September 26, 2011

Dear Family,

Today is a wonderful preparation day.

It's great to hear about April's talk from both you and Rachel. It must've been soooo good!! And thank you for the pictures. Just so you know, I LOVE pictures. Most of the pictures you've emailed me I've saved on my card and then printed out at Walmart. I now have 3 more to add to the collection :) Oh man I wish I wish I wisssssssshhhhhhh I could've been there for April's farewell talk!!! Is there any way you could send me a copy of it, or maybe a summary of it, or anything? I just really feel like I missed out... You see, every time I tell somebody that I have a sister going on a mission it reminds me that I won't be able to see both her farewell and her homecoming talks. Bummer! I'm sure she spoke wonderfully about the Restoration.

I can't help but get a little teary-eyed when you talk about Floyd Israelsen. What a giant of a man. I feel the same way as you in the sense that I feel that he touched my life individually also. He always shook my hand at church and he always asked how I was doing in such a sincere way. If only I could become like him someday. Whenever we're riding bikes I like to think that I'm bikin' all over the Ozarks just like Floyd did. I probably would've bawled my eyes out if I had been at the funeral. But wow, it sounds like y'all have had quite the emotionally and physically draining week.

My week was actually pretty slow. Elder Navratil's been sick most of the week and so we didn't get too much done. We've also been suffering from a baptism hangover. Nichole's baptism was so epic that it's actually a little hard to be motivated to find more investigators.

On Wednesday we went on exchanges with the Zone Leaders. It was pretty awesome because it was my first exchange where I stayed here and made all the plans myself. I was kinda nervous because I'm still getting the hang of things, but it went well. Elder Gordon was the Zone Leader that came here, and we really worked hard. We biked about 20 miles and visited a good mix of investigators and less-actives. I'm pretty sure Elder Gordon was impressed with my work ethic. I'm totally going to be the next assistant. Haha jk :)

That night (with Elder Gordon) we met up with a potential named Entimo. Entimo is a senior in high school that was first found by Elder Gordon himself a few weeks ago. He referred Entimo to us because he was in our area, but we weren't able to get a hold of him until Elder Gordon came here. Totally meant to be! We began by just asking him what his beliefs were and such. Man, he's such a great guy! Entimo expressed his feelings about how he had heard we had apostles and prophets, and how he didn't know why churches didn't have that organization today. You can only imagine how eager Elder Gordon and I were :) So we talked about Christ's original church and how Joseph Smith restored that same organization. Entimo was totally eating it up and kept on saying, "I like this, you're totally answering all the questions I have in my mind." It was so cool! The only disappointing thing was that he was a tiny bit wary of the Book of Mormon. He didn't accept a copy and he told us he'd think about what we said. We're going to see him this Wednesday, so hopefully he'll agree to start reading and praying. Cross your fingers! This guy could be golden!

Well, I'm looking forward to a week with the car. This will probably sound bad, but I think that sometimes we get a lot more done when we have the car. But I truly am excited to shake off some dust and get things rolling. We have a few people we're going to visit this week that have a lot of potential, so things are looking up. Thanks for emailing me! I'm loving life and I'm excited for the work. Good luck, April! I love you! And I love all of you :) I look forward to hearing from you again.

Thanks for updating the blog! I really appreciate it.  Hmmm... how is Reggie doing? I'm super excited for Frank to get his call! Please tell me where he's going when the time comes, okay?

Love, Elder Atkin

P.S. Frank is totally going to..................................... The Japan Saporro mission or the OTM :)

September 19, 2011

Dearest family,

Hello! Sorry to email you 3 hours later than I normally do, but that's just how it's going to be today. Our zone had a super fun zone outing at the Renfroe's house today and last night (Bro. Renfroe is in the mission presidency and he lives in Fayetteville). We just barely got done and we decided to go straight to the library on our way back to Springdale. So yeah, here I am emailing :)

Today is one of those lazy days that seem to just last forever and make me very sleepy. It's sunny outside with a few clouds rolling by, and the temperature is in the 70's or 80's. It definitely is starting to feel like autumn around here. The past few days it has rained like crazy and so everything is so green and fresh. It makes it very humid, but I like the humidity when it is cooler. It is absolutely beautiful out here! I'm starting to love the many trees and the sprawling Ozark landscape more and more each day. And the thunderstorms lately have been AWESOME. Torrential downpours and lightning igniting the sky = epicness. But enough about nature... I'm just feeling very nostalgic and pensive today.

I don't have too much to tell you about, but that's alright. Maybe I can write a good letter to Pres. Merkley for once haha :) Thanks so much for the cookies Mom!! You were right- I was very surprised to get a package, and so great was my joy when I saw the still-fresh cookies inside. The other Elders were VERY jealous when they saw me bite into a few soft cookies. Thank you thank you thank you! Oh and your letter to me with the Colbert Report... hahahaha you know me too well, Mom! I totally read it out loud in a news reporter voice to the other Elders before I even read where you told me to. Hilarious! Oh boy, I hope y'all know how much I appreciate getting mail from you. I seriously can't explain how happy it makes me to see letters in the mail from each of you. I love you (all of you)!!!

Mom, I'm sure you'll do great on your talk. Don't worry about it too much, just speak from your heart. I'm not any expert on missionary work, but thanks for asking me for advice. The best way I can think of you presenting a talk on temples to non-members is just the way a missionary like me in the OTM would teach it. Invite the spirit with a prayer (that shouldn't be too weird), teach the basics of what goes on inside, and spend a large majority just bearing testimony of the importance of the temple and of your feelings of the temple. I haven't taught too many lessons on the temple yet, but I find that it is very effective when I look an investigator in the eye and tell them how I feel about the temple from the depths of my heart. Just last week before her baptism, we taught Nichole about the temple. We watched the video "Between Heaven and Earth" (you might use that) and explained what she could look forward to. Elder Navratil and I both bore our testimonies of the temple. I just told her how I felt when I walked into the Celestial Room and saw my parents and grandparents sitting and waiting for me. When investigators realize that the temple isn't some crazy ritual palace, and that it's mostly just a place for us to feel closer to Heavenly Father, it's really helpful. Anyways, I know you'll do great :) I'm very jealous that you could go do sealings with April. I feel like a kid all over again - dreaming of going to the temple someday!

I wish I could've seen the primary program! Haha I looooooooove primary programs. Aren't little kids just so adorable?! You can only imagine how fun it is that I've been able to go to primary the past couple Sundays and talk about missionary work to the little kids. I have to be all animated and loud so they'll pay attention, so it's pretty hilarious :) I'm actually going to be singing in a ward men's choir sorta thingy in a couple weeks. We practiced yesterday after church and we actually sounded pretty good for only 7 guys! I thought it would be a disaster. I had to volunteer Elder Navratil and I so there would be enough singers. He wasn't to happy.... tee hee

Oooh I almost forgot! (not really, I was just saving it for last) Nichole's baptism was amazing! I'll have to apologize right now because I forgot my camera, but just know I'll send a couple pics next week. Nichole has been having a lot of back pain lately, and so she came with a cane. But when it came time for Elder Navratil to baptize her, she went right into the water and came right out with the happiest look on her face. The program was very sweet and I know that each of the few people that showed up felt the spirit, including her husband. We're confident that he'll eventually come back to church. It was truly a perfect day :) I was just so happy for Nichole! On Sunday she was confirmed by Bro. Hornberger (the ward mission leader). She looked so happy :) I don't really know what else to say because it was just so perfect!!

I'm going to miss having an investigator like Nichole. You can't really plan on having a "golden investigator", but we try to approach each lesson like they are golden. Besides Nichole's baptism, we actually had kind of a rough week. Caroline is more confused than ever. She likes meeting with us because she's searching for the truth, but that also means she has a lot of other influences. Lately she's been attending something called "Science of the Mind", which teaches a bunch of junk - the kind of stuff Caroline thrives on. It's getting to the point where she doesn't believe in the Atonement of Jesus Christ, as well as other things. I could spend forever talking about all of the other stuff that she believes, but it just makes me really sad. Her husband doesn't really want her to meet with us anymore, and so we just had to leave our last visit with encouragment to read, study, and pray about the BOM. I basically begged her to at least believe that Jesus Christ is her Savior. Man.....

But I'm happy :) I'm doing great! I love attending church and being edified by the members and missionaries around me, and I love the gospel. I love my mother's cookies, I love the rain, my name is Willie Atkin, and I'm a Mormon. Haha jk :)

I'm sure I have much more to say, but I'm out of time. But I'm not too worried because I have a plan, and a few more hours of prep time. Y'all can be expectin' some letters in the mail this week. Hooray! I love you so much!

Love,

Elder Atkin

P.S. I found my nametag!

September 12, 2011

 Helloooooooooooooooooooo familia!

Hey guess what? I'm no longer the newest elder in our district! It's no big deal because I'm still only 6 1/2 weeks old, but it just feels nice to not look so green to people haha. Elder Johnson (our district leader) is training an Elder Garner from Cedar City, Utah. It was super fun to meet him and reminisce about the MTC and meeting Pres. Merkley and stuff. It seems like I was just barely in his place. He'll be a great missionary.

Don't worry one bit, Mom. I'm doing great! I'm happy, I'm okay, and the gospel's still true :) If it gives you any comfort, you can ask me that every time you email me. Or maybe I could just update you on my physical, emotional, and spiritual status at the beginning of every single letter. Whatevers. I'm doing just dandy! Not to say that life in the OTM has it's bumps and bruises, but I'm a warrior. I'm a flippin' warrior baby. Even though BYU lost.... and I lost my nametag..... :( But that's another story.

Nichole is all set to be baptized this coming Saturday! I couldn't be more happy for her. We visited her a couple times this week, and she had a successful baptismal interview on Saturday. Whenever we teach Nichole, it is like taking a breath of fresh air. Most of our other investigators aren't progressing too much, and so you can only imagine how happy we are when we show up at her door. Seeing Nichole change her life has been just awesome to experience. She is so humble it's ridiculous! Tomorrow we're going to plan her baptism program with her, and then we're going to teach her about the Temple on Thursday. It will be the perfect lesson to teach right before she's baptized, because the Temple is what it's all about.

Man, if only everyone was like Nichole. We are teaching this wonderful family who are pretty much everything but members of our church. They don't drink, smoke, gamble, and they have friends in the church. They are one of those cute families that missionaries dream to teach. The only problem, though, is that they are very devout Catholics. I just know that they have felt the spirit at the many baptisms they've attended and the many church meetings they've gone to. They are just too connected to their church to give up the traditions, the friends, and the Trinity. Carl's (the dad) parents basically forbid him from joining our church because their family has been Catholic forever. It's so frustrating! They've been investigators for years, but I'm thinking that it just might not be their time to receive the gospel yet. We're going to have to drop them this next visit. It's going to be sad, but missionaries will still check up on them every now and then. I'm sure I'll see them in a month or so.

People truly have to change their lives when they join the church. That's why it's so vital for us to keep track of investigators, even if they aren't currently being taught. Years from now an investigator could be picked up again who wasn't ready to join at the time. We also do a LOT of work with the less-actives in the area, because there are so many of them. But it's important to make them feel loved and welcome. That's why we're still visiting with Ashley regularly to make the transition smoother. She lives 7 miles away out in the country, so sometimes it takes a lot of motivation to bike 15 miles round trip just to see one person. She still has a lot to learn, and her testimony needs to be strengthened by members. Back in Utah, nobody has any place to complain about home teaching. Dad, imagine if you were assigned 11 families. Holy cannoli!! Active members have soooo much to do out here it's crazy. But that's what makes them such great people. Oh how I love our ward members!

Our appointment with Dave - the Born Again Christian I told you about - didn't go well, sadly. We were all excited to totally blindside him with a spiritual lesson on temples and family history work, but in the end we had a 2 hour long argument. We left with fake smiles on our faces, but I felt like pulling out my hair. You see, we tried not to bash because we knew we'd get nowhere. The man is set in stone and is always claiming that he's "planting seeds in our hearts." But right when we got there, Dave was ready with his anti-Mormon junk and a video for us to watch on the false teachings of Mormonism. I would tell you the title of it and all about it, but I just want to forget about it. The spirit was so very absent, that I felt like I was watching a rated-R movie. It made me angry. It made me sick. He thought it was a great film uncovering the secrets of Mormonism, but an animated movie that makes fun of temple covenants was nothing short of offensive to me. But enough with that. Just know that we probably won't see him again.

Time for some good news! Elder Navratil and I went to go get a haircut the other day. All the time we pass this building that says "$7.00 haircut and shampoo!" so we thought we'd check it out. Not a smart idea. We walk in and realize that we're actually in a school for people training to be hair-stylists, but it was too late to turn back. To make a long story short, I pretty much got scalped. Talk about embarrassing! It's just starting to grow back to normal, so I don't think I'll send pictures of me today, alrighty? :) Yeah yeah laugh all you want, but I totally taught the Restoration and placed a BOM with the lady cutting my hair. We're visiting with her today, and it's looking very promising. Her name is Betty and she was very interested in reading the Book of Mormon because she'd never heard of it before. She's like the only person I've met out here who hasn't heard of it! She just loves the idea of finding out it's true for herself, and so I'm stoked to see if she's read some already. I've decided that a hair salon is a great place to pick up investigators because they have to talk to you. I think I'll get a haircut every week :)

It's so good to hear from you! I wish I could've been there for the school blessings! It sounds like it was a great experience. Oh, I wish I could give you ALL a big hug. Each week it seems like I'm missing out on more and more, so I get a little sad. I don't get too sad, but I feel a little tug in my heart whenever you talk about me not being there. But I truly can feel your love from here, so just know your prayers are working :) I feel strengthened every day, and I know that it's partly because of you.

Each week I also get more and more excited for April to leave. I know it will be sad and such, but I just can't wait for her to have the mission experience. The other day I talked to a lady who was from the Kansas City/Independence area. She met the missionaries there, and was eventually baptized. She told me that one of the biggest factors in her conversion was just the amazing history of the church. She loved the visitors center there and she loved learning about the history of the Mormons in Missouri. Her advice for April (when I told her about my sister going there) was just to be engulfed in the history. The history of our church has such a power that you (April) will come to love, and it will strengthen your testimony. April, I'm so excited for you to bear your powerful witness, and in bearing that testimony you will be converted and sanctified through the Holy Ghost. Keep a good journal, and take a lot of pictures. I already have so many pictures that I love. I don't have much more advice for you, as I'm still new at this myself, but remember who you are and who you represent. I've been taught that it's okay for investigators to think you're perfect because you wear Christ's name over your heart. You are literally His representative. Always be obedient so you can carry his name with pride and a joyful obligation.

I love this gospel. I love my Savior Jesus Christ. I love you.

Love,

Elder Atkin

P.S. I thought I'd send some pictures of nature today. It's going to be Fall soon, and so I've been enjoying the cooler weather lately. The Earth is so beautiful! The first picture I took one morning last week when I woke up. I looked outside and saw how epic it was, so I had to take a picture of the flaming sky. The 2nd is of a rainbow after an afternoon drizzle. And the third is of a flippin' huge banana spider I saw while mowing the Sutton's lawn on Friday. Scary!

September 26, 2011

Word to the family!! Haha jk :)

So basically Labor Day is quite the opposite of fun and relaxing for missionaries. Sure we were fed well at multiple BBQ's yesterday, BUT HEY. No email?! No shopping for food that I desperately need?! No getting letters in the mail?! Outrageous!! These are quite simply the staples of missionary life! So yeah, the library was closed yesterday and I was totally dying. Hopefully you're not too sad that Monday came and went without an email.

But either way it's been a pretty good week. It sounds like things are still going well at home. Oh man, I'm missing out on BYU football!! The Razorbacks beat Missouri State on Saturday like 50-7 or something. So people are pretty happy around here. I know I've said it before, but Springdaleans and Fayettevilleans live and die for Razorback football. Elder Navratil and I always joke around about how we're totally going to get tickets to the Auburn game in October. Except I think Elder Navratil is kinda serious about really going... Oh boy.

Before I forget- I was wondering if there was a way you could send me a chart/graph/paper/whatever of my line of priesthood authority. It seems like all the missionaries out here have theirs, and so I kinda want mine because I thought it would be cool to know.

Anyways. Things are going well. Transfer calls were on Saturday, but neither of us are going anywhere. That means that Elder Navratil is going to continue to train me for the next six weeks until the end of his mission. We've both decided that I'll probably be the one training in the end because each day he becomes less motivated more and more. It's pretty hilarious :) I have to wake him up and stuff haha. Since I'll be with him until he leaves, it also means that I'll most likely stay in Springdale, Arkansas for another 3 months at least so as to not "shotgun" the area (bring in two missionaries new to the area).

On Wednesday we had sort of a mini zone conference in our chapel. The zone leaders spent 8 hours teaching us about the fundamentals of Preach My Gospel. Golly, it was like the MTC all over again! Did I really spend like 10 hours a day in the classroom?? Holy cats... But it was really good to review things and receive good counsel from the zone leaders. They're pretty cool. Sad story though - one of the ZLs (Elder Taylor) went home a week early to be with a missionary who's leaving the mission. The missionary was having a lot of issues and he decided to leave because he was getting really depressed. That missionary was Elder Navratil's last companion. It's always sad when a missionary leaves for home early, but hopefully it was the best decision for him.

This week we taught Nichole about recognizing the Spirit, Tithing, and Fast offerings. She is still doing amazing, and she is still accepting everything we say. Wowzers. Every time we go over we tell her how much fun it is to teach her. She is still as humble as ever. Elder Navratil and I are pretty happy that neither of us got transfered so we can be here for the baptism on the 17th. I'm so excited! Nichole will be the first person that I actually started the teaching to be baptized on my mission. Pretty much legit! There really isn't too much else to say about Nichole because she's doing great.

We taught Caroline on Sunday again. Elder Navratil and I have been praying and studying to know how we can help her progress and not question things so much. Thanks for sending that talk, Mom. It truly did help out, and we used some of it's points in our lesson, just so you know. Mom, you were totally inspired!! haha :) Our lesson went really well, and she understands a lot more. We watched the Restoration DVD (we've been trying to teach her the Restoration and apostasy and such forever now) and it really helped her understand that Joseph Smith wasn't some crazy person with a crazy idea. I know that she felt the spirit, and we were able to build from that and talk about how Heavenly Father answers prayers. The lesson wasn't perfect to say the least, but she is progressing. Elder Navratil wants me to commit her to baptism this upcoming Sunday when she comes to church. Cross your fingers!

Haha funny story: Elder Navratil is totally in love with this girl on a mission in Las Vegas. He's been preparing a birthday gift for her for like a month now, and we took a special trip to the post office on Wednesday (during lunchtime at Fundamentals) just so he could see it off in a special box. He's totally head over heels tee hee :) Anyway. When we were leaving, an old lady with a walker came up to us and asked in a shaky voice, "are you missionaries?" We answered the affirmative and she told us to wait so she could find some change to give us as to thank us for our service. Instead of a little bit of change, she gave us a 20 dollar bill. Totally awesome! We then proceeded to do what any missionary would and we asked her for her info, etc. so we could maybe teach her. Right away she started heading for the door and saying funny and random excuses loudly so we couldn't respond back. She sure moved fast for an old lady with a walker! She totally motored out to her car faster than the speed of light. That right there sums up how a lot of people are. They are really nice and love to talk Razorbacks, the weather, etc. But when you start talking prophets and the Book of Mormon, they end the conversation quicker than you can say "I'm fixin' to go to the Walmarts." Yeah. Seriously.

Well, today we have a couple appointments. We meet with Nichole at 4:00, but before that we have an appointment with a man we met the other day. He's a Born Again Christian named David (haha go figure), and we first contacted him as we stopped to help him hook up a trailer. He is nicer than the David I met in Walmart, and we had an awesome discussion, but he flat out told us we're going to Hell. But don't worry, he said it nicely, so it shouldn't be too bad right? :) I'm afraid that he wanted to meet with us again so we could have a flat-out bash, but we're at least happy that we could see him again. We've been praying to find out something we could teach him that doesn't lead to an argument. I was thinking about teaching him about Temples and Family History. What do you think? Oh well, wish us luck! We're going to need it. It could get pretty wild today...

Well, It's been fun emailing you! You can expect an email next Monday, alright? And Mom: I absolutely love listening to my music! I actually kind of regret not putting on as much as I possibly could... Oh well. MOTAB is good enough for now. Thanks again for the post card and for the letters y'all sent. I'm planning on writing some snail mail back to you in the future. It's hard for me to answer everyone right away - as we both already understand - but I'll try writing hand-written letters every few weeks, just so you know. Feel free to send me anything anytime, including any cool church videos that we might not have. We sure love church movies, for that is ALL we have haha :)

I also have a bunch of thank you letters and envelopes that some missionary left behind. It would be nice if I could have a ward directory or something with names and addresses so I could thank a few people back at home for being awesome. Don't worry about it too much, but If I had some time I think it would be a lot of fun.

Thanks again for the talk, Mom. You should totally send me cool talks all the time because they really are beneficial. I absolutely CANNOT WAIT for General Conference!! It'll be fun to talk all about it afterwards.

I'm so stoked for April to go on a mission! She's going to thrive in her mission, I just know it. Not going to lie, I totally laughed out loud when I read Rachel's email about April's face wobbling from getting her wisdom teeth out. Hahahahaha that is TOO FUNNY!! April - I'm not making fun of you. Hee hee hee

I would do anything if I could show you all a peek of what I'm doing. And I would do anything just to see a peek of what you are doing, including the school blessings. Oh how I miss those, Dad :) Thanks for being such a great family! Distance truly makes the heart grow fonder.

And that's what reminds me of our time on this earth. Hopefully this distance from our Heavenly Home makes us grow fonder of it. The emails that we both so cherish are like the prayers that we should be cherishing every day. How sweet will be the day when I see y'all again, and how sweet it will be when we join each other on the other side. I know that God is real and he loves each one of us in such a way that I can't fully grasp. But each day as I serve his children, I catch a glimpse of that love, and it makes me a better person. I love you!

Love, Elder Atkin

P.S. I guess I can show you a peek of what I'm doing... Here's some pictures of an Elder Atkin in his natural habitat. He is seen in the act of placing a pass-along card. Enjoy!

August 29, 2011

Yokwe family!

Yokwe means hello in Marshallese. Elder Latrik has been teaching me all kinds of Marshallese words, and I've actually spent a little bit of time in the English-Marshallese dictionary looking up funny words. What a crazy language! But Elder Latrik says I have excellent language skills, and he thinks I'll be his next companion serving in the Springdale Marshallese branch. Now wouldn't that be interesting! That would totally change my mission. Elder Latrik says he's going to tell President Merkley about how good I am at Marshallese, but I just laugh it off. But hey, maybe I could get back from my mission and have a great conversation with Elder Jensen!

Haha :)

Holy frijoles your trip sounds like it was a ton of fun! Sacred Grove twice?! Awesome! I totally agree, mom - I already had a testimony before going there, but hey, it certainly doesn't hurt to get it strengthened like crazy. That experience, as well as my mission have given me a profound love and respect for the prophet Joseph Smith. It brings a tear to my eye to think that my family was able to feel that spirit and have such an amazing time. The church is true! Hallelujah and Amen!

Anyways. Last week went by very quickly. We didn't get as much done as I would've hoped, but I think we get more done when we have a car anyway. This week we have the car, so hopefully we'll get a lot done so I don't feel like a slacker. Elder Navratil is really starting to get anxious to go home (he goes home in 7 weeks), and so it wears on me a little sometimes. We still work hard, but sometimes I have to do the motivating. It's all good though.

Ashley has been doing great. We were able to meet at her house this week and have a lesson on Tithing and Fast offerings. I thought it would go well, but her children were very distracting and naughty. It was a complete disaster to be quite honest. But I guess the good thing is that she is happy and is ready to become a full-fledged member. She just needs encouragement and good examples. I still pray for her because she could go inactive in a jiffy. I think I need a lot more faith...

Nichole is still paving trails like always. She's been in a LOT of pain lately (back issues, stomach problems, hospital visits), but she still came to church yesterday and took notes and asked questions like a mad woman. Yeah, that's how golden she is. On Tuesday we met with her and went over the baptismal interview questions. She asked if she could meet the bishop and talk about her past problems. How legit is that?! We were going to meet with her on Thursday, but she called us on Wednesday to give her a blessing. We showed up with Bro. Garner (my favorite member ever ever everrrrrrrrr) and I was able to give her a blessing. Man, I could go on and on, but hopefully you can tell that Nichole is just fantastic. We're gonna baptize this woman Yeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaah!!

Church is probably my favoritest thing to look forward to each week. There's nothing like doing missionary work for a full week and then just relaxing in a beautiful sacrament meeting. Yesterday I helped out with the primary program during sacrament meeting. I sat on the floor on the stand and used a flipbook with pictures and words. I also mouthed the words so the kids could follow along. Talk about hilarious! I about died watching all the adorable sunbeams try their hardest to sing. What a good time :) Elders quorum is a hoot every week. Every weeek, without fail, Bro. Lindsey falls asleep with his head thrown back and he snores like there's no tomorrow. We have to tap his leg like every five minutes and I have to keep myself from laughing my head off. Bro. Lindsey's the man! Funniest. Thing. Evar.

Yesterday we taught a woman named Caroline at the Sutton's home. We meet with her every Sunday for "Bible Study" and try to teach her. Notice how I said "try". She has a bajillion questions and she reads too many other sources, which causes her to believe in pretty much anything you can think of. It's really frustrating actually. She read some guy's book that suggests that there is no Devil and that evil is something that is man's fault. We tried to tell her that Satan wants her to believe there is no devil, but she loves the thought that he doesn't exist. We'll go into the lessons with a plan, only to try to answer all of her quesitons. We end up arguing sometimes because we get so frustrated. Man, I pray all the time that we'll know what to teach her to not end in an argument. She loves meeting with us, so I guess she's progressing... We made huge progress when she at least agreed with the Plan of Salvation. Pray for Caroline!

Mom I thought you'd appreciate this. We were in the car with Bro. Garner the other day and we passed a Spanish church with an awesome sign. I wasn't able to take a picture, but the sign said something in Spanish, and the background was Simon Dewey's (spelling?) "Oh Jerusalem" with Jesus overlooking the city. I wonder if they realize who made that picture haha :) All the time we'll pass churches with the funniest signs. I'll include one with this email.

The members out here are so amazing! Even if they're inactive, they are so nice and very hospitable. We gave a blessing to a man at the hosptial going in for heart surgery on Thursday. Him and his wife were the cutest couple ever, and they talked about their temple marriage with such a fondness that I'll never forget. I totally want to be like that... We've already met like 5 people who have super strong testimonies, they read scriptures every day, they pray, and yet they don't come to church. I just don't understand it. Hopefully we can get them coming again.

April, before I forget. I thought I'd warn you that Elder Rodriguez is going to be sending you a letter. He is girl crazy and he begged me for your address once I told him about you. Just be nice, okay? Haha

Well, I hope you have a great week family! I love you soooooo much! Life is great out in the OTM, so don't worry about me too much. Maybe today I'll meet another Born Again at Walmarts (everyone calls it Walmarts out here. Haha, oh Arkansas how I love you...) today.

Talk to you soon!

Love, Elder Atkin

 

P.S. Included pictures: 1. Church of Christ's sign. Haha all of the signs are like that out here. 2. We just had to pull over to take a picture of this liquor store's sign. There are a lot of liquor stores and tobacco shops.

 

 

 

August 22, 2011

Dear family,

You have to realize that I pretty much run into the library every Monday because I'm so excited to read and respond to your emails. It's the best part of preparation day! I feel like a little kid on Christmas day...

I'm glad you got my letters I sent. Every now and then I just feel like writing hand-written letters, even if I sent an email. I just love talking to my family :) I too read and re-read all of the letters I receive because they're just so awesome! They mean everything to me. I could probably print off all of the emails that I receive, but I think I'll worry about it sometime when I don't have as much to say. Besides, they'll stay right in my inbox until I delete them. It has been a little overwhelming to read and type emails within one hour these first few weeks, but I think things will eventually slow down. Oh and by the way, thanks for sending me treats! I gave all three other Elders a taste and they are now hooked. You might have to send some more for Christmas.

Mom, the thought and scriptures you shared with me fit perfectly with what we've been sharing with a couple of investigators lately. I think that when it comes to peoples' views about our church, they often forget or are mistaken about the fact that we believe there is so much truth out there. So many people believe in and love Jesus, but they get caught up in arguing about which religion is right. Before Joseph Smith helped restore Jesus Christ's gospel to the earth, there were amazing, kind-hearted people who also wanted the truth. People like Martin Luther and others seeked after truth and helped lay the foundations of the restoration. We have a fulness of the gospel, but there is so much truth out there! People can feel the spirit, and they can feel good about where they are. But we're here to share the fulness of the gospel. We often tell people that our message improves their lives, even if they're already happy. But something that I've definitely learned out here is that good, happy people will still slam the door on us.

But life still moves on. Especially when we have a baptism :)

Ashley's baptism turned out just AWESOME. The spirit was definitely there, and I know that Ashley felt it and was very happy. She was just beaming the whole time! This whole previous week we focused on getting her excited and pumped for Saturday. We prayed like crazy, and in the end it all fell into place like a perfect puzzle. Some of her family came, and Nichole (her friend who we've been teaching like crazy) and her husband came. Her mother looked very pleased and I'm pretty sure she felt the spirit too. Overall there was a lot of people there supporting her, and it was a day I'll never forget. My first baptism...... Awwwwwwwww yeeeeeeaaaaaahhhh.

Elder Navratil performed the baptism, and I gave a talk on the Gift of the Holy Ghost. Ashley had to be dunked twice because her knee came up, but we just laughed about it later. She's so funny! Yesterday morning I was given the opportunity of confirming her in sacrament meeting. I was a little nervous, as it was my first time, but I said a silent prayer right before we went up to the front. I felt comforted and I was able to say what needed to be said. It was so legit! It was just a happy weekend overall.

This past week we were also able to meet with Nichole twice. She is on fire! To make a long story short: She reads every day. ALL four standard works. She has prayed. She wants to learn as fast as possible. She's willing to not talk to her very anti-Mormon family to follow God. She's pretty much golden and a half, if ya know what I mean. I wish every investigator was like her! She was raised Jehovah's Witness all of her life, but she says she believes this more in the 3 weeks we've visited her. Holy cats she's going to be baptized. She even wanted to move up her date to Sept. 17! She's basically amazing.

Things are just chugging along out here. I don't really know what else to say except that I'm happy. And tired. And just a little overwhelmed at times. But the tender mercies that I've witnessed this week outweigh any frustration we had this week. If I had more time I would tell you about some of the tough times we had this week. But it doesn't matter! Ashley was baptized! Take that Satan!! Haha Satan can't do anything to Elder Navratil and I. We're too awesome :)

So this was kind of a weird letter, but I hope you know that I love you. I'm so excited for your trip! You leave today! Please please please tell me all about it. Take pictures. Send them to me. It would be much appreciated. And Elder Rodriguez would love it too. He LOVES pictures. He kinda wants to write April, but I said no.... That's totally another story.

I love you! Talk to you soon.

-Elder Atkin

P.S. Here's a pic of my sweeeeet license plate on my bike

August 15, 2011

Dear family,

1. I am jealous you are going to the Sacred Grove/ New York.

2. But I am happy you are going to the Sacred Grove/ New York. So much fun!

3. This week has been awesome.

Well hey there! I just love seeing new emails in my inbox on preparation day! You do care about me. Haha just kidding around :) Don't worry - I don't ever wonder if you care about me or love me. I can tell from every letter that you just miss me more than anything. Having a captive audience sure is great! I could get used to this...

Mom: I'm alive. I'm fed. I'm happy. I'm working hard. The church is true. The end.

But really, I'm doing well ;) I couldn't be more happy and tired at the same time. Just like that Elder on the district I am seriously always tired. But I'm so happy! How does that work?! Well, I guess everything is possible through the true gospel of Jesus Christ.

This week was a lot cooler than the week before. It rained every other day, so the temperature never really got above the 90's. Everyone's happy around here because before it rained last week, the area had been going through a drought. Now everything is green and beautiful. It's more humid, but it hasn't got back into the 100's yet so it just feels great. I'm actually starting to really like the humidity... It's cool now, but I love the sign we passed by the other day in front of a church. It says: "Think it's hot now? Think eternity." I sure got a kick out of that :) If we pass it again, I'll have to take a picture. Every church around here has a sign on it's front lawn. They always have a funny message to display.

On Tuesday and Wednesday I went on back to back exchanges with the Zone leader (Elder Thomas) and our district leader (Elder Herrin). It was so much fun! I got to pack some extra clothes and stay overnight at their apartments. I learned a lot from both of them (they both are getting close to the end of their missions), and they gave me a lot of awesome advice for the rest of my mission. Elder Thomas is originally from Denver, Colorado, and he was really nice. We visited a lot of people, and since he has such a large area (down in Fayetteville and over in Huntsville) and is a Zone Leader, he has a car. Ooooooohh yeah! It felt so nice to ride in a car after biking for what seemed like the distance around the earth. We visited some REALLY nice houses, but nobody was too interested to what we had to share. Contrast that with some of the areas in Springdale, where it can get pretty ghetto. Elder Herrin is a Spanish-speaking elder, and we visited some pretty humble homes. I can only imagine going to another country where the houses are even worse! It was actually kind of awkward the whole day I was with Elder Herrin because I don't know any spanish. Each time we visited somebody I just sort of sat there on the couch and smiled and nodded my head and said "oh... si". Haha I laugh just thinking about it right now :)

Another cool thing - while I was with Elder Thomas, we took a quick tour (in the car) of the University of Arkansas. We were able to pass by all of their athletic facilities, which I loved, of course. The football stadium is HUGE! They sure don't kid around down in SEC country. Razorback fans down here are a rabid, die-hard bunch. I can't tell you how many Razorback liscense plates I've seen. It's a big deal. People can't wait for the season to start, and I could only imagine the kind of atmosphere Razorback stadium has at kickoff. Man, I miss college football!

This week was also a very successful week when it comes to investigators, lessons, etc. Ashley wasn't offended or discouraged when we had to reset her baptismal date, and she was able to have her baptismal interview on Saturday. She'll be getting baptized this coming Saturday! I feel like Heavenly Father has answered our prayers, and Elder Navratil and I are sure happy campers. Especially because Ashley's friend - Nicole - is now very interested in the church. She is a former Jehovah's Witness and she sorta came out of nowhere. She wants to learn as fast as possible, even to the point where it's a little frustrating. But we can't be more happier that we set a baptismal date with her last Saturday. She is so excited and she doesn't know why. Isn't that amazing??! Some people truly are prepared for the gospel, and we feel blessed to have someone like Nicole to teach. We were also able to set a date with a woman named Lisa. She wants to be baptized, and we couldn't be more happy to get her ready. Man, things are going well!

Church was super awesome. Elder Navratil and I taught the Gospel Principles class because the teacher was out of town, and it was amazing! Ashley and Nicole were both there, and I can tell they both felt the spirit.

Dang, I'm out of time. I had a bunch more to say, but that'll have to wait until next time. Thanks for writing me and stay happy! I know the church is true and I love it with all my heart.

Love, Elder Atkin

August 8, 2011

Dear Mom! Dear Dad! Dear EVERYONE!

It's so great to hear from you! I really can't say it enough. Road trippin' to St. George, baby Eli's blessing, April's endowments (which I'm so excited about I'm about to dance in front of everyone in the Library and sing Called to Serve and do some jumping jacks...), the Napolis...... I love to hear about life at home :) The pictures are so fun and cute! I just can't stand it.

Well. I'm just doin' dandy! I feel great and I wouldn't want to be doin' anything else right now. There's so much to do every day, and it's just too much fun being a missionary. Being a greeny kinda stinks sometimes, but I do have to say it has it's perks. The members here are SO nice to me, and as you can see they like to contact home and tell you how I'm doing (which, by the way, I hope you received a call from a certain Bro. and Sis. Clune who I had dinner with last night)

Anyways, I just love the ward here so much. Church was amazing yesterday, and Elder Navratil and I were able to share our testimonies in Sacrament meeting. I went first just because I felt prompted, and of course the Senior comp. couldn't back down :) Everyone thanked us for our testimonies and said we would work well together. Which we truly do! Elder Navratil only has a couple months left in his mission, but he's not letting off the gas, and we are sure trying hard to find and teach.

Speaking of finding and teaching... Everyday we have our personal and companion study, but once it's time to go out into the heat and actually be missionaries, we go full force. There's nothing like biking in missionary clothes out here in Springdale, Arkansas. The wind is always blowing in your face (yeah, how does that work??) and we seriously just get soaked in sweat. But the cool part is stopping on somebody's porch, drenched in sweat, red in the face, and them answering. Talk about spiritual intimidation yeeeaaahh!!! Like I said, people really have a knack for not being home or not wanting to let us in, but people are pretty nice when we do get in. But really, it is SO hot. But I feel the Lord has blessed me because I actually enjoy sweating buckets and biking for miles and miles. It's actually very satisfying, and I feel like I'm working hard. But I don't think I'll ever get used to biking in 113 degree weather (yeah it got that hot the other day. It felt like 125 because of the humidity).

The investigator we have closest to being baptized is a girl named Ashley. Ashley has had to quit smoking and she has been doing really well. She actually has a baptismal date set for the 13th, but because she took just ONE PUFF the other day, we might have to move it back, thus complicating things and maybe giving her time to rethink. Man I despise the devil... We haven't been able to tell her yet, and the toughest part is that it might really hurt her feelings. We fasted and prayed like crazy yesterday for her, so I hope it all works out and that she'll be excited for another day. Pray for Ashley, ya'll!

Man, the people sure are weird out here. It's only been 2 weeks (almost) like I said, but I've already had so many people yell at me or thank me for my service. Weird, huh?! Speaking of persecution... On Saturday we were at Walmart. I was standing across the aisle from a man and just started chatting with him. I found out his name was David and that he knew who we were. I then made my first mistake by asking him what he knew about us.

It's Bible bashin' time, babay!!!

But really. To make a long story short, this man (a Born Again Christian) was very rude and was pretty much looking for a fight. I kindly listened to his beliefs, but he interrupted me every time I tried to say what I knew, and he basically told me I didn't know/believe in Jesus. Thankfully I had 3 other elders with me and we were able to end it (Well... Elder Rodriguez bashed back) The funny thing is (after this was all said and done) was that the man had studied the Book of Mormon and our church for years and years, just to be able to bash and shoot down my testimony with the Bible. And yet I pretty much knew nothing about his faith besides he thinks he can drink and smoke and still get to heaven. Oh man that's adorable! But anyways, I learned a great lesson about leaving before the fight starts and how the absence of the spirit can pretty much ruin anything. There's no feeling quite like the spirit leaving the room. This is why missionaries pray for it all the time.

It's definitely been a little bit cooler the past couple days, so that's nice. It's still almost 100 degrees, but compared to hotter temperatures, upper 90's sounds great. I experienced my first real thunderstorm the other night, and it was pretty awesome. I was informed that it was only some baby showers, which is just nuts! There was one lightning strike that sounded like a cannon being shot right outside our house. I can only imagine what a normal thunderstorm is like. Good grief!

Well, I'm running out of time, but I hope you enjoyed my little stories and such. I can't express my love for you enough! Just so you know, I recieved your letters you sent all the way on the 24th of July, so it was fun to read stuff that was meant for a missionary still in the MTC :) Hopefully I didn't forget anything I wanted to say. Tell everyone in our family that I love them and that I pray for y'all. Continue to feel free to send letters, emails, and goodies (tee hee) whenever you want. They are muchly mucho appreciated.

Talk to you soon!

Love, Elder Atkin

August 2, 2011

Dear Family,

I am currently in the Springdale city library and I have about an hour to email. Thanks so much for emailing me! I'm so so so soooo excited to write a letter to you that I just can't stand it! I have so much to say, and so I'm happy that I have more than the measley half hour the MTC gives me. This should go well :)

First off, I just want to say I'm happy. I'm very happy! Not gonna lie I'm a little homesick at times, but I'm definitely happy at the opportunities being in the field presents. I'm a real missionary now, and so of course this should bring me some amount of satisfaction (haha). I've had a lot of fun since flying on the plane(s), arriving at the mission home, and being transfered to my new area last Thursday.

I'm guessing you received the letter I sent from the mission home, so you know a little bit about where I've been assigned, who my companion is, etc. I'll try to answer all of Mom and Dad's questions, as well as tell you how things are going.

Oh boy! Springdale, Arkansas... First off, just in case you didn't know this before, Elder Villarreal (Zeke) was just barely in this area right before I came, and he was transfered to Carthage, Missouri just a few hours before I showed up. Isn't that crazy!? I just barely missed him! All of the Elders around here have said nothing but good things about him, and they tell me of all of the good things he's said about me. I guess there's some pretty high expecations for Elder Atkin... But anyways, Springdale is quite the interesting place. From my experience so far, the people are quite nice overall, but there's also a lot of wackos. Pretty much everybody down here (they consider this the South) smokes and drinks, and I'd swear this is the redneck capital of the world. Every house we pass there is a half naked man sitting outside working on his car. Sheesh! It's quite funny to me really, but it only makes Cache Valley, Utah seem even farther away. I feel like I'm in a different country! There's churches EVERYWHERE around here, and I'm pretty sure none of them are the same. Crazy...

It is definitely HOT over here. In fact, right now it is 105 degrees with a heat index of 115. I've never been so thankful for AC in my whole entire life. When we first stepped out of the airport in Tulsa, I thought I was drowning in a hot tub. But I do have to admit I kinda like it. Sure I was melting into the pavement when we were biking the other day, sure I was soaking wet as we were knocking on less actives' doors, sure it's going to take a while to get used to. But yet it's exiting to be in a new environment with new people and the thought of working hard for the Lord. I feel so legit when I'm soaking wet and talking to someone who's smoking on their front lawn :)

Haha I've totally been persecuted already! We were biking for the first time last Saturday and we were on a busy street. Cars were passing by and a few people yelled at us and laughed at us. I'd thought I'd be scared out of my pants, but I actually just laughed and kept on biking. It was awesome :) That's the thing about the people here in Arkansas. They either love us or hate us. I've had people give me their spare change at Walmart and thank me for my service, and others give me death glares and the stink eye. Yeah it's wild. But that's why I love wearing a name tag for our Church. Heavenly Father has truly blessed me so far.

My companion's name is Elder Stephen Charles Navratil. What a stud :) Elder Navratil hails from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, he is a redhead, and he's way shorter than me. He's one of those stereotypical Canadians that says "eh" after everything. That really makes me laugh. He's really nice, and I know we'll get along just fine. He's 27 years old, so that's a little weird, but at least y'all can find comfort in the fact that he is very mature and hard working.

We live in a pretty nice apartment a little ways from downtown. The Marshallese speaking Elders also live with us (Elder Rodrigues from California and Elder Latrik from the Marshall Islands) and it's just a super fun time. I feel a little spoiled living in such a big apartment, but that's all balanced out by the fact that Elder Navratil and I don't have a car. The Marshallese Elders do, and so we get rides with them to places sometimes.

My bike came today! It was super exciting to see it sitting on the neighbor's porch (they're members and they have a reliable address). Elder Navratil helped me put it together, and it is VERY sleek. Wow. I'll have to send pictures so you can see it's awesomeness.

Speaking of pictures... I'll be able to send pictures with emails, but I forgot my camera today (sorry!). I'll try to get some up next time. Mom I'm so glad that you got my SD card. Hopefully you liked all the pictures. Mom, you should send me some pictures in the mail sometime just so I can have some. I miss you guys so much!

We've made a lot of street contacts so far, and we've visited a few less actives, but we really haven't had too much of a chance to teach yet. We'll definitely get more of a chance this week as we get out more, so I'm excited for that. As we teach more, I'll tell you more about it, okay?

Yesterday was P-Day, and so that's when I'll usually email. Their computers were down and so we had to do it today. You can expect an email from me next monday. And I'll expect one from you too :) And yes, I can email immediate family so the sisters can send me emails and I can send them emails too (if I have time).

I'm running out of time, but I just want to say I love you and pray for you! Thanks for all the letters and the prayers for me. I'm doing just fine, and I'm excited to really get rolling. In your next email you guys should tell me about everything that's going on and how things have been. I'd love to hear from you! You can never send enough letters and don't be afraid to send a letter whenever you want to.

I love you so much and I look forward to hearing from you again. I'll include more in my next email. See ya!

Love, Elder Atkin

 P.S. I love the ward. They are all so nice! The church is truly true wherever you go.

 Elder Atkin with his new companion Elder Navratil

Willie's new bike

July 28, 2011

Dear Family,
Howdy! I am Currently in Tulsa, Oklahoma and it's 5:30 in the morning. But hey, it's a great day :) I had to wake up so early so I could actually get a shower before I didn't get the chance. That and I leave at 6:45 for my first new area in my mission. So exciting!
we landed in the Tulsa airport yesterday and i remember walking outside and about suffocating to death. Holy hot and humid, People where right! but immediately we were whisked off to the mission home of Pres. and Sister Merkley. we ate food and spent the rest of the day learning about the mission, learning how to drive safe, and near the end of the day we received our assignment. Here it is:
My companion's name is Elder Navaratil from Canada. I'll be serving in Springdale, Arkansas. How exciting! I don't know much more about Elder Navaratil, but I do know that he's a red head. Oh boy... this ought to be fun.:)
So. I leave in about an hour. Wow! Its all very real right now. In a few hours I'll be in training and possibly teaching. All of a sudden its coming full speed! But I love it. I love my mission president, I love this hot and humid place, I love the weird bugs I've seen already, and I already love my companion. Arkansas sounds just so cool right now!
I was so good to talk to you yesterday. I hope y'all know I love you very much, and that I'll email you soon. Preparation days are on Mondays, so it should be then.

Pray for me! I will pray for you!
Love,
Elder Atkin

July 20, 2011

Dear Family,

Laundry time again! So I'm here, sitting at a computer, and writing you a letter. Last week at this time, I was freaking out. I was doing laundry with about 100 more people, I didn't know exactly how the email on these computers worked, and I almost ran out of time. To add to that, I got mom's email address wrong. Let's just say it was a VERY stressful experience. You weren't able to get my email, and things were just a little crazy.

But this week, there is barely anybody here, I know what I'm doing, and I already have a good start to the email. Hooray! I was going to include last weeks email, but it won't let me copy and paste. I might just send it again to mom's real address, but I have to make sure I get this done first.

How are you? I've gotten all of your letters (as I explained in another hand-written letter I sent yesterday), and I just love hearing from each of you. It's good to hear that mom is going back to school! Awesome possum. Rachel, I just can't tell you how hard I laughed at what you wrote me :) I can just hear the way you talk when I read it, and I just want to eat the letter up. Dad, that's a bummer that the U.S. lost... Well, at least we got to the final. I play soccer like every day here at the MTC, and every time I do, I realize how out of shape I still am. Plus the MTC food is just too good...

Anyways. I'm not getting fat. Don't worry.

Basically a normal day for me consists of:

6:30 Wake up

7:20 Breakfast

7:50 Zone teaching

8:50 Class

11:50 Lunch

12:35 Class

4:50 Dinner

5:35 Class

8:35 Personal/Companionship study/planning

10:30 Sleep

As you can see, there is a lot of classroom time, but I'm growing to love it more every day. There's nothing more fun than learning from Bro. Hopper and Bro. Cowan with my awesome district. I can't explain how much I love my teachers! They are so amazing at teaching us how to teach, and they also give us great role-play scenarios every day. They each act as an investigator, and each companionship plans and teaches them every day, switching off. Bro. Hopper acts as a man from D.C. named Cam who is curious about temples, and Bro. Cowan acts as a man named Mark who's wife just left him. These are excellent opportunities for us to know what it's like (sorta), and learn how to teach an investigator, not a lesson. Just so you know, Elder Denton and I committed both of them to baptism the past few days :) I'm sure it's harder in the field, but I truly felt very accomplished. Imagine what a real baptism will be like!

Along with our teachers, we get to teach other investigators that are actors that come to the MTC to help train missionaries. Elder Denton and I have had the opportunity to teach a man named Bobby from New Jersey. To make a long story short, when we first showed up last week, he wouldn't even let us in. That's how real it was :) He finally let us in after ten minutes, and we were able to gain his trust and teach the Restoration. Through a couple more visits through the last week, he has become more and more friendly and accepting, and he's become our favorite investigator. Elder Denton and I love him so much that we tried to make him break character (stop acting) after our last visit and give him our info so he could stay in contact with us. But of course he wouldn't break character :) Let's just say we were extremely embarrassed.

Elder Denton. He's doing great! He's feeling a lot better today after his nasty head cold he's had. I was able to give him a blessing yesterday, and it was awesome to serve my companion. I've grown to love him so much :) After last night's devotional, our district shared our thoughts and feelings about the talks, as well as our experiences. I talked about how much Elder Denton has taught me, and I cried like a baby. I was a little embarrassed, but Elder Denton just thanked me and said the same about me. We're probably going to be friends forever.

Augh only 5 minutes left! This is just SO stressful.

Oh yeah! Yesterday at the devotional, we sang Called to Serve in a cool way. The first verse was sung quietly, and it built until all 2,500 missionaries were basically yelling the song. It was absolutley amazing! I have been waiting to do that the whole time I've been here! It's sort of what I always dreamed of doing that.

Just so you know, I leave next wednesday, early in the morning. At the airport, we all get to call home before we get on the plane, so PLEASE answer the phone when I call. I want to talk to you!

I love you so much! I'll talk to you more later!

-Elder Atkin

            Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (I love this scripture)

July 13, 2011

Dear family,

It's email time! I'm here in the laundry room waiting for my laundry to get washed. It's crazy in here... There's people all over the place and it's hard to find an open washer and drier. But hey, it's a good time :) I'm sitting here next to Elder Denton (he says hi) and now it's time for me to think of something amazing to say. Hmmm....

I don't really know where to begin! But I don't have much time so I need to hurry. I'm sure it's the same for all first time missionaries, but I really have been through a lot in the past week. So many emotions, so many experiences, so many new faces... It's all hard to take in, but I'm already getting used to it.

Side note: I just remembered that I forgot to bring my camera. Sad day :( Don't be sad though! I promise that I have taken some great pictures and I will post them next week. Promise.

Anyways. Pretty much I love the MTC. My district is so awesome and spiritual. They already feel like family. The majority of the last week has been spent in a classroom with these 10 people (9 discluding me). We have great teachers, and everyone loves to learn. Here's a little bit about everyone:

I'll start with Elder Denton. What an awesome companion! I've already told you a little bit about him in my first letter, but you'll find out a ton more in another hand-written letter I sent today. I knew I couldn't fit everything in this email, so I thought it would be a good idea to respond to Dad's email. But anyways, Elder Denton is seriously the companion that I needed to get kick-started in this mission, and I don't say that lightly. Like I said, Elder Denton is from small town Utah in San Pete County. He grew up on a ranch with his family, and he LOVES to "saddle bronc" haha! He talks with an accent that only a small-town boy can get. Just imagine a Texas movie star accent. Elder Denton just itches to be in his jeans and boots, riding horses. Pretty much the most opposite from me as it gets. I thought it would be a disaster from the very beginning, but we are getting along just nicely. In fact, I just love him to death! There's a lot more to tell, but like I said you'll find out more about him in the letter I sent you.

Elder VanWagoner and Elder Urban: VanWagoner is from California and Urban is from Nevada. VanWagoner is a little chubby, but he is flippin' hilarious! I laugh whenever he laughs. What a funny guy :) Urban is the classic city slicker boy. He loves to play baseball, and he actually played for Dixie State his freshman year of college. Yeah, he's pretty good. I can certainly tell from the few times we played softball during gym time. These two elders are super awesome and easy to be friends with, and so Elder Denton and I do everything with them. We actually moved in with them last night because of some happenings in our dorm, but that's a long story that I will have to tell later.

Elder Holmes and Elder Bott: Holmes was a 3-year camera salesman before his mission and he's from Utah. He's over-the-top sarcastic, and he is very good at impersonating pretty much anybody. Elder Bott is your classic nerd from Utah.

Only 5 minutes left! Okay the sisters in our district are named Sisters Hanshew and Flansberg (both from Nevada), and Sisters Bedard (from Oregon) and Hawkes (from Idaho). I don't know a ton about them, but they all bring a sweet spirit that fills the room.

There is a lot more to share about all of the people in my district, but overall I just love all of them and they all have great testimonies.

The food here is totally awesome! I try not to eat too much so I don't get fat, but it's really hard when they serve something yummy every meal. The cafeteria is absolutely packed every meal, but it's just fun to be in the midst of so many great missionaries. I've literally met so many missionaries from all over the world. So cool!

Well, I'm out of time, but I promise to write more next time. It's so busy! I love you guys so much and I know that the gospel is true. This is where I need to be.

-Elder William Atkin