Still Kicking in Cambodia

Dear Family,
   Despite all my thoughts to the contrary I have actually survived another week in Cambodia, I fear I have felt many a Eustace like thought in my first week here, but I have survived and I think I have come out of the week with a better perspective and more excitement for the work than ever before.  I believe I have come to this conclusion without having to be transformed into a dragon and back again, but you'll have to take that up with my companion to know for sure (for any of you at a complete loss, please watch or read Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S Lewis).
   I was able to find a long sleeve sweater-ish type thing last week and we are heading out this afternoon to find a long sleeve shirt, after the initial burn I got my skin is going a nice brown color, but at least the Kmer still think I have pretty skin.  I fear I have already lost ten pounds here between the biking over hill and dale (as the great Sam Bennion once said I shall have calf muscles like ents) and being afraid of the chicken neck, but thankfully after the MTC I had some weight to spare and I have now found the joys of PB&J sandwiches without the jelly I also found that I quite enjoy squid over fried noodles, in fact it tastes more like chicken then the chicken does here.
   These last two weeks I have found myself missing home more than ever before.  I haven't cried, I can't afford to ruin what complexion I have left :-) but it has taken me some real thought to decide why I am here and what I should be doing.  Yes I did learn my purpose in the MTC, to invite others to come unto Christ.  But this last week I have thought alot about what that really means.  As we left a family's flat, who were so poor that the baby only had underwear and not even a real diaper, the mother kept telling us how poor they were and we knew it because we saw it.  Apparently the last missionaries who had visited them were from another church and left the family money.  When we didn't leave any money they lost interest in our message.  As we left that appointment I was so frustrated, I had tried my best to communicate in the language and bare testimony of our message, I felt the spirit, yet she felt nothing.  I promised her blessings and peace.  But as I rode away I realized I didn't do enough.  I focused on the here and now offering no specifics and little hope.  I am here to share the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ, which means without this message this family cannot be together for eternity.  Oh I know they will have another opportunity, but when I enter into someone's home I come with an eternal message of joy, but also very real, specific blessings here.  If these people receive the Spirit they will know how to improve the life of their family, they will have the Spirit to know what training to get and where to go for a job, they have the maker of the Universe promising them He will open the windows of heaven.  Those are the blessings and promises I must extend if I am to do this work.  I'm thankful for that moment of insight (some was thinking of what Pres. Moon has told us about the Spirit) and hope to apply as I visit more people.  Their lives are so much harder than I can imagine, so I owe them patience and love, with the Lord I can do that.
  The Lord has sent so many blessings this week, in so many different forms, I feel your love and support and am so thankful for it.  As for the blessings, whether it was finding a man who could speak English as well as Kmer and wanted to know how Jesus Christ could help him (we gave his number  to the APs) or taking a member home and having a young man stop us on Saigon Bridge and asked for our number telling us he has been searching for the missionaries for about a year or receiving the inspiration to buy a poncho two minutes before the most magnificient rain storm of my entire life, I was drenched, dripping and almost drowned, but my shirt was dry.  The longer I am away from home learning things about budgeting, about relationships, about helping people, about listening to the Spirit, the more I feel God's love for me.  I am so thankful for the time I have to share eternity with other people.   The Lord loves us, he knows us and he blesses us daily, I have felt his Spirit as I stumblingly bare testimony of Christ.  This is His Gospel and as we pray and are obedient, we can be changed to be like him thru the Atonement.
   I wish my parents a happy 30th anniversary and love you all,
  Chi Dao