I've decided that between new experiences I would fill in the "down time" with some good stories from the past. Today's experience is one from THE Mission in the wonderful city of Beaumont.
Inner-city Beaumont is...interesting to say the least. I had some of the CRAZIEST experiences there! That being said you can expect many of my Great Homeless Experiences of the Past (GMEotP) to be from the city of Beautiful Mountain (Beaumont is French for Beautiful Mountain, which is ironic because its COMPLETELY flat there). There are so many to tell, but its kinda late so I'm gonna tell a short one.
Let me open your mind to a typical morning while I was in Beaumont as of April 2008. 2:20 am awoken by companion snoring--I cough loudly, he stops and I go back to sleep; 4:45 am awoken by companion flinging out of bed onto his knees and saying, "when you come to understand that God is your loving Heavenly Father...Elder Wilson? Is there anyone one we haven't seen for a while that we should visit? Like any former investigators we should go see?," I reply, "I don't know Elder Carter." This is where he snaps out of it and says, "what am I doing?" I reply, "I don't know"
"Why am I going all crazy?"
"Just go to bed Elder Carter."
He then blissfully re-enters dreamland while I lay there for another hour. Finally at 6:30 the alarm goes off and we get up and pray, eat, shower, etc. At 8:00 am personal study begins--here's where it starts to get interesting! Usually at about 8:45 or 9:00 the serene silence would be shattered by shouts and screams coming down the street. As the source of the outburst draws closer to our hacienda (Spanish for estate) what was just sounds clears up to recognizable obscenities. We jump up and run to the window to peek out at one of our favorite and one of the most infamous Beaumontians---Mary.
Mary is about 5' and 100 lbs, dirty clothes and a strange gate that would make you think she'd ridden a horse for the past week straight. She walks by screaming, yelling and flailing her arms around at some invisible foe. Accasionaly she'll stop and really let loose and then continue on her way down the street never stopping her barage of insults and curses. Elder Carter and I simply laugh at yet another experience with Mary and head back for companion study at 9:00.
This was almost a daily experience from March 2008 until July 2008 for Elder Carter and I and then Elder Mack and I. Talk to ANY missionary that served in inner-city Beaumont and they knw the Screaming Lady.
Inner-city Beaumont is...interesting to say the least. I had some of the CRAZIEST experiences there! That being said you can expect many of my Great Homeless Experiences of the Past (GMEotP) to be from the city of Beautiful Mountain (Beaumont is French for Beautiful Mountain, which is ironic because its COMPLETELY flat there). There are so many to tell, but its kinda late so I'm gonna tell a short one.
Let me open your mind to a typical morning while I was in Beaumont as of April 2008. 2:20 am awoken by companion snoring--I cough loudly, he stops and I go back to sleep; 4:45 am awoken by companion flinging out of bed onto his knees and saying, "when you come to understand that God is your loving Heavenly Father...Elder Wilson? Is there anyone one we haven't seen for a while that we should visit? Like any former investigators we should go see?," I reply, "I don't know Elder Carter." This is where he snaps out of it and says, "what am I doing?" I reply, "I don't know"
"Why am I going all crazy?"
"Just go to bed Elder Carter."
He then blissfully re-enters dreamland while I lay there for another hour. Finally at 6:30 the alarm goes off and we get up and pray, eat, shower, etc. At 8:00 am personal study begins--here's where it starts to get interesting! Usually at about 8:45 or 9:00 the serene silence would be shattered by shouts and screams coming down the street. As the source of the outburst draws closer to our hacienda (Spanish for estate) what was just sounds clears up to recognizable obscenities. We jump up and run to the window to peek out at one of our favorite and one of the most infamous Beaumontians---Mary.
Mary is about 5' and 100 lbs, dirty clothes and a strange gate that would make you think she'd ridden a horse for the past week straight. She walks by screaming, yelling and flailing her arms around at some invisible foe. Accasionaly she'll stop and really let loose and then continue on her way down the street never stopping her barage of insults and curses. Elder Carter and I simply laugh at yet another experience with Mary and head back for companion study at 9:00.
This was almost a daily experience from March 2008 until July 2008 for Elder Carter and I and then Elder Mack and I. Talk to ANY missionary that served in inner-city Beaumont and they knw the Screaming Lady.
Aaah, Texas! I miss it sometimes.
ReplyDelete... but not when I read this! lol!
Still diggin' the ride here, tho! Keep it up!