Reading The Book of Mormon in Creole

Hey y'all!

     It's been a while since I've been able to post on here-- life's just been an absolute whirlwind! School, my a cappella club, school, church, work, school, volunteering and training for my Haiti trip have each been extremely rewarding, but alas, also extremely time consuming. Luckily, one of the ways I've been able to best prepare for my trip to Haiti has also been something that pertains directly to my schoolwork (specifically a project for my Book of Mormon class). I've been reading The Book of Moroni, (the last book in The Book of Mormon) in Creole!

(One BoM in English, one in Creole and one in French) 

     So, reading ancient scripture alone can be an interesting endeavor. Frequently the prose and style is radically different from our own. Oftentimes the Isaiah references and symbolism and parables are a little above my first level of understanding. Luckily, though, after reading The Book of Mormon (also referred to as the BoM) many times and taking part in Book of Mormon classes here at school, my understanding of the book in English is rather developed. (That isn't to say it doesn't have a ton more room to develop because it certainly does!) Thus, I have attained the initial levels of understanding. Reading it in a different language though is definitely a stretching experience.

     Fortunately, I already have a little bit of experience doing so! In my church, the young women ages 12-18 participate in a program called "Personal Progress" in which we have values (Integrity, Virtue, and Individual Worth, to name a few) that we complete activities or "experiences" for. After completing 6 experiences for each value, we devise a 10 hour project through which we can more fully come to understand and practice a specific value. One of the values in the program is Knowledge, and for my knowledge project, I read "The Book of Ether" (also from The BoM) in French. It was difficult, but rewarding and exciting to be able to watch my knowledge of both the scriptures and the French language increase. It also prepared me immensely for the project I am currently working on of reading Moroni in Creole.

    As I've mentioned before, Creole is similar to French, but not exactly the same. It's a more phonetic version of French mixed with bits of African. Due to its more phonetic nature and the completely bizarre spelling that the French use, reading Creole alone is pretty difficult. It has too many w's and z's and k's for my french-wired brain. What has helped, though, is to read it out-loud. For example, the words "ansanm" and "ensemble" are the words for "together" in Creole and French, respectively. They look nothing alike. But when pronounced, it's easy find the similarity in their sound. (If you speak French that is. I haven't tried it on non-French speakers.)

(My study setup)

     Beyond improving my understanding of Haitian Creole, its been awesome to read the doctrine of The Book of Mormon, though a different lens. Because of the language barrier, sometimes I lose a lot of the story-line and transitional words. But, I am able to often recognize the words that regard doctrine such as "repanti" (repetance), "kontri" (contrite) and "Jezikri" (Jesus Christ). Though understanding the time-line of the BoM is important, it's been a beautiful experience to, incidentally due to my low comprehension, be able to focus so exclusively on the doctrine.

     Through this experience, which is still many pages from being finished, I've been so blessed to be reminded of the simplicity of the Gospel. Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end. Yes, the doctrine extends quite a bit from these several principles, but these develop the simple and beautiful and essential core of my belief.  Amidst all the craziness in the world around, it's wonderful and reassuring to be reminded of the simple truths I know I can trust in continually.

Today's Adventure

Hey Everyone! 

So today's Haiti related adventure was one that has really helped me to be thankful for the wonderful people that surround me here in Provo, Utah. A few of my compadres and myself went out to a neighborhood and knocked on doors asking for donations. People were so kind and concerned and willing to help and donate. And even those who weren't able were kind and generous, usually not donating because of commitments to missionaries and other family members on similar trips. I'm so grateful for the money they gave and for their concern and generosity! 

I was able to share a slip with my blog on it with several people who didn't have cash on hand to donate and told them I would place more information about what I was doing on my blog. Here are some important links that can help clear up any questions you might have and also lead you to my donation page! 

Personal Email- rhiannonzz@sbcglobal.net

Sustain Haiti Website- http://www.sustain-haiti.org/

GoFundMe page- http://www.gofundme.com/sendrhiannontohaiti

Please e-mail me or comment with any questions! Thank you again for your concern and generosity! 

Much love,

Rhiannon 

Your girl is employed!

Hey Everyone! :) 

      So in order to contribute some of my own funds to my trip to Haiti and also to my eventual mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I decided to get a job! After an interesting, but luckily short, search, I was hired at the BYU Creamery right by my little home of Helaman Halls.

      Thus far, it's been a blast. I work with the sweetest people and I'm learning a ton! In the past week I learned how to make waffle cones, hamburgers (including making the patties), chicken sandwiches, milkshakes and fries. I'm able to meet new people each day(which is one of my very favorite things to do) and help put a smile on people's faces as they come through the store.

      The creamery itself is adorable. The grill in the back of the store has a cute fifties/diner feel and it's a fun environment to work in. I get to make food for my friends, ring up customers and suggests ice cream flavors. (Which is awesome because it means I'm obligated to try each one.)

     Life is crazy and it's been a little difficult to balance work with school, but I am having a blast. I love college and I love BYU and I love the opportunities I have here. :)

Much love,

     Rhiannon

Preparation!

Hey Everyone! 

I leave for Haiti on May 25th! I was just struck by how insanely close that feels. I'm excited but a little intimidated by how quickly that date is approaching. That said, I know that "if ye are prepared, ye shall not fear" (D&C 38:30). So, lately I've been doing a lot of preparation. Not only do I know that this will help calm my fears, but also I know that it will help me to be more effective in my trip to Haiti. I don't want anyone's donations toward my trip to be a waste and I certainly don't want my own time and efforts to be futile either by being unprepared. I'm certain that I will have oodles to learn once down in Haiti and that I will probably feel immensely unqualified, but I believe strongly that I will be blessed for earnestly and sincerely preparing while at home.

There are several ways that we, Sustain Haiti are preparing as an organization. For example, once a month we have training meetings where the entire group meets together to talk about items of central importance. Our last one was a mostly focused toward team building, and our meeting on Wednesday night will be regarding the necessary health precautions that we will each need to take. This includes immunizations, mosquito nets, tips on preventing cholera and so forth. 

Each Wednesday night and Saturday morning, Creole lessons are held. Creole is the primary language spoken in Haiti and it is based off of French, but with simpler grammar and more phonetic spelling. 

Est-ce que -----> Eske

J'ai besoin de -----> Mwen bezwen

Merci -----> Mesi

I'm currently in my fifth year of French, so while I'm far from being proficient in Creole, I still feel confident that I'll be able to communicate adequately with the people of Haiti. :)  

Another way that I personally am trying to learn Creole is through studying The Book of Mormon. I purchased a copy of the BoM in Haitian Creole as a Christmas present to myself, and one of my projects for my Book of Mormon class is to read all of Moroni (the last book in The Book of Mormon) in Creole. It's an interesting process but the BoM is an awesome and very literal translation, which means that it's a great instrument for learning languages. I usually try to read a verse or two in Creole, then resort to French if I'm still confused, and then finally to English if I'm still not clear on the meaning. Though I'm not allowed to proselyte in Haiti and that's not my primary purpose for being there, I'm excited to be studying The Book of Mormon in Creole and for the language skills I am confident it will foster! 

Perhaps the most important training to my official purpose of being in Haiti is my public health training! Each Friday night from 8-9, myself and several others meet together and discuss different elements of public health that are especially important in Haiti. Among these are included the topics of cholera, breastfeeding, nutrition and STDs. Right now we have been covering a lot of the material, which is basic to us but may be much more foreign to the people we are teaching, and soon we will be working on teaching skills. 

Our teachers and trainers often remind us to teach the "why" behind our lessons while also keeping it simple. For example, teaching someone that it's important to boil water before drinking it may not alone incline them to do so if one does not understand that doing so kills things that live in the water and may be harmful to our bodies. 

Thank you so much for your support, donations and love. Not only do I feel that this experience and preparation and training will be helpful in Haiti, but also on my mission and in life in general. I feel so blessed to be at a time in my life where I can learn so much and do so many varied and exciting things and I feel so immensely grateful to each of you for contributing to my trip to Haiti. :) 

Much love, 

Rhiannon  

Hello Loved Ones!

So as many of you may know, this year I have had the wonderful privilege of attending Brigham Young University. Out of all the wonderful programs offered and causes supported, I have been drawn to one in particular. "Sustain Haiti" is a non-profit organization that sends students down to Haiti each summer for six week increments to teach different skills to better the lives of the Haitian people. They focus on the areas of agriculture, english language, and public health, and I have been invited to go to Haiti this summer to assist in the teaching of public health. I am absolutely ecstatic to have an opportunity to be a part of such a worthy and wonderful cause, and one that has been close to my heart from the time I was in seventh grade. 

In order to fund such a trip I have been actively raising money over the last few months and have been extremely blessed by the generosity of many friends, family members, ward members, former teachers, etc. As a small repayment for the money and time you have invested in me and this cause that is so dear to my heart, I decided to start a blog to keep everyone updated on my progress, preparation and eventual pilgrimage to serve in Haiti. 

I so appreciate the love and the support you show me and I hope that you enjoy getting to see a taste of what all is going into the trip that you have so generously been willing to contribute funds to!  

Thank you, thank you, thank you! 

Much Love,

Rhiannon Archbold