Dear Family,
What a week!! And it seemed to go by so fast!! I don't know about you guys... But it seemed faster than usual. I dunno know why... Like always, it was good to hear from you again! I can't believe that you guys took down that wall! It won’t even be the same house now when I come back! That is okay though. I know that it was something that you have been wanting to do, so I am happy that you guys are actually doing it! Is dad going to do it? By the look of the pictures it looks like he ripped it all down! And I thought that we looked one time to see if there were hard wood floors underneath the carpet and there wasn't?? Maybe I'm wrong. Very cool project for sure. I am excited to see the progress!
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| Sister Southam, Elder Hanna, Elder Browning, Elder Winkleman, Brother Southam |
Ben sure looks like he is getting big! Him and his curly locks of hair. He will be a good lookin' kid just like his uncle (me).
Like I said above, the week went by fast! I don't know the secret to it, because I don't seem to do anything differently when the weeks go by fast than the ones that go slow... All about mind set I guess. Before I forget, do you guys know what cassava is?? I have never heard of it until I got here but I guess that they have it in America too... But it is a flour of cassava. They put it in water here and mix it with sugar or condensed milk (because there is no such thing as real milk here) but it is so good! I am curious to know if it is back home... Let me know would ya? And if you do find it, try and eat it like I told you and tell me if you like it! It tastes kinda like mini spooners. About all the dirt in the air, I haven't really noticed it, or had any problems with my eyes... I guess that I walk in it all the time I don't really notice haha. With the couple they are always in their car and probably see more of it than we do. It has been pretty toasty this week as well, but bearable.
You asked as well about Lukas, and I can only say that yes he is married legally, and he is going to be baptized the 2nd of March!!! Whooo!!!!! Haha he was all like, "what do I have to do to get baptized?" Because people here think that you have to know all of the Bible or have a HUGE knowledge of the gospel... Because I guess that is what other churches do. But we just looked at each other, my companion and I, looked back at him and said, you can be baptized the first of March! And he was so excited!! He is such a stud. When we went over there Saturday night, he was telling us how excited he was to go to church and talk about the gospel again! He even pointed out that he cleaned his book bag so that it would be clean for church the next day. We are going to start to teach his wife as well because he wants his wife to be baptized. She does not speak french though, so we will have to go with a member. But Lukas is progressing great!! Oratio is progressing really good as well. He is usually the first one to church with his little boy Abraham. I taught him how to say "whats up?" and "I'm chill!" Haha. With our rich ami "Bon Adventure", he is progressing well! The last time we were at his house we saw a huge wine cellar... So that will be a challenge to teach that to him. I will tell him that he could make it into a game room or something... I dunno. All of our amis and recent converts are doing well! The butt crack of Lome is turning out to actually be a really promising area!
This week too I made some of those instant chili mac with cheese packs and it was delicious! Good call on those! As for the military food... I am not too sure what to do with them. Do you cook them or just eat ‘em out of the bag or what? Haha I opened one and ate it but I almost passed out! I hope they weren't hard to find or expensive... Oreos have been long gone for awhile.. As well as the M&M's. I know I already said thank you for the box, but I thought that I would tell you again!
This week I will be hitting my 10 month mark on the mission... A Pretty big one too. I honestly cannot believe how fast time is going by for me out here in the mission field. It seems like just yesterday that I was sputtering out a few sentences of what I thought then to be french, to now when people always ask me if I am french, and are shocked by the fact that I have only been speaking it for 13 months. I know that God as really helped me out, and that the gift of tongues has been bestowed upon me, and I am so grateful for that! I know as well that the french language is going to help me when I am older. I am so thankful for the opportunity that I have to spread this gospel of Jesus Christ to the people here in Africa. I say it every day, and it never gets old, "je sais que cet évangile peut bénir, vous et votre famille." I know that this gospel is true, and that our heavenly Father loves and knows each and every one of us by name. True happiness can only be received through the loving Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ.
Love your son,
Elder Layton!
Pictures: Computer not cooperating :( Will keep trying.
Mom: Hello Elder! Great to hear from
you and that all is going well! flour of cassava I googled it. Do you cook
it into a bread?
Elder: No... Well not here anyways haha.
They just put water in it. They call it Gari.
Mom: That's pretty cool. I looked
online and at one place it was $10 a pound which is dang expensive. Good thing
its cheap there! I am going to keep looking though and try it! Good to know! Is
it at all like tapioca? Like pudding? Not sure if you've ever had that or not!
HAPPY VALENTINES DAY on Thursday! Last year on Valentines you were traveling to
Africa! Ahhhhhhhhh
Elder: Never had tapioca... Haha. But it
doesn't really mix with the water. I dunno. But how has the week been. Good?
And I know! Crazy!
Mom: Our week last week was great. We
were busy and I like that. Today the sun is shinning and I love that too as it
makes me want to clean. I'm excited to be busy this week with our remodel
job going on. It will be so nice and you will love it! So what did you do today
for fun? Anything?
Elder: We ate at Kinnyas house haha. Not
SUPER fun. But fun. How long are you planing the remodel to take?
Mom: Ya that's a great question!
Hopefully only 3 weeks :)
Glad you had fun for lunch!
Now for a lesson on Cassava:
Cassava a woody shrub and is extensively cultivated as an
annual crop in tropical and subtropical regions
for its edible starchy, tuberous root,
a major source of carbohydrates. Cassava, when dried to a
starchy, powdery (or pearly) extract is called tapioca,
while its fermented, flaky version is named gari.
Cassava is the third-largest source of food carbohydrates in the tropics. Cassava is a major staple food in the
developing world, providing a basic diet for around 502 million people. It is
one of the most drought-tolerant crops, capable of growing on marginal
soils. Nigeria is
the world's largest producer of cassava.
Gari is a creamy-white, granular flour with a
slightly sour, fermented flavor from fresh cassava
tubers. Gari soakings is a delicacy that cost less than US $1 in
Nigeria, Ghana and other parts of Africa, where cassava is cultivated. One can
simply soak gari in cold water, add a bit of sugar and roasted
groundnut (peanut) to taste, and add whatever quantity of evaporated milk one
desires. Gari soakings prepared with coconut water may taste better.
Fufu is made from the starchy cassava-root flour. Tapioca, essentially
a flavorless, starchy ingredient produced from treated and dried cassava root, is used in cooking. It is commonly
used to make milky pudding similar to rice pudding.
tap·i·o·ca
/ˌtapēˈōkə/
Noun
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