Happy Victoria's Birthday!!

Happy Victoria's Birthday!! Whatever that means.

My Birthday has been pretty nice so far. I woke up to find the Elder who was staying over at our house (because he's going home tomorrow) tried to steal my Alarm Clock. We asked him if he knew where it went and he said no. Then one of the Elders found it in his suitcase. "Happy Birthday Elder Flint, I'm stealing all your stuff!" Classic. Then he left like half of his suitcase at our house, so that's fun.

Thank you for the razor, and the shirt, and the candy. And the chopsticks (on the mission, you accumulate a ton of Chopsticks, so I've got a pretty great personal collection now :).

And, I don't know if it's actually from Logan or not (because I could see him throwing his name on the back of one). Nevertheless, THANK YOU!!! I'm pretty pumped to go see that now. I hope they do the Broadway Musical and the acting is actually decent. At the Tuachan, it usually isn't!

We went to check at a house, this morning, that we're probably going to move into. The house that we're renting right now is getting sold. The house we checked out was SUPER nice. Like, I would live in it if I had a family and a lot of money. So I hope they let us move into it. 'Twould be a nice Birthday gift. :)

Now I'm here. We're going to go to Buffalo Wild Wings to celebrate my Birthday, then we're probably going to a Parkour Place, then we're going to one of my favorite member's houses for Dinner (they have the most ADORABLE little girls, that melt my heart when they speak in Spanish. Nothing makes me more trunky than little Hispanic Girls speaking in Spanish). Then I'll finish the day teaching English to a bunch of Middle Eastern people. Which I love. Then we'll probably eat Cream Cheese Chocolate Cake at the end of the day. So I'm pretty pumped for the day. Happy Birthday to me.

This week has been tons of funs:

Monday, we played lots of sports, then we had a wonderful dinner with a family who gave both Elder Babbel and I Birthday gifts and made us a cake. It was pretty fun.

Tuesday, I went back to my old area again (Black Creek) with my old companion (Elder Hansen) on exchanges. It was so good. We were able to meet up with Jose. I hadn't seen him in over a year, so it was SO good to see him again. We had Pizza and talked about how his life is going. He said he wants to take me on a trip to Mexico after my mission. So we'll see!!

Tuesday night we had four Elders over, because we had Zone Conference Wednesday Morning. It was super fun. Zone Conference was pretty average. I got to see Abigail though!!! Which was great!! 

Wednesday night we had a wonderful steak dinner with our favorite Peruvian Family. We then had an awesome lesson with Wilder and Judith (a part member couple, Judith is the member) and it was super good. Wilder wants to get baptized so we're pretty excited for him. It was SUPER hot on Wednesday (30 Degrees Celsius), so I was sweating all day.

Thursday we did a TON of Service. We worked on Temple Grounds, then did some service at a Food Bank. Once again, super hot day. Super sweaty. We then had Dinner with Daniel's family. Daniel's a youth in the Ward who is leaving for the Dominican Republic tomorrow, to serve a mission. He is an awesome guy and we've both grown pretty close with him here. So we had Pupusas with his family. 'Twas fun.

Friday we had some good lessons. Ate some good food. And yeah.

Saturday we helped with English Classes, then we had some dinner, then we went to our Ward's Mother's Day Activity. It was pretty good. They were doing a cake auction and a member bought us a delicious cake. So that was awesome. We then had another great lesson with Wilder and Judith. Good day.

Sunday was a GREAT day!! Wilder, Judith, and another one of our investigators came to church and LOVED it. Later on Sunday, we passed by the farms and met a few more Mexicans to whom we gave copies of the Book of Mormon and set up a return appointment. We taught some of the other ones we have already met and the Spirit was super strong. Great lessons.

Monday we celebrated Victoria's Day by going over to a Part-Member families house and having a Barbecue with them and playing some games. We're teaching the Missionary Lessons to their 8 year-old son and he challenged us to a chess competition. We accepted his challenge and he destroyed us. His dad then challenged us to Ping-Pong and also destroyed us. "Happy Victoria's Day Elder Flint, you stink at sports!!" It was super fun.

We then helped our Bishop move a bunch of stuff out of his house, because his family is moving. Later that night, we had an awesome dinner with our Ward Mission Leader and his family. All in all, it was a great day.

One thing that I've been trying to grow in myself these last few weeks is Faith and Hope. Hope for a bright future. As missionaries finish their missions and go home, I find that they get REALLY worried about the future (money, schooling, dating, etc.). But I realize, you just served God for a good portion of your life, don't you think He's going to help you out?? Sometimes we think (especially me) that we're going to have to do it all on our own, but A. We don't have to, because God will help us and B. We can't do it all on our own, we NEED God's help. So that's my invitation to all of you, love life, and have hope for the future. Don't worry. If we are obeying God's Commandments and living in accordance with His will, everything will turn out alright. I love you all and hope you have a great week!!

Mother's Day

I Need Thee Every Hour is the only Spanish Quartet I have. I also have Glorious in Spanish. We could make that into a duet/trio/quartet if needs be. I'll take a look at I Need Thee Every Hour and send pictures of it.

Oh yeah. I was going to ask Charlie and Amaya, during the Skype call, if they're going to pop one out anytime soon. I thought they were already trying. We shall see.

This last week was pretty busy:

Monday, we played lots of Sports and exhausted ourselves, then we moved a piano and exhausted ourselves even more.

Tuesday, we ate pizza and had a great English Class.

Wednesday we did some service and I went on exchanges with Elder Taylor. He is from Layton, Utah and he's one of the APs here. It was a fun exchange. We went to Downtown Brampton and ran into some crazy people. One of the crazies wanted to take a picture with us. So we did and invited her to church. It was super fun.

Thursday, we had a great lunch with our Investigator, Sofia. We then went to more meetings, did some service, ate some delicious dinner, and then met a bunch of Mexicans (not Migrant Workers this time, though!).

Friday, I went on another exchange with Elder Olson from Red Deer, Alberta. It was fun because I got to go back to one of my last areas (Black Creek), although it was in English. We met some more crazy people.

Saturday was a really fun day. I got to go to English Classes over in my old area and I saw some of the students that I taught back in the days. They were really happy to see me and I got some of their numbers. I also got to see Jay, the first person that I helped get baptized. It was SO good!! I got his number too, so we can stay in touch more regularly.

Later on Saturday, we helped with a baptism, had a fun dinner, and then went and visited the Mexican Migrant Workers, they were pretty tired from work, so we weren't able to talk to many of them. :|

Sunday we had a wonderful Mother's Day Service. Two of our investigators came to church. So that was great. Later that day, we had dinner with our Bishop's Family, and then Skyped our own families. So yeah. This be why my email is very short. :)

One thing that I didn't get the chance to say in the Skype call, and wanted to say is how incredibly grateful I am for you, mother. A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to read a pamphlet called "To the Mothers in Zion." It is an address given at a Fireside for Parents by President Ezra Taft Benson and it is incredible. It talks about the role of mothers in the family, home, and in the world. I recommend it to all of you. After reading it through I realize how incredible you are. You have been a phenomenal stay-at-home mother for the last 20+ years and you have done a great job at it. You have been a guide, teacher, and a friend for me and the rest of us. I love you Mom!!!

Well, I love you all and hope you have a great week!! 

The ripped pants strike again!!

For me, the best time to Skype would be 6:00 PM my time, so 4:00 PM your time. See you then!!

I'm totally down for cancelling Idaho. I think I want to settle in a little bit, after getting home, before doing anything crazy. That would be nice. And yeah, it'd be weird to be home for like a month, and then giving my Homecoming talk. And by that time, I'll probably forget everything that happened on my mission. Haha. Jokes. But yeah, I don't think I'll need too much time to readjust.

On the mission, I sang David Archuleta's "Glorious" in Spanish. I think that's the only one. But I also have a quartet piece of "Be Still My Soul" in Spanish. I'd be down for whatever.

Food wise. Really anything. You eat everything here in Toronto. Pupusas, Shwarma, Poutine.

Great job Sophie on the performance!! I wish I could have been there. I love that song!!

Where are Dad's numbers at??

Great job Logan for getting into Singer's!! You'll come to find out that sometimes, especially with Mr. Bills, auditions don't matter. He's already picked you to be in. It's like Predestination! It sounds like your APUSH Essay topics were a joke. Haha. Don't tell Mom I said that. She'll probably put me in prison for that. ;) And I'm sorry about the Organ. That's how I felt when I played the wrong song in Sacrament. Now my companion is typing these emails because I did cut off my hands...

This week was pretty good. A little good, a little bad, a little bit of both.

Monday we played some sports. I had left my sports clothes at home and some missionaries we're bringing them for me. In the mean time, I decided to play some in my missionary clothes. Butt, when I leaned over to pick up a ball for dodgeball, the back of my pants popped open. So instead, I sat on a piano bench and practiced until they brought my clothes. The ripped pants strike again!! We had All-You-Can-Eat Sushi on Monday, and then for dinner, a member family kept feeding us more and more Spaghetti. So we ate a TON. Later, we had a wonderful FHE with the family.

Tuesday, I taught an awesome English class. That's all I can really remember. Oh, it rained. It rained everyday this week except for Wednesday and Sunday.

Wednesday we had Missionary Leadership Conference. It was very long  but very fun. We had breakfast and lunch. While there, I volunteered to play the role of a new, nervous missionary. It was very fun. I hadn't acted like that in a while. "Acted" as in theatre life...and as a missionary. ;) It was super fun. Later we did some service and had an awesome dinner with a sweet Colombian Family.

Thursday we did a lot of service. We also ate dinner with a very funny family. As we were kneeling down, right before offering a prayer, the mother of the family (who's like 60) looks at me and says (in Spanish) "Elder, you're fat. Look at your belly." We all laughed pretty hard. In Spanish Culture, you can basically say whatever you want and it's not offensive. At least, they don't mean to offend you... :'( Later that night, we had a pass off lesson with the English Sister Missionaries. The investigators is this really cool Mexican who's living with a member and he decided he wants to get baptized now. He lived in Kaysville for about 14 years, so he knows the church really well. Now he wants to be a member!!

Friday, we taught some great lessons. A member and her daughter took us out to a really good Shwarma place to eat. It was a lot of fun.

Saturday, we helped with English Classes. Later, Russel Johnson, who was my trainer in the mission, who was visiting some members in the mission, took us out to Smokes Poutine to eat. It was SUPER fun. Quite the reunion because he trained Elder Babbel also. 'Twas a lot of fun. Later that day, we went to a missionary farewell for a young man in the ward who is going to the Dominican Republic on May 24. A day after my birthday. It was super fun. We've been working with this young man, helping him prepare for the mission, so it's super exciting to be able to see him go. Later on Saturday, we went over to the Plantation and passed out about half a dozen copies of the Book of Mormon to more of the Mexican Migrant workers up there. We're planning on doing a Fireside up on the plantation, so we are pretty excited for it all. We and the ward are preparing for that and getting things arranged.

Sunday we had a Regional Conference. For the first 30 minutes, the Stake President talked and the Stake Choir sang. Elder Babbel and I joined in, last minute, to help the Stake Choir because they were low on men. We definitely helped them out. After that, we watched a broadcast from Salt Lake City where Elder Oaks, Gong, Perkins, and Sister Cordon all spoke. It was very good. Later on Sunday we had a dinner with a fun Peruvian family. All in all, it was a good week.

We've been reading and studying the Book of Mormon a lot lately (in studies and with our investigators) and let me tell you, it's honestly the most incredible book in the world. The poetry, literature, and beauty of the Book is incredible. And, on top of that, it's Sacred Scripture that will help "man get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.” I love it so much and I want to invite all of you (if you're not already) to study from it everyday. Even if it's one verse. I have seen that consistent study of the Book of Mormon helps people gain their testimony, grow their testimony, and guard their testimony. I love you all and hope you have a great week!!

MOM!! STOP TELLING ME HOW MANY DAYS I HAVE LEFT!!!!

MOM!! STOP TELLING ME HOW MANY DAYS I HAVE LEFT!!!!

I'm trunky enough!! ;) Just kidding. I counted this morning anyways. Not to look forward to going home, though. I was just seeing how many days I have left to finish Jesus the Christ. Keeps me on my toes though.

I will keep after 2:30 PM in mind for skyping. That's 2:30 PM your time right??

That's My Boy!! Good work Logan. Tell me about Prom. How much money did you spend on this girl??

Good work Sophie!! Bringing in the Bacon!!

How was the Sand Dunes Micah?? One time I went to the Sand Dunes and I saw this big PVC Pipe stuck in the ground. So I ran by it and tried to pull it out. Sadly it was anchored into the ground so instead of a PVC Pipe, I got a Fiberglass Splinter that made me bleed and hurt really bad. I hope that didn't happen to you.

Where's the Lindon Recreation Center Skyler?? What are you going to do there??

Savannah. Eating is not a hobby. Sike! It totally can be a hobby. People get paid to eat food. Haha. But it's not a healthy hobby.

This week has been a pretty nutty. I've definitely not had any week like this one, on my mission.

Monday I got a hair cut. I love it. Then we had a Barbecue with Bishop and his family and Elder Hansen said goodbye to them. That night I dropped Elder Hansen off in his new area and picked up a couple of missionaries who stayed the night in my place until transfers the next day.

Tuesday was Transfers. Pretty Fun. I got to meet all the new missionaries coming in. A lot of people from South America, so that was cool. The rest of that day was spent running around getting the missionaries their stuff and making sure everyone had everything they needed. Then we had dinner with a wonderful Mexican Family. That night we had seven new students at our English Classes, and five of them were Hispanic!!! It was awesome to see. Our Bishop and some members were at the chapel that night and they introduced themselves to all of them!! Hopefully we'll be teaching them the gospel sooner than later. 

So I realized that Zone Leaders go to a lot of meetings, but I didn't realize it's basically the same meeting three times a week. As a District Leader I gave tons of District Meetings. Around 40. But as a Zone Leader you go to all of the District Meetings in your Zone. So Wednesday through Friday comprised of us going to District Meetings, which I loved. It was weird to be on the other side of it though, because I have been a District Leader for more than half of my mission. It is a nice change. This week we have those meetings again but with a few other meetings to go to. So I'm buckling up for that!!

Other than that Wednesday through Friday was comprised of us doing service, eating with members, teaching people, doing errands, singing people Happy Birthday, etc.

Saturday was a great day. I taught English Classes again and then gave a chapel tour to one of the Hispanics that came on Tuesday. He is from the Dominican Republic and we had a member there (also attending the classes) from the Dominican Republic. They became instant friends and she came on the chapel tour with us. On the chapel tour she was telling him her whole conversion story and telling him that he is going to take the missionary lessons and get baptized also. He seemed totally cool with it all so I hope she didn't scare him away. Later on Saturday the Brampton Stake had a Disney Music night, where members, missionaries, and non-members came and performed songs from Disney shows. It was SUPER fun. I put together and accompanied a musical number of a bunch of missionaries singing "You've Got A Friend In Me." It was SO good!! I got to see a lot of people there I hadn't seen for a long time (a lot of them are getting married soon, even IN the mission it happens) and it was really nice.

Sunday, Sofia came to Sacrament Meeting. So that was really good. Then we had lunch with a fun Peruvian family in the Ward. Then the rest of our Sunday consisted of us doing a bunch of paperwork and stuff. Huzzah!

The weeks prior to the Disney Night, we invited tons of people to the performance and shared with them this scripture. D&C 25:12 "For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads." And it's so true!! I've been able to sing a lot these last few days and honestly, the Hymns we sing are my favorite parts of the meetings we have and my second favorite part of Sacrament Meeting (beaten only by the Sacrament :). Hymns and good music really are a prayer to Heavenly Father. They are an incredible way to invite the Spirit and drive away evil thoughts. So. Find your favorite hymn. Or a few, if you can't pick one. And sing a little bit more throughout your day. It's SO good. I love you all and hope you have a wonderful week. Happy Star Wars Day (May the 4th be with you) and Feliz Cinco de Mayo!!!