This is the last email of my 3rd transfer or “move” as we like to call them here. So very exciting! I find out tomorrow if I’m leaving TKO and going somewhere or if I’m staying for another 6 weeks here! I don’t know usually its about 50/50 whether missionaries stay/go after 3 moves in a place so it’ll be interesting to see all what happens! Either way the Lord is in control and he knows what is best for the work here in Hong Kong so what ever happens that’s cool! I really do love it here in TKO! Even though it takes us like 45+ minutes everyday back and forth to get to the area I love it here! It’s such a beautiful place! But if it comes out that I do leave it’ll be Thursday – on to greener pastures – and you’ll be the first people in America to know about it. On that you have my guarantee. Ha-ha! Mostly because I don’t know how anyone else would find out…
Yesterday was day #200 as a missionary! That’s incredible to me! It’s going by super fast! The days can be long but the weeks are just getting shorter and shorter every time. It’s weird how it works. And I think anyone who has been a missionary will agree! To celebrate we went with a couple of investigators to the First Presidency Christmas Devotional that was showing at Wan Chai. We thought it was going to be in Chinese since…well we’re in China, but nope it was in English! And our investigators like loved it even more because it was in English – which actually wasn’t surprising. They love English here and they are pretty good at it too! One person that came is named Lap. He knows the church is true and everything and really does have a good solid testimony of the Book of Mormon but he just doesn’t wake up for church! Anyway, Lap loved it and he said that he really enjoyed the meeting. The sad thing is that Lap is leaving in a couple of months to go to New York because he got accepted into Columbia University!! You just have to meet Lap and get to know him to get just exactly who he is! But now we know that he is leaving, we are going to do everything we can to help him get to church! He even asked if I could get him the address of the church building nearest to Columbia so that he could go there. He is such a strange fellow but he really is like my favorite person ever. He teaches me English words that I had never even thought of. He didn’t even know that Columbia was a good school until we told him. Some people are just born to be smart and Lap is one of them…oh Lap…
Finding was really effective this week! For instance on Saturday we go finding in a small park that is right by the church. The first person we talk to wants to have a lesson! So we talk with him and share the whole restoration with him! Then yesterday he came to church! His name is Samuel and he just laughs at everything – it’s so funny! His laugh is really strange but he just loves to laugh. That seems to be pretty normal; the people that have weird laughs love to laugh! Why is that? That is something all people should do more of! Anyway, after we met Samuel we walked another 30 yards and the next kid we talk to talks to us and we end up giving another full on lesson! It’s so cool! He had a lot of knowledge of the Bible but had no beliefs. A lot of people are like that because the vast majority of schools here are Christian schools! So he was fascinated by our message! Then right after our second lesson it was time to go to a members house for dinner! Saturday was a really good day! If only everyday was like that!
I got two packages from you this week! And I got Grandma’s “non pajamas” don’t worry! (Kyle’s grandma and papa give all of their grandkids pajamas for Christmas that they get to open on Christmas Eve. Continuing the tradition, they sent Kyle a package to open on Christmas Eve and tried to convince him that it wasn’t really pajamas. This too is part of the tradition as all the grandchildren give grandma and papa a hard time about knowing what their present will be beforehand.) I didn’t even look at the package description! What’s the fun in that? I’m sending all the Christmas stuff today so don’t look!!!! Or be disappointed at what I got! I thought I was a good shopper coming from a family of 5 sisters but oh well. I encourage all of you to watch that First Presidency Devotional! It was short and good!!! I liked President Uchdorf’s talk a lot!!! That pretty much sums of the week here in the ole Hong Kong! I’m just trying to become a better teacher and a friendlier person. Something that was really gratifying to me this week was when we were having that street lesson on Saturday the kid, his name is A-Chong, told me that I was talking to him like a friend and not a teacher and he could tell that I just wanted to help him. That was really nice to hear and prayers definitely were answered about me wanting to feel more love for these people who definitely deserve the highest love and the highest respect. I love you all, I’m so grateful for every single one of you. Remember the joys of Christmas and not the stresses. Always be willing to learn. That’s something I’ve been working on! Having the eagerness to learn from everything around me! I’m glad you all had fun at Disneyland! Boy do I miss that place!! Stay strong! Go Devils!
Elder Allen
Elder Kyle M. Allen in Hong Kong 