Hey family!
Sounds like you guys had such a wonderful week!! Tell Madeline congrats! Payton I am so excited for you! I can’t wait to go to the temple with you!! You’re gonna have to get me back in the groove of going!! I haven’t gone in 2 years!! The temple is the best and I am so excited to go again! Dad, thank you so much for sending your testimony!! I loved it! At first I was sad Mom and Payt and Al and Addi didn’t send there’s, but your’s was so great and now I get to still hear there’s next week! Hopefully! Payton I’m so glad to hear that you are having a good time! q for ya? Do you have a temple in your mission? Let me know!! Mom and Dad you are amazing and I love and miss you a ton! I’m so grateful for all that you do!
This week was a rainy one here!! It was raining like crazy and I have this trashy umbrella that I sooo badly wanted to last the season! Fall is definitely here and I thought for sure it would make it but then a huge storm hit and the wind whipped off the top! hahaha So I had the umbrella top and the medal rod, in a nasty rain storm! I was pretty mad, but it was pretty funny! We knocked on a door and they let us in! I took off my shoes and my socks were soaking, so I sat down my mettle rod and then my umbrella top. It was so funny because this was in the wealthy neighborhood! So this house is nice and I left a wet trail walking in from my wet socks! haha Funny stuff! It was a rough lesson! They had no desire to do anything, but it was a funny experience! But after that, I cracked and had to go buy a 10 dollar umbrella! haha It’s nice! I went into the dentist again and he said he would fix it for free because he thinks it’s just a bad filling, so hopefully all goes good there!
Gerald is doing ok, but he is super sketchy lately! We had a great lesson with him this week, but then he bailed! He is frustrating! I love them a lot though!! John is hilarious and I love him to death!! I’ve got a funny story for ya in a bit but he is ready for baptism! Hopefully the interview goes well! It will hopefully be this week!! We found a new lady named Rosa this week! She is in her 70’s but she is such a sweetheart!! She had a little bit of Grandma and Grammy in her and it made me miss both of them! She came to church which was.... interesting! haha We only had like 10 active members there this week and then John, Rosa, Trustine and her kids, and it was fast and testimony meeting! aahhh! So President Vahovick goes first and takes seriously 2 minutes! Down to 9 people who can bear their testimony! So I kinda write a talk in my head and then fill some time! hahah I used between 5 and 10 minutes so about 35 minutes to go and 8 members! Everyone of them got up and it was sooooo good! Just great testimonies!! I love branches!! If you stay active in a branch you’ve got a straight shot to the Celestial Kingdom for sure!! But church ended up pretty good! John is doing really well and he is so funny!! This week we tracted in the rich areas a ton! All the houses along the lake. It is so pretty and there is so much wildlife! We see deer here everyday in the city. But, so funny story about John... He took off work to take us golfing! So yesterday on P-day we went golfing with him! It was so fun and hilarious!! One thing about Elder McDanel, you can take the boy out of the hick town, but no matter how hard you try, you can’t take the hick town out of the boy!! haha This kid is always after some animal, while we are tracting or doing something crazy! Then we go golfing and he’s pulling Happy Gilmore and he’s screaming and laughing and going through the pond for balls and throwing clubs! haha This kid is crazy but so funny and I love him to death! He has grown so much but I donno what John thought of the whole thing! haha He couldn’t help but laugh!! That was the hardest thing for me, is golf can be hilarious!! Like man, I was trying so hard to keep it in, but it was so funny!! The funniest part of it all is that Elder McDanel somehow destroyed both John and I! hahaha The kids got a good drive!! And he almost caught a frog! haha And he found enough balls to make up for all the ones I lost!! Good times! So golfing was a lot of fun!! Definitely a little stressful for me, but all’s well that ends well!! The week was good and I love being a missionary!!
We had district meeting today and it went really well! I have Elder McDanel and then two other greenies that got here his transfer, that are all in my district so it makes meetings really fun to teach!! It’s weird to see where they all are and to remember my first couple transfers!! Missionaries are the best and I’m so grateful for the opportunity to be one!! I am so grateful for the Gospel and the blessings that come from living it! I am so excited for Payton!! Missions are the best!! Love ya all! Love Elder Smith
P.S. I got a funny story that might be sketchy for my actual email so I thought I’d tack it to the end! So we were reading with John this week and instead of reading “the last resurrection” I said the last erection. I just quickly corrected and no big deal right...... But Elder McDanel is there! hahahaha And he can’t NOT laugh, so he has this huge grin and his eyes start watering because he is trying sooo hard to keep it in!! He can’t do it, so he tries to pull it off as allergies! hahahaha So he’s fake sneezing and itching his nose and twitchen all crazy between gigles and saying, “Ahhh, stupid allergies.” Just like Napolian, beccause he IS from Preston you know! hahaha It was soooooooooooo funny! And I had to give it everything not to lose it!! He is definitely a hick from Preston!! But, it all buffed out so no big deal! Love ya all!
