Week 9 of Mission Week 6 of 1st Transfer

March 13, 2017

Hey you guys!

So this week has not been very busy except for yesterday. This week is moves week. Our district leader, Elder Fehoko, left us for Glasgow so we will be getting a new District leader later today. Yesterday was Elder Fehoko's last day in Waterford so we went to Limerick so that he could baptize one of his investigators, Stella, before he left. His companion was sick yesterday so he and I went on splits. So if you are wondering why there are pictures of me at a baptism that's why. It was an awesome baptism! The Spirit was very strong there. I ended up playing piano for it as well. Musical skills really come in handy on a mission I guess. 

The rest of this week has included a lot of Gqing with a bit of teaching. We found a few new people to teach. We hope to get them a date sometime this week. This week we also had one of our Zone Leaders down in Waterford on exchanges.

Sounds like you have a lot of snow back in Minnesota. ( we got 14") Today in Ireland it feels like 60 and is sunny. However, it has rained at some point everyday this week.

 

All of us (left to right: me, Elder Watson, Elder Herr, Elder Magby)

  

I hope everything is still going well back home

Love,

Elder Calley

P.S.  So I also found out the reason why we do not have tablets. The Republic of Ireland has a data protection policy that prevents us from saving other people's numbers on a tablet. If our mission just covered the UK then we would probably have tablets. It doesn't matter though. Out here is going great. The new schedule does allow me to exercise but sometimes I am the only one exercising. I haven't had a chance to go outside and run but hope with this nicer weather I can eventually. So for the first twelve weeks we have a training program called "The First Twelve Weeks" haha. It is half an hour a day of recapping everything you learn in the MTC and how to apply it to the mission field. I will try to take some pictures of St. Patrick's Day this week.

Week 8: Craic, Doner Kebabs & Brick oven Pizza

Elders getting ready to make pizza



It starts with the dough.

Pizza Oven outside

 

Hey everyone,



Elder Calley & Elder Herr



Sounds like everything is going pretty good over there. This last week has been quick. Last Thursday we went up to Carlow to visit the Condemi's (pizza for lunch), Saturday we went on exchanges with our district leader, and yesterday we were in Cork for a broadcast of a Northern Europe Regional Conference. It was good craic there (craic means good time in Ireland). President Clayton and Elder Dyches of the Seventy, Sister Reeves, and Elder Ballard spoke. One thing that Elder Dyches talked about was hope and resilience. He defined resilience as the ability to bounce back from failure. One thing he said that stuck out to me was, "one of the blessings of hope is resilience and one of the blessings of resilience is hope". This week has been hard for our investigators to keep appointments so hope and resilience have come in handy. So we have done a lot of GQing this week and are trying to find more people to teach and have some more appointments set up for this week.. We have had a lot of dinner appointments this week. The members out here know how to make good food.

So I did bring my camera with me this week so I do have a few pictures to send.(Last P-day we played soccer with the other Elders and lost track of time so I couldn't send pictures until today. Sorry.)

 Here is a picture of Elder Watson with Elder Herr and Elder Fehoko Gqing in the background.

Here is another picture from the bus station in Cork.

So there is this potential investigator, Eddie, who has a french coffee shop on the Quay and he made dinner for us one night. It was really good.

 

Yesterday was flag day here in Ireland and so there were a lot of Irish flags up yesterday in preparation for St. Patrick's Day. All of my stuff is holding up fine even though it has rained almost everyday.

So one of my favorite DA dishes I have had out here were these potatoes made by the Condemi's. One thing that is really good that they don't have back home is doner kebabs. It is supposed to be lamb wrapped in a tortilla or pita bread, kinda like a gyro, but no one is really sure if it is lamb or not. It is really good though. Haven't had a lot of unique dishes yet but I'm sure I will.

Hope everything is going well back home.

Love,

Elder Calley

Week 7 Nice and Sunny here in Ireland

Sorry I must of forgot to post last week.

Hey everyone!

That sounds like a monster storm back home. Here in Ireland it has rained pretty much everyday except for today. Last Friday, I went on exchanges with our district leader Elder Fehoko who is from Tonga. He is the first Tongan in the Scotland/Ireland Mission. He is a great missionary and district leader. We have had quite a few teaching and dinner appointments this week. Last night we went over to the Powers who are an elderly couple in the branch. They are crazy sometimes and have thick accents but are a lot of fun to chat with. We also went over to Brother Sharma's house last Tuesday. He is from India. He makes really good curry. He also brought a friend with him and we were able to teach him about the restoration. We currently have two investigators with a date. One of them is Evans. He is very interested in knowing about the Church but is hesitant to commit. The other one is Gift. He is pretty much a golden investigator who is strong in his own faith but is willing to learn and seems willing to commit as well as long as we can get a hold of him.

One of the things that I was reading in the scriptures this week was Mosiah 4 and how the King Benjamin was continually inviting his people to change and to listen. I really liked how we sometimes face hard trials, however we can always try to improve with the Lord's help and help others along the way. I am grateful for the opportunity that I have to continue to learn and grow out here as well as help others.

By the way GQ means Gospel Questioning. So I left my camera back at the flat but I will try to send all of my pictures later today. It has been great out here in Ireland. I do have one funny story this week. So Wednesday night last week we were out GQing and some drunk guy comes up and tries to give me a rose because he thought I was a girl but then he realized I was a guy. Elder Watson asked him if I still got the rose but he just walked off. Haha.

It’s hard to believe that I have been out here in Ireland longer than I have in the MTC. Spring is already just around the corner here. I hope everything is going well in Minnesnowta. We are hoping to do some type of sport today but we will see what happens.

Love,

Elder Calley

Week 6 Little bit of Cork

Elder Calley & Elder Watson

Hey Guys,

This week seems to have flown by. We have spent a lot of time finding, teaching, and travelling.

Last Thursday we had exchanges with the Zone Leaders in Cork because I'm green and were there all day Thursday. It was cool to be with the Zone Leaders for a day and see how they teach and find people. Cork is much bigger than Waterford. We were busy the whole day so I did not have much time to take pictures but I might have a few to send that I took from the bus.

a rainy day in Cork, Ireland (on the bus)

The following day Elder Watson and I were really excited to go and find. After the first hour of GQing we had seven appointments set up over the next few days. It was amazing to see how many appointments we were able to set up in such short of a time. One thing I have really begun to realize is that when we are doing the Lord's work we can have His help and guidance. While some of the appointments we set up fell through and others rescheduled we did have an opportunity to teach one person, whose name is Evans, so far and were able to teach him about the Restoration and give him a Book of Mormon. We have more appointments tomorrow and Wednesday.

So how are things going back home? It was weird to hear that you have been having such warm weather. I can't believe it will be 62 tomorrow and 24 on Saturday. Over here it sometimes gets to 50 degrees as a high and it rains almost every day, anywhere from five minutes to the whole day.

As far as celebrations for holidays go the only one has been Valentine's day. We went finding Valentine's day in the evening and the only people that were out were couples.

We tend to eat a lot of pasta and curry. I have learned to love curry it is really good. Subway is the most popular place to eat out here. Normally, I have cereal or toast for breakfast. I still eat like I do back home. One thing I have noticed on my mission is that I am actually a slow eater. Our district leader is from Tonga so when we have the other companionship over for dinner there are no left overs. 

So last P-day we went to the medieval museum here in Waterford. It was neat. It is built on top of the ruins of a castle.

Medieval Museum in Waterford





Medieval Museum small  rameumptom

I have felt like I have GQ-ed so much over these past three weeks. I have no problem talking to strangers on the street. No one teases me for my Minnesota accent but I do say oofta sometimes so Elder Watson and I sometimes have a good laugh about that.

So there is a bench along the Quay (along the river) that has one side of it called the "Liars Corner" and the other side the "Seat of Wisdom". If you sit on one side you are suppose to have wisdom and the other means your the liar. I guess it is an Irish thing. Anyway this is something from Waterford that was unique I guess.

I'm doing great over here. I'm healthy and am really enjoying being out talking with others about the gospel. I hope you have a good week.

Love,

Elder Calley

Week 5: One Month In Cheers to Whitewashing

Hey everyone!

Things are going good out here!

This week has been kind of slow. Elder Watson and I got sent to an area where we have to whitewash. What whitewashing means is that we basically start from scratch. We began with no one to teach or any investigators. So we had to do a lot of GQing this week. The one great thing about whitewashing is that I can see how everything from finding to teaching to inviting to hopefully baptizing works. We are slowly building up a teaching pool. Finding in Ireland is not easy but on the bright side they are not rude about it.

So let me back track a little bit. I guess I forgot to tell you guys how I got to Waterford last week. So we left the mission home on the Feb. 3 from Edinburgh to Glasgow by bus. We then took another bus to Cairnryan about an hour south of Glasgow. We then took a ferry from there to Belfast. From Belfast to Dublin we took a bus. We stayed the night in Dublin and the following morning we took a bus from Dublin to Waterford. Sadly, I did not take any pictures but I did do a lot of sleeping on the ferry and buses.

Another thing I have discovered this week is just how big of an area we cover. We cover from Kilkenny to Tipperary to Wexford. So we often have to take the bus or get a lift from members to either do service for members or teach.

This week we had dinner at the Gibbons. Brother Gibbons is in the Branch Presidency. They fed us burgers. The food here in Ireland is not very different from back in Minnesota. We also went to go do service for an elderly sister this week in Dungarvan. We did some gardening and cleaned up some of her yard. That was the first time that I was able to do gardening in February. Another thing this week is I have learned how to cook (cook simple things like spaghetti, nothing like your cooking Mom.)

As far as packages go, I think we get them once a month if not for sure once a transfer. They are sent to Cork and I think if we go to Cork or if the Zone leaders who live in Cork go somewhere they might take some packages with them. If it will fit into a mail slot then it can be sent to the flat. We have a mail slot and mail just gets put in there. So if it is small enough to be put in a mail slot it should be fine.

So last week I told you about how I had to play the piano in church. Well I found out a little more about why I am now the defacto pianist. So I guess the previous ward pianist left on a mission this past week (I do not really know where but it is probably somewhere in the States). She was the only one who could really play the piano in the branch. When I learned this I was kind of surprised. It was amazing to see that I just happened to arrive the week that she was leaving. It is great to see that Heavenly Father watches out for His children and that He does answer prayers. The hymns they have me play are not terribly difficult and it has been a humbling experience for me to play each week and be able to help the branch. The branch here is great. One thing that is really getting pushed for is an increase in missionary work in the branch. The Limerick District is the only district in the Scotland/Ireland Mission so there has been a push from mission as well as district leaders to help this district become a stake.

One thing that I have not really mentioned is the differences in culture here. One of the biggest things I noticed in the Republic is that every road sign has English as well as Gaelic. Everyone here speaks English but it was interesting to see that Gaelic is still used in public here.

Another thing I have noticed is how many pubs there are here in Waterford alone. It kind of reminds me of that time we volunteered for Ragnar in Wisconsin and we kept seeing bar after bar after bar.

Everything in Ireland seems to be on a smaller level. The roads, sidewalks, cars, and shops are all smaller. Another thing I have found is that there are no nationwide stores in Ireland. The only store that I have seen back home that they have here is Aldi. One thing that is very common to say over here is 'cheers', which basically means thank you, you are welcome, best of luck, all into one word.

It has been an exciting second week in the mission field. I have learned a lot and am looking forward to this week. It has been amazing to be able to share with others the joy that comes from the gospel and how the gospel blesses our families. I am excited to continue to hear how wrestling finishes up for you Tyler. It sounds like you are doing really well. I hope you do well in Team Sections. Hope everything is going well back home. Hope you all stay warm and not just Dad. It's going good over here in Waterford. I will talk to you all next week.

Love,

Elder Calley

They have a Viking cut out not too far from our flat so I had my picture taken last P-day.

Week 4 Waterford Ireland

It was great to get a nice long letter  and some pictures from Kyle this Week!

Hey guys! It's been a while since I have gotten the chance to write.



Downham England

My last week in the MTC went well. All the missionaries there were taken to a place called Downham in England. It was one of the places that the early missionaries in England proselyted in and converted many.



My last week in the MTC went by quick. Last Tuesday we were driven up to the mission home in Edinburgh. It was great to meet President Donaldson. He is an amazing mission president. The reason why I was not able to email you last week was because P-days in the MTC were on Tuesdays and are on Mondays in the mission. So I did not have an opportunity to write you last week because we were travelling on Tuesday. Speaking of last Tuesday, everyone from the MTC got to hike Pratt's Hill. It was great to be able to look over the whole of Edinburgh.



On top of Pratt Hill (Arthur's Seat)

My companion by the way is Elder Watson, he is from Mesa, Arizona and is about 20 months into his mission. He is a great trainer and companion. We spent last Wednesday and Thursday in Edinburgh because there was a zone conference on Thursday. Elder Johnson of the Area Seventy was there and gave a good talk. So Wednesday we went GQ-ing which is what we call street contacting. Edinburgh is a great place to talk to people.



The rest of this week has really been atypical because everyone has been moving around this week. You guys must have got the email from President Donaldson about how I'm serving in Waterford. I am glad you guys got at least some sort of email about me last week. I had no idea that Waterford is one of the oldest cities in Ireland. The buildings around where we are, are not that old, some of them are pretty new. By the way my new address is 13 Neptune House, Canada Square, Waterford, Republic of Ireland. You might be able to send letters there but packages should be sent to the collection place for the Limerick Zone on the PDF that you have about mailing. Our flat is about two or three blocks away from Waterford Crystal. The weather here feels like it is March back home, maybe April on the warm days. Today it has been pouring down. My coat seems to be holding up great though. The wind here can also be pretty bad.

We have not had a lot of opportunities to teach people yet since we have only been here a few days. However, Elder Fehoko who is the district leader, and I had an opportunity to teach Niko, a new investigator who is from Australia. I invited him to be baptized which he was on the fence about. We are meeting with him later this week and hope to set up a baptismal date for him then.



Kyle in front of Edinburgh Castle

Me and Elder Watson are new to the area so we will be doing a lot of GQ-ing and finding people to teach. I have attached a few pictures of Downham and Edinburgh castle. I hope that everything  is going well back home.

By the way the branch here is awesome. There are about 25 to maybe 30 members here, we do meet in an office building. I had to play piano yesterday. I think I will be the pianist for as long as I am here. The branch is amazing here and there seems to be potential in finding and teaching here. Our area here covers at least three different cities. I think they are Wexford, Waterford, and Kilkenny. Tomorrow we have to head over to Limerick for zone-wide interviews with President Donaldson.

I am really looking forward to finding people to teach this week. It is a great area to have as a first area. I will make sure to email you guys next week. Hopefully last week was the only one I have to miss.

Love you guys,

Elder Calley

For letters only (good till March 6, week before transfers)

Elder Kyle Calley
13 Neptune House
Canada Square
 Waterford
 Republic of Ireland

Just a little info on mailing packages to Kyle

Note: mark all packages “Gift” on the outside of box

(Don’t declare a value of $30.00 or more (as the missionary will have to pay an additional custom duty. Current “Value Added Tax” is 20% of the declared value. They will have to pay this plus a “handling fee” before they receive the package. Best time to mail packages is within the first 2-3 weeks of the six week cycle.)

Bill Quirke
Elder Kyle Calley
12 Glenavon Crescent
Donnybrook
Douglas County CORK
Republic of Ireland

No letter from Kyle this week but we did get a letter from Kyle’s Mission President.

Sister Donaldson, Elder Calley & President Donaldson

Dear Brother & Sister Calley,

On 31 January 2017, we welcomed Elder Calley to the Scotland/Ireland Mission.  He arrived safely from the Missionary Training Center and we are excited to have him in our mission.  One of our very best missionaries, Elder Watson, has been assigned to be his trainer.  Together they will serve in the Limerick Zone, Waterford Branch in The Republic of Ireland.

I will have the opportunity to meet with Elder Calley every six weeks.  In addition, your missionary will be writing me a weekly letter of his activities as well as a personal note.   He will also meet regularly with his district and zone leaders where he will be trained with other missionaries. 

We would encourage you to write him weekly letters of encouragement. Letters from home provide a powerful sustaining effect on the confidence and morale of our missionaries. We testify of the truthfulness of this work and are grateful to be a part of it.

Sincerely,

George R Donaldson

George R Donaldson, President

Elder Calley & Elder Watson

a little extra mission info that we got with the letter

Stirling, Scotland, 1898, David O. McKay: "I was homesick and a little discouraged on this day. As we were coming back into town, I saw an unfinished dwelling, over the front door of which was a stone on which there was a carving. That was most unusual, so I said to Elder Johnston, ‘I’m going to see what that is.’ I was half way up the gravelled walk when there came to my eyesight a strik-ing motto as follows, carved in stone: " ‘Whate’er Thou Art, Act Well Thy Part.’ I said to myself, or the Spirit within me, you are here as a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. That afternoon, I accepted the message given to me on that stone, and from that moment we tried to do our part as missionaries in Scotland"