Dear Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,
This week has been wonderful. I gave a lot of service this past week. I mowed yards a lot, which is quite interesting. Here in Virginia, lawns go uphill, which is why it is so interesting. It is like pushing a handcart at times. You can try to go up the hill to down the hill, but the lawn mower likes to go its own direction when on a slope. There is one place where I did have to do a hill and it looked bad. It looked even worse, because I did not get to finish. What prevented me was being stung by a wasp, which do not fret, I am fine and alive. I was mowing the lawn, saw the wasp land on me, it stung me, and I was like, "Gee, ouch, ouch? My leg does hurt." It was interesting moment for me. I plan on getting more of those bug repellant clips to ward off the creepy crawlies that abundantly live here.
We had a potential investigator cancel on us completely, but we were able to find more by tracting. All is well. One of our investigators appears to be progressing and I was able to ask him to be baptized. He said no, but I think eventually he will.
The weather has been hot. I am being honest about not noticing the humidity. Maybe after it rains, but I do not notice it. We had a few rain storms, which are awesome. They last for a short time, but it does pour and there is lightning and thunder. It is amazing.
My companion and I visited some less actives and there were a few okay visits. All is well though. We visited many of the members so that we can gain referrals. Some members are interesting. Most will feed us on the day that we stop by if we do not have dinner plans. They are so willing to do so and it is quite amazing. I feel bad to say yes, but it is better to say yes than to starve. They do not mind at all. Though there is one member family who we cannot do that anymore, because the wife of the family will go out and buy more food. And they do not need that food either. I was helping put stuff away and the refrigerator and the freezer were already stuffed with already purchased food. It is insane, but that family, specifically the wife, are quite interesting. Some members like to talk a lot and it makes for an easier time. The bishop (pastor) here is truly an inspired man and I do appreciate him. We had dinner at his house last night and he had some of his 13 kids over with their own children. So, that pretty much sums up my week. Service and talking.
Do not worry about shipping me pants or anything of that sort or shipping me things. I plan on buying pants quite soon and it is no problem in doing so. I have enough as of now. My address is what is. It is a bit odd, I agree, but it is 203 Excaliber Circle, Apartment #203, Fredericksburg, VA 22406. We are not even in a circle, but it is called thus.
Information on packages. If you ship anything to the mission office, I think they ship it to me or hold it, I am not entirely sure. I do not know any members that will hold packages, so I do not know much about that. I will probably have to ask somebody if they can hold a package and then report back to you on P-Day before shipping. I really do not know. I have not looked at Walgreens, because the last time I was here emailing, I took forever for whatever reason, so I did not have time to do anything extra. The next time I was at a computer, I had to do a weekly progress record. Next time I am at a computer or if I have extra time, I will look at Walgreens to see how it all works, because I need to understand how it works before I jump on ship and use it.
Thank you for the blog. I appreciate that a lot and it will be a useful tool to use. I did meet a few Catholics who were set in their ways, though there was one that was surprised that we were offering work we could do for her. We may help her to move. One of our potential investigators, who we do service for, is set on his ways, but next time, we will teach him a lot better than we did. Last time, he was adamant on his ways of how the world is going to pot and the angel Gabriel is coming to destroy the wicked. It was an interesting time with him to say the least.
About shows: save, sure I do not mind. I have not really thought about shows much while I am here. (Seth had a few favorite shows that we are going to save for him. They will be there when he gets back. It would be like buying a DVD set of a season of a certain show. Whether or not he'll have time to watch them when he gets back is another story.)
Thank you for doing so. Sorry to hear that Mom has a cold. I hope she gets better. Thanks for the pictures. I get to finally see what I worked so hard for and I love the quote. It is an excellent quote. Glad to hear how others are doing. Glad Leo is finally getting things done (Eagle Scout Court of Honor) and that Connor is trying to get things done (working on his Eagle Scout project).. Hope things go well for them. Also, glad to hear that Trevor (friend, serving a mission in Indiana) is doing good. I hope that he has much success. Thank you for the updates.
All is well,
Sincerely,
Elder S. Todd
First Monday to Email Home - July 22 - From Fredericksburg, VA
Dear Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,
Happy P-Day, parents kind and dear! So, do you have index cards of where in Virginia I could be? No? Well, that is fine. The place is here: Fredericksburg, VA. So, I am in a pretty nice location. I live on 203 Excaliber Circle, Apartment #203, Fredericksburg, VA 22406.
This is a new area, because it once belonged to the D.C South Mission. In fact, my trainer/companion, Elder Meibos (pronounced My-bus), was assigned to the D.C. South Mission, but he is now here. I am getting along great with my companion. We have a lot in common, which is quite amazing and makes it a lot easier to get along. For example, he knows and has played the game Myst. It is amazing to have a fellow nerd like me. He looks a bit odd, but he is wonderful guy.
My interview with the mission president was short, because he had so many people to visit and he took up most of his time with the sisters. Sister Reeves, the correspondence lady, called me Doctor Todd and when she called me that, I was like, "Oh no! How does she know!" She told me, so, yes, I know that you told people.(I am Seth's Dad and I sent the mission office a YouTube video of Seth called "Doctor Seth Todd." It's a comedy of sorts done for school. If he can tell stories about his dad then so can I.)
I know to get my haircut and eventually, I will be asking, because my hair is eh. My bike.... Well.... I am not using it. Right now, it is collecting dust, because I am living outside of the ward boundaries of my area due to no apartments in the area that I am supposed to be in. It is confusing, I know. So, I am in a car, traveling around to people. I have gone tracting down a road, but to no avail. Though I did talk to a devout Catholic, who did not care to what we said. But all will be well and all is well. It is such a beautiful area here in Fredericksburg. SO much green. It is all spaced out. We did have a storm, sort of. When I got here, it rained for 15 minutes. Yesterday, it rained for thirty minutes with lightning and it is beautiful lightning. Saturday, there was an amazing storm far away from us. It was amazing. The weather is humid, but the humidity, I honestly do not notice or feel it. It feels like I have California heat all over again. I was trying to escape it. The only time I did feel the humidity was when I came out of the airport. I am pretty sure that my pants all of a sudden stuck to my body. I think my brain thought I just entered into a swimming pool. When I woke up this morning, it was foggy and I thought it was winter time. It was much of a reminder of our winter back at home.
You are asking a lot of questions and I constantly going back and forth to try to see them all. But it is all right. We have been trying to see investigators and less actives, but nothing has happened. We will teach somebody tonight. I think my companion will let me teach tonight. Pretty excited about that! And yes, you do have to word things differently, especially when it comes to the Great Apostasy. ("But, Peter was the first Pope," etc.)
It appears that I will be doing a lot of service here, which will be yard work. I had to borrow pants for a recent service opportunity I had for an Eagle Project for this kid. So, I hate to say it, but can you please send me some work pants? I am in desperate needs. It is probably a good thing that I wear pants, because when I went to change into my proselyting clothes, there were two "friends," also known as ticks, on my garments. It was quite wonderful to meet the tick. I saw other bugs, too. The robber fly and ugly black bug. It is quite wonderful, with a side of sarcasm.
My flight was wonderful. I fell asleep for an hour on both planes. It sucked the first time, because the lady next to me was watching television. I thought I would be asleep for the entire plane ride, but not so. I wished I had decided to take my scriptures with me. She watched Bones at the end, I was like, "You got to be kidding me! I must look away!" (missionaries are not allowed to watch TV or go to the movies to avoid distractions) Georgia was beautiful from the sky. It looked flat and green. When I saw Virginia for the first time, I saw the green and I was like, "Where is the brown?" It is so green and so filled with life, that I thought of how brown California was. Then, I thought to myself, "There is definitely life here!" I know this is out of sequential order, but there is much to say. The first night in Virginia, everyone got to eat with each other and the food was real. Now, the MTC was delicious and all, but I could have sworn they had wax vegetables and boxed mash potatoes. The food is amazing here and real. They did a little orientation, I went with my MTC companion and other friends to an empty apartment to sleep and the next day, I was sent to Fredericksburg, Virginia to serve in the ward of White Oak.
The Family History thing is great. They teach that at the MTC.
I know Kevin Tucker pays well, but I was surprised to hear that she got another dog (you did say something about that, right?). I am sorry that people, especially family, are getting sick. Oh, that reminds me I did my first blessing yesterday. It went okay, but it was my first time. It is amazing. I am learning so much here.
I am glad my dog has a buddy to keep her busy. (We've been pet sitting for a friend with her dog at our house.)
There is only one building for one stake and there are many wards that go to it. My ward starts at one, but there are things that I have to do before hand. It is a Lemoore sized-ward, sort of, and the bishop (pastor) is a wonderful man. The same goes with the Stake President (a person over several congregations in an area), who, during a priesthood leadership meeting, issued the challenge to visit a less-active that you do not know within a month and tell them that you want them to come back to church. Which also reminds me, we are using the members quite a bit, so the members are quite helpful. Many of the people are nice here and quite friendly. My companion and I shouldn't go to this one family's house on Sundays to eat, because she will go out and buy food. Now, let me tell you, she has enough food in her refrigerator to last two months. I was helping put away the food and the refrigerator was completely full along with the freezer. But, she is a wonderful lady and her family is quite nice. There are so many nice people here.
It is so wonderful here. I am trying to explain these past few days as much as I possibly can. I did not call my siblings at the airport, because I had insufficient funds to call them (according to the card that said I had 306 minutes), so I apologized to them. All is well.
All is well,
Love,
Elder S. Todd
Happy P-Day, parents kind and dear! So, do you have index cards of where in Virginia I could be? No? Well, that is fine. The place is here: Fredericksburg, VA. So, I am in a pretty nice location. I live on 203 Excaliber Circle, Apartment #203, Fredericksburg, VA 22406.
This is a new area, because it once belonged to the D.C South Mission. In fact, my trainer/companion, Elder Meibos (pronounced My-bus), was assigned to the D.C. South Mission, but he is now here. I am getting along great with my companion. We have a lot in common, which is quite amazing and makes it a lot easier to get along. For example, he knows and has played the game Myst. It is amazing to have a fellow nerd like me. He looks a bit odd, but he is wonderful guy.
My interview with the mission president was short, because he had so many people to visit and he took up most of his time with the sisters. Sister Reeves, the correspondence lady, called me Doctor Todd and when she called me that, I was like, "Oh no! How does she know!" She told me, so, yes, I know that you told people.(I am Seth's Dad and I sent the mission office a YouTube video of Seth called "Doctor Seth Todd." It's a comedy of sorts done for school. If he can tell stories about his dad then so can I.)
I know to get my haircut and eventually, I will be asking, because my hair is eh. My bike.... Well.... I am not using it. Right now, it is collecting dust, because I am living outside of the ward boundaries of my area due to no apartments in the area that I am supposed to be in. It is confusing, I know. So, I am in a car, traveling around to people. I have gone tracting down a road, but to no avail. Though I did talk to a devout Catholic, who did not care to what we said. But all will be well and all is well. It is such a beautiful area here in Fredericksburg. SO much green. It is all spaced out. We did have a storm, sort of. When I got here, it rained for 15 minutes. Yesterday, it rained for thirty minutes with lightning and it is beautiful lightning. Saturday, there was an amazing storm far away from us. It was amazing. The weather is humid, but the humidity, I honestly do not notice or feel it. It feels like I have California heat all over again. I was trying to escape it. The only time I did feel the humidity was when I came out of the airport. I am pretty sure that my pants all of a sudden stuck to my body. I think my brain thought I just entered into a swimming pool. When I woke up this morning, it was foggy and I thought it was winter time. It was much of a reminder of our winter back at home.
You are asking a lot of questions and I constantly going back and forth to try to see them all. But it is all right. We have been trying to see investigators and less actives, but nothing has happened. We will teach somebody tonight. I think my companion will let me teach tonight. Pretty excited about that! And yes, you do have to word things differently, especially when it comes to the Great Apostasy. ("But, Peter was the first Pope," etc.)
It appears that I will be doing a lot of service here, which will be yard work. I had to borrow pants for a recent service opportunity I had for an Eagle Project for this kid. So, I hate to say it, but can you please send me some work pants? I am in desperate needs. It is probably a good thing that I wear pants, because when I went to change into my proselyting clothes, there were two "friends," also known as ticks, on my garments. It was quite wonderful to meet the tick. I saw other bugs, too. The robber fly and ugly black bug. It is quite wonderful, with a side of sarcasm.
My flight was wonderful. I fell asleep for an hour on both planes. It sucked the first time, because the lady next to me was watching television. I thought I would be asleep for the entire plane ride, but not so. I wished I had decided to take my scriptures with me. She watched Bones at the end, I was like, "You got to be kidding me! I must look away!" (missionaries are not allowed to watch TV or go to the movies to avoid distractions) Georgia was beautiful from the sky. It looked flat and green. When I saw Virginia for the first time, I saw the green and I was like, "Where is the brown?" It is so green and so filled with life, that I thought of how brown California was. Then, I thought to myself, "There is definitely life here!" I know this is out of sequential order, but there is much to say. The first night in Virginia, everyone got to eat with each other and the food was real. Now, the MTC was delicious and all, but I could have sworn they had wax vegetables and boxed mash potatoes. The food is amazing here and real. They did a little orientation, I went with my MTC companion and other friends to an empty apartment to sleep and the next day, I was sent to Fredericksburg, Virginia to serve in the ward of White Oak.
The Family History thing is great. They teach that at the MTC.
I know Kevin Tucker pays well, but I was surprised to hear that she got another dog (you did say something about that, right?). I am sorry that people, especially family, are getting sick. Oh, that reminds me I did my first blessing yesterday. It went okay, but it was my first time. It is amazing. I am learning so much here.
I am glad my dog has a buddy to keep her busy. (We've been pet sitting for a friend with her dog at our house.)
There is only one building for one stake and there are many wards that go to it. My ward starts at one, but there are things that I have to do before hand. It is a Lemoore sized-ward, sort of, and the bishop (pastor) is a wonderful man. The same goes with the Stake President (a person over several congregations in an area), who, during a priesthood leadership meeting, issued the challenge to visit a less-active that you do not know within a month and tell them that you want them to come back to church. Which also reminds me, we are using the members quite a bit, so the members are quite helpful. Many of the people are nice here and quite friendly. My companion and I shouldn't go to this one family's house on Sundays to eat, because she will go out and buy food. Now, let me tell you, she has enough food in her refrigerator to last two months. I was helping put away the food and the refrigerator was completely full along with the freezer. But, she is a wonderful lady and her family is quite nice. There are so many nice people here.
It is so wonderful here. I am trying to explain these past few days as much as I possibly can. I did not call my siblings at the airport, because I had insufficient funds to call them (according to the card that said I had 306 minutes), so I apologized to them. All is well.
All is well,
Love,
Elder S. Todd
MTC- July 16 - Leaving Soon - An investigator - Protestors
Yeah, I can only e-mail on P-Days, which I forgot to say were Tuesdays. I am sending private messages to family and I will send a mass email to friends when I get the chance in Virginia. The laundry situation is going well here. I am using Mom's instructions and it is working out well. I am glad Dad is doing well and I hope that Sean will do well and that his surgery will go well. I cannot believe that I leave tomorrow. It is going so fast. As soon as I get to the airport and get through to the other side, I will call. The airplane leaves at 7, but I have to board 30 minutes early. That is why I will call as soon as I can, so expect a call, early in the morning. I will call Joy, Bria, and Sean (which I need Sean's number, which I will get from you when I call) and leave voicemails. I packed somewhat yesterday (I still have work to do) and everything seems to be fitting. Oh, by the way, I will be leaving with 29 others, but they all are not English speaking. Some are Mandarin Chinese, others Spanish, and who knows what else.
I have been learning to rely on the Spirit. It is always best to be prepared, but still rely on the Spirit and also to teach to people's needs. You have to make the gospel personal to them. One of our investigators was extremely difficult, but there was some change. Another one, our TRC, was an actual investigator. She was actually looking for the gospel. My companion and I were able to teach her one last time yesterday, which was nice, but also sad. I actually have been developing a Christlike love for people. I hope that the TRC investigator gets to progress. We gave her a KJV Bible (our bible) and the Book of Mormon. We also gave her a church's address. I really hope that she will keep with the lessons and that her family will also take the lessons. I am making sure that I keep in contact with her.
I saw Trevor Hansen and his email is hansen.trevor@myldsmail.net. He left this morning. I saw him at in-field orientation and neither of us had our cameras. That was unfortunate. But, at least I was able to see him one last time and that I will be able to keep in contact with him.I have been learning to rely on the Spirit. It is always best to be prepared, but still rely on the Spirit and also to teach to people's needs. You have to make the gospel personal to them. One of our investigators was extremely difficult, but there was some change. Another one, our TRC, was an actual investigator. She was actually looking for the gospel. My companion and I were able to teach her one last time yesterday, which was nice, but also sad. I actually have been developing a Christlike love for people. I hope that the TRC investigator gets to progress. We gave her a KJV Bible (our bible) and the Book of Mormon. We also gave her a church's address. I really hope that she will keep with the lessons and that her family will also take the lessons. I am making sure that I keep in contact with her.
Yeah, you will have to pick up where I left off. Doing the TV schedule checking (check often), etc. My poor dog. I am glad to hear that she is being taken care of and I knew that you guys will take care of her well.
I am sending pictures from the MTC and our trip. It will take awhile. It includes pictures of my district, my teachers, and some people from my zone. So, you will get blank emails that have pictures attached.
I am sending pictures from the MTC and our trip. It will take awhile. It includes pictures of my district, my teachers, and some people from my zone. So, you will get blank emails that have pictures attached.
Elder S. Todd
Message sent to Seth from a member in Lemoore
We are so excited to experience your mission with you. We are so thankful for our membership in this Gospel and to know the power of prayer. We wish you God's speed.
Oops! Only Can Email One Day a Week - July 9
Hey, it turns out I can only email on preparation days. It was kind of sad to know that. But, it is good to hear from you guys and thank you for spreading my email around. I really appreciate it. I am really glad to hear that my dog is being taken care of. Yeah, I had a feeling it (my college diploma) had never arrived. Thanks for the update on that. With the airplane ride and such, I believe everything will fit. Also, I have to arrive to the MTC Travel Center at 3:30 in the morning. So, whenever I will get to the airport, I will call. It will be a sweet good morning call to you guys, though you may fall asleep while I talk. I leave her to go to Atlanta and have an hour or so there, but you never know, which is why I will call in the morning. Everybody has complimented me with my testimony and my companion believes that my testimony hits home for our investigators. Elder Denning is an excellent teacher at the doctrine, which teaching the doctrine is a bit hard for me, because I want to just teach. So, I am learning. We had an amazing experience with our investigators yesterday. We got a new one and she was into it and opened up. Our other one, the teacher investigator, committed to being baptized and praying and reading the Book of Mormon, but we still need him to open up. I am glad to hear about Dad bearing his testimony and sorry about the ants (ants were found my parents bed, they slept in the family room). I will mail you a letter next Monday, because I want to tell you what I have learned and how I have changed. I hope to talk to you soon.
Love you,A Member Writes About a Favorite Scripture
Hi Elder Todd.
My favorite scripture is
1 Nephi 2:15
15 And my father dwelt in a tent.
Because Lehi gave up everything to do what the Lord commanded him to do. :)
James Myers (Marilyn's dad.)
The MTC Experience - July 7
Hey, when you have the feeling that you should do something and you know it isn't instinct, it is best to listen to it. And thank you for confirming that I will be eating fish in Virginia. The Lord truly prepares us. I got to bear my testimony today in front of my zone. I had a heavy heart, which I knew was the Spirit telling to me say my testimony. It left after I bore my testimony. Things are going great here. We went on a walk today to the temple, which was weird. It was weird, because we left the gates of the MTC and it was like what do we do now. The temple is closed until August, so I will not be going anytime soon.
I get to do laundry on Tuesdays. So, it is alright. They have supplies that I have to buy. Which is fine, I have some money on me. I did buy the backpack and it works. There is much I have to carry here, so I have to use it. But, I believe that it will last me a long time. Everybody in my zone, except my teachers, knows that I have an AA (did I write this last time) degree in psychology (which by the way, has it arrived?), which they are impressed. Even my branch president is impressed. Oh, and he saw my scriptures today and said that I could probably cut down a tree with how many tabs I have. I am just glad that there is so much here, especially from my district and companion, Elder Denning. There is so much to look forward to here.
Well, I looked at the time and I noticed it is probably nap time for you two. So, I hope you enjoyed your nap. Glad to hear my dog is happy, somewhat. Oh, also on July 4th, we watched 17 Miracles, which helped a lot. I am so glad I got to watch that film. I am striving to have faith in every footstep and have a pioneer's attitude.
Love you,
Sincerely,
Elder S. Todd
I get to do laundry on Tuesdays. So, it is alright. They have supplies that I have to buy. Which is fine, I have some money on me. I did buy the backpack and it works. There is much I have to carry here, so I have to use it. But, I believe that it will last me a long time. Everybody in my zone, except my teachers, knows that I have an AA (did I write this last time) degree in psychology (which by the way, has it arrived?), which they are impressed. Even my branch president is impressed. Oh, and he saw my scriptures today and said that I could probably cut down a tree with how many tabs I have. I am just glad that there is so much here, especially from my district and companion, Elder Denning. There is so much to look forward to here.
Well, I looked at the time and I noticed it is probably nap time for you two. So, I hope you enjoyed your nap. Glad to hear my dog is happy, somewhat. Oh, also on July 4th, we watched 17 Miracles, which helped a lot. I am so glad I got to watch that film. I am striving to have faith in every footstep and have a pioneer's attitude.
Love you,
Sincerely,
Elder S. Todd
Mission Training Center-July 6th
Dear Parents,
I loved the thunderstorm. Yesterday, there were two. I was so excited to see them, because I was in the computer labs when one of them happened. Watching fireworks was okay here, because we had to stay behind a wall and there are trees everywhere. Along the fence. I did get some pictures of the fireworks and the crowd, but the firework pictures were just to test out my camera. I strongly dislike the breakfast here. You see the pancakes are dry, the waffles are dry. But there are some good breakfast foods such as cereal and bagels that are available. You should be happy to know that I was impressed to eat fish. I do not know why, but I felt like I should eat fish today (which was a lunch option today). Maybe I should be worried that I will be eating fish in the mission field. Of course, I kid. For exercise, I can go to the gym with my companion and do stuff there. We can do our personal exercise or we can go to the weight center. The shower situation is fine, it is whatever. I really am not worried about it and I know everything is well. So, it is whatever.
Well maybe now I can create a new paragraph so you can read this better. I have heard the rumor that I will be leaving the MTC to go to the airport at 3:30 in the morning. Depending on when I leave to Richmond on the plane, I might call you guys. The keyword here is might. If it is way too early in the morning where it is the crack of dawn, I might call you for sure. I do not know really. That is far away. So, we will see.
I love my district. They are so great. I mentioned the fact that I have an AA degree in psychology and they are impressed. They keep on joking with me about it. And then, my scriptures. The first day here, I gave no thought to my colorful scriptures until later on when I was sitting with my companion. I was wondering what he was going to think. Well, everybody is impressed with my scriptures (those that have seen it), even my teachers. Some joke that I know the scriptures really, really well and I am like, uh, no.
My companion and I are teaching an investigator here. It is not reallly an investigator, but it is made to feel that way. That is something that I keep in mind. It is one of my teachers, who refers to our investigator as a seperate entity, which the world mind of me thinks it sounds like split personalities when he talks as if he is not that person. I am enjoying my companion. He is a wonderful person and I enjoy having him as a companion. He is a good teacher and talker. My other roommates that I have are interesting as well. They are interesting to talk to.
Well, I am glad to hear from you. I am just glad to email you all my experiences, because it is just so great to share it. I miss you guys and I hope that my dog is being well take care of. I love you guys and I appreciate your support. So, glad to hear that you guys had a good time. By the way, remind me not to say guys. I need to avoid that here in the MTC and I do not think that an email filled with "guys" is a good support. Anyways, I ramble. Love you parents.
Love and miss you,
Sincerely,
Elder S. Todd
I loved the thunderstorm. Yesterday, there were two. I was so excited to see them, because I was in the computer labs when one of them happened. Watching fireworks was okay here, because we had to stay behind a wall and there are trees everywhere. Along the fence. I did get some pictures of the fireworks and the crowd, but the firework pictures were just to test out my camera. I strongly dislike the breakfast here. You see the pancakes are dry, the waffles are dry. But there are some good breakfast foods such as cereal and bagels that are available. You should be happy to know that I was impressed to eat fish. I do not know why, but I felt like I should eat fish today (which was a lunch option today). Maybe I should be worried that I will be eating fish in the mission field. Of course, I kid. For exercise, I can go to the gym with my companion and do stuff there. We can do our personal exercise or we can go to the weight center. The shower situation is fine, it is whatever. I really am not worried about it and I know everything is well. So, it is whatever.
Well maybe now I can create a new paragraph so you can read this better. I have heard the rumor that I will be leaving the MTC to go to the airport at 3:30 in the morning. Depending on when I leave to Richmond on the plane, I might call you guys. The keyword here is might. If it is way too early in the morning where it is the crack of dawn, I might call you for sure. I do not know really. That is far away. So, we will see.
I love my district. They are so great. I mentioned the fact that I have an AA degree in psychology and they are impressed. They keep on joking with me about it. And then, my scriptures. The first day here, I gave no thought to my colorful scriptures until later on when I was sitting with my companion. I was wondering what he was going to think. Well, everybody is impressed with my scriptures (those that have seen it), even my teachers. Some joke that I know the scriptures really, really well and I am like, uh, no.
My companion and I are teaching an investigator here. It is not reallly an investigator, but it is made to feel that way. That is something that I keep in mind. It is one of my teachers, who refers to our investigator as a seperate entity, which the world mind of me thinks it sounds like split personalities when he talks as if he is not that person. I am enjoying my companion. He is a wonderful person and I enjoy having him as a companion. He is a good teacher and talker. My other roommates that I have are interesting as well. They are interesting to talk to.
Well, I am glad to hear from you. I am just glad to email you all my experiences, because it is just so great to share it. I miss you guys and I hope that my dog is being well take care of. I love you guys and I appreciate your support. So, glad to hear that you guys had a good time. By the way, remind me not to say guys. I need to avoid that here in the MTC and I do not think that an email filled with "guys" is a good support. Anyways, I ramble. Love you parents.
Love and miss you,
Sincerely,
Elder S. Todd
Dear Parents of Mine, known as Mom and Dad (also known as Mother and Father, etc.),
I wrote you a letter, but I have yet to send it and it will cover most of what I say here. I am enjoying the MTC. It is quite a spiritual experience. I am so glad to be here, though I do miss you guys. There are many things to do, which is a good thing as some others have pointed out. My companion, Elder Denning, is from Idaho and is good person. He is relatable, which if anything makes me relatable. It is not so much that I can relate to him with things that I like, but rather it is other things. We are going to soon teach an "investigator." There are many devotionals that are happening and so much that I am learning. The food here, in case you were wondering, is good (well, most of it). The room is small and the other two (besides my companion and I) are nice. I sleep on the top bunk and the best cold spot when it gets hot are the brick walls. I have yet to see Elder Hansen and I severely doubt that I will see him. You can tell people that I love to discuss scriptures, because I know it may be hard for people to write letters and such. You should have my email now as seen by how you are getting this message. I will need people's email addresses in order to write to them. I am glad to be here, again. It is really nice. I will be leaving here on July 17, most likely. I know this is a short email, but I may be running out of time and I have been only gone for a day and a half. Be strong.
Love,
Elder S. Todd
Your Son
I wrote you a letter, but I have yet to send it and it will cover most of what I say here. I am enjoying the MTC. It is quite a spiritual experience. I am so glad to be here, though I do miss you guys. There are many things to do, which is a good thing as some others have pointed out. My companion, Elder Denning, is from Idaho and is good person. He is relatable, which if anything makes me relatable. It is not so much that I can relate to him with things that I like, but rather it is other things. We are going to soon teach an "investigator." There are many devotionals that are happening and so much that I am learning. The food here, in case you were wondering, is good (well, most of it). The room is small and the other two (besides my companion and I) are nice. I sleep on the top bunk and the best cold spot when it gets hot are the brick walls. I have yet to see Elder Hansen and I severely doubt that I will see him. You can tell people that I love to discuss scriptures, because I know it may be hard for people to write letters and such. You should have my email now as seen by how you are getting this message. I will need people's email addresses in order to write to them. I am glad to be here, again. It is really nice. I will be leaving here on July 17, most likely. I know this is a short email, but I may be running out of time and I have been only gone for a day and a half. Be strong.
Love,
Elder S. Todd
Your Son
NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)