Pages

Monday, December 30, 2013

Mission Letter Week 24 - 30 December 2013

HEY GUYS!!

So first of all, I am just fine and was more than okay after Skyping. I'll be honest, it was not very emotionally impactful in a sad way... just happy and exciting and then it was over and we went and talked to a couple of people we'd met the other day. :P So no, it didn't make me trunky or anything. I'm doin' dandy. :D  It was AWESOME to see you guys though!! I feel like there isn't much to talk about now- haha! We haven't had much in the way of teaching to do, but this week we will be meeting with all the people that said "after the holidays".... It is now after... time to let us into your homes and give us all your food!!....I mean, listen to a message…ahem...

Oh one more thing about Skype, I feel like I hung up a tad abruptly at the end and I just want you to know that I didn't mean to. :) We just had to get going, to get to work... So yeah!

The singing was awesome! Brother E took the Sally DeFord arrangement of “I Need Thee Every Hour” (same one I sang at my farewell) and went NUTS on it, making his own version! Haha. He was the band leader (or something or other) for the Osmonds for a long time (noooo biiiggg deeaaalll) and has lately not had a way to express his love for music (you know how we music lovers have to "express that" in a way others can hear it. :P ) So he took this as a chance to do that and it was AMAZING!

These last few weeks were definitely a challenge as we met with rejection after rejection with things like "we are REAL Christians" "We already know Jesus, you need to find someone else”, and other comments like these. I wish we could just instantly convey the love we feel for our brothers and sisters to these people we meet and the desire we have to share the gospel with them. Our message is for the believer and non-believer alike. People who say "We are Christian, we're good. BYE!”, do not understand what it means to be Christian or to be Christlike or to follow Jesus. Otherwise they would listen.  As President Hinckley stated, I don't understand why someone who claims to believe in Christ would not want more of Christ in their lives, their hearts and their homes. IT MAKES NO SENSE. So if we want to be true Christians, and this goes for EVERYONE, we need to truly be ready and willing to do what Christ would do, and then DO IT! We cannot sit idly by and say SURE I'm willing to do whatever God asks of me....and then continue to sit there. GET UP off your lazy MUB (bum spelled backwards, word of choice for the upcoming year) and DO SOMETHING! ANYTHING! EVERYTHING! JUST DO IT! What gets you to do the will of the Father? Responsibility.  What gets you up off your lazy mub? RESPONSIBILITY. We have a responsibility to our God, and to our Savior to STAND and WORK. I cannot, must not and WILL not forsake Him. Don't be that key on the piano that goes dead during the concert. Don't be that person that says I am willing to do all things, and then turn and run at the face of responsibility. DON'T FORSAKE YOUR GOD.

That is what I have felt this week. That is what I have learned. And it's staying with me till the day I die and then onward. This doesn't end. There is no magical transition where one moment we are fighting and standing for what is right and the next we can just sit down. NO. We ALWAYS do what is right. We ALWAYS stand as a witness for Him, at all TIMES, in all THINGS, in all PLACES, and throughout all ETERNITIES...I added that last bit (about eternities) myself. ;P

Training might be the best thing in the world...it is also the most high-risk and high-responsibility task there is as a missionary...I say this not to brag. It has been said many billions of times here already, that being a trainer is the biggest mission leadership position anyone can possibly hold. Why? Because it is on the trainers’ shoulders to teach the new missionary what is good and acceptable, what is not, how to find, teach, learn, study, live, grow, and work. Again, I "boast not of myself" but rather share this to explain what it is that I am doing right now. It is fun. It is exciting. And it is SCARY. Elder S’s mission will greatly depend on his first two transfers...I only hope that by the end of this transfer I will have imparted all my knowledge and goodness to him and none of the bad, and foolishness. We are representatives of the Lord Jesus Christ and it is not something to take lightly. Luckily I had possibly the best trainer in the mission, and some of the best missionary leaders right now.

That is very sad to hear about T's Grandfather passing away. :( Loosing family is tough but at least we know what happens next. I didn't know him...I don't think anyways...but I know some of that family like C and T, and I send my love that way.

Emily isn't going to go to any dances....that simply is not going to happen. NO. HAHA! just kidding, It'll be an awesome experience. There is honestly a lot to learn from going to things like dances. Social skills, dancing skills, pickin’-up-all-the-ladies skills.....wait a second...gah. I'm so full of myself it's silly....ANYWAYS!!

It was great talking to you guys and I'm waiting for that letter! :D Love you all! Give my best to everybody for the holidays, the new year, all that jazz.

Till next week,

Elder BRRAAAAAAAAKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!

Elder S opening some AWESOME Great Harvest foodses! Some of the BEST bread I've ever had, and a bunch of other incredible bakery treats and such! :)

Has no real description.... It's music okay? We're desperate and poor. Don't judge.


The moment when we realized what it was that President C. and his family got us :D


Some of the ties from the Ds. :D  Which one is the tie you were talking about?? (The one Brother D wore when he helped ordain me to the Melchizedek Priesthood and ordain me an Elder in the Church). The Donal Trump tie (red stripes) fits me better than any ties I have ever worn!!!


Elder S huddling down by the space heater. :D  TOOOAAASSSTTTYYY


Uhhh . . . .  Brother M. at his finest. :D


We played Scrabble SLAM! for a billion hours. . . SO much fun! We also played a dice-based game where you pretty much just roll for points and kinda "bet" with the points you already have. . . Also a ton of fun!


CHAMP!  Woof. . . .


Gift card moneysssss JACKPOT!!


Brother M. got a SWEET Glenn Beck Book, Miracles and Massacres. He's happy! :D


Sister M., K., and B., opening gifts and having a jolly old time. :)


 “That’s all folks!”

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and congrats to us for starting our “Golden Year” (the one and only full calendar year) on our missions as of Tuesday at midnight! WOOP!

Sending love to everyone back home,

Elders Nine and S

Monday, December 23, 2013

Mission Letter Week 23 - 23 December 2013

HEY GUYS!!!! :D

WE ARE SKYPING IN TWO DAYS - WHAAA!!!! We will be at the M. home...hopefully you 'll get to see them on Skype. :D They are just AWESOME! :)

Sounds like you guys are having a blast right now! We are too over here. It's definitely not like back home as we are proselyting all the time still...and still have to work Christmas day till 9pm like every other day.......WIFE POINTS. YUS. Hahaha! But really, we are having a blast. Caroling as a missionary is like, easily, the BEST thing ever! Yep.

I have not gotten any envelopes yet so I hope I get them today. :D But I DID get the packages!!! I accidentally opened the wrong one though :'( ............... HA JUST KIDDING!!! I only opened the one that had #2/2 on it and I LOVE the story book and the oils! :D Ooohhhh the oils. Sweet mama of all oil loving. I was vacuuming the apartment the other day 'cuz  it was super gross and dusty cause we live on a dirt lot, LOL, and something in my back pinched. It was pretty scary at first cause it was the same pain as my old back pains... Yikes. But, after a Priesthood blessing and some essential oils I was back in working shape by the next day. My muscles and nerves were in a spaz the rest of that day ‘cuz they were as scared as me haha. But Elder M, the medical…dude....senior-missionary-in-charge-of-"ouch-I-hurt-my-back" helped me out and gave me some ideas. Plus the blessing and oils, I was SET! :D It still aches a bit but I'm not worried about it. :)

Next week I will send you a picture of the Nutella...it will be glorious...you shall see when you see......so yeah.

ORLI IS SO CUTE :D and soooo BIG!!! Holy Big Baby BATMAN!!

We found a family while caroling and they may turn into progressing investigators this or next week.  >:D They are really nice and liked having us in their home so we hope to get back in to talk with them again. :) This week has also been great with the members in R.V.. We have started doing "missionary moments" at the beginning of Priesthood (yes, I brought that over here from our ward in Plano!) And we had THREE in one day! More than we have had in a while so it was great. Even the Young Men are getting more excited about doing missionary work! We have been going on splits almost every week and also visiting members and talking to them about Christmas and missionary work...When the members get involved things are just easier. Less stressful for sure. :) It relieves a burden that sometimes the missionaries don't even realize is there. We have to work together. SAME TEAM! SAME TEAM! When members realize this, that is when things start to roll. :)

Kay that’s all for now, talk to you guys on Wednesday! :D LOVE YOU!

Elder Nine





Elder Nine and Elder S getting into the Christmas Spirit!  Love this pic!




A more serious and pretty Christmas photo with one of their favorite families who feeds them often. (LDS missionaries depend on others for their daily dinners, or go without.)
Elder Nine's companion - The awesome selfie of Elder S. Love this pic too!

Monday, December 16, 2013

Mission Letter Week 22 - 16 December 2013

HEY GUYS! :D

This week has been...interesting. Lots of door knocking and "carding" (sticking cards on doors after 830pm because otherwise people answer with guns, knives, angry dogs, and screaming wives… awkward), and a lot of dropped investigators. Namely investigators who we haven’t met with in a long time because they won’t stay in contact with us ...one of them is the Y family. :( They are "really busy" over the holidays so we are dropping them until January. So we are left with not very many people to teach which leads to a lot of finding-time! YAY bike ridiiinnnggg ......in the cold....at night...... WHOOPIIEEE! :D

B T DUBS, I am totally singing in Sacrament (our main worship service) on the 29th!  :D  I couldn’t do Christmas Sunday because it was already booked, so I am just going to do the Sally DeFord arrangement of "I Need Thee Every Hour", the same one I sang for my farewell! So that will be absolutely mind-blowing as only Brother E., the equivalent to Bro. F. here, has heard me sing. :D Bwahahahaha! Okay, maybe a tad full of myself ...so what if I love to sing, judge me I dare you! ;)

I'd like to share a nice experience with you.  Mama, when I read that part in your letter a week or two or seventeen ago (losing track of days again) when you said something like "those moments when the chips are down and things are slow it's a good time to take a step back, look at where you are and where you stand..." etc, and I just love that. It has really helped me focus this week as the holidays are rolling in and no one seems interested. I have taken this time to see where I stand with my Heavenly Father. So far so good.

HOLY COW.  WHO SENT THE NUTELLA? SWEET GLORIOUS MOTHER OF ALL NUTELLA.  HOLY NUTELLA BATMAN.  NOOOMMMM NOM NOM NOM!! is that what the question was for in your letter??  HOLY COW. WHHHAAAAA!!!!!! I'm gonna need help finishing it ‘cuz it'll go bad before I can! :D THAAANNNKKK YYYOOOUUU!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, I don't have much for this week, wish I did though.

I am doing fantastic and having a great time. I am STOKED for Christmas! :D

Sorry, still haven't found my SD card, so all I have is the one pic that Elder S  took at the T’s at dinner a few nights ago...we had papoosas …. or however you spell that. :P (pupusas) It’s Salvadoran. :D FANTASTIC! I still have a couple places to look for my SD card I haven’t checked yet but "things are looking grim" (British accent for the quotes there.)

Kay gotta run.  I'm gonna type up those letters and then I'm out. :P

Love you guys!!!!!!!!

 Elder Nine





Here we are with the T. family after eating dinner at their place. We ate Salvadoran Pupusas...YUMMMM!!!!


Monday, December 9, 2013

Mission Letter Week 21 - 09 December 2013

HEY GUYS!

Yes! Elder S and I ARE staying this transfer and we are very happy to keep serving together and to spend Christmas in a ward we know already and with a family we really love. :D So it’s gonna be GREAT!

Emily went to the temple?!?!?!?! WHOOO!!!! Isn't that just the best thing in the whole world?!?! :D I so wish I could go to the temple more...but my work is on this side of the veil right now. Haha.

That (MCO) concert looks AMAZING!!! OH, I wish I could hear them! :D I miss choir and singing all the time and awesome stuffz like that. But this work is awesome too. IS THE BEEESSTTTT (Nacho Libre voice)

We noticed that the flags were at half staff and asked someone what happened and they told us (about Nelson Mandela dying) sooo…yeah…not sure what else to say about it all...

The “icepocalypse” (ice storm) sounds like a lot of fun. :D I love adventures like that!....is the beeessstttt....

HAAA! I JUST TOLD THE PRES. UCHTDORF STORY TO THE DISTRICT! We are all crying, that was so funny!!!!!!! Hahaha!

I will certainly TRY not to open your care package till Christmas. ;) Haha! Yeah, I'll wait! I'm super excited for that!!

My coat is GREAT and even breaks the heavy winds, so it was a perfect buy!! :D We are staying fairly warm, though it is tough on bikes...but we get "wife points" for suffering anyways, so it's all good. =D

As for pics, I lost my SD temporarily sooo I couldn’t take a pic of my new suits. :( BUT they are FANTASTIC!!! THANK YOU!!!!!! They are SO COOL! I hemmed the slacks myself too, so that was nice and...free. THANK YOU!

I got your letter from 3 Dec and it was GREAT! I loved the story with Corbin Allred in it, it taught a lot of different lessons in there. Thank you for that :) I also love getting the Thanksgiving pics in the letter. My crazy family. Wouldn’t trade ‘em for the world! <3 And YES, REALLY. Long underwear. Really, really. It is SO COLD HERE! In the evenings especially! And slacks are just NOT warm pants. Ha!

COOL NEWS! L. and K. are now investigators! :D We ran into L. a couple months ago, when I was with Elder N, and we never saw him after that. Then we went on splits recently and I went with a Brother in our ward to go to that neighborhood and we decided to go visit them and we ended up teaching them about the Restoration and they want to hear more! WOOP!

We also knocked into a less active brother, D., who we don’t have a record of and he came to church this Sunday and wants to keep coming!!!! So this week has been really good to us. We have been just working our butts off and praying when we literally cannot walk or bike another mile. Miracles are everywhere :)

The Y's have finally gotten back with us and we are planning on seeing them tomorrow at 7pm. :D Things are definitely looking up. I have a firm testimony that our weekly planning and change of attitude has played a HUGE role in this. I have had to rely on my Savior more than I ever have in my entire life. When I rely on Him, miracles happen and I can make it through the week. If I didn't rely on His arm and His Spirit, I'd probably be home right now, thinking how everything went wrong. Because of His hope and Pure Love I am here and going strong. Without Him I am nothing. WITH Him, anything is a possibility, and I just have to work hard. I want everyone to know what I know now. It is so important. And it's HAPPY! Who doesn't want happiness?? That is what missionary work comes to. Do you want your brothers and sisters to have the same happiness you do? Invite them to it. Simple. And yet so HARD!! WHY?!?! Because otherwise we wouldn’t have a purpose here. We have to fight the natural man and just INVITE!! The people in our ward, by Elder S’s and my invitation, will be taking a plate of cookies and a Book of Mormon to a neighbor or friend. Operation Cookie is a GO! We are encouraging everyone to just invite. That is all it takes. We'll take care of the “dirty work”!

I love my Savior. I love His gospel and the peace it brings to my heart. I will always stand as His witness, at all times, in all things, and in all places. Steadfast and immovable. Built upon the rock of our Redeemer. With Him, we are solid. Stand with Him. Love Him. He loves us.

I love you guys too. SO MUCH. I really do. I want nothing more than to be together forever. So I'm sharing that with everyone else I see. You know that awkward moment when you walk past someone and you think, “Oh, I already walked past them, that would be awkward to turn around. I'm past the point of no return.”?  Well....there is no point of no return for us. EVERYONE has to hear. We will take it to them.

K , I have to run now. I love you all! Take care for this week, and remember...be awesome, and invite! (I know you guys are already doing that, so keep it up! :) )

Elder Nine

Monday, December 2, 2013

Mission Letter Week 20 - 02 December 2013

OH MY GOSH! I don't even know. Thanksgiving was awesome of course!! We went to the V. home and had a Thanksgiving dinner there. :D  Bro V. is not a member but basically acts like one. Haha. It was a good time and we even helped move a couch upstairs...just can't get away from moving large heavy things up an impossible set of stairs...but I guess it’s OK. :p

Mama, I did get the letter, but only because it counts as a "package". We get packages on Sundays apparently, but not regular envelopes.  So I totally did get it, but I only had a chance to skim over it. I LOVED the drawings Emi sent! And I bragged to my District today about it! :)

I'm SUPER sorry I totally forgot to ask Bro V. to take a pic on his phone and send it. :( I feel bad. Truly. I know how much you guys like pics. I will do better about that. :)

For Christmas, right now, I'm honestly pretty content....except maybe for some long underwear!  I could go for a couple of those. The nights are getting into the 20's now and being out till 9 is COLD! :P So that’s pretty much it though. Music is a great emotional helper I have found. As I listen to music that is good (spiritual) it REALLY  helps a lot in just making things happier! But I'm pretty satisfied with everything I have.

I WOULD LOVE THE CHRISTMAS STORY BINDER!! :D That is the best idea I have ever heard!!  YUS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry so many "!!!"

We have had to drop a lot of our investigators this week, unfortunately. It was hard, but we now know who is and is not ready to progress. The Y. family is still doing good although they headed out of town for a bit, but they are back now, so hopefully they can find time to have us over. :D They are our most progressing investigators.  Bro V. is, as well, but his process is going to be a slower one. :/  Sometimes I wish I could hit people over the back of the head and say "You know it's true!!!! JUST LIVE IT!!!!" ‘Cuz sometimes it feels like that's all they need! But I cannot go around hitting everyone…*sadface* ;)

I wish I had a lot more to talk about every week, but with the holidays rolling in we've been struggling just to fill our time up doing something productive and inspired.

I'm attaching some pics from about a week ago :D

In this pic Elder S and I are standing with Bro H., our ward mission leader...next to his water heater.




 So here's the story behind it. About 2 and a half weeks ago we had dinner planned with the H.’s and we called Bro H. that afternoon to confirm our plans. He picks us up and I ask him about dinner that night and he pauses. “Uhhh, actually Elders, I'm sorry but I have to cancel, my water heater is leaking and I have to fix it because my kids need warm water and I can't even afford the labor for someone to come install it. Really sorry.” So I chuckle. Bro H. says "Elder, this isn't really a funny thing”. So I say, "NOOOO it's not...but the fact that I'm coming over in an hour after our plans are through, to help you install that heater is rather amusing to me”. Another pause… "Is this another bad joke, Elder?” "NOPE! See ya at 6 o’clock Bro H.!" And so we went to Bro H.’s and he drove us to Lowe’s and I help him pick out everything he needed, tools, water heater, hardware, etc, we brought it back and I literally taught my ward mission leader how to install a water heater. From the Teflon tape to the soldering. :D And besides the cost of the water heater, it only cost $60...so that saved him around……..$500! :D I'll send some pics of the soldering that I, and Brother H. too, did after this. :D

Alrighty I'm about out of time so I'm actually going to send that other email now. I love you guys! Thanks for the help and support! Prayers are always helpful!! :D Love you, bye!

Here are some pics of the soldering we did...look how beautifully it was done too.





Beautiful Soldering Part 1



Beautiful Soldering Part 2


The burn mark on the wall from holding the blow torch at the wrong angle.

So Brak, all those times when it seemed like I wasn't paying attention to when you were fixing the water heater....I was! :D And thank you. Thank you for being AWESOME and teaching me the ways of much awesomeness and attractiveness! It paid off.

The burn mark on the back of the wall was Bro H. with a bad angle on the blow torch. :P

I didn't bring the long letter with me so I'm sorry if I didn't reply to everything in it...or anything...but I did get it and I still love y’all! :) BYE!

Elder Nine

Monday, November 25, 2013

Mission Letter Week 19 - 25 November 2013

Hello family!!

This week has definitely been a struggle. We haven't really taught anyone except for a few less-active people, which we were happy to... but our investigators have just about all fallen through. There is one family we are teaching and they have a lot of potential, but he is very busy with his privately owned car shop...which is cool ‘cuz that may be something I do when I get home. :D So we talked a lot about that. But it's just hard to meet with them. When we can meet regularly though, I know they will go far. :D

We have started a new proselyting style... raking leaves and other forms of service! Service gets a lot more people opened up than door-knocking. We have found that we really have to be creative due to the fact that in this day and age, door-knocking and other "traditional" forms of proselyting just don't work. People come to the door already set to say no to anyone but a close friend. So the idea of online proselyting has spread (not here yet :( ) and we have to be creative with our contacting now... so that's exciting!

I feel tired, worn out, stressed, and SO BLESSED. I now fully understand what the Brethren mean when they told us that this is the hardest time of my life, but also the time when I am the most blessed and the closest to God. I wouldn't trade this for anything. *Nacho Libre voice*:  I love it, it’s the BEST! :D

A scripture I read this week with Elder S is in Alma 26:27-30 and it talks about what we can do when we are tired, stressed, discouraged, or whatever....WORK!!


“27 Now when our hearts were depressed, and we were about to turn back, behold, the Lord comforted us, and said: Go amongst thy brethren, the Lamanites, and bear with patience thine afflictions, and I will give unto you success.

 “28 And now behold, we have come, and been forth amongst them; and we have been patient in our sufferings, and we have suffered every privation; yea, we have traveled from house to house, relying upon the mercies of the world—not upon the mercies of the world alone but upon the mercies of God.

 “29 And we have entered into their houses and taught them, and we have taught them in their streets; yea, and we have taught them upon their hills; and we have also entered into their temples and their synagogues and taught them; and we have been cast out, and mocked, and spit upon, and smote upon our cheeks; and we have been stoned, and taken and bound with strong cords, and cast into prison; and through the power and wisdom of God we have been delivered again.

 “30 And we have suffered all manner of afflictions, and all this, that perhaps we might be the means of saving some soul; and we supposed that our joy would be full if perhaps we could be the means of saving some.”


Just like one of the prophets said, the best thing to do for the Work, is to work! Work hard, pray when we can't work any more, and then work even more. We always find that we can go further than ever if we work with the Lord and do HIS will, HIS way.

I would also recommend, if you can find it, to listen to a talk called "Eternal Law". It's back in the days of President Hinckley. The speaker is David Alma Christiansen...not sure if that’s how you spell his last name...but it is the BEST TALK EVER. He's talking to missionaries but you can apply it to anything. :)

I have to say the number one thing that I have found the most important on my mission is RELY ON HEAVENLY FATHER! I am out here with no family, no close friends, and a goofy guy named S ;) from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. As much as I love Elder S, he just doesn't know me. Not like family or a best friend... or like Heavenly Father. As I have been out here in the middle of this forsaken desert, I have finally realized that He really has been there this whole time. I used to say I knew that for myself...but I guess I really didn't. I KNOW NOW. I just KNOW. My Heavenly Father LOVES ME. He is watching out for me. He's the wing-man that always has my back. He knows the plan that needs to be laid out for a successful time. If I rely on Him, and get over myself and my foolish pride and MY agenda, and work with Him on HIS agenda, I will have peace.  I will meet with success. Not always the success I think of, but the kind of success that I need. The kind that the Lord needs on the earth.
Plans for Thanksgiving are at the V's home, a part-member family. Bro V. is not a member and is struggling with...faith. Obviously. So we have been working with him…slowly. :P

That's pretty much it for this week though. I wish I had cool stories of progressing investigators, but I don't think the trial of our faith is quite over yet. :P We shall see!

TWO SUITS?!?!?!  AHHH!!! I JUST SCREAMED IN THE FAMILY HISTORY CENTER AND SCARED EVERYBODY!! :D Thank you so much. I know now what a sacrifice it is to spend that type of money. As I realized how much money I take just for food and simple things I realized, as much as I can right now, how much a sacrifice it is to take care of someone... So thank you. Really. From the bottom of my heart.

BRAAK that is awesome to hear about work!! :D I hope it really works out for you, and that you find a job that gets the job done but that you love. It makes a difference if you do or do not like your job. :P A smart guy I know told me something like that...not sure who...hmmm.

Deep-fry the turkey in peanut oil!  >:D  I got to do that with Bro D once. I love that man. They are big shoes to fill...but you have big feet…BRAAK. All that stuff about Brother D ... :'( I would hold those ties very dear to my heart.

Emi, you can tell A, for me, that the first time I did the Sacrament Prayer, I had to do it about 5 times myself. He's a good guy and I'm really glad he has made the choice to live the gospel. :)

I did NOT know that Liberty plays bass! That is way cool! :D That must have been a fun duet to listen to! Our Ward here doesn't have very many music-y people in it. BLEH.

That is very cold!! It hasn't snowed here but we did have a hail storm and very VERY cold rain!! :D I'll attach some pics of the hail storm at the end of the email! It was AWESOME!! And it came out of nowhere on Thursday in the middle of our weekly planning! We were just sitting there and then BAAANNNGGGHKSWHEDKLHSBDIWYGBEKLSDBKSFR! Big thunder clap and a bunch of hail!! WHAT!!??

Love you too, Emi!! :D

I have not received the letter yet, but that is AWESOME that they got to meet him!!!!!!!!!!! :D  I told Brother M. (big fan of Glenn Beck) and he was like WHAT?!?! It was funny. So I can't wait to read about that!! I will probably go home and get it in the mail today! :D

Those Land’s End shirts sound AWESOME! And "Athletic Fit" makes me sound really good. >:) I like it. Bwahahahaha!!

BAHAHAHA! That quote is hilarious!! :D Thank you for that! Much needed humor! (“It’s not what kind of car you drive that counts, it’s the size of the arm you hang out the window.”)

Okay guys...picture time  >:)



HAIL :)
Victory! pose :D  It was painful with all the hail hitting my head! :O
Elder P .... not-so-Victory!-pose. :D
DUCK FACE  >:3
Playing RISK last P-day .... left to right are Elders S, P, S .. happy little trolls, aren't they? :D

That's all I got...thought I had more but oh well. :) I love you guys! LATER!! :D

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Mission Letter Week 18 - 18 November 2013

Hi guys!

So this week has been a little stressful but we've made it through, so all is well and going......sort of smoothly again. :) Thank you for the letter, I LOVE GETTING LETTERS! Especially ones from home! They really bring the Spirit up in my day.

As far as SCONT goes, the reason you guys never went to any of my events is because we didn't really have any. It is a much MUCH more significant deal than it was just a few years ago. So I am very happy for Emily to be a part of it and to learn and grow and gain important skills and knowledge that will help throughout all of life! It really makes a difference when you have good friends and good leaders that teach you how to be a good person. The learning atmosphere in SCONT is absolutely amazing. I got to see some of their meetings and stuff before I left when A. would invite me to a few things they had, and they are doing AWESOME! So, Emily, great job at the event you went to!! Sounded like a TON of fun! Stick with it, cause it is totally worth it!

I'M SO EXCITED FOR THE PACKAGE THAT'S COMING!!!!!! :D WOOP FOR OILS!!!!!

That is so sad to hear about B! :'( That really, really stinks. Do you think it would be a good idea to email him? If so, just add his email to my contacts...thank you for letting me know. It is so sad to see people that we love and care about and that were strong and good go sooo far south!  >:( Satan is a BUTTMUNCH!!!

OHHH THAT’S where the money went! To my baptism pants! :) OTAY that makes much more sense. Haha. I told the bank that I'm in CA though, so they may not want you to use it from Texas...you may just have to transfer it out... so yeah!

34/35 sleeves would be too short on the other shirt so just stick with the longer sleeves...IF you can possibly find a cheap, good deal on a slightly more fitted shirt though, that'd be awesome...but if not don't even stress over it. :) Just a mild preference. Haha.

I'm glad that D is having a good attitude towards his Savior even in his condition. It can be so hard to find hope in this life in a situation like that, and he is being just awesome about it. I really do love that man, and I hope that everything goes well for him, where ever his path may take him. :)

I am definitely taking care of my bike! :D It is GORGEOUS!! And I lock that thing up like I'm obsessed with it...possibly because I am. :D If there is nowhere to use the U-lock, I’ll use a chain lock that I recently bought, and use the U-lock to lock the tires on so they be stolen. :) Good boy!

Also, I'll keep an eye on what makes Elder S "tick" for Christmas. Haha.

Fun fact for the week, I am now on a smoothie diet to help cut some more weight and it seems pretty good! We'll see in a couple weeks how it really goes, but with mostly fruits and oats and such. It should work. :) Hopefully…

Other fun fact is that I found I am a fan of shaving with a blade and cream instead of electric. Although I hold onto the electric because it is reliable in case I run out of cream and can’t buy more or something.

One more little thing that I thought was nice and I forgot to mention...Every week on Thursday we do weekly planning and we use 'Preach My Gospel' to guide us through it. So the day before Elder N left he stuck a note in there so I'd see it on that Thursday. Just a note that says some nice things and says goodbye and stuff... it made me cry. He was a great trainer, and I only hope that what he taught me will rub off on Elder S as well. :')

Once again.... MUSIC!! :D The more the merrier! Haha.  (With keeping with mission "music rules", of course.)

OK, soooo, I love you guys a ton! This week has been a little slow but we feel we were productive in at least getting out and talking to people, but no one except for one family is actually progressing or anything. It is really frustrating. But we aren't discouraged...just annoyed at people. Haha. So that is pretty much this week. We dropped a lot of people that weren't really committed, so we have a lot of finding time…YAY!

Kay gotta run. Sorry it’s short this time...I can't seem to get everything out quick enough. :( I'll try to type a little faster next time. I love you guys a ton! OH!!! And work with the missionaries! That is my testimony. Members working with the missionaries is SO important! There are just not enough missionaries in the world to do all this work!! Even with the 80,000 we have right now. Members NEED to do their part! DON'T BE LAZY! DON'T BE SCARED! Just share what you love the most with the people you care about. That isn't scary at all. :)

Okay really gotta go now, love you guys! Take care!!
Here are a couple pics of Elders S and P. P is our DL (District Leader) and S is his companion, and is new like S  and also a visa-waiter to Brazil. :D They are awesome. :)

kay bye!

~ Elder 9 



This is Elder S


This is Elder P with my scarf, looking like a painting of Joseph Smith that we got for free from some Sisters! :)
 

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Mission Letter Week 17 - 11 November 2013

HEY GUYS!!!

Sounds like this week has been a lot of fun for you guys and has gone well! I'm glad all is swelltastic back home. :)

I am soooo silly-happy right now it is crazy. I'll let you know that I am not the least bit depressed, discouraged or sad, but rather the happiest I have ever been in my life. This is SUPER hard work, but I can focus all my energy on it and I didn't know I had this much energy to put into it! When you only have one thing in your life to worry about, you can do some great work in that area. Lots of work. Cray Cray. So I am doing FANTASTIC!!! Two weeks ago was a little bumpy and rough to start out but as we progressed into the next week it just got better and better. :D


We are teaching a family now, M. and D., their 7 yr old son K., 16 yr old daughter M., and hopefully soon, their 21 yr old daughter as well. :) We taught them the Plan of Salvation just this last week and are going over on Wednesday to teach the restoration. We went out of order because D.'s concern started with the degrees of glory and when we explained that to her she was totally cool with it all. :) They have a friend in the LV Ward, and a bunch of missionaries a while back helped to move them from LV to RV :) So, yay for us! hahaha.

As for singing, I have not sung in Sacrament Meeting or Zone Meetings, but I did a little in District Meeting and I sang for B. because he wanted to know how well I could sing... he was happy. :D

G., we found out, has dementia and other "forgetty" type things going on in her head (she's a little old) so we are going to be working more with the rest of her family before we move forward with her, but our hopes for their progression are still there.

We didn't get to see C. and A. this week but we talked over the phone and hope to see them this next week. They are doing great, BUT we totally do need to actually meet with them. :P

We haven’t heard about the Family History work amongst the members yet but we should soon. We are hoping to get the members involved this way and if they don't...we shall force them! >:) Hahaha juuust kidding!!

(Mother’s note - this next paragraph was in response to my question if he was serving in an affluent area, which I had heard he was, and I asked if it was more difficult or easier to teach the gospel to these affluent people):

RICH PEOPLE SUCK (could of said that nicer). Everyone that we knock doors on (in that neighborhood) is a "jerk", no matter what we say and no matter the time of day or what they are doing... but we do it. We do it because it has to be done (in the Lord's eyes). There is always someone who is ready to listen to us. Just gotta find ‘em!

I'll work on getting more pics to you guys. :) We have been really busy so I haven’t been taking a ton of pics. Haha.

Okay, soooo we actually DON'T get 2 hr (to email), still just an hour and a half, and I have to email a couple other people so I gotta run soon buuut….

SUIT! So first of all, I have to tailor my pants...they are getting reeeaaallly baggy on me. They fall off even with a belt. ISSUE. Haha! So I'll be getting them tailored today somewhere. As for a suit, I found a REALLY Nice darkish lightish gray with pinstripes at Men’s Wearhouse, buuut it might be $x plus $x for taking in the bottoms of the slacks...I'll keep looking around for other deals. Let me know what you thing about that one though. Write it in the letter you send me. :D It is a beautiful one and it’s a Michael Kors, which is pretty nice...let me know what you think. :)

Gotta run guys! I love you all! Take care!

Elder Nine

——————————————————————————————————————————————

From Daddy:

Your letters are ALWAYS worth the wait.

Remember Alma and Amulek who taught and had doors slammed on them. It was the “poor among them” that were open to hearing the word. But, you are right. YOU have to knock. You have to give them that OPPORTUNITY. Everyone will have the opportunity. Then it is up to them. Be happy and rejoice that you are His servant doing His will, knocking on the doors of His children. You are successful regardless of their choice to listen, and regardless of their attitude.

THOU ART THE MAN.

SUIT. That is a lot of suit. If your Mama had her way, she would get it for you tomorrow. Please tell me the size of the suit. I will see about negotiating from our end.

From Elder Nine:

I remember the cartoon from Living Scriptures of Alma and Amulek...remember that? “Hello, we are missionaries, and we-“ SLAM! … “Hello we are mission-“ SLAM! … “Hello, we-“ SLAM! … “He-“ SLAM! …… That’s pretty much what’s going on here. :D But it’s all good. :) You are right. They have to have that chance. Sometimes they need a hundred of them. But I have a new way of thinking. I do the work. I’m in the trenches and I shovel, I shoot, I work, whatever you wanna call it, and Heavenly Father puts everything else in place. I just have to keep going, doing my part. It’s really pretty easy when you just get in the right attitude. You gain a love for the work. I love it. :)

My size is 50L (long, not regular) with a 44W. Slim fit suit.  >:) Believe me. I thought it was crazy when he recommended it, but I put on the suit and it fit BEAUTIFULLY!!!! The best a suit has ever fit me. I was soooo happy when I put it on! Haha! So if we can get one that fits like that, that would be AWESOMENESS. 50L 44W slim. :D

When you say ‘negotiate on your end’, what does that mean?? :P

From Daddy:

Don’t know.

I know we don’t have $X today. But, I do have a Men’s Warehouse nearby. I have learned the ancient art of negotiation from my 5 year-old son. The boy who never, ever took NO for an answer. Let’s see what I can do. However, I may have a problem locating something both darkish and lightish in the gray department.

From Elder Nine:

I have 9 min till I get kicked off sooo………

From Daddy:

That means, 8 more replies

From Elder Nine:

Haha, so the color was just a nice gray. Lighter than charcoal but darker than a super light gray. :P With some nice pinstripes, fairly close together. So yeah. Yes, my Padawan, go negotiate. Make me proud. ;) Let me know in the letter Mama sends in the mail. :D I'm going now. Love you Brak. Take care.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Mission Letter Week 16 - 04 November 2013

This is going to be very short, but next week I'll have more time!

Yes, I will take a pic of my new coat and sweater. :)

Yes my new companion is Elder S. :P He is AWESOME!! We are both learning from each other and working pretty hard. It’s all going very nicely. We really like working with each other and have already had some great times. I do miss Elder N but we have email so no biggy. :P

Oh, and being trainer is a ton of fun!!

I did get the pics in the mail, N looks EXACTLY like his mom!!! :O

I sing so much here that I almost get in trouble. I am almost always singing or humming something. It’s a great way to stay happy even when times are hard and chips are down, he knows just what to do,..... wait a second........ that was Michael Martin Murphy.... oopsie. ;D

This week almost nothing has happened. G. flaked out on us and we now have to reset her baptismal date because she didn't go to church on Sunday.   >:(

C. and A. are doing OK, we didn't meet this week though. They will be a slower work than most. They want to take it slow, so we take it slow. They should be making some nice progress soon though. :D


R. is AWESOME! He now has a calling as second counselor in the Sunday School Presidency!!! HE's gonna be awesome. :))

We did hear from J., not B. though,... same diff… and I sent that to you. :)

We also introduced a new thing in Ward Council this last Sunday, involving the members as they invite people to go to the Family History Center and do genealogy and then as they ask questions.... they get directed to the missionaries (when applicable). :D BRILLIANT!!

Sorry this is so short guys, next week I'll have a lot more time. :D I'll attach some pics but I gotta go now. :) BYE!

Love,


Elder Nine




Elder S and me


A friendship that will last forever!


SILLY FACES!!  Elder Nine, B., and Elder N

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Mission Letter Week 15 - 28 October 2013

Dear Family:

B. IS NOW A MEMBER!! WOOP! He also got the Priesthood yesterday AND a home teaching route!! :D He lives in the LLA Ward though so we won't see him very often. :( Transfers ARE tomorrow, but we were called Saturday so now we know what is happening.........duhn duhn DUUUHHHNNN!!! So Elder N is going ZONE LEADER!!!!! WOOO!!! He was District Leader this last transfer so he got “promoted”. Hahaha! I am STAYING!! :D AND.......I am training a brand new missionary!!! Wut iz dis. It must be an inspired decision and someone else better know what's going on 'cuz I have NO clue! :O  I'm pretty excited though! :)

We will be dropping J. by Wednesday or Thursday if we cannot make any progress with him. He's too much of a mooch and boozer to work with. He needs a counselor. BADLY.  But it is sad to see that he doesn't have any desire to change. We will try to stay in touch with him and if he turns around then great... but till then, we need to focus on the people that are ready NOW. Speaking of now, R. is getting (being ordained to) the Priesthood soon, has already begun his family history work and is DYING to get their temple work done! He is waaayyy too cool. We need a hundred R's and B's. They are just awesome. And we are allowed and ENCOURAGED to stay in touch, so I'll still hear from B. occasionally! And of course, I see R. 2-3 times a week.


G.! G. is cool. I don't remember if I have talked about her yet or not but we met her a couple weeks ago and set a baptismal date right away! She is a black lady from Belize and speaks English, Spanish, and Korean, in that order….Daaannngggg! And the dog speaks Spanish....yep. So we have been teaching her and she is still on track to get baptized by November 23!! Which is totally awesomesauce! And Her granddaughter has been reading the Book of Mormon to her a bunch...we may start teaching her too if she would stop running away every time we show up.  .__.   It's like they think I'm gonna bite or something, sheesh.

There is also C., and her elderly mother, A..  C.'s sister’s kids...so her nieces and nephews, are members we found out! And her father, whom we gave a Priesthood blessing to, has recently passed away, so we have been helping them whenever and however we can as well as teaching them when the moments allow. They'll be baptized. I know it. It's just going to take time. They are willing, they just have to take the right steps. And they are, slowly.

As for A., we had to drop her because she kept avoiding us...? I don't even know. So we had to stop going by. Sad face.

That's pretty much all the people that are progressing so far. We are still contacting people like crazy.

I'm glad you guys liked the gifts!! :D I was talking to Elder A about good places to shop and he had found a cute antique store with AWESOME stuff in it!! I might go back there for myself sometime! :D But I am glad that you like them. :)

Sorry for the plumbing problems!

And yes! I love getting updates about other missionaries! It's good and APPROVED reading material! Keep ‘em coming!!

Why do my baptismal pants not fit? BURGERS. DABURGERS. Hahahaha! But really now...I'm just too fat. ;D Would you prefer that I send them back or just donate them?? Put that answer in the letter you send snail mail. :) I like those letters by the way, they make me super happy!


My shoes are EPIC. I could not ask for better ones, the other missionary was just trying to get rid of some shoes so he just gave them to me! FREE SHOES!

Emily, I am so excited for you to be going into Young Women's and having that experience in your life! :)  It's gonna be awesome, and you are gonna be awesome!! I love hearing from you every week, so don't miss a week! ;)

Braaky, I have actually thought a little about where I'd live after the mission (don't worry, I am focused on the work and I'm not "trunky"!) And I may very well stay in the same ward. It's really one of the best places, now that I have seen other wards and places. I may check out others as well but it's looking likely that I'll stay local. ;) Okay, back to work.

GO CARDINALS!!!!!! back to work again...

J IS DATING K!??!?!?! WUUUTTTTT!!!! back to work....

Ds ARE GRANDPARENTS!!!!!????!!?!?!?!?!?

D GOT HIS CALL?!?!?!?!?

BAAACKKK TOOO WWWOOORRRKKK! :)

But for really reals, I have to go soon. I will send some pics in an email after this :)

~ Elder Nine



My costume! :D I thought it was clever, if last minute. We didn't have time for anything else. Haha!


R and I as we go into the Family History Center at the Stake Center! So there he is!!


The haircut I gave to Elder N with the cutters we borrowed from Elder A. :D NICE!!!


Us goofing around mid-haircut! :D


Emily inspired us, so we carved some pumpkins!! :D  Mine is on the right, and N's is on the left.

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Mission Letter Week 14 - 21 October 2013

Hey guys! :)

Everything is going super awesome!! SO first of all, B has been officially referred over to the Ward that he lives in. He was going to move over into our boundaries but plans changed, sooo that was super sad. But he is getting baptized and confirmed THIS WEEKEND!!! :D And he is so totally gonna make it, not even an issue. He's already been interviewed and everything so it is SET! We called him and his wife last night to see how the new Ward was and just make sure they made the switch okay and he was SO COOL ABOUT IT! He's not even a member yet and he's talking about how he wants to do his part to roll up his sleeves, get to work and help strengthen the Ward!! WUT!! He is SO COOL! :D So even though he can't be going to our Ward on a regular basis, and however sad that may be, we are so insanely happy for the choices he made and the life he is now living. :) Elder N and I cried last night, just about when we were talking to him (B) and he was saying how happy he was that we had been the ones to teach him and most importantly, how happy he was that he has made this choice. He has already felt how very right it is for him and he loves it. And we love him. SO MUCH. I had no idea you could love another person SO MUCH when they're not even related to you. We were just so happy last night and all day today. :)

So that's the news on B. :) I believe I sent you pics of him and his wife with us and the S's right? HOLY COW the S's are so cool. I think I already talked about them but they are worth repeating about. :) Sister S is Brazilian and makes my favorite food out of all the people in the whole Ward. :D SO GOOD!! And Brother S is just a way chill guy and they are both such a huge help in teaching people, befriending them and making them feel like part of a family. AWESOMESAUCE.

R is doing very well still too and should be getting the Priesthood either this or next Sunday! And he is also starting Family History work and temple work! WHAT A STUD!! He's so completely cool. :) I'll get a pic with him this week and send it next P-day! OH and fun fact about R: he spent a few years in the Navy around '94 or something like that...so I thought that was worth mentioning - haha.

To answer some of the questions, being with a companion 24/7 for everything, within sight and sound besides for the bathroom and special interviews...really isn't all that weird, haha. I don't know if I just got used to it really fast or just hung out with the guys back home too much but it just seemed normal right off the bat. I think starting off being comps with Elder C really helped too. We had an instant connection that cannot be broken. Ever. Yep, lots of love right there. Maybe a bit bromantic. haha!

I got the letter on the 19th so about three days...not too shabby! (Mom asked how long it took to receive letters)

I haven't been able to talk to the Zone Leaders about Skyping yet but I will try to find out in the next week or two.

By the way, I don't think the white baptismal pants are gonna work out after all...what should we do about that?

I DID GET A COAT! I LOVE BURLINGTON COAT FACTORY!!!! :)  I got like, a Perry Ellis or something that is apparently worth a lot and a Polo sweater for under $100!! Wadduuupp. Oh, and the jacket, the Perry Ellis one, came with a super soft scarf. :) Lots of happy.

Transfer meeting is a week from tomorrow but I will most likely be staying and training a new missionary.… “no big deeeaalll”. YIKES! And Elder N will most likely be going ZONE LORD....Sorry I meant Zone Leader. :P He'll do great too I'm sure. President has been calling less and less experienced missionaries to have leadership positions because we quite simply don't have the time these days to be taking it easy. They make you grow up fast here if you haven't already. It will be a good thing for everyone though I think.

(In reference to the Halloween costume on Bob that he won “Scariest Costume Ever” award at our Ward Fall Festival) Daddy, only you could pull off a scary Pooh Bear! ;) And I think BD was very right about what he said! Haha! But I love the costume and Emily did an AWESOME job on the ears!

Emi, it sounds like you had a ton of fun with the party then, and all the dressing up!! We are going to a party this Saturday and I'm going as..... a missionaryyy!! OOO super scary!! Hahaha! Just kidding...but we hope to be able to dress up a little bit at least. That'd be fun!

'SCUSE ME!!! My sister is not old enough to be doing this "growing up" nonsense (and going into the Young Women’s program at Church for 12-18 year olds)!! NO MAM! Nuh-Uh!! That is so crazy cool awesome Emily!! BEEHIVE TIME WOOP! (Beehives is the nick-name for the 12-13 yr. Olds) That is uber exciting for you! :)

And it sounds like you are really enjoying SCONT and MCO Choir and all your other awesome things! I'm glad it's going good for you there!

I love the pictures guys. :) I'll send some too in just a bit. I BROUGHT MY CAMERA THIS TIME!! Brother M is super awesome here at the Family History Center and texted me to remind me this time LOL! I'll put in a pic of him too. :P

Well, the work here has been picking up and we are finding lots of people to teach who really care about what we have to say and who are ready to make commitments with their Heavenly Father, so we will be seeing some good progress soon! I'm gonna end here now and start sending pics! :)

~ Elder 9
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -




This is my beautiful self :D Selfie!



Here is Elder N during a long day of weekly planning. :D


A letter we pinned on our wall that a little girl, Camille, in our Ward, gave us after we went over and cleaned up their back yard. Her mom is recently divorced and has been really busy so we helped her with some things that she couldn't do, like the yard and such. :) Lots of good service!


Some shoes another missionary gave me. :D


This is Brother M who comes in EVERY Monday with the missionaries to help them out and keep an eye on them for emails at the Stake Center. :) He is COOOLLL! We all love him a ton!


L-R: Elders N, M, A. Elders M and A are in the LV Ward. :)  This is N sitting on my bike and not being able to touch the ground.... He's a little short. :D


This is me wearing the watch Papa gave me. :D  If you can get that to him somehow, that'd be cool. :P


This is my old injury. :D  it's all gone now but this is what it used to look like. :)
That's all for now.

Till next week!

Elder 9