As They Walked and Walked and Walked . . .

Monday,  January 27, 2014

Dear Parents, Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,

Thanks for the those crime stories. (Two young girls were kidnapped from a meetinghouse in this area, molested, and left stranded, Also, near Seth's home town, a bishop was shot and killed in the meetinghouse. Surely there were pictures of Jesus on the walls.of both buildings) I honestly could use them. Why? Well, it turns out that I am the only one that likes the door locked as well as the windows. It frustrates them, but it frustrates me even more that they do not realize how un-invincible they are. I keep on locking the door, especially when it is night and when we leave. They can deal with it for all that I care. Why? Like you pointed out, a picture of Jesus is not going to do anything. And it keeps us safe and the house protected. Criminals, unless they are really after our stuff, are not going to break a window or bust down a locked door, because they do not want to get caught. But, I can only point out facts and do wish I could share some more facts on safety. But, that is that. I am stubborn, a little bull-headed at times, but I know when something is right. I am hanging in there.

I am glad to hear that you received my testimony of Jesus Christ. I still have to send some out to other family members. For Christmas, in Fredericksburg, I used a copy of my testimony plus a plate of cookies and sweets to give to certain members. It was nice to give that to them. 

I am also glad you understand about my views of criminal justice. I have been warned by people, especially you two, about the risks of the job and, by my companion, the risks of psychology. To me, I am, as I am realizing, about law, justice, order, and mercy. I know what God wants me to do in life as in career. I know who God wants me to be. I will listen to what people have to say, but I will always have to remember what God wants me to do. And you mentioned conversion. For the nearly 7 months I have been out, I have been trying to focus on the people and how to help them. But, in a way, with my studies and with what I have been learning, I honestly having been learning about- forgive me, Dad- being converted and consecrating myself to God. I am accepting what God wants me to do, but some areas I could improve. Such is life and I have the next fleeting 17 months to learn some more. I may not change my interests, but I think my character will change. I honestly feel as though the first six months were battles against the adversary and what I am now expecting for who knows how long (well, except God) that my character will be tried.

This week was ouch. Yeah, we had snow, but it was downhill from there. I am keeping optimistic and keep on improving. At times in life, we have those weeks that are seriously downhill. This is definitely one of those weeks. The back tire on my bike is flat again and I basically said to my companion, "I will get a new tube." So, today, I get to buy myself a tube as well as a much needed crescent wrench in order to get the back wheel off. I am just hoping my bike does not need a special tube, which I do not think it does. We will see. I am only hoping, because my companion currently hates my bike and is tired of walking. First few days, walking in the snow, yeah, it was rough, but I got used to it. I know he will not be happy if I have to order a tube. 

When it snowed, it was great, because for a few hours, we got snow shovels and shoveled people's driveways. (Oh, the life of a missionary!) It was mostly in secret. Mostly. Some people came out and said thanks. Or they wanted to pay us, which we refused. Sometimes, we helped someone that was doing their driveway. One of them wanted to take us to the recruiter's office. It was so much fun to do that. 

We have been tracting a lot. Appointments have fallen through due to illnesses and such. To top off our week, two investigators dropped us. One due to disinterest, though he was honestly seeking a church and God. Another due to her boyfriend who caused havoc for her when she talked about the Mormons. It was probably best for her to drop us, because she does not work and she has a child with him.

And then, as we were tracting, we got a call to help someone from one of the members. These members are honestly kind and I really like them. But, it was a waste of time. They let us in, fed us, and, oh, we were not needed. Still, I do thank them for their kindness. 

Oh and one of my pockets on one of my shirts nearly fell off. It was my only shirt for today, so I spent time sewing it. It went okay. My stitiching or whatever looks okay, but, uh, the white thread is apparently magical. I used the sewing kit that I got from home and used- and I know I did use it- white thread. Well, it magically turned pink on my shirt, so I have a pink string that slightly bled. Time to do laundry.

Also, we had interviews with President Wilson this past weekend. My interview was short, but he told me something that put a dent in my New Testament study. I cannot use the institute manual, not even for reference. (Even though the manual is published by the church, the reading material is restricted to what they are called to teach.) Now, mind you, I do not have the manual, but I was looking at it online for the scriptural references to put everything in chronological order. Well, no more. I definitely cannot infringe on people's agency who say things, "Oh, did you read about such and such event in Christ's life found in such and such gospel and also this gospel, in these chapters and verses? Also, then Christ did this, in such and such gospels, chapter, and verses," and I definitely do not know where they got such material. Now, I do understand there is the harmony of the gospels, but I am having a hard time correlating it with how far in my study I am in and I cannot just undo what I have done. Something is not matching up and I got so far as the marriage in Cana and a bit after that. So, I am a bit stuck there and I cannot progress. (As his dad, I will help him in my letters as my letters are not restricted.)

No word on the iPads that so many people are waiting for here. I bring up, because my companion told me that a girl he knows that is serving in Arizona has iPads and they are strictly iPads which means no paper scriptures at all; especially, for personal study. I hope that does not happen here, because then that will not be fun, especially with how much effort I have put into my paper scriptures. Who knows? I will wait for that time. (I doubt that he will have to forfeit his paper scriptures as some people do not take to reading electronic devices.)

Plus, have you watched the Bible Videos, the Life of Jesus Christ? They are so amazing. I recommend them, plus they chose a really good person to portray the Savior. I hope they keep on producing them. I especially like the Resurrected Jesus, because they did so excellent. My companion keeps on saying that this Jesus is better than the Finding Faith in Christ, Jesus. But, I really think they did an excellent job. (www.mormonchannel.org)

All is well.

Love,

Elder S. Todd

The Face of Gratitude

We had Café Rio on Sunday. (That one Mexican restaurant where Bria hit the bicyclist. Or rather, the bicyclist hit Bria.) Now, I must explain. So, I guess Café Rio had a $1 Burrito Day to which a lot of members had gone. One of them was the Elders Quorum president, to which he came bragging about it to us missionaries. We, (a) being on bike and (b) Café Rio being out of our mission, could not go. The other missionary companions and my companion were like, "Ah man, why didn't you hook us up?" Well, a family, the Christensens, had signed up for dinner that night and they went to Café Rio the night before. They had gotten these burritos for us to feed us. Thus, this picture was taken to send to the Elders Quorum president to say, "This is how you hook the missionaries up."

All About Helping People Change

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Dear Parents, Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,

Well, there are rules with the good news of going to the temple.( For interested individuals, a rabbi tours the inside of a Mormon temple: http://www.jewishaz.com/community/what-i-learned-from-visiting-the-new-mormon-temple/article_fab9f51c-82db-11e3-b97b-001a4bcf6878.html ) 


 The rules:
"Missionaries are able to attend the temple under the following circumstances:

1- The endowment or sealing of a new or returning member when the missionary had a substantial role in the conversion. Only one companionship may attend, if invited by the member.
2- An end-of-mission visit with the mission president and his wife.

Missionaries who qualify above must also meet these standards:

1- Be able to depart and return on the same day and be back serving in their area by 6:00 p.m. No more than two hours one-way travel time is recommended.
2- Travel with a member and not use a mission vehicle.
3- Attend on their preparation day or switch their preparation day to accommodate the temple schedule.
4- Receive advance approval from the mission president."


So, it is a bit difficult, but at least some day I will go. Some day. But, still, despite the rules, I am excited. 

The drought is bad (in California). That does not sound good at all. The weather seems, to put it  metaphorically, bipolar. In the same way, Virginia is like that. One week it is warm, or at least the humidity makes it feel warm. Then, it goes cold by the next week. Take for example, this week it was warm. Last week, we had some days that were a bit chilly. Now, it is going way cold into the single digits with snow. It should snow by 11 this morning. I am waiting.

And yes, I am using the gears( read his previous letter home below). It still takes a while for me to get up the hills. I am exercising. Yeah, it will take me a while. But, it is going a bit quicker. I still am learning the area. It is quite simple. I have it nearly down. 

With this ward (congregation), we have an excellent ward mission leader, who wants us to communicate more effectively with the congregation as well as with him. I am trying to help out.  I am trying to be on top of things. Some things I cannot worry about; there are things I can do. 


Everyone (two sets of male missionaries) in the same house belongs to the same congregation. No sister missionaries in this congregation. All are biking, which I do not mind. There are pros and cons to both a car or a bike. One thing I do not have to worry about is miles which are restricted on cars, thankfully.

This week was a bit slow in the sense of work. I am working hard and I am knocking on doors a lot. I have seen people who are mildly interested, atheists, those who think I do not know anything, and those who like to point out their NO SOLICITORS sign. Yes, people are very much interesting. I do my best to change my approach at each door and to testify always. As I once put it, I like F.A.T door approaches: "Make your approaches FLOW, ADAPT to the situation, and TESTIFY always." It works for me and I try to look around me to enlighten myself about what this person might be like or if it is a family or whatever. Hey, what I am doing is planting a seed. It is what it is. 

The members here are very nice. I try to help them out, hopefully they will realize our efforts and what we are doing. It feels as though it is a political game sometimes, trying to demonstrate that we are doing work with or without their help. 

Oh, and yesterday, I sent letters of the same kind to family. (Some I am still working on.) Well, actually, I just put some in the mailbox and forgot that it was a federal holiday. So, some time, you will receive a letter.

I hope this week goes well. Things will be worked out. Always be obedient.

All is well.

Love,

Elder S. Todd

P.S. I have been locking the door and turning off the lights, much to the dismay and frustration of my companion. But, yes the Following! On Christmas, with the Hairs (the place where I was able to communicate with you), after my communication calls, Sister Hair brought up "The Following" and how Brother Hair got into it somewhat. I was a bit excited, because it has a good story-line as you know. She could see my emotions and said, "Wow, I have never seen you so excited." Then, a person who is a potential told of us when he moved here to Woodbridge that the Lorraina Bobbitt incident (if that is how spell her name) had just occurred. After hearing that and away from the potential investigator, I turned around to my companion and said, "Wow, there is so much history here!" And I told him about Lorraina Bobbitt and others that I know were around here. To which, he replied, "I do not know how you find it fascinating."

Yes, I know I am abnormal in that sense.  What honestly interests me is the question of why. What is the motivation. Then, there is the question of justice. Please understand that , because I am not crazy at all (we, as his parents do). I just like good revealing stories and criminal justice.

And I am always excited for the missionary work.

(Most members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints have a sense of humor. Even the person we call the prophet or president of our church shares his humor so the following is an inside joke for my LDS readers playing on "the army of Helaman):

I Was Once Lost, But Now I am Found: Missionaries on Bikes

Runabout 8

Monday, January 13, 2014

Dear Parents, Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom

Well, this officially concludes an upside down week. It was good and great, but there are small things that I am like what in the world?. But, overall it was good. My car seems to be target practice for people. When I read that I was like, "Oh no. What's going on?!" I am laughing about it, because that car cannot get a break. If anything, that car will last me a good while. (Parents wrote: . . . All of a sudden the car in front suddenly stopped. Dad applied his brakes but they don't grab like his little car. He wasn't going fast because as he talked he kept slowing down. He was going less than 50 mph on highway 41. When he realized he couldn't stop in time, he did try to swerve to miss the car in front but clipped the guys right side rear bumper. It will have to be replaced. Your car could still drive but the left front headlights will need replacing about 100 dollars plus shipping. Plus there are some major dents and buckles to fix. With everything that has happened to that car you could say it came from Afghanistan and you got it dirt cheap. A terrorist attacked my car! . . . Sorry! )

The other two missionaries we live with have higher chances of locking the door while my companion refuses. His words, "Jesus will scare them off." (We have a picture of Jesus on the door.) And I am like, "It is safe to lock the door." So, I lock it, especially when I am the last one out. (Also, the serial killer you are referring to is the D.C. Sniper.) (Seth has talked about the lack on the part of his companions to lock the house door when they leave. His brother was in the same mission when the D.C. sniper traveled as far south as Richmond, VA)

I think Carter (just returned from serving in Perth, Australia) had a good mission. He must have learned a lot. Thanks for sharing that.

(Here is what was shared: Carter gave his talk in church today. He only baptized two people. There was one family he helped reactivate. He said it was hard in Australia because the people didn't care and were often mean and rude. He told of how he was a year into his mission when he started to question why he was even there so far away from home and family. One sleepless night, he got up to his study table and read Alma 38:5 which reads:

And now my son, Shiblon {here he inserted his own name, Carter}, I would that ye should remember, that as much as ye shall put your trust in God even so much ye shall be delivered out of your trials, and your troubles, and your afflictions, and ye shall be lifted up at the last day.

He also told about how he and his companion were prompted to go down a certain road. They met an aborigine bearded man who had lost two grandchildren when a man stole their car with them in it and ran a red light causing an accident that killed the children. The man wanted to know why bad things happen to good people. Carter remembered reading and studying about that topic and was able to satisfy the man's question where the answer was not one he had heard before. 

Well, I can officially say, "I once was lost, but now I'm found." Why? Well, I am on a bike and my bike is honestly efficient for itself. That is until hills and then I am using every leg muscle I have to climb the hill. I can be fast until hills plus I do not know the area that well, so my companion has to lead. Well, one day, we were coming home and he went up and down a hill a lot faster than I. Needless to say, I lost him, went down a wrong turn, and got lost. I understand that principle of stay where you are, but I was not too sure on how to get back to the street I was on. I kept on biking and I prayed to Heavenly Father to lead me and guide me. I went down many streets, hearing, "Keep on going forward." When I was going to the wrong direction, I heard, "Turn around. Go back." So, I kept on getting turned around until I ended in familiar area. Finally, I felt prompted to talk to someone who was walking their dog. He got his phone and typed in the street. Lo and behold, it was just right around the corner. I felt pretty good and that everything would be alright. I ended up home and my companion, panicked, had sent out a search team to find me. So, I was able to get a hold of him through another member who is working on the basement of the house. Needless to say, the bishop (pastor) made sure the priesthood brethren knew what had happened. My companion is more embarrassed about it than I, it seems. Also, ever since he has been on a bike, he lost his companions, each time getting progressively worse.
We found some new people, even a former "Wicken." She is so awesome and she did not know why she opened the door for us. Her boyfriend is not too happy about us, but we are working on that. There are some great miracles that go on here. I am working hard knocking on doors.
And even more great news, more for me, but it is great news nonetheless. I am able to go to the temple now. I am so excited. I cannot wait to go the D.C. Temple after all this time. Pure excitement.

I am getting to know the area a lot better, especially after getting lost, and I am getting to know the members. There is one member who is studying forensic psychology, or at least wants to get into it, as well. I am so happy about that. There are many great members here and I am excited even more to work here. I am really enjoying myself. Things are, thankfully, turning around through the Lord.
I am happy about how things are going. I am getting close to finishing one portion of my topical guide study about law, order, justice and mercy. Law is one that is almost complete. What I have been doing with this is noting characteristics that I can apply to myself. In this way, I do feel as though I am learning who Heavenly Father wants me to be. It is really exciting.

I can guess you can say, "Thus begins Chapter 2," or whatever. Honestly, the past six months have been great and I have been steadily improving. Amidst all of it, I also hit my lowest point. But do not fret, for as a good show says, "When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change." With everything that is going, I have realized the worst. Now I am starting to see the best. As it says in 1 Peter, "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." I am learning a lot here and I am starting to see a lot more. I think the secret to life is to always improve.

All is well. Excited for the temple. (To learn more about temples go to Mormon.org or www.facebook.com/eldersethtodd )
Love,
Elder S. Todd

Transferred to Woodbridge, Greeted with Snow, A New Future

January, 7, 2014 

Dear Parents, Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,

Happy New Year! So, I have gone north indeed. I am in Woodbridge in the Prince William Ward (congregation). In other words, I moved one stake up (a stake is a group of congregations in a geographical area that serve together, an analogy would be the stakes of a tent). There are many good things that I see here. The members are willing to help us out, especially on giving us rides. There are kind members here. Plus, what is really ironic to me is the fact that some names here are some of the names I dealt with back in Fredericksburg. My new address is 5486 Rector Drive, Woodbridge, VA 22193. (Have some fun and use the satellite google map).

Well, the last week wasn't so good. Things were not going right in the end, but I did feel as though I finished my work in the White Oak Ward. I was able to say goodbye to people. I am glad that I was able to serve there and now I am glad I can serve here. There were special goodbye moments. I got to have a family home evening with a family and that was not on purpose. We had dropped by and they welcomes us in. It was great to be there. 

Transfers were hectic, but I now know where I am at. When I got here in Woodbridge, it snowed and things began to freeze. So, I was not able to bike for a while in part for that reason. I went walking and nearly a dozen times I almost fell and slipped. Only one time I did, but my bag cushioned the fall. We are having a lot more dinners here. We had dinner with a Ukrainian family, which to me was exciting. The husband was once Jewish, but he is now Mormon. So, I learned some Hebrew (I learned how to say river of water), though I have to work on pronouncing it. I am excited. Plus, for the new year, Sister Wilson (the mission president's wife) is putting forth what she is calling, "Fit for the Kingdom." In other words, she is putting on a mission-wide program to help us be fit. So, we earn points for working out, which goes to the zone and the zone that has the most points earns an extra Zone P-day. That, of course, does not mean I get an extra P-day. We got weighed. Now, I know I weighed 148 pounds before I left and while I was in Fredericksburg. The last time I weighed myself was probably in August of 2013. So, I have lost eight pounds if my memory serves me right. So, now I am at 140 pounds. It does not make sense to me, but it has happened.

When we were packing the trailer for the luggage and bikes. They took off my tire and for whatever reason, they unhooked the front brake. That took a while to fix.

With this new program and with the new year, I decided to wake up even earlier to do two things: (a) work out physically and (b) spiritually and mentally work out. I decided to do that to (a) be fit, (b) know scriptures, and (c) improve memory. Plus, I looked at the Word of Wisdom (the health revelation which mirrors a lot of what we know we should be eating and avoiding) again and made notes of a few things. Eat more vegetables, eat more fruit, eat grains, etc. What this means for me is that I am going to improve my health even more. It does not mean that I am going to be a vegetarian. I will still eat meat. I am limiting sweets and snacks, which means the time I will have dessert of any kind or anything like it will be at a member's house. That will be until the end of my mission when I go extremely cold turkey. I am keeping my health up.

My companion is Elder Frank from Colorado Springs, Colarado. We have been getting along fairly well. I am happy that to have another companion that likes Avatar. Just saying. . . So, he is a nice elder. He has only been here in the ward for one transfer, or six weeks. The weather went from snowing to the 60s, back down to a bizarre 16 degrees. In other words, it is cold. This entire zone is on bike, except the sisters and the zone leaders. I am living in a house with another set of missionaries. I make sure that the doors are locked, but it seems as though I am the only one that has studied serial killers and criminals and knows about safety. Just saying once again In a very sarcastic manner it's what I know can happen in this day and age. Next weekly planning session with Elder Frank I am going to mention our safety.

I am slowly adjusting to a bike. I think I will be here a while. I am excited to be here, even though there are hills that I have to bike. Next step in learning begins here.

Also, I want to wish you Merry Christmas! Today is Russian Christmas and I am happy to wish you a Merry Russian Christmas. The reason why it is Christmas is the fact that there, due to the split in the Catholic Church with the Eastern Orthodox, when the new Gregorian calendar came out, it took a while for the Eastern Orthodox to accept it. Something like that. So, they are two weeks behind.

All is well.

Love, 

Elder S. Todd

December 31, 2013

Dear Parents, Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,

The verdict is in. I am leaving White Oak, which is highly sad. There are a lot of good members here and it is hard to let them go. Plus, my first convert is here as well. It has been hard. I just knew on Sunday that I was going, despite how much I was hoping to stay. These last few days here will be saying good bye. Sunday, I said good bye to some people, especially the people that I was with when I got the phone call. Monday, was in part a nightmare. To be perfectly honest, we tried to repair my bike. We got the tire repair kit and repaired the tire, but putting it back together was a bit challenging. It ended up where something was off, which turned to be a washer in the wrong spot. 

I am really trying hard to say good bye to certain members, because I cannot say good bye to all. I am still working as well, so it is trying to balance it all. I had two good lessons yesterday as well. (Plus, I got a hair cut.) I joined someone's family home evening (this is a night where a family gathers together to have a spiritual lesson and some family fun), which was nice. Tonight, I get to say good bye to more people and the Lord's convert. Man, this is what I get for having a companion who is cursed. His companions stay with him for only one or two transfers. Oh well. 18 more months await.

Also, with yesterday, my bike lock fell on my foot and I thought I had broken it. Nope. At least, it just was bruised. And all I know about transfers is that I am going to a biking area. So, I know, I know, lock up my bike, know the serial number, be cautious, be safe. I know. Sorry to hear about Dad's finger (his dad was holding a dog biscuit bone and letting his dog take small bites until there was a small piece and one of the dog's canine teeth split his finger nail and caused him to bleed). My dog just wanted that piece plus protein. I was so happy that I was able to see her and that she still remembers me.(While using Skype on the internet we had his dog with us and when he would call her name she'd look at those speakers wondering what was going on.)  Day completed.

Christmas was great. I had a nice talk with the Hairs. I should tell you. When my trainer was being moved, they got us Subway as dinner. Brother Hair was surprised that I liked spicy food and was the one that got the spicy sandwich to which I said I am half Mexican. That took them by surprised. So, when we had another dinner with them (this time with Elder Longman), we had some Mexican food. Sister Hair told me, "I hope you like them. I know they won't be authentic." They tease me about it in good fun. 

But, Christmas. It was nice to talk to my sister. The connection was off, so she had a very deeper voice that slowly turned to the familiar Bria voice. And it was nice to talk to Grandma and Grandpa. Then, we went to the next person's house. We had technical difficulties with my companion's Skyping session, so we stayed a bit long. I got to spend time with their son, who is a senior in high school. He showed me his new pellet gun with which we had some fun. They have a pool, to which squirrels like to die in and they come back up frozen. One time, their son took such squirrel and hung up on a tree to see what would happen. On Christmas, we decided to go check up on it and it was gone. 

Then, we went to another family's house for dinner. It was fun; good to talk to them. Then, we went to the landlord and stopped by for a short time before we went back to the second home of the day. At that time, when we went back to the second house, the sisters were there, taking their turn. One of them was very loud and she was in the basement talking. They closed the door to give her more privacy, but she was still heard.

I had a unbeknownst last meal with a family on Thursday; it would be my last meal with the family. The wife is an awesome woman and can cook wonderful meals. I had some good conversations and scripture reading at that house. It was great to unknowningly have a last meal with them. I am happy that I will be able to say good bye. The past week we have been making cookie deliveries, which has been fun. We ended up staying longer than we had planned, which was great and awesome. Oh, the sister missionaries here got a brand new car, which my companion is so jealous about it while I could care less (yeah, 'cause he's leaving to a biking area). Well, on Sunday, we got a call from them, as my companion is the district leader, saying that they will be going home late for their car was stuck in the mud and they had to be towed out. My companion and I had went to help... to no avail. So, tow truck gets there and pulls them out. Then, the tow truck started to get stuck. It was hilarious, but it worked out. The tow truck was able to get out and the sisters were able to get home, finally.

And the third hour on Sunday went well. It was the last thing I could do for the entire ward . The last hurrah. It was about the Elder Sitati mission conference that we had a month and a half ago. People were excited for mission work... and I am being transferred. So be it.

All is well.

Love,

Elder S. Todd

December 23, 2013

Dear Parents, Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,

Happy non-P-day! Our P-day is on Tuesday, but we are allowed to email.

Please do ask the mission president if at all possible for me to call Bria and Grandma.

Well, I wanted to wish you a happy spring here in Virginia. Why? The weather is whack! It turned to 70 degrees this past weekend and oh, it decided to rain. Earlier, as I had previously told you, we had an ice storm. I am not so sure about this weather. I was quite honestly expecting cold. And I was dreaming of a white Christmas. Not so sure now.

So, you are also doing fifth Sunday. Same here with the same topic (Member Missionary Work), although a different thing. I told you of the Elder Sitati mission conference we had. We are condensing that mission conference and what we did to 45 minutes. It will not be anything spectacular, but it will definitely be something to help the members. It will be exciting. 

I am starting to realize that I am OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) with time, or at least I am obsessive about time and am really sensitive to it.. In several cases, this past week when we went over time, I could tell and I start to get tied up. My companion is relaxed with time, albeit he is a good companion. But, we, well, ended up an hour late to a dinner appointment, which the person was totally fine with us being late. It was good thing we were late, because we found a new investigator and put her on a baptismal date. At the same time, we were extremely late and I was trying to tell my companion. Of course, I will give him the benefit, although I did tell him what time we had our dinner appointment.. 


Also, I am annoyed with last minute drops. For mission conference, we had an issue with our ride. One member called us and asked if we needed a ride, to which I confidently said, "Oh, we have a ride from this member." To which the member who called us told me, "The person who was going to give you a ride cannot and that is why I am calling." And that was the night before the conference.  We were able to find a ride, thankfully. Then, we were needed for service in unloading the bishop's storehouse (this is a building where food and other supplies are kept for the needy, it is not a Thrift Store) and where we were unloading was outside of our ward boundaries. We got a call at 10:20 before the day that we were supposed to help out and were told that we could not unless it was an emergency made by the bishop. Now, I respect my leaders and do enjoy their counsel, but I do like warning. We were able to help out, much to the relief of the Relief Society President (Relief Society is an charitable organization for women in each congregation) in our ward. But, yeah, I am starting to notice that I have issues.

The last paragraph really summed up most of my week. The only thing really left is the mission conference that we had for Christmas. There were a lot, a lot of musical numbers, but many spiritual thoughts. It was good to see some of the old district members of the MTC. I also ran into my trainer, Elder Meibos, and he asked me many, many questions about the area. It was quite enjoyable.

So, this week is going to be an interesting one. It is the time of the holidays. I will think positively and hopefully, people and members will let us in. Hey, at least Christmas and Christmas Eve are busy.

Cannot wait to talk (using Skype for a video phone call on Christmas). All is well!

Love,

Elder S. Todd