Howdy y'all!
I'm doing quite well here in Alma, GA. It's actually been quite cold here in the mornings. It says it's around 50's but it feels like 20's since the humidity is so high. The cold just grabs you and you're cold. Nevertheless, I digress. Remember that battle with the cockroach? Well, after he died, several of his brethren came to avenge his death. They were quickly dispatched (squished) as well. They're gross and ugly with a capital UGH, but they don't freak me out like spiders do. When they're really big, they're scary because they're just so big. But I'm sort of used to them.
This week has been a crazy one. Every day I understand the saying here between missionaries that "The days are like weeks and the weeks are like days." It's really weird. It feels like an eternity but it also feels like it was just yesterday I was leaving the MTC. Like I said, weird. The craziness of this week really started on Tuesday. We went to Sister W's house and chopped down some trees - man style. With an axe and just thwacking at it (see pictures 2 and 3). It wore me out, bit it was cool to make a very large burn pile. Sister W likes to burn things. We pulled down vines and, in one case, I climbed up a vine to pull it down but no such luck. The vine hurt my hands and the tree was too strong. I need to do more push-ups. One thing we worked on this week was exercising in the morning. We're asked to do 30 minutes of exercise every morning. Not so bad you say? It's really hard to make yourself go running when it's 30 degrees and 6:30 in the morning. Once it gets warmer, I'll be fine and we ride our bikes everywhere (see picture 1). Speaking of fitness, I've actually been doing quite well. I've lost 3-5 pounds since I left for the MTC. Not amazing, but I'm not getting super fat though in some areas that does pose a problem. Some areas you can gain 20-30 pounds easily if you're not careful. Anyway, back to what I was talking about.
Wednesday was quite interesting as well since we were so tired from chopping down the trees. In my journal there are faces at the top of each entry that describe how I felt that day. Wednesday's had a nice face, fast asleep. It was Elder H's birthday so I woke up and made crepes for breakfast. I had secured the necessary provisions on Monday so it was fantastic and he enjoyed it. I learned that back home, his dad made him crepes for breakfast on his birthday. We were given food by the B's, who are a nice part-member family. We've talked to the grandma who's the non-member and she loves us but she doesn't want to change. The one problem with sharing our message is people have to be willing to try it to see the benefits it brings. The food she brought was great and the creamed corn was like corny gold. Best corn I have ever eaten (aside from mom's). We set up tables and chairs for a service project that the branch is hosting but more about that later.
Thursday is where the crazies start to pick up. We plan every day and make back-up plans and everything but sometimes even the best laid plans tend to go awry. Our District Leaders called and told us that the President was coming for a training meeting in Douglas today. We put all our plans on hold and made the necessary preparations to travel to Douglas. It's a one hour trip by car so we got Dairy Queen for lunch. By President I mean not the President of the United states but President Jensen, who oversees the Florida Tallahassee mission. He's awesome. We had a great training meeting and I learned some really neat stuff. We had interviews with President Jensen and I had a good chat with him. He had some really cool advice and just really cares about us as missionaries and the people in Florida. That's one of the reasons I like him so much. But he's just awesome. Elder H talked with President Jensen and he told me some of the things they talked about on the way back to Alma. One of the things he brought up was that President Jensen mentioned that he's really proud to have me. He thinks I'll be a great missionary. I know many of you have expressed this to me but I think time will tell. I think I can be great. The other thing that he talked about was Elder C. He would be coming to stay with us for a little while. We would form what is known to missionaries as a triple force. Three missionaries, all companions, all the time. It grants us some pretty cool powers but we'll talk about that later.
I'll start off by describing Elder C. Think of Kung Fu Panda. Now think of Po, the Panda, and imagine him. Now think of him as a missionary. You basically have Elder C. He's a bigger guy, but he's fast. He a total goof-ball, much more than me, but he can also be quite serious when he wants to be. Basically when there's work to do. When we're not doing anything the goofiness resumes. He's fun though. We've declared ourselves as the Triforce as we are a force for good in the world. The three different sections of the Triforce are wisdom, power, and courage. Elder C is courage. He's bold. He has no problem with going up to people and just asking them questions and extending invitations to come to church. Elder H is power. He's a powerhouse missionary. He really brings the spirit and has a powerful testimony of the truth of the Gospel. I'm wisdom. I guess because I'm smart? In the MTC, everyone thought I was a scriptorian. The five classes at BYU, the four years of seminary, and just reading the scriptures regularly helped immensely. I like sharing what I know though. Elder C didn't arrive until Friday though. We had a lesson with a new investigator, C. It went well and we answered a lot of his questions. The questions we didn't cover, like "Where are we going when we die?" and "Why am I here?" we saved for next time. Elder H has this awesome little puzzle that explains the Plan of Happiness. We made smoothies with strawberries and milk. We were too poor for ice cream so we used the whipped cream from the crepes. It didn't taste all that great, it was good (see picture 4).
This week has been fun and I'm working hard. It's been hard but I've had fun.
I've really been learning about how much I really have and the knowledge I have been given the opportunity to obtain. Every day I talk to people who are taking classes so they can get into the GED classes. There are so many people who are desperately trying to get their GED but can't because of work, money, or poor choices. People living in dark trailers covered in rust because they can't afford to pay for electricity this month. Take the opportunity to learn and to go to school.
I've seen so many broken hearts and broken families. I almost can't bear to visit them. You can just see the hurt in their eyes. I've seen first hand the absolutely destroying effects drugs can have on families. It will literally tear them apart piece by piece. I've seen the destroying effect drugs can have on people. They will take away absolutely everything you have and give nothing but a temporary confusion for a few hours. Do not go near them. Do not even touch them.
I've also seen the fantastic power that the Gospel of Jesus Christ can have on families. I've seen families come together and make new bonds. I've seen families come closer together as they come closer to Heavenly Father. The second you step into their home, you can tell if they are following His Gospel. This is the message that I work my butt off for everyday; it helps people. It works miracles.
Taking it one day at a time,
Elder Matthew Carlson
 |
| Picture #1 |
 |
| Picture #2 |
 |
| Picture #3 - Super Matt |
 |
| Picture #4 |
