Let the photos of week 4 in Rwanda continue!

Photo bomber Elder Beck behind almost newlyweds!

I do!

I do too!

Wave the flag, we are now married!

Elders with newlyweds!

Just married!

About to be baptized!

Elder Empey, Kellen and Dieudonne, Elder Beck (where's your sandals?)

Week 4 Kigali Rwanda...Marriage, baptism, driving, conference, service....wow, what a week!

Hello! This week has been awesome! I love hearing what is going on back home, definitely miss everyone! On Monday after emailing, we visited Mama Cecilia. She is the one we gave a blessing to. She is doing better and I think she is already out of her house doing the things she does. 

On Tuesday it was a pretty normal day, but we started the Baptismal papers for Dieudonne and Kellen. Pretty exciting. There wedding was on Thursday. I also was able to drive for the first time today. I got my license and President said that Elder Empey could let me drive a little. It is weird driving here in Rwanda. Lots of hills and really no rules.haha. You kind of just creep out into the road until someone stops and lets you go. It is weird. The truck is manual so I am glad I learned how to drive manual back home.

Wednesday we had district meeting with the other district because Elder Empey had to see how they were doing. (he is the zone leader). We taught a members family that are refugees from Burundy. They only speak Swahili and French so it is a translated lesson. They cheered and clapped when we finished the lesson and told them the General Conference would be in Swahili. Haha very funny. On Thursday me and Elder Empey went and got pizza! It is pretty expensive and so we can't go there very often, but it was good. Then we went to Dieudonne and Kellens wedding. It was really cool. They hold the flag with one hand and raise the other and say something and then they are married. Pretty cool. Then we had a small after party. There was this guy that was in a picture and while he was in the picture he pulled out his phone and started taking pictures of me and Elder Empey. haha. The wedding was awesome and Dieudonne bore a strong testimony at it. We got like 3 new people to call and go visit from it, so it was a win-win.

Friday we had a normal day. Weekly planning and did a little service for one of our investigators. We planted flowers. A bit of a tough day, but still good. On Saturday we got to watch Conference! We were at the church most of the day. We watched Satuday and Priesthood Sessions. It was great and I learned so much. We also had Dieudonnes and Kellens baptismal interviews. They passed!

Sunday we watched the Sunday morning session and we had 54 people at church. That is good. Then we had our Baptisms! We had a great talk on Baptism from one of the members and then we did the baptisms. I was able to baptize Kellen and Elder Empey was able to baptize Dieudonne. It was an awesome experience and one that I will never forget and hope that they never forget. It was such a great day! This family was definitely prepared and they are what we call Golden Investigators. They were so faithful and kept every commitment. They are going to be a great family in the church. Awesome day. Today for P-day we washed clothes and me and Elder Anderson got into  a few ferocious games of ERC. It is a card game. He won the first and I won the second. We might play the last one tonight.

It was a great week. The baptism and wedding were awesome. General Conference was awesome. We still have to watch Sunday Afternoon session. One thing I loved was how a few talks mentioned how the weak and simple are called to procaim the gospel. Anyone can proclaim the gospel it doesn't matter how old you are because it isn't the person that matters, but the messege and the spirit that matter. I have come to know that that is true so far on my mission. I also like Dieter F. Uchtdorfs talk on Satuday Morning. He talked about focusing on things that matter. There we be a lot of questions that no one can answer but we shouldn't focus on those things. Focus on what we need to know and do. One scripture I really liked this week was Alma 30:44. It talks about how we can look around us and know that there is a God. I love that scripture because everything around us testifies of God. Anyways It was a great week. Thanks for the letters. Love you all.

Love Elder Beck

Answers to Mom's questions:

1.How are feeling physically? are you walking a lot?

Physically I am doing pretty well. I am sleeping well and am able to get up every morning. It depends on the day on how much we walk, but when we are walking it is either up a hill or down a hill. No flat ground. 

2. Do you want some spices for your food? Some seasoning would be nice 

3. what are the names of your companion's parents? I am not sure on what there parents names are. I'm  sure you can Facebook stalk them or something. haha. 

4. Do you have any advice for my sunday school class? Only advice I have for Sunday School is to make sure they watch all of General Conference a lot of great stuff in there. 

Thanks Mom. I love the letters and I love you.

wedding couple with the missionaries

Dieudonne and Kellens wedding

wedding jitters?

Wedding festivities

see the next post for more pictures.....

Answers to mom's questions

WHEN YOU HAD TO GO FROM 3 SUITCASES TO 2 SUITCASES, WHAT DID YOU LEAVE BEHIND AT THE MISSION HOME?

I took the clothes I needed and left a lot of the extra shirts. Some other Vitamins and other Medicines. Only took one bottle of sunscreen. Just other stuff I didn't really need.

HOW WAS THE FLIGHT FROM UGANDA TO RWANDA?

The flight was about 50 minutes and it was a propeller plane.

HOW ARE YOU BUYING THINGS?
We get about 120,000 Franks a month. It is about 750 Franks to 1 dollar.

HOW IS THE LANGUAGE GOING?

The language is mostly Kinyarwanda, French, and English.

ARE YOU EATING?  IF SO, WHAT ARE YOU EATING?

I usually cook eggs and potatoes. Sometimes pasta. Sandwiches. Bread. Rice. Go out to eat 1 or 2 times a week. Just whatever I can find that isn't too expensive.

TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR COMPANION...

My companion is a zone leader from Idaho falls. He has 2 transfers left on his mission. He is 24 i think. He went to 2 years of school before his mission.

Thanks for the updates mom. I love you and love hearing about what is happening every week.

General Conference is this weekend. I am excited for that.

Elder Beck

EXCHANGES AND BLESSINGS AND VISITORS.

"I can't really capture the beauty of Kigali in a picture!"
{I think Elder Beck has already fallen in love with the landscape and the people here)

Hello! It sounds like everything back home is awesome. A lot is going on and I definitely miss that, but it is good here in Rwanda. This week flew by and I can't believe I am here emailing again.

This week has been a good one. On Monday after we emailed we went to FHE at 6, but no one showed up so that was a bust. Then Elder Empey had to do some zone leader stuff (have I mentioned that he is the zone leader? I can't remember). It was kind of a bust of a night, but still a good P-day. On Tuesdaywe had a pretty busy day. We taught a new investigator for the first time. She is Dieu Donne's neighbor. She is a really nice person, but she has a few red flags that make it hard for us to teach her. Then afterwards we taught Dieu Donne and his wife. They are the ones that are getting married on the 22nd and getting baptized on the 25th. They are golden investigators. They keep every commitment, they read the BOM a ton, and they are just really good people. So we are working really hard to help them get to those dates as smoothly as possible. Afterwards we taught Benard and his family. They are a great family, but something is stopping them from getting married. Here in Rwanda a lot of families only get married traditionally, but not legally and they need to be married legally to get baptized. Then we met with a Recent Convert later that night, so a pretty normal day.

On Wednesday we had District Development Meeting in  the morning and I did the training part of it. It went well, but it is always hard to teach and train people that are a lot more experienced than you. Then we met with a funny lady named Imaculee. She loves to laugh. It is great. Then we met with Frances and his wife (both members). The wife was sick so she wanted a blessing. It was my first opportunity to give a priesthood blessing. I did the anointing. Really good experience the spirit was definitely there. Then we had a dinner appointment with Erik and Rachelle (Investigators). It was my first traditional dinner. It was alright, but not that good. Bugali is that maize flour stuff.  my body is like why do I need to swallow this it has no taste and has no nutritional value, but it was a good experience to have greens ( a vegetable mix), beans, rice, a piece of meat, and bugali. Then on Thursday I had my first exchanges. I went to Kigali 1st branch. There are 3 branche in Kigali, my branch is the Kigali 2nd. I went with Elder Gondwe and Elder Erckanbrack. There are two because one of the elders still hadn't made to Rwanda by then. We did a lot of finding, contacting, and tracting that day. One cool experience was when we met a brother and a sister. The brother had a stroke not to long ago and couldn't use his left arm and had trouble speaking. He said that everyday he usually goes to the Doctor, but on that day he didn't go. I am pretty sure that wasn't just a coincidence. It was cool to get to know the other Elders in Rwanda. I've come to the conclusion that the Elders here in Rwanda are the best in the entire world. haha.

On Friday we woke up and we exchanged back to our original places and then went to the airport to pick up the new Elder. Elder Osei Tu Tu. He is from Ghana and seems like a really cool guy. The rest of the day was a normal day of missionary work except when we met with Mama Cecilia. She had just gotten out of the hospital. She was diagnosed with Diabetes. She left the hospital early so she could get a priesthood blessing.Lots of Faith. She was really sick. She couldn't talk very well and she was laying down. This time I did the sealing and blessing. I was really nervous, but just relied on the spirit and did my best. The spirit was strong and after the blessing and just talking with her she was already doing better. The priesthood and faith really do work. On Saturday we went back to Mama Cecilia to drop some Joseph Smith movies she could watch on her laptop. She was sitting up and eating and seemed to be doing a lot better. It was amazing and good to see. She is the Relief Society President in the Branch. Then the rest of the day went pretty normal with teaching and finding.

Sunday President Chatfield, his wife, Elder Goodwin, and Sister Goodwin showed up for interviews and to see how it was going in Rwanda. They all came to our branch. We had 57 in sacrament this week which is one higher than last weeks record for the year! It was a very good Church Service. President Chatfield spoke everyone was glued to him and it was silent. He is powerful and it was really good to have our branch hear from him. Sunday school went well and then I taught Priesthood. It went well, but it is weird teaching Fathers about having a harmonious family. haha, but they had a good discussion and I didn't have to do much teaching. After Church we had to run President Chatfield and the others around so we only got one lesson in before 6, when the training started. Training and interviews was really good. Lots of things that I learned. It was a great Sunday. Then today we said goodbye to Pres. Chatfield and the others. They drove here from Kampala. 9 hour drive. Then did Laundry, went shopping in town, and then emailed. Overall really good week.

This week was a little frustrating at times, but I really learned that we need to be patient with ourselves and as we continue to work hard and give it our best we will become better and those things that we struggle with will get better. I am really coming to love the people here. Especially the members and the investigators. Really awesome people. Something president Chatfield said was that we need to make sure everyone around us is a better person because of you. That is a great goal to have. Thanks for the letters and keep writing me. I love you too..

Elder Beck

PS I am starting to understand there English better, but over the phone I am still struggling. Also I have learned a few words in there language kinyarwanda, but not much.

Kigali 2nd Branch with Pres/Sister Chatfield and Bro/Sis Goodwin
(Elder Beck is hiding by the pillar)

If a picture is worth a thousand words, we have thirteen thousand words for your viewing pleasure

Bird's eye view out our apartment window.. Note the barbwire and the birdie

Work out room in our apartment complex. Getting buff in AFRICA!

Look mom, my bathroom is clean! Flushables and running water...

Here's where I eat.  I buy groceries every day.
(note: the phone with the cord....I didn't realize these still exist)

Idaho missionaries in Rwanda.. Elder Empey from Idaho falls and Elder Beck from pocatello

First day in Uganda with Elder Mugishi

Friendly handshake and let's go teach some people.

First outing in Uganda with Elder Oliverson,  Elder Mugisha and Elder Beck.
Learning what it feels like to be called...  mzugu, mzugu, mzugu... white person, white person, really white person.
He is getting used to it now.

They live in an apartment with two other elders.... Elder Ngwenya and Elder Anderson 

It's raining cats and dogs!

Hold on to your britches Ethel, it's raining elephants and hippos!
(cue song.....la la... bless the rains down in Africa... la la)

nummy little African treat!!  It's creamy goodness!

You can take the boy out of Idaho but he'll always find another Idaho boy!
(His companion and Zone Leader Elder Empey from Idaho Falls in Kigali, Rwanda)

2nd week in Kigali (Rwanda)

Hello! It sounds like everything back home is great! I wish I could watch some volleyball and I can't believe it is already winding down. It felt like they just barely started. That's awesome that you are getting a shed at the property and I wish I could have some of that Ice cream, it sounds delicious. Keep me posted on everything going on there in Poky and other places back home. I love hearing about it every week.

Well where do I begin for the week. I'll start with the end of monday. After emailing we went shopping and I got a pineapple (you will see how that plays a part later). Then every monday we as the missionaries hold an FHE for the young single adults in our branch. Only 3 came, but it was still good. That night I ate the pineapple. The next day I woke up and did not feel good at all. I tried going through the morning routine of working out, eating, and studying, but I did not feel good at all and had to lay down. I rested and had some medicine and tried to feel better and I started to for awhile, so we went out to teach a lesson. They didn't show and I started feeling worse, so we went back to the apartment and I slept till 6. Then we really needed to meet with an investigator that should be getting baptized soon, so we went out for that. The entire time I was trying not to die, but I made it through. We came back and I went directly to bed. Looking back we think it was the pineapple I ate, that it was rotten or something. I feel bad for wasting an entire do though, but I felt a lot better on Wednesday.

Wednesday was a normal day. We taught a few lessons. Had District Development meeting, and went street contacting. There is a really good family that is going to be baptized on the 25th of October. They are a father and a mother with a little baby. They are awesome people. On Thursday it was another pretty normal day, but there were a lot of spiritual times that strengthened my testimony. One was in the morning during personal study. I was reading from the book Our Heritage and it talks about Joseph Smith translating the BOM. While I read that I felt the Spirit testifying of Joseph Smith and the BOM. I know that Joseph Smith is a true prophet and that the only way he could have translated the Gold Plates would be through the power of God. Another experience was at Institue ( the missionaries have a BOM study class on Thursday nights for the members). I taught the lesson. We went over Alma 27. I wasn't that prepared and it is kind of a random chapter, but at the end of the lesson I had everyone tell me something that we learned from this chapter. At the end there were so many things that we learned from just that chapter it amazed me. It grew my testimony of the BOM and how we can learn so much from just one chapter if we just look. I love the BOM. Then later that night we taught an investigator the Plan of Salvation and after teaching it I could feel the joy and the investigator was so happy and joyful from the lesson. It made me realize that we can have so much joy in the knowledge of the POS. It also made me realize that the message of the gospel is one with much joy and many blessings as we live accordingly. The Plan of Salvation is one of much joy and rejoicing. It was a good Thursday.

On Friday it was pretty normal day. My favorite part was Weekly planning because we have so much to look foreward to in this branch. Many baptisms and More potential baptisms. So many good people here in Kigali. Then on Saturday we had a great day planned, but instead we went to a Funeral. It was a 1st Presidents son that passed away from another branch. He was only 6 months old. He passed away from dehydration is what we think. It was sad. A weird thing they do at funerals is film the entire thing. That seemed weird to me to have a guy with a camera in everyones face. Anyways that took most of the day and we only got one other visit in. Sunday was a good day. The Branch President called us and told us he was sick, so I was picked to give a talk in his place. It went well. I just used a modified version of my farewell talk, so it was good. The rest of church went well and we had 56 people at Sacrament Meeting! That is the highest all year! After church it rained like crazy. I've never seen rain like that before. When we ran from the truck to our apartment we got soaked and we were only in the rain for 5 seconds. It was amazing. The thunder was also pretty cool. The rest of the day was good. 

On Monday (today) we washed clothes and then we went to the Genocide memorial. It was really cool to learn about the Genocide and what went on. It was free except for the donation at the end. It is amazing how people could turn on each other like that. Very sad how people died. It was just a horrible event. It is weird to think that where I travel and walk everyday is where some of this stuff happened. And that's my week. It was pretty good.

I am loving it here. I am getting used to the people and especially the kids staring at us, but we just smile and wave. The people here are awesome. I also have seen the hotel that is in Hotel Rwanda. The weather here is usually pretty nice. It can get kind of hot sometime during the day, but usually it is pretty nice. It is not as humid here as in Uganda, but that could partly be because I am getting used to it. It rains quite a bit, but not for very long. We are having a lot of success, I think. I love you guys and thanks for the emails.

Read JSH and anything you can about Joseph Smith and the beginnings of the latter day church. It is awesome.

Love Elder Beck

First Email from Rwanda!! (October 5th, 2015)

Hello! I am in Rwanda! It is awesome here. It feels like I haven't written home in forever! It sounds like General Conference was awesome. I haven't seen any of it and won't see any for about 3 weeks. They have to send it to us on DVD for us to watch it. I did hear the 3 new Apostles that were called. I am excited to hear from them. Anyways... My last few days at the MTC flew by and I learned so much at the MTC it is crazy! The food here is in portions not all you can eat, but there were four meals a day so plenty of food. Our last day at the MTC (Monday) we had infield orientation and then packed our bags up. I also got a haircut from one of the other Elders. It wasn't very good, but it still works. haha. Then the next day we woke up at 4;30 and got our bags ready and weighed. I went back and forth like 20 times to the scale, but I got it all good. Then we took of to the Airport. Brother Machi drove us and gave us a ton of riddles to figure out. He know so many and I learned a lot of new riddles that I will have to show you in like 2 years. Then we got to the airport, said goodbye to the Elders going to Durbin, and got the rest of us checked in. I am going to miss some of the Elders going to Durbin. They are great people. 

There were two different flights to Uganda. One went to Kenya then Uganda. The other went straight to Uganda. Luckily I got the one straight to Uganda. Half of the missionaries went on the other flight. They had a lot of trouble in Kenya and actually lost some luggage. They also had to delay the flight because of the missionaries. haha. Our flight was good. Elder Casperson taught the first lesson and gave a book of mormon to the lady sitting next to us, so that was awesome to see. The flight was only 4 hours so really short now that I have flown to Johanessberg. We got there at 7 at night and went to the apartments where the AP's and some other missionaries stayed. We all just slept on the floor that night. It was really humid there in Kampala. Was sticky from the Humidity right when I stepped off the plane. The next morning we went to President and Sister Chatfields house and had breakfast. Very delicious.... Then we had some training from different senior couples and then we had lunch. President Chatfield is an awesome man. He is a cowboy, very motivational, and also hilarious. Then we got our area assignments! I was one of the last to get mine and when they said Rwanda I was pumped. Also the driving in Uganda is insane. SO many boda bodas flying around it is scary.

After we got our assignments we went back to the apartments and met a lot of new missionaries coming for transfers and stuff. There are a lot of cool missionaries in this mission. Then after we greeted everyone. I went out with Elder Mugisha and went contacting for the first time. It was a cool experience. The kids would follow me and Elder Oliverson and say Mzugu over and over. Mzugu means white person. They are hilarious. The contacting went well. It was very interesting. We stayed out until it was dark. Then we went back. That night I slept in an actual bed, which was good. I could only take One Big bag and a carry on. so I had to leave some of my stuff in the mission home. Then I met Elder Myers and we went of to the airport. Elder Myers was the only one to go to the Provo MTC. He is an awesome kid. He plays rugby and ultimate Frisbee.

We arrived at Rwanda and met some of the other missionaries. I met Elder Empey. He is from Idaho Falls, a Zone Leader, has only a couple transfers left, and is an awesome guy. Our apartment is nice. It has a small gym, maids, and a washing machine so it is really not to bad. Everything after this though will all be down hill, but I will enjoy it while I can. haha. We stay with two other Elders. Elder Anderson and Elder Ngwanya. We also have a car, but only because our area is a 20 minute drive away from our apartment and Elder Empey is a Zone Leader. We park the car at the church and usually walk from there. On Thursday we taught a few lesson and went street contacting. I met a really awesome family. There names are Dieue Donne and Karen. They have a little baby too. The people here are really friendly. There are 3 Branches here in Kigali. Mine and Elder Empey's branch is the Kigali 2nd branch. It is probably the weakest of the three, but we have a few baptisms coming up in October. On Friday we had to run some errands before lunch, but after lunch we got to work. We taught some lessons and went street contacting again. It is hard to understand the English here and they also speak another language here so it is sometimes hard to communicate, but I am starting to pick up on how they talk.

On Saturday we had a normal day, but there was a branch activity and they were playing soccer. It was really serious game. There was a referee and everything. It was a blast and I actually scored the only goal of the game! It was awesome. The people in the branches talk about me know. It was awesome. Then on Sunday we had church at 10. It was different. There is someone that translates everything. I bore my testimony during sacrament. Sunday School I honestly couldn't understand anything even with the translator. Priesthood went over 25 minutes because the Branch President likes to talk. Then we went out and taught a guy that was in the country side. Here in Rwanda the people always offer a drink of some kind. This guy offered me milk and not knowing any better I accepted. It was the most disgusting thing I have every tasted. I am blessed not to have thrown up! haha. The worst part is he refilled my glass... Man it was gross, but I learned my lesson haha. On P-day we did laundry, played pool, got groceries, took a nap, and emailed. 

Overall it has been really awesome so far. It hasn't been easy, but it has been good. It is the rainy season here. It has rained everyday since I have been here, but it only rains for short periods of time. It rains then it is sunny. Then it rains then it is sunny. It is weird having to cook and buy stuff everyday, but it is good to learn how to. It hasn't been easy, but it has been great here in Rwanda. That is all I can think of right now. Love you. Thanks for the letters.

Elder Beck 

ps...no pictures as his internet connection was too slow!

September 24th.....hey Mom and Dad!

Elder Beck in front of Johannesberg MTC

Hey Mom and Dad! You guys are the best. It sounds like life back in Pocatello is still awesome and I can't believe that there were two people that finished the American Ninja Warrior Course. I wished I could see that. It is awesome here at the MTC. There are 28 missionaries and 19 going to Uganda and 9 going to Durban. They are all really awesome. I am trying to learn something from each and every one of them. My companion is Elder Grant. He is an awesome person. He played basketball in High School. I believe at Wood Cross. We get along really well. We've grown a lot in our teaching skills. Our fist lesson went really bad. We didn't teach the person we taught a lesson. The next time we taught we did a lot better. We had the spirit with us and we taught to the needs of the investigator. It was really powerful and made me realize how important the Spirit is. There is a ping pong table, fooseball table, volleyball court, basketball court, and soccer field. We played soccer one day and the two African missionaries are really good, but everyone else isn't too good. I did score a goal though.... I've played basketball and football, but I still like playing ping pong the best. Brother Machi is the MTC Manager. He is really good at Ping Pong. I lost to him in a best of three match. There are a couple other Elders who are pretty good too. Elder Rokotomalala ( he is from madagascar) is really good at Fooseball. He is so quick with his hands. It is insane! My roomates are Elder Pearson (from blackfoot), Elder Foster (from Utah), Elder Lubamba (from South Africa), Elder Lasuer ( from Arizona), and Elder Grant (from Utah). They are hilarious and we laugh so much it is a blast. One of the highlights was going to the Johanessburg Temple. It was really cool. I did Initiatory and Sealings ( they didn't have enough room for everyone to do an Endowment). It was beautiful and the garden was really cool. I learned that my people eat cats and dogs in Uganda, so that will be cool. Everyone gets along, I think. We are pretty close here at the MTC. A typical day is wake up get ready, eat breakfast, personal study for an hour, Fundamental Study Guide with the Teacher, then we practice teaching in different scenearios. Then we teach an investigator. Then we have lunch.The food is like american food, but slightly different. For example the Spaghetti is good, but it is just a little sweeter than back home. We eat burritos, sloppy joes, and other normal foods. They are just a little different. Then after lunch we go back to class for an hour. We then practice teaching the other missionaries. Then we have sports time and have dinner afterwards. Then we teach another investigator.hat Then we read the BOM as a district or something else like that. Then we have snack time, comp planning, and go to bed. My P-day is on thursday in the MTC, but it will most likely be Monday in the field. I am learning so much, I can't believe it. There is so much more than just learning the lessons and I still have a lot to learn about those. The teachers are so awesome. The spirit is so strong here even though sometimes I just want to sleep. I am doing well though and am a little scared about actually going to Uganda, but I am excited to help others and invite them to Christ. I want to see the joy they can get from the gospel and from service. The African people are awesome. Everyone I have met is always smiling and they are hilarious. The church is true. I love you guys and definitely miss you. 2 Nephi 31 and 3 Nephi 27 are great chapters to read. I've learned so much hoe ere and I can't wait to keep learning. I hope I answered your questions. Keep writing me and I love you.

Love Elder Beck

P.S. The beds are kinda comfy, but I definitely like my bed back home better.

Amazing temple experience!

September 17th......the next day! he gets to write a quick email again.

Hey! I get to email again today. Some things I left out yesterday... In the Salt Lake Airport I saw Elder Cade Sutton on his way to Tacoma. It was cool seeing someone I knew going out. I also lost the neck pillow, so i bought another one at the airport hahaha. We also went to Buffalo Wild Wings in Atlanta Airport. It was our last american meal for awhile. It was a good time. Also it's funny how a group of elders wearing white shirt and tie can draw so much attention. Lots of people asked what we were doing and what group we are. It was fun talking to people from all over. There are so many nice people in this world, even if they are not a part of the same religion as us.

Well last night I didn't get much sleep. I couldn't really fall asleep till 1:30 or so. I got up, studied for awhile and then explored the MTC. There is a Basketball court, soccer field, volleyball sandcourt. Elder Grant also is a fan of Utah State so that's cool. There is a ping pong table and small gym. It is pretty cool here. Doesn't feel much different than America. So far so good. Love you.Thanks for the package Teigan and thanks everyone for the letters.

Sincerly Elder Beck

Living quarters at SA MTC...bunk beds!

Studying all day long at SA MTC

I made it! (to South Africa MTC on September 16th - he left on the 15th)

September 16, 2015

Hey Mom and Dad. Just wanted to say that everything is great. I just got to the MTC a couple hours ago. The traveling wasn't too bad. The flight to Salt Lake was good. Then when we got to Salt Lake we were in line to get on the plane to go to Georgia my ticket didn't work and I found out that I was actually on the next flight out of Salt Lake to Georgia, but everyone else was on this flight. Luckily another passenger didn't show up so I was able to get on that flight instead of the next one and stay with the group. We had about 10 or so elders going to Uganda at Salt lake and about 10 more showed up to go to South Africa. So we have about 20-22 elders going to Uganda and 2 going to Durbin, South Africa. I haven't used the jet lag pills and so far I feel good ( I kinda forgot about them until I read the email you sent me).I slept a lot on the long flight to South Africa. Johannesburg doesn't feel much different than a big city in the US except the people and the driving on the left side of the road. We met President Collins and his wife. They seem like really awesome people. There are only like 26 missionaries in the MTC and all of them except 2 are from the US. They said that is really rare. The MTC is really nice. I haven't been able to explore it all the way yet, but I'll tell you about when I do. There are 6 Elders in our room. That's about all I can think of so far. I love you and thanks for the emails.

 Love Elder Beck

Elder Beck and Grant arrived at South Africa MTC

hello jello

I am here. Here I am!