Last Week of My Training

Hello all,

This week brought many exciting changes, but also some really good times.

Last Monday we got our transfer calls. Elder Grimmett is going to Hyderabad to be companions with the only other elder from my batch who got his visa, Elder D'vaz. Those two will tear it up! Two awesome elders. I am going to be with Elder Cloward, who right now is in Hyderabad with Elder D'vaz. Elder Cloward is from Elder Grimmett's batch, so they are just switching places. I met Elder Cloward on my first day here, and he is a super awesome guy. He's from Layton, Utah. I'm excited. Also, Elder Anderson, (who is currently one of the AP's) will come serve the other half of my area, training a new Indian Elder. That will be a relief, because right now our area is literally half of Bangalore. We are excited! I will also have a lot to learn from Elder Anderson. He's been out for a pretty long time, and is pretty much a legendary missionary. Elder Grimmett flies out on Wednesday and Elder Cloward should also come on Wednesday, I think.

Oh, and a little side note, here in India, in order for people to understand you saying the word Wednesday, you have to pronounce it how it is spelled. ex. "I'm leaving to Hyderabad on Wed-nes-day". It's kinda funny. 

Anyway, I learned that when people find out that you are leaving, they ALL want to feed you. I think we got fed dinner/lunch/or simply snacks just about every day last week. We also have a dinner appointment tonight with some of our favorite members, the Kanagie family. Sister Kanagie is cooking us beef biryani. (Which is pretty much every missionary's favorite meal. Yum!)  We had a really really good week and taught more lessons than we have any other week my entire mission. It was awesome.

On Friday, we had specialized training in Whitefield with President Berrett. We practiced asking investigators inspired questions from the Spirit. It was a little tricky for me because I tend to always just keep thinking of the next thing that I can teach. President Berrett came to listen while Elder Grimmett and I were practicing. I got pretty nervous but he helped me out. He told me that the only way to get good at teaching with the Spirit is by practicing over and over again. So that's what I have been really trying to work on. The concept is called "Teach People, Not Lessons." It's a pretty important concept so hopefully I can get it soon.

Last night we went and taught our investigators, Shilla and Sam. They have been doing really well and Shilla read about 15 chapters in her Book of Mormon since last week. Not only has she been reading, but she has underlined a bunch of verses! Awesome! We didn't teach the second lesson yet. I think we will keep fellowshipping them and helping them at least for one more week so we aren't throwing too much overwhelming info in their faces. Right now they go to "Infant Jesus Church", which is where just about every Christian around here goes.

Sorry for my poor spelling and grammar.  I think those two skills are starting to decline just because I talk so slow and simply to people here. Especially to people that don't have the best English or hearing impaired people. Like if I was talking to a hearing impaired person I wouldn't say "can you help your girlfriend come to church", you would say "help gf come church." It's interesting. Even talking to people that can hear. You wouldn't say "Do you think that we could have a closing prayer before we go?" You would say "So, we can have one closing prayer?"

I just got an email from the mission and it looks like we are going to welcome three new Indian Elders, one new Indian Sister, and six Americans that have just finished their training and have finally gotten their Visas approved. Awesome! I'll update you all next week on who those are but it sounds like I may be meeting my MTC batch, or at least part of it. 

Also, we just got a new senior couple here. They will be working in the mission office for a while. Elder and Sister Bedke. Super nice people. They are from Sandy, but Elder Bedke is from Burley, Idaho originally. We were able to talk about Albion and Burley for a little while. Pretty cool.

I took a bunch of pictures this week, so hopefully I can get them all to send. Here's the first three: A cool sunset, our last district meeting together (Elder Gotipati is also going to Hyderabad.) and I picture from church yesterday.

Have a good week!

Elder Thompson

Specialized Training in Whitefield with President Berrett

The last district meeting before transfers

Dalton Kanagie eating his soup on a motorcycle

A typical Bangalore street

There are some mighty fine sunsets in India.

Dinakaran Manjula's birthday 'function'

In India it is customary to feed others your birthday cake.

Elder Grimmett and Elder Thompson with a few Convent Road Branch members

Hello

Hello Everybody,

This was a really good week. We started out by playing some basketball last Monday, and I also did some yoga that evening. Elder Grimmett made fun of me, but I did it anyway. :) 

On Tuesday, we went to visit our friend Joseph in a place called Gottigere. It's on the outer edge of the city, and is right next to what looks like a jungle. I saw a monkey while we were finishing the appointment (you've gotta love the garbage. It's weird what you will see in the garbage. Here you see some dude's shoes. Haha everybody wears sandals anyway, so who needs them?). Later that night we visited the Lawrence family. They have this super energetic dog named Jazz. It was fun to play with him and we did our best to have a spiritual message. 

Wednesday was our Hearing Impaired friend Karthik's birthday. We had an appointment in the evening but it cancelled so we went over to visit him. We had a good visit with him and also the Kanagie family. 

Last week, we also did some finding. Finding is when we have an address of a member, and we go and find them. Many of the addresses here are bad, so it's a little tricky, but it's fun because all you need to do is ask someoone on the street. If they know where it is, they will show you, but if not, they will say "nope, I don't know where this is, but let's go and find them." It's pretty fun to go on scavenger hunts with random people from the street.

I'm still teaching piano to a boy named Benjamin. He likes learning, and we are starting to learn the notes on the staff. It's going well, and I think he is learning a lot. (Now I just need to get him to practice at  home. That's the hard part.) 

Yesterday, there were about 4 or 5 people from America at sacrament meeting. Our building is near the hotels that many of them stay in for work trips so it's not uncommon to see them at church. I talked to one of the guys and he was only about as tall as me but he looked like a giant! I guess I am getting so used to talking to short, skinny, brown people every day. Later that evening we went back to the area called Ejipura with our friend Keerthi Sagar. We visited our new investigators, Shilla and Sam. We had a really spiritual lesson with them and answered questions from the last lesson. We also introduced the Plan of Salvation to them and gave them a pamphlet to read. Next week we can go over there and go over the lesson. It was so cool because Shilla told us that she felt different ever since the last time we came. She felt peaceful and her son Sam, (who has a mental problem) is doing a lot better. We gave Sam a blessing last week to help him out. I am beginning to realize more and more how the Spirit works. It's so cool to see people feel that peace and love. 

I attached the picture of the monkey from Gottigere and there is also a pic of Karthik and me. I'm wearing his hat. 

Things have gone by so fast. It's insane. Transfer calls are today and we will find out what will happen to Elder Grimmett and who my new companion will be. I can't believe that it's come this fast. Things are going so well and I am loving my time here as a missionary in Bangalore. Thanks for the support that you all show to me. I really appreciate it. 

Love, Elder Kent Richard Thompson

A monkey near Gottigere

Happy birthday, Karthik!

Hello

This week was a really successful and enjoyable week for Elder Grimmett and me.  We were able to have a lot of success with visiting people and sharing the gospel.

On Monday, we went to a bunch of different stores. We found a store that is kind of like a Whole Foods market back home. They had all kinds of imported fruits and veggies, and just everything really. I got myself one of my favorite snacks, iceberg lettuce. Yum.

On Tuesday, we visited three recent convert/less active members. It was awesome. It's great when we get three lessons in one day, because people tend to bunk appointments pretty often. 

On Friday, we visited the Lachmanan family. Their daughter is leaving in March to the Temple Square mission! That will be super cool for her.

We visited many other people during the week and I taught piano on Saturday.  That was exciting because the boy that I'm teaching usually doesn't show up.

Yesterday, on our way to church, we were walking past a mall by our house, and saw a Krispy Kreme truck pull in. The guy that was driving it was a member named Vishnu. We've visited him before, and he's a super nice guy. The only problem is he needs to deliver doughnuts just about every Sunday. He told us that he could spare an hour to come to sacrament meeting, so he met us there. It was great. While I was playing the closing hymn, the power went out. (Which is not unusual here in Bangalore.) We got to finish singing the song a capella because it's an electric keyboard.

After church, we taught the second missionary lesson to our hearing impaired investigator sister named Kat. She is really solid and is preparing to be baptized in February. I've also been making a ton of progress with my sign language. I'm almost to the point where I can say a prayer without any help from Elder Grimmett. Then, our hearing impaired friend Karthik came over, and I made him some mashed potatoes for lunch. He had never had them before, and thought they were pretty good. Later that night, we had plans to meet with our friend Keerthi Sagar to visit some families. We met him in a place called Ejipura, and he was there with three other priesthood brothers. So the 6 of us had an awesome time going to visit some families. We also got some new investigators that evening, and I taught the restoration. I'm getting more and more confident in my teaching abilities.

I took a few pictures this week. The first is of a member named Clinton. We went to visit him and his family. He's trying to look cool. :) The second is us at a really great restaurant called Sridevi. They bring out all the rice and curry that you want, and also curd and a sweet all for about $1.50. It's called a veg meal. Super delicious. There is me, Elder Grimmett, Elder Gill (the huge guy), and Elder Gottipati (the brown guy, who's actually from Ogden.) We had a good time.

I think that's all for this week. Everything is going really well here in India, and I'm having a great time. Time is flying by. I only have two more weeks left in my training. Wow. 

Love you all,

Elder Thompson 

A branch member named Clinton

Elder Thompson, Elder Grimmett, Elder Gill, and Elder Gottipati eating at Sridevi, an all you can eat rice and curry joint.

Happy New Year!

Hey Everybody,

I hope that you all had a great holiday season. We had a pretty fun time teaching the gospel as well. We have picked up a few new investigators, and one of them is a hearing impaired sister. She is pretty stoked about the gospel and wants to be baptized already. She's been coming to church with her boyfriend, so as soon as we finish teaching the lessons to her, she can be baptized. Looks like I will have to learn a little bit more sign language so that I can teach her when Elder Grimmett leaves. Last night, we had a really spiritual discussion with a guy named Money. Two of his brothers are members, but he is going to a different Christian church. He had a lot of questions about the gospel that we were able to answer. Hopefully we will be able to continue to teach him, and have him feel the Spirit. 

I went on exchange with Elder Gill this week, and we had a good time. He showed me some of his area, and we got to talk about ways that I can improve myself as I continue to learn how to be a missionary. It was great. 

Elder Grimmett and I have joined a gym called Chisel. We've been going to work out almost every morning. I've been lifting a ton of weights, and pounding down eggs and peanut butter, so hopefully I can bulk up this skinny body of mine a little bit. 

New years eve was pretty great! We went to a members home and ate some delicious dinner. It was weird to go to bed at 10:30. Haven't done that for a while on New Years. 

Some of our favorite people in the branch, Derga and Margaret, and their little boy Jeffrey just left to head to Utah. Derga is going to go to school in Sandy, and will later head to BYU I. Bummer. Derga was also the BML. They will have some awesome adventures though.

I didn't take a ton of pictures this week, but I saw a nativity scene out on the street the other day that was kinda funny. So apparently Baby Jesus was born in a mansion... Good to know :)

Thank you all so much for the Christmas wishes and mail. You're all great, and It's so nice to know that people are thinking about me. I'm doing well, and am enjoying things here in India. 

Love,

Elder Kent Richard Thompson

An interesting twist on the Nativity

A mansion?!?

Christmas Week

Hello,

I don't have a ton of time this week, so I will have to keep it short. 

We had a pretty great week enjoying the Christmas celebrations. Most people were pretty busy, and there was also a branch Christmas Activity that most people went to, so it was a little tricky to find people to teach. But it's ok, it looks like we have a good week ahead of us.

On Christmas, we went to a member's house, and they fed us some delicious Chicken biryani. It was awesome. Other than that, most people were not home. Everybody goes out and parties. On the 26th, we had zone conference. We had a devotional, had some good lunch, and watched the Christmas Devotional. Sister Berrett also gave us some nice Christmas stockings with candy in them. I had an awesome time skyping with my family on the 24th. It was really nice.

Yesterday, we picked up a new investigator named Sillian. We found her by accident a few weeks ago when we were trying to find a member. She is really nice Christian lady. We were able to visit her and teach her the restoration. She is excited for us to come over any time and teach her God's message. 

The big news for the week is that I discovered that green peppers here are quite crunchy. Not as good as the ones from the garden back home, but still pretty great. I attached a video of me biting into one, so hopefully it will go through. Make sure to turn up the sound if you watch it :)

Christmas was pretty great. We had some delicious chicken biryani with some members. Santa came and I got lots of good treats and toys! I also got your second package the other day at zone conference. 

Yes, there was a "low intensity, IED bomb" which exploded in Bangalore last night around 8:30. From what I have heard, one was killed, and three were injured. It is in my area, actually just down the street. It was near "Brigade Road" which is a place that we go all the time. That's where you go to get on the metro, Mcdonald's, Krispy Kreme, and tons of other stores and restaurants. A pretty busy area. Aditia called us last night to tell us about it. Pretty crazy. We were far from that area, and I don't think we will go back on Brigade for a while. Sketch right? 

Pretty awesome about the snow. The Hincks sent me a picture from Rexburg, and they got TONS I think about 20 inches... Lucky! 

We have had soooo much fun with the disc. We were throwing it in our apartment complex the other day while we were waiting for an appointment, and all of the kids came over to play. As kids are, they started to fight over the frisbee until one of the little boys pushed his twin brother into a metal pole. Nice going dude. He'll probably have a bruise on his forehead for a little while. 

Zone conference was good. We did some study activities, and talked about ways we can use family history in our missionary work. We also had lunch, sang songs, and watched the Christmas Devotional. Sister Berrett gave us a nice Christmas stocking filled with candy, and a cool shoe shine sponge. They got one especially for me, because I have brown shoes. I got some sweet compliments on my shiny shoes during church yesterday. I didn't end up playing the piano at zone conference, because they didn't have a piano there. Weird right? You'd think that they would plan ahead for that. Oh well, hopefully I will be able to save all of those hours that I spent practicing for next year. 

I had some trouble with the internet connection, so my time is short. 

Thanks for all of your love and support,

Elder Kent Richard Thompson

Chomping down on a fresh green pepper

Bangalore Zone at Christmas

Elder Stephen teaching the Bangalore Zone

Christmas Eve Skype

Family picture

Mother and son

Father and son

Siblings

It was so good to see his face and hear his voice!

Merry Christmas!

Hello all,

This has been a pretty fun week, and I can't believe that it's already December 22nd! It doesn't feel like Winter at all. The weather has been really pleasant over the past little while. It's warm, but not hot. I like to joke around because lots of the people here wear jackets and winter hats when it's super warm outside. (They have to bundle up, because it's quite a frigid winter this year.)... not. 

We had some pretty cool adventures this week. The teaching was a little hard, because we got bunked on a ton! But it's all good, that's part of being on a mission, On Tuesday, one of our zone leaders, Elder Mangum was being transferred to Hyderabad, so Elder Grimmett and I went to their area to hang out with his companion, Elder Gottipati for a while. We visited some people, and then went to the apartment to wait for his new companion, Elder Gill. Elder Gill is super super nice and cool. It will be fun to get to know him. I've come to a conclusion that all of the elders here are super awesome. I haven't met anybody that I didn't like. We met up with our friend Aditia, and he bought us doughnuts this time at Krispy Kreme. He is awesome. We are waiting for the right time to hand him off, because he lives in another area, so different elders can visit him.

I've been asked to play 6 Christmas hymns in zone conference on the 26th. Please pray for me, because I only know how to play one of them already. I've been trying to practice as much as I can.

On Friday, we were riding our cycles to an appointment. We were hauling down a road, and Elder Grimmett was ahead of me. He jumped off this manhole cover that makes a pretty sweet jump. There was a bike on the wrong side of the road, and they collided. Fortunately, neither of them were hurt, but Elder Grimmett's new cycle was totaled. (The front forks were bent back pretty far). I was following behind, and my view looked pretty g-nar-ly. I saw him go off the jump, and then I saw a bike (and by bike I mean motorcycle) fly up into the air. Pretty crazy. Elder Grimmett was super super mad about it, but I'm just glad that nobody was hurt. It could have been much much worse.  Us missionaries just need to remember to play it safe, and think before we do something that could have a bad consequence. It's all good :)

On Saturday and Sunday, I was on exchange with Elder  Gottipati. It was super fun to hang out with him for a while. Him and his family are converts from being Hindus only about two years ago. It's super great that he decided to serve a mission even with his short history in the church. He's one of the most chill and Christlike people I have ever met. He showed me some places in my new area, because he has served here before. It was great. Elder Gill and Grimmett went to do the baptismal interview for our investigator, Mahesh.

Yesterday, after church, Mahesh was baptized. It was super great to see our investigator be baptized. Elder Grimmett did the baptism. He was definitely ready, and I could tell that it was a spiritual experience for him. Mahesh has been taught by TONS of other elders before. He finally has decided that he wanted to be baptized. After visiting him, teaching him, and making sure he was ready. The time came. Awesome. 

I've started playing the piano in just about every meeting I go to. Nobody here knows how, and none of the other elders can either. I have learned how to "wing it" when I don't know how to play a song. Sometimes, I can only play the melody line, but people are just grateful that there is somebody that sort of knows what they are doing.

I attached a few pics to the email. The first is a pretty nice sunset at the Christmas activity for the stake. (well I guess it's the district). Those tall buildings in the back are some pretty sweet apartment buildings. That's where the AP's and office elders live. The next is a pic of me and Elder Gottipati. Third is the picture from Mahesh's baptism.

Some of you have asked if people here Celebrate Christmas, and the answer is yes! There is this huge church in our area called "Infant Jesus Church". If you walk down the road that the church is on, it is crazy! There are sooooo many people selling nativity sets, christmas trees, stars, lights, everything. At least where I am, there are tons of Christian people. I think this week will basically be a huge party week. All of the Christians will party super hard, and all of the Hindus will be jealous and try to party even harder. It's kinda funny because it honestly seems like people just make up holidays so that they can party the hardest. "Happy Merry Christmas to you all" 

I think that is all. Thanks for the support of all of you. It is blessing me so much. 

Love, Elder Thompson

Sunset at the district Christmas activity

Elder Gottipati and Elder Thompson

Mahesh's Baptism