A city of everything

Hello once again! These two weeks in New York have been a very interesting experience, and I wouldn't trade it for anything else.

As I continue to learn about the city, it amazes me how diverse and how much of a world hub it is. I've seen many kinds of people, speaking many different languages. In my church branch, we have deaf members who grew up in places like Uzbekistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. We met a deaf person yesterday who lived in Latvia during his childhood, and has recently come to New York searching for work. He has been taught some of the gospel before, and we hope to continue teaching him.

The work is going well, we are working with a few investigators that are progressing towards baptism hopefully at the end of the month, as well as many, many less-actives. There are around 300 members in the branch, but only 50-70 attend each week. Fun fact: Deaf baptisms and confirmations both happen on Sundays after church because then most the branch stays for it. It fits well, as many members linger a while after church to chat and meet.

So far, whenever we eat out, it's been New York pizza, which is greasy, good, and cheap. We mostly cook our own food, and how grateful I am to have companions that can cook. I'm slowly learning myself. They say we eat at other places like fast food and local joints occasionally, so I hope to be able to sample the food of many of the cultures here.

There are so many sights to see and things to do, and I've barely scratched the surface. I can go pretty much anywhere in Manhattan or the Bronx, as our ASL area covers that, so pretty much everything famous or sight-worthy is within our means to go without special permission. You have to stay within your own area, and get permission to leave it. I'm so blessed that everything I would want to see and do is in my large area.

Another cool thing the ASL missionaries do is teach an ASL class twice a week at the church building. Because it's free, it's a good way to attract people who aren't members of the church, teach them, and then close with a simple spiritual thought. It's fun to do and a good way to introduce people to the church.

I love hearing from you, and hope to continue hearing from you. Love you all!

-Elder Ryan Turner