from Tallahassee

Hello Everyone,

I have really know idea about what happened this week. It seems that everything is becoming a blur. The days are all one. I wake up, exercise (P90X), get ready(shave, shower,get dressed), eat breakfast (something easy like eggs and black beans), Personal Study (always filled with the Book of Mormon), Companionship study (not as good as personal, but sets a nice tone for the conversations the rest of the day), and then it's out the door. Everyday is the same, with a few exceptions, and it all seems like one big day. The weeks seem like they go faster than the days go. I don't know how to explain it, but that's what it's like. Monday - Sunday is one big day, then the weeks over. Its really weird.
This week we had zone conference. It was fantastic. We always begin on course, doing the things we have planned and prepared, then we take a detour and find ourselves exactly where we want to be. Its really a profound doctrine. We let go of our pride and let the spirit take over. Everyone is invited to share what they have prepared and what they are thinking and feeling. The spirit is present as we prepare to do the things we learn. And all the tangents we go on are led by the spirit. It was a spirit packed meeting that left us in awe, wanting to work harder than before. Thats usually what zone conferences do.
In my interview with President Summerhays, he told me that I was right on track. Just doing good things. Sounds like a good compliment, but to me it just feels like another part of the 'blurr effect'. Nothing to focus on, just keep doing the little things. Wake up, exercise, etc. All the days are becoming one. My hope is that when it's all said and done, I can look back and see the progress. Kind of like looking at the canvas from far away after its completed.
I'm really glad to hear that Megan is doing good. It's going to be sad when I come home and still can't beat her in tennis. Someday though, I'll win. I talk with Lauren McCreless a lot (her husband is the Ward Mission Leader). FSU tennis is now in the sweet 16 and Lauren is the most winningest player in Florida State History!!! In both singles and doubles. It's her senior year and she is going out with a bang! I'll have to send you something cool. Lauren will coach for the Lincoln High school tennis team next year.
Anyway, being on the mission is awesome. It seems like I've been here forever. 4 of the boys will hit their year marks in the next couple of weeks. Including me!!!
I love you all.
Elder Call

Happy Mother's Day!

Hello Y'all,

I loved talking to you guys. Probably just as much as you did with me, I hope. The Christmas call was a little weird. Not knowing what to say or what was going to happen. This time was a lot more productive. I loved the feeling I felt after I talked to you guys. I didn't feel homesick at all. I just felt like I took a pit stop in the family station and I'm back on the road. Perfect.
So there is not much to add onto what we talked about last night. However, there are always stories to share.
Last Tuesday I went down to Crawfordville with Elder Waters. We had a great time working. It was also really hot. Anyway, we had a lesson with a girl named Heather. The Hollet family invited us to their house and Heather was there too. Lesson Time! We shared with the Ether 12. Just a few scriptures on faith, then left the rest to them and the spirit. Allowing everyone a chance to speak after each verse. Testifying and teaching after each comment. Learning all at the same time. It was great. At the end I bore my testimony. Nothing crazy. Just, "I know that these things are true, because they make me happy. I read because it makes me happy. I go to church because it makes me happy. I follow the commandments because it makes me happy. I know these things are true because they make me happy." Nothing much, right? If you were to bare your testimony right now, what would you say to answer the question, "How do I know?"
I didn't think about it too hard. I just said what I felt. Heather felt it too. She had been investigating for some time. She has read most of the Book of Mormon and has been to church very frequently. However, during the entire time she has been learning about the gospel, she has never heard a missionary say 'why he knew that it was true'. Sad huh? We know that the Book of Mormon is true. We know that Joseph Smith is a Prophet. But why do we keep following? Why do we work when we already know the results. Church doesn't change. The Book of Mormon doesn't change. God doesn't change, he continues to reveal his word, but he doesn't change. If we already know the out come of all of these, why do we keep going? There can and should be a lot of answers. Mine is because it makes me happy. Not as the world views or gives happiness, but as He gives it. I love this gospel and follow the counsel of Prophets from ancient times as well as these times, because it makes me happy.
I love you all, Happy mothers day mom. I love you.
Elder Call.

Mother's Day is Coming......

Hello Everyone,
Another week down and I'm at 11 months!! Today is my 11 month anniversary. Yay! Only 13 more months to go.
That is so cool that so many of the young men are going on missions. Chase is an old one. Argentina will be good to him. Creole for Tim. That will be fun to speak in Florida. All we have are English and Spanish in Tally.
I miss trek. I was so young when I went. I do remember sleeping through the testimony meeting. Good thing you were there mom. That would have been a rough week without you. Being a Ma and Pa sounds so much fun. I can't wait for a calling in young mens. What would be better than to spend my time with boys. I've been thinking that when I get home I want to coach. Baseball or Basketball. That would be so much fun to be with young boys and teach them how to play.
Well this week has been crazy. We have received a lot of referrals from members, finding new investigators and trying to work with less actives. All of which has increased dramatically in the last week. It could have been because Elder Tew and I went to Crestview this week. That took a full day out of our week. So it was like a 6 day week.
Kevin is getting baptized this week. He is so excited. At church his brothers and him were smiling, really big. His grandfather is coming from Wisconsin to perform the baptism. Its going to be great. Everything is ready, and I don't have to do anything but sit and watch. We will also be doing the confirmation the same day. Usually they do it during sacrament meeting the following Sunday for converts, but his Grandparents are leaving for North Carolina the next day. So Baptism and Confirmation.
We have had a couple of really great lessons this week. Both on Tuesday. First was supposed to be with a man named Rich, but he wasn't there. Instead we taught his roommate, Milton. Milton is a really nice man who knows a lot about the Bible. He has also been to a lot of churches. He was naming them off and I think he got to a dozen different churches. He's still looking. We shared a few scriptures with him and he shared with us his thoughts a feelings. It was amazing. He told us about how he is struggling with his girlfriend; he believes that everything we receive in this life is a gift from God; how he has been to so many churches, that they talk the talk, but fail to walk the walk; he knows that we talk the talk AND walk the walk. Milton is great. He is an Elder for his church and travels all over, but at the same time he knows that there is something missing. We're going back this Tuesday.
Our other lesson was with Sheila. She works for the Martin family (members) as their secretary for their Vending Company. Old Bro Martin gave her a Book of Mormon the other day. She had been reading bits and pieces here and there. She has also been to a lot of different Churches. She has a young son and they are looking together. She said that she went to a Jewish church and had a bad experience. Not only was it different for her, after the service a woman came up to her and told her she didn't belong. We have heard some crazy stories of churches out here. I hope no one sees our church as that way. Everyone deserves to have a good experience. We taught Sheila with younger Bro Martin. (Father-Son business) We gave her a chapter to read and asked the Martins to bring her to church. We don't know if she has read yet, but she didn't come to church. We are going back this week to teach her again.
We have also received a referral from Bishops wife, Sis Matkin. Bro and Sis Matkin are Professors at FSU, I think, at least Bro Matkin is. They have some friends who are professors too. One actually taught at University of Utah! About 15 years ago though. We went over to see her (I'm blanking on her name). Sis Matkin asked us to help with service. Her friends home is falling apart and they need some help. So on Friday we will be doing a lot of house work. We are just supposed to be friendly and answer questions.
Its been a great week. Zone Leader Council was great as well. President Summerhays is going home soon and we're preparing for the new mission President. Its going to be a big transition.
Love Y'all,
Elder Call

PS Do you guys know by chance any Rogers? They moved to Alpine last summer. Elder Rogers, their son is out here. He'll be playing football for the University of Utah. Random, but just wondering.
PPS I can't wait to call you guys.

Finding New Investigators...

Hello Everyone,

Mom, I got my package with the medicine. I got it last week, but failed to mention it. Sorry. Thanks for the medicine. I also got grandma's package. That was really kind of her to send me food in the form of a card. My Comp's liked it too. ;)
That's so cool that Jade is going on a mission. There is a kid here in Tallahassee who leaves on Wednesday for Anaheim California, Vietnamese Speaking!! Almost as crazy as Tim Terry's. That's a lot of time for them in the MTC. I feel bad. I loved it, but I hated it. I don't ever want to go again. Due to a good cause. (He had the swine flu and was in isolation for many days)
This week has been great. We have been having trouble meeting with Phil Baker and The Davenport's (Kevin). Instead we've been blessed with finding new investigators. We went to a referral's house to give her a Finding Faith in Christ. She wasn't home so we were walking back to our apartment when a man yelled to us and asked us to come over. He was sitting on his truck talking to a woman there and wanted to know if we had any money. When you walk around with a shirt and tie every day, people think you have money. Instead we told him the only thing we have to give is a Book of Mormon, Restoration Booklet and a Finding Faith in Christ DVD. He took all of them! We talked to him for a while and found out that missionaries have been by before. We set up a time to come back the next day. Rich, his name, was ready for us. He had watched the movie and read the booklet. He also had a bunch of questions. Where did God come from? Why can't I practice plural marriage? (usually people use that against us, he wanted to do it!!) We did our best to help answer his questions and he really appreciated our honesty. We're going back to his house on Wednesday. It's going to be great.
We had another really cool experience this week too. Elder Tew and I were tracting when we heard some noise. Loud cheering noise. We decided to tract in that direction. When we got there it was a park and there were people playing basketball. When we came up to the court they yelled out, "The Elders are here!" None of them were members, but there were a few who had played with other missionaries before. We stayed and watched, I couldn't resist. Afterward we talked to a few of the. AJ and Mario. They didn't know much about our church and just started asking questions. Good questions. Not trying to confound us or trap us, but just wanting to know. We gave them a Restoration Booklet.
We also met another guy named Josh. His story is awesome. He grew up a Preacher's Boy. He knew all about the bible, but at this point in his life he feels like he is missing something. He went to Covenant College in Tennessee, where he is from. Almost dated a Mormon girl, my guess is she found a RM instead. He is done with college and is visiting some friends in Tallahassee. Decided that he would go play some ball and found missionaries instead. He reminds me so much of Clark. Tall skinny basketball player. Very reserved, but was also very open to talk with us when everyone left. He asked about repentance and how he felt like nothing every day. Falling into the same old traps. He asked some of the greatest questions. Not because they were eloquent or easy for us to teach, but because they were straight from the heart. He knew he was looking for something. A good feeling that he hadn't felt in a while. We gave him a book of Mormon. We are going to meet with him on Saturday. It was just a really cool experience to be a part of.
This week has been full of blessings. I love being a missionary.
Love you ALL,
Elder Call

Transfer week....

Hey Y'all,

Another week has flown by. Each seems to be coming faster than the last. Transfers was this week. As a Zone Leader, Elder Tew and I had to get everyone to the Transfer Spots. Especially those who didn't have a ride. Campus never has a ride. So we went early Wednesday morning to pick up Sis Fink. She was being transferred to Destin. Sad day, right? Sis Hernandez got her new companion (I forgot her name) and we drove them back to their house. However, we had a few tag alongs with us. Elder Kanaras didn't have his companion yet, so he stayed with us. Crawfordville Elders also stayed with us too.
We had three extra missionaries. Good thing service is on Wednesday. We took them with us to the Ronald McDonald house. It was a lot of fun having so many missionaries together. We then went to the capital too. My camera is broken (got dropped and the lens won't close. Everything else works, just can't take pictures. I need to get it fixed) so I couldn't take any pictures of the capital, but I'll steal some from Elder Jenkins so you can see it. After that it was back up to Transfer spots to get all of the missionaries being transferred. We also got to see all of the missionaries who were about to go home. I still have 14 months.
We tracted into a less active girl the other day. She is almost 21, goes to TCC and is a member. We went back over to visit with her and teach her. She had some really good questions. We also talked about her past. Most of her family are members. Her parents are members, but two of her older brothers aren't active. They didn't serve missions. We talked about the fears she had, why she stopped going to church and all the good things. We then shared with her our purpose and how to read the Book of Mormon marking the promised blessings. I hope she takes the challenge. Marking the promised blessings changes the way I study the Book of Mormon. I am now looking for what I'm supposed to be doing to be a better Missionary, Priesthood Holder and Father. Its great and I learn a lot.
I am really going to have to learn how to smoke food. Especially chicken. We just got done going to Sonny's and they smoke everything. Its amazing. We also see smokers on the side of the road all the time. It's not that hard to do, I just want to perfect it. Then we can have a real B-B-Que when I get home. Yum!
Love you all. I can't wait for Conference Ensign's to come out.
Elder Call

More Fire Ants!

Hey Everyone,

Its been a great week. Elder Tew and I have been working really well together. We each have our own abilities, but we are figuring out how to make them work together. Elder Tew is really passive and loving, I'm more bold. nuff said. Its been great teaching and I think our investigators like it too.
So this week I found out that I'm allergic to Fire Ants. Those nasty things got me again this week. Early in the week we found a less active girl while tracting. We talked with her for a while and she told us her story. Her parents are members in DC and her sister just got home from serving in California. We asked if we could come back and she told us that she needed help in her Garden. Elder Tew and I came back on Saturday to meet with her and help her in her Garden. Her friends were there and one of them knew Dallas Strickland. A member here in the Singles Ward. We had a nice talk while working with them. We also discovered an ant hill on one side of the Garden. We mostly avoided it. We planted sunflower seeds, tomatoes, peas, lettuce, peppers and some various herbs. It was a lot of fun planting and learning.
I was planting some peppers when I felt a most unpleasent sensation. I was getting bit on my hand, again. One of the ants was going crazy. He had bit me, but trying so hard he was completely vertical trying to rip off my flesh. It was nuts. I only have about four bites. They started to swell a little bit while we were there. Kind of like a misquito bite. Well, that night it was a little bigger than a misquito bite. My whole wrist was swollen. It kept getting worse and right now my whole four arm is swollen. It looks really bad, but its not. The swelling will go down by tomorrow. It is just making my shoulder really tired. All that swelling is weighing it down. Kind of funny.
Zone Conference was this week. We were studying about the Atonement for this Zone Conference. Man I love listening to President teach. He is so submissive to the spirit and very bold about promising blessings to missionaries. (Do you still remember mine?) He gave two individual blessings to two missionaries this time. One who is brand new and one who goes home this week. It was awesome to hear them. I can't wait to see what is going to happen to those two missionaries.
We then spent the last bit of Zone Conference reading and listening to Hymns. Did you know that How Firm a Foundation is written in First Person. Its God speaking to us. I never knew that before and it changed the meaning of the song for me. We also learned a lot about Mac Wilberg. He's a genious.
Transfers are this week, but I'm not going anywhere. My old area, Ozark, is getting some big changes thought. It will be interesting to see how that works out.
I love all of you very much. Its getting very hot down here. Summer isn't here yet, but you'd think it was.
Love Elder Call

General Conference!!

Hello Everyone,

General Conference was great. I love being a missionary and listening to conference. It produces such a different feeling than when when I'm at home. My focus is not on myself, but on others. It seems like I get the most out of conference when I'm focused on others. There were two main topics in general conference, Atonement and Family. So many times did I here about the home and family. How parents should raise their children, how children should follow their parents. How each day there should be chances and opportunities to teach and testify. I'm glad that I get to learn this now, and grateful that I was a part of it growing up. I loved learning. Especially when it was dad or mom teaching. It was very hard to understand sometimes, due to arrogance and impatient tendencies. However, the longer I'm out here the more I remember what dad and mom taught me. It's Great!! I then try to teach it to the people I love here. So many homes are broken here. We met a lady the other day who asked us to pray for her daughter. She just went through a divorce and we expressed our sorrow for her. She simply said, "everyone goes through it." Its sad to think that divorce is part of everyone's every day life. Its just how they were raised. In broken homes, due to the actions of someone else.
Its a good thing that I still have a while before I have to worry about that. It seems like a daunting task to get married. One that is, by the worlds standards, never going to last. So many things are getting thrown at the family. I felt this way last conference and feel it again this conference. There is so much against getting married and starting a family. Its sad to see people who "wait" for the perfect man or woman. There is always the "right one", but never will we ever find the perfect one. Our Mission President taught this at our Zone Leader Council. Those who wait for perfection usually miss out on it until they are forty or fifty. By then it is too late to begin a family. Its crazy how much you learn about raising a family on a mission. Ridiculously crazy!!!
I'm again glad to be learning this now. Learning how to teach, testify and love. Three things that will help me forever.
I love you all and pray that Conference will be your source of study for the next 6 months. I promise to make it mine.
Love Elder Call.