**I have to say that I am more than surprised to read how Elder Paulson has branched out in the things that he will eat.  I remember when he wouldn't even try sushi!  So with that in mind, be prepared!!  It is Africa after all! 

I'm In The Bush!

Well happy P day peoples. I hope you all have had a awesome week.

Well im just going to hit some highlights of my week.

The biggest highlight of the week is on Wednesday, we ate some......CAT. Yup sorry mom. I ate a cat. It actually is somehow good. The skin is super tough. Although I did eat the ear as well just to say I could, so it looks like my fear of eating food that I don't like it gone haha! I'll send pictures. Our branch mission leader killed it and cooked it for us, we bought the cat for 30 cedis, which is about $5. It was a awesome mission experience!

This week we have also been working on progressing some of our investigators to be baptized on the 23rd of this month. Some awesome people we are working with right now preparing to be baptized on that date.

On Thursday it rained all day which we kinda hated!

Saturday we went and farmed. In this part of Ghana most of the people if not all the people make there living by farming. Things like corn, plaintains, coco, cassava, coco yam. Awesome different things. So on Saturday we went with the first councelor in the district to his farm and planted corn for like 5 hours. Awesome small service activity. It was cool. Like if you ever go to like a zoo or something where they have jungle sounds playing in the background, exactly what it sounded like, but in this case it was real and awesome haha.

In my reading of the Book of Mormon I am in 3rd Nephi, and I am reading about when Jesus comes to the people of the Americas and teaches them. This part is awesome because he invites them to come to him and feel the prints in his hands and his feet, and as he is leaving they ask him to stay and he has compassion on them and heals their sick and afflicted.

I love the Book Of Mormon and the truthfulness you can gain from it. I encourage everyone to read it!


Elder Paulson


1-cat
2-cat
3-mi casa
4-dog at branch mission leaders house
5- my friend
6-Elder Paulson right now


As a side note, the cat thing kinda grossed me out but what is good is that he is trying new stuff and for him that is huge! So that makes me super happy! I guess the African's don't look at house cats the same way that we do!

Life in the Ghana Bush.

Well another week gone by, here in Ghana now on the downward slope of the mission. I hope this letter finds you all safe and well.

First this week we had lots of work to do trying to focus on people and we have a big teaching pool. So we have been working a lot.

Wednesday, we had District meeting and we talked about how to better use the Book of Mormon in our teaching and how we can use the Book of Mormon to find the people who are more ready for the message of the gospel. We also had a big talk about Malaria and how serious it is and trust me I have been taking my medicine for a long time now so no worries about that.

Thursday I went on exchange with Elder Mbonenche, he is from Malawi and we had a great time. Taught some awesome people and such.

Friday and Saturday were just regular Proselyting days.

Sunday we had an awesome show of our investigators at sacrament, we had like 8 people come which was AWESOME! I was way pumped for that. The best was the ones we are wanting to get baptized before the end of the month came, which means they are just progressing more and more opportunities of feeling the spirit in their lives. 'Im excited if you can't tell already!

So in my reading, I'm now in 3rd Nephi and have learned many awesome new things by re- reading the Book of Mormon. Like when the people of the Nephites band together with the Lamanites and defeat the Gadiaton robbers and are very righteous for a long time and many great things happen to them. Then Satan comes back into their lives and just tears them back down, it goes to show that we must always focus on our Savior Jesus Christ and always remember him because the devil always finds small ways to sneak back in to our lives.

Well I love all you peoples. Be safe and make good choices. May God bless you!


Elder Paulson

Side note:  I asked him about riding a "moto" and this is what he said. "I forgot to tell you in my letter about the Motorcycles. SO first they have been approved in our area because it is the only way in and out of our little village. Taxi's only go down here a little. The guy driving it is our friend and we call him whenever we are going places because he is the best driver we know." Thank Heaven for that! Ha!Ha!

1-Banku and pepe

2-THIS AWESOME MOTH

3- me cooking fried rice

4-more Moth

5-Medamfo (friend in Twi) our branch mission leaders daughter

6- cocoa pod

7- a cocoa tree

8-our kitchen

9-our room

10-feeding goats

I looked this up because I didn't really know and the white things inside the pod get dryed and end up looking like a bean and then get ground into cocoa powder.  70% of the worlds cocoa now comes from West Africa 

So I've been here a year.....


So this week was my one year. Pretty awesome.!  It's crazy to look back on where I was last year and where I am now. I want to just say thank you to everyone who has helped me along this way. I love and appreciate all of you!

This week for us has been somehow slow. We were focusing on two children, finishing the lessons and getting them baptized this past Saturday which we did do, that was awesome to have a baptism here very quickly.

On thursday we headed to Accra, because 1 Elder Stilson's brother is in the Ghana MTC and he got permission to go and see him before he goes home so we went and met him at the temple site and they got to talk for some time which was awesome to see 2 brothers reunited again. Then the 2nd reason is that I had to renew my noncitizenship card and mannnnn have I lost weight!  haha. I look at my first and second photo and put them together and wow, just wow! Bigggg difference. Good though ha! SO that was the official mark of my 1 year. The drive from Asunafo to Accra is like 4 hours... sucks. So we then got in a tro and headed back.

Then Saturday we had our baptism for the two children or young kids i guess you could say. They both did awesome and it is great now that they have the chance to grow up in the gospel and have others to care and watch out for them. So we will see what happens with this up coming week.

In my Book of mormon reading I finished Alma, and we all know the end of Alma is just full of wars. I look back though to the strength and courage of Captain Moroni and how all he wanted was to do good for his people. He wanted them to follow God. In one of the verses it says and I am going to paraphrase it, It says " that if others had the faith of Moroni that the very gates of hell would shake and the power of the devil would have no power whatsoever." That is amazing that if we just had the faith of Moroni the Gates of Hell would shake. He is definitely my favorite guy. My other favorite guy, who kind of gets overlooked is Teancum. Teancum is one of the generals for Moroni, he is an amazing warrior and uses tactics to beat his opponents and he has great faith as well. I promise that if you read the Book of Mormon with faith in your heart and wanting to know it is true, you can know of the power and truthfulness it contains . Before I had come on mission I had never read the Book of Mormon, to be honest, at least not all the way through. My advice would be to those who have not, try it, it's an amazing book.

Oh yeah and by the way apparently I'm like a movie star or something, I was in a short clip for the Face to Face Africa with Elder Renlund and it is only because we were the closest missionaries to the Temple site at that time. You only see me for like 5 seconds haha.

Thanks for everything again and I guess I'll see you people in like 1 year. Crazy!  Haha!


Elder Paulson


1 gecko found in my apartment
2 on moto going out of area, it's the only way we can travel in or out of our area
3 Ghana Accra Temple
4 a really cool white moth I found in our apartment
sorry not very many pictures this week, i promise to take more next week
5 the whole Ghana Accra West Mission Elders with Elder and Sister Renlund.

I think he really likes the Ghana Accra temple, he sends pics of it all the time.!

1 YEAR!


Well, good morning from Africa everyone. I am here in the bushy part of Ghana, writing you this letter. I hope you are all doing well and enjoying.

First off, i am now here in Asunafo, which consists of 2 branches and we cover both of them. The village is a small place just on the out skirts of Abomosu in the Eastern region of Ghana. Out here is basically like camping. Its quiet and dirt roads and no street lights, its a big change coming from the most city part of our mission. My new companion is Elder Stilson, from Emery Utah, home of the Spartans ( I know dad will appreciate that one haha). We are living the life here!

This week we have been preparing some of our investigators for baptism this coming Saturday. We have been doing a lot of work. We ride bikes which is making my legs stronger again. I have some pictures of my new area I will send in a separate email. I have been getting to know the new people of our branches here and everyone speaks Twi and very little people speak English. So looks like I will be learning a lot moreTwi.. Our branch mission leader goes out with us everyday and translates for us and he is awesome. The area is a great area.

On Saturday we had our Africa wide service project and our two branches came together and did some service for the community and it was a great time. We did some weeding and filled in giant pot holes on the main road to the village. It was great to see everyone working so hard and together. They did a lot of good that day. Ghanaians are super crazy hard workers, oh and I forgot to mention that everyone out here basically owns a farm. So one of these days we are going to do farming. Another thing is that you can see Toucans all over the place haha. Also yesterday one of the people that stay in Asuom, which is the zone leaders area, have a pet monkey and we went there yesterday while we had to have a meeting and played with it. ONLY IN GHANA!

This week I have been reading in Alma 32-40. In it, it talks about how this time is a time for us to prepare to meet God. I love the preaching that these missionaries are doing when they go to teach the Zoramites. Also they talk about how the people who were poor and humble from there afflictions, listened to the gospel and they converted many people. I remember reading about that.

This time last year I was about to head into the MTC and start this long journey. I'm excited for what is ahead for all of us and I love all you people who support me, thank you so much.



Elder Paulson

1-Elder Reunlund devotinal. Elder Aiono, Elder Joos, me
2-the book is blue the church is true
3-pizza for my 1 year before i lef
4-my Northridge People
5-Bro. Promise. North Ridge ward mission leader
6-again
7- me and Bro. Martey our first consuler
8-saying good bye to morris
9-family home evening at our bishops
10- here it is.... the bush
11-bush, bush, bush

I'm a little baby bush boy.


Well family and friends another week has gone by and we have received transfer news on Saturday night and the area that I'm going to be in is called Asunafo, it's in the Eastern region of Ghana and it is the most forest/bush area that we have in our mission. I'm excited, also a little nervous as well. My new companion is Elder Stilson, he goes home at the end of this transfer. A new experience in a new part of Africa.

This week has been an awesome week, as well as a slow week. We were able to have 5 new investigators that we have found, on the sad part though our 1 investigator who was suppose to be baptized this week did not come to his baptismal interview so we were not able to have the baptism this week and there is a few more things that he needs to get figured out before he can be baptized.

I'm going to miss the people of North Ridge, the city life is a good life. It is smelly and it is hard to find people to teach and be very serious about the gospel, but the members were very loving to me and I appreciate all that they did for me.

So in my scripture reading I am now in Alma 1-27 this week. Reading the Book of Mormon again has helped me so much to understand it more. So in these chapters 2 of my favorite parts are 1 when Alma and the sons of Mosiah meet up again while traveling in the wilderness and they rejoice to see each other and I'm guessing that is how it will be when all the bros get back to home and meet up at the end of all our missions. I'm excited for that day! Then my second favorite part is when Ammon goes and teaches King Lamoni and his people and we all know the great story that comes out of that. I was thinking that all he did was a simple act of faithfully serving someone and showing the light of Christ inside of him, it is such a simple thing to serve others that we sometimes pass it over or do not look at it as something that we do. I hope and pray that all of us can find chances to serve others around us and that we can still show the light of Christ inside of us. To continue on I also pondered on the thought of what if Ammon never went to these people or just was too scared to talk to them, because if we look at the Lamanites, they literally wanted to kill the Nephites every chance they got to. He had the courage and trusted in the Lord to go forth and to share to his fellow brethren what he knew to be true and because of that there sons became great warriors. They were a chosen people of God. I love their story so much. I have learned so much from reading the Book of Mormon again.

Also one last cool thing is the place I'm going has Tucans and monkeys. I'm sure Elder Shoemakers place is still more crazy then mine but hey Schy maybe I'll get a taste of what you see haha.

Love you all and I am coming up on 1 year this next week, thank you all for supporting me in what I am doing here in Africa.


Elder Paulson

Dear friends and family,

I hope that this letter finds you all well and safe. Sounds like my family and the Thomas family had a fun time at Bear Lake this week. As well as whoever else went there this week!

So this week we were suppose to have Jennifer confirmed this past Sunday, but she showed up late and was not able to be confirmed.  Sad but she will be next week if she comes on time.

On the bright side, Emmanuel is going to be baptized on Saturday.

Bigger news is that Elder Renlund, is in Ghana and tomorrow we are having a devotional with him at the temple site and then we are going to be able to have a walk through at the new MTC that has been built right next to the temple. It looks very nice.

So this week coming up is transfer week, I have been in this area for 3 transfers now and I think that soon I will be leaving to go to the bush. Haha! I'm excited to go to a new area.  This area has been great but after some time you start to feel like the area is getting old.

So this week I don't really have much to say. I will be sending lots of pictures and if you want to know anything about Ghana just write me and I will reply.

Last thing is that I have been reading in the Book Of Mormon, and I am in Alma 8. This is the chapter when Alma goes to the city of Ammonihah and is rejected and kicked out. In the chapter it talks about how he was depressed and down on himself, then an angel of the Lord appeared to him and told him to return to the city. He did as the angel directed and was received by Amulek and then they start their great missionary journey. While I was in the MTC my instructor Sis. Mitchell helped me when I was feeling down and read this scripture with me and she said all I can encourage you to do is to "try again" and to not stop trying again. This has stuck with me through my whole mission and has helped me and been a lesson to me. If Alma had not tried again, he would have never found Amulek and many people would not have been converted. I know that as we try and rely on the Lord we can truly see miracles. I love you people. Be safe.

Elder Paulson

1- Our Chapel

2-rice amd beans i eat everyday

3 a huge gutter in our area

4- more of the gutter

5-me in front of the gutter haha

6-Jennifer's baptism 

7-My comp and I

8-My MTC comp Elder Hall and I

9-some cool carved birds

10-my ZLs before multi zone

11-me studying