Hard but Fulfilling

This week was hard but fulfilling...

I haven't told much about my actual missionary work, but we've been doing well. We are super busy. We have a couple investigators, but today I want to focus on Brianna.

Brianna is from Korea and she is 18. The second day I was out we went and taught her a lesson. We had to use one of the ward members to translate for us. She only speaks Korean. It was really interesting. We've been teaching her a lot, and now her Aunt is translating for us. Brianna lives with her Aunt, Uncle and cousins. They are a super fun family. Her uncle, Brandon, just got baptized this March. He's an awesome guy. Apparently he read the Book of Mormon in two weeks and you won't believe this, but he's almost done reading Jesus the Christ! It’s super cool. Her cousin just got baptized too. So we've been teaching Brianna, and I have a lot of fun. I'm really excited every time I get to teach, and I make sure to add humor. Elder Flinders is kind of a monotone, straight faced, kind of guy so I try to make up for his lack of enthusiasm. They are always laughing when we are there. We found out that the day after Brianna left Korea and came to America, her family back in Korea started taking the missionary lessons! Her sister and mother got baptized last Friday! Brianna is scheduled to be baptized next Saturday the 24th, and she has asked me to baptize her! It's going to be awesome.

I should start counting how many times per week I shake people’s hands. For some reason, a lot of people try to crush my hand. It's like they are trying to show off how strong they are. Unfortunately for them, my hand isn’t that easy to crush and I'm always up for a challenge :)

Grandma Bellon would really appreciate this: my favorite snack in the whole world is Greek yogurt and apples. About a week ago, I bought some plain Fago Greek yogurt. When I got home I tried eating a spoonful, and I just about spit it out. It wasn't very good at all. I had to figure out how to eat it though, because I didn't want to waste any money. So I started scooping it out with apple slices. It’s delicious. Too bad Greek yogurt is so expensive. I need to be careful I don't eat too much. I buy the biggest containers I can get, and yesterday I ate half a container in one sitting. It’s the best snack ever.

I love doing yard work, so I help out any chance I get. Our land lords are older, and they have a large yard. This past Friday we helped plant stuff and cut up branches. The entire time I was wishing that I was with Papa doing that stuff. Brother McAllister (our landlord) is a nice guy, but he's just so...... boring. I miss helping out at Nuna and Papa’s house. I'm super glad I had a chance to work with Jeff, because I have learned so many skills that I can offer people. The other day I helped a guy work on his sprinklers.

I'm pretty sure everyone already knows this about me, but I shoot myself in the foot a lot. I've got an embarrassing example. We were out tracking, and we said hello to a lady on her front porch. She was obviously annoyed with us. We asked her all the normal questions, including if she was a member. She told us she was. It’s really easy to tell if they are active members or not, and we usually ask them if they have had a chance to attend regularly. I asked this lady that, and as I assumed, she told us she hadn't. The whole time we were talking with her, she wasn't afraid to portray how annoyed she was of us. At one point she told me she really isn't going to go to church, and I replied, "Yeah, I could tell." Oh man that was the dumbest thing to say. Luckily Elder Flinders jumped in and finished the conversation. When we were walking away, I said to Elder Flinders, "Did I really just say that?" and he just started busting up laughing. I wasn't meaning to tell her that I could tell that she was less active; I was just meant to tell her that I could tell that she was annoyed with us talking with her. <Shrug>, Oh well.

The Dunford Bakery is in our district, and since Elder Flinders is the district leader, we can go there. We've only gone once, and when we went up to the register they told us that it was all taken care of. It was awesome. I'm going to make sure we don't take advantage of them, but it's comforting to know that whenever we are having a bad day or something, we can always stop by at the bakery and pick up a donut.

The sisters gave us some cd's to listen to in the car, and one of them is the Frozen soundtrack. Before we got these cds, we had been listening to Vocal Point. They have some pretty good music. Elder Flinders hasn't seen Frozen​​​​ because it came out while he was serving. He's asked people what it's about, and it’s really funny to hear him summarize what he thinks the movie is about. I've given him a pretty good explanation though. In the song, "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?" there's a part where Ana says to the painting "Hang in there, Joan", but when listening to the song, you don't know that Joe is a painting. Elder Flinders asked me yesterday, "Who the heck is Joe? Why isn't he in anymore of the songs?" It was pretty funny.

Right across the street from where we live, there is a place where people joust. We've only seen them practice, but people have been thrown off their horses before. Here are some pictures for your enjoyment:

Jousting across the street:


This is where we park at night, and I have to back him out every morning:



Last week I didn't have enough time to put my whites in the dryer, so I had to hang dry them:

This is what our closet looks like, my side is the right side of the middle piece:

This is at the end of the day when we do planning for the next day:

The library where we email:


A picture of the zone leaders:

And a hilarious photo I took while driving:

Elder Flinder's Version of "Love is an Open Door"

Okay, can I just, say something crazy?

 I love crazy!

All my life has been a series of doors in my face (TRACTING)
And then suddenly I bump into you (INVESTIGATOR)


I was thinking the same thing! 'Cause like
I've been searching my whole life to find my own place (GOSPEL)
And maybe it's the party talking or the chocolate fondue


 But with you...
 But with you

 I found my place...
 I see your face...


And it's nothing like I've ever known before! (HOLY GHOST)

The Gospel is an open door!
The Gospel is an open door!
The Gospel is an open door!

 With you!
 With you!
 With you!
 With you!
The Gospel is an open door...

 I mean it's crazy...
 What?

 We finish each other's-
 Sandwiches!

 That's what I was gonna say!

 I've never met someone-


Who thinks so much like me!
Jinx! Jinx again!
Our mental synchronization
Can have but one explanation

 You-
 And I-
Were-
 Just-

Meant to be!

Say goodbye... (REPENTANCE)
Say goodbye...

To the pain of the past
We don't have to feel it anymore! (BAPTISM)
The Gospel is an open door!
The Gospel is an open door!
Life can be so much more!

With you!
With you!
With you!

With you!

 The Gospel is an open door...

[Missionaries:] Can I say something crazy?
[Investigators:] [giggles]
[Missionaries:] Will you get baptized?

[Investigator:] Can I say something even crazier? Yes!