On Nage Comme Des Sirènes - Port-Bouët, Côte d'Ivoire

Bonjour tout le monde!

It's been another great week here in Côte d'Ivoire. We've been able to make some great progress with a lot of the families that we've been working with. We've also found some great new friends that we're really excited about.

A big issue that faces us here in Côte d'Ivoire is marriage. Here, there is a cultural form of marriage that is separate from legal marriage. As such, many people opt to do the cultural marriage without going through the trouble of a legal marriage. It's a complication that I've dealt with many times since I got here. Right now we are working with a lot of families who have the same issue. They all have such great testimonies so we are hoping and praying that these weddings work out. This is admittedly not a part of missionary work that I had to deal with in the States. 

This week has been heavy with rainstorms. The roads have been more flooded than I've ever seen them. Every day we've had to jump from rock to rock or wade through the water to get to our appointments. Many of our amis have been astonished that we even took the effort to travel to their house through all of the rain and flooding. At the end of the day, it makes the work much more interesting.

I've started to really feel like I'm at home in these two wards. I've started to grow really close to the members and amis here. I hope with all of my heart that I will get to stay here a bit longer than I got to stay in my last couple of areas. I really want to be able to make my mark here. I love these people so so much.

That's all for this week. See y'all next time!

Elder Farr

Un An!!!!! - Port-Bouët, Côte d'Ivoire

One year in, and the mission only continues to get better. I love it here and I am so grateful for every experience that I've had so far.

A few highlights from this week include:

Tuesday we had interviews with President Bendixsen at the mission office. The mission office is about a half hour away so it should have been simple. Unfortunately for us, all of the taxis went on strike so we had to find another way to get there. After 3 hours of improvised travel plans, we arrived and had our interviews.

Thursday was the one year anniversary of the start of my mission. We had been invited to a wedding but when we arrived at the supposed venue, there was no wedding to be found. That same day, I fell on the road and scratched up my hands pretty badly. I'm all good now. Anyway, that evening we went with a couple of the other Elders to the Burger King at the airport to celebrate my year mark.

Friday we received that unfortunate news that one of our amis has passed away. Last time that we saw her, just a couple of weeks ago, she told us that she was feeling a bit sick. On Friday, while visiting her daughter, we were told that she had passed away. In the words of the daughter, "nous sommes dévastés," or, "we are devastated." In situations like these, I find myself increasingly grateful for the Plan of Salvation which tells is that, through Jesus Christ, we will one day be reunited with our loved ones. Life does not end with death.

Saturday we had exchanges with our zone leaders. I got to work with Elder Koffi. He's Ivorian and he's a fantastic missionary. I had a great time teaching with him. At the end of the day, while we were on our way to the zone leaders' apartment, Elder Koffi noticed his ami with a glass of beer in hand. He walked up to her, asked her to pour it out and, after she said that she would just do it after we left, he took the glass and poured it out. Afterward, he took the bottle from behind her and poured out what remained. Luckily she didn't seem mad about it at all. We shared a laugh about it afterward.

This week has been great and, in all, the first year of my mission has been fantastic. I am so grateful for all of the change that I've experienced over the last year. In that year, I've become a missionary, moved away from home, moved to Africa, learned French, and made more life-long connections than I ever could have expected. I love this place and I love this work.

Elder Farr

Nous Rencontrons Un Culte - Port-Bouët, Côte d'Ivoire

Hello once again everyone! This week has once again been a great one. We've been able to get quite a bit done. I'm so grateful to be working with a companion who loves to work as much as Elder Leight does. I love getting to go out every day and share the Gospel with everybody around us.

This week we met with a lot of less-active and non-active members of our ward. A new focus for us has been working with said members, who left the church when covid began, and helping them come back to the church. It's been a great joy to meet all of these great people over these last couple of weeks.

We've also been teaching quite a few English classes which has been very fun for us. Interest in learning English here is very high so we've had a lot of fun teaching such large classes.

To finish off this weeks letter, we encountered a cult meeting as we were walking to and from appointments on Sunday. They tried to invite us in but, after seeing that goat sacrifice last week, we weren't to interested.

Anyway, I'm having a great time out here in Côte d'Ivoire.

Ayez une bonne semaine!

Elder Farr