Let's see if anyone actually reads my emails... :) 5/22/2018

   Another week come and gone. This week was one I'd have been alright skipping, for various reasons. But hey, I did turn 19, and had a cake handmade and delivered by some cousins that live nearby. So that was awesome. Thank you to everyone who sent cards or emails, you guys rock!

     Anyways, Tuesday was District Meeting. One of my last in the Binghamton Ward. And the ZL's were there, we had a great discussion on revelations, prayers of faith, and recognizing the Spirit. On Wednesday, we did service at the Feitsma's. I'm not sure if I've ever mentioned this in detail. But Frank Feitsma has severe MS, and can't move and can barely talk, his wife also has MS, and while it's not as severe, she still appreciates us helping her with Frank, and around the house. So we go over every Tuesday and do many service activities of various natures. So this week Elder Chan was able to operate a lawn mower for the first time in his life, I hung some hanging baskets and watered them, set up a gazebo thing on their back patio, powerwashed a deck, and moved some furniture. It's always fun going to the Feitsma's, Sister Feitsma is awesome and we have a good time chatting while we work, and she usually feeds us lunch. And Frank is awesome. He can't speak much, but he hears everything we say, so we'll talk to him and joke around and he'll just smile, and every week before I leave I say "Frank you stay out of trouble, and don't party too hard", and he always smiles and says "I can't", he's a funny guy, and from the videos I've seen of him when he was in better health, he has a similar sense of humor to mine. So we get along great. Anyways, after the Feitsma's, we picked up the Binghamton Elders for the most exciting birthday party I've had in years. Mainly because I don't have parties. But we were delivered a cake, went and got Wendy's 4for4's, watched some Mormon Messages, and OYM'd around the mall. On Thursday we had the lovely opportunity to do some weeding for Sister Ligouri, a member of the ward. Now, if you're brave enough to walk 4 Elders around your yard, naming various plants we should and shouldn't pull, and then leave them to work and expect that they won't kill anything they weren't supposed to, I respect you. But I do not encourage this foolish act. We pulled a massive amount of green stuff out of a huge flower bed, whether or not they were all weeds, I know not. But hey we worked hard, and got a head start on our farmer's tans. Well, 3 of us worked hard and pulled weeds. The fourth, who I will not name, mostly wandered around or sat with his legs crossed and talked about how hot it was and how tired he was. This was slightly irritating, but none of our pleas for help made any difference. So we just dealt with it. After our lovely weeding escapade, we returned home to change for basketball. Thursday nigh basketball is one of my favorite things. It's the most, and best exercise we can get as missionaries. There are tons of non members, and we can bond with the members that do come. Members that kind of ignored us before, now give us rides, feed us, invite us for lessons, give us referrals, and are super nice to us. And a bunch of the nonmembers have had some great teaching moments on the court. So it's the best. Anyways, this last Thursday night was legit. We got a little carried away and played until about 9:50. But it's ok, because the bishop was there, and I threw a sick assist all the way down the court baseball style, and he 360 lay upped the heck out of it. Anyways, Elder Chan, who isn't really an athlete, kept throwing up these beautiful shots, and drained like 5 3's. But after like 4 games, he got tired, and said "my leg is a lot like the stone. so tired", I'm not sure what the saying is in Cantonese, but I think it's awesome in English, so he observed, while we all balled out. On Friday night, we got a text from Trevor Morreall, a member who got back from his mission about 2 weeks before I got the the Bingo Ward, then went to a semester at BYU, and is now back, he invited us to play flag football the next morning, at the church. This was incredibly convenient, because we were going to have to be there filling the font anyways, and wouldn't be able to leave for about 2.5 hours. So we went, and in the pouring rain, we balled out. Trevor brought me a pair of cleats, but to be fair to Elder Saylor, I wore one, and he wore one. So we were slipping and sliding and covered in mud, but it was a party. After the game, and the font was filled, we ran home to shower, change into suits, and came right back for a baptism. It wasn't a missionary baptism, it was Brother Cook's daughter. He's on the High Council, and from Bountiful, but he invited us. So we went. It was lovely. On Sunday, we had a lesson with Kassidy. Kassidy is actually the main reason I got transferred here. Her mom, Sister Dwyer, was baptized by the Jason Fife in Trinidad, and I was invited down here to teach and baptize her. That whole thing didn't quite go according to plan. Considering I've been here for 6 months, and she still hasn't been dunked. But she'll do it in her own time. And the lesson was awesome, Sister Israel, the YW president joined us, and we had an AWESOME discussion on the Holy Ghost, acts of faith, and life and the Gospel in general. It was great, and due to the lesson going long, we didn't even have time to tract after. We just went to bed. It was lovely. 

     

     Well. That was it for this week, activity wise. But, I've got time, and wanna keep typing. So, if you haven't picked up on it yet, I love teaching using analogies. If I can relate something to bikes, football, or Jeeps, then it makes infinitely more sense to me, and (I hope) it makes it more exciting to listen to. So, due to the slowness of the work lately, I thought I'd share a past experience, and relate it to the Gospel, and life, and how it helped me. So here we go, story time ;) 

     My Junior year, particularly the football season, was one of the most memorably, but not entirely because of the good. I was starting JV, and rotating some on Varsity. I drove a Jeep with loud music, bright lights, and an attitude. I had recently finished a 206 mile bike race, less than 12 hours after I had played 4 quarters and 3 OTs against Viewmont, and I was even dating a cheerleader. I thought I was really somethin. But, on October 1st, I got blindsided, literally and figuratively. During the third quarter of a game against a team I don't even remember, I was playing defensive end, and chasing a sweep play out in left field. One moment I was up and thinking I was about to get a TFL, the next I was on the ground seeing stars and couldn't breathe nor move. I had been hit on the outside of my leg, mid step, with my foot planted. This made my knee do this neat thing where instead of bending front and back, it did a side to side thing. As a result, my MCL tore and my quad locked up to compensate. I didn't have a clue what had happened. All I knew is I wasn't getting up. I shoved my helmet off and spit my mouth guard out and yelled for the trainer. I got carried off the field, and dumped on a table in the trainers room. For the past 6 months I had spent round about 3 hours in the weight room and on the field, 3 or more days a week, along with the rest of the team, to prepare for the season. The season which had just ended for me. This was hugely discouraging. One day I was driving my jeep, running sprints, and squatting over 300 lbs in the weight room. The next day I was literally stuck in a bathtub because I couldn't even lift my leg out. This drastic change was not one I had anticipated. But it was one I needed. After a few weeks of crutches, ice, and rest. I started biking, PT, and rehab. I accepted how my season had ended, and looked forward to my Senior season. From the time I first put on shoulder pads as a kid, I'd looked up to the DHS Varsity team. Now, the next time I went through that tunnel, I'd be part of that very team, and I wanted to make sure I wasn't going to stand on the sidelines. Before that play that ended my season, I kinda figured that if I was starting then, I'd be starting next year. But I learned very quickly that it doesn't just happen like that. I went from cleats on the field to crutches on the sideline, and the season went on. I realized that if I wanted to be one of the 11 defensive starters, I was going to have to do more than just keep showing up. So after a winter, spring, and summer of lifting and running, with the team and on my own, coupled with hundreds of hours on my bike, I figured I'd be a considerable prospect for a starting DE. My one rep maxes for bench, squat, and clean had all increased by 70 lbs or more. I was faster, stronger, and bigger than I was before I got hurt. But once again. I was humbled. The first preseason game saw me playing on every special team available, but I saw zero downs as a DE. So, I had to work harder. And the day the Coach Tupuola pulled me aside in the tunnel and said "you're rolling with the ones today", I knew I had a chance that I couldn't let slip by. And from that moment on, I'd made sure I did everything I could to guarantee I started as boundary side DE every single game of that season. And I did, for the last preseason game, then every regular season, and playoff game, I started. 

     Now I know that to most of you, this story means nothing and is neither impressive nor relevant. In fact. At the time, it didn't mean much to me. I got hurt as a Junior, recovered and worked out hard, and played a good Senior season. Nothing really special about that. But now that I look back, I'm actually glad that I took a hit to the knee in October 2015. Because now, almost 3 years later, I can look back on that trial, and see everything I learned and everything that came from it. Believe it or not, it humbled me. I know that "humble" is probably not the first word that comes to mind when you think of me, but it did in fact humble me. It showed me that it doesn't matter how big and bad you think you are, you're fragile, and all it takes is one hit, and you're back to ground zero. It helped me to realize that if you start to take something for granted, you can, and will lose that thing. It happens over and over in the Scriptures. Lehi and the gang got the Liahona, they were pumped. Then they got just a little too cocky and all of the sudden they were lost. Alma the Younger thought he was cool going around being a punk, and he got knocked flat on his back for 3 days, literally. It's not just in the scriptures though. It's everywhere in life. For me, for everyone. I thought I was killin it as a Junior, then I ended up stuck in a bathtub with a torn MCL. I thought I was unstoppable as a Senior DE, then Hunter ran us into the ground and I left with more broken chinstraps than tackles. I thought I was cool cruising with underglow, cool lights, and gangster music, then Highway Patrol showed me their cool lights and some official paperwork. As a missionary, I thought I was doing great, teaching well, and being good. Then I had these past 2 transfers. Where everything about me was tested. My teaching ability, my command of the English language, my patience, my dedication, my ability to stay positive when I see mostly negative, my ability to explain things upwards of 5 times without expressing exasperation, and just about every other thing, trait, skill, or quality that can be tested.

     MORAL OF THE STORY. God loves us. He wants us to be successful. Not just in our scripture study and spiritual learning, but in even the worldly things we love and enjoy. But He also wants to see us grow. And when we're coasting, and begin to take for granted the things which we have worked for and been blessed with, those things can and will be taken away. The trials and hard times that follow the loss of something we worked so hard for, or loved so much, are not meant to pin us down and show us we're worthless. They're to remind us that without Him, we aren't going to make it that far. It's impossible to make any journey as hard as this (life) , alone. And as soon as we think we can do it alone, I think God will givd us just the smallest taste of what it would be like if it were truly up to us, and us alone. And those moments, if you handle them well, will turn the "rock bottom" you may think you're at, into a catapult, and you'll shoot up higher than you were before. No I know that my lame MCL tear as a 16 year old is a lame example, and boring story for most of you. But for me, and hopefully at least one othed person, it's made me better understand why it is we have trials. I'm not saying I handled perfectly my MCL tear, I'm not saying I was a perfect trainer for Elder Chan. What I'm saying is that I can see what I learned, how I can learn, and what I yet need to learn. This doesn't happen right away, it doesn't happen overnight. David A Bednar reminds us that revelation isn't like a light switch, but like a sunrise.

     Well. There's some food for though folks. Sorry I couldn't give ya more exciting stories about the incredibly exciting land of Johnson City. But I love you all, and for any of you who actually made it all the way through this email, I love you more than I love Taco Bell.

UNTIL NEXT WEEK MY FRIENDS.