Looking in the Eyes of Ghana

Dear Family and friends,

 I hope that everyone is doing great and I hope that this letter finds everyone well. This week was cool we had a good week elder whipple and I have been working hard this week we have been very busy with various things, but we also felt that we had a good week and that things went well we had some good lessons with people, right now we are teaching a sister named Lydia and another woman named Comfort, they are both progressing very well. 

We are happy and healthy, the work is going great.  I love the people more and more as I serve them. 

This past week my companion and I had to take some Elders to get some ID cards renewed, then we had to take them back to the tro station, now this station is….interesting, we have to park about a quarter mile away on this dirt path then take their luggage with us , when we arrive at the tro station the Tro mate’s (they are the people in the tro that is in charge of taking the toll fee and getting people in and out of the Tro) they all started running towards us probably about 10 of them yelling at me to go their various stations, trying to take the luggage from my hands, now I've done this several times so I'm used to it and feel pretty confident in what we need to do so I just kept pressing forward because the tro tro that we needed was at the very end of the station. so the tro mate’s think that I don’t know where Im going so I was trying to ignore them and at times getting frustrated as they tried to grab me and the the things I was holding to get me to come into their tro tro.  We got to the end and got the elders safely in the tro and waited for them to go so we could see that they began their journey safely, as we started our way back I felt a little frazzled a little annoyed and in that very moment as I was walking back with many people around me passing by, something told me to look into the eyes of all those people walking by, I was then overcome  with the love that god has for his children, in that small moment I felt like I was able to see them in a very small way the way god may see them, they were my bothers my sisters struggling to live, each with their own problems their own hardship their own pain. I will never forget that day at the Tro station, it has changed the way I see my brothers and sisters of Ghana I'm so very grateful for my experiences here on mission. I have learned so much. I know that god lives and loves you and he loves me, I know that Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has suffered and died more than we can comprehend because of his Eternal love he has for us. I love you as my Brothers and sisters and hope that all is well in your lives.

Love, Elder Lawson

This is one of my most favorite pictures Elder Lawson has sent, this is his Branch Presidents Daughter that he baptized, she turned 8 and the Branch Pres. asked Josh to do the Baptism .

Beans and Rice a staple..He asked me to never make him rice again.  

This is a beetle in some homemade bread, he said its pretty common, oh goodness I'm not sure I would survive there.. 

Making some kind of peanut paste or something like that..I love that he's wearing sandals. he said he would never wear sandals and there you have it, never say never..