P-Day Eve

Here I am! Rock me like a hurricane! (I'm not in Utah anymore so I can pronounce it the way it was meant to be pronounced and not "hurrakin") Dahahaha....

 

Well I cannot deny life is good! I'm in my new area - Meridian West 2 of the Meridian Idaho West Stake, covering the Ten Mile, Cherry Lane, Perigrine, and Autumn Faire wards - and though progress is slow, it is steady. My new comp, Elder Christopher Norris - a 6'6" Hawaiian from Valencia, CA - and I are getting along very well. He minds his space and I mind mine and it's awesome! He's a really good guy. He's got an amazing testimony and likes to make time to work and time to play. He's a freakin' stud muffin. I must confess I'm enjoying my first "P-Day Eve" and it's been quite the thrill! We got a ride from our area in Meridian to my old area, which is 10 minutes away, Boise North - where Elder Norris first served and a number of other mercenaries are near, making 8 fine rogues in all - last night and we stayed up late... While the Missionary Handbook doesn't exactly support our wileyness, I feel it's been really good for me. In seeing and talking to other missionaries who are much older and wiser than I, I've learned a lot about what I should do to become a better missionator. Also in meeting more missionaries, I've made more friends and I feel a lot more support. I want to surround myself with these kinda friends even after the mission. I have no intention of making these haberdasheries and shenanigans a regular habit but I am glad I did it.

 

In Meridian, we're staying with sister Sheila B.. Sheila an older gal who lives by herself and enjoys the company of her granddaughter and her son-in-law 4 to 5 days out of every week. I think she enjoys having us there because she has a more receptive audience. She doesn't - or ever has - take crap offa nobody and having her to impart of her wisdom and knowledge is a nice disruption to the monotony. She tells us stories of her in high school when she was friends with every single person in the class because she allowed her classmates the right "to make jackasses of themselves" while she maintained her own standards. She was told that she set the tone for her whole class... Needless to say we're living with one tough cookie.

 

We get plenty of support from all the ward members. (And on a minor note, they have many more attractive daughters than my last area) I'd be willing to bet we'd have a lot more success if we'd better utilize that support. The verse "ask and it shall be given, knock and it shall be opened, ring bell for service" deserves a whole PANTLOAD more credit than it gets. You would not believe how effective simply asking can be! Unfreakingbelievable and extremely beneficial for this work. More people than less are more than willing to give if you'd just kindly ask. A real blessing indeed. We're fed well every night and I really think they like us. What's nice about Elder Norris and I is the members see us every day as opposed to once every couple of months. The missionaries here before us had to cover the whole stake, all eight wards, and it was hard for them to give everyone the attention they need. What's nice about this is the area was split at the beginning of the transfer so now the area has two sets of missionaries, so now each ward gets more individual attention. I think it was the Perigrine ward that said they haven't had a convert baptism in 5 or 6 years. Yeah. There is work to be done. What makes it hard is Elder Norris and I have to build from the ground up, it seems, because work before was scarce and we're both brand freaking new to the area. There's unbelievable potential here for awesomeness. The trick is trying to figure out what we're dealing with.

 

We don't really have any solid alligators yet, just a good-sized list of less-active members. We've got a couple of potential alligators but it's still a working progress. I'm ok with this because I feel it's more important to establish a good relationship with the members than to get to work dunking infidels and pagans and heathens. Our ticket to success will be through the members because they are the support in the area, they are going to have to take care of whoever we convert, and we're not going to be here forever. If we find some folks, befriend them, teach them, convert them, are given their daughters and their land and livestock, dunk them, and then LEAVE, the effort would have all be for naught UNLESS they've got a foundation and friends with the members and the ward. How the heck are we gonna do that if we're not the members buddies in the first place? So you see? It's all part of the plan...

 

 Oooh while I'm thinking about it, Elder Norris has got a pocket-size set of the Book of Mormon, the New Testament, the Pearl of Great Price and the D&C, and the Gospel Principles books. I think he said they're military issue. Where would I find the set? I've got the Book of Mormon but I'd like to find the rest of the set. Having copies apart from my good set is convenient for studying and I can write thoughts and impressions in the book ya know?

 

Well I've gotta wrap this up it's time to go. I want you guys to know that I love you AND I'm not just saying it. For those of you who knew me well know I was very passive aggressive - tell you one thing and do another out of laziness and gay - and I was a master BSer. I am pleased to inform EVERYONE that is no longer the case. I prove my love and appreciation for you every day as I wake up early, do up my top button, keep my sleeves rolled down, ride my bike in the cold and the hot, take rejection with a smile, pray like crazy, study 'til want to burn the white handbook, and host illegal cock-fights in a warehouse downtown. You ask me "Is it true?" And I reply "Yes. As God liveth and as I live. Except for the last part."

 

The gospel is true. I know I'm doing what He would have me do. This is why God has preserved me.

 

Sincerely,

freakin' the studliest muffin you ever saw,

tay

Bonus Feature

Also, could you get me Brittany's mailing address? I can't remember her last name... We met her at that art convention for Eric with the guy who paints pictures of cancer kids. She's the cheerleader in the wheelchair. Dad might have more information about her but if you could get me that address I would really really appreciate it.

 

Also, have you thought about "applying" to be the ward's Family History Consultant? If you had the time or even the desire I think you'd be awesome at that! It's a thought that crossed my mind when I was studying this morning...

 

Anything things are going well for me. Elder N and I are getting along most goodly. Today we're going to go member tracting and figure out just who the heck we're dealing with. If we establish a good base with the members then we'll be set. We can get the support that's essential for this work and the contacts to work more effectively. Figure if we're trying to dunk nonmembers and get them to church, the members might want to know about it, and the better relationship we have with them, the better the relationship we can establish between members and converts, the better the world goes round. It's the whole part 'n parcel, the whole genie gig. With the few members and leaders we've met so far, we are extremely well off. Things look very, very promising!

 

This Friday, the K's are getting dunked! They're going to make amazing members. We're trying to situate rides to the baptism, which will be Friday night, and then Valicity's asked me to confirm her on Sunday. So we've got some transportation to figure out. (Would you mind saying a prayer or two for that? It's kinda difficult trying to work that out since we can count all the people we know in this area on one hand...) It's such a blessing to see them be baptized. It's a testimony of how good the Spirit is and His influence. We just brought them the tools and they built up what they've got! It's a beautiful thing.

 

Well I gotta go but I'll be writing again soon.

Love you!

 

tay

Dale Carnegie Fan

It's good to hear things are going so well. The routine and keeping busy are an excellent thing for the lifestyle - something I just recently discovered. It's especially a blessing having you at home more often. It sounds really nice and I'm sure everyone else appreciates it.

Holy BALLS you're not kidding! A crash course on relationship skills indeed! Ask me how grateful I am I'm familiar with the Dale Carnegie lessons? I honestly don't think I would've survived had I not studied How to Win Friends and Influence People. I was floored when I discovered how effective it is! That Carnegie was a brilliant man... You really can't win an argument. It's extremely important to try to see things from others' perspectives. Criticizing, condemning, and complaining does NOTHING good. Listening is much more important than talking. Etc. Etc. The thing that stood out to me the most was how beautiful a thing "charity" is as explained in Moroni 7:40something. It REALLY works! I just learned to shut up, put my head down, and keep working. The things I learned in the 12 weeks of SUCK will benefit me the rest of my life.

Home teachers?! That's SICK! I love those guys! I'm glad you've got them and I'm glad they do a good job. It's incredible how beneficial it is and it's super important to establish those relationships. I've found the stronger the unity in a ward, the better it is, it works more efficiently, and you get a lot more Latter-Day Saints than plain ol' Mormons. I'm glad you like the ward. It does sounds very nice and it makes me happy you guys are more comfortable with it. I've also found a good ward is almost as beneficial as a good family. The 16th ward in Boise has got to be the best ward I have ever seen. The bishop as well as the rest of the leaders were phenomenal, which gave the members something to work with, with built the strength and unity of the ward. Unfreakingbelievable. A good bishop makes a WORLD of difference. Bishop Richards of the 16th ward has got to be one of the very best bishops I've ever seen. It's a blessing to have a good bishop.

I got the letter, the insurance card, and the debit card.

Go check out Mormon.org! That site is the BOMB NIGGIDY. Specifically the Mormon Messages. That site is a beautiful thing and a wonderful tool for us as missionaries. It provides great material for whatever. If you're looking for family home evening activities or material or anythings, I recommend that site. Tell Dallin and Kadi about it too. They'd love it. It makes us Mormons look a little less threatening and easier to talk to.

Things with Elder XX didn't improve at all and Elder XX and I maintain good terms. But it's ok, whatever it is, because I got transferred from Boise North 2 to Meridian West 2. I was bummed at first - I still am a little - but I see that this is where I'm supposed to be. I have a new companion, Elder N., and he's a freakin' stud muffin to the max. He's from Valencia, CA and he's half Hawaiian half white and he 6'6". On Thursday - September 29 I think - they split the Meridian West stake from one area to two. It's 8 or 9 wards and the missionary work was not very successful with only one set of elders. So the area was split into two areas and so Elder N. and have been assigned to "shotgun" this area. Neither of us know anyone here nor know the area and so it's all very new. It looks very promising though. Elder N. is a heck of a missionary and the two of us will stack the tires and light the fires and burn Meridian down. We're staying with a member, Sheila B. 73ish, and the place is super chill, very comfortable. Sister B.'s really cool too.

I'll write back soon! Love you!

tay