9 Months Out

This week has been good but slow. One of the new ppl we are teaching is Adam Bowman. He is a nice guy and we helped him do service the other day. Things are going well with teaching him and I have a feeling he will be baptized fairly soon. They haven't really told me anything that drives them crazy but I'm sure there are some things that I do to drive them nuts.  I asked him if there was anything he did that his companions complained about.  Before he left I was forever telling him that he was going to drive his companions crazy.  

Yeah I got my package. Thanks for sending me that stuff and the money. With the money I bought new socks and pants

 Basically its called Miracle May because we all fasted on fast Sunday for miracles to happen in our areas and for more work. I asked him what Miracle May is, I had read about it in another mom's missionary blog.

 I'm excited to have Trevor come down here.  Right now I'm feeling like I'm having to drag my companion around and I know Trevor will work hard. Everything worked out with the Ward Mission Leader. This area is kinda slowish right now. It has work but mostly Less active work for now. How old were me and Trevor in that picture?  13 and 12, I think. 

 So not a whole lot has gone on this week. Basically Elder Crook has been saying bye to families and stuff. I have been getting a lot of snow balls lately.  Sno balls in Idaho???  The girl working there gave me a nasty look when I said I wanted a Daquiri lol. We had a goodbye dinner at the Kerrs which was really fun and we played Apples to Apples. We all had a good time. Right now I'm listening to 2 Elders argue about if Kobe Bryant or Lebron James is better lol. I hope those shirts won't be to baggy on me cause I have lost weight and a lot of the stuff I got at the beginning on my mission is more baggy on me now. Well I g2g. Hopefully I will have more to write next week.

Sorry to hear that you didn't get True dad. That's kind of a bummer. Have any new youth moved in to the ward at all? Like is there anyone around my age or is it the same as how it was?. Elder Crook is going to Kuna Idaho. I will be getting Trevor as my companion  tomorrow morning. So do you teach any less active families as a home teacher or are most of them active? How is sister Jewkes doing and Jackson and all of them? Is Mark your home teaching companion? Hopefully the medicine will start helping Todd with his grades and behavior. Tell Grandma and Grandpa I said hi when you see them. So did yall get anything at the Ward Auction? I loved going to those. They were always really fun. Apparently they don't allow people to do those in some places here. Things here have been good though. Is Marks graduation this Saturday? I still haven't read the invitation yall sent me in the package. Thank you for the money as well. I was able to buy new pants and stuff with it so it was nice. Anyways I think me and Trevor will have fun down here. It will be nice to talk to someone from home. Its hard to believe that he got sent to the same mission as I did. Well I g2g. 

Love Elder Mattei

Our Phone Conversation with Elder Mattei

Elder Mattei's email this week was rather short considering the fact that he had just spoken with us on Mother's Day.  So instead of copying the letter I decided to just summarize some of the things Greg shared with us during his phone call. . .

First of all, he sounded great.  It was like talking to the same old Greg, yet an incredibly more mature version.  He spoke about how much he felt he had grown spiritually.  On thing that he shared that stands out in my mind is when he talked about exactly what he was doing that contributed to that growth.  He said that before he left on his mission, basically the only thing he was doing consistently was going to church every Sunday and attending his activities.  He admitted that the time he spent praying and studying the scriptures was limited and now knows that something important was missing.  That changed once he was in the mission field.  He now realizes the importance of all three components:  attending church regularly, praying frequently and regular scripture study.

He also related various stories about the people he has met in Idaho;  from the investigators that he has shared the Gospel with, to the church members who have provided a place for him to live, lots of meals and fun times while he's away from home.   He especially enjoys spending time with one of the local bishops and his family, the Kerrs.  They live kind of out in the country and Greg and his companion spend a fair amount of time there.   He also has enjoyed living in the the home of Brother and Sister Hill.  Apparently Brother Hill has taken them sightseeing quite a few times, to the falls, hiking, etc.  Elder Mattei and Elder Crook help him mow his yard each week.

                                                                      with the Kerr family

He asked about family and friends at home and what everyone is up to.  He talked a little about Cardinals baseball, the NFL draft and the latest political happenings.  When asked about his plans when he comes home, he said that he is still undecided other than the fact that he still wants to study law and feels fairly certain he'll return to Idaho for visits.  He definitely loves it there!  He especially likes living near the mountains but is ready for warmer weather.

When asked about his various companions, his answers were very revealing.  Apparently a couple have been more on the lazy side, which we had guessed from comments he had made.  Then another one drove Greg crazy and they didn't get along  well at all.  He and Elder Crook appear to have gotten along quite well and it sounds like they're pretty good friends.   On a sad note, he let us know about fellow missionaries that have not been obedient and the challenges and problems this can create.  (By disobedience, I'm not talking about minor stuff, but rather serious issues, definitely more than what I can share.)  He shared with us his insight about how two people living together for 6 to 12 weeks can present its challenges, especially considering the fact that they are pretty much inseparable.  He spoke about how there's bound to be disagreements, but they just have to get over it and stay focused on the work at hand.  He said you sometimes just have to find the positives in the other person.  For instance the companion he really didn't get along with was probably the companion that taught him the most on being organized and working hard.  Okay, so Greg finding positives in people he really doesn't care for - that's absolutely HUGE!  Those who know him well know what I am talking about here.

His most recent email was rather short, focusing mostly on his frustration with a ward mission leader.  Sounds like there was some miscommunication and probably some poor planning on Greg's part.  His concern is again that they're not utilizing the missionaries as much as they could, and he figures that it's defeating the purpose of why they are there in the first place.  Enough said about that ~  hopefully it will all be resolved by the next email home.

All in all Greg sounded great.  We're so proud of him ~ of his decision to go, and of the growth he's achieved since he's been in Idaho as he's drawn closer to the Lord and people he's serving!  It was kind of hard to say "Bye" again, but look forward to our next conversation at Christmas.  I know it will pass all too quickly.

And last but not least, during our conversation, Greg informed us that Elder Crook was getting transferred this coming week and that Greg had asked the mission president for a certain missionary to be his next companion.    We got word this past week that apparently his wish was granted and his new companion, Elder Gonthier, will arrive probably this Tuesday.  Here's a picture of Elder Mattei and Elder Gonthier, aka Greg and Trevor. :)

 Elder Mattei with Elder Hefler at Autumn's baptism