HARD BUT GOOD

It's been a while since I missed a week. I wrote the letters, but they never made it to the mailbox, so now you get three!

TRANSFER 6:

And it starts all over again. With mixed feelings. It's been a great, but odd transfer, so there's no telling what'll happen this transfer. This past week we had two baptisms: Jason and Kthy. They were by far the hardest baptisms I've ever done. I'm not used to working with an English ward, and it's throwing off my groove. With the Spanish ward, I knew who could speak, how long it took to fill the font, where we could print baptismal programs, etc.

At Jason' s baptism, there wasn't a member of the bishopric there until 30 min after it was supposed to start. Then, the water was cold for him so it took 10 min for him to get into the water.

Because Kathy's grandma didn't understand that Kathy's baptism was just for her, we had to drive around the neighborhood for 45 minutes looking for her! It was the most stressful baptism ever. Thankfully, Sis. Engel,* (I called from her house on Mom's Day) fed us some hotdogs afterwards and I was able to relax a bit. I 've still felt pretty shaken up about it, and I'm not so excited for Sunday.

Honestly, I've been having a hard time. I need to tighten the screws in so many areas. I'm constantly worried about whether things are good between Elder Herrin & I. But the beginning of a new transfer is like New Year's It's an opportunity to start off brand new, and resolve to do better.

Entonces, familia, though it is hard now, and difficult, I am grateful (;D HA HA) No, really, all of this will only make me a better missionary and a better person. That's the beauty of trials; we will always be better (if we put our trust in the Lord), after they're through. And it's the coolest when that happens!

I MISS YOU ALL, BUT LOVE YOU ENOUGH TO WAIT SOME MORE MONTHS TO SEE YOU (AKA CHRISTMAS, WHEN WE'LL WEBCAM TALK!)

*Sis. Engel, and the Engel family, are some of the coolest members ever. They've been super helpful, and are always there if we need anything. She reminds me a lot of you, Mom! It's kind of creep sometimes. :) Her husband is in Iraq, and she has two kids, Diana & Aidan. They're from Canada! Definitely one of the points on the itinerary if you come to pick me up. (Or when we come back to visit.) We'll see how it works out. We've still got a while!

TO OLIVE

Excerpts from a letter to Olivia:

Ashton, he's the one I think will have changed the most when I get back. So much fun to hear him on the phone! That's amazing that he'll sit so still listening to Maya's reading! And that the two aren't opting for recordings of The Suite Life. Does this happen often?

Soccer...we don't play it enough out here. Today it was ultimate frisbee & football. Not my top fav.'s, but FUN in the SUN!

Book of Mormon-I love it. I can't quite get my fill! I definitely will miss all the peace that we have to ponder & reflect. It's amazing how much more I pick up (or have picked up) on my current read-through. We're currently doing a BoM read as a mission! Oh! I started doing that activity! Only on ch. 11 of 1st Nephi!

Boy, I miss the design. I was way into the paisley thing. I tried to get Calvin to join in, but he doesn't share quite the same enthusiasm. I've been seriously debating switching majors, though I don't think I've got quite the talent for design. We'll see.

As for me... I think I'm finally getting very used to the system. Being Sr. is no fun. Especially when my Jr. is older than me in the mission. There have been no power struggles, but he makes little to no suggestions. His last two comps didn't like hearing his opinion, I have to force it out of him!

Being obedient is tough. I've been currently trying to purge the justified things, (like "P-day music" aka regular music.) Of course, it doesn't improve the companionship unity much when I ask him to just put in MoTab. I like MoTab. Elder Herrin isn't necessarily used to more strict obedience Then again, neither am I. But he grew up under the other president, who didn't care much what you did as long as you baptized. The new president is all about obedience, and I am no fan of a guilty conscience. BUT I don't want to become an obedience Nazi either. Advice? Experience?

SEAN SAYS: KEEP A JOURNAL!

This one we just had to give you in its original form. Please enjoy the mini illustrations along the way... (Click any image to enlarge!)