Week 66

So I'm excited right now! We got transfer calls on Saturday night and I'm going down to Exeter which is right below where I was trained. It's about two and half hours away so it's way south. I've been asking president to go down south because there is a whole different feel down there and I prefer it. Exeter is a Spanish area so I'm back in Spanish again which is what I wanted. I know quite a bit about the area and I know that it's a super awesome area. It's out in the country, very similar to Reedley so I will have a car which will be nice because I'm physically tired right now. My new companion is Elder Leavitt who is just coming off being trained, I will be his second companion so he is still pretty new in the mission which is nice because they are normally pretty humble and willing to learn. So this past Wednesday we had the Halloween party and we got thirteen people there, I just wish we could get that many to church. It was a great activity and it was even super fun for me. On Thursday we went and did service for 3 hours and they are always amazed how much we get done and they really appreciate us coming and helping. This past week we have had pretty much every meal dropped off because everyone is so busy so we have had a lot of pizzas. On Saturday we did a church tour with a guy named mark and he then came to church yesterday and we had our primary presentation so he didn't quite understand it's normally not like that so hopefully it was a good experience for him and that he will come again. Looking back on the past three months in Turlock I have really have learned that I am the only one who decides how happy I am and what attitude I have. If I didn't learn this I would not have had a good time and be able to work and see progress in the area. I haven't had the best companions which has made me really learn this lesson in not so ideal lessons but it makes me appreciate what I have at the present and enjoy it. I don't know Elder Leavitt yet but I know that there is little that he can do that will bother me, I have been desensitized to getting mad or frustrated which is a trait that I need to have. It really is just a matter of self control and biting my tongue and knowing the times when it is better to just say nothing. I will miss this area because I do love it but I'm just so excited to be going to Exeter.

Week 65

Good to hear from all of you and glad that your getting better mum but now you've passed it on to dad with his thumb. I still can't believe that Ethan is home, I just have it stuck in my mind that were both in the mission field but he's back and it's weird to think about. That's funny about "the knock" I remember that one haha. That's cool that Kevin Hadlock was able to be there and that Ethans talk was good. Sounds like he's got a good plan for the next little while, let him know that I'm 85% going to Provo in the fall and that I won't be doing the summer semester. I can't decide where I need to go school, I'm defiantly going to apply for BYU and probably go there but I know I have a semester still paid for at BYU Idaho. I will wait and see I guess. This past week has been a little weird as we were moving the other elders out and then moving them into our apartment across town. We thought it would be a quick thing but it took us two and half days to do it all and I think I'm still high from all the chemicals we were using as we had to get it spotless. Our apartment is a mess now as all their stuff is here so it's not my ideal situation because its not that clean but it's so much fun having them here. I am doing better with my companion, I realize that I'm probably not his first choice of companion and I need to be patient with him. He is a challenging missionary and I don't think that President will leave him with someone for more than one transfer because its mentally taxing. Transfer calls are this upcoming Saturday and I think that I'll be leaving Turlock which I am ready for as I want to be in a Spanish area and I'm ready for a change of scenery. We have a lot of investigators right now and our teaching pool is getting quite big and we are looking forward to having twenty people in our teaching pool. Today, we are doing a quadzone activity and were doing the Olympics so it will be a bunch of fun games and food. This upcoming week were busy every day as we have meetings and then the ward Halloween party that were expecting 10 investigators to come to, it's funny because they will come to the fun activities but not to church. They don't realize that this is something that can bless their lives and it's our job to help them come to that realization. I feel like these past couple transfers have been super tough but now that I look back at them they have been times of real growth and developing the attributes that I need to develop. Despite all that I do want a companion that I'm friends with this next transfer because I need a break. The weather has really gotten cold, today its like 60 which it hasnt got to for like 8 months so its nice to go out and work in. This is my favorite time of year and I love the holiday season, this year has gone by so fast, I remember last Halloween like it was yesterday and now here we are again.  

 I'm super jealous that you could play Risk, I've missed staying up late and playing that. Well, thats about all I have this week. I love you all and hope that your all doing well. Miss you guys.

Week 64

Preparation day got switched to today instead of Monday as you probably know by now. I've been doing pretty good the past couple weeks, the work is doing very well and we have more investigators than we ever have before but my companion is a struggle every day. I am trying to be positive and upbeat but it's tough to do that every day, I'm drained from the past couple months and am very tired and exhausted. I am trying to see the good in him and not focus on the negative and that is helping but this is a seriously troubled missionary, I feel bad for him as I don't know that he will last his whole mission but he defiantly doesn't make it easy on me. We have a couple of people that are progressing right now and the lady who has breast cancer is starting chemo this week so hopefully we will still be able to teach her as she is going to be very busy from now on. They are such an awesome family and it's rare that we teach someone that makes good money but this trial has brought them to take the lessons so I guess it could be considered a good thing. I can't really remember what has happened the past week or so but tomorrow the other elders are moving in for the last two weeks of the transfer until their apartment is ready so that will help me a lot as I get along with them really well and one is from Mesa and are very good friends. This transfer has easily been the hardest transfer on me but it has taught me to look at myself before I look at others faults and weaknesses. Transfer boards are this week and I'm hoping that I can go back to a Spanish area, I would be fine staying here but I only have six months left and I would like to improve my Spanish. I heard the Orioles lost which is too bad but they did a lot better than every other year. My studies have been so good, I am trying to memorize every chapter in the four gospels so it is time consuming but has been very rewarding. Well I better get going but I will talk to you in a few days on Monday. Love ya, bii!!

Week 63

It was good to get everyones emails, a lot of exciting things happening right now. I just got back from Olive Garden and I tried to break my breadstick record of 12 but I only got 9 down and I had to tap out. So I am really tired now and I wish that I didn't do that many. This past week has been really good. We've found three really good new investigators and they seem to have promise. They are all member referrals so it's good to see the ward doing missionary work. One of the referrals is a lady who just got diagnosed with breast cancer stage 4 and she really thinks that she is going to die, she's still pretty young and has a three year old boy so she is super scared and fearful. She was a nanny a long time ago for a lds family and was really impressed with them and she knew a lady in our ward and now were meeting with her. She wants to know her purpose in life, crazy how this lady is like 35 and doesn't know what her purpose is and how scared of dying she is, sometimes we don't realize how we take our knowledge for granted. We did our service at United Samaritan again and we also had two people while we were working there want the missionaries over so we sent those referrals to other elders where they live. Sharing the gospel is so easy to do, it's just talking to people wherever you are about the church in some way. I think half of the investigators I've found on my mission has come from doing "non missionary stuff" such as going out to eat and doing service, it's all about inviting them. Talking about the gospel is easy, but the inviting part is what most of us aren't good at. Conference was awesome, I was really touched by President Uchtdorf when he said that we need to find joy in the now and not look at the finish line, I find myself saying, "next transfer will be easier" and I don't enjoy that transfer as much as I could have but I need to find joy no matter what the circumstances are. I'm doing pretty well with my companion for the past week and were doing better, it's still very hard but its fun. I've been having great studies the past couple weeks, I keep finding ways to better study the scriptures and am finding things that aren't at the surface level. I've been really trying to internalize the scriptures and its time consuming but I've been learning so much and am a better teacher because of it. The weather is cooling down and it's so nice, its 80 and 70's every day so it's so enjoyable.

It's so crazy that the age to serve a mission has gone down, I'm jealous, I would of loved to go when I was 18. That's good news for girls that they can go at 19, thats the big change. This week I'm going on exchanges so that will be nice to be with Elder Fisihoi. Well, I gotta go but I love you all and will respond to your emails next week, don't think I'm ignoring you. love y

Week 62

Thanks for all the emails! So was a busy week last week with everything that happened. My companion has a hurt hand so he's been going to Fresno to get his hand checked out so I've just been doing splits with the members and teaching. We went and did service at a community place on Thursday called United Samaritans and we just helped out for four hours with preparing the food that goes out to the homeless and less fortunate. They were really grateful for our help so it's worked out so far and we will be doing that every Thursday from now on. Josie is doing well, she came to church again but doesn't feel ready for the 5th of October and I don't think she's ready either so were going to push her date back a little more. We've found a couple new investigators this week, English areas are not as good number wise. In past areas getting 8-10 new investigators a week was good, but here it's like 1 or 2 so I just need to remind myself not to compare and know that I'm doing the best I can. I've added unnecessary stress from trying to get numbers that I can't get in this area yet. I've had some tough companions recently, all three have expressed that they were thinking about going home so it's been tough in different ways but I'm really starting to learn how to have success and have fun despite not being that similar to my companion. I'm really trying to be more patient with my companions and understanding I'm not their first choice of companion either. Some of the greatest accomplishments on my mission have been when I want to say something negative to my companion but instead keeping it in and saying something positive to them. So yea we go running every morning, we have a nice apartment complex so we have treadmills and I do that for 20 minutes and then I started doing abs and lifting weights so I'm in a lot better shape than I have been in. I cut out soda from my diet so nothing but water from now on. I'm looking forward to General Conference this weekend, can't believe that was already 6 months ago. Dad, do you have any good training things that you could send me? Theres something about how its not the words you say but how you say it and your body language. Could you send me some of that stuff? Well, thats pretty much it for this week. Love you and miss you.