you can't find the exact same pair though, don't buy them- they're the only shoes that really fit my orthotics.
Photos: Visiting 10,000 Budhas















happy valentines day family!



Sunday, February 1, 2015

February 2, 2015: You Have Chosen Option E

Jan 26: Sister Lau invited us to her home to "give us a present". We showed up and she said "I went finding this morning for you, because I felt like I needed to give you a member referral." Wow. How cool. She literally went out and contacted people on the street. Her neighbor has interest in learning but we couldn't meet with her that night (she was busy) so hopefully this week we can meet her. Also got to go to Wan Chi to eat GIANT pizza and ride the Star Ferry. Super fun.

Jan 27: I tried to contact this lady and she literally ran up this massive hill to get away from me. Literally booked it up there. I felt kinda bad, but it was just too funny to not be grateful for. But in reality I'm grateful for when that doesn't happen, and we don't have to run after people cuz that makes my feet hurt. Haha.

Jan 28: Met a really nice lady on the streets named A-Sze. I love it when we meet nice people. Most people are jerks...haha.

Jan 29: WE COULD SEE STARS. The air is usually so bad that we can't see stars! But there were a few tiny little stars dotting the skies- and they were stars, not airplanes!!!

Jan 30: Did zone 24's. Zone 24's were the best. I just love doing exchanges, and having the opportunity to serve with Sister Dudley was wonderful. We went out finding where a man approached us and said (In English) "Hey. You're Mormons. I've never seen sister missionaries before, that's really cool! I have interest in your church." We were a little concerned that his interest wasn't in the right place, but he has real intent. We turned him over to the Tung Chung elders (because that's where he lives) and he's excited to learn of the truth. What a blessing.

Jan 31: Went to Tung Chung with sister Dudley and ate Subway for lunch. Mmmm, I miss American food. Too bad it make me kinda sick. Then we made hamburgers for dinner. Mmmmmm.

Feb 1: Cammy came to the last hour of church! WOOOOO. After many weeks of sick children, they're finally back on track. Woo.

We had this discussion yesterday about "things people do to get away from the missionaries in Hong Kong".

Option A: The "mhdaakhah (not available) hand wave"
Option B: Dive in front of a moving car. Happens almost daily.
Option C: Really obviously cross the sidewalk.
Option D: Fake a phone call or text
Option E: Totally ignore everything we say.

We decided that when people do option E to us, we say "Gam (well...) you have chosen Option E" and then walk away. Not really, probably won't ever do it to their faces. But we say it to each other and it's funny. Good times finding.
Today we're going up to 10,000 Buddhas so it should be fun. Thanks for all the love, support, and prayers! Love you all!

-Sister Kuk
P.S.
(In reference to last week's thousand year old egg photo): I really did eat it. I can make them for you someday. it's not as bad as it looks. pretty good. but it was soaking in a TON of vinegar and oil so my insides didn't feel too hot afterwards. but it was okay-la. not bad.  It's not really 1000 years old.... maybe 3 months, but not 1000 years. It;s just a preserved egg. Google it. I'm not going to come home with diseases and die! like, parasites maybe, but no diseases. They give us drugs at the end of the mission for that though, so I'll be fine. A Sister missionary made that for me, totally safe. (Mom told her she was going to die): I totally will not! I've eaten weirder things. Okay, maybe not. But like... grass jelly was gross. I found a can of it so I'm gonna buy some and bring it home with me. I'm excited to cook real Guangdong Chinese food for you!
P.P.S
(In reference to little sister Tessa's paper turtles she sent to BriAnna): We were out finding last week and found some lady out exercising with her turtles- two of them just wandering around outside. it was the funniest thing and we talked to the lady for a few minutes about them. Apparently they get about... a little over a foot in diameter. you should show up one day with a real turtle. if you don't, I will.
P.P.P.S.
(In reference to "real" Chinese food, is there anything in the U.S. that compares): Its not even close to the same. not even close. I mean, sweet and sour pork can be found here... but it's not the same. I can learn to make coconut bread (to DIE FOR) and cha siu faahn (......barbeque pork rice?) and that's pretty typical here. meals are like a massive bowl of rice with tons of weird side dishes. lots of squid. icky.
Tessa's little turtles are participating in language study

and eating a muffin?  These pictures are going to make a little 9 year old sister so so happy

P-Day adventure to Wan Chi

Pizza!



?

?

Sister missionaries on the loose!








Palm trees and blue skies!  What more can you ask for in January?


January 25, 2015: Because we are White

me, sister vivian choi (RM) sis killpack

Thousand year old egg

Hair is growing!

Flashback to the childhood...Kindermusik!

sour plum powder


What a week full of blessings and funny adventures.

Tuesday: Temple day. You all heard about it last week so I won't go over it again... but it was fun. Got to do a session on Cantonese. So that was fun.

Wednesday: We took the train out to Tung Chung to do a district find. We met Vivian Choi, an ngaam-ngaam (just barely) returned missionary! It was fun to see her again. She took me finding on my very first night in Hong Kong and I was so lost as to what she was doing or how. But now we totally got in the groove and taught some cool lessons. Funny story about that though. the chyun (estate, apartment complex, whatever you call it in English) was... sketchy. So in the first five or so minutes we passed a cat half out of a bag. (tons of stray cats here. really.) and Sister Choi walked up to see what was going on. She came back and was like "It's dying." great. So there's this group of men shoving this dying cat into a bag and it was super weird. So we moved on. Then we walked past a bunch of men and women singing around a giant metal...looked like a watering trough from a farm, kinda? and they were burning all sorts of stuff. Sister Killpack asked what was going on and Sister Choi said "Probably because somebody died there. They're releasing the spirit of the dead." So we walked past that. And then we were walking past a building and it was all caution taped off and there was red sticky stuff all out of the ground... and Sister Choi said someone probably died there too. Great. So we spent two hours finding in a chyun full of death. So that was fun.

Thursday: Our LA Sister Yeung called us and wanted to schedule us for that day- no problemo. We got into our lesson and taught and it was great. (please take note that this lady is...old. like really old. I mean not really but kind of.) She looks at Sister Killpack and asked why her hair was black, and if her parents were Chinese. Then proceeds to look at my blonde hair and admired it...and didn't ask if my parents were Chinese. It's funny- most Chinese people can't comprehend that people in America have so many different natural colors of hair- from blonde to black to red to whatever. Quite funny.

Friday: I passed my language pass off. Huzzah.

Saturday: Went to Kowloon City on an exchange and served with another Sister Choi (this one is still a missionary) and taught this crazy street lesson in which we taught almost the entire Restoration to a girl standing at a bus stop... only to have a random stranger lady also standing at the bus stop grab this girl's hand and drag her into a taxi. It was the weirdest thing. We stood there on the curb by the bus stop and just looked at each other for like thirty seconds just trying to process what the heck just happened.

Sunday: Read the story of Eglon and Ehud in my personal study... only my family understands why that's funny.

So that's my week. We didn't see any investigators this week because literally every single one of them cancelled their lessons... oh well. This coming week will be better. Today we're going out to the Island to Wan Chi (where the big church building is) to eat pizza, REAL pizza, so more good pics to come next week. Love you all and thanks for the support! (:

-曲姊妹

P.S.
Oh man, I forgot to explain the title........Everything happens here because we're white. When we try to stop people and they're either jerks, or they're nice, or they run away (made two people run away from us while trying to contact them yesterday) we decided it all boils down to the fact that we're both white, and my hair is blonde.
 Sorry about that... haha​.
 also:
 (About a Hank Smith fireside we went to a few years ago, the story of Eglun and Ehud):
15 But when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord‍ raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab.
 16 But Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length; and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh.

 17 And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab: and Eglon was‍ a very fat man.

 18 And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the people that bare the present.

 19 But he himself turned again from the quarries that were‍ by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand‍ unto thee, O king: who said, Keep silence. And all that stood by him went out from him.

 20 And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his‍ seat.

 21 And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly:

 22 And the haft‍ also went in after the blade; and the fat closed upon the blade, so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly; and the dirt came out.

P.P.S
​(In regards to the siblings starting a new semester of classes on Monday): in china we call that a jaapgwaan... an adjustment. it's rough but you get into a new normal again. Seriously though, if you can find him a place to do tai chi, do it. like... I don't know. I can learn from this old couple in my ward here or by watching pohpo do it every day, but I don't know about America.

Hey I found Kindermusik here. Apparently I live right by it and also Sister Robinson did Kindermusik when she was little too so we spend five minutes bonding and reminiscing over it. Good times.

Also tell jaiden he should go to usu.

P.P.P.S
(In regards to Sister Crook's potential return date conflicting with mom's BSU graduation): Mmmmm.... can't guarantee anything, but there's a possibility December 19th could still happen. Just depends on when the rest of transfers line up. Because of Chinese new Years this transfer is off by a  week (making it a 10 weeker rather than 9) so it's killer... but it's cool.

Wow. I'm so proud of Jaiden. Got a letter sent off to him this week about all the reaons why he should go to USU, mainly being:
 -Aggie Ice cream and a sister who will take him whenever he wants
- Fredrico's pizza
-Grandma's house (hopefully she'll let us come visit every once in a while)
-good school, good programs, etc
 -But mostly me. haha. Hopefully he enjoys it. should be there this week.​

P.P.P.P.S
(In regards to some little homemade turtles Tessa sent to Sister Crook for Christmas): Oh, also, tell Tessa I'm taking care of her turtles and that the other day we were finding by these apartments and there was some lady outside exercising and her pet turtles were walking around her feet. she had two that she just took outside to play with. Sorry, forgot to take a picture...​