Elder Garrett Brothers' Mission Blog: Week 5: First impressions of Wyoming

Following is Garrett's email from his fifth week of his mission. His email address is garrett.brothers@myldsmail.net, and his mailing address for letters and packages is:

Elder Garrett Brothers

242 Laredo Rd, Apt. 10

Evanston, WY 82930

Week 5 Journal

August 2nd, 2016:
We drove down to Salt Lake yesterday night and stayed with another companionship. Today we had a glorious McDonalds breakfast. Bleah.

I've thought about the two entries I've written in my journal--choosing to believe & journal of an optimistic pessimist—and I've decided I should:

1. View everything, personally, while pretending I've already accepted it, and
2. Not think about what I will say when bearing my testimony until I bear it, and saying what I feel like I should say. (Principle of "it's not what I say--it's about the spirit")

~Later~

Well, I didn't get my iPad today. Or, well, I got it, but the password I remember setting wasn't working so we had to reset it... I should get it tomorrow. Also, I couldn't get my driving privileges today because I needed a DMV driving record. Oh well. [Note: I found my record later, but it wasn't the only reason why I couldn't get the privileges that day.]

Today we got back so late (due to all of that ^) that we couldn't get dinner. The second lesson we had--at 20:00--didn't show but the member we were with asked if we had dinner... he ended up feeding us! It was super nice of him, and it was a great meal to boot.

Also, I weighed myself in SLC--the elders we stayed with had a scale--and while when I started at the MTC I weighed 188 lbs, I weighed 174 lbs. I've lost 14 pounds!

August 3rd, 2016:
I still haven't sent out cards to the three people who sent me care packages! I've had so little time! I'll try to get them out next p-day (5 days)...

Things are going well in the field. We've had a few potential baptisms fall into our lap, which is to say other people prepared them most of the way & they're willing/desiring to join the church.

The zone leaders called and said they forgot my iPad at SLC (they stayed one more day, so they were going to bring it down after it was reset). They then later called back and said they were kidding and that they had it with them. Ha.

Attached [to the physical journal] is the ticket we got to see pig wrestling. It's an odd sport.

August 4th, 2016:
I got my iPad today--finally--and got it all set up. We're not allowed to go on google to search for backgrounds, so could you [mom & dad or anyone else] send me a few via email? Funny ones are okay but spiritual ones are probably better. If you could find some with the word "assurance" I would really appreciate it.

I'm on an exchange with Elder Lolofie right now. Elder Owen is the district leader so he has to do lots of exchanges which means I do too. The members are really nice everywhere I've been which is awesome.

I should clarify--in my last email I tried to write more but I was running out of time--that I will try to respond to emails as I can. Also, it turns out biking is very strong here, especially in the valley & Utah in general, so Logan should keep in practice! (...and I should learn how to ride soon or something...)

Hey, also, music is a great gift. I've already gotten so much, so really this is future reference for whenever, like Christmas or my birthday. Anything that would be performed in sacrament meeting is allowed--not just hymns but special musical numbers--so that's cool. Some cars have a USB port so you could send a flash drive with MP3 files, but CDs are probably a safer bet. Mom or dad, could you e-mail me a list of all the songs "Smooth McGroove" has covered? He's an artist on YouTube who specializes in video game music and while most tracks are not allowed, I know a few would be so I would like to pick them out. More ideas for music include:

Piano guys
Acapella groups (the BYU Acapella groups are amazing)
Smooth McGroove: Minecraft calm, Ode to Order (?), Splatoon sunken sea scrolls
Sleep by Eric Whittaker (?)
EFY music

August 5th, 2016:
Responding to emails:
Chelsea: I think I can absentee vote. That being said, I would like my vote for president to be for whatever 3rd party candidate has a good shot in Virginia. I'm okay with publicly disclosing this.

I'm adjusting pretty well to the schedule--the sleep schedule lines up pretty well for me and the leisure activities I did were really only when I was bored, so here it's not a problem most of the time--but it still is a challenge.

I don't really have a preference on emails or letters; I'm more likely to respond to letters but emails are easier to manage. I would guess letters are better.

I have a nephew! I'll just have too wait to see him in person, but I saved the photos of him to my iPad.

~Later~

Oh my goodness! That was fast--my parents just sent me a Life Proof case for my iPad. It's really good. They also sent an extra cover but it doesn't stay closed too well because the magnets are weak. And if I put the shoulder straps on the side of the case they gets in the way of the cover. But I've already gotten used to that--it's really nothing--and I'm super happy about the whole case. Thank you mom & dad! And I would recommend the case to all iPad missionaries, just maybe not the cover if you plan to use the shoulder strap. [Note: fair warning, I have only used the case for a few days. I'll update if I start having problems with it but as of right now it seems like a good case.]

Soon after, I got another care package from grandma! It was just cookies, which is not to say "aw, it's only cookies" but to say that the entire package was full of cookies. Cookies and bubble wrap. Thank you for your thoughts, love, and cookies grandma!

Also, I tried the licorice today from Karelia. I took a video. It smelled like black licorice, but it actually tasted really good! (I must admit that after I ate it my stomach was ... Confused. I'll try a bit more later to see if it was the licorice, but in any case it is still a wonderful thought.)

August 6th, 2016:
I realized today that it's okay to believe only because you want to believe. I'll think more on it, but for now it's interesting.

Also, we got to play frisbee golf today! It was cool, but also cold. And the field was wet, so my shoes/socks/feet got cold water on them. I've been borrowing my companion's sweater--I haven't checked the coat I got but I don't think it's good for exercise.

~Later~

We kinda... wasted the rest of the day. We had a party in the Spanish Branch, and while we had contacted every one of our current investigators, we could have found more. Instead, we spent time with our investigators playing frisbee. So it really wasn't a waste, but we could have done some things better.

Also, those "ring" frisbee fly unreasonably far.

August 7th, 2016:
We had so many sacrament meetings today! It's hard; it's like a church marathon. It was also fast Sunday today, it was a long time to go and a whole lot to do without eating or drinking anything. So I was very glad that our dinners are early.

Everyone seems to know someone from Virginia. It's crazy.

It rained today. It was cloudy all day, but the rain started around noon. It then picked up within 10 minutes, stopped by 15, came back in full force with thunder and lightning before 20, proceeded to hail by 30, and stopped completely by 40. Some of the residents told us that it's pretty normal; if Wyoming isn't summer or winter it can't really decide what to do.

I took a video of our house tour. Also, I tried to finish the cards today but I think I'll send them out tomorrow.

**************

Following is my weekly email to my mission president:

***********

Hi!

Things have been going pretty well. We've been put in charge of the Spanish branch, despite neither of us speaking Spanish, so that's fun. It's not that bad, really, because there a lot of the ward is willing to help translate and most of our investigators speak Spanish and English. We have three on-date, back to back, which is really exciting for me!

Things have gotten better--the first few days I was on the field, people weren't responding the majority of the time. Now, when we have a lesson set up the investigator(s) is/are actually there. Well, most of the time anyways.

I've made some progress in my testimony; I went on exchanges with Elder Lolofie and we talked about our testimonies together. From him, I realized I should spiritually examine the spirit when I'm feeling it rather than analytically examining it. Those are my thoughts, but I'm still figuring out how to spiritually analyze something...

Also, during personal study I realized that it's okay to believe something because you want to believe it, even if you can't back it up logically. That's what people mean when they say that belief is a choice. However I also recognize that just believing because you want to isn't the strongest testimony. I think I was scared to chose to believe before because I knew it would start out weak, and I was scared of having my testimony challenged and not being able to defend it (because it hadn't grown enough).

Going on a mission has made me realize exactly how blessed I am. I knew long before this that everyone has something--a struggling relative, health issues, money issues, etc--and I had a somewhat good idea that I was pretty lucky to grow up in the family I did, but it's an entirely different thing to pass hundreds of trailer homes and hear that many are struggling to even get by. It's made me a lot more grateful.

Most of our investigators are progressing really well. One hard thing we've ran into twice is when elderly investigators will not come to church because they're concerned for their health. We suspect both times they're also not interested, or not willing to commit.

Anyway, that's how it's been here!

**************

Anyway, answering dad's questions:

Q1. How does it feel to be out of the MTC and in the field? What are the people there like, what is the climate and geography like, what do you like most and least about it so far?

A1. It's good to finally be doing things in the field. Everyone's pretty nice, even the non-members, which is awesome. The climate is hot (for now :P) and dry--we haven't had rain for 2 months or something--but it rained heavily recently which is a good sign of change. It's pretty wide open with few trees. The land has gentle hills, unless you run into a mountain. I love how much of the sky you can see and how quiet it is. We can't spend time at night--heavens knows (ha ha) that we need the rest--but I would love to do astronomy out here because it's so far from anything. I really don't like how you pull out of your neighborhood and you're either in town or on a freeway.

Q2. Tell me about your new companion. Where is he from, how long has been on his mission, are you the first missionary that he has trained, etc.

A2. Elder Owen is from Michigan. I am the first missionary he's training; he's been here just under one year (this is his midpoint transfer).

Q3. What qualities does you companion have that you would like to emulate?

A3. Elder Owen is enthusiastic about fitness; I like to exercise but he likes to work out (I like playing games, he likes doing weightlifting and pull ups and other things focused on making you fitter). He's also very experienced and has a practical idea about the things we can eat when cooking our own meals, what to expect from investigators, etc.

Q4. What is the missionary work like in your area? How many investigators do you have? How many people have joined the church in your area in the past year or so? Are the members actively supporting the work, and if so, how?

A4. Missionary work is productive here. We have about 7 investigators (maybe more). About 23 people have joined in our area alone in the past year. Members are pretty happy to help, especially when it comes to dinner sign ups, but they'll also come to lessons and give referrals.

Q5. Are you able to check your emails daily, or just on p-day?

A5. I can check emails daily and plan my responses to them (but I don't have a TON of time for it). I can only send on p-day unless I get special permission for an urgent thing.

Q6. Do you have a tablet now, and if so, what kind? What sites are whitelisted? Can you visit the blog that we have created for your emails and selected pictures? (http://eldergarrettbrothers.blogspot.com/)

A6. I have an iPad mini 2. Very few sights are whitelisted, so I can't even visit the blog site.

Q7. Can we email you videos, like of Rose and Lily?

A7. You can send me videos. I checked with the district leader and zone leaders, and they all said it was okay.

Q8. What did you think of your mission president and his wife? What did he ask you in your initial interview? Did you tell him that Bro. Gerard was from our ward, and that your parents knew the Gerards pretty well? (Pres. Hillier and Bro. Gerard worked closely together while they both served as area authorities for the church.)

A8. The mission president was mostly focused on where to put me/who to put me with in his interview, but he also asked about my family (which took a bit of time). I forgot to tell him about Brother Gerard.

Q9. Before you left the MTC did you get our package that had the licorice, the tip clasp, and other goodies?

Q9. Yes! Thank you for the care package!

Q10. Can we send packages directly to your apartment, or do all cards, letters, packages, etc. have to go through the mission office?

A10. You can send me stuff directly to my apartment. It may change if I get transferred to the valley, so if you want to send me something at the beginning of my transfer send it to the mission office.

Grandma--I just got your most recent letter. Thank you for sharing your testimony with me. I'm sorry I can't write much of a reply right now as I only have 2 minutes left and still want to figure out photos...... but I'll write later!

Anyway I'll write you next week!

Elder Brothers

Photos!