This week was pretty okay. Our pool is finally getting a few more stable and promising investigators- there's a couple that are pretty golden. This Sunday was so busy, though! It was Ward Conference, and we had to be at an early Branch Counsel meeting with Stake representatives. Elder Benitez and I have been asked to give the Temple Prep classes, and we started the first lesson on Sunday. I've never taught that class before (my ward did it a little differently, too, so I never took the class), but it went really well. We had a great lesson on the Plan of Salvation. I love how learning about the Plan of Salvation makes everything seem so much clearer in this life. It's kinda like remembering who you really are. It helps you see your own divine nature and potential, and that of others. Also, the more I read the scriptures and learn about church doctrine, the more appreciation I gain for how Wise and Perfect Heavenly Father is, because of how literally everything connects and is interrelated. There are no loopholes, no loose ends. It's all one complete whole. Anyway, in sacrament meeting I was asked to translate from Spanish to English for the large quantity of Stake Representatives. I wore a little half headset with a mike, and would translate as I heard things. It still isn't easy going the other way! The branch is doing a lot better than when I came in. We now have a Branch Mission Leader, and are about to call Branch Missionaries. Members are starting to get more involved in missionary work and family history. Less Actives are starting to return to church. Wheat is being sifted from the tares. It's amazing. The Lord is hastening His work in Freeport. I don't mind being the one whose shoulders are stood on to achieve baptisms and other ordinances in Freeport. I've done my part, and fulfilled the task the Lord gave me here.
Funny-story-that-starts-out-not-so-funny time! Elder Benitez had to drive us out to a DMV two hours away to pay a ticket he got in his last area, or his license was going to be suspended. That part wasn't fun- NY pretty much makes all its money off tickets, so it seemed like half the county's population was there in the DMV at the same time, and their numbers were all getting called before ours. We were there for, like, three hours, and Elder Benitez had to pay somewhere around $250 for running a stop sign that everyone else was running. Anyway, Elder Benitez's mom tends to freak out, so he had to call her to explain it. He called President to ask permission. While President was still on the phone I was like 'tell him I say hi.' President was like 'Elder, you liking your area?' I was like 'No- I'm loving it.' 'Good- you ready for a change?' Because of that, I'm pretty sure I'll be moving on to my next and final area next week. It'll be good, but I'll be sad to leave Freeport. I would've been totally fine staying there for the rest of my mission. It's kinda scary, too, though. I haven't trained yet, so the odds of me training my next and final two transfers are higher than ever. If I do train, I'll likely be blinded in, meaning that they'll take out a companionship and put me and my trainee in. That's not easy. Moreover, I can see them calling me to be a District Leader again, which is just more responsibility on top of everything else I have to do. I'll do what the Lord asks of me, though.
We also did some service on Saturday. A coworker of the Branch 2nd Counsellor needed some help trimming a walnut tree in his yard, and taking an old fence down and putting up a new one. It was a ton of fun! The best part was taking the old fence down. I got to take a sledgehammer to the horizontal slats on the fence, and then Spartan kick the panels over. Felt great... Until Sunday :P I also learned a neat trick to get the posts out of the ground.
I feel like the missionaries I'm leaving behind will be better than the ones who were here when I came into the field. One of my zone leaders is pretty young- only a year out (to me that's a young missionary), and in our zone training meeting he really did a great job. The majority of my zone leaders have set goals for me that I just haven't felt good about. It didn't feel personal to me, and I didn't feel attached to the goals they put forth. This elder made it clear that the goals he wanted to propose were not a quota (something that really speaks to me, as the vast majority of missionary work is numerically out of our hands- independent of our companionship's efforts), and that we would set our own goals for our own areas. And so we knelt down right there and prayed and set our goals. I really liked it. One of the best zone training meetings I've had. If the up and coming missionaries are anywhere near as great as Elder Corbet, the mission will be in great hands.
The reality of my mission ending soon is really starting to set in. We had to stop in at the office today, and the secretary showed me my plane ticket, asking me to make sure everything's kosher. On Wednesday I have exactly three months left. I have two transfers left, and will likely leave and blind-in train. You've sent me my last package, etc. Yup- that big transfer in the sky is coming, and fast. I've decided the first things I want to do when I get home: 1. Get released 2. Take a nap 3. Play Super Smash and Catan with the fam 3. Watch Star Wars VII 4. See Star Ears- Rouge One in theaters. Aaaand that's what I have for now :) I'm not getting trunky just yet- thank goodness for an imminent area change. I'll bring home a few of my short sleeve shirts, but I'm going to bleach them all and leave the majority. I'll definitely be sending a couple packages home with stuff. Not sure what size my shirts are- I'm actually starting to outgrow the last two long-sleeves I got for Christmas. I'll check and shoot you an email when I find out.
The Homecoming invite's a bit of a bummer :/ It's okay- Ed week and EFY dances are a million times better and more fun than any school dance I've been to. Just get the eagle project out of the way- don't overcomplicate things. Sounds like a great change in dance footwear for Madi! Her toenails were starting to fall off? Yikes! From what I can see, Spencer and Madi have grown a lot since I've been gone. It'll be great to spend more time with them when I get home. When does Christmas break start? If I get home before it, will they get out of school to welcome me home?
Kaitlyn is doing great- she gets home November 1. She'll be going to BYU-I for at least another year. Hopefully we can get together sometime and hang out during spring break or something. We're both feeling weird that we're almost done. She goes home the transfer before I do (small note- the transfer day is Tuesday the 1, and Halloween is the day before- P day. We aren't allowed outside the apartment after 6 on Halloween. That means absolutely no work is going to get done on Halloween. Hopefully my companion likes playing games!). We're still going to keep writing even after she goes home. She's a great friend- a huge help and strength to me when I was going through depression.
Well... That's pretty much it... Love you all!
Elder Hull
Funny-story-that-starts-out-not-so-funny time! Elder Benitez had to drive us out to a DMV two hours away to pay a ticket he got in his last area, or his license was going to be suspended. That part wasn't fun- NY pretty much makes all its money off tickets, so it seemed like half the county's population was there in the DMV at the same time, and their numbers were all getting called before ours. We were there for, like, three hours, and Elder Benitez had to pay somewhere around $250 for running a stop sign that everyone else was running. Anyway, Elder Benitez's mom tends to freak out, so he had to call her to explain it. He called President to ask permission. While President was still on the phone I was like 'tell him I say hi.' President was like 'Elder, you liking your area?' I was like 'No- I'm loving it.' 'Good- you ready for a change?' Because of that, I'm pretty sure I'll be moving on to my next and final area next week. It'll be good, but I'll be sad to leave Freeport. I would've been totally fine staying there for the rest of my mission. It's kinda scary, too, though. I haven't trained yet, so the odds of me training my next and final two transfers are higher than ever. If I do train, I'll likely be blinded in, meaning that they'll take out a companionship and put me and my trainee in. That's not easy. Moreover, I can see them calling me to be a District Leader again, which is just more responsibility on top of everything else I have to do. I'll do what the Lord asks of me, though.
We also did some service on Saturday. A coworker of the Branch 2nd Counsellor needed some help trimming a walnut tree in his yard, and taking an old fence down and putting up a new one. It was a ton of fun! The best part was taking the old fence down. I got to take a sledgehammer to the horizontal slats on the fence, and then Spartan kick the panels over. Felt great... Until Sunday :P I also learned a neat trick to get the posts out of the ground.
I feel like the missionaries I'm leaving behind will be better than the ones who were here when I came into the field. One of my zone leaders is pretty young- only a year out (to me that's a young missionary), and in our zone training meeting he really did a great job. The majority of my zone leaders have set goals for me that I just haven't felt good about. It didn't feel personal to me, and I didn't feel attached to the goals they put forth. This elder made it clear that the goals he wanted to propose were not a quota (something that really speaks to me, as the vast majority of missionary work is numerically out of our hands- independent of our companionship's efforts), and that we would set our own goals for our own areas. And so we knelt down right there and prayed and set our goals. I really liked it. One of the best zone training meetings I've had. If the up and coming missionaries are anywhere near as great as Elder Corbet, the mission will be in great hands.
The reality of my mission ending soon is really starting to set in. We had to stop in at the office today, and the secretary showed me my plane ticket, asking me to make sure everything's kosher. On Wednesday I have exactly three months left. I have two transfers left, and will likely leave and blind-in train. You've sent me my last package, etc. Yup- that big transfer in the sky is coming, and fast. I've decided the first things I want to do when I get home: 1. Get released 2. Take a nap 3. Play Super Smash and Catan with the fam 3. Watch Star Wars VII 4. See Star Ears- Rouge One in theaters. Aaaand that's what I have for now :) I'm not getting trunky just yet- thank goodness for an imminent area change. I'll bring home a few of my short sleeve shirts, but I'm going to bleach them all and leave the majority. I'll definitely be sending a couple packages home with stuff. Not sure what size my shirts are- I'm actually starting to outgrow the last two long-sleeves I got for Christmas. I'll check and shoot you an email when I find out.
The Homecoming invite's a bit of a bummer :/ It's okay- Ed week and EFY dances are a million times better and more fun than any school dance I've been to. Just get the eagle project out of the way- don't overcomplicate things. Sounds like a great change in dance footwear for Madi! Her toenails were starting to fall off? Yikes! From what I can see, Spencer and Madi have grown a lot since I've been gone. It'll be great to spend more time with them when I get home. When does Christmas break start? If I get home before it, will they get out of school to welcome me home?
Kaitlyn is doing great- she gets home November 1. She'll be going to BYU-I for at least another year. Hopefully we can get together sometime and hang out during spring break or something. We're both feeling weird that we're almost done. She goes home the transfer before I do (small note- the transfer day is Tuesday the 1, and Halloween is the day before- P day. We aren't allowed outside the apartment after 6 on Halloween. That means absolutely no work is going to get done on Halloween. Hopefully my companion likes playing games!). We're still going to keep writing even after she goes home. She's a great friend- a huge help and strength to me when I was going through depression.
Well... That's pretty much it... Love you all!
Elder Hull