Monday, September 30, 2013

September 30, 2013

Hey hey!

So, I shall start this week by saying how much fun it was driving down to Montreal to pick up the new car! To montreal it is a 4 hour drive. But with all of the traffic and construction in Ottawa (and a few detours to pick up city emblem pins) it took us 6 hours! BRUTAL! We showed up 2 hours late to get the car, then took like an hour driving around MOntreal, dropping off the old car, eating lunch and things, so we got in the car at 8 AM, and if we had of driven all the way back to Petawawa that night, we would have gotten out at 9PM. 13 hours later... But, we called up our district leader while we were passing through Ottawa, and we told him we were going to sleep over there that night and go to District meeting with them. So that ended up being super fun! ANd it was only 11 hours in the car. So much for missionary work, right? It was a looooooong day though, believe you me!  ANyways, the car is a Chevy Cruise. but, more than that, it is a 2014 Chevy Cruise. IT'S STILL 2013! It's like when halloween candy comes on sale in September! So much fun! And, when I got in the car for the first time, it had 38 Km on it. Woah. I have never been in a car that new in my life. But, we put like 800 Km on it this week, so, Bye Bye newness! It;s a nice car though. Black interior, so everyone can see all the tinyest grains and particulates of dirt and dust. Very encouraging for keeping it clean. Today, we went took some turtle wax and washed it! Man, that thing sparkles more than a vampire! 

I got news in my last two Mission Newsletters that Brother Roy and Pascal both got baptised on schedual in Lemoyne! So that was awesome! Apparently there were over 120 people at Brother Roy's Baptism! 

There is a guy in our ward, his name is Romolo Simonetti. He is the executive secretary in the Branch. He found out I was from Edmonton and said, "Now, I know Edmonton is a huge place, so you probably don't know who I'm talking about, but my mission president is from Edmonton." I think "Oh, Great. I'm going to have no idea who this guy is talking about." And Then he says "actually, he is a stake patriarch now too!" And my thoughts are "HA! I only know two patriarchs, Patriarch Davies and Patriarch Henderson. That narrows down the possibilities of me knowing this guys mission president down to basically 0." And Brother Simonetti says "Yeah, do you know him? His name is President Henderson!" Needless to say, I felt kind of stupid when my jaw nearly hit the table. YEAH I KNOW PRESIDENT HENDERSON, I WAS HIS HOME TEACHER! We had tons of fun with that! So, just so you know President Henderson, Elder Simonetti is doing fine, married, has a baby boy, born 5 or 6 weeks ago, and still being a great missionary! Haha!
Other than that though, our week was... Uneventful. I have nothing else to share with you... Uh... Nope, thats it! Have a good week my friends, be safe, recycle, Smile!

Elder Oviatt


Here I am with the new car! I don't like it as much as the Malibu, but it's turning radius is much smaller, so Elder Wright likes it, because he doesn't have to back me up nearly as much now. 

I took a picture at 56 Km. Still lower than anything I have ever seen before!

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

September 23, 2013

HEY HEY!!!

So, this week was fun and action packed! But I will try and explain everything to you in an organized way. So, I started writing things down to tell you about on my Mondays spot in my planner so I could actually start sending you decent emails. It's a good, idea, but so far it's still a work in progress. Only 2 things on my list. =) Next week will be better.

So, last Monday I was sick. How sick? Well, apparently sick enough to forget to tell you that I was sick. I just had a little cold, but it knocked me flat on my be-hind. my back was so sore that I couldn't stand for more than a few minutes, then I couldn't sit down either for more than a few minutes. I was up and down and up and down. I tried to drink it out with Hot Chocolate, but that didn't work, it just made me have to pee a whole ton. Then, we went to Walmart to do our grocery shopping and we grabbed some NeoCitrin and I had two glasses, and when I woke up Tuesday, there was absolutely nothing. So that was really nice. Working whilst sick really isn't fun. But I mean, while we are talking about being sick, I was sick basically all this week, and most of the week before that too. Mom, you remember how I used to be lactose intolerant when I was little but then I kind of grew out of it? Well, apparently, if I drink enough milk on a regular basis, it comes back. Haha. I have been eating oatmeal every morning for breakfast, and it is delicious. But I started doing it with Milk instead of water, because it tastes much better, and we don't go through milk very fast, so, I'm just making sure it doesn't go bad, right? So anyways, Milk EVERY morning, was making my stomach rumble and grumble and not feel good at all. And then this is where everything takes a turn for the worst. Chocolate milk goes on sale. A dollar a liter. so Elder Wright and I bought 4 liters. Each. It destroyed me. BUT I LOVE CHOCLATE MILK SO MUCH. So it was worth it. I was really gassy, and bloated, and it felt like someone had a hold of my intestines and was twisting them up like an egg-beater. And I kept on drinking. Lactose intolerance? more like, Insatiable-desire-for-chocolaty-lactose-drinks. Tolerance. Philic. Got MIlk?

There is NO French up here. Dad asked. Just answering his question. But we work every single Friday at an old-fogies home, playing cards. For an hour and a half every week. We play Eucher. It's a super fun, fast paced game. I really like it. Last week Me and Ernie (we play with Ernie and Edith every week. OUr Card buddies) cleaned up, winning three games to ElderWrights and Ediths' Zero. Yeah Ernie! But anyways, there are a few ladies in the Home who grew up on the Quebec side of the river who speak French. But the Ontario kind of French. It's not good, it's so much fun to talk to them. I can't understand them half of the time. But that being said, I don't understand them most of the time in English either. =) We played a little bit of piano for them Ladies on Friday, because Edith has some super easy old music books, and Elder Wright and I apostatly take turns playing music on the piano and dancing with Mona, one of the ladies there. It's great.

So, at our apartment, there are a few board games. And because Petawawa is an army base, we shouldn't be surprised that one of the games is Risk. another is Risk 2210AD. Another is Axis and Allies. It is a game based on WWII. It is tons of fun. Very confusing at first, and quite intricate, but we just played a game that took like an entire week to play. We played for like 6 hours last monday, and then during lunch and supper and every evening last week (During our time off, not during pross time, it's OK.) and then finally finished it off today. After another good 4 or 5 hours of play. Haha, we are such nerds. But after this last game we are both kind of done with it and will be spending MUCH less time playing games this week (probably like no time at all). 

And we just got a call from our mission fleet coordinator. He is the Senior Missionary who is in charge of the cars. Our car has 80 000 kilometers on it, so we are due for another one. And apparently we are going down to Montreal tomorrow to pick it up! Haha, it's a 4 hour drive. And then a 4 hour drive back. Tomorrow is going to be a loooong day. Haha, I'm excited. But that being said, we get to pick up a brand new car. BRAND NEW! Probably has less than 700 kilometers on it. If that. We are currently trying to put some nice up beat music on some CD's so I don't fall asleep on the trip. We also bought a 2 pound bag of sunflower seeds. I have never seen that many sunflower seeds before in my life! Haha, it's HUGE! We should be OK. If not, I guess Mom and Dad, you will get a phone call to find out how bad it was.

I love you all, this email is huge!!

Elder Austen Oviatt!!

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

September 16, 2013

It's getting a little nippy up here!!!

Hey all, things have been starting to cool down up here. Not fun. It's September 16th. We had frost a few mornings ago, and it rained on us for about 3 hours Sunday night. fun! 

Things are going great up here in Petawawa though! We have a few people who we are teaching, not a lot, but we are trying to do a whole ton of Less Active work right now! It's hard, but some of the most fulfilling work you can do. We are leaving the 99 and headed out for the 1. We have lots of people who we see regularily also, so that makes things easier for us. 3 or 4 lessons a week just with Less Active members, and they all are so awesome! Things are just so different up here in Ontario. I don't want to admit it, but it's kind of the truth. 

Elder Wright and I last week were part of a Home Show, where businesses from the community come and set out booths and all the new military families come and see what the community has to offer. It's a great program! We were signed up by a member, and she didn't really explain what we were going to be doing there, so we were completely unprepared. We spent a solid... 9 hours there, and talk to like 5 people, and gave away NOTHING. =) But we enjoyed ourselves, and got invited to the Presbyterian Church's annual fall dinner! They were right beside us the whole time, and about 4 of the 5 people we talked to were working at their table. 

All in all, a great week! I love you all, and I can't wait to tell you about all of my shenanigans this week!

Elder Oviatt!!

September 9, 2013

OK, I'm here this week.

So, like I said, I am in Petawawa. I don't know how far north it is, probably honestly not that far north. OK, I just looked it up. It's not far north at all. Not even as far north as Quebec City, so I should be in for a mild winter (not really, apparently they are calling for a loooong, cold winter this year). There is a great little branch up here, about 60-70 members. The two main towns we cover are Pembroke and Petawawa, both with populations of about 15000-16000. Its tiny. Both towns put together is about the same size as Alma. I love it, I'm back at home! People here all hunt. It makes striking up a conversation way easy. 
Me: Oh, did you get that white tail there on the wall?
stranger: yes...
Me: I go white tail hunting almost every year, I'm from Alberta. We have also done mule deer, and moose and I put in for Antelope. My dad was a guide in the Northwest territories... 
Stranger: No way! What do you...
And off it goes. Until they realize that I'm wearing a white shirt and a tie and they have to ask why I'm here from Alberta, or why I'm dressed like that, then BAM! Hit em up with a dose of spirituality. I'm here because I'm sharing a message about the purpose of life, and how you personally can find out where we are going after this life, and why on earth we are here, on the earth, in the first place. 
Honestly, people react completely differently than they do in the Province of Quebec. Which is strange, because I can see Quebec on the other side of the Ottawa river. 

My new companion is actually my old companion. Elder Ryan Wright. We were together in Ste.-Foy! We are so pumped to be together again. He has changed so much. He was so young when we first were together, and now, he is so different! The change is actually astonishing. I hope, truly, that he has noticed in me HALF of the change that I see in him. 

It was so hard to leave Pascal and Brother Roy in Lemoyne. Brother Roy will be baptized This Saturday, the 14th, at 4:00 and Pascal Next Saturday, the 21st, probably at 12ish. But I know that Elder Echeverria and Elder Malone will continue to take care of them. I left my address for them, so we will be keeping in touch, I can't wait to get some pictures of them dressed in white. The Sunday before I left, we gave brother Roys daughter a blessing so she could stop smoking. This is now the third person in his family who is going to stop smoking. The whole family is kind of coming together thanks to the incredible change experienced by their father. it is incredible. I had many many crazy experiences with giving that family blessings. And, Pascal is living with his uncle and aunt and their family, and as we were leaving their house the last time, I asked the family if we could come back and talk to them, to share our message, and they said, well, we are busy this week, but if we coe to church, can we talk there? I have no idea if they made it to church or not, but Woah, if they did, that is so cool!!! Miracles my friends. The Lord is watching over his work.

Other than that I will just send you pictures of the corn bust we had in Lemoyne before I left. You will see that I am still having tons of fun with face paint. =)
Brother and Sister Roy. She has been a member for 36 years, he now has the faith of a member of 36 years. Incredible.

This is Pascal. What a boss! 

 This is Elder Echeverria and I at the corn bust. I need to stop letting the 7 year old girls in the ward decide what is going to get painted on my face... 


September 3, 2013

Hey!!!
 I am so sorry, but we really don't have time to send emails.... =( I got transferred to petewawa Ontario!! English speaking. Sad. Haha, nah, it's OK. I'm excited. I will tell you more next week. I will have way more time. I promise!

Love ya!

Elder Oviatt

August 26, 2013

Hey everyone!

This week was great! We had a Zone conference, where the mission president and some of the office missionaries come down and give us trainings! It was great to see President Patrick, but pfhew things are going to change around here! In a good way, don't worry!

First off, he want's us to have 20 lessons a week. Thats huge! Its going to be a big change, but really, it will be for the better. I mean, how many missionaries want to sit around and teach less than 4 or 5 lessons a week? Man, that would be brutal... Haha, actually, now that  Ithink about it, we were teaching about that many up in Alma. Good weeks we would have 6 or 8, but still... President Patrick wants us to work with the less active members a bunch. Rathar than knocking doors, we are going to talk to all of the members! Revolutional!! Who woulda Thunk? Nah, it should be great, there was a team that was regularily getting 10-12 lessons a week, and they followed our mission presidents advice, and the next week got 19 lessons, but that was only because they had a lesson fall through Sunday evening. It was cool! There are a few other changes, but really not anything huge. Just, everything is by the White Handbook exactly, nothing big, just things like we can play sports, if we have everything else done on MOndays, and we aren't going to do something that will hinder our working ability during the week. 

Also, we were teaching our Friend Pascal again, and we taught about Jospeh Smith, and he said that he did know that Joseph's name is actually Joseph, but just that after so many years of studying about Adam Smith and other economists, he accidently mixed up the names. Which, I mean, makes complete sense. After all, Mom and Dad, you had kids for the past... 40ish years, and you mix up their names all the time, even though its just the same 9 the whole time. ;)

We had a member of the Spanish ward call us up and tell us that he had a "prospective" for us. So we headed over to his house, and he walked us to his neighbors, who were Haitian, and proceeded to say "Hello, you remember that I promised you a book in French. Here it is. Also, these are my two friends, they have left their houses for TWO YEARS to come here and to talk about god and to do service. They are missionaries. Also, they have a quick message to share with you right now if you have 5 minutes, is that OK?" And then they said Yes and the member left and we walked into the house, talked to the couple and their friends, and got a return apointment with them for Tuesday, Invited them to our English Class, gave them two copies of the Book of Mormon, and met four super cool new friends! Thanks crazy member from Victoria (he is kind of crazy, but in a good way, not a bad way)!!

But in a nut shell, that was our week! We have transfer calls THIS Saturday, and we have no idea what is going to happen!! AHhh!! Have fun, stay safe, remember who you are, don't do anything I wouldn't do, And, last but not least, as our sunday school teacher said yesterday, If you spit straight up, its going to come straight down!!

Elder Oviatt