Day 151-Another Busy Day –August 26, 2006

A very busy Saturday. Elder Pierce and I were on our bikes today, going past the Giant grocery store, when who did we bump into? R. Now, if you don’t remember who R is, that’s okay. I mentioned her in my journal on {Day 52}. She’s W’s sister-in-law. She told us that W is going back to Kenya in a couple of weeks and that T has started going back to school. I asked her if she would be available for us to come over and teach her sometime. She says, “Yes,” but she needs to check her schedule first. Next we went by to see J. J lives in the same apartment complex as N.B. It’s also where J used to live before he moved back to China. Joseph lives on the top floor of his apartment building. As Elder Pierce and I got to the top of the stairs, we saw a drunken man sleeping outside J’s door. I suggested that we step over him to try and get to J, but my companion said it would be best to try again later.

We went and saw Brother W I just want to stress that I think that he is one of the nicest guys I’ve met. I talked a little bit about his background on {Day 110}, which may have sounded a little harsh, as it appears in my journal. Brother W is a good man. I want to echo the words of President P said to me on {Day 122}. “People are given different trials to test them, but it’s also to test us. To see how well we’ve developed the Christ-like attributes of patience and charity.”

After meeting with Brother W, we went back to J’s to try to get a hold of him. The man sleeping outside his door had gone, so we knocked and were invited in. J had gotten brand new furniture. We asked him if we could stay for a minute to teach him. He said, “No, but come back tomorrow at 2:00!” Alright J, tomorrow at 2:00.

We also saw A today for the first time in a long time. He wasn’t at the Senior Center this morning when we went there for service, so we stopped by his place; or rather L’s place (see {Day 144}), to see how he was doing. A told us he still needs another surgery. He’s going to have it on Monday. He said the surgery he had before (see {Day 130}), was to prepare is body for this surgery. A told us we could try to get together after he starts feeling better. “C’mon over some time for lunch,” he told us, “and I’ll make my famous chili!” It’s a date, A. Get feeling better.

One of the last things we did today was go by and see A and G. Which brings me to my Happy Thing for {Day 151}: We invited G to go to the Visitor’s Center with us when we take A next Saturday! G says that he wants to come. He’s looking forward to seeing the Joseph Smith movie. G and A have never seen it before, it should be a lot of fun. We haven’t been able to teach G much at this point; but we plan to go over the First Vision with him so he has a better understanding of what to expect at the movie. At around 8:05 this evening, I reminded G and A about coming to church tomorrow. They say they’ll both be ready by 8:00 am. “Well,” I said, “see you in 12 hours.” We’ll see them both tomorrow.

Day 150 Commit to Baptism 8-25-06

Today we met with A and G. It’s a great day! We invited G to church on Sunday with A. He’s looking forward to it. After G left, President P came by and picked up A and us. We had a great dinner. Hamburgers. Yum! I highly recommend dinner in a member’s home to be a great place to take those investigating the church.

After dinner we talked with A about the importance of modern-day prophets. We watched the short film, “Watchman on the Tower.” When the video was over, we answered some of A’s questions about our church; tithing and why we don’t pass around a collection plate.

Happy Thing for Day 150: We set a baptismal day for A! We committed him to prepare himself to be baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So today was pretty exciting!

Later that night we dropped off A back at his place. President P said to us, “Well, Elders, I have to commend you. When you have a chance to set a baptismal date, you go for it. I’ll be sure and tell your mission president when I meet with him. However, I did notice tonight that A seemed uncertain about some of the principles of the gospel. I don’t think it’d be a waste of your time to re-teach the commandments to him (the 4th lesson). Make sure he knows all the basics. But you’ve got 4 weeks; that’s plenty of time. Assuming A passes his day in court with flying colors, I don’t see any reason why he wouldn’t make his baptismal date.”

So, yeah, busy day. Lot’s of things happened. We’ll continue to work with A. Help him reach his potential which is great.

Day 150 The Spirit World/Johnny Appleseed pt. 3…Laboring With All Their Mights 8-25-06

Jacob 5: 72 “And it came to pass that the servants did go and labor with their mights; and the Lord of the vineyard labored also with them; and they did obey the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard in all things.”

“Yep, Johnny sure did bring folks a heap a’ happiness. Shucks, he weren’t lookin’ for thanks. He didn’t have time for it. He knowed a man can’t take no rest if he aims ta plant the whole darn wilderness in apple trees.”

“And so it was for more than 40 years. John walked and planted that old frontier. Yes, sir! Forty years of walkin’ and plantin’. In the space of two score years this little man throwed his shadow clear across the land 100,000 miles square. And in that shadow you will find, he left his blessings three: Love and Faith and the Apple Tree.”

2nd Timothy 4:7 “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course. I have kept the faith.”

(John passes away. His guardian angel calls out to his spirit.)

Angel: “Boy, for sleepin’ you take the cake. (whistles). Come on; We’ve got a longsome trip to make.
Johnny: “Huh? Why, Mr. Angel! Howdy do!”
Angel: “I’m fine and how be you?”
Johnny: “Oh, I’m fine. Just feeling—Whoop! Who’s that sleepin’ in the evenin’ dusk?”
Angel: “Why that’s just your husk, John; Your mortal husk.”
Johnny: “My husk! You mean to say that I’m passed away? Dag nab it, Angel. I can’t go. Got crops to harvest; seeds to sow.!”
Angel: “Now, now; Hold on boy. Down here on earth, your work is through. And yonder, well, we need ya, Johnny. Yep! We surely do. You’d think up there we’d have most all we please; but we ain’t. We’re kinda short on apple trees.
Johnny: “Well, I swan,…I didn’t know. What’re we waitin for? C’mon, let’s go!”

(Johnny singing) “We’re wastin time; let’s get a’ goin’. Get them apple trees a’ growin’.”

(Johnny and Angel singing) “There’s a lot of work up there to do! Oh, there’s a lot of work to do.!”

D&C 138: 57-59 “I beheld that the faithful Elders of this dispensation, when they depart from mortal life, continue their labors in the preaching of the gospel of repentance and redemption through the sacrifice of the Only Begotten Son of God, among those who are in darkness and bondage of sin in the great world of the spirits of the dead. The dead who repent will be redeemed, though obedience to the ordinances of the house of God. And after they have passed their penalty of their transgressions, and are washed clean, shall receive a reward according to their works, for they are heirs of salvation.

Angel: “Well, now sir. Now you know the reason why whenever I see that certain sky, I think of little John. Cause it’s like I said, if you recall…Them clouds ain’t really clouds at all. They’re apple blossoms, if you please. From John’s heavenly orchard of apple trees.”

“And some day there’ll be apples there for everyone in the world to share…(Elder Pierce drew a picture of the Washington DC Temple rising out of a cloud of apple tree blossoms)…The Lord’s been good to me!!!!”

Day 150 The Spirit World/Johnny Appleseed… “Now We Will Compare the Word Unto a Seed” pt. 2 8-25-06

“Now we will compare the word unto a seed…” Alma 32:28
The story starts with young Johnny. He’s about 25 years of age and spends his time caring for the family apple orchards. Under a beautiful apple blossom sky Johnny likes to pass the time singin’.

“The Lord is good to me, and so I thank the Lord! For givin’ me the things I need; the sun and the rain and the apple seeds; Yes, He’s been good to me.

I owe the Lord so much for everything I see. I’m certain if it weren’t for Him, there’d be no apples on this limb; Oh, he’s been good to me.

Oh, here am I, ‘neath the blue, blue sky a doin’ as I please; singing with my feathered friends, hummin’ with the bees.

I wake up every day as happy as can be; because I know that with His care, my apple trees will still be there. Oh, the Lord is good to me!”

So Johnny is happy at home caring for his apple trees, when he hears the wagons moving west and the sound of restless feet. It’s the pioneers! They sing as they move along.

“Get on the wagon rollin’ west, out to the great unknown; Get on the wagon rollin’ west or you’ll be left alone!

We’ve made a home before; we’re startin’ out again. We ain’t a-feared of man or beast. We’re strong-hearted men!

Get on the wagon rollin’ west, seekin’ a land that’s new. Get on the wagon rollin’ west. There’s plenty a’ room for you!

The rivers may be wide, the mountains may be tall; but nothin’ stops the pioneers; we’re trailblazers all!
Get on the wagon rollin’ west, out to the great unknown; get on the wagon rollin’ west, or you’ll be left alone. You’ll be left alone.”

Johnny sees the pioneers heading west and wants to join them, but feels like he’s not able to. Suddenly, his guardian angel appears and asks John why he doesn’t go west. Johnny stares at the angel, too awestruck to speak. (Alma 32: 29 Now behold, would not this increase your faith? I say unto you, Yea; nevertheless it hath not grown up to a perfect knowledge.)

Angel: “Speak up, boy. Don’t stand there gawkin. Unlock your jaw and get ta talkin’.”
Johnny: “Uh…yes sir. Yes sir! Why don’t I go west? Cause I ain’t got the muscle or the breadth of chest. Out there it’s the strong men that survive and I’m about the puniest fella alive.”
Angel: “Shame ta ya, Johnny. You’ve got faith and a level head.”
Johnny: “But, shucks. I’ve got no gun; I’ve got no gear; nor any of the things I’ll need out there.. Ya’ see sir, all I know is apple trees.”
Angel: “And what’s wrong with apples, if you please? Ain’t they about the finest fruit in all the land? Why, shoot, man! They take the cake! Just think of all the things that apples make!”

The angel tells Johnny that if you have faith, that’s enough to start with. (Refer back to Alma 32:28 “Now, we will compare the word unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me.”)

So, John goes about packing his meager belongings for his long journey.
( 1st Nephi 3:7 “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no comandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.”)

His angel sings to him: “Pack your stuff and get a’goin’; get them apple trees a’ growing; There’s a lot of work out there to do! Oh, there’s a lot of work to do…”

(Alma 32:33 And now, behold, because ye have tried the experiment, and planted the seed, and it swelleth and sprouteth, and beginneth to grow, ye must needs know that the seed is good.”)

Planting seeds…sounds like missionary work to me.

continued in Part 3...

Day 150 The Spirit World/Johnny Appleseed pt. 1 8-25-06

To commemorate Day 150, I’m going to talk about something that I’ve been meaning to include in my journal since Day 50. This is a subject that is very near and dear to the heart of Brother MW, the Spirit World (see Day 110-Never Surrender).

Specifically, I’d like to talk about missionary work in the Spirit World. First, I’d like to include some remarks on the subject by President Wilford Woodruff a the General Conference held in the Tabernacle, Salt Lake City, October 4 1890.

“I will say here that in my dreams I have had a great many visits from the Prophet Joseph since his death. The last time I met with him was in the spirit world. I met him at the temple. He spoke to me. Calling me by name, he said, “I cannot stop to talk to you, for I am in a hurry.” I met Father Smith. He, too, said to me, “I am in a hurry.” I met a great many of the Apostles and others who are in the spirit world, and they all seemed to be in a hurry. I marveled at this, and wondered very greatly in my mind why anybody should be in a hurry in the Paradise of God.

I had an interview with the Prophet Joseph afterwards and asked him the question, “Why are you in such a hurry here?” I said, “I have always been in a hurry in the world since I was born, but I thought there would be no occasion for it when I died and entered the spirit world.” He replied, “Well, I will tell you: The Prophets and Apostles in this dispensation have had no time, nor opportunity to prepare themselves to go to the earth with the great bridegroom when He goes to meet the bride, the Lamb’s wife. We in this dispensation have not had time. We have first as much work to perform, to prepare ourselves, as in other dispensations.” He said the time was at hand for the coming of the Son of Man, for Christ to go forth in fulfillment of revelation and prophecy, to meet the bride, the Lamb’s wife, the Church and Kingdom of God upon the earth. Says he, “That is not revealed to us, nor never will it be until the hour comes; but we have much work to do to prepare ourselves for that event.” Collected Discourses Vol. 2 Wilford Woodruff, October 4, 1890

Next, I’d like to share Doctrines and Covenants Section 138. This really gets to the heart of the matter about missionary work in the Spirit World.

A vision given to the Prophet Joseph F. Smith in Salt Lake City, Utah, on October 3, 1918 D&C 138:1 – “On the third of October, in the year nineteen hundred and eighteen, I sat in my room pondering over the scriptures; D&C 138:6-10
6 I opened the Bible and read the third and fourth chapters of the first epistle of Peter, and as I read I was greatly impressed, more than I had ever been before, with the following passages:
7 “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
8 “By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison 9 “Which sometime were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.” (1 Peter 3:18—20.)
10 “For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.” (1 Peter 4:6.)

D&C 138: 27-34

27 But his ministry among those who were dead was limited to the brief time intervening between the crucifixion and his resurrection;
28 And I wondered at the words of Peter—wherein he said that the Son of God preached unto the spirits in prison, who sometime were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah—and how it was possible for him to preach to those spirits and perform the necessary labor among them in so short a time.
29 And as I wondered, my eyes were opened, and my understanding quickened, and I perceived that the Lord went not in person among the wicked and the disobedient who had rejected the truth, to teach them;
30 But behold, from among the righteous, he organized his forces and appointed messengers, clothed with power and authority, and commissioned them to go forth and carry the light of the gospel to them that were in darkness, even to all the spirits of men; and thus was the gospel preached to the dead.
31 And the chosen messengers went forth to declare the acceptable day of the Lord and proclaim liberty to the captives who were bound, even unto all who would repent of their sins and receive the gospel.
32 Thus was the gospel preached to those who had died in their sins, without a knowledge of the truth, or in transgression, having rejected the prophets.
33 These were taught faith in God, repentance from sin, vicarious baptism for the remission of sins, the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands,
34 And all other principles of the gospel that were necessary for them to know in order to qualify themselves that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.”

I shall now attempt to tie in the subject of missionary work in the spirit world with the life of John Chapman, more commonly known as Johnny Appleseed (1774-1845) Johnny Appleseed was a pioneer who planted apple seeds and tended orchards throughout the Ohio River valley. Some years later Walt Disney (1901-1966-animator and producer) made an animated film mixing history and legend about the life of Johnny Appleseed. I plan to use quotes from that film, as well as my own narration, to draw a parallel between his life as portrayed in the Walt Disney film, and missionary work; both here and in the spirit world. (see Day 150 pt. 2)

Day 149-The Whole Day Was Great- 8-24-06

Happy Thing for Day 149: Day 149! That’s right. The whole day was great. First we went to meet A. We knocked on his door…and he was home! “…because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” John 20:29

Oh, it was so good to see A again! My companion wrote in his journal that this was the first time he’d seen A without a piece of glass between them. That was Elder K. Pierces first Saturday in Herndon {Day 109}. We went to visit A in jail with Brother S. Here it is 40 days later and we were able to meet in A home and see how he’s doing.

A says that he’s doing much better now. He still has to appear in court. From what it sounds like, he should be cleared of all charges against him. He told us that he’s stopped drinking. Back on Day 84 I wrote how things were going in the Herndon area. I talked about A going and partying with friends instead of meeting with us. He would go party and get drunk on the weekends and not go to church with us on Sunday.

Being in prison though, was a good change for A. He’s more humble, more teachable. I feel like Alma in Alma 32:6. “And now when Alma heard this, he turned him about, his face immediately towards him, and he beheld with great joy; for he beheld that their afflictions had truly humbled them, and that they were in preparation to hear the word.”

A told us that while he was in prison, he had time to think. He realized that most of the bad things that have happened to him in his life can be traced back to drinking and the people that he chose to hang out with.

Today we shared The Word of Wisdom with A; Our churches code of health. A said he thought it was good to have a standard. He likes the Word of Wisdom. We also shared with him the importance of temples and temple work. We were able to answer some of his questions about the temples. He asked, “How long do you have to wait after becoming a Mormon before you can go to the temple?” Elder Pierce answered that within a week or so after you are baptized you can receive from your ward bishop a recommend to perform baptisms for the dead. (We explained what baptisms for the dead were). And, after you have been a faithful member of the church for at least a year, you can receive a recommend to go to the temple for your own endowment. It’s because of these endowments that families can be sealed together forever.

We invited A to a lot of things. We invited him to come play volleyball with other members of the ward this evening. We invited him to a lesson at the P’s house, as well as dinner in their home. We also invited him to go to church on Sunday. (the last time A came to church was Day 61). He wants to start going to church weekly, as part of his plan to straighten out his life.

The big news, for me at least, is that another temple trip is in the works! We have it all planned out to go to the Visitor’s Center a week from Saturday. We’ll go see the Joseph Smith movie. A is looking forward to it. So am I. I want to go ahead and commit A to a baptismal date but we need to wait until after his court date. If he’s cleared of all charges, which he should be, we shouldn’t have any problems. If not, that’s where it gets a little dicey. Oh well, no use fretting over that now. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.

After we visited with A, we went to see C. We’d talked with C on {Day 140} about coming back to teach her next Thursday (today). We hadn’t been able to get a hold of her since then. She’s so busy. On the way to C’s we passed by S’s house. I was planning to stop by her place later, but as we were biking past, she called out to us, “Elders!”, so we stopped and went to visit for a few minutes.

We were able to tell S about the transfer calls. She was so happy to hear that we were staying in Herndon. S is feeling a little under the weather. That’s why she did not meet with us on Tuesday. She just felt too sick. We’ll try again, though. We talked with S, and have it planned to go on Monday and watch the Bruce R. McConkie video with her.

I showed S my journal and some of the drawings in it. S said, “Wow! I had no idea that you were such an artist.” I also showed her my collection of church art that I’ve acquired by cutting pictures out of the Ensign’s. One of my favorite’s is this sculpture of Mormon. I love sculptures. When I showed it to S, she said, “Oh, you mean Mormon was a person?” “Yeah, what did you think he was?” I thought. We talked for a bit on what Mormon and his son Moroni did to preserve and bring forth the Book of Mormon in our day. I love talking with S and answering her questions. We see her on Monday. We also played volleyball with A at church tonight. It was lots of fun!

Day 149-The Whole Day Was Great- 8-24-06

Happy Thing for Day 149: Day 149! That’s right. The whole day was great. First we went to meet A. We knocked on his door…and he was home! “…because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” John 20:29

Oh, it was so good to see A again! My companion wrote in his journal that this was the first time he’d seen A without a piece of glass between them. That was Elder K. Pierces first Saturday in Herndon {Day 109}. We went to visit A in jail with Brother S. Here it is 40 days later and we were able to meet in A home and see how he’s doing.

A says that he’s doing much better now. He still has to appear in court. From what it sounds like, he should be cleared of all charges against him. He told us that he’s stopped drinking. Back on Day 84 I wrote how things were going in the Herndon area. I talked about A going and partying with friends instead of meeting with us. He would go party and get drunk on the weekends and not go to church with us on Sunday.

Being in prison though, was a good change for A. He’s more humble, more teachable. I feel like Alma in Alma 32:6. “And now when Alma heard this, he turned him about, his face immediately towards him, and he beheld with great joy; for he beheld that their afflictions had truly humbled them, and that they were in preparation to hear the word.”

A told us that while he was in prison, he had time to think. He realized that most of the bad things that have happened to him in his life can be traced back to drinking and the people that he chose to hang out with.

Today we shared The Word of Wisdom with A; Our churches code of health. A said he thought it was good to have a standard. He likes the Word of Wisdom. We also shared with him the importance of temples and temple work. We were able to answer some of his questions about the temples. He asked, “How long do you have to wait after becoming a Mormon before you can go to the temple?” Elder Pierce answered that within a week or so after you are baptized you can receive from your ward bishop a recommend to perform baptisms for the dead. (We explained what baptisms for the dead were). And, after you have been a faithful member of the church for at least a year, you can receive a recommend to go to the temple for your own endowment. It’s because of these endowments that families can be sealed together forever.

We invited A to a lot of things. We invited him to come play volleyball with other members of the ward this evening. We invited him to a lesson at the P’s house, as well as dinner in their home. We also invited him to go to church on Sunday. (the last time A came to church was Day 61). He wants to start going to church weekly, as part of his plan to straighten out his life.

The big news, for me at least, is that another temple trip is in the works! We have it all planned out to go to the Visitor’s Center a week from Saturday. We’ll go see the Joseph Smith movie. A is looking forward to it. So am I. I want to go ahead and commit A to a baptismal date but we need to wait until after his court date. If he’s cleared of all charges, which he should be, we shouldn’t have any problems. If not, that’s where it gets a little dicey. Oh well, no use fretting over that now. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.

After we visited with A, we went to see C. We’d talked with C on {Day 140} about coming back to teach her next Thursday (today). We hadn’t been able to get a hold of her since then. She’s so busy. On the way to C’s we passed by S’s house. I was planning to stop by her place later, but as we were biking past, she called out to us, “Elders!”, so we stopped and went to visit for a few minutes.

We were able to tell S about the transfer calls. She was so happy to hear that we were staying in Herndon. S is feeling a little under the weather. That’s why she did not meet with us on Tuesday. She just felt too sick. We’ll try again, though. We talked with S, and have it planned to go on Monday and watch the Bruce R. McConkie video with her.

I showed S my journal and some of the drawings in it. S said, “Wow! I had no idea that you were such an artist.” I also showed her my collection of church art that I’ve acquired by cutting pictures out of the Ensign’s. One of my favorite’s is this sculpture of Mormon. I love sculptures. When I showed it to S, she said, “Oh, you mean Mormon was a person?” “Yeah, what did you think he was?” I thought. We talked for a bit on what Mormon and his son Moroni did to preserve and bring forth the Book of Mormon in our day. I love talking with S and answering her questions. We see her on Monday. We also played volleyball with A at church tonight. It was lots of fun!

Day 149-The Whole Day Was Great- 8-24-06

Happy Thing for Day 149: Day 149! That’s right. The whole day was great. First we went to meet A. We knocked on his door…and he was home! “…because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” John 20:29

Oh, it was so good to see A again! My companion wrote in his journal that this was the first time he’d seen A without a piece of glass between them. That was Elder K. Pierces first Saturday in Herndon {Day 109}. We went to visit A in jail with Brother S. Here it is 40 days later and we were able to meet in A home and see how he’s doing.

A says that he’s doing much better now. He still has to appear in court. From what it sounds like, he should be cleared of all charges against him. He told us that he’s stopped drinking. Back on Day 84 I wrote how things were going in the Herndon area. I talked about A going and partying with friends instead of meeting with us. He would go party and get drunk on the weekends and not go to church with us on Sunday.

Being in prison though, was a good change for A. He’s more humble, more teachable. I feel like Alma in Alma 32:6. “And now when Alma heard this, he turned him about, his face immediately towards him, and he beheld with great joy; for he beheld that their afflictions had truly humbled them, and that they were in preparation to hear the word.”

A told us that while he was in prison, he had time to think. He realized that most of the bad things that have happened to him in his life can be traced back to drinking and the people that he chose to hang out with.

Today we shared The Word of Wisdom with A; Our churches code of health. A said he thought it was good to have a standard. He likes the Word of Wisdom. We also shared with him the importance of temples and temple work. We were able to answer some of his questions about the temples. He asked, “How long do you have to wait after becoming a Mormon before you can go to the temple?” Elder Pierce answered that within a week or so after you are baptized you can receive from your ward bishop a recommend to perform baptisms for the dead. (We explained what baptisms for the dead were). And, after you have been a faithful member of the church for at least a year, you can receive a recommend to go to the temple for your own endowment. It’s because of these endowments that families can be sealed together forever.

We invited A to a lot of things. We invited him to come play volleyball with other members of the ward this evening. We invited him to a lesson at the P’s house, as well as dinner in their home. We also invited him to go to church on Sunday. (the last time A came to church was Day 61). He wants to start going to church weekly, as part of his plan to straighten out his life.

The big news, for me at least, is that another temple trip is in the works! We have it all planned out to go to the Visitor’s Center a week from Saturday. We’ll go see the Joseph Smith movie. A is looking forward to it. So am I. I want to go ahead and commit A to a baptismal date but we need to wait until after his court date. If he’s cleared of all charges, which he should be, we shouldn’t have any problems. If not, that’s where it gets a little dicey. Oh well, no use fretting over that now. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.

After we visited with A, we went to see C. We’d talked with C on {Day 140} about coming back to teach her next Thursday (today). We hadn’t been able to get a hold of her since then. She’s so busy. On the way to C’s we passed by S’s house. I was planning to stop by her place later, but as we were biking past, she called out to us, “Elders!”, so we stopped and went to visit for a few minutes.

We were able to tell S about the transfer calls. She was so happy to hear that we were staying in Herndon. S is feeling a little under the weather. That’s why she did not meet with us on Tuesday. She just felt too sick. We’ll try again, though. We talked with S, and have it planned to go on Monday and watch the Bruce R. McConkie video with her.

I showed S my journal and some of the drawings in it. S said, “Wow! I had no idea that you were such an artist.” I also showed her my collection of church art that I’ve acquired by cutting pictures out of the Ensign’s. One of my favorite’s is this sculpture of Mormon. I love sculptures. When I showed it to S, she said, “Oh, you mean Mormon was a person?” “Yeah, what did you think he was?” I thought. We talked for a bit on what Mormon and his son Moroni did to preserve and bring forth the Book of Mormon in our day. I love talking with S and answering her questions. We see her on Monday. We also played volleyball with A at church tonight. It was lots of fun!

Day 148-Another Six Weeks of Elder Pierce Squared 8-23-06

Elder Pierce is on the phone now. I’ve just been informed by him that…(pause)…”No Will! This isn’t a good time!” False alarm. It was only Will. I swear that guy calls at the most inopportune times.

Elder Pierce is on the phone now. I’ve just been informed by him that he’s staying and I’m staying. (Hmmm) Elder Gleave is leaving. Let’s make like an Elder and Gleave! Sister B is leaving. Wow. Get this. Elder Oram’s leaving this area to be a zone leader. Less than 8 months on his mission and already a zone leader. Elder Spencer is getting transferred to the same place as Elder Oram. And what of Elder Phelps? He’s staying this transfer and getting 2 new companions. That’s what we call a missionary threesome. Elder Thompson and Elder Williams are his new companions. Elder Williams is our new district leader. I can’t wait to go on exchanges in Reston. Three elders in Reston and two Elder Pierces in Herndon. This transfer promises to be entertaining.

Wow. Elder Pierce and I will be together for another six weeks. I had a feeling that we’d be kept together. If for no other reason than to keep the “Elder Pierce Squared” joke running as long as it can.

Well, I’d better go ahead and help Elder Pierce tidy up our apartment. I’ll write more later today.

Happy Thing for Day 148: I got a package from home today! My mom sent me an aroma therapy diffuser. It’s just what I’ve been wanting. Now my essential oils can be put to more use. I can’t wait to start using it. My aroma therapy oils are one of the things that make me unique as a missionary. There is also my journal. Other missionaries keep journal, but not like I do. There is also my blender and my hot air popcorn popper. It’s those kinds of things that give us missionaries a bit of personality.

Elder Chacon and Elder Gleave came over today to check emails and make some cd’s. Elder Chacon’s are getting scratched up. He wants to copy them so he can send the originals home.

After that they took us to the post office so I could mail some letters. On the way there, Elder Chacon said, “ya know how Paul said, ‘when I was a child I spoke as a child…but when I became a man, I put away childish things’.” Yes, I said. “Well,” said Elder Chacon, “when I became a man, I put away nothing.” Without missing a beat, Elder Gleave said, “Yeah, except a lot of food. You’re pretty good at putting that away.” Elder Gleave has such a quick wit. He’s a pretty funny guy. It’s hard to believe that he’s going to be leaving us so quickly.

After the post office, Elder Chacon drove us to “Great Harvest” bread company. I love Great Harvest. Their bread is so soft and so tasty and so pricey. But, I guess when the bread tastes this good, it’s okay. Plus, they give out free samples! I tried a slice of their honey whole wheat. It’s delicious.

Another neat thing is that the Herndon ward gets their bread for sacrament meetings from Great Harvest.

Later this evening, after the Spanish elders dropped us off at home, we went on an exchange with Brother W and went to check on some people. One of our last stops of the night was to try and get in touch with A, but he was not home. His mother was, though. “Did you hear?” she asked. “A is out of prison.” “Yeah, that’s terrific,” I told her. Do you know when we might get to meet with A? “Try to come back in the morning. He should be here.” “Okay, I said. “We’ll try to meet with A in the morning. (sigh) D told us that A is out of prison. Then G told us the same thing when we met with him yesterday. Now J, his mother, tells us that he is out. We’ve had three witnesses testify that A is no longer in jail, but we have yet to see him with our own eyes. I’m starting to feel like Thomas. Until I see him with my own eyes, I shall not believe. No. I’m just kidding. I believe that he is out of jail and that we’ll see him tomorrow. Til then, “good night, out there, whatever you are.” Count Duckula

Day 147-Even If You Plan, It Can Still Fail-8-22-06

The events that happened on {Day 147} were not that great. In fact, today kind of stank. We did not meet with S today. Brother P came by right on time to pick us up. We went over to S’s house this afternoon around 3:30 and she was not home. I hope her illness did not get worse to where she had to go to the hospital, because no one answered the door at her house. We might stop by and visit her sometime tomorrow after we find out if either of us is getting transferred tomorrow.

Even if I don’t see S again before I get transferred, at least I was able to share with her just how much she has meant to me as a missionary.

We also did not meet with A. We stopped by, but he was not home. “Well,” I said, “Since we can’t get in touch with A, let’s go try to see G. I first met G a long time ago when I went on exchanges with Elder Phelps. It was the last time I taught A before he went to jail. We talked to A about his baptismal commitments. What I didn’t mention in my journal was that A’s friend G was there also. G listened while we taught and seemed pretty interested. Back then we gave him a copy of the Book of Mormon. Since that time we have not been able to meet with G for another discussion. We’ve seen him in passing and stopped to talk, but nothing else came of it until today.

G is 18 years old. He works as a security guard for an office building. He works the night shift and sleeps in the morning. We talked with him today about a convenient time to meet and decided on Friday at 3:00, assuming that I’m still here and did not get transferred. We get our transfer calls tomorrow, so one of the Elders Pierce might be outta here. If I do go, I’m sure the other Elder Pierce will take over and keep Herndon going.

I’m a little nervous about the impending transfer calls. If I end up leaving Herndon, it’ll mean a lot of packing in a little amount of time. I do think that I might be ready for a change, though. If I do end up staying, it will give me a chance to continue working with A and G. Not to mention J and Y. One way or another, we’ll find out tomorrow.

Happy Thing for Day 147: Bedtime.

Day 146-Oh Happy Day! 8-21-06

Oh Happy Day! Happy Thing for Day 146: We got to talk with S today. And here I was thinking that I might not see her again before I got transferred (assuming that I do get transferred). We did not talk about any gospel subjects, just nice conversation. S was still feeling a little sick. She’s feeling a bit better now, but still isn’t up to returning to her job at the horse ranch yet.

We sat and talked on her front porch about different things. I told her that I might get transferred. “When will you know?” she asked. “This Wednesday,” I told her. She then said, “Elder Pierce, I’m gonna miss you so much if you go.” I told S that I would miss her. Not wanting to be a big baby, I was trying not to cry as I told her that she was one of the first people I had talked to since being on my mission and how much it meant to me to be able to share my testimony and my love of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with her.

We talked a little bit about her husband D. She told me how they met. They were high school sweethearts. We talked for a while about when S met D.

Later, I said that since I might be leaving on Thursday, I wanted to come over sometime tomorrow and watch the talk by Bruce R. McConkie on the Atonement with her. She said she would really like to see it. We’ll see if we can get Brother P to come with us. I’m looking forward to it.

Well, today was full of unexpected twists. Late this evening, just before we headed back home, we stopped by A’s place in the hopes of talking with J (see {Day 116}). We wanted to see how A was doing in prison, see if there was an update. Also to see how D was doing with B. J wasn’t home, but guess who was? D! D said that staying with B did not work out, so he came back. D also told us that A is out of prison. Apparently, he got a bail bondsman and took out a loan so he could await his court date in the comfort of his own home. I asked D where A was. D said he was shopping and would not be back until late. D said that if we wanted to try to meet with A, we could try tomorrow around 2:00pm, so that’s what we’ll do.

Before I close for the evening, I want to talk about S one more time. When we were talking about her husband and how they met, S asked me about my family. I told her that I loved them very much and that they love me. S said to me, “Never forget how lucky you are, Elder Pierce. It is such a blessing to have a family that loves you.” Thank you, S. I’ll remember that. O Happy Day! And tomorrow, we meet with S to talk about The Atonement!

Day 145-A Pretty Fun Day- 8-20-06

Today was a little slow. We went tracting for a bit. My total tracting hours are now at 46. It did not lead to too many prospective investigators. Oh, well.

Something neat happened on the way to dinner tonight. We ran into Moses. Well, my companion said he looked like Moses. He had long white hair and a huge bushy beard that covered both of his shoulders. He wore a headband and had a light faded orange t-shirt that had a picture of a dream-catcher on it. He also wore shorts and sandals. He was out walking his dogs. We waved to him and he nodded back. We would have stopped to talk to him, but we were in a hurry to get to dinner on time. We didn’t want to be late.

That brings me to Happy Thing for Day 145: We ate dinner with the B family. We had breakfast for dinner. I love that. There were eggs and waffles and all kinds of good stuff. Plus, no one makes better dinner conversation than Sister B. She was as funny as ever. She reminded me of something that I forgot to mention in my journal as part of {Day 51}. That was the day that Elder Buttars and I helped paint her basement. What I forgot to mention is what happened while we were painting. I was painting down low and Elder Buttars was painting near the ceiling. I was going right and he was going left. Every time I backed up I moved my paint tray back. Elder Buttars moved forward and put his foot right into my paint tray. We were in our service clothes and had taken our shoes and socks off, but still…he didn’t enjoy getting his foot covered in paint. It was pretty funny, though.

After dinner, Sister B brought out dessert. It was a cake shaped like Elmo from Sesame Street. She said that it was in honor of Elder Kris Pierce, or Tickle Me Elder Pierce as he’s better known (see {Day 108}). So today was pretty fun.

I forgot to mention that J was at church for sacrament meeting. We’ll continue to work with him, but for now, I’m tired. I’m going to bed.

Day 144-The Visitor’s Center and The Testaments: A Review 8-19-06

This morning we went to the Senior Center for service. We saw L there today (see {day 111}). She wanted me to tell Elder Davis thank you once again for all of the help he was in fixing her computer. It’s been such a big help to her.

Good news! L said that A is recovering from his operation just fine. He’s still confined to his bed, so L’s been doing a lot of things for him. She told me that she’s getting a little fed up with A being so short tempered with her. I told her that he’s just upset because he can’t do things for himself right now.
I told L that if she ever needed any help at all, to just give us a call. We’ll plan on going by to see A some time later next week.

After that we went home, changed into our suit coats and got picked up by Brother B. He took us to J’s house. J was there, but Y was not. J said that something came up and Y would not be able to come with us to the temple today. Oh, well. Maybe that was for the best anyway. We haven’t taught Y much at this point. We’ll meet next week and share the message of the Restoration with him. Then we can take him up to the Visitor’s Center and watch the Joseph movie.

We did go see The Testaments movie with J. He really liked it. “It’s very good,” he said. I have included my review of “The Testaments of One Fold and one Shepherd.” In looking back over my last official review (Joseph Smith: The Prophet of the Restoration {Day 20}), I commented on how the mob members stormed in with blackface to kill the prophet, Joseph Smith. The purpose was to hide their identities. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but the mob members were better villains than the villains of The Testaments. But, I’m getting ahead of myself.

In the September issue of the Ensign, it talks about The Testaments. Quoting from the article, it says, “This film presents the message that Jesus Christ is our Savior and the cornerstone of our theology. In the film, the story of Christ’s mortal ministry and Atonement is told while fictional characters, living in the Americas at the time of Christ, ponder and prophesy about events of His life and ministry in the Holy Land. The story of the resurrected Christ’s visit to the Nephite’s is also told. Though the New World characters and their dialogue are fictional, they capture the essence of the feelings and testimonies of the people described in the Book of Mormon.”

Now the problem I have with this is…well, there are a few things. I don’t care for how they portrayed the Savior in this film. I mean, I’m not trying to be critical. I know it’s a hard role to fill, but Jesus Christ, in my humble opinion, does not have to be portrayed as stiff and monotone. It did not ruin the movie for me, though. One of the best parts was when the Savior comes to visit the people on the American continent. A real spirit was felt then. A spirit of things hoped for; of things not seen.

Another thing…In the movie, Jacob the son of Helem, rebels against his father and his belief in the coming Messiah. A rich young man named Kohor (the villain who looks a lot like Tiny Tim only without the ukulele), convinces Jacob to hang out with him and his ruffian friends. The problem is the actor playing Kohor is pretty bad. I don’t know…maybe if I were to watch it again, I would give a different review, but to me the villain just seems really cheesy. He was so over-the-top vain and evil which if that is what they were going for, then they did a good job. I guess I like my villains to be a little more rounded. Not so evil, but more on the deceitful side. Sneaky. That’s what I like, a sneaky villain.

So, all in all the movie was all right. Not one of my favorite church movies, but still pretty good. I have to admit that the actor they got to play Helem was pretty good. He definitely had some memorable scenes.

Happy Thing for Day 144: Going to the Visitor’s Center with J. One funny thing in particular- When we got there, some Sister Missionaries came up to greet us. One of them was from Nigeria. She talked with J about Africa and things like that. The other Sister was from Arizona. She looked at Elder Pierce and me and then asked, “ which one of you lost your nametag?” “What?” I asked. “Well, you’re both Elder Pierce,” she said. “Yeah, I know. We are both Elder Pierce,” my companion replied. “Oh, wow!” she said. “And they put you both together? How weird.” She called over some other sister missionaries to look at us. It’s kind of funny to think that somewhere out there tonight there are some sister missionaries writing in their journals about meeting two Elder Pierces serving together. Fun day today. Tomorrow’s church!

Day 143-Never Underestimate the Power of Visual Aids-8-18-06

Good ol’ Brother B. You can always count on him to come through. We have everything set up for the temple trip tomorrow. We called the Visitor’s Center and requested a screening of The Testaments of One Fold and One Shepherd. We stopped by and saw Y later this evening to remind him about tomorrow. J was already asleep.

The plan is: tomorrow we wake up at 6:30 in the morning (as always). Have our regular morning routine, then be out the door at 10:00. Now, every Saturday and Tuesday we do an hour and a half of service at the Senior Center, but tomorrow we might have to shorten it to an hour so we can get home, change our clothes and be ready to go when Brother B. comes to pick us up.

Brother B should arrive around 11:45 to pick us up. Then we go to get J and Y, and be on the road about noon. We should get to the temple about 1:00. The movie lasts about an hour. We will have some time to look at the exhibits. Then about 3:00 we will leave the Visitor’s Center and go to “This is the Place” bookstore and look around for a while. We will leave about 4:00 so we can get back in time for J to get to work on time.

That is the plan for tomorrow, but right now I need to focus on today. Today we taught J at the N’s house. We taught him the third lesson, The Gospel of Jesus Christ. It went pretty good. We talked about the Gift of the Holy Ghost and how it is a comforter, but it also acts as a protector against the world. My companion, Elder Pierce did something neat. He gave a visual aid to show how the Holy Ghost protects us. To do this, he used:

2 bowls of water, a pepper shaker, and some liquid soap. First, you take the pepper and vigorously shake it over one of the bowls. This represents the world. Next, get a volunteer to dip their finger into the bowl of pepper-water. When they take their finger out, it should be covered with pepper. This represents sin. Have the volunteer wash their finger in the other bowl of water; the clean one. That represents repentance and baptism. (Am I going too fast? No. Okay, good) Now, after they dry their finger, put some liquid dish soap on it. This represents the receiving of the Gift of the Holy Ghost. Put the finger back into the pepper-water and watch what happens.

Did you see that? The pepper retreats to the edge of the bowl and doesn’t even come close to the finger. That’s what the Gift of the Holy Ghost can do for us in our lives. Now, if we choose to take our finger and run it along the edge of the bowl, what’s gonna happen? We’re gonna get it covered in pepper again. Just because we receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost, does not mean we never have to worry about sin anymore.

“And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this straight and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the Word of Christ with unshaken faith in Him, relying wholly upon the merits of Him who is mighty to save. (That is one of my favorite descriptions of the Jesus Christ-“Him who is mighty to save.”) “Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward feasting upon the word of Christ and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: ye shall have eternal life.(2 Nephi 31: 19-20)

Aw, how I love visual aids. When my good friend Elder Spencer Poyner left for his mission last summer, I told him, “Never underestimate the power of visual aids.” Now I have a better appreciation of visual aids because of examples like this one with the pepper, and the “cups” lesson (see Day 100).

We also stopped by and saw A today. I haven’t mentioned him before. Today was my second meeting with him. The first time I met him was when I was tracting with Elder Davis back on {Day 102}. A is in his late 20’s. He’s married, with a wife, T, expecting their first child. A is having some problems, though. He is currently unemployed and has been for a year. This is causing a lot of contention between he and his wife.

Some background: A’s wife, T is Catholic. So is her whole family. A definitely believes in God, but doesn’t really have a church that he believes in. We’re beginning to work with him on that. Today we talked with him about temples and temple work. ( A great ice-breaker in starting up a gospel conversation. Temple work is really something that sets us apart from other Christian denominations, and most people are curious as to why we build temples in the first place.

A seemed really interested. We gave him a Book of Mormon and committed him to read it. The next time we meet with him, we’ll share the message of the restoration. We plan to keep working with him.

Wow! Today sure was exciting, huh?! And tomorrow’s gonna’ only get better! Temple trip! (Yes, I’m well aware that this is the same thing I said on {Day 122}. This time it’s gonna work though!)

Day 142 –It Comes Down to the Investigator-August 17, 2006

We saw J and Y today. We plan on taking both of them to the Visitor’s Center on Saturday to watch The Testaments: Of One Fold and One Shepherd. The Reston Elders are having a baptism that evening at 7:00 p.m. J said that he won’t be able to go because of his work. Y might be able to go…we’ll see what happens.

Before I worry about getting an investigator to come to a baptism, I should worry about a ride to the Visitor’s Center. We want to go from noon to five; but all that might be moot if we can’t find anyone to take us. We’ll make some calls, but most of the people we’ve called are on vacation.

We also went by S’s house today in the hopes of seeing her and resolving some issues as to whether or not she was interested in further investigating the church at this point. Her son, D, answered the door and told us that she was feeling sick. S had apparently become dehydrated at her job on the horse ranch and come home to rest and recover.

My feeling about S at this point: I want S to learn the truth of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Having said that, I’m now realizing the comes a point when you need to say, “enough is enough.” I’m tired of grasping at straws and getting my hopes up. {Day 135) was the last time I talked to S. At that point, I thought, “Okay! Maybe this is it! Maybe S will turn around and want to learn more about the church again!” I now have a better understanding that no matter how much I want and pray for someone to accept the restored gospel, it ultimately comes down to the investigator. They have to decide what path they will take. What a kind and loving Father in Heaven we all have; that he gives us the awesome responsibility of agency, to choose for ourselves. Maybe someday, S …

Happy Thing for {Day 142}: On {Day 74}, Elder Davis got hit by a car (that isn’t the happy thing) when he was chasing after a bubble car. Well, today, I saw a van, a dinosaur van. It was a big purple van, with over 200 plastic dinosaurs glued to the roof and other places. The dinosaurs were of varying sizes, shapes and colors. I’d never seen anything like it before… and, no, I didn’t try to chase after it. I’m not taking any chances.

Day 141 – P-Day Bowl-O-Rama-August 16, 2006

Today we went bowling for P-day. It was a lot of fun. A good time was had by all. Happy Thing for {Day 141}; I got a strike on my very first try! Next, I picked up a spare! Then, I got a gutter ball. I never really recovered after that. I did pick up another spare at the end. My total score wasn’t that great. I bowled a 74. I still had a blast, though. The real exciting contest though was between Elder Phelps and Elder McCann. Those two were amazing bowlers. Elder Phelps got strike and then Elder McCann got a strike. In the end, Elder McCann got a total of 5 strikes and 2 spares that game and wound up with a score of 170. Elder Phelps had 4 strikes (three of them in a row! Which in bowling terms is known as a “Turkey”) along with 4 spares; which gave Elder Phelps a score of 184! Elder Phelps: Master bowler, champion over the “Flatliner” and one darn good missionary!

I didn’t get to see Elder Chacon bowl, but my companion, Elder Pierce, saw it and described it this way, “Chacon is a stinkin’ gorilla. He hurls the ball down the alley as hard as he can.” Elder Chacon told me afterwards that he doesn’t even use the finger holes in the bowling ball. He would just grab it with both hands and then chuck it with all his might. Occasionally he’d hit the pins and they would explode, but most of the time it would roll into the gutter. It must’ve been a sight to see, though.

After P-day was over we went to go check on T. It had been a while since we last talked to her ({Day 126}). She wasn’t home. The man upstairs who rents a room in T’s house came to the door and told us that T was out of town and that she wouldn’t be back until September 1st ({Day 157}). That means that I might not see T again before I leave Herndon. Now, at this point, I don’t know if I’m leaving Herndon or not. If I get transferred to a new area, I’ll find out about it in a week. Will I stay or will I go?

A quick note before I go to bed. As Elder Pierce and I were heading home for the night, we were taking the W and OD trail (W and OD stands for Washington and Old Dominion). We met a biker on the trail who talked with us as we rode back. Elder Pierce kept trying to bring up gospel topics but the man would change the subject. He was nice enough, just not very spiritually minded. After all that biking this evening, my legs are pretty sore.

Day 140 –Phone Messages-August 15, 2006

Turn back with me if you will 170 pages in my journal, back to page 95 and {Day 57}. I’m going to expound on the events surrounding Elder Bailey’s departure. First, I must introduce W.

W has been part of the Reston Elders’ service schedule for as long as I’ve been in Virginia, at least. They just go in to check up on him every other week or so. W is clinically insane. D.O., M.W. and R.F. are all Mensa members when compared to W. (W. is not a member of the church) (“He was like a board without a nail.” – The Fool and the Flying Ship) One thing W would always do is call up the Reston Elders and leave messages on their phone. They were crazy messages about things having to do with W’s toenails, messages about W trying to sue the Giant Grocery Store, messages in which W offered to buy the Reston Elders 200 cheeseburgers. And that is only the tip of the insanity iceberg. There were many other messages left by W on their answering machine. Whenever I go on exchanges to Reston, there’s always a new message from W. It drives Elder Oram nuts. But then again, out of all of the Elders that have been here since I’ve been here, Elder Oram is the one who has had to deal with W the longest.

{Day 57} Elder Buttars and Elder Oram went to go play basketball. I stayed with Elder Bailey. We waited for President Bretzing to call back. He said he’d call around noon with his final decision as to whether Elder Bailey would go home or not. The tension was so thick, you could cut it with a knife. Finally, noon came. The phone rang. Elder Bailey answered it. “Hello, this is Elder Bailey…” (pause) “No W! This isn’t a good time!” and then hangs up the phone. Ten minutes later, the phone rings again. Elder Bailey answers it again. “Hello, this is Elder Bailey…” (pause) “Will, I can’t talk to you right now! I might be going home…” (pause) “That’s right W, you might not see me again…” (pause) “W, don’t drop the F-bomb…” (pause) “No, you can’t go home with me…” Elder Bailey talked to W for a few minutes, saying his goodbyes. He then hung up the phone. About two minutes later, the phone rang. Elder Bailey said, “Elder Pierce, you answer it. I’m not talking to W again.” So I answered the phone. “Hello, this is Elder Pierce.” “Elder Pierce, this is President Bretzing. What are you doing over at Elder Bailey’s apartment and why haven’t I been able to get through on this line? Your phone has been busy for twenty minutes.” “Uh, … w-well, well … President Bretzing, … I’m over here with Elder Bailey so Elder Oram can go play basketball with my companion, … as for the phone…I’ll let Elder Bailey talk to you about that.” That’s when I handed the phone to Elder Bailey and he found out that he was going home.

I bring all of this up because today, for the first time, W called us. Elder Phelps had apparently given him our number. When my companion, Elder Pierce, called him up to complain, Elder Phelps said that since he gave out other missionaries’ phone numbers, W hasn’t been calling them as much. It doesn’t bother me too much. I think it’s kind of funny.

We taught C.Z. today. It was the first time I’d been able to teach her since we watched Finding Faith in Christ at her house on {Day 50}. “We have a lot more work to do then,” I first thought. It became apparent that C did not have an understanding of who Jesus Christ really is or why he is important. She’s more or less in the same boat as J.F.W. (See Day {Day 46} and {Day 52}). So we talked a little bit about the Plan of Salvation and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We didn’t go into anything too in-depth. You want to talk about building a spiritual house on a firm foundation? With C., we’re trying to work our way of the basement so we can start building. We did get a return appointment scheduled with C. for next Thursday. We plan to go over the Gospel of Jesus Christ, maybe just a lesson on Christianity in general. We’ll talk with Brother B; see if he’ll be able to go with us. It will be a long process, but if C. is willing to listen, then we’re willing to teach.

Today was a good day. Tomorrow is zone activity and you know what that means…
BOWLING!!! I can’t wait! It’ll be so much fun! Until then, good night.

Day 139-The Salvation Army Will Save Me-8-14-06

It was officially announced that on Wednesday we will go bowling for our zone activity. I’ll be looking forward to it.

After meetings today, a small portion of the Elders from our zone went to lunch together. Elders Spencer, Gleave, Chacon, Oram, Phelps, Pierce and Pierce. When we were about to leave, Elder Hall said, “Let’s make like and Elder and Gleave!” I don’t know how Elder Gleave feels about that little pun, but personally, I love it. “Elder and Gleave…” Very punny.

We went to the Royal Buffett. It’s Chinese food. “I like Chinese…I like Chinese…” I tried some stuffed crab today for the first time…with the pinchers still attached and everything. It was pretty good. A little salty, but not bad.

After lunch was over, we parted company and Elder Spencer (my exchange for the day) and I went to work. Mondays are service days for Elder Spencer, so we went to where he does service-the Salvation Army. (“The Salvation Army will save me!” –said by Logan after being tied up for asking too many questions about Citizenship in the World)

Okay, a pause right here while I briefly explain the afore mentioned quote. A while back before I went on my mission, one of the members in my home ward, was asked to teach in a Merit Badge Fair for Boy Scouts so that they could earn their Citizenship in the World. She wanted to do something fun and different, so she turned the lesson into a game based on the concept of the t.v. game show, “Street Smarts.”

In Street Smarts, the host goes out and interviews 3 people on the street and asks them the same questions. The contestants on the show then have to decide which one answered correctly. The game is based around that idea. That is what Sister C wanted to do. Have a game where the host asks people questions about Citizenship in the World. The Boy Scouts who are watching, have to guess who got each question right. Of course, Sister C did want it to be kind of a show, so each person who helped had a different role to play. Sister C got several of the youth involved. I was the host of the program. It was my job to ask the questions. My brother, Lane, helped out behind the scenes. He also played minor roles throughout the movie. My brother Luke, operated the camera and edited the scenes. He’s pretty good at that kind of stuff. There were three youth that played the roles of the “man on the street.” All of them did a super job.

It was a lot of fun for me because I got to be the annoying interviewer who keeps following people around trying to get them to answer my annoying questions. At the end of the show, everyone is so fed up with me that they tie me up and drag me out into the street. By coincidence, a Salvation Army truck was driving by. Being carried off by the angry masses, I yelled out, “The Salvation Army will save me!” The truck, of course did not stop to help, but kept right on going. I ended up in a dumpster. (Lined with clean trash bags, of course.) Good memories.

Okay, now that I got that out of my system, back to Day 139. at the Salvation Army, Elder Spencer and I spent an hour sorting clothes. It’s as fun as it sounds. You take the clothes with the green tag and put them in a pile. The clothes that are left, you put in a big box that will be sent back to headquarters. One nice thing about volunteering here is that they let you take something for free. I brought home a couple of snazzy new ties.

Later this afternoon we went tracting. This brings my total tracting time up to 44 hours. It was very hot today. I hear that next week is supposed to be in the 100’s. I’m remembering to drink plenty of water, though, so it’s not that bad.

Happy Thing for Day 139: Elder Spencer and I taught one of his investigators. His name is M. M was progressing rather slowly and wanted to know more about the Mormon pioneers. We ended up watching Legacy with him. He really enjoyed it. I liked it as well. It’d been a while since I had seen it. Watching Legacy was my happy thing today.

I did think today on how earlier I said that the Joseph Smith movie could be longer. You can get that same effect by watching a lot of other church movies as part of a movie marathon. Start with Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration, then watchLegacy, and top it off with Mountain of the Lord. When you watch all three back to back, you can see the history of the church unfold into the big picture. It’s pretty neat.

Well, today was not an overnight exchange, so I’ll be back with Elder Pierce tonight. Bye for now.

Day 138-Singular and Plural- 8-13-06

Once again, C was not at church. She’s out of school now, so we’ll focus more on her, try to make sure she comes next week.

We did have an investigator at church, though. J was there. He was there with the N’s. He sat next to his girlfriend, M.
We plan on visiting him later this evening.

After church, we went to J. Y wasn’t there. That’s okay. We’ll try to get with him later. We talked with J about the trip to the Visitors Center on Saturday. He wants to go. We’ve got it all planned out. We also watch, “To This End Was I Born,” with J. He really enjoyed it. J has a testimony of the Book of Mormon, we just haven’t been able to get him to commit to get baptized. We’ll keep working at it.

We didn’t get to meet with A. We went over, but no one answered. (sigh) We’ll try to get in touch with her later in the week.

This evening we had dinner with the Bush’s. Don’t get too excited. It wasn’t the President and his wife it was Brother and Sister Bush. They’re a great member family. They home-school their children just like my mom. It’s great to have that commonality. They also have quite a large family. Sister Bush is expecting her seventh child. Almost all of their children are under 8 years old, so it can get crazy at their house, but it is always fun.

The Bush family just returned from a trip to China. They were visiting relatives. Brother Bush gave Elder Pierce and me each a piece of candy that they brought back from China. “I’ll bet you’ve never tasted candy like this,” he told us as we began to eat it. It was taffy. It tasted like corn. So help me, it tasted like corn. Like from the cob. I half expected a kernel to get stuck in my teeth. It was weird.

I shared a story with the Bush family about my sister, Laura. She’s about to turn 7 pretty soon. Here’s the story: Before I left on my mission, I was talking with Laura about singulars and plurals. It was around this time last year. I was helping Laura pick up her toys. She had a Pegasus toy. I asked her, “So, Laura, if you had two Pegasus toys, what would they be called?” “Pegasuses,” she said. “What about an octopus?” “Octopusses.” “Okay, what about a cactus? What would more than one cactus be called?” Laura’s answer: “Cactopusses.”

I love that story. I love my family. I do miss them, but I have no intention of going home until my mission is completed.

So, the Happy Thing for Day 138 is: “Cactopusses”

One last funny note on that story; after I told it, everyone had a good laugh. Then Brother Bush looked at his children and said, “Ya know, we have two Elder Pierces in our ward now.” “Kids, what would you call more than one Elder Pierce?” The kids tried all kinds of answers. “Elder Pierces.” “Elders Pierce.” “Elders Pierces.” “Nope,” he said. “There’s only one thing we can call them, and that’s CactoPierces.” Everyone started laughing again. It was a fun dinner.

After dinner we were dropped off at the N’s house. We went over there to teach J. But first I have to tell you this awesome thing. On the N’s kitchen table there was a framed, signed photograph of Brother N shaking hands with President Bush in the Oval Office. That’s one of the nice things about being in Northern Virginia. A good number of the people that I’ve met, work for the U.S. Government. They can’t tell me what they do or else they’d have to kill me.

We taught J the rest of the lesson starting from where we left off last time. J agreed with the Three Degrees of Glory. We also taught more about The Trinity. J agrees that God the Father and Jesus Christ are two separate beings. He seems to be progressing nicely.

Day 137-It Was A Sweetheart of a Light-8-12-06

Today was pretty busy and tomorrow is going to be even busier. I’ll try to get through the events as quickly as I can.

On {Day 118} Elder Pierce and I went to the bike shop to get some parts. One of the things that I got, that I’d needed for a while, was a bike light. I’d gotten a cheaper model, but as it turns out, you get what you pay for. The light wasn’t very bright. Not a great purchase. And to top it off, yesterday when we were biking, I hit a bump and the light flew off. It smashed onto the ground.

I bring that up because it is a precursor to my happy thing for the day. Sister B called and wanted to know if she could take us out to lunch. We ended up going to the Qdobas (see Day 130) near our apartment. When we finished getting our food, Sister B said, “I’ll be paying for those two” (referring to me and my companion). The cashier told her that there was no charge for us. “What!” she asked. We explained over lunch that missionaries get to eat here free. “Well, that stinks,” she said. I asked her, “Why does that stink?” “Because, I was hoping to do a nice thing and buy you guys lunch after all of the things you’ve helped me with and they tell me my money’s no good here.”

Wanting to do something nice for us, she asked if there was anything that we needed. I said, “Well, I do need a new bike light…” “Say no more!” she said. “I’ll go out and pick up the best one that they have.” “No, really, Sister B, you don’t need to…” “Nonsense, it’s the least I could do.” (“Well, the least I can do is nothing, but I’ll go you one better!” –Homer Simpson)

So, Happy Thing for Day 137: Sister B gave me a shiny new bike light. It’s really nice, with a rotating head, high and low beams, extra-bright light so I can see a far way off…(“She was a sweetheart of a light! John, Three Skeleton Key; Radio Drama, Escape! starring Vincent Price). Best of all, it’s securely fastened in place, so it’s not going to fall off.

We went over to see Brother W today. He’d wanted us to meet with him, but when we got there and started to teach him, he fell asleep. Sound asleep. He started to snore. I looked at my companion. I said, kind of loudly, “Okay, then, I think we had better get going.” Brother W woke up and apologized for falling asleep. He said he’d been so busy. He wanted us to come back but said that all he wanted to do right now was sleep.

Later this evening, Brother N called us to see about teaching J in their house again (see day 110). It’s been a while since we last taught J. The reason is that he went on vacation with the N family. Brother N said that everyone had a great time. The N’s are a great example for J to see what members are like. We plan to go over to their home tomorrow and finish teaching the second lesson to J. The last time we stopped at the Atonement. Tomorrow we plan to review and pick it up from life after death.

Tomorrow looks pretty busy. We plan on teaching J and Y, A, and J. Busy, busy afternoon. Hopefully, we can talk to J about going to the temple on Saturday. Well, big day planned. Tomorrow is Sunday.

Day 136-When Life Hands You Milk, Make it Chocolate 8-11-06

Today we had interviews with President and Sister W. That was pretty fun. They are really nice. I got to talk about my family and the fun memories we had together. President W challenged us to be better at finding people. He said, “Go to places in your area that you haven’t gone as often. Talk to those that you would not normally talk to because you think they would not be interested. I promise you that more opportunities to teach will be opened to you if you do this.”

He also said, “I want you to come to know Preach My Gospel. The Lord promised that He would put those people in your path that you are prepared to teach. The more prepared you are, the more you know about the lessons, the more people will be put in your path who are ready. If you learn PMG, like the back of your hand, you won’t have to worry about finding people to teach. People will find you.”

After our interviews were over, Elder Chacon drove the four of us to Quizno’s subs for lunch. Elder Pierce, Pierce, Chacon and Gleave. During our lunch, the conversation turned to stealth aircraft. We talked about all of this amazing technology that the government was able to come up with.

Elder Chacon asked me, “Do you think that Section 13 exists?” I told him that I did not know about Section 13. “Is that anything like Area 51?” I asked. “What?” asked Elder Chacon. “Area 51,” I repeated, “the place where the government is supposedly hiding extra terrestrials.” “Oh, yeah, that’s what I meant,” he said. Elder Chacon. He’s so funny.

We talked with a woman named A. She’s from Ghana. She lives in the same apartment building as some of our current investigators. We talked with her briefly and plan to teach her the first lesson on Sunday. That’s pretty exciting!

Happy thing for Day 136: Chocolate milk. Later this evening as my companion and I were making plans for tomorrow, Sister D. called and said that she had some groceries for us. We went down to pick them up. She got us a pineapple, bananas, raspberries, strawberries and other good stuff for smoothies. She also got us a gallon of milk. I had forgotten to tell her that we had enough milk to last for a while. So, adding the half gallon of milk that D gave us plus the milk from Sister D, we now had 4 ½ gallons of milk! To help us get through it all, my companion pulled out some Nesquik chocolate powder and made us a nice big glass of chocolate milk. It was pretty good!

Well, I’m tired. It’s late. It’s been a hard day of missionary work. See you in the morning. MMM…bed.

Day 135-Visiting A Friend-08-10-06

Today was a fun exchange with Elder Phelps. We tried to go over and see C today. We had an exchange and everything. Brother B came with us. He and his family were our dinner appointment tonight. Brother B is a great man. He told us, “ I like going on exchanges with you guys right after dinner at our house. Brother G gave me the idea.” Brother G {Day 131} signs up to go on exchanges with us and feed us the first Thursday of every month. As a missionary, I like that plan. It gives us something to talk about at dinner. When we sit to eat with a member who is going on exchanges we can talk about the plan for the evening. It’s really convenient.

So we went with Brother B to see C. She wasn’t home. That’s okay, though. She told us that she would be done with her summer school on the 10th. That’s today, so next week should be wide open to visit her. We’ll still try to stop by tomorrow or Saturday to see about her coming to church.

Which brings me to my Happy Thought for Day 135: After we weren’t able to meet with C, I turned to Elder Phelps and Brother B and said, “Brothers, I feel and the Spirit seems to accord, that our next course of action should be the visiting of our former investigator to the church, S.” I hadn’t spoken with S since the now infamous phone call on {Day 120} in which she told us that she’d no longer be taking the discussions. We agreed to go visit her.

I knocked on her door. S yelled excitedly, “Elder Pierce!” She ran outside and gave me a hug. My whole body went rigid. “Uh, you’re not supposed to hug me,” I thought. It was only a quick hug. When she let go, she said, “I’m sorry. I just remembered that I’m not supposed to give you guys hugs. But, I couldn’t help it. I missed you so much! It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.”

We talked for a little while. We didn’t ask her about why she decided to stop investigating the church; just light conversation. S was promoted to trail-leader at the horse ranch where she works. She did tell us, “I want you guys to know that you had an impact on me. The things you shared with me, I’ve thought about during church.” I got some mixed signals tonight. I’m not sure if S wants to learn more about our church or not. She told us not to be strangers and that we could visit her anytime. I guess I’ll have to try to be bold. Last Sunday I talked with her neighbor Sister H and how we should approach S so as not to offend her. Sister H said that S is pretty tough and that she did not think we could say anything that would offend her.

S also told us that Elder Buttars had written her a nice letter. It’s so good to hear that Elder Buttars kept in touch with S. I’m gonna be sure and write to her too. I just can’t help but wonder why she decided to stop investigating the church. I know that S needs to be sealed to her family in the temple. All these blessings are there waiting for her if she will only take more time to find out about them.

I think I’ll ask her if she wants to watch the Bruce R. McConkie dvd on the Atonement. S never did get to watch it. I don’t know. Maybe she does not need that right now. Maybe she just needs someone to talk to who can answer her questions; or maybe she isn’t ready for lessons again, yet. I want S to be ready so badly, but it just might not be time yet. We’ll see. Either way, it was nice to talk to her today.

Well, today was very good. Tomorrow I get my companion, Elder Pierce, back from Reston. Elder Chacon and Elder Gleave will come and pick us up and take us to interviews with the mission president and his wife. Should be lots of fun!

Day 134- O That I Were An Angel…-08-09-06

“O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people.” Alma 29:1 A pretty good scripture and always a favorite one among missionaries.

P-days have been extra busy of late. As a result, I haven’t been able to talk about things in-depth as before. I’ll try to find time later, but I have a sneaking suspicion that this might be my last transfer in Herndon. Because of this, I’ve slowly begun putting things away and packing things up. Even if I do end up staying for another transfer after this one, I’ll be more ready to leave when it’s time for me to go to a new area. Whenever that is…

Happy Thing for Day 134: Robeks. Elder Davis and I used to go to Robeks at least once a week during morning exercises (see Day 87). Now, Elder Pierce and I go every p-day for a smoothie. They’re so good.

My favorite kind of smoothie that they serve is called the “Polar Pineapple.” It has papaya juice, strawberries, pineapple, pineapple sherbet, and ice, plus a nutritional boost of Vitabek. This contains “100% daily value of 20 vitamins and minerals.” Okay, enough with the sales pitch.

The manager at Robeks is from South America, I think. He’s not very old, maybe in his late 40’s, but his face is very weather-worn, so he looks older. His name is E. E has seen us come in once a week in our shirts and ties for over a month now. He was curious and asked us if we went to school somewhere around there. We told him that we were missionaries for our church. “What time does your church meet?” he asked. As a missionary, even on p-day, you should always be prepared. I whipped out a pass-along card for Mormon.org and wrote the address to the church as well as the meeting time. I don’t know what will happen. It’d be neat to see E at church. We’ll see…

This week is going to be busy. Tomorrow is our weekly planning session. Normally, it’s on Friday, but we’ve moved it just this week since we are having interviews with the mission president this Friday. We’re also having exchanges with the Reston elders. Elder Phelps is coming here and my companion is going with Elder Oram. We have a good day planned. It should be fun.

Day 134- O That I Were An Angel…-08-09-06

“O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people.” Alma 29:1 A pretty good scripture and always a favorite one among missionaries.

P-days have been extra busy of late. As a result, I haven’t been able to talk about things in-depth as before. I’ll try to find time later, but I have a sneaking suspicion that this might be my last transfer in Herndon. Because of this, I’ve slowly begun putting things away and packing things up. Even if I do end up staying for another transfer after this one, I’ll be more ready to leave when it’s time for me to go to a new area. Whenever that is…

Happy Thing for Day 134: Robeks. Elder Davis and I used to go to Robeks at least once a week during morning exercises (see Day 87). Now, Elder Pierce and I go every p-day for a smoothie. They’re so good.

My favorite kind of smoothie that they serve is called the “Polar Pineapple.” It has papaya juice, strawberries, pineapple, pineapple sherbet, and ice, plus a nutritional boost of Vitabek. This contains “100% daily value of 20 vitamins and minerals.” Okay, enough with the sales pitch.

The manager at Robeks is from South America, I think. He’s not very old, maybe in his late 40’s, but his face is very weather-worn, so he looks older. His name is E. E has seen us come in once a week in our shirts and ties for over a month now. He was curious and asked us if we went to school somewhere around there. We told him that we were missionaries for our church. “What time does your church meet?” he asked. As a missionary, even on p-day, you should always be prepared. I whipped out a pass-along card for Mormon.org and wrote the address to the church as well as the meeting time. I don’t know what will happen. It’d be neat to see E at church. We’ll see…

This week is going to be busy. Tomorrow is our weekly planning session. Normally, it’s on Friday, but we’ve moved it just this week since we are having interviews with the mission president this Friday. We’re also having exchanges with the Reston elders. Elder Phelps is coming here and my companion is going with Elder Oram. We have a good day planned. It should be fun.

Day 133 – Setting the Record Straight-08-08-06

Okay. I’ve made some jokes about Brother D. O., but I need to set the record straight. He’s not dumb, by any means. He’s pretty smart. He reads a lot. There are books all through his apartment. Some books that he’s read: biographies about famous Americans like Robert E. Lee, Andrew Jackson, Benjamin Franklin and many more. He even has read all six Harry Potter books. He can’t wait for the seventh to come out. Brother O also has a huge gospel research library with many books about church history and gospel doctrine. He has a pretty impressive library. Brother O just does odd things from time to time, that’s all.

Like this morning…we went over to visit him. We had a nice chat about how he knew that he needs to start coming back to church. When it was time to leave, he wanted to walk us home. We didn’t have the heart to tell him that we weren’t heading home. His apartment is only about 5 minutes away from our apartment, so we walked back with him. We’d brought our bikes with us, so we just ended up pushing them along until we got back to our apartment. “See you guys later,” he said. He turned and started walking back to his apartment. It was kind of sweet in a way.

Later in the evening we stopped by J’s place to see if he’d be able to go to the Visitor’s Center sometime. J wasn’t there, but his friend Y was. Y was there on {Day 128}. He and J watched the Bruce R. McConkie dvd with us. He liked it and wants to know more about the church. We’ve got a meeting scheduled to teach him on Sunday. So far we are scheduled to go to the V.C next Saturday. Look for {Day 144} of my journal to see what happens.

Hopefully, we’ll be able to get J to go with us. Y is looking forward to it as well as meeting with us this Sunday. That’s it. That’s my Happy Thing for Day 133. Talking with Y about a trip to the Visitor’s Center. We may not even end up going, but just talking about going is a highlight in my book. I’m glad that we finally have a new investigator. Since all of our other investigators fell away for one reason or another, we’ve had a hard time finding new ones. Hopefully, this is the start of a change for the better in Herndon. Well, see ya tomorrow. P-day! Oh, the Joy!

Day 132 continued...-Four Gallons of Milk-08-07-06

We met with D (the less active member/ Catholic for two days/less active member again).
He gave Elder Pierce and me each a $10 gift card to “This is the Place” bookstore. This is a charitable quirk of his-giving out gift cards. He has done this since I have known him. Way back when I was with my first companion, Elder Buttars, we were about to leave D’s apartment. He said, “Hang on. I’ve got something for you guys.” He walked into his bedroom and came out with a stack of gift cards about 5 inches tall.

He had all kinds of gift cards. This is the Place bookstore, McDonalds, K-Mart, Giant grocery store, etc…Back then he gave me another gift certificate for This is the Place bookstore. I don’t know where he gets the money to do this. But not wanting to look a gift card in the mouth, I gratefully said thank you.

We stopped by J’s place. He must not have been home. Oh, well, we’ll try again later in the week. We went to M’s place. He wasn’t at church on Sunday. He said that he had been really busy and slept in on Sunday. He promises to do better next week. M told me how much he likes it when I come over to visit. “Some missionaries; forget it. But, Elder Pierce, you’re cool. You’re really smart and listen to my questions. You’re a really great guy. (Stop it, M. You’re making me blush). M said that he wants to take us out to eat in a couple of weeks. That could be fun. I’ll look forward to it.

Happy Thing for Day 132: Okay, get this. It’s 10:00 pm. Elder Oram calls to see how our day has been and also to see how my companion is feeling after the flat-liner. So they are talking for a little bit, when there is a knock on the door. Who could that be at this hour? My companion was still on the phone, so I go over to see who it is. It was D. I opened the door. “Hey, Brother O.” “Hey, guys, I got you some stuff.” He then walks into our apartment carrying 4 gallons of milk and two loaves of bread, sets them down and then asks if we can come over tomorrow to talk. “Uh…sure,” I said. “Kay, bye.” And with that he was gone. I looked at the milk and bread on the table, then to my companion and back to the generous gift.

Then I started laughing. To me it was the funniest thing in the world. I mean 4 gallons of milk! It’s just the two of us here. There’s no way we would be able to drink that much milk. We called the zone leaders. Elder Spencer and Elder Hall never have any milk at their place (because they don’t have less active members who buy them groceries). I’m sure they would love to come over on p-day and pick up a gallon or two. Plus, they could take one to the Reston elders.

Thank you for the milk and bread, Brother O. Well, I’m going to bed. ‘Night.

Day 132-The Flat-Liner- 08-07-06

Elder Chacon called this morning. He said, “Elder Pierce, we’re about to come pick you guys up. I just need to brush my teeth and put on my socks and shoes. Then we’ll leave. How long should it take?” “You’re asking me how long it is from your house to here?” I said. “No. How long should it take me to brush my teeth and put my socks and shoes on?” asked Elder Chacon. “I don’t know. Maybe ten minutes.” Elder Chacon said, “Okay. We’ll come to get you in ten minutes.” “See you then”, I said. That Elder Chacon. He’s so funny. There is nobody like him.

After all of the meetings were over today, all of the elders from our zone went to lunch at the Buffalo Wing Factory-Home of the Flat-liner. A buffalo wing meal so spicy and hot that they make you sign a waiver before you eat it. What would possess someone to consume something so dangerously unhealthy? If you eat 10 wings, they’ll give you a t-shirt and you get your name put on a big board on the wall with all of the other survivors who have eaten a flat-liner.

There were three elders out of our whole zone who dared take the flat-liner challenge; Elder Oram, Elder Phelps and my companion, Elder Pierce. I was more than happy to sit on the sidelines and record the results in my journal. Two other elders from our zone had already completed the challenge when they came here before; Elder McCann and Elder Smith. They had already gotten their t-shirts as well as their names on the big board. They shared a tip about eating the hot wings with the Reston Elders and my companion. “When the tray gets here,” said Elder McCann, pick all of the meat off the bone. You don’t want this stuff touching your lips. The best thing you can do is put all of the meat on a plate, grab a fork, open your mouth wide, and shovel it in as fast as you can. The longer it takes, the worse it’ll be.”

I asked each of them if they had any words or comments before they ate the flat-liner. Elder Oram said, “No.” Moving right along, Elder Phelps said, “I’m nervous about the burning sensation that I’m going to be feeling.” My companion said, “I’m gonna die!”

Then the flat-liner arrived. I feel I should point out that the peppers they put in the sauce are the same kind used in pepper spray. That’s how hot they are. Elder Oram picked all of the meat off the bone and started eating. Elder Phelps started in second shoveling the meat in with his fork. My companion was a bit more meticulous, by which I mean…slow. He was still preparing his food to be eaten.

Elder Phelps was going strong. No problems. Elder Oram was slowing down a bit. He’d only eaten about 1/3 of his wings when he said, “I’m gonna throw up.” He got up from the table and ran to the bathroom. Our waiter, who was watching this spectacle, said, “That guy’s done. He’s not going to want to finish his flat-liner.”

Much to everyone’s surprise, Elder Oram did not throw up. In fact, he came back, sat down and slowly started eating again. Elder Phelps finished his hot wings first. Out of the three elders, he had the fewest problems. Elder Oram was struggling to finish the last half of his meal. About this time, Elder Pierce started eating.

It was a slow process. Elder Pierce got about half way through his meal, then like Elder Oram, he began to slow down. Each bite was harder to take. In the end, Elders Oram and Pierce were down to their last bites. They made it. All three elders won. They all got t-shirts as well as their names on the wall. But, more importantly, their story is recorded in my journal.

After they had finished, I asked each of them how they felt. (“And, remember, this is for posterity, so be honest.” –Count Ruegen, the Six-Fingered Man, The Princess Bride). Elder Phelps said, “It wasn’t that bad. It’s hot. The secret is to eat as fast as you can. Don’t stop for anything to drink until you are done.” Elder Oram said, “Man, I’m dying.” He had gotten some of the flat-liner sauce on his lips and it hurt to close them. He stood there looking a little bit like Napoleon Dynamite. I asked my companion how he liked the flat-liner. He said, “I hate it. I feel like junk. But look at this beautiful shirt!”

All three elders agreed that the favorite part of the experience was getting to put their names on the wall. Elder Oram said that we would not do an exchange today, but save it for later in the week. On the way back home, Elder Pierce told me, “I’d never eat a flat-liner again.” “Was it worth it?” I asked. “Oh, yeah,” he replied.

Day 131-I Still Kinda Think the Book of Mormon is True. 08-06-06

It’s Fast Sunday. We just got home from church. Since I fasting and won’t be eating during my lunch time, I’ll write some of the things that happened today in Sunday school. C did not come to church today. She said earlier that her schedule is really busy right now but should calm down after the 10th. We’ll try to teach her later this week and see about her coming to church next Sunday. R showed up again. It’s always nice to see him. We plan on going over to visit him tomorrow sometime. Maybe teach him a lesson or something.

Brother G taught in the Priesthood session today. He talked about the 4th lesson in Preach My Gospel. The Commandments, Exodus 20:3-17, see also Mosiah 12:35 and 13:12-24.) He showed us a numerical way to remember the 10 commandments.

#1 is One. That’s not too hard to remember, is it? One. No other God’s before me.

#2 is Zoo. When you go to the National Zoo, what’s the first thing you see? Lions. At the entrance to the zoo, they have these big statues of lions. No graven images.

#3 is tree. What do trees have? Leaves. And how do they get nourishment to the tree? Veins. Thou shalt not take the Lord’s name in vain. (They get worse than this, I promise)

#4 is fort. When you attack the enemy’s fort, what do you use? Cannons. You use a cannon to blow a hole in the wall. Keep the Sabbath day HOLY.

#5 is family. This one is easy. Honor thy father and thy mother.

#6 is sticks. If you hit someone over the head with a stick, they will die. Thou shalt not kill.

#7 is Heaven. You won’t get into heaven if you do this…Thou shalt not commit adultery.

#8 is gate. The pearly gate that leads into heaven is made of what? Steel. Thou shalt not steal.

#9 is sign. What do billboards do? They advertise. Thou shalt not bear false witness.

#10 is tent. What do tents do? They cover things. Thou shalt not covet.

“Memorize this and you’ll always remember the 10 Commandments”, said Brother G.

After church today we visited with J. We had planned to teach him the 4th lesson, but when we got there, he had some deep searching questions that he wanted to ask us. “Who is God?” he asked. We went over how God is our loving Heavenly Father and what His plan is for us. He then asked, “Where do we go when we die?” We read him the great scripture in Alma 40:11-12. “Now concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection-behold it has been made known unto me by an angel that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this mortal body, yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God that gave them life. And then it shall come to pass that the spirits of those that are righteous are received into a state of happiness, which is called paradise, a state of rest, a state of peace, where they shall rest from all their troubles and from all care and sorrow.” J liked those verses.

We talked about going to the Visitor’s Center with J sometime this week. He needs to check his schedule. He told us to see him tomorrow afternoon so we can talk about it. He’s progressing a lot better than he was before. Since he’s already seen the new Joseph Smith movie, we plan on watching The Testaments with him. I still haven’t seen it, so it’ll be a real treat for me as well.

Uh-oh. That’s the same thing I wrote when we planned to go with S {day 115}. I hope this does not jinx it. Knock on wood. (knock, knock, knock)

Let’s see…a lot of good things happened today. It’s gonna be hard to pick a favorite for my happy thought…

Happy Thing for Day 131: The thought of going to the Visitor’s Center with J to watch The Testaments. We don’t even know if it’s going to happen, but at this point it makes me happy just to think that it might happen.

And here I was thinking I’d end my journal entry on that high note…At 9:50 tonight we got a phone call. Now, as missionaries, we expect calls around now because our district leaders call us to see how our day went. Elder Oram doesn’t usually call until around 10:00pm, but he had also talked about going on an exchange tomorrow after meetings, so I assumed that it was either him or Elder Phelps. It was neither.

It was D, the less active Mormon/switched to Catholic two days ago. And here I was thinking I might not ever see him again. “Hey, guys,” he said. “I don’t know what I was thinking. I don’t really want to go to the Catholic church.” (Pause) “I still kinda think the Book of Mormon is true. I just don’t have a real strong testimony of it yet.” (Pause) “Yes, Brother O,” said I, “developing your own testimony of the Book of Mormon is important. Would it be okay if we stopped by and visited with you tomorrow after lunch?” I said. “Sure. Whatever,” he said. “Okay, bye.” “Bye (click).” I told Elder Pierce what happened on the phone with Brother O. He said, “Okay, D is crazy. He’s going straight to the Celestial kingdom because he’s not accountable for his choices.” Definitely an interesting turn of events…

Okay, so tomorrow looks kind of fun. Brother O wants us to meet with him, plus we’re gonna go see J about a Visitor’s Center trip later in the week, and M wants to see us as well. Tomorrow – Monday Meetings plus exchanges. Busy, busy, busy.