Elder Porritt in Ghana: Malaria!

Happy Halloween to all of you!

Unfortunately, Halloween isn't really a thing here in Ghana. so there was not much celebrating here on this day, but hey maybe Elder Stirling and I will go to a shop, say trick or treat, and see what the old lady at the shop gives us... she probably would look at us like we are stupid and then yell at us in Twi hahah!

Well this week was a week for the ages that is for sure, probably the most stressful one of my mission. That is cause first of all, it was transfer week, and Elder Bbosa went home last week so I was handling transfers on my own, and I was doing that while fighting a real battle, a battle with the mighty malaria (yeah I got malaria)... And wow it was a battle for sure, about as intense as the battle at Minas Tirith. Luckily we had faith and prayers on my side from a lot of different people. Well let me just tell you that malaria is not a fun sickness to have. And the reason I didn't tell you last week that was what I had was cause I knew mom would go through the roof when she heard that with worrying. Well now its okay to tell cause I'm now doing good!

So it started on Monday last week, that is when my body just became really really weak and the whole of my body started to feel pain. I didn't understand cause I hadn't gotten hurt but I was seriously in pain, well we were at a members having family home evening and we actually had to leave cause of how horribly I was feeling. So Monday night we took my temp cause I was feeling a fever coming on and I was around 101 so we talked to the mission nurse and she just said to take a long cold shower and take some ibuprofen. So the next morning I was actually feeling pretty cool, I thought all the sickness was gone, but during our district council Tuesday morning, I was feeling AWFUL, so bad that we had to just leave district council and go to the apartment cause I was lightheaded, my fever was coming back and I felt like I was going to throw up and also I was in pain all over my whole body. So I got back to the apartment and took a nap and woke up about an hour later and took my temperature again and it was at 104 and that was when we realized that this was really serious. So we got in a car and went to the hospital and I had some tests done and they figured out it was malaria. So that was crazy. We went back to the apartment and prepared for the journey to Kumasi that was to be the next morning. Well we went to Kumasi which was another horrible tro tro ride cause my body was already killing and I already had a headache so that didn't make things any better. Luckily when we reached Kumasi, the Halladay's, one of the senior couples let me and Elder Nuamah stay at their apartment for Wednesday and Thursday so I could get some rest and not have to travel back that day. We also watched so much General Conference but my mind didn't catch anything cause I have just been dead and with no energy.

Well to sum things up, malaria was horrible terrible awful and horrific all in one thing. but I am over it now and I'm alive so that is what I am thankful for. I'm also thankful that I have a great companion, Elder Nuamah who is from Takoradi, Ghana and is like 24 years old. He is the only member in his family and he is bravely here serving his Heavenly Father. I love him and we are really enjoying here. Also the other great thing that we have now is a greenie in the apartment. Elder Precious got himself a son on Thursday and his name is Elder Stirling!! His shirts are white and his testimony is strong out of the MTC, and he can't understand anything the native's say. It reminds me a lot of how I was when I came here to mission. He is from Las Vegas, and he has been a lot of fun in the apartment so far. We are really loving our apartment right now and having a lot of fun and getting some real work done by helping God's children to repent of their sins.

The Church is true.

I love you all

Elder Porritt

Monday night last week when I was dead at Family Home Evening