May 16, 2011
Heyyyyyy errbody!
There's so much cool stuff going on up there! Sounds like some stressful stuff, but a lot of fun stuff.
Haley, congrats on your award. Good luck tonight! Smile lots and be confident. You were elected for a reason! And good luck with finals. Work hard to the end!
Brock, Operation 'Snake in my Boot' sounds pretty legit. And don't worry, I won't tell anyone. And don't worry, I'm not concerned about the future. When I talk to you guys on the phone I just automatically get to thinking about all that kind of stuff and I speak my mind a lot more than I used to. I do think about the whole financial situation I'm in, but I'll be working hard and I know everything will work out. It always does. Calculus = Diarrhea. I had a hard time in that class, but mostly because I fell asleep every day. I think having a tutor would be such a help. I should have done that.
Mom, thank you for the story from that sister missionary. Putting things in perspective always helps. And thank you for sending that package! It sounds like you're going to send another one with the shirts and post its. Thank you! A few other things came to mind this week. A bouncy ball (thinking tool/stress reliever) would be awesome. Also, old spice deoderant, those packaged tissues (so awesome), and a couple of cloths (to wipe my sweaty/dusty face). That would be awesome. And maybe some more rash cream haha. ha.
gosh.
Mom, I love you.
Dad, good luck with strat plan and all that. Sounds like things are coming together with the whole move thing. I get more excited about that the more you guys tell me. That will be really cool. You would be awesome in court. I wish you could take a video of it haha! Take it to him, that guy's a gillote. And who was that quote by? I think I read that a long time ago and I really liked it. Thanks for that. It's so true.
So, this week. We worked so hard. It felt good. But we have no time for anything. Like I couldn't even get Mom's letter started. And I have a letter for Dad that's ready to send, but I haven't had any time to go to the Post Office. It's ridiculous. We have no time to clean the house. I get to bed late at night. We can't get to all of our appointments. There are too many people to teach and talk to. It's been craaaaaazy. I'm going to talk to President about it this week. Interviews were post-poned until this coming Friday. I know what he's going to tell me. He's going to say that I should challenge people in the street to get baptized. Haha it's so crazy and uncomfortable doing that, but I started doing it this week and it's been really cool and interesting.
Cool story. When we got to Champe, we met a drunk that told us to visit him. His name is Menchu. We visited him reluctantly, expecting him to be drunk and annoying and wanting to practice english. But we were surprised to find him somewhat sober. We taught him the Word of Wisdom and set up a return appointment. We were both thinking it was a lost cause. Drunks never remember appointments. We returned four days later for the appointment (we almost skipped it because we had other visits to make) and we found him sober again. He was on the verge of tears. We asked him how he had been. He hadn't touched alcohol for the four days since our first visit. This is a man that would drink every day for nine years. His body was rejecting solid foods and he was in constant pain. But he was staying strong. He wanted to go to church yesterday, so we passed by his house in the morning before church started. Unfortunately, he had to accompany one of his sons at work. But we saw him in the afternoon eating a mango... still sober. Miracles happen. Please pray for him. Brother Menchu is his name.
I realize we shouldn't judge people for anything. We shouldn't withhold the gospel message from anybody. I'm repenting of that.
Thursday we got home from our planning meeting in Reu and our door was stuck. We had to call the landlady and they had to install a new lock and stuff. It wasted an entire afternoon. I felt so horrible having to sit there in the house while they worked. Ugh. But the next couple days were great.
Yesterday we taught a group of eight men. We contacted them last Sunday while they were playing soccer. We set up an appointment yesterday and they were all there again playing. So we sat down in the sand (it was right next to the beach) and talked. They were surprised at what we had to say. They, like everyone else here, assumed that we worship Joseph Smith. We cleared that up quickly and taught the message of the restoration. One of the young men there is the son of a pastor. He seemed offended at our message, especially when we invited everyone to come to church (I think they all attend his father's church). We addressed him specifically and said we weren't trying to destroy anyone's faith or religion. We were simply inviting them to come and see what the Church of Jesus Christ can add to what they already have. He seemed okay with that and we left feeling the Spirit. It was cool. They then asked if we played soccer. It was Sunday so we said maybe another time, but I gave in to shooting on goal. I kicked it really hard and it went to the corner and they really loved it haha! Little things like that help us relate to everyone.
Church was tough yesterday. We were expecting 65 people. 42 came. But it was a good day. We had investigators and less actives, so we're seeing improvements. It's hard not to get discouraged sometimes, but we're working hard. We just need to work smarter. We'll see what we can do about that this week.
Thank you guys for your love and your emails. Brock, maybe it's just because you email less, but I really love getting your emails. They're a boost. Mom and Dad, thank you for everything. Haley good luck with everything! I love you guys so much. Aubrey, you too!
Have an awesome week.
Love,
Elder Austin Tyler
