Cranberry Juice and Happy Birthday Mom.

Well guys, another week has come and gone. This one has been pretty quick as has the entire transfer. This is the last week of the transfer. Our Branch conference was this week. That was very, very stressful. It took a lot of organizing on our part. The thing about branches is that I can't sit comfortably at church anymore. We go from class to class, talking to investigators, and trying to make church a good experience.  I don't have it as bad as Elder Kolo though. He's second counselor in the branch presidency. He basically organized the entire branch conference himself. I ended up playing a lot of piano. I had to learn 4 new hymns. I barely have any time to practice as it is. You DID warn me this would happen though haha. When they see me playing something small they all assume I'm a pro. ay ay ay. When I think about suffering on the mission I remind myself that at least I get to e-mail every week. That certainly is a blessing. Speaking of mail I got the valentine package!... as did my roommates, haha. It was all gone before you knew it. My companion kept seeing me sneak into our room periodically during church (we live in the chapel) and he caught on pretty quickly haha. My health is doing heaps better than in Obuasi. I haven't genuinely felt sick since I've come here. (quick knock on wood for me). Church here is hot. Especially when electricity's out (ceiling fans won't work). I've fallen asleep in Elder's quorum every Sunday in my new area. My mission President, President Holmes, saw me nodding off during branch conference. He just smiled. My eyes were so big, man I was trying so hard. Well that's about all I have for you this week. Ah actually President gave us part of transfer news early. My MTC companion, Ma'ungatai is leaving. Man I'm really going to miss that guy. 

Alright well I hope you all have a great week! 

Love you all! 

-Elder Silva

Celebrating Mom's B-day with cranberry juice and pringles (I nearly died with pleasure when I got that cranberry juice).

He's reminding ME.

Church always goes well here. The branch is strong. We had 4 investigators at church last Sunday. One of them should be baptized next week. Hopefully her husband will follow soon. We have had many people give empty promises. That happens a lot here. I did meet a man while I was getting my haircut however who spent some time in Spain and speaks some Spanish. I told him I speak 'small small' and the following conversation was pretty hard. It was fun to meet someone in Ghana who speaks Spanish though. I ask him to speak English sometimes but he refuses. He promised to bring his whole family to church. He called me multiple times to remind me so I figured he was serious. We'll see what happens this week. I've really come to learn just how great the gospel really is. When the sun isn't scorching and the belly isn't empty, missionary work can be fun. Tell the ward members back home that Jane is progressing, but Tarzan was offended last week when we told him he couldn't wear his loin cloth to church. He'll come around eventually. I'll keep the joke in mind for when I'm struggling. 

Alright Fam I think that's it. Wow. I love you all and wish you all the best week. Until next week, 

Elder Silva 

 Traditionalist. Notice the markings on his legs. He also had bells on his feet and seashells in his hair. 

 Cute boy at the fried rice joint. 

 Common lunch. Fried yam and fish with shito and pepe. (pepper and hot stuff). 

Messing around with rain pictures.

Soccer Loss.

Well guys I gotta say that this is one of the best e-mails I've ever received and just in time too. Seriously I had a hard week.  We were able to find a handful of new investigators this week though. When I came to the area there had been a few baptisms that last Sunday. That means that I had very few people left to teach. We decided to go visit areas they had never taught before and all of our new people came from that place. Glad we decided to check it out. By the way, I have soccer news for Dad. Ghana is devastated... Finals against Ivory Coast... Penalty kicks... 11 kicks each and it came down to goalie vs. goalie... we missed... they didn't... what a loss. Ghana hasn't won a trophy for over 20 years. Somber faces everywhere man. Can't imagine how the goalie feels. The bright news is that I just got back from playing soccer and I scored a goal! I think I was more surprised than the goalie. haha. Lately I've eaten many Bankus (like fufu, but made from dry maze and with a fermented taste), and I've finally grown used to it. My mp3 player and church music is working fine. It's nice to have music. I couldn't live a life without music. Oh! did I ever tell you my latest joke? I saw some goats hanging out at a local Catholic church and I thought to myself "now what are a bunch of "aponchis" doing at church?" then it hit me... for Sunday maaaaaasss.... hahah! I had a good laugh at that one. My companionship is doing very well. I get along with Elder E very well and we're able to laugh through every day. It really helps the work. 

Alright I'll try to post a smattering of new pictures for your enjoyment. 

Thanks guys. 

-Elder Silva

 Yes someone from the church has a guitar ( I was overjoyed). 

Here's a lazy morning from Ghana. 

 Average breakfast. Jam and bread. Eggs and ketchup. sometimes groundnut and biscuits (crackers). This time some orange drink from drink mixes from home. Thanks!

 Tiny Gecko

Kittens for Brooke

 Well. The rain's back. 

 Another "creeping thing". This was a big'un. 

Another sunset picture. This time from the top of a tower. 

This guy is getting a good view of the game. 

Last week's pictures- 

 And God made the creeping things and sent them to the missionaries.

 Avoiding those mosquitoes...

A sunset in Ghana

"Cow Cow"

Well I'm sitting at the computer screen once again, getting ready to bring home some news from Ghana. For one thing "The Black Stars" (Ghana's soccer team) has made it to the semi-finals in the African cup. Cross your fingers. For another, the weather seems to have gotten hotter... or not... I'm actually not sure, but it's always hot here. The district leader business is going alright. The work is a bit slower in our area and we're always bringing back fewer numbers than the other companionship. Their area is directly outside the apartment (the chapel) so that's part of it. Most people we meet say that the chapel is too far. They don't realize that the walking distance is doable since we walk it twice every day. Also taxes aren't that expensive here. I'm finding it difficult to find new people to teach here. Overall the work is struggling, but we have some really good members. There are 3 guys in particular that I call the 3 amigos. They go to lessons to translate for us (yes we still have plenty of Twi. Actually more than last time) and they're really fun to be around. I've learned the area and can make my way around now. One thing that's bothering me though is that the water makes my body itch... a lot. But I'm thankful to have it since we didn't have any water when I first arrived (yep it was back to the fetching on my head gig). Has that much time really passed? One funny thing about mission is that in terms of 2 years time can seem slow, but when compared to life back home I'm not sure how we got to February so quickly. I just received a letter from Mom the other day. Brooke drew a picture of "Duke the Dude" in it. The apartment got a kick out of that one. er I mean, I did... It's not like I showed your picture to other people or anything hehe.. he. As for me I've been living off a diet of pineapple and noodles. This morning I had scrambled eggs, bread & jam and some groundnut. We buy our own groceries, but we eat each others food all the time. So kinda a mix I guess? One Tongan word I remembered this week is "cow cow" it means shower or bathhouse. We were watching "The other side of heaven" last night on the church t.v, and at the part where the Elder accidentally says he's the Lord's outhouse I recognized cow cow. Needless to say I felt pretty proud. Well That's my week in an incoherent ramble. Got all that? Good. See you all next week.

-Elder Silva

 My latest kill...

Truck accident. The man's engine cut off and he slid down the road and found a nice place to park in the building right across from us. Dodged that bullet.