From: Braydon Carter <braydon.carter@myldsmail.net>
Date: Sun, Dec 2, 2018 at 8:36 PM
Subject: From Traveling Boy to Traveling Missionary 12/03/2018
Well Howdy Everyone!!
This week has been crazy! I've had a lot happen. I have a lot of solid pictures taken this week. Visited some way cool places and met some even better people!!
So I have to say the last 48 hours have been pretty exciting. We have a conference in Singapore today, which is Monday, and we take a flight out of Malaysia at 2:30 today. Sounds pretty easy right. I know in Utah that would just mean leave the house at 11 just to make sure everything goes through with security and leave some time to buy McDonald's in the airport. Well, living in an "Outpost" is a little bit different. My companion and I had the thought on Saturday that we need to grab our bus tickets for Monday morning to be able to make it to the airport on time. To make a long story short, we spent most of the afternoon Saturday going to a bunch of bus places, comparing times, making phone calls, and finally came to the conclusion that we were either leaving Monday at 1 in the morning, or we needed to leave on Sunday. And that's what it came down to. We left yesterday around 2 right after church and got to the Elders apartment in KL [Kuala Lumpur] around 8:30. Now my companion and I are currently sitting in what is called a 'grab' ( Like Uber ) for an hour ride to the airport to make our flight :) But it was good to see KL for a little bit. It's beautiful here, and I love the buildings. Here is a picture:
But enough of that. This week was crazy good and I was able to go to a Buddhist temple so I really want to attach a lot of pictures to show you some of the cool things I get to see while serving in Malaysia. On P-Day, our 3rd companion, President Chong, took us to the Buddhist temple where he explained a little bit about the belief and then we were able to see crazy cool marble statues. Here are some photos:
Then, we were also able to drive up close to the ocean and give it a look! It was so cool. I am literally in shock every time I see water. This place is so cool. I've seen everything here from lizards and mice fight in sewers, to monkeys in the jungle, to oceans, many religions, the rich, the poor, the needy of all kinds, many foods, cultures, people, and it's all just helped me realize one thing. Everyone is so different. We all have different thoughts, pasts, futures, wants, and needs. But I've found no matter the person, the gospel can help. It will not only bless our lives but give everyone the motivation and happiness we need to keep going in life.
Also this week, I was able to get something really cool. I'm kind of a really big nerd when it comes to Chinese. And I've also wanted a Chinese stamp with my name on it, in like really cool looking Chinese and so I got one :)
I feel like there is so much to send and talk about this week but so very little time. I hope that some of the pictures really can be worth a thousands words. But what I will say is this week we had so many ups and downs. For example, Elder Duzett and I went hard in finding everyday, through the heat, the waterfalls of rain, the rejection, and the exhaustion. But we were able to find 9 new people that allowed us to talk with them. The only hard thing is none of them were able to come to church with us this week. We also tried to do an activity with the branch, but due to late notice and bad timing, no one was able to come. I have to be honest in saying us missionaries and our branch president ( Our third companion ) were kind of discouraged this week. But now that I look back on the week, and really my mission in general, the more I realize success doesn't always have to be a number. Numbers can be great in helping us measure success, but what we can really find success in is our happiness in what we are doing, and in how diligent we are in doing what we love to do. And as I look back on the week, that's exactly what happened. A lot of happiness, hard work, and love for the work. Not only that but faith and testimonies were strengthened because of it.
I want to end this email by saying I know The Church is true. It's the truest thing the earth has to offer. It gives us guidance, joy, and assurity that we have Father in heaven that loves us. I am so excited to start the Christmas season, and not because of the Gift, but because of the joy that comes from our Savior. I want to challenge all of you to take a look at lighttheworld.org and see some of the awesome things the church is doing this December to focus on Christ. I love you all so so much! I hope you all have an amazing week!
Love,
Elder Carter
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