CHARDO • A Mission: A Week of Walking!

Dear Family,

This was a long week! Last Monday, Elder Kitchen and I went fishing. It was pretty fun except we didn't catch anything! It was still fun though! We tried in Lake Samamish, but all we got were a couple of bites from little fish. We aren't allowed to go fishing in rivers right now because this is the time of year the salmon come upstream to hatch.

This week consisted of a lot of walking. The mission is only allotted a certain number of miles a month and they limit miles for missionaries. We have about 1000 miles a month, which you would think would last, but we go about 30-40 miles a day so they run out pretty quickly. After we run out we have to walk, which in this area isn't fun because there are so many hills and it is a very large area. Luckily, members are usually willing to take us to our next appointment once we get to their house so we managed.

This week we had a dinner appointment with a part-member/less active family. The dad is a member but really has no intention of coming back to church. We taught a lesson that included a bit about baptism because they have a daughter that could be baptized, but they really shut us down after the lesson. It made both my companion and me really sad!

Lets just say that General Conference was AMAZING! There was so much I got out of it this time and I can't wait to apply what I learned. I especially liked Uchdorf's talk on managing turbulent times of life and slowing down. I also liked President Monson's talk on choices in the priesthood session. On Saturday between Conference sessions we went to a boat race in Lake Samamish! It was really cool and fast!

In a slow week we still did have some miracles: First, we finally got a hold of our investigator, Astrid, a European woman with a baptismal date that we haven't been able to get a hold of for over a week! We were a bit worried, but we were glad to see she was still doing well. Second, last night (Sunday) we got to give a blessing to a girl who was sick from a recent convert family. This family, the Matthews, is really nice and we go over to their home all the time! They are also the family who referred our new investigator! Even in times when their family was inactive they still told people about the gospel. It was really amazing that doing those kinds of ordinances is part of my calling!

Overall, the investigators we have are doing quite well and I know they feel the spirit. We have our first baptism on the 16th, which I am really excited for! I love you and feel your prayers every day! As always, the Church is true!

Love,

Richard