...is fascinating to you. transfer 1: week 3

i decided my subject lines from here on out will be the strange uses of english i see around, on scooters, on clothes, on grafitti. this week's is from a scooter. the brand is JOG. a lot of this brand's scooters say "JOG is fascinating to you." i think it's hilarious.

this week's email i'm going to describe some of the firsts i have experienced this week. some are more exciting than others, but all made it to my journal.

first TIME BEING FOLLOWED. last wednesday after emailing, my companion and i went to a really cool street market. kaohsiung has a lot of them. they're narrow roads with vendors on either side. some are mostly food (some prepared and some to cook at home, fish and crab for example). this one had clothing vendors and jewelry vendors, tons of stuff. so, we went in one of the clothing shops and a man that looked homeless (scruffy hair adn the longest moustache i have seen here) yelled something we couldn't understand and but his hand on her bag. she kept walking into the store and the owners shoo-ed him away. he went across the alley and waited for us. from that point forward he followed us and stood across from whatever shop or stand we were looking at. he followed up the street, back down it the to a fruit stand across a big major road. the woman there also shoo-ed him away as he tried to touch the fruit she was selling. he followed us back to our bikes, we got on them quickly and rode off fast. i don't know how he managed to trail us so well. we did things to evade him to no avail. weird.

the next day, thursday, was my first ZONE CONFERENCE. it was amazing! i thought the spirit was strong in the mtc, it's much stronger in a chapel full of proselyting missionaries. i saw robbie noorda! it was so fun to see him. we talked and talked and talked. he told me about tc. i was so sad, but he said the family had been really strong. from what you sent, mom, they sound amazing. do you know how kelsey is? i've thought about her and have wondered what would be the right thing to say. i'll write her today or next week. i also say elder aaron peterson. have i told you about that? i met his brother, casey, at a wedding shortly after i received my call. we came up with a plan to get aaron to think that the possible love of casey's life was going to the same mission aaron is on. casey wrote aaron about me a lot and casey and i took a picture close together in which we totally look like a couple. i forgot to write casey in the mtc and was completely thrown off when someone in the hall of the chapel exclaimed, "jade!" aaron was like, "my brother told me all about you!" i had no idea what to do or say. it's pretty funny actually. i feel dodgy when i have eye contact with the elders. i'm so awkward around most of them (except robbie and the ones i serve with). aaron and i talked a bit. then, later, i was talking with robbie and he was like, "oh! i was serving with elder peterson when he got an email from his brother that said his girlfriend, jade ozawa, was coming on a mission to kaohsiung." i started laughing so hard! i think it's so funny and wonder how many elders think elder peterson could one day be my brother in law. ha!

after zone conference, we met with monica. i love her so much! she's amazing! she talked openly about the book of mormon and how it has affected her life. we EXTENDED A BAPTISMAL INVITATION, my first! she said yes. it was so exciting, but i kind of worried she said yes for our benefit, not because she really wants to be a member!then, tied to the same situation i experienced my first BIG DISAPPOINTMENT. on saturday she was supposed to come to conference. when she didn't show up i was worried that my fears were being confirmed. then we saw jia zheng, who is now good friends with monica. she told us about why monica didn't come. she had prepared to go to the chapel, even wore the only skirt she owns, but her mom said she couldn't go. she told her mom that she planned to get baptized and her mom got very angry. they had a big fight. sunday night she came to the chapel to discuss it with us. she was so sad. we were all sad. we sang, "be still my soul" and it was comforting. she told us that she really wants to be a member. after the fight she prayed and told Heavenly Father that she will continue to read and pray even if she can't get baptized. we are going to continue to teach her. i know that as she obeys the commandments and strengthens her relation with the lord a way will be provided and her mother's heart will be softened. when we taught her the word of wisdom on monday she told us she already started keeping it! she remembered that she heard jia zheng mentioning that we don't drink green tea. her mom served some and she almost drank it then remembered and put it down! she's so good!!

on thursday, after teaching monica i saw my first REAL TAIWANESE RAIN. we were teaching xie at her store and all of a sudden it was pouring! my companion and i both had books in our baskets on our bikes, so we ran out and got them out of the rain. we wrapped them in plastic bags from xie's store then rode home. it was fun and miserable at the same time. my companion said that what i saw was nothing compared to what was to come. when it rains here, everyone wears these big plastic PONCHOS. i bought my first on friday. they are huge and ugly. mine is purple and has a hood. everyone keeps them in their scooters just in case. the road looks pretty funny as you ride down it surrounded by bright material reminiscent of a garbage bag. i cannot wait to use mine for the first time.

friday night, i ALMOST KILLED A TAIWANESE WOMAN for the first time. we were knocking doors. some of the doors are more like big screens and you can see into the front room. at a house like that we started to walk up to the screen when a woman inside walked from one side of the room to the other to get something out of the fridge (a lot of homes have a fridge in the living room, including our apartment, weird.). she saw us out of the corner of her eye and jumped and screamed, "shasi wo!" (kill me!) we apologized and expected her to walk to the door and laugh it off. nope. she walked away, so we did too, laughing and shaking our heads in embarassment.

on saturday morning during exercise, a sentence i never expected came out of my mouth for the first time. "I CAN'T WAIT TO WATCH CONFERENCE!" who is this new creature? i'm happy to be different and better than i was at the time that i graduated from high school. i'm so grateful to have the gospel in my life. wasn't conference amazing?!? i cannot wait for the conference edition of the ensign. thomas s. monson is the man. and henry b. eyring is close behind. i love them all. i'm trying to put my finger on what was my favorite talk, but so many were great! i love how a lot was about family. and i loved bednar's about prayer. i really liked scott's but we were interupted by an investigator so i missed some of it. i really enjoyed the choir! when the byu choir sang i saw elder doxey from iceland in it! that was fun.

on sunday night we went to a park to teach an investigator, jeanne. i for the first time, saw a taiwanese EXERCISING HIS PELVIS. taiwanese exercising is very different than ours and very interesting. it involves a lot of swinging of arms and legs and some hitting yourself. i don't know how exactly to explain and describe it. but, the point is... we're walking through the park. i glance to the right and there in middle of a grassy spot it a man doing pelvic thrusts. never in the u.s. have i seen anything like it. the thrusts changed to a circular movement and i struggled to maintain my composure. it was almost too much for me. when i get home i'll do a demonstration or we, as a family, can do taiwanese exercise together.

my last first is all about food. i ate some of the most interesting food of my life. on monday we went to lunch with monica and jia zheng at a really good noodle place. jia zheng ordered for us. she included COW STOMACH and PIG FOOT. the cow stomach wasn't bad, i actually liked it. the pig foot was an entire pig's foot (as you can imagine) placed on top of a bowl of noodles. it tasted good but was hard to eat. not very ladylike; jia zheng sucked all of the meat and tissue off of every bone. i mostly just ate the skin. it was good. then last night, we got hot pot with a less active recent convert (ha). hot pot is where they put a bunch of stuff in a small bowl (pot) then add broth and serve it boiling. mine had tofu shavings, cabbage, sprouts, PIG BLOOD RICE CAKE, lamb, fish balls, COAGULATED DUCK BLOOD and noodles. it was so good! the duck blood was my favorite. so delicious. it's a really weird texture but so yummy. i think next time we go with her we're going to eat moldy tofu. i'm excited.

so, that was my week. i miss you all. i love you. i hope you are as happy as i am! sisters, write me when you get a chance! muah!

zeng yu xin.