Tuesday, June 11, 2013

June 10, 2013

Dear World (Bless the World),
Sorry I didn't have time to write you last week. We broke a pool. 'Nuff Said. Let me start with LAST week.
So, Thursday I hit my one year mark in the mission. Which was really really weird. I feel super old. But at the same time I feel super young. But, I looked at the list of all the missionaries, and in our mission there are about 136 missionaries, and there are only about 28 that are older than me, time spent in the mission-wise. I AM one of the older missionaries. But like, we didn't do anything special for that, just, woke up and had some prune juice, took 8 or 10 multi-vitamins to make sure I don't get osteoporosis or have my kidneys fail or some other old person disease... Joking.
Friday was a good day. Well, it was a funny day. We went out to do service for a sister in the Spanish ward who needed help to clean out her pool and do yard work. So we headed out and spent some time. I got to mow the lawn. That felt so good. There is this saying called "Trunky" it is for missionaries who are so ready to go home that they are all packed and are living out of their "Trunks". That doesn't really happen to much anymore, but anytime you have feelings of wanting to go home, or do something against the mission rules, that isn't really against any other rules, you have what are called "Trunky feelings" I felt so trunky when I was mowing the lawn. The smell of the fresh cut grass was great. I had flashbacks of working for Brother Bates mowing lawns all summer. I missed it a little bit. =) Anyways, we were cleaning the pool, and something wasn't working, so I went back and tried to be all manly and fix the pump so we could vacuum the bottom of the pool. We got it working, and I did vacuum the pool with the thinggy-ma-giggy. And things were going great. I was using my crazy gymnastics skills to walk on the poles that support the pool, hopping from one to the next. Then, I got cocky and started going to fast and I kindof sort of fell in the pool. =D I slipped and totally ate it. And I went swimming. In gross, green, algae-y, buggy, leafy smelly water. But it was worth it. Because it was really really funny.
Saturday we did service for 8 hours, helping a sister move. It was retarded. We were only planning on being there for like 3 or 4 hours. It took WAY longer than that. We were all dead. like, literally, when we woke up Sunday morning, I thought my arms were never going to move again. But it was a good day had by all. I got to lots of wiring. Put up light fixtures, dimer switches, good stuff like that.
Then, Monday. We were at a members house at 7AM to help them do some landscaping because they had had some flooding, and they needed to get it done before it rained again. So we were there for 2 or 3 hours. that was fun. THEN... We had to go BACK to the pool ladies house because something broke. It was stupid, but we had to fix it. And then it ended up taking WAY longer than expected, so we were supposed to go climb "Mount St.-Hilaire" (it isn't really a mountain. its a bump. I'm from Edmonton. Only a Mountain can be a mountain), but we didn't go because we spent all our day fixing the pool. I didn't fall in this time though. =)
Tuesday we had a zone study where we had a competition to see who could contact the most people in the zone. It was fun! We spent the day jogging with people and running to catch up to people and it was just great.
And, biggest news! Saturday was transfer call night! I am staying here in Longueuil!! Elder Losciale is transferred out to Gatineau, in the Ottawa zone. I am getting Elder Echeverria. He is from Guatemala  But he is a Texan. So I'm excited to get some more Spanish practice. But also, I am the District leader. Of the biggest district in the mission. It's huge. I'm going to have so much fun! But it's going to be a ton of work. Oh well, why else am I here? 


Love you!



Elder Losciale and I rocking it at the service. Yeah Power Tools

Service at Gurd house. He is funny.



 Lookin Schnazzy in a green suit.

Right before I fell in the pool. Look at how gross the water is.....

May 27, 2013

Well... This email is kind of a... milestone... Today, I have as many P-Days left as I have had. CRAZY Actually, Mom and Dad, with all of the crazy news about shows and stuff going on, and cast parties, it made me realize that next year I may be here for the Facey gr. 12 shows! THAT is a weird thought. It is so strange. I remember going to the facey shows the year before I left so well, but at the same time, I can't really remember it. I know I went, and some faces and scenes I can play out so perfectly, but some are so fuzzy and faded that I just feel old and lke I have Alzheimers of something... Wait, Who are all of you people again? Where am I? What is this Glowing Box with strange black letters that appear when I touch this weird black rectangle?
Anyways... This week we have been bombarded by water. It just rained and rained and rained. It was ridiculous. So, last week we tried to get out in the mornings and go running or do some excercise and junk like that, but it was just too wet out, so we all had kind of a lazy morning week. Wake up at 6:30, pee, and then sit and stare blankly at the kitchen table untill 7:00 when we have to shower and eat breakfast.
Fun stuff though, we had stake conference this week! Man, it was tons of fun to see so many memmers in one place. It has been a while since I have seen so many Mormons... MTC was the last place I felt truly surounded by Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Later-Day Saints. NOT ANYMORE. But, because our stake goes from the shouth shore of Montreal (Longueuil) all the way to the rest of the province eastward, I was super lucky and got to see President Duchesne and his wife, and Frere Bouchard and his wife from Alma!! It was tons of fun. A nice little reunion! Man, I forgot how peculiar those people were... =) And the entire branch of Rimouski came down for a temple trip and the elders did too, because they needed more endowed Priesthood holders to help them out, so the Elders got permission to come down and hit up the temple. Lucky... But they needed a place to stay, so they stayed in our apartment! It was a blast. And we are way tired now. Yeah for sleep overs. You think that after like 1 year of being on a mission you would learn that sleepovers are just bad news, but aparently not...
We have investigators. Not a ton of them, but they all have baptism dates and are progressing along. I really hop that before I leave this area that I can see some baptisms, But whether or not I do, That is not how success is measured. Success is dependant on your commitment to work hard and to serve the Lord. So Yeah Success! Win.
I love you all!

May 20, 2013

Hey family!

Man, has it already been a week since we talked on Skype? Man, does time fly!! 

Things are going really well here in Longueuil, we don't have many new investigators as of late, but the ones we have are going awesome. they are all SO close to being baptised... Darn smoking... But we need to find a whole lot of new investigators! so this week we will be knocking a lot I believe. 

I guess the only other thing to tell you at this time is a story that shows that, as mature and grown up as we look on the outside, on the inside, missionaries are still as young and immature as they were before the mission started. =) The other night, Elder Botello, one of the spanish missionaries went to bed early, and his companion said "Hey, he is sleeping really soundly, lets go scream at him and wake him up" So we got the cameras out and recorded us screaming, at the top of our lungs "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!" and he freaked out. But in a funny, he was really tired so he really didn't know how to react kind of way. He though it was really funny too, don't worry, we aren't just picking on him. But then two days later, he decided to get his companion back, so while he was in the shower, we broke into the bathroom and dumped a whole bunch of flour on him. But before we did he said "Happy Birthday Elder Laguan" And Elder Laguan didn't know what was happening, but he understood that revenge was about to be exacted. And so he just shouted "NOOO!!!!" =) We have tons of fun. But we keep it all apropriate, and we stay focused. We are still missionaries, no matter how immature we are. =) 

We had zone conference last week, the last one with President Cannon... it is sad! He is gone June 29th. just over a month... no one knows whats going to happen! BUt, Elder Heder, my trainer, went AP last transfer, I don't know if I told you, and we got a "four generation" picture. Elder Heder (trained me), me (me), Elder Beaumont (I trained him), and Elder Losciale (He was trained by elder beaumont) at zone conference, because we were all there. It was tons of fun. 

Anyways, I love you all!! I hopw you have a great week!! Stay safe!

Elder Oviatt