Big Changes

Hello,

This week was nice with lots of big changes. Last P-day, we got an unexpected transfer call.  Elder Ball will be going back to Bangalore to serve in my old area.  Not only that, but all of the Elders in Rajahmundry are leaving except for the Zone Leaders, me, and Elder Patten.  Elders Harris, Monk, Farr, Bandi, D'vaz, and Ball are all leaving.  My new companion's name is Elder Willis.  Currently, he is serving as the AP in Bangalore.  He'll come be with me for one transfer and then he will go home.  I'm stoked because he's a cool guy.  Also, nobody is coming to replace Elder Harris and Monk so I'm taking over the entire branch.  I don't really know their area, but they showed me some homes last week.  I've also been informed that I will be the new District Leader here.  I don't know much about being a District Leader, but I will learn!  Anyway, this week brought some huge changes.  I'm a little sad to see so many great elders leave, but there will be some fun times in the future.

This morning Elder Patten, Elder Harris and I went to ride our cycles across the Godavari river. We carried our cycles up some stairs to get on the bridge. We started riding around and noticed that there was no traffic. Turns out the bridge was closed off to traffic because they were doing some painting and resurfacing. Nobody seemed to mind that we were riding our bikes on the bridge, so we just kept going! Because there was no traffic, we decided that we should take an opportunity that we probably will never have again. Elder Patten had his slackline with him, so we set it up from one side of the bridge to the other and slack lined across the road. I'll attach some pictures from this morning's adventures. 

That's about all for the week. I went on exchange a lot to try and learn as much as I can about the area and the branch. I think I'm ready to take over. It's a lot for me to do, but I know that I can do it. 

I hope you all have an amazing week.

Love,

Elder Thompson

The Godavari River

About to ride over the bridge

Workers removing mud from the bottom of the river

Along the Godavari River

Elder Patten taking a selfie on the bridge

A funny sign that is appropriate given the following two pictures

Elder Patten slack lining over the empty bridge.  My mother's heart might have skipped a beat over this one!

At least they are barely off the ground

Swimming In A Hot Tub

Hello,

So I think this was one of the hottest weeks I have ever before experienced.  It literally feels like we are swimming in hot water when we go out to appointments.  I think I should tell President Berrett that I can't go out and proselyte because I sweat so much that I might as well be swimming!  Even the members here tell us that it's too hot.  I've started taking two liters of water with me when we go outside and I usually drink it all.  Sometimes I need to buy even more!  We're embracing the heat though.  Our afflictions shall be but a small moment.

Aside from that, It's been a pretty successful week! We had two investigators come to church yesterday that we've been trying to get to come for weeks. Also, we had about 15 less active members show up to church. We were very excited to see them all there.

Time seems to be going by so fast. Last week I reached 7 months on my mission. Also it's the last week of the transfer with Elder Ball! I really hope he doesn't get a transfer call. We are doing really well right now 

So a funny story from the other day. Elder Ball and I were hanging out in our room at the end of the day. I was sitting on my bed when I felt a drop of something land on my arm. I looked and saw a small brown nugget sitting there. When I looked up to the ceiling, I saw a lizard looking down at me with his tail up! I got pooped on by a lizard! How many people can say that they have been pooped on by a lizard? Elder Ball and I were laughing pretty hard. 

Here's some pics from the week. Here are some kids collecting water, a sunset, and six of us inside an auto. We managed to squeeze two more of us in there somehow. 

Hope you all have a great week and stay cool! 

Love, Elder Kent Richard Thompson

Elder Thompson and Elder Ball with some children

The Kothangi wedding

Elders Ball, Thompson, Bandi, and D'Vaz with a cute little wedding guest

More wedding festivities

Some children gathering water

A sunset over Rajahmundry

How many missionaries can you fit in an auto?

A giant lizard

A truck piled high with cargo

Some more kids gathering water

Elder Ball with these beautiful children

Fat tie Friday

Carrying plants on the back of a cycle

A little boy enjoying a mango

Making noodles

Camera tricks

India is experiencing a deadly heat wave

Fruit stands on the road

Crazy Week

Hello all,

This has been a really good but fairly crazy week.  However, it was so great to talk to my family last Monday.

So, my companion Elder Ball went to Hyderabad for part of the week to get a new passport. We need to get a new passport so we can go the the Philippines at our year mark. We send the old one in to get our visas renewed while we are gone. He got to hang out with my trainer Elder Grimmett while he was there. They had a fun time. I was in a trio with the other two guys from my apartment, Elder Monk and Elder Harris. That was fun for the first night because we got some good appointments in and I got to see some people in their area which is always fun. The problem is that while I was sleeping, I got really sick. It must have been from what I had for lunch or something. It was a long night for me because I my stomach was really upset. I called Sister Berrett in the morning, and she helped me get better pretty quick. It's always fun talking on the phone with Sister Berret because she can always cheer you up. It must be a requirement for the mission president's wife to be super nice. We stayed inside that day so I could get better. 

Elder Ball came back the next day so it was good to be back with my companion. Teaching in a trio is pretty difficult. I'm sure there's a reason that God puts his missionaries in pairs. 

So we were on our way to visit one member the other day when I heard some really loud screaming! Turns out some guys were catching a wild pig and it wasn't too happy. They had caught it on a rope, and it was jumping around uncontrollably and screaming at the top of it's lungs. It literally looked like a fish when you pull it out of the water, just flopping around so fast. It was definitely a sight to see. I tried to get some video, but they let it go before I could get my camera out. 

I'll send a bunch of pictures this week. First, a sunset, our cycles, and a hut. Many people live in this kinds of homes. 

Love you all and hope you have a great week. 

Elder Thompson

Elder Thompson and Elder Ball's cycles

A pretty sunset

Lots of people live in these huts

A pile of bricks on a man's head.  The Indian people carry all kinds of things on their heads.

A wild pig roaming the city

Random pictures of babies on the walls of random homes

The current church house which is being rented while a new one is being built

The baptismal font

The new church building

Elder Thompson and Elder Ball

Lookin' cool!

Sunglass selfies

Elder Ball

A rooster wandering around the restaurant

Lunch at Dabba

Elder Ball and a watchman who is very friendly but doesn't speak any English

The central shopping area in Rajahmundry

A few branch members and Elder Thompson

It is common to dye baby chicks. You can see one red and one yellow.

The yellow chick

Mother's Day Skype

We were so happy to be able to Skype with Kent on Mother's Day night.  He looks great and he sounds wonderful.  

Nice Week

Hello,

Last week was a really great week!  I'm really starting to connect with the members here.  Many of them are very poor but they are also very humble.  I also went on exchange with our district leader, Elder Farr.  He's  a cool guy.

We celebrated my birthday on Wednesday. Now I don't feel like such a young guy! Some of the elders in this mission are as old as 26! We got a cake and had a fun time. 

It's so fun to serve here in Rajahmundry. I don't have much from last week, but I hope you are all doing well! 

Here's a pic of the cake.

Love, Elder Thompson

Happy Birthday Elder Thompson