Crazy Beef in Bloem

Hey mom,

       I thought of one more thing you could put in the package (if it's not sent yet).. Taco mix!  Not a lot, but a few packets.  I found some from a missionary when I was in Pinetown.  It was fun to make the best Mexican food I could and give it to the elders who have never had it.

      So, how was my week?  Well, I'm not sure.  It just flew by.  On Tuesday we had interviews with President Zackrison.  Normally whenever we have interviews, they're about 15 to 20 minutes, but my interview lasted 1 HOUR... It was really enjoyable though.  He is such a spiritually powerful man, and very personal.  For those two reasons, he is able to help a lot of people specifically.

      Let me tell you about something a little less spiritual.  We came across this great discovery last week Saturday.  We have named it LocoNkomo (A mix of Spanish and Zulu for Crazy Beef or cow).  In downtown Bloem, a really grimy place, right next to a storm drain/sewer canal, sits

three shanty tents with a constant bellow of smoke coming out of them.  Within each tent is a group of workers cooking Pap, making salads, and braai'n (BBQ) meat.  You may not remember that PAP is ground up Maize that gets cooked with a little water and becomes white and fluffy, and heavy.  You eat it with your hand, making little balls that you squish flat, then put on whatever other food is on your plate.  So, these tents are hot and sweaty and smell like smoke; and for 15 to 20 rand (2 dollars) they pile you a ton of pap, salads (which in most cases are beans cooled in sauces or grated vegetables in more sauces), 2 big pieces of beef and 2 Wors (kind of like sausages but bigger).  Anyway, it was a great discovery, and we went there three times last week.  Might go today who knows. :p

      Tonight we are driving up to Welkom and on Wednesday to Kroonstad to do exchanges with some of the Elders that work far away.  It's close to a two-hours drive to Welkom, then further for the other area, so we will be out of Bloem for a few days.

      We also had a very sweet experience with one investigator this week.  She is Afrikaans.  I will call her Veronica (of course this is not her real name).  She is single and has two teenage children and she suffers from great depression, along with a plethora of other things that cause her anxiety and stress and hopelessness.  We gave her an Afrikaans Book of Mormon about two weeks ago and she has been studying it with her kids.  It has been amazing to see a light come into her life which was not there before.  She came to church yesterday and likewise expressed peace. 

I love you guys,
Elder Gold