I'm Getting Old

Elder Boswell tells me daily that he is getting old. He turns four on Sunday. We are still so new to the work and we are kinda learning as we go because of our lack of experience but time moves fast and Boswell is getting old apparently. I look at elders who have been out a year and longer and they seem so old. I have no doubt that I can be where they are. It just seems like it will take forever until Ive been out a year. But then at the same time if you blink then its been a week and you didn't even see it go by.

So I tweaked my ankle last week right after I was done emailing. I was playing basketball... oops. But I walked ten miles the very next day and its all good. It still hurts a little but I am going to play basketball again today and try not to step on anyone's foot. Ill be fine. My feet hurt at the end of every day from walking so much. I usually fall asleep around 10 even though I am allowed to stay up until 1030. It is hard to wake up in the mornings and it seems like I'm always tired.

As far as the work goes it all looks very promising. Right now we are in the stage of preparing. We could be very busy in the near future with a lot of really good investigators, so right now we are just trying to get it all going. The investigators that are progressing for us are Kimberly and Julia, Joe, Steven and Bryar, and Denim. They are well on their way to make the changes in their lives that are necessary for baptism. Kimberly is Julia's mom and she dropped the missionaries a few weeks ago after being on date for baptism and quitting smoking for almost two weeks. She dropped the missionaries because she started smoking again and it just didn't feel right to her. We contacted her again on Wednesday and Elder Boswell was bouncing off the walls with joy because we got her back and she wanted to see us again. We have been meeting with her since then and she came to church on Sunday. All we need to help her with is her smoking and coffee issues. Its hard to know how to do that, but we will try and guide her. Julia, her daughter, loves us and she wants to be baptized and apart of the church.

Joe is a 60 year old man who loves his car, motorcycle, family, and cigarettes. He has been baptized in the roman catholic church and the stone church and now he is kinda just living his life and praying for guidance. Last time we met with him I was pretty straight up with him and I told him that the Elders coming to his home was the guidance that he was praying for. He was convinced that god wasn't answering that prayer, but I was there to tell him that God had answered him. He just didn't recognize it. I think he took it well. We invited him to church and prayed all week that he would come, but he didn't show up.

Even though Joe didn't show up we had a great day for less-active members and investigators showing up to church. Carey Neil showed up to church. I didn't realize it was such a big deal, but she apparently hasn't been to church for almost a year and she came two weeks into my mission. It was great to see her there but Elder Boswell was way excited. Which of course made me more excited. Also, Davit Knott came to church too. He has come two weeks in a row and it seems like he is getting back into the habit of coming to church. I know he likes coming, he just comes for sacrament and then leaves before we can talk to him.

Denim Meere is a new investigator and I am way excited to start teaching him. He is a referral from another companionship. His father in law was recently baptized and he is going to come with us to teach Denim. I have met Denim once and he is a way nice guy. We had an appointment with him yesterday but he forgot about some other commitments that he had made so we rescheduled. I'm super excited to get in with him and talk.

One other thing that happened this week is that we contacted a guy named Marcus Hartley. Elder Boswell found this guy in the area book and he and Elder Petersen knocked his door probably 20 times with no answer. He was on date to be baptized about a year ago but he was told he needed to wait a year before he could be baptized. Well its been a year and we are trying to find him. So i had knocked his door probably 4 times with no answer but one night he actually answered the door. and we were so surprised that the first thing Elder Boswell could think of to say was "are you Marcus Hartley?" he said yes and we made a return appointment ha ha. we meet with him on Friday. It could be a really good meeting. I'm excited to see him again.

Yakima is the best area to be born in. The crazy stories come daily. We walk down into the hood and talk to the crazy people and plan on meeting them again and you just hear some crazy stuff. Yesterday we were yelled at because we aren't taking care of the children enough ha ha.

I have still only knocked one door on my mission. we don't knock doors... We just walk. a lot.

I love you family!!! I sent personal emails to mom, dad, ciera, and mason.... Ill send some more. but that is all I will put in this email. I will try and write you all back. All the time I have to email is at night and I am usually pooped so I write a little bit. Talk to Betty. Then go to bed early. Its hard work. I love it so much.

Love you all, I hope I answered some questions and didn't leave anything out...

Love,
Elder Paxman