Day 307

Wow! that sounds like a lot of fun at the temple! I don't get to go very often, but I did have a lot of opportunity to go before I left so I just hope that others will be able to go. Some missionaries I know have only been one time getting their endowment, and one time in the MTC. So I hope they have the opportunity to go. I hope I get to go at least once though.

Bill L is engaged? wow. what a guy! 

Mom, I exercise and eat well. I drink tons of water! actually funny story, three days ago I did a calve workout on the stairs. I didn't feel like I worked too hard, but holy cow! yesterday I was so sore. I could hardly walk. Seriously my companion didn't want to walk next to me because he thought I looked like forest gump. I've never actually seen that movie, but I probably did look handicapped!

This week went well. Last week we street contacted into two young people, we gave them a card and they said they would call us. Everyone says that. I've seen little to no results with my street contacting. But your prayers must have worked. They called us back, we met them at the library and talked to them and gave them a Book of Mormon and told them the significance of it. Later on in the week we were able to go back and help them move. We didn't have a pickup truck because the member that was supposed to bring it wasn't able to at the last minute.. so I ended up carrying a small coffee table across the highway and about two blocks. That was the biggest thing they were moving so we were able to put the rest in the other elders car. Then we had a spiritual thought with them. They have a long way to go, but they are definitely interested in improving their lives and learning, and I'm going to do all I can to make sure they get there.

The other thing that happened, we went to another potential investigators house, they are phillipino.. first time it's ever happened. We got there, and were talking to the wife, and the husband came up and said "come downstairs!" so we went down and got roped into singing a few Karaoke songs.. That was the first time we were able to get in with them so I was really happy about it. They were really nice. We don't yet have a teaching appointment set up with them, but we are in contact and I hope things will work out.

Yesterday I passed my kidney stone, but I couldn't catch it. I really really wanted to save it. hopefully that's the only one, except part of me wants one more that I can save. It was pretty decently sized. not huge but bigger than I would have wanted to come out of my.. body. It was probably about this size. O It didn't really hurt to actually come out, I was surprised.

That's it for this week. I included some pictures that I took. Hope you like them.

Our new puppy, don't be fooled by those innocent eyes!

DAY 300

This Week was a good week for service but a pretty terrible week for Lessons and teaching. :/ bummer. We were able to go out to a guy named Marcell, and help him move a bunch of material in his shop. That was pretty fun, we helped in the community at the Steinbach arts council, and we basically just painted some props that were going to be used in a play (Anne of Green Gables) and we were able to go out to the Greens and do some work for them. That was my favorite because not only did we get to spend time with them (her husband is not a member) but I got to bounce on their trampoline and eat steak.

My health is good, I don't think I'm going to die. In addition to working out, I've been working on my flexibility and balance. I can almost touch my toes, I eat pretty well, I stay away from junky food and pop. I drink lots of water, and I sleep well. Just some of the physical blessings of my mission.

We've gone through our investigators and started weeding out those who are not really investigating, that are passive. We've been good about emphasizing The Book of Mormon, and they just don't get it. So instead of getting mad, we are just going to give them some quiet time. 

That's about it for this week. Some weeks you just have to plug on through. 

Glad to hear about Grandpa being the Auctioneer, that sounds like something that he would enjoy. I forgot about the Glasses story, that's a good one. I can just picture him telling it.

Well have a great week! stay out of trouble! See you in the funny paper!

Love Elder Peterson

Day 293

I was doing really well until last night, The Doctor had given me some Tylenol 3, I was allowed to take up to four everyday for pain, I mostly just took about two each day, but then I didn't have any pain for about a week, I had some pain this morning but when I got up It got pretty bad, so I took some Tylenol. I feel great now but I'll have to see. If it gets any worse I'll have to call Sister Thomas again and tell her that I'm dying again. 

Proud of you for taking care of your class. I'm sure that you are doing a great job and you're probably getting pretty great at crowd control.

Wow a new puppy! I'm going to miss like all of his puppy days. :( He'll probably be all whiny and such now, but I bet it will make you all the more attached to him and you'll be sweet to him later. I think if I ever have a dog I'll have a place where he can run around all the time and go in his cage if he wants to, It must be so boring for a dog that wants to just run around and play with birds and such and all he gets to do is lie around and bark at flies.

This week was a good week for us, we had a few lessons with members there. That was really exciting for me because member missionary work is something that I'm not as familiar with as I would like to be. It really got me riled up to be better about getting on members cases to come to lessons with us, it dramatically improves the work. Yesterday the Christiansens were in my ward along with another member I'm fond of name Tina Demrie. I was so excited to see all of them and it was fun to catch up. Right before I left Sister Christiansen gave me a big hug in front of all the other missionaries, in the church. I went so red. 

Sounds like Jordan is going to marry Clara. :P so that's pretty lame. They look happy together and I'm sure that it will be good. They both come from pretty good backgrounds and they are both pretty righteous.

My testimony grows stronger and stronger each week. Everyday the Lord strengthens me much more than I ask for and many times more than I deserve. I gave a talk yesterday in our little cottage meeting (like sacrament meeting without the sacrament, in steinbach) it was about planting seeds, and nourishing them and allowing them to grow. I'm sure I learned a lot more than anyone out in the small little congregation, but it was ok. I was a little prideful before I spoke and felt like my talk was pretty top notch, so naturally I was put back in my place. The spirit was there and that's what counts.

That's pretty much our week, I had a lot of fun and I am happy to be out here. You are all the best! 

Love Elder Peterson

Day 286

So you had fun with the sub job, that is good. Don't let those kids get to you. Sister K was always threatening with a one page paper for misbehaving. Kids didn't like that so they mostly behaved. She also wasn't afraid to yell. Glad you could go help Grandma B with her moving. 

 I've heard (and probably told you) that we don't change our life until we change something we do every day. Thinking that I won't always have an hour set aside in the morning to study, I've set aside time in the evening (about fifteen minutes) to read The Book of Mormon each day. I've missed only one day in the past three months of reading at night. I figure as long as I'm doing the three things that the church has asked us to do, Reading, Praying and Church, that I will be alright. That's where I've gotten my assurance for the future. 

About my Kidney stones, I don't really know what happened to them. The Doctor Prescribed me Tylenol 3 and I was taking it most of the week, but I haven't passed anything to my knowledge (the doctor said it could be pretty fine, like sand) but I haven't taken any pain medication for the last few days and I haven't felt anything. If I feel any pain, I am supposed to go and get X-rayed at the hospital tomorrow. So we'll see what happens. On the drive to Winnipeg on Tuesday, I got a priesthood blessing, I am attributing what is happening to that. Even so, it would be nice to have the assurance that I didn't have any rocks ahead of me to pee out. Even so, I have had very few interruptions to missionary work because of it. So I am grateful for that.

We watched it at the stake center as well. I wished we could have watched it on a couch. I get so uncomfortable on those pews.

What was the bet?

The bet was, that if I lost at a card game, I had to insist for the next two weeks that my sister marry my current companion. I wasn't going to tell Kate that though.

Did you get to watch conf at someone's house or at the church?

At  the church. All the sessions.

Stones? How? Why? When?  (if you want to talk...)

Haven't had any stones, I don't know how or why, and I don't know the when. I'm not sensitive about it. I will talk about peeing rocks with anyone that wants to. :)

How was your Easter?  Did you spend it with someone?

Yes, some of the members here had us over for breakfast. It was a lot of breakfast. Really good.

Anyway, the church is true for another week in Steinbach, with Conference and Zone Conference and Kidney stones, I haven't had a lot of time in my area, but I expect that this next week will be a little more productive than last.

Love

Elder Peterson

Day 279

It was a good week. Steinbach is good and It's a lot of fun.

Are you still glad you are in a walking area?  I bet once it gets warmer, it will be wonderful to be outside.

I am glad, sometimes it is a hassle to walk everywhere, but It is worth it because of all the people we've been able to talk to. Everyone has been pretty nice, surprising because Elder Coleman said that before I got here people were pretty mean. Probably because of all the chilly weather. It's also nice to be walking because if we are ever having a slow day, we just go outside and try to walk to people's houses and it keeps us busy.

Are there parks or public places that you like to contact people?

Kind of, we just try to be outside where we can talk to people. That's what seems to work best for finding so far. It would be way easier if we could just go to a designated spot and just see people all the time. :P

How is your ward?

The ward is good, there are a lot of other missionaries there, and I kind of just feel part of the crowd. That's ok, everyone is pretty nice. We are kind of secluded here in steinbach, which is good. Still in the ward but out of the way a little bit.

So when you have to play organ or piano, do they already know that you play or do you tell them?  Just wondering if the mission pres sends a bio of all the missionaries wherever they go...

I tell them, usually I don't get asked very often but I do step up when the opportunity is there.

Is there more than one ward in Winnipeg?

yes there are probably 5+ wards in Winnipeg, I think there are four or five church buildings.

Are you still loving the pull-up bar, does your comp like to exercise?  (Notice:  two questions here)

I love the pull up bar, I haven't been as good at using it as I should, but I do use it. My companion likes to exercise but we haven't done a lot of it.

What did you learn this week?

I learned a few things this week. I think the biggest thing that I learned was that in order to get answers to prayers, The Lord needs to see that we are stretching and pondering, not necessarily to show him that we want an answer, but to show ourselves that it's something that we value.

Did you speak in church?

No ma'am.

Do you ever have to help in church like with lessons, does the ward/branch involve you in their activities?

I've had to a lot in the branches that I've been in, but as far as the ward I've not had to do much.

Do you miss your kitty, are you working at another animal shelter?

I miss that cat a little bit. I swear if he's still there I'll find a way to get him from Kenora before I come home.

This week was good, We didn't teach as many lessons this week but we did teach new people lessons. We were able to be out and about and talk to lots of people. We work well, and we work hard so we should see miracles this transfer. 

I miss you people a lot and I always enjoy hearing from you and seeing pictures. Steinbach is a good area and I am still excited to be here.

Love Elder Peterson

Day 272

So, duh, how is your new area?

Really good. It's a nice compact little city, we've been street contacting like animals. Animals of course that are looking for people that want the gospel. Its a walking area, the other elders have a car. It's nice actually because we see and talk to a lot more people than if we had a car. If we are at a loss of things to do we just walk across town to stop by someone and usually run into someone on the way.

We looked up your comp (stalked really) and he looks like a great guy. 

He's a really good companion. We get along well and he is really missionary minded. I'm excited for this coming up. We make a pretty good team, I think that we'll go far together.

Did the Kenora folks send you off in style?

Yes. We had dinner everyday up until leaving. It was really good. 

Do you know what kind of new service opportunities are in Steinbach?

Not really anything new, just normal service, It's just nice to be out and about.

Have you met many Mennonites?

We've met a few, they don't really seem that different from regular people, they still have tv and houses and cars and stuff. Even Iphones. so I don't really know what the big deal is. 

I don't think Jordan is going to wait for you....

Oh I don't really know. He might get married. I guess that's his decision.

I didn't understand what meant about the Christiansen ward is in Winnipeg, are they from Kenora?

Brother Christensen is the High Council speaker for the ward that I attend. So I'll see them often.

How come you guys are always in khakis?  I didn't think that was part of the regular missionary attire...

It's allowed. The missionary dress code has changed a lot. you can look it up on lds.org. but we can wear Khakis, sweaters, and we don't have to wear suits at all except for meetings. It's supposed to make us more approachable when we aren't just in dark suits all the time. 

Its a good thing Elder Paulsen posted that pic of you two, or we wouldn't have any evidence of your companionship. 

I have a few other Pictures. I just haven't sent them home.. ;) I suppose that I am just a slacker. I thought that was a decent picture. :)

Oh, I've been meaning to ask this for a while,  when Elder Allred took that pic of you sleeping through the restoration, are you really sleeping, or posing for his post?

I was really sleeping. We both took a nap and he woke up before me to take a picture. You'll notice in the post he says #itsokbecauseitwasduringlunch Or something like that.