The 'Phoon ‏ 9/19/10

Dear family -

Well, it has been a fake-eventful past couple days.

On Saturday everyone started telling us that a typhoon was going to hit us the next day. I mostly ignored it because people have said that alot and in my experience it has yet to happen. Sister Brownell, who has only been on island 3 months, was pretty nervous. We watched big crazy thunderheads rolling in and I wondered if it was actually coming this time. The night before the air felt tense. We ran into President Bishop and he said that the storm was bigger than the island of Taiwan. Church had been canceled all over the island for the next day.

I, being the daughter of Mr. Safety, remembered noticing that our apartment was short two 72 hour kits. So we were advised to go and buy some things, which we did right before we went in for the night. That night we got the call - our ward was also canceled. The only ward maybe still having sacrament meeting on the whole island was in Taiping, where we happen to live. It was only still going to happen because an investigator needed to be confirmed and the district leader especially* asked the bishop.

We shut the windows, and went to bed. It certainly stormed that night - I got up a couple times to make sure that everything was secure and nothing was flooding or leaking. I couldn't sleep the rain and wind were so loud, but with some earplugs and missionary fatigue, fell asleep until 6.

When we woke up, the rain had stopped. It was still windy but it didn't look too unreasonable. The guanliyuan tried to talk us out of leaving the apartment because of the wind, but it wasn't too bad. It was only bad sometimes in the intersections, when the cross breese would about push us over. There were very few people out and even less cars on the road. There were some trees blown over and it was still windy but the lack of traffic and people made everything feel a bit quiet, somewhere between peaceful and eerie. In one of the intersections a gust of wind hit us just right and just about pushed me into my companion. We got uncomfortably close and we both shrieked and laughed and about scared two men to death who thought we were dieing. One of them shouted "Danger! Danger!" to us in English which is still Sister Brownell's and my onrunning joke.

We went with the Taiping Sisters to church, where all in attendance were three other missionary companionships, the bishop and his wife, and the girl being confirmed and her aunt. At the last second a vanfull of missionaries including the assistants (the only missionaries that drive in our mission) came and joined us.

Our church is at two PM, so when by 11:30 it still hadn't rained and the wind had dropped into a light breeze, I thought that it was ridiculous church was still canceled. It was still canceled out of two reasons - either laziness or the lack of initiative, because the weather was certainly not an issue. It's not like anyone was busy and had planned other activities - every member in my ward on Sunday from 2-5 should either already have plans to be in church or hunkered down for their safety in their homes. Since safety wasn't an issue, hunkering down=laziness. So I made a couple calls, got some balls rolling and we had a short sacrament meeting with my mission president presiding. We had one investigator in attendance, plus many other companionships and their investigators. You banfa.

Alright, time is up. I love you all and love your letters. Sorry no time for any personal responses to anyone this week, don't feel sorry for yourself if you don't get one.
Love love!
FML
Sister Johnson


* I honestly can't remember if it is especially or specially. I feel like Ricky Ricardo from I love lucy. Also, I just forgot Ricky Ricardos name and had to think of it for several minutes