The Visit from the 70

September 30, 2013

Dear Family:

Hey! Quick breakdown of the week.

Monday was the normal P-day, I got to talk to Elder Feist for the first time in a while. He had to call the office assistants for something and then I got to talk to him with their phone. He is doing really well. He is in Corona and has some good investigators. He told me about all the things that happened in Hemet after I left. It sounded like he did really well. That night we had dinner with the Haddads. They are a couple, probably about Ronny and Lisa's age, but with no kids yet. They are super cool. They didn't have dinner done when we got there so we got to talk for a while. We found out he works at a company that creates games for X-Box. Nothing huge, just small developments. I asked him if they were just like little games like Castle Crashers and it turns out he works for the company that made that game! I thought that was pretty cool. He told me a lot about it..This is only going to mean anything to Jason, Sharee, and maybe Brett but he uses the same guy as Jason, the Necromancer and his is at level 99. They have a new one out Battle Block Theater he said was pretty good too. While we were there we were looking at his big nasty tarantula and we thought there were two of them. The nasty thing molted while we were their ha. it was weird.. Dinner was super good though! Bro Haddad is one of the artists so he said he would sketch us some things and give them to us Sunday. Saturday night he quickly made 4 and gave them to all of us, so that was super nice of him.

Special Art Renditions for Elders Hawkins, Wood, Cook and Braithwaite

Brother Haddad's Art for the Elders

 

Tuesday we didn't do district meeting because we had mulit-zones the next day. That day we were just doing our normal thing. We were up on Lochmore, I don't remember what we were doing. We decided we would stop by a part-member family we have been trying to contact for 2 months with no luck. This time they were there! It was the Maness family. He is the member but he was sick. His wife invited us in and we had a really good talk. We are headed back today (30th) to leave a blessing on their home. I did my workout that night because we had to leave our apartment at 7 to get to multi-zones the next day.

Wednesday we drove to Jurupa for multi-zones. I was really impressed with the stake center there, it was different! The chapel was awesome. That day we met with Elder Richards of the 70. He did an awesome training. I learned a lot! It was a 4 hour meeting, but it didn't feel like it at all. Shortest 4 hour meeting I have ever been in! He talked about a lot of different things. He, his wife, and President and Sister Smart all did a training. I took a lot of notes. At the end when he was wrapping up he told us he knows when there is an obedience problem in the mission. He felt like ours was obedient. The thing he did ask us to change is how we teach. He talked about that a lot, but here specifically he wanted us to change one thing. You know those analogies a lot of missionaries use about the glass table or mug that got shattered when the apostles were killed and the ice-cream truck pulling people over, he said those are confusing and it is false doctrine and to not use them anymore. I agree, some missionaries didn't like it though. He wants us to use the scriptures more and no more analogies, just pure truths. That night we had two good lessons. 

Thursday morning Elder Cook told me a funny story about the night before. Apparently Elder Hawkins and I were both talking in our sleep Wednesday night. I said something to the effect of "Hey! What are you doing!" Elder Cook thought I was awake and cussing him out for laughing at what Elder Hawkins had just said in his sleep, and maybe I was ha. The rest he really didn't understand. That night our lesson cancelled. Our dinner was the Hodges. They saw my bike last time and their daughter thought the duct tape looked super ghetto. So this time they bought me some new duct tape with pink pigs that fly on them. They want me to put that all over my bike. I think I will put it on my shocks and call it good ha. I might by another color to fix a few things and add some character.

Friday we had to go on a half day exchange. I went with Elder Hugie from Oregon. He is one of the missionaries that came in with me. We had a good lesson with a family in his area. His area is a lot different than mine. His end has a lot more stuff going on a lot more people and places to go. Mine is just houses. His also has a lot of college his from RCC and UCR running around, so it was different from what I was used to. Then that night Elder Hawkins and I exchanged with the ZL's. I was supposed to go into their area because I didn't get to last transfer but they changed their minds last minute and had me stay and said I would stay next exchange too, I warned Elder Beeston he was going to pay for it haha.

Elder Braithwaite keeping Elder Wood captive.  Looks like when Elder Wood's nephew Bryant tied him up at home.

Elder Beeston's shoes after tracting with Elder Wood

 

Saturday Elder Beeston got out of a really hard day in our area for two reasons. #1 we get along way to well and he is a super fun and happy person and I can't stay mad even on the drive back to my apartment let alone get even and make him tract for hours on end (he hates tracting) #2 He then had an emergency that morning with an investigator so we had to exchange back for an hour which messed up my planning. I still made him bike all the way up both hills which he didn't like at all. It was good for him. He is a Spanish missionary and has been in a car his whole mission. That night we had a really good lesson with a part-member family. Unfortunately he said no to baptism, and to take the lessons, and church, so we aren't teaching him ha.

Sunday we had our regular meetings and church. For dinner we went to President Plocher's house because our dinner canceled. He is the one in our ward who is in the mission presidency. While we were waiting for President to get to his house his son-in-law took me for a ride in his Audi R8. It was awesome!! That car is probably worth more than our house. Somehow Sister Plocher found out I wanted a ride in it. I think it was from when I talked to President Plocher about it on Wednesday at the multi-zone meeting. That night Elder Braithweight went to Hemet to go back for a baptism, so Elder Hawkins and I teamed up with Elder Cook and went to a lesson with him.

 Audi R8

Audi R8 Power Plant

That pretty much is everything other than Elder Cook says hi! He is sitting by me and wanted me to throw that in there. I hope this E-mail works. All the missionaries today haven't been able to get any replies. We have sent E-mail to each other and they haven't worked, so send me a short note if you get this letter so I know not to resend it next week when I get on.

Love Ya!

Elder Wood