It was sad and hard to leave Morioka. I was blessed to be there as long as I was. I made eternal friends both with members and non-members and will be forever grateful for the experiences I share with them. They taught me so much! As I depart I am confident that things will continue to move forward. A couple missionary (former mission president) will also be moving into the area! They are Japanese and will also be a great asset to the branch over there.
But for now I have been called another way and am happy to be here in Nagaoka!!!! :) I already love this place. My new comp is Elder Saunders. Funny thing is- his first name is Blake! Ha. He`s from Meridian, Idaho. He comes from a family of 6 and has got a brother coming to the end of his mission in New Mexico. He likes swimming and lacrose. He`s a good kid and I`m excited to work with him :) Did I tell you his little bro is our District Leader too? Ya, it`s Elder Juchau!! Haha. It may be a little too much fun bein back with him again ;)
The branch here is awesome! I heard nothing but good things about them coming in and my feelings were confirmed as I met with each of them yesterday at church. They are wonderful!! There`s only about 30 of them coming right now, but they are strong and have a desire to do missionary work. We got with the branch mission leader, Bro. Fujiki, our second day here. He`s a young R.M. He was kind as he took us around Nagaoka, and even dropped by the batting cages for a couple swings haha. Apparantly it`s his way of `relaxing` and he knew me way too well :) I`m excited to become their friends and await the miracles ahead.
Speaking of miracles, we`ve already seen some! I knew Nagaoka was the place for me to be the moment I got on the bus heading from Sendai to Niigata. I was able to have a fun conversation with the man sitting next to me. He was on a business trip. He soon gained interest in what we were doing in Japan and was quite impressed! He even busted out his lap top and looked me up on facebook! Haha. I enjoyed seeing pics of his cute family as well. As we talked about religion I was excited to introduce the Book of Mormon! He wanted to pay me for the book and had a hard time `recieving` it but I wasn`t gonna take anything haha. He`s from the southern part of Japan so I don`t know what`s gonna happen next but as least he`s got his hands on what we hold most dear. It was a blessing to talk with him.
As we got on the train from Niigata to Nagaoka we were able to make another friend! This time a young college student. We talked for most of the hour train ride back. I was most surprised however, when he asked us if we wanted to grab some dinner with him! Haha he said he had a car, which would help with some of our luggage, and afterwards he would drop us off at our place. I couldn`t believe it! Sushi was good, and I couldn`t have been more thankful for the help he gave us in finding our apartment.
I knew right from the start that I am supposed to be here in Nagaoka. I have already seen the tender mercies of the Lord. We still have a long ways to go, and many challenges ahead as we try and figure things out, but I am confident that Heavenly Father will help. We can`t do this alone. I am grateful for the opportunity I have to do this. I am the most blessed missionary in the world!!!! This will probably be my last area, and I`m gonna do all I can to make it the best! :) Love you all. Take Care.
Elder Ovard
We made it!!
View from our apartment. We`re on the top of 6 stories!
Last night in Morioka. Dinner with the Kawamura`s!
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