From Logan

I know many of you are on the email list - sorry this is a repeat, but some emails are rejecting....so figure.

If you want to see a picture of Logan so HERE and scroll down towards the bottom of the page. You can also read the accompanying blog post on that site - it gives more details about the funeral Logan talks about.

Bonjour !

Comment ça va ?
How is every one doing ? I hope well still. Things are great here ! I

woke up this p day with the intention to play some basketball but we got a call from the Elder Gates saying we couldn't play because all the rain flooded the courts… and their house !! So we went over and bucketed water out of their house ! It was fun, the Gates took some awesome pictures I think so they will be on their blog I think.

We started pumping water out of their yard and went over to help the neighbors out. It was good ! Very wet though. In some questionable water so we’ll see.

We had a good week this last week. Wow has it already been 12 days in the Congo ? That’s crazy ! time flies ! crazy!

Anyway, this week was good. We set five new baptismal dates, and found many more new amis . The big problem is church attendance , it is the rainy season, and people don’t go out in the rain really. Not half of our investigators came. Even some of the ones that really should have been there. Another problem is the distance. The sectors Elder Garner and I work in are a long ways away from the building, which three branches assist at different times . It is so expensive to get there, most have to save all week to get to church. I really took the distance to the church for granted back home. It is amazing what people will go through just to get to church. But there is a new building that is being renovated to be a church. It should be done by the end of October (hopefully) and it is for our branch only, it is right in the middle of our sectors, it will be much much easier forour investigators to come. So that is good !!!

Did a lot of walking and teaching this week. I am red skin, no longer white. It’s becoming tan slowely but surely !!! then people won’t give me so much nonsense about being the whitest white person ever seen !! maybe before, but not for long !!

I’m learning the language more and more. My trainer is a really good missionary ! loves the work and works hard. He speaks such good french almost everybody I speak to compliments him on it . And every ward member says i’m lucky to be his companion. So… I’m very thankful. I will learn a ton from him ! He has me taking the leads in discussions. That has really helped everything, teaching, language, comfortableness, everything. We’re striving to be preach my gospel missionaries !!

So remember the flooding bathroom ? It happened again, except the pipe broke when we weren’t home and flooded our room too… so we got home planning to make dinner and go to bed, but instead spent the whole time cleaning mopping with rags, because there are no mops , and talking to the buyer and telling him he needs to get someone to fix it! So he had a plumber come in the next day and fix it. It is good now. We had sister Dekous' funeral Thursday. Very very interesting traditions on her side of the family… screaming yelling and crying ! Sister Gates turned to me and said "Welcome to Africa" !! Even so, talking to
the other elders that was the most different one they had ever seen too. And they were terrible to President Dekous. I won’t go into it now.

Oh for those at the MTC teaching who read this, Elder Garner and Elder Hancock say hello to Frere Luke and Sœur Red ? who i think is Souer Welch now ! hello !

Oh i had my first dinner at a members house yesterday ! we were

teaching a man at their house, he lives with the members, and they invited us to dinner afterwards. I ate chicken and rice and this manioc leaf herbs. Did you know chickens have hair ? they do, it’s true. I ate it , bones and all !! It actuallly wasn’t half bad…
I reallly liked the rice and herbs too . Sooo I can cross that off my to-do list.

So that’s my life ! the work is long and hard, and there is plenty to
do ! I’m loving it ! love you all and miss you ! I have to go though,

we are having a birthday party for Sister Gates at the beach ! look on their blog, there will be pictures I’m sure !

Avec tout l’amour dans mon cœur
Elder McGrath

(NO ONE CAN PRONOUNCE MY NAME BY THE WAY !!! NO ONE !!! some people say mmmkrat ? mmmkrass ? m. c. krat ? cracks me up)