Hey! Hope all is well!Wow, what a week! I was so glad to get the neck warmer! It snowed the same day that it arrived...(for the second time!) Yeah...the first day that it snowed was not my favorite day to date! lol Luckily the first day it snowed was on the same day as our weekly planning, so we got to stay in the apartment until about 2:30, but when we did end up leaving to go visit people it was snowing/raining and there were huge puddles all over! Pueblo has a horrible drainage system because they don't usualy get to much moisture! Anyway, it took us about 10 minutes on our bikes until we were soaking wet! I had about 4 gallons of water in my shoes alone! But we did what all good missionaries should do...we kept going! By the time we arrived at our dinner appointment/lesson we were so soaked it wasn't even funny. lol I could barely move my feet at all they were so cold! But yeah...we went into their home (after taking of and draining our shoes) and absolutely drenched their floor! We felt so bad! We were dripping all through dinner and the lesson! Then we went to FHE at the Gogartys home and visited and tried to dry off and while we were there we arranged to go see another family that evening! Now this is where the story gets good! haha O.K. so we wrap up our conversations with everyone and then get ready to go by putting on our wet shoes, wet gloves, wet coats, wet....well, do you get my point? :) So we hop on our bikes and we're off. Well Elder Oakes had a brilliant idea that we should take a shortcut instead of staying on the wonderfully paved, hard, clean bike path that we were on. So we take what is usualy a very large, hard, dirt area which leads over to the highway (which was where we needed to get to). So off we go. Now, here is a very interesting fact about dirt. When it gets wet guess what?! It turns into a very wet, sticky, brown substance called MUD. Yup, you got it. We were in our lowest gear on our bikes and we both got stuck and had to jump off our bikes before we fell off into the mud! So there we were, two missionaries, in what used to be nice, clean, very handsome looking suits, now covered in mud up to our knees! We looked awful! Our tires got so cacked in mud that it was hard to even push our bikes! We finally made it out though and arrived, a little late, at our appointment.Well I have to go now but I will write more about whats been happening!Love you all!And thanks for the witch fingers! I love em'! Best halloween treat ever!
Love ya,
Ben.
Monday, October 26, 2009
10-19-2009 OH, THE PEOPLE I'VE MET!
Dear Peeps,
Wow, crazy p-day today! I'm exhausted. I barely had time to sit down and write this letter! Like I said in the e-mail that I sent today...Elder Oakes ran over a screw last night. so taday we had to walk our bikes and laundry over to the Gogerty's house (Bishop Gogerty is a ward missionary and is an awesome guy! I love their whole family!) But yeah, so we took our bikes and laundry over there and we started fixing his bike but he was replacing both tires as well as the flat tube, and after we fixed the flat tire(back) we started taking the tire off the front but he popped that tube too! So then Sister Gogerty said she'd go get another tube from Wal-Mart so we wouldn't have to walk. So while she was gone we went to the library (he borrowed one of their bikes) and did our e-mailing and then we went back to the Gogerty's and fixed the other flat and then Sister Gogerty insisted that we go and have fun before our day was over and she and her daughters would do our laundry for us. We tried to get her to let us do our laundry but she wouldn't let us! lol So then we went out and did our shopping...(real fun, I know!) and then we went out and ate dinner at Ruby Tuesday. It was quite a spendy meal for a missionary dinner...my meal came out to $14! We won't be doing that too often but it was fun once! I got a burger, fries and a slice of cheesecake.
Sam, you asked how my first tracting experience was. Well it was good. I was kind of nervous but I just told myself, "Your going to be doing this for two years, like it or not, so just get over it!" It actually wasn't too bad. The Elder I went with told me he would do the first door and then it was my turn!...GULP! It's actually not bad at all. I just say which church I'm from, share a quick gospel message and then ask them when I could share more of the message with them. Usually we get turned down and then we offer to help them...with anything...again, we usually get turned down and then we're on our way.
I have run into some interesting people out here! One guy yelled at us for ten minutes about how he really knew the Lord and we didn't because he served in a war and we were just knocking on doors. He said, "Why don't you just go over there to Iraq where the people can use your help and where the Lord wants you and then you can come and talk to me about the Lord."
I got to bear a strong testimony that I knew that I was exactly where the Lord needed me and that the people here in Colorado need the Lord just as much as the people in Iraq. It really strengthened my testimony about why I am doing this work. It was neat.
I also ran into a 'naturalist". H basically believed that there was and is not God. He "knows" that the earth and the humans just happened. He kept asking things like, "Have you read the bible?" I answered yes then he asked, "What is the only domestic animal that is not mentioned in the bible?"
When I said I didn't know he laughed and said, "You don't know that?!" hahaha!
"It's a cat of course. What's wrong with you two?"
We didn't spend much time with him!
We have had a few people listen to us, and a lot of people that don't listen are still really nice to us, but the fun ones are the crazy ones!
So is the house all decorated for Halloween? I think I'll miss being home for the holiday season! Hey, but I found out that any and all Christmas music is approved so if you want to burn me any of our Christmas cd's and send them that would be awesome! Also, if you come across any more ties I'd love em! I've worn all my ties that I brought a gazillion times already! Back to the cd thing...I really like that Harry Connick Jr. cd!
Well, hope your loving seminary Emma! I remember those cold, early mornings! I loved it though. YOu can learn so much...if you want to!
Oh...guess what! The Gogerty's daughter plays the guitar and she let me play it! I was SO SO happy! I guess that in this mission they let you buy musical instruments as long as you can fit it in your suitcase when you transfer to a new area. So technically I could buy a small travel guitar! But, first of all I don't have the money...and second, that's not really why I'm here! I think....actually, I know it would be a distraction! But still, I got to play one!
No snow yet but everyone says it's coming so we'll see! It's been really nice the last few days, up in the 70's. I'd be O.K. if that lasts a little longer.
Well, time for bed. Got a busy, busy day tomorrow. Hopefully we'll get another family (a mom and a son) set for baptism tomorrow. In this mission we are expected to commit people to baptism on the first lesson we teach! Crazy, I know, but it works!
Well, I'm off to bed.
Love you all, and thanks for all your prayers!
Love Ben
Wow, crazy p-day today! I'm exhausted. I barely had time to sit down and write this letter! Like I said in the e-mail that I sent today...Elder Oakes ran over a screw last night. so taday we had to walk our bikes and laundry over to the Gogerty's house (Bishop Gogerty is a ward missionary and is an awesome guy! I love their whole family!) But yeah, so we took our bikes and laundry over there and we started fixing his bike but he was replacing both tires as well as the flat tube, and after we fixed the flat tire(back) we started taking the tire off the front but he popped that tube too! So then Sister Gogerty said she'd go get another tube from Wal-Mart so we wouldn't have to walk. So while she was gone we went to the library (he borrowed one of their bikes) and did our e-mailing and then we went back to the Gogerty's and fixed the other flat and then Sister Gogerty insisted that we go and have fun before our day was over and she and her daughters would do our laundry for us. We tried to get her to let us do our laundry but she wouldn't let us! lol So then we went out and did our shopping...(real fun, I know!) and then we went out and ate dinner at Ruby Tuesday. It was quite a spendy meal for a missionary dinner...my meal came out to $14! We won't be doing that too often but it was fun once! I got a burger, fries and a slice of cheesecake.
Sam, you asked how my first tracting experience was. Well it was good. I was kind of nervous but I just told myself, "Your going to be doing this for two years, like it or not, so just get over it!" It actually wasn't too bad. The Elder I went with told me he would do the first door and then it was my turn!...GULP! It's actually not bad at all. I just say which church I'm from, share a quick gospel message and then ask them when I could share more of the message with them. Usually we get turned down and then we offer to help them...with anything...again, we usually get turned down and then we're on our way.
I have run into some interesting people out here! One guy yelled at us for ten minutes about how he really knew the Lord and we didn't because he served in a war and we were just knocking on doors. He said, "Why don't you just go over there to Iraq where the people can use your help and where the Lord wants you and then you can come and talk to me about the Lord."
I got to bear a strong testimony that I knew that I was exactly where the Lord needed me and that the people here in Colorado need the Lord just as much as the people in Iraq. It really strengthened my testimony about why I am doing this work. It was neat.
I also ran into a 'naturalist". H basically believed that there was and is not God. He "knows" that the earth and the humans just happened. He kept asking things like, "Have you read the bible?" I answered yes then he asked, "What is the only domestic animal that is not mentioned in the bible?"
When I said I didn't know he laughed and said, "You don't know that?!" hahaha!
"It's a cat of course. What's wrong with you two?"
We didn't spend much time with him!
We have had a few people listen to us, and a lot of people that don't listen are still really nice to us, but the fun ones are the crazy ones!
So is the house all decorated for Halloween? I think I'll miss being home for the holiday season! Hey, but I found out that any and all Christmas music is approved so if you want to burn me any of our Christmas cd's and send them that would be awesome! Also, if you come across any more ties I'd love em! I've worn all my ties that I brought a gazillion times already! Back to the cd thing...I really like that Harry Connick Jr. cd!
Well, hope your loving seminary Emma! I remember those cold, early mornings! I loved it though. YOu can learn so much...if you want to!
Oh...guess what! The Gogerty's daughter plays the guitar and she let me play it! I was SO SO happy! I guess that in this mission they let you buy musical instruments as long as you can fit it in your suitcase when you transfer to a new area. So technically I could buy a small travel guitar! But, first of all I don't have the money...and second, that's not really why I'm here! I think....actually, I know it would be a distraction! But still, I got to play one!
No snow yet but everyone says it's coming so we'll see! It's been really nice the last few days, up in the 70's. I'd be O.K. if that lasts a little longer.
Well, time for bed. Got a busy, busy day tomorrow. Hopefully we'll get another family (a mom and a son) set for baptism tomorrow. In this mission we are expected to commit people to baptism on the first lesson we teach! Crazy, I know, but it works!
Well, I'm off to bed.
Love you all, and thanks for all your prayers!
Love Ben
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Battle of the Tires continues...
Hey everyone!First off thanks for sending that neck warmer...(I'll be needing it very soon!)...its actually been really nice the last week or so. Short sleeve weather! But they say snow is on the way. We haven't had any snow yet though. I'm in the Pueblo area which is the warmest area in the mission! I was very glad to get that news! Speaking of my area, you know Elder McCord, the elder that was in my district at the MTC? Well, he's in my district here too! Its really fun to get to see him every week at district meeting! He's a goof! lol We have a great time seeing how many people we've talked to and if we have any baptisms set up! :)Speaking of baptisms. If all goes well I could get to be part of 8 baptisms in my first transfer! 3 of those 8 people are really solid and I don't see any reason why there baptism won't go as planned and the others are a little iffy! But we're hoping and praying for them. Elder Oakes and I are having a blast! We knelt down to pray the other night and finally after thirty minutes of talking and laughing we actually got to the prayer part (does that remind you of a certain family!...OURS! haha) anyway, so we finally said our companionship prayer and then we went in to our room and got changed and ready for bed and brushed our teeth and stuff and then knelt down to say our personal prayers....we finally started praying after another HOUR (no exageration!) of laughing, talking, and then laughing a little more! So yeah, we're getting along fine!Just in case you care....he is about my height, and has short wavy hair. he um.....well I'll send a pic! He likes to mountain bike and camp and stuff and also likes to watch movies at home on their projector (Sound familiar!)Also just so you know....my bike is doing fine. I've had three flats so far though but there is a guy in the ward who fixes up all the missionaries bikes and stuff so he just got me hooked up with triple thick tubes with that slime in them! So I hope thats the end of the flat tires for a while. I'll still have to be careful though because there are thorns all over the place! But nothing has fallen off of my bike! (knock on wood!)
Oh...funny story. So yesterday I fixed my flat tire and put the nice tubes in...well last night on the way home from dinner we were riding along when Elder oakes hits something and we hear this "ping..ping..ping..ping..ping" and so we stop to see whats wrong. We were looking at the tire when all of a sudden the tire deflated instantly! It was just like a cartoon! lol one second the tire was inflated, the next second it was flat as a board! We soon found the cause. A two or three inch screw had gone in one side if the tire and out the other! (I took some pics) So we had to walk the rest of the way to our apartment...a mile...while I walked alongside my bike and while elder Oakes carried his!
Well once again..I'm out of time. I'll fill in anything I forgot in the letter that I'll send. (If I answer any questions more than once, or say thing more than once its because of the crazy mail dilivery overlap. Because I'm pretty sure I answered some questions that you asked again in your last letter to me! lol which doesn't bother me, I'm just saying! lol)Really quickly though...yes I did get my XD card back...THANKS! and yes I did receive my shirts and suit and all the AWESONE goodies...along with the cinnamon puddles! (Love that name!)Love you all tons! Glad your all doing well! Thanks for your prayers!Love you!Ben
Oh...funny story. So yesterday I fixed my flat tire and put the nice tubes in...well last night on the way home from dinner we were riding along when Elder oakes hits something and we hear this "ping..ping..ping..ping..ping" and so we stop to see whats wrong. We were looking at the tire when all of a sudden the tire deflated instantly! It was just like a cartoon! lol one second the tire was inflated, the next second it was flat as a board! We soon found the cause. A two or three inch screw had gone in one side if the tire and out the other! (I took some pics) So we had to walk the rest of the way to our apartment...a mile...while I walked alongside my bike and while elder Oakes carried his!
Well once again..I'm out of time. I'll fill in anything I forgot in the letter that I'll send. (If I answer any questions more than once, or say thing more than once its because of the crazy mail dilivery overlap. Because I'm pretty sure I answered some questions that you asked again in your last letter to me! lol which doesn't bother me, I'm just saying! lol)Really quickly though...yes I did get my XD card back...THANKS! and yes I did receive my shirts and suit and all the AWESONE goodies...along with the cinnamon puddles! (Love that name!)Love you all tons! Glad your all doing well! Thanks for your prayers!Love you!Ben
Monday, October 19, 2009
TEACHING LIKE CRAZY!
Dear Family,
Hey! Thank you so much for the treats! Nothing gets better for a missionary than to find cookies, poptarts and candy corn amongst his shirts and suit! That was an awesome treat! As a missionary we're kept on a pretty tight budget so we can only afford what will get us by for the month! But yeah...thanks so much. Those home baked cookies took me right back home.
Well, it's my first p-day so this is the first chance I've had to sit down and relax and write! I'm so busy every other day!
The day we flew in to Colorado we got off the plane and met President and Sister Pfile and then we all went to the mission office and ate a meal and then we were out tracting! Yes, it felt rushed to me! That night we went to the mission home and talked for a bit about everything and then went to bed. The next day was training in the morning, tracting for a few hours and then more training! I don't remember the order very well I just remember going from one thing to the next. Anyway...on Wednesday the 7th I got to meet my trainer (first companion). His name is Elder Oakes. We were both kinda reserved at first but the last few days we've been cracking up! lol We're having a great time learning together.
When we arrived at the apartment on Wednesday he said to get a few things out of my bags because I needed to go buy some food for myself and then we had to go to a teaching appointment, so I only had about 20 minutes to unpack.
I was like: "What!? Teaching appointment? Are you crazy? It's my first day out in the field!"
But I guess he wasn't crazy because I went and taught my first lesson on the first day out!
It's been really busy but really fun. So far I've taught 17 lessons and I've only been out for four days! What's really neat is that last Friday I got to extend the commitment to a father and daughter to be baptized! We have their date set for November 6th! That was a neat thing to be a part of.
We've also been working with a bunch of other people. One lady is so close. She wants to be baptized but she doesn't want to give up smoking. Another family really wanted to be baptized but then a friend got them all anti-mormon. So, it's hard to work with some people. You know...we start teaching people and then Satan goes crazy. He knows that we're teaching truth and that the spirit is witnessing of the truthfulness of what we're teaching, so he does everything he can to put a stop to it.
Well, let's see...Oh, here's a funny story. So you know how we had that teaching appointment the first night? Well, we got done teaching and went to get on our bikes to go to our dinner appointment and my front tire was flat. My tire went flat within three hours of me arriving in my area. So we had to walk about 5 miles to our dinner appointment!
Dinners have been really good so far actually! Of course part of that may just be because it's real food! haha! But yeah, I've had potato and chili, chicken, salad, rolls, spagettii (or however it's spelled!) and burgers and tater tots. So I'm surviving!
Every Wednesday we go over to the Gogarty's house (Brother Gogarty is a ward missionary) and have dinner with our investigators and then we have a gospel lesson/discussion. The Gogarty's are super nice! They remind me of the Masons! I mean, we had no place to do our laundry this transfer and so we asked them if we could do it at their house this p-day. They said, "Oh yeah...use it whenever you need it. If we're not here just come in anyway!" Really nice people.
Um...the first two days here were pretty warm, like in the 60's or so but yesterday we were out riding our bikes and tracting when it was down to 26 degrees! So cold! In fact...you know that neck warmer that I said I wouldn't want?...I want it now! If you wouldn't mind sending it sometime that would be awesome!
Oh, mom. Do you remember you replaced my scriptures because I was missing some of the Book of Mormon? Well, I was looking up a scripture today in the bible and I saw that my bible is all messed up! Ezekiel (pg 1048) jumps to Jeremiah (pg 1017) and then comes Lamentations and then it repeats Ezekiel up to pg 1048. So I have two books of Ezekiel up to chapter 17 but then I'm missing the rest of the book. And then pg 1048 jumps to pg 1113 which is Daniel chapter 8 and then I have all of Hosea and Joel and then Amos comes back from chapter one until chapter 8 and then it skips back to Daniel chapter 8 and then repeats Amos 1 through 9! I can't believe it! Two quads in a row all messed up! I didn't think that was possible.
I like the idea of themes for Friday night movies, but, um...yeah I think dad should be in charge of picking the theme at least six out of the twelve months!
Well, I know how Emma likes to know little details about my mission, so here are a couple.
First of all, we have no cold water! It is either room temp or hot, so if we want cold water we have to refrigerate it or leave it outside.
Also, after flushing the toilet you have to push the handle two more times or the flap won't seal and it will be trying to fill the tank forever! But if you push the handle a third time it won't seal. You have to be very precise with this toilet!
Also, since I got here I have been sleeping without a pillow. I guess they don't provide those and so I just stuffed my bathrobe into the pillow case and used that! lol I went out today though and got a pillow!
Well, I'm glad to hear that everything is going good at home. I was sad to hear the news about Aunt Sharon but I can only imagine how happy she is to be home with Uncle Carl. That's the beautiful thing about our Savior's plan. There is really no need for us to ever be sad! He always provides a way for us to be happy!
I hope you all know that I love you and miss you and pray for you often. Don't get me wrong... I love my mission but that doesn't mean I don't miss home! Keep writing as often as you want. I could never get enough! I love hearing from all of you!
Love Ben
P.S. Hey Sam, good luck with all those petri dish experiments. That sounds fun!
P.S.S. Mom, let grandma and grandpa know I said hi and that I love them. I'm glad they're getting better! I keep praying for them. Oh, and I think I'll do that same activity in Alma 5. That would be a good personal study activity for me!
Love you all and thanks again for the package!
Hey! Thank you so much for the treats! Nothing gets better for a missionary than to find cookies, poptarts and candy corn amongst his shirts and suit! That was an awesome treat! As a missionary we're kept on a pretty tight budget so we can only afford what will get us by for the month! But yeah...thanks so much. Those home baked cookies took me right back home.
Well, it's my first p-day so this is the first chance I've had to sit down and relax and write! I'm so busy every other day!
The day we flew in to Colorado we got off the plane and met President and Sister Pfile and then we all went to the mission office and ate a meal and then we were out tracting! Yes, it felt rushed to me! That night we went to the mission home and talked for a bit about everything and then went to bed. The next day was training in the morning, tracting for a few hours and then more training! I don't remember the order very well I just remember going from one thing to the next. Anyway...on Wednesday the 7th I got to meet my trainer (first companion). His name is Elder Oakes. We were both kinda reserved at first but the last few days we've been cracking up! lol We're having a great time learning together.
When we arrived at the apartment on Wednesday he said to get a few things out of my bags because I needed to go buy some food for myself and then we had to go to a teaching appointment, so I only had about 20 minutes to unpack.
I was like: "What!? Teaching appointment? Are you crazy? It's my first day out in the field!"
But I guess he wasn't crazy because I went and taught my first lesson on the first day out!
It's been really busy but really fun. So far I've taught 17 lessons and I've only been out for four days! What's really neat is that last Friday I got to extend the commitment to a father and daughter to be baptized! We have their date set for November 6th! That was a neat thing to be a part of.
We've also been working with a bunch of other people. One lady is so close. She wants to be baptized but she doesn't want to give up smoking. Another family really wanted to be baptized but then a friend got them all anti-mormon. So, it's hard to work with some people. You know...we start teaching people and then Satan goes crazy. He knows that we're teaching truth and that the spirit is witnessing of the truthfulness of what we're teaching, so he does everything he can to put a stop to it.
Well, let's see...Oh, here's a funny story. So you know how we had that teaching appointment the first night? Well, we got done teaching and went to get on our bikes to go to our dinner appointment and my front tire was flat. My tire went flat within three hours of me arriving in my area. So we had to walk about 5 miles to our dinner appointment!
Dinners have been really good so far actually! Of course part of that may just be because it's real food! haha! But yeah, I've had potato and chili, chicken, salad, rolls, spagettii (or however it's spelled!) and burgers and tater tots. So I'm surviving!
Every Wednesday we go over to the Gogarty's house (Brother Gogarty is a ward missionary) and have dinner with our investigators and then we have a gospel lesson/discussion. The Gogarty's are super nice! They remind me of the Masons! I mean, we had no place to do our laundry this transfer and so we asked them if we could do it at their house this p-day. They said, "Oh yeah...use it whenever you need it. If we're not here just come in anyway!" Really nice people.
Um...the first two days here were pretty warm, like in the 60's or so but yesterday we were out riding our bikes and tracting when it was down to 26 degrees! So cold! In fact...you know that neck warmer that I said I wouldn't want?...I want it now! If you wouldn't mind sending it sometime that would be awesome!
Oh, mom. Do you remember you replaced my scriptures because I was missing some of the Book of Mormon? Well, I was looking up a scripture today in the bible and I saw that my bible is all messed up! Ezekiel (pg 1048) jumps to Jeremiah (pg 1017) and then comes Lamentations and then it repeats Ezekiel up to pg 1048. So I have two books of Ezekiel up to chapter 17 but then I'm missing the rest of the book. And then pg 1048 jumps to pg 1113 which is Daniel chapter 8 and then I have all of Hosea and Joel and then Amos comes back from chapter one until chapter 8 and then it skips back to Daniel chapter 8 and then repeats Amos 1 through 9! I can't believe it! Two quads in a row all messed up! I didn't think that was possible.
I like the idea of themes for Friday night movies, but, um...yeah I think dad should be in charge of picking the theme at least six out of the twelve months!
Well, I know how Emma likes to know little details about my mission, so here are a couple.
First of all, we have no cold water! It is either room temp or hot, so if we want cold water we have to refrigerate it or leave it outside.
Also, after flushing the toilet you have to push the handle two more times or the flap won't seal and it will be trying to fill the tank forever! But if you push the handle a third time it won't seal. You have to be very precise with this toilet!
Also, since I got here I have been sleeping without a pillow. I guess they don't provide those and so I just stuffed my bathrobe into the pillow case and used that! lol I went out today though and got a pillow!
Well, I'm glad to hear that everything is going good at home. I was sad to hear the news about Aunt Sharon but I can only imagine how happy she is to be home with Uncle Carl. That's the beautiful thing about our Savior's plan. There is really no need for us to ever be sad! He always provides a way for us to be happy!
I hope you all know that I love you and miss you and pray for you often. Don't get me wrong... I love my mission but that doesn't mean I don't miss home! Keep writing as often as you want. I could never get enough! I love hearing from all of you!
Love Ben
P.S. Hey Sam, good luck with all those petri dish experiments. That sounds fun!
P.S.S. Mom, let grandma and grandpa know I said hi and that I love them. I'm glad they're getting better! I keep praying for them. Oh, and I think I'll do that same activity in Alma 5. That would be a good personal study activity for me!
Love you all and thanks again for the package!
Thursday, October 15, 2009
FROM PUEBLO COLORADO
Hey....it was great reading your emails! Hope all is well back home! (From what I've been hearing it sounds like you all are doing great!) Just so ya know, I sent a letter yesterday so you should be getting it pretty soon.I love getting your letters and emails (even though I can only check emails once a week). Sorry I didn't email yesterday. It was my p-day but because of Columbus day all the libraries were closed. Yeah conference was great! It was so great watching it surrounded by 2,000 other missionaries. (Although I missed going out and getting a treat with you dad...I thought about all the past times though!...Hole in the wall, Carls Jr. and the famous McDonalds shake that had all the syrup still at the bottom, unmixed! Good times!) President Hollands talk really was amazing! I love hearing from him. It has deffinately been the most talked about talk here in the mission! Very powerful.
I wish I had gotten to talk with you longer at the airport but it was SO expensive and I had to go figure out where my gate was and all that fun airport stuff! (And again...I was sad I missed you Sam!...you better be there Christmas day! lol)
President and Sister Pfile are so cool. Right when I met them as I got off the plane I loved them and felt like I had known them all my life! They are so cool. We stayed at their house the first couple nights and had an interview with both of them and got to know them a little better and also to begin training! But they really are awesome. President Pfile has a great sense of humor. He knows when to be seriouse but he knows how to have fun! :)
I'm glad Emmas enjoying seminary! Yeah...day before yesterday me and my comp, Elder Oakes, were riding our bikes around town ITLing (Inviting To Learn...instead of OYM, Open Your Mouth) and it was about 26 degrees! Yeah pretty cold. So tell Emma I know what its like to be tired and freezing cold and I sypathize completely! haha!
The members here are great. I have been fed every night (except one) and actually have not run into a meal that I havn't enjoyed! (Knock on wood!) Tonight we had pizza.....storebought :(......and homemade icecream! But yeah...members are great! I'm about to get timed out but I just want you all to know I love you and love hearing from you! (I can tell who really loves me because I haven't gotten a single letter from any of my friends! lol) But I'm having a blast out here serving the Lord in Pueblo Colorado.
Just really quickly I wanted to share something I heard in zone conf today. They said that as we search to help our investigators find themselves we in turn will find ourselves, and as we search for answers to their questions our own will be answered. I thought that was a cool promise. Also they said...the scriptures aren't there to back us up....we're there to back the scriptures up.Well, I'm timed out in like 3 minutes! so, love you tons and hopefully I'll hear from you soon.
Ben
I wish I had gotten to talk with you longer at the airport but it was SO expensive and I had to go figure out where my gate was and all that fun airport stuff! (And again...I was sad I missed you Sam!...you better be there Christmas day! lol)
President and Sister Pfile are so cool. Right when I met them as I got off the plane I loved them and felt like I had known them all my life! They are so cool. We stayed at their house the first couple nights and had an interview with both of them and got to know them a little better and also to begin training! But they really are awesome. President Pfile has a great sense of humor. He knows when to be seriouse but he knows how to have fun! :)
I'm glad Emmas enjoying seminary! Yeah...day before yesterday me and my comp, Elder Oakes, were riding our bikes around town ITLing (Inviting To Learn...instead of OYM, Open Your Mouth) and it was about 26 degrees! Yeah pretty cold. So tell Emma I know what its like to be tired and freezing cold and I sypathize completely! haha!
The members here are great. I have been fed every night (except one) and actually have not run into a meal that I havn't enjoyed! (Knock on wood!) Tonight we had pizza.....storebought :(......and homemade icecream! But yeah...members are great! I'm about to get timed out but I just want you all to know I love you and love hearing from you! (I can tell who really loves me because I haven't gotten a single letter from any of my friends! lol) But I'm having a blast out here serving the Lord in Pueblo Colorado.
Just really quickly I wanted to share something I heard in zone conf today. They said that as we search to help our investigators find themselves we in turn will find ourselves, and as we search for answers to their questions our own will be answered. I thought that was a cool promise. Also they said...the scriptures aren't there to back us up....we're there to back the scriptures up.Well, I'm timed out in like 3 minutes! so, love you tons and hopefully I'll hear from you soon.
Ben
Sunday, October 11, 2009
IN COLORADO SPRINGS
Dear Family,
I arrived safely at the mission home here in Colorado. President and Sister Pfile are awesome. I could tell that I was going to love them right when I met them.
Well, we stepped off the plane, met them, went to get a bite to eat, and were out tracting within an hour! They get you out fast!
It was great hearing all your voices today...except for the fact that Sam was at work. Sorry I missed ya.
So, Elder Slade and I went to get something to eat at the airport before we flew out...right after I got off the phone with you...and the guy ahead of us insisted on buying us lunch!
"Get anything you want," he said. "I have a son on a mission so it would be my pleasure."
I thought that was so cool of him.
I have no more time to write. Just want you to know that I love you all!
Ben
P.S. My bike is here, and the Elders that are our temporary trainers are in charge of setting them up! Sweet!
More details from President and Sister Pfile:
Dear President and Sister Cryer,
We are so excited to have your son, Elder Cryer, here with us in the Colorado Colorado Springs Mission! We've enclosed a photograph taken shortly after his arrival to reassure you that he made it safely, that he has been greeted by people who love him, and that he's still smiling!
Upon arrival he enjoyed dinner at the Mission Office, went tracting and then went to the Mission Home for orientation, a testimony meeting and to spend the night. The next day after breakfast and companion study he went to the Mission Office for more orientation. After lunch he was then teamed up with an experienced training missionary who took him out tracting (which settles the butterflies and builds confidence). Three hours later everyone reconvened in the Mission Office and returned to the Mission Home for interviews, supper and a devotional. The next day they arose, had breakfast, companion study and went out to ITL again. After this he met his companion and immediately traveled to his new area of service.
We are so pleased to have him here, and we are dedicated to helping him succeed as a missionary. We ask you to encourage your son to follow the mission rules with exactness. This is a key to his safety and success. We have realized that some missionaries don't understand the direct correlation between obedience and revelation. Without the closeness of the Holy Ghost the missionaries experience discouragement and lack of confidence. And that closeness with the Holy Ghost only comes through obedience. The elders and sisters who are exactly obedient are the happiest and most successful. Thank you for your prayers and support in this important matter.
It was wonderful to get acquainted with your son, and we have confidence that he will be a valiant, devoted and inspired missionary.
Thank you for helping him prepare for this great calling.
Love,
President Brian L. Pfile
I arrived safely at the mission home here in Colorado. President and Sister Pfile are awesome. I could tell that I was going to love them right when I met them.
Well, we stepped off the plane, met them, went to get a bite to eat, and were out tracting within an hour! They get you out fast!
It was great hearing all your voices today...except for the fact that Sam was at work. Sorry I missed ya.
So, Elder Slade and I went to get something to eat at the airport before we flew out...right after I got off the phone with you...and the guy ahead of us insisted on buying us lunch!
"Get anything you want," he said. "I have a son on a mission so it would be my pleasure."
I thought that was so cool of him.
I have no more time to write. Just want you to know that I love you all!
Ben
P.S. My bike is here, and the Elders that are our temporary trainers are in charge of setting them up! Sweet!
More details from President and Sister Pfile:
Dear President and Sister Cryer,
We are so excited to have your son, Elder Cryer, here with us in the Colorado Colorado Springs Mission! We've enclosed a photograph taken shortly after his arrival to reassure you that he made it safely, that he has been greeted by people who love him, and that he's still smiling!
Upon arrival he enjoyed dinner at the Mission Office, went tracting and then went to the Mission Home for orientation, a testimony meeting and to spend the night. The next day after breakfast and companion study he went to the Mission Office for more orientation. After lunch he was then teamed up with an experienced training missionary who took him out tracting (which settles the butterflies and builds confidence). Three hours later everyone reconvened in the Mission Office and returned to the Mission Home for interviews, supper and a devotional. The next day they arose, had breakfast, companion study and went out to ITL again. After this he met his companion and immediately traveled to his new area of service.
We are so pleased to have him here, and we are dedicated to helping him succeed as a missionary. We ask you to encourage your son to follow the mission rules with exactness. This is a key to his safety and success. We have realized that some missionaries don't understand the direct correlation between obedience and revelation. Without the closeness of the Holy Ghost the missionaries experience discouragement and lack of confidence. And that closeness with the Holy Ghost only comes through obedience. The elders and sisters who are exactly obedient are the happiest and most successful. Thank you for your prayers and support in this important matter.
It was wonderful to get acquainted with your son, and we have confidence that he will be a valiant, devoted and inspired missionary.
Thank you for helping him prepare for this great calling.
Love,
President Brian L. Pfile
Sunday, October 4, 2009
LEARNING SO MUCH SO FAST!
(Warning: Missionaries only have a small amount of time to e-mail so beware the typo's.)
Hi everyone!Everything is great here. Super busy, but super good. Like I've been saying...I'm learning so much here. I'm even learning how to learn! I have been teaching lots of lessons (to fake investigators) and so I'm really starting to get familiar with the principles and I also get to bear my testimony a TON!!!! Its so great here.Every day I have personal study and also companion study. I am actually really enjoying companion study. We mostly study, and practice giving, the lessons. But yeah we also discuss scriptures and stuff.Guess what?!?!?!?!? I got the picture with Spencer! yay! Its been so cool to see him here! It makes me feel a little less alone! and I've seen kacey figget.Well mom I'm glad to here that you are having a successful blogging experience! :) oh...and I happy to report that I have only gained like two pounds here at the MTC! hahaWell sam I'm glad that work is going well for you and hope that you don't get too overwhelmed when school starts! Your so crazy good at remembering things though that I bet you wont struggle hardly at all at school and stuff! ;)Um...yeah i think thats fine if you look through my "journal" (i dont know what made you think that that word was plural!) Its just on my blue and red shelf in my room. In that little center compartment area thing! :) get that? :)Um...well emma my companion is really fun. We laugh quite a bit together! I sent a picture with my last letter so you should get to see him them. I labled the back so just look for Elder Slade.Thats right...you started seminary. PAY ATTENTION to sister Hawes! lol She knows so much good stuff. she can teach you so much! I loved seminary....you will too! :)About your "lightbulb" thought. Your so right! We all do make mistakes and God knows we will. But by using the atonement we can be forgiven and show heavenly father that we love him and are willing to try again and so better! (Your so smart!)Thanks for the Twinkie reminder! Ill make sure to do that before I leave.I wanted to share something else I heard that I thought zou might like. I rememeber that you mentioned that you had a hard time distinguishing when ideas were your own thoughts or the holy ghost promting the thoughts. Well i heard something that Elder Bednar said. It was something along the lines of.......if zou aer living well and keeping the commadments then it wont matter whether its your thoughts or the Holy Ghost because your thoughts will be in line with truth.....I thought that was so cool cuz ive wondered about that same thing.Well the Provo temple was cool. I got to do an endowment session with my district. thez didn[t have the question answer session though. I wish thez would have. I[ll say hi to....um....whats his name if I see him today!well Im out of time.Love you all!!!!Ill write you soon.Ben
Hi everyone!Everything is great here. Super busy, but super good. Like I've been saying...I'm learning so much here. I'm even learning how to learn! I have been teaching lots of lessons (to fake investigators) and so I'm really starting to get familiar with the principles and I also get to bear my testimony a TON!!!! Its so great here.Every day I have personal study and also companion study. I am actually really enjoying companion study. We mostly study, and practice giving, the lessons. But yeah we also discuss scriptures and stuff.Guess what?!?!?!?!? I got the picture with Spencer! yay! Its been so cool to see him here! It makes me feel a little less alone! and I've seen kacey figget.Well mom I'm glad to here that you are having a successful blogging experience! :) oh...and I happy to report that I have only gained like two pounds here at the MTC! hahaWell sam I'm glad that work is going well for you and hope that you don't get too overwhelmed when school starts! Your so crazy good at remembering things though that I bet you wont struggle hardly at all at school and stuff! ;)Um...yeah i think thats fine if you look through my "journal" (i dont know what made you think that that word was plural!) Its just on my blue and red shelf in my room. In that little center compartment area thing! :) get that? :)Um...well emma my companion is really fun. We laugh quite a bit together! I sent a picture with my last letter so you should get to see him them. I labled the back so just look for Elder Slade.Thats right...you started seminary. PAY ATTENTION to sister Hawes! lol She knows so much good stuff. she can teach you so much! I loved seminary....you will too! :)About your "lightbulb" thought. Your so right! We all do make mistakes and God knows we will. But by using the atonement we can be forgiven and show heavenly father that we love him and are willing to try again and so better! (Your so smart!)Thanks for the Twinkie reminder! Ill make sure to do that before I leave.I wanted to share something else I heard that I thought zou might like. I rememeber that you mentioned that you had a hard time distinguishing when ideas were your own thoughts or the holy ghost promting the thoughts. Well i heard something that Elder Bednar said. It was something along the lines of.......if zou aer living well and keeping the commadments then it wont matter whether its your thoughts or the Holy Ghost because your thoughts will be in line with truth.....I thought that was so cool cuz ive wondered about that same thing.Well the Provo temple was cool. I got to do an endowment session with my district. thez didn[t have the question answer session though. I wish thez would have. I[ll say hi to....um....whats his name if I see him today!well Im out of time.Love you all!!!!Ill write you soon.Ben
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Busy at the MTC
Dear...Home,
Hey mom and dad and Sam and Emma! Sounds like you are all busy but good! Glad to hear it.
Well Sam, before I forget...The first letter you sent got to me on the 24th of September. Although I think the weekend slowed it down. I just got the second letter and the "Morning Toast" today (September 25th). I can't even tell you how fun it is to get mail! It's the one thing that adds variety to my day!
O.K. So Emma, you said you wanted "a day in the life of Elder Cryer" so here goes.
First I wake up at 6:30am and get all showered and dressed and ready for the day. Then...Oh by the way, getting dressed means slacks, white shirt, tie, jacket...yeah, you get the idea! It took me a few days to get used to it but now it's normal...anyway, then our district (there are 8 of us) meets in a classroom that's located about six buildings down from our dorm and. We study for 45 minutes and then at 7:45 we go to breakfast. I've found that cold cereal is my best option. I prefer that to rubber eggs and cold sausage and pancakes! But anyway, then we head back to the class and then we usually have a teacher and so we learn from Preach My Gospel for anywhere from 2 to 4 hours. I love both my teachers! They are both return missionaries, of course, about 23 to 26 years old.
Then we have gym. I usually either run or play basketball. But we do that for an hour and then we go to lunch and eat more cold rubber and then we have more class and after that we usually have either TEC (Teaching Evaluation Center) where we get to get help on teaching and knocking on doors and street contacting and all sorts of stuff. Or we go to TRC (Training Resource Center) where there are teachers who act as investigators and we get to go in and teach them and ask them questions and stuff. It's really cool. We can also do the RC (Referral Center) where we go and call people who have requested the Bible or Book of Mormon or Church DVD of some sort and ask them if they received it and how they have enjoyed it and we get to bear our testimony to them and ask them if they want the missionaries to come by their home and share a message with them. I love the RC! I haven't had much luck but every once in a while I get a ringback tone so I get to listen to music!...Just joking...that's not why I like it so much!
Then we have dinner, go to class at 6:30pm and have class until 9:00pm Then we plan for the next day and then at 9:30 we go back to the dorm and get ready for bed and lights out at 10:30 pm. And then guess what?! WE DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN!!! (Are you satisfied Emma?)
You got the job Sam! That's great! That's gotta feel good to have a steady source of income, not that you need it! (I'm just joking!) And last driving lesson...your on a roll! Your gonna be flyin around town in no time! Well...at least to the library and bookstore! (Keep me updated)
Hey mom and dad (and everyone I guess!) I am loving the MTC. We have had a ton of firesides and devotionals and meetings. I am learning SO much SO fast!
Today at lunch my district leader (Elder McCord) sprinkled a bunch of salt all over me, so after he left I got a bunch of pepper in my hand and just held it until I saw him again in the classroom. Then I walked up to him and said, "Hey, Elder McCord, your collar is all messed up...here I'll fix it for ya." So I messed with his collar and dumped all the pepper down his shirt! I told him we were even now but he thought otherwise!
So here I was just writing home when he sneaks up to me from behind and dumps a ton of the Goldbond powder all in my hair! Oh my goodness...let's just say that Goldbond powder , gel and water do not go well together. It turns into a very hard white compound! It took me 20 minutes to get it all out!
Well I hope that grandma and grandpa will be doing better soon. Tell them I love them and they're in my prayers.
So, I'm not sure if you know or not but I fly out on October 5th. We fly out of Salt Lake at 1:45 and arrive in Colorado Springs at about 3:17. So come October 2nd or so you may want to start sending letters to the mission home because letters that come to the MTC after I leave just get tossed I guess. Anyway...I hope I got you filled in pretty well! It's so hard to keep track of everything and I can't remember what I've told you and what I've written in my journal!
So, I love you all...your all in my prayers! Take care.
Ben
Hey mom and dad and Sam and Emma! Sounds like you are all busy but good! Glad to hear it.
Well Sam, before I forget...The first letter you sent got to me on the 24th of September. Although I think the weekend slowed it down. I just got the second letter and the "Morning Toast" today (September 25th). I can't even tell you how fun it is to get mail! It's the one thing that adds variety to my day!
O.K. So Emma, you said you wanted "a day in the life of Elder Cryer" so here goes.
First I wake up at 6:30am and get all showered and dressed and ready for the day. Then...Oh by the way, getting dressed means slacks, white shirt, tie, jacket...yeah, you get the idea! It took me a few days to get used to it but now it's normal...anyway, then our district (there are 8 of us) meets in a classroom that's located about six buildings down from our dorm and. We study for 45 minutes and then at 7:45 we go to breakfast. I've found that cold cereal is my best option. I prefer that to rubber eggs and cold sausage and pancakes! But anyway, then we head back to the class and then we usually have a teacher and so we learn from Preach My Gospel for anywhere from 2 to 4 hours. I love both my teachers! They are both return missionaries, of course, about 23 to 26 years old.
Then we have gym. I usually either run or play basketball. But we do that for an hour and then we go to lunch and eat more cold rubber and then we have more class and after that we usually have either TEC (Teaching Evaluation Center) where we get to get help on teaching and knocking on doors and street contacting and all sorts of stuff. Or we go to TRC (Training Resource Center) where there are teachers who act as investigators and we get to go in and teach them and ask them questions and stuff. It's really cool. We can also do the RC (Referral Center) where we go and call people who have requested the Bible or Book of Mormon or Church DVD of some sort and ask them if they received it and how they have enjoyed it and we get to bear our testimony to them and ask them if they want the missionaries to come by their home and share a message with them. I love the RC! I haven't had much luck but every once in a while I get a ringback tone so I get to listen to music!...Just joking...that's not why I like it so much!
Then we have dinner, go to class at 6:30pm and have class until 9:00pm Then we plan for the next day and then at 9:30 we go back to the dorm and get ready for bed and lights out at 10:30 pm. And then guess what?! WE DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN!!! (Are you satisfied Emma?)
You got the job Sam! That's great! That's gotta feel good to have a steady source of income, not that you need it! (I'm just joking!) And last driving lesson...your on a roll! Your gonna be flyin around town in no time! Well...at least to the library and bookstore! (Keep me updated)
Hey mom and dad (and everyone I guess!) I am loving the MTC. We have had a ton of firesides and devotionals and meetings. I am learning SO much SO fast!
Today at lunch my district leader (Elder McCord) sprinkled a bunch of salt all over me, so after he left I got a bunch of pepper in my hand and just held it until I saw him again in the classroom. Then I walked up to him and said, "Hey, Elder McCord, your collar is all messed up...here I'll fix it for ya." So I messed with his collar and dumped all the pepper down his shirt! I told him we were even now but he thought otherwise!
So here I was just writing home when he sneaks up to me from behind and dumps a ton of the Goldbond powder all in my hair! Oh my goodness...let's just say that Goldbond powder , gel and water do not go well together. It turns into a very hard white compound! It took me 20 minutes to get it all out!
Well I hope that grandma and grandpa will be doing better soon. Tell them I love them and they're in my prayers.
So, I'm not sure if you know or not but I fly out on October 5th. We fly out of Salt Lake at 1:45 and arrive in Colorado Springs at about 3:17. So come October 2nd or so you may want to start sending letters to the mission home because letters that come to the MTC after I leave just get tossed I guess. Anyway...I hope I got you filled in pretty well! It's so hard to keep track of everything and I can't remember what I've told you and what I've written in my journal!
So, I love you all...your all in my prayers! Take care.
Ben
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
