I had most of an email written up last week, but our leaders were going to drive us somewhere to play sports with a big group of missionaries so I wasn't able to finish it. I was going to finish it later last Monday and send it, but I forgot...
I'm sorry to hear about all the jerks in works. I'm glad you didn't quit though because 1. Flint's aren't quitters and integrity is an incredible quality to have. 2. We read in D&C 122 "that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good." I invite you to read that whole section. It's short but intense. and 3. Both of you working means more money means more inheritance for Ammon. :) How Was Hunchback?!?!? I LOVE that show. It's super crazy that it is now a staged musical. It hasn't been for the longest time (apart from in Disneyland). Tell me how it was!!! I'm glad you all had a fun time in all your shinanagans.
HAHA! I'm so popular. ;) That's a funny story though, Mom. I really want to know who it was now. I'm trying to think of some names, Crippen maybe??
MOM! Stop making me trunky. Especially for Christmas. It's SO far away, don't make me think about it. Honestly though, I can't really think of anything I really want. I don't want anything that I'm going to have a hassle bringing home. I've collected some things here on the mission, but when I come back, I'm going to try and leave a lot of things here (especially clothes, because by the end of the mission, most of my clothes are going to be trashed). Maybe some sheet music (piano/organ/guitar). Chocolate. Money. That's all I really desire in life. :)
I'll ponder more on it. HAHA!!!! HUFFLEPUFFS RULE!!!! Don't do DARE be ashamed to be a Hufflepuff, Savannah. Own It!! Well, if you want to know EXACTLY what my wand is. It has a Phoenix Feather Core, it's made of Elm, it is approximately 14 1/2 inches long, it is slightly flexible, dark, straight, and round. Anything else?? Of course Dad is a squib. Why don't you get some QuickSpell ya squib!? Good Work Soph!! I feel like I'm saying that in all of my emails. And good job Savannah on typing your name. ;) And no, Mom, you're not a failure. And I forgive you. That was the first time in over a year that you didn't email me, it was bound to happen. Don't worry about it. I only cried for 2 hours. ;)
SO! I'll just add on to what I wrote last week.
So last week started out with me making a boob mistake of buying a new pair of winter boots at Walmart (for about 45$) and coming back to the apartment to realize that another missionary left basically the EXACT same pair of boots, same company, same size; in the apartment. Going back to Walmart!!
Last week was great though. The weather started out hot, humid, and terrible; but now it rained the last few days and the weather is starting to cool down. Can't wait for Winter!!! Last (last) Thursday, we had the incredible opportunity to have Elder Mervyn B. Arnold come to Toronto to Tour the Mission. And let me tell you HE IS FIRE!!!!! So we started out having a leadership meeting before the general missionary meeting and for the most part, he rebuked us on EVERYTHING wrong we've been doing. It was SO intense. He definitely showed what it means in D&C 121 to "reprove betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost." Let me tell you, if the other missionaries were in that meeting, MANY sister missionaries would have broken down in tears and some ELDERS would have also. True story.
Being me, I was keeping eye contact with him while he was "thrashing us" and when he sees someone looking him in the eyes, he stares into your very soul. I feel like more than half of that meeting was him and I staring at each other and he analyzing me from the inside out. At one part of the meeting, I chuckled at something he said, and he called me out by saying "I like you Elder, come up to the front." Then he had me come to the front of all the leaders and smile at them. Then he said "You can go sit down now." Super funny.
Later, to begin the general missionary meeting, we started with a musical number I had to put together with missionaries from all over the mission singing the EFY Medley (We'll Bring the World His Truth and As Sisters in Zion). With very little practice and lots of prayer, we actually did very good. After that, I went and sat down and Elder Arnold got up again, looked at me, and asked me if I want to help him again. I said sure and he once again, called me up to the front. He then told me to hold up my arms and stand there, which I did for about ten minutes. He then asked me how I felt and I said "I can't feel my arms anymore." He told the APs to come up and hold my arms up, which they did (not very well) and he talked about how we need to "Help each other in the work." We than stood up there for another ten minutes, with them holding my arms up. Finally he looked at us and said "All right Elders, give him a huge, then send him home." So while I was giving the second Elder a hug, I whispered, "all right, now send me home." We laughed and he said "Give me your name tag." It was all very funny.
The rest of the meeting was great. Abigail was there and I got to practice role plays with her, fun stuff!!
The rest of last week was pretty average. Some fun things that happened were we went to this authentic Mexican Restaurant called "King's Tacos." The food was very authentic and all the waitresses (and waiters) spoke Spanish. 'Twas a blast. Also, we helped paint a house, sang a musical number in Sacrament meeting (Lord, I Would Follow Thee), and yeah.
So last week seemed to go by super fast, so this email shouldn't be too much longer. ;)
Last Wednesday, I had the opportunity to go on exchanges with my brotha', Elder Brett Babbel. He reminds a TON of my best friend, Elder Joseph Shearer, so appropriately, we get along. We had a good time, and visited an El Savladorian member who fed us delicious food.
On Thursday, (you'll be proud of me for this, Mom) we went to the house of some of my favorite members the Genoas/Trujillos, and I made and brought Chocolate Decadence. They, appropriately, fell in love with it. Sister Genoa wanted the recipe, but I told her it was a secret recipe, so she went through and asked me if a bunch of different ingredients were in it. She didn't get much out of me.
On Friday, we had a Zone Council which was a lot of fun. Our whole Zone ate breakfast together, then had a meeting where we played some games and recieved instruction on different things. It was very fun.
Saturday was quite the day. We had a ward picnic planned at a park nearby, at 2:00 PM. But it was raining ALL DAY, so we had to change the location to the chapel. So at 2:00, all the missionaries were there with a few members waiting, and waiting, and waiting. Some members had the hamburger meat and were stuck in traffic. They didn't show up until about 3 hours later. It was rough. Luckily, our appointment at 5:00 PM canceled. But the food came, more members came, and then a homeless man came. So there's this fat, balding, Italian man (some people say he's homeless, some say he has a home), but he's been known for coming into our church, yelling things in Italian, stealing a lamp or something, then running out. He showed up at the picnic, and our bishop invited him to come sit down and served him some food and drink. The man was being very rude and demanding and Elder Babbel was super upset because he himself hadn't had a hamburger yet, but this man was served one made personally for him. It was pretty funny. Eventually, this man gets up and walks out of the gym and Elder Babbel, Elder Staheli, and I all get up and bee-line in to the door he walked out of. We find that he had gone into the kitchen and was now fighting with one of the member ladies in their cooking and going through the drawers (probably looking for something to steal). We were about to grab him and throw him out, but Bishop flies by us and grabs him himself and throws him out of the chapel. The whole time, this man is yelling in a high pitched, girly, Italian voice. Jesu Cristo!! Jesu Cristo!! Todo bene!! Todo bene!! Which means "Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ, It's Okay, It's Okay!!!" So we threw him out and locked all the doors. It was great.
Yesterday, Sunday, was also a nice day. All the missionaries sang "Savior, Redeemer of My Soul," while I played the piano, for a Missionary's Farewell in the English Ward. We also had dinner with one of my favorite Mexican Families, the Sifuentes. It's a single mom with her four kids and she is SO funny. She's like Dad in Mexican Mom form. We had a lot of fun there.
One thing I've been studying a lot lately, and we talked about at Zone Council, is having charity. I ended up giving a talk two Sundays ago, about Charity, in Sacrament meeting and I quoted 1 Corinthians 13 and the talk "Charity Never Faileth" by Thomas S. Monson in the October General Conference of 2010. I invite you all to read both of those. 1 Corinthinas 13 makes it very clear that Charity will never end. Paus says many things will fade away or dissapear, but charity, the pure love of Christ, no. I, and my Zone Leader, quoted verse 11 in 1 Corinthians 13 saying "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things." As missionaries, we sometimes do dumb things and forget that we're examples of Jesus Christ, so our zone needed a little reminder of that. But, even as people, we honestly sometimes do "childish" things. We just need to remember that we are children of God and that our goal in life is to become like him. So have charity and put away childish things. That is my invitation to you. I love you all and hope you have a wonderful week. Chao!!