Yep, this Thursday is my year mark. Crazy stuff.
A few things to reply to.
I didn't even know that Nicole was going on a mission, let alone turned in her papers! Crazy!! And to Warsaw, Poland...hmm.... Well, hopefully she is fed better than they used to be as well. Speaking of being fed really well, I've had pulled pork a few times on my mission, and it's amazing. Usually I just have it at restaurants when members are feeling especially nice, though. And yes, the corn is delicious. The Peaches and Cream Sweet Corn is pretty much sent down from heaven. Or Iowa. Same thing. I also realized recently just how old Lynx and Gracie are getting. I've been really hoping I wouldn't have to get an email here soon reporting their untimely demise. And I'm glad you have the same views on shaving I do, mom.
Crazy things that are taking place this week. We got a call on Friday after weekly planning that apparently there is going to be a three-day conference in Des Moines for everyone in leadership. Including trainers. So pretty much a good chunk of the week will be spent with nobody in our area. Elder Shelman will be in Fort Dodge with Elder Johnson, a missionary that came out at the same time as him, for those three days. BAD idea, but whatever. Better idea than him being with the sister being trained down in Hampton. So, yeah. We also had all three of those days filled with dinner appointments, so we had to reschedule those. It seems like most of our meals are having weird things come up causing cancellations, but it's all working out. We still barely ever have to make our own dinners. Sometimes not even our own lunches. And you wonder how I've gained 15 pounds or so. If it wasn't for me being dead-set on losing the weight, I might just ask for new shirts. But I'll lose it and be fine. I've cut back on my portion sizes and I'm sweating more than anything, so it all works out. Speaking of sweating, I'll be able to do plenty more of that, as this July has been more of a typical Iowa August, so my bet is that August will be really bad. Yippee. Oh well, I've realized I rarely need to carry around much water, a lot of people will offer you some while you're tracting, even if they are completely not interested. I even got brownies from some uninterested folk the other day.
In the way of goings on here, we've been just doing a lot of tracting and finding. Which has lead to the best stories. One day we set out, trying to improve my street contacting. While near downtown, we saw an elderly man crouched down on the grass. Unsure as to whether he was injured or searching for something lost or what, we approached him, asking if there was some way we could help. He informed us that he was looking for four-leafed-clovers. So we joined him in the hunt as we talked about his life and church. At one point, when the conversation had drifted to the latter topic, he said, "Yes, there are many people of your church that I admire. But what I don't admire," with as terrible of a way to start a sentence as that was, my mind began to conjure up all sorts of horrible things he might say next, "is that you two still haven't found a four leafed clover!" He was a great guy, but not very interested.
Yesterday we went out and tracted a good portion of a street. There we met a couple interesting people. One was a lady who right away told us that she had lost her faith due to all the terrible things going on in her life. Apparently she used to be a member of the church, and not only being upset about God letting bad things happen, she was also upset that nobody had told her about Kolob. Ok, my turn for a little tirade on here, that I didn't say to her. Really? I really think being upset that we attributed a name to the star closest to where God resides is kind of dumb. Especially that nobody told you that. You don't have to know EVERYTHING before joining a church. All you need to know is that it's true. And so WHAT if we named it that? Why aren't you getting upset that people call the place where God lives Heaven or name stars or constellations? People name things. And Kolob is only mentioned very shortly in Abraham, a book of scripture translated from papyri. Where are the people in an uproar about the multiheaded beasts in Revelation that some people take literally? That's more crazy to me than naming some star somewhere that is near where God is, wherever that is. But all I said is "Really? It's in the hymnbook." That caught her off guard, but she continued on being upset about them not telling her in Young Women's nor did they read from the Pearl of Great Price there. I really wonder how pertinent Kolob is to those lessons. It's not like we really hide anything in the church. It's like the people that get upset about the Mountain Meadows Massacre and our church covering it up. I have the article in the Ensign about it. No, the church doesn't go around with banners and billboards proclaiming these things to everyone. But maybe that's because we're more worried about things pertinent to a person's salvation. Really, people that get upset about this stuff have a lot more to worry about than they admit to even themselves. As long as they receive a witness that the Book of Mormon is true and Joseph Smith is a prophet, not by us ramming it down their throats, but by asking them to read and pray, then it all comes into place. Otherwise, it's like talking to a wall. And the worse thing that can happen to those people that try it out, is that the answer is no, it's not true. But I know it is because I've received my witness through the Holy Ghost, the bearer of all truth. How can you know something's true or not unless you've tried it out and asked of God after learning about it?
Sorry for the tirade.
I also tried to help her understand that bad things happen to the best of people a lot of times, and that this life is a test, and that God won't allow us to be tested above that which we are able, and that we need to remain faithful so we can receive the blessings, even if those blessings don't come in this life. I bore her testimony, which typically helps people settle down because they feel the spirit whether they like it or not, usually, and we were able to leave on a good note.
Later in that tracting session we met a guy that built boats for a living. He showed us a dingy and rowboat and canoe that he had either restored or built. Apparently demand for expensive yet beautiful homemade boats has decreased dramatically, so now he's selling or giving away most of his possessions and going canoeing down the entire length of the Mississippi for five months. I thought it was kind of cool and adventurous. It also reminded me of dad's pursuits lately of building his own dingies for the Young Men's activity.
On Saturday we also helped out with the baptism of an 8-year-old child of record. Doesn't go towards us, but they really did need our help filling the font and doing some other stuff. I gave the grandfather of the child a blessing, because his back was hurt and he wasn't sure if he'd be able to stand up for the confirmation, but he was able to after the blessing, and he thanked me profusely for it. I've been giving a lot of blessings lately, it seems....
Pictures! There's a tiny town just outside of Mason City called Portland. Apparently a lot of mail gets sent there that was intended for Oregon. Anyway, the sign looks like something from some Post-Apocalyptic movie placed in Oregon's Capitol.
Also, me and a zone leader and the tall corn, taken not this last week but the one before.
Anyway, that's about all! Talk to you next week!
--
"But nevertheless, deep water is what I am wont to swim in." D&C 127:2
Elder Charlie Gates
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