Tappahannock on the Rappahannock

The Rappahannock River runs approximately 195 miles.

Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value.

Albert Einstein

Monday, November 17. 2014

Dear Parents, Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,

There is no Bank of America nearby me for cashing checks. Yes, I have a car, for which I am grateful . Yes, I have plans for Thanksgiving with our landlady and their family and extended family. I have no idea what my size is in the waist.  Also, thank you for sending healthful items to me in the Halloween package (pumpkin seeds?). I did enjoy it.

It sounds like things are growing in Lemoore. Is it? ( We're a Navy town, so attendance can vary on deployment, vacations, etc.) Last Sunday (not yesterday) we had a stake member come and take a picture of the congregation (which that week was totally full) to show how much the Tappahannock Branch has grown. (This week, though, a lot of people were at home, because of sickness.) Tell Sister Saari that I say hi. I definitely understand back pain and I am taking it easy. I have been trying to work on my core strength as I have probably already said. Odd question: How is the gas prices in Lemoore? Here it is $2.55 per gallon. (Sorry if I make you jealous.) And yes, the weather is definitely getting colder. We have been trying to stay warm inside and outside.

This week seems to have a handful of car troubles. Be careful out there. First our landlady's mail car (which got fixed), then Bria's accident, and finally us (more details coming).

Monday night. We had an appointment with the people we set on date for baptism last week. Well, it fell through. And subsequent visits proved fruitless, because they ditched out on us. Until we finally caught one at home, who was sick. We gave her a blessing and we hope that everything will be okay with her. ( Notice the sentiment was not that she be made well and be converted but simply that things will be okay with her.) We arrived late to family home evening, but it was a good lesson. 

Tuesday, we had a successful day of appointments. We saw one of our investigators who has many medical issues. She seems to focus in our lessons; although, we are going to ask her to turn the telly off, rather than mute it. I learned a couple of lessons myself about the Spirit in that lesson. Then, we saw an elderly lady whom we are trying to teach, but I am wondering if things are sinking in. She understands and always has the same tangents, although she has the mental competency and is physically well and able for her age. Hopefully, things do stick with her and that she understands the importance of what we say. We also saw a less active whom I had not seen since I arrived. He requested that we do not prepare a lesson, but open the scriptures to some chapter. It is a great idea, but with tabs, it makes very hard to open it to a random page (or I might open to the topical guide). Finally, we taught a recent convert of a couple months the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Tuesday was a successful week after a hard week.

Well, Wednesday rolled around. We had district meeting that day. Our zone leaders and sister training leaders showed up. I trained on the companionship and our relationship with our companions. I think it went well; I used a lot of scriptures and a lot of scriptural companions (even if it was not an actual missionary companionship). After that and doing our usual things, we headed off to see a few people. As we went by the library (which has construction nearby), we instantly heard a lot of clanging from our car, specifically the left rear tire. We immediately went into the parking lot of an elementary school. Lo and behold, there was a metal rod, with a screw end, sticking out of the tire (the screw end was in our tire). My companion immediately pulled it out and our tire, in a matter of minutes, deflated. We had a spare, but we thought we had no tools. (We later found the jack and we found the necessary tool, which was hidden.) We called somebody who came and helped. Now, we had a donut and had to limit ourselves. As per expected with a donut, it was half the size of all the tires.

So on Thursday, we had it patched with help from our landlord. It took two plugs. And as we sadly realized, it is leaking air, albeit slowly. We have to fill it with air everyday. But, with a fixed tire, we headed off to see people. We saw an elderly couple, one of whom has specifically dementia. We read the scriptures and helped the man with the dementia understand what we read. His wife helped out. Then, we saw an investigator, who lives with a member. We had a good lesson, though the member goes off in non-important tangents and talks and talks. No matter what we do to stop him, he keeps on talking. So, it is a matter of relating the tangent to the topic.


Friday, we visited our investigator with her giant two year old. In teaching the Ten Commandments, we asked questions and she asked questions. It was good, albeit a few tangents that somewhat deviated from the lesson that we also used to try to bring it back. We tried a few more people that day with no success, especially that night. We helped our members upstairs decorate their Christmas tree; it is decorated in red and white.

Saturday, we helped at the tail end of a Farmer's Market. There was not much going on when we arrived and people were leaving. We stayed there for a while before packing up everything and leaving. We did our best that day as well. We had a good lesson with our investigator that is a single mother and two children. While the children were all over the place, we tried hard to focus the lesson on the main point. 

Sunday was the normal best day, it being the Sabbath. Not much happened on Sunday.

All is well!

Love,

Elder S. Todd

Pin by Jackie Helwig.

Delivering Mail Iraqi Style: Read to the End

Define normal? What is a normal young man and young woman like? There are roughly 88,000 missionaries mostly young adults just emerging from their teen years who face daily rejection, sometimes pain, sorrow, illness preach of  God and His Son Jesus Christ and the restoration of the fullness of His good news. They do this at their own expense. Their joy is in the faces of those who come to understand and know Christ. Their joy is in their service. Some because of illnesses or accidents must come home early and they do so reluctantly because they know who their Master is and who they really serve.

November 10, 2014

Dear Parents, Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,

Well, it has been a slow week over here as well. We worked hard, but not much came as a result. I like Tappahannock; I always like my country areas more than my city areas. I like having the open space and the fresh air that comes from the open space. Cities are condensed and I feel crowded. Or they might be dangerous like Petersburg. Other than that, I love the members everywhere and I have great joy when serving with them. I am enjoying the people here. I am slowly getting to know the people. Our members upstairs usually feed us on Sunday and as my companion says half the branch is there, only due to the fact that half the branch is related somehow to the members upstairs. (Of course, it may be somewhat of an exaggeration, but it is somewhat true.)

My back is doing a lot better. I generally have good days with my back. I do wake up sore around my back area, but as soon as I get moving, I feel better. Only once have I felt in pain, but generally taking Aleve helps. I know I need to work on my core strength and strengthen those muscles there. I am trying to figure out the best way to do that. I know I do not want to do sit-ups, because it might hurt my back.

I did receive the Halloween package. It was going to be a Thanksgiving package instead, but I was spared. More on that in a bit.

Monday, after our normal P-day tasks, we had dinner and we contacted a referral that we received from the sisters. We had a member come out with us, but the referral changed our time to meet with them to an hour later than planned. We met with them and talked. It is a man and woman; at this point, we are unsure if they are married or not. We taught them the Restoration and the man asked many questions, some of them off the wall. It was a good first lesson and we gave them a goal for baptism to help them think about it. After the lesson, we tried to see another person without much success.

Tuesday, we cleaned our apartment a bit. After lunch, we tried to contact people, but there was not much success in that. We had dinner and aided a member in their home teaching (members are assigned to visit families with a spiritual message and see if they have any needs). That was the success we had that day. 

Wednesday, we had a zone conference with the two zones that consist of the Richmond Stake, the two zones that consist of the Midlothian Stake, and the zone that consists of the Chesterfield Stake. It was a positive meeting that I got a lot out of listening to what was shared. I asked about mail afterwards, seeing as I knew I had a package, but nobody brought the mail with them. Luckily, one of the office missionaries came by to deliver mail. After the conference, we had to wait a bit and did not get home until about 5:30 or so. We went to the church after dinner and talked with a recent convert about family history and other things. Then, we joined the branch choir. Not many people were there. The men only consisted of us missionaries and the recent convert. To make matters worse, my companion and the recent convert are tenors. I was the only bass. It was really odd for me and I felt a bit anxious about it. We are doing a medley of Primary songs and a hymn out of the hymnal. We are also doing a song in Latin. So I am learning Latin, or at least the phrase, "Gloria patri et fillio et spiritui sancto. Amen." (Meaning, "Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen."

Thursday morning, my companion stacked wood. I was not allowed to help and I am not liking it. I have been trying to find ways to do service. Afterwards, it was a day of trying to see people with not much success. 

Friday, we planned. Our appointment for the day cancelled. My companion did the progress record (we switch every week) while I did family history. Recently, I have been adding information to people. I am really fascinated by it. We did see one person, but it was not a good time. We saw a less active that night and they were talking about past missionaries. They had some good things to say. 

Saturday. This day was designated a social media day which I forgot to tell you about. The idea was for members to come out with the missionaries for a while and to take pictures of us, post things, etc. This was to show that we are normal, we try to help the community, and we believe in Jesus Christ. (This is due to the Book of Mormon musical that came into Richmond recently. Missionaries, as authorized by President, were standing outside the theater, so that people could ask them questions about the real deal. Originally, they were to pass things out, but the theater was not happy about that.) Well, we had nobody to come out with us, because they cancelled. It turned out for our benefit though. Saturday was a really off day. We did nothing. Why? Well, at 6:19 AM, I was peacefully dreaming when I heard in the midst of my sleep, somebody throwing up. Lo and behold, it was my companion who was sick. He was not going anywhere. He needed to rest and I made sure he rested. Meanwhile, throughout the day, I studied. It was a long day of nothing. 

Sunday, my companion was doing a lot better. We went to church; our new investigators showed up. We tried to see more people, but failed. Then we had dinner. The landlady received a call that day, saying she needed to go to work tomorrow (she works for the postal system). Well, here they drive normal cars that have something to identify them as mail carriers. Her car needed new brakes and her spare needed a starter. While we were having dinner, it was being fixed. It was a really nice dinner and quite enjoyable. We went downstairs afterwards, but went back up for something. We were talking to the landlady about something. Then, there was a loud boom, the house shook (mainly in the laundry room). We went outside. So, the car that was fixed with the brakes somehow failed (not sure exactly what happened). The car ended up rolling down the small hill it is on where it is normally parked and ended up hitting the house. The house was protected by a bench that was in shambles after the incident. (Kind of like how Bria hit the icebox freezer, but the icebox freezer and the car survived.) The car was pushed back and parked. Well, the radiator was crushed from the incident. That night, everybody was trying to fix the car, but nothing seemed to be resolved. She was able to find a way to do her job, but it was crazy with all that excitement and stress. When it happened, we had a person who has been and still is in the military. She said, somewhat jokingly, "I thought I was in Iraq again. I almost had a PTSD moment." (Delivering mail Iraqi style!)

Slow week, not much happened until the weekend.

All is well!

Love,

Elder S. Todd

She Was Curious! But He Had Been In Prison!

Virginia Richmond Mission: Tappahannock, Virginia

"The words of the Lord are found in the scriptures and the teachings of the apostles and prophets. They provide us counsel and direction that, when followed, will act like a spiritual life jacket and will help us know how to hold on with both hands."—M. Russell Ballard, "Stay in the Boat and Hold On!"

Monday, November 3, 2014

Dear Parents, Mom and Dad/Dad and Mom,

I am glad to hear that California got some rain. We got rain, too. It has been getting cold. Our basement gets cold as well. I plugged in my electric blanket and I have been keeping toasty. We should be getting wood soon to help keep the place heated, somewhat. I can already tell that the blanket will be the best of my friends. But I continue to hope that California gets the much needed rain.

Yes, I plan on sending Grandma a card. A new month means new MSF.

Speaking of birthdays and other related topics here, I do need those second pair of shoes, I guess. On the outside of my shoes, everything is fine. On the inside, the padding (sole?), I would say (I have no idea what to call it or what it is called), is falling apart after 16 months. Unless I should get Dr. Scholls to replace it. I honestly need one (uno) long sleeve white shirt. Apparently, dirt cannot come out of white shirts, despite multiple washes, including a wash with bleach. (Although, I have done it before.) As for CDs, to answer your question, no, not really. Anything else, I really do not know. Sorry, if I am not helpful, which chances are, I am not. I will think about it....( His 20th birthday is next month, plus Christmas is coming as well.)

Monday, we did the usual things. E-mail, sleep, shop, eat (not necessarily in that order). We tried to see someone after dinner, but it fell through. We went back to the apartment early and joined the members upstairs and their extended family for Family Home Evening (A special time set apart for families or groups of singles to gather, have a lesson, have fun and usually have some dessert.). We played a lot of different Halloween games. It was particularly fun. Second time I have done FHE during the mission and I love it. 

Tuesday, we feared we had to fix the car. Some of the warning lights had turned on, but turned off and has not turned on again since. We called the missionary over the cars and talked to him about it. It was, I guess, nothing to worry about and might have been a fluke. So, we tried to see some people with some success. We went over to see an investigator who has a two year old the size of a five year old. She was curious about Joseph Smith and his life (she had heard that he went to jail), so we watched the full-length movie about his life. She seemed to have a better understanding about him. We answered any other question that she had about him. We had dinner, then we tried to talk to another investigator. He was home and we were let in. But, he was sick and did not come out to meet us. I was able to meet the family; their adult daughter was home and was asking all sorts of questions. This lasted for a while before we left and tried to see more people.

Wednesday, we cleaned out our car to make it ready for inspection. We had lunch and then we went out to talk to some more of our investigators. We went to one investigator, who was watching a soap opera. She muted the television. We taught the Restoration. Part of me does wonder how much she remembers and what she had heard. Other than that, it was a pretty good lesson. We went over to the trailer parks to see another investigator, but she was not home at the time. Another investigator fell through. And a less active fell through, because he was watching baseball. After dinner, we finished our car preparations. We went over to the church, talked to people, and had our car inspected briefly. We passed. 

Thursday, we did our weekly planning and to conserve on miles, we went over to the church to do some family history. Nothing new as of yet. After that, we tried our investigator who lives in the trailer parks. We read with her from the Book of Mormon and explained the importance of scripture study and prayer. I hope she takes into heart what we were saying. We tried seeing a potential, which we were able to see and talk about the gospel. She was explaining her situation to us and how she is trying to move. From there, we saw an investigator, an elderly lady who does not mind us coming by. She seems interested. Due to her time constraints, we taught her about the premortal life.

Friday, we had zone meeting, which took a lot of our time. We saw an elderly, medically challenged less active. She learned of someone passing in her family and was reasonably upset. After that, we tried again to see the investigator who was sick previously when we went by. He was not home. We tried one more person and were able to talk to her. Then, we headed inside to organize our supplies. We were not to be out unless we had an appointment. (Halloween)

Saturday, we made our progress record. We saw the less active who was previously watching baseball. We had a nice little visit, just talking to him and sharing a small message. We decided to check up on some members in the ward and we were able to talk to them. After having dinner, we stopped by an investigator, who we usually have appointments with on Saturdays. Her two children, who are normally all over the place, actually stayed in one place. Then, we talked with her. I do not know how we got on the subject, but it got brought to psychology. She has a bachelor's in psychology and was at one time a forensic psychologist. She got out of it due to lack of money (she said that even a master's did not get paid enough). My companion knew some psychology from his year in college. I talked about what drew me to the field, which was the same thing that brought her into it. She said that I am very analytical. We talked about extroverts versus introverts. It was a very academic discussion, which I have not had in a very long time. It was refreshing. She brought up a question that allowed us to change the subject and to talk about the gospel.

Sunday, we had church. We tried to see a few people. One of them was a man who has been in prison a lot. He is a very smart man and has made some changes in his life. Not much else happened on Sunday.

All is well!

Love,

Elder S. Todd