Back to Work

This last week has been crazy busy for me because of captain's week, coaching a camp and getting ready to move back up to school. It felt like the first time I wasn't running from place to place every day was when I was getting into bed that night. It was definitely exhausting but a good preparation for fall camp which starts in TWO DAYS!! I can't even believe how soon the start of my sophomore year is. I'm so excited for everything about fall - starting classes, practice every day, games every weekend, traveling, being with my team all the time, I love it all so much. And to make it even better I finally get to start playing again, and that's easily the thing I'm looking forward to the most. Each time I train I feel more and more confident so even though I'm not completely back to where I was before my injury I know that will come in time. What's even crazier to me is that this is the last season that Mikel will have to miss! Ahhh!

"As you know I am not in my area due to my companions eye surgery. No we have not just been doing nothing we actually did quite a bit of work this week. We did a lot of door to door knocking and trying to find less active members here in Bloemfontein specifically the Rocklands area. It was amazing, it felt so good to get back out on the streets and do missionary work again.

As I wrote to President Thompson:

We spent a good part of this week tracting, which was fantastic. I never thought I would enjoy tracting as much as I did this week. Just getting into full groove of missionary work again has been great!  I guess it brought back memories of when I started my mission and how excited I was for everything. Thus the saying you never know what you have till its gone. This past couple of weeks of more of downtime has made me appreciate being a missionary so much more. It has completely reminded me of how much I truly love being a missionary in every aspect of the word! I hope that I can keep this remembrance of excitement and joy for the work for the rest of my mission.

We found an amazing investigator this week. She is a young women who knows the bishop of Thaba Nchu. She already likes the church and its standards and seems very omitted in learning more about our message. we taught the restoration to her and she had good questions about it which shows her genuine interest. It is sad that I will be going back to Lesotho this week and will be unable to continue teaching this family. I hope the other missionaries have success as they bring them unto Christ. It is funny how in such a short time you can really grow to love people. I think it all comes through the service and sacrifice. I think those are the two best ways to love someone. and of course the spirit helps you to see those you teach with spiritual eyes and see there potential and the love the Lord has for them as well. Being a missionary is great for so many reasons and that is a huge one. being able to love people and see who they really are is such a blessing and a half!

It will be nice being back in Lesotho and knowing the area and people. I hope we can use the rest of the transfer to really do some great things in the area.

nothing super exciting or interesting went on this week except for teaching some people and tracting but it was in all a good week I think.

Sadly the computers here are still making it impossible to send pictures but oh well I guess next week you will get a lot :) Its kinda weird taking pictures  because we pull out an actual camera we tried to have this women take a picture for us and she didnt even know how to use the camera and she is only 35 probably. Its funny. we are so used to cameras built into our phones, and we rarely see people with actual cameras besides the big professional ones."

It's so awesome that he was reminded of how much he loves missionary work. I hope he can carry that reminder through the remainder of his mission. It's so true that you never know what you have until it's gone because we tend to take things for granted when we do them every day or they become a habit.

"Sounds like a a fantastic week, I cant wait to go camping and fishing and relaxing. So I dont know how to fly fish, maybe you can teach me sometime :) :)

haha the story of abby getting bitten on the eye made me laugh quite a bit just because I can imagine her freaking out about it haha she is a character for sure.

Zane played top soccer a bit so I have done some stuff with them, its such a great programme! :)

I love how you are always just volunteering to be the one to help in every situation. you always would help the freshman and this and so much more. Your heart is just so big and loving and I admire your desire to include and help others feel safe, and a part of everything. I love you for that!

It is so weird to hear of people going on missions since I have been gone for a year. and there are still going to be more as people a year younger than us leave. Chandler haws just left to his mission which is so weird!

11 more months isnt that insain! could you imagine if I was a sister missionary I would have 5 more months, like its only six months but makes a huge difference."

We'll have lots of pictures this week so I'm definitely looking forward to that :)

11 Months to Go

"This week was quite different. Because of Elder Leonards surgery to get his second cornea transplant so we have been in Bloemfontein the whole week and will be until at least the 26th. Last week he wasn't able to do any missionary work so we were home a lot......

I love being in Bloemfontein because Elder Roberts is here and he is the smartest guy gospel wise that I have ever met in my life. He always teaches us the coolest things about the gospel and any questions that we have he answers them.

I can't upload any pictures because the computers here are super bogus! sorry :(

I guess though because I dont have much to say this week its a perfect oppurtunity to bear my testimony again.

I really do love this gospel. I love when you are sitting at your desk with the scriptures and you just get into it and get going and it becomes so real and you can't put it down. The hour goes by and your companion is now waiting on you so you can study together but you don't want to stop the flow. The scriptures bring real life solutions to real life problems and the greatest peace you can feel. Isn't that something we are all always looking for? peace? In work, in family, in everything? We want joy and peace. Well the answer is really quite simple. it's not necessarily easy but it is simple, we read, we pray and we go to church dang it! We all have the capability to feel with power, the love of God, and to feel close to him. We all have a purpose and the right to know it. The answers all lie within the good book. Pick it up, dust it off and just open it and watch as your life completely changes."

I love his testimony of the scriptures! Lately my testimony of them has definitely been strengthened because I have received such personal revelation while doing my studying. They are written for us and our benefit. I'll just share his personal email to me as well since there aren't any pictures to fill up the space :)

"sounds like quite the busy week for sure. I still love braging about you to people how you have played in other countries and practice with rsl and are so beautiful and perfect. :) haha.

I am glad your quad is feeling better though.

I havnt talked to Kami in awhile I need to see whats going on in her life. You are an awesome big sister by the way, you always have been and I know you dont think so.

God is good, all the time... All the time, God is good. I am so excited for this season to start and hear about how well you will be doing in all your games and how surprised everyone else will be ( not me I know you are going to be better than before) ;)

I miss camping so much, its a thing that people dont really do much here because the areas I serve in havnt been the richest so they already kinda live a camping lifestyle.

Wow that is a powerful experience you had. we dont necessarily get those all to often. So they are special and we need to remember them, and I know you dont struggle writing in your journal so thats a good thing. It makes me so happy to hear about that. The power of revelation is amazing and I love how we can really receive personal revelation, direct communication, from God! its the best!!!!


I dont know why but the past few days I have just felt the impulsing urge to tell you how much I care  about you.  I know you know that but for some reason it dosnt feel enough. I love you. its that simple. thats the fact of the matter. I will do anything for you, to be with you, to make you smile and laugh and get all giddly like you do :) I hear and even teach that people arnt perfect, which is sometimes hard to believe when I think of you. but I do know that people can be perfect for each other, evidence is you. You are perfect for me. you make me the best me that me can be ;) (I know the English is bad there but I think it sounds cute) I cant stand the thought of you being hurt and sad. All of me really does love All of you. and I sure will give my all. Nothing less would suffice, You deserve the sun and the moon and although I may not be able to get it, Ill die trying! You are the most amazing women I have ever met or seen, even heard of. I truly and deeply love you. I dont know why, but I still feel like I havnt said enough or done justice to what I feel. I guess I am not the eloquent poet who can woo women by his tingling words that cause sensations to bubble throughout your skin and very being, but hey I am trying. haha I think of the song by script where he says " those three words, are said to much, then not enough." I love you Hailey Kay Skolmoski!!!!!

:) :) :) :) this is me being giddly too :) :) :) :)"

Oh man. He's the best.

Cops and Surgery

Well it sounds like he had an interesting week! From a couple interactions with the cops to his companion getting surgery on his eye. They will be staying together for another transfer because of the surgery. It has made it so they can't go out and teach much, but he sounds like they are making the most of it and they are just enjoying each others company. It's crazy that it's already time for transfers, that one felt like it flew!

"So funny story I forgot about two weeks ago now. I was driving down town and went to park in a parking spot, now this is Lesotho and I have never seen worse driving in my life.  Partly do to the fact that people buy their licenses from the black market because it can take over year to go through proper channels. So I crossed a solid line (which happens all the time) to get a parking spot. I didn't notice the cops that were there this day and they came up to me and talked a while as they read me my rights and said I was under arrest. Now in Lesotho they don't give tickets they just arrest you.... so we talked a bit more trying to see if there was anything we could do. He later told me I should buy some drinks for him and his colleagues. I of course said I couldn't and he said no as friends... he wanted a bribe of some sort... we continued to talk and then teach about the gospel and he then said that we could go. So I almost go arrested, that was fun. haha

Now more cop stories. We had to take Elder Leonard to the border so he could go to Bloem with some senior couples the get his surgery. As we went to our car after parking in town what I thought was legal we went back to our car to find a nice big clamp on it. eish... I picked up an new motto it goes "would it help" so when I come to my car and see a clamp and want to be angry I think "would it help" if not then why get angry I am only hurting myself so I just laughed as we waited for some other missionaries to take us to the border. we then get their and drive through the parking lot and let Elder Leonard walk across. We then realize that to go back we have to pass the immigration desk... we don't have our passports. We were quite worried that they would not less us back into the country even though we didn't technically leave. luckily we got back over the border then headed to the police office to get the clamp sorted. Now one of the high ranking officers is our district councilor at church so he got the clamp of for free which was very nice. He helps a lot when we get arrested for dumb things. Anyways that's Lesotho and the police haha

Elder Leonards cornea transplant went great! we go for a check up tomorrow. So needless to say we didn't do much this week because he was on bed rest recovery and needs eye drops every two hours, but it went good. We have been enjoying each others company and bum bum bum dah we are staying together another transfer. (In response to me saying to him last week I would be surprised if they changed him if his companion is having surgery.  hahaha)  The weird thing is we are scheduled to be staying in Bloem for 4 weeks. We will see if we end up being that side for that long but we will see. I am excited. I think its good because a change of companions after the surgery would have been hard. So today we leave for Bloem and plan to be their for about a month, we aren't sure why but oh well.

I love the scriptures! a lot a lot..... You can read them or you can READ them! See the difference. when we think about what the time was like, why people said what, why they were where they were. Things like that we start to understand and learn so so much!!!"

"Learned how to make battered chicken! Yum"

I'll also share all of his personal email to me because I loved what he says at the end. I've been struggling with feeling like I'm not progressing in the gospel, and his response to what I said was perfect! The day that I got his email I decided I needed to listen to a conference talk on my way home from Salt Lake so I just had my phone play a random one and it happened to be President Uchtdorf's talk from October 2014 "Living the Gospel Joyfully". It fit perfectly with what I needed and what Mikel said to me, so of course it was no coincidence. I highly recommend reading it or listening to it, it's a good one :)

"He is an awesome mission president, he is super excited to work and loves the outdoors and has a good sense of humor. I like him a lot. we still dont know him super well and how he deals with things but we will see.

 I was thinking the same thing. I will be with you next fourth of july!!! can you believe it! ah it sounds so good :) :) :) dont worry I am really good at relaxing (lazy) so I can help when I am back ;)

the house really looks so cute and perfect! how often do you practice with the rsl womens? I am sure you did great and I have no doubt the you will quickly become better than you ever were before :) you are becoming an adult... it weird... but I think I like it haha.

ah you are watching greys anatomy without me!!! sad news for an enamored heart haha. 

Going into tackles will probably be something that will take time but thats natural and 100 percent normal. dont beat yourself up to much babe I know you got this.

Life is full of ups and downs. but only good experiences. I dont believe there is such thing as a bad experience (I know ive mentioned this before) there are no bad experiences because we learn from them. they may hurt, be sad, and hard but they are for our benefit. 

sometimes we do find ourselves in a rut, even on mission. we do what we are supposed to but find not much gain. I am not sure on the answer to a lot of things. but I know that we can pray for desire, pray for the spirit. and I know our intentions and willingness and heart play a big role. If we do things simply because we think we should or we must then we get the same mediocre response from the performance but if we do something out of love, joy and excitement then we receive 100 times more. we need to find joy in what we are doing. for example if I go to practice and I practice hard but I do it because it is expected of me and I should as to if I go and love it and give my all. in which version do you think I would gain more from the experience. I think we can apply this to life and how we must find joy and love in what we do, especially the gospel. Reading my scriptures isnt good enough. praying isnt good enough. but love is always enough. I dont really know babe, but I am here for you. I love you!"

New Mission President!

So just last week I went to two wedding receptions which is only the beginning of the weddings that are coming up. It feels like everyone I graduated with is either getting married, already married or on a mission! It's crazy. Most of the weddings I will miss because of soccer, but it's still crazy how many invites I've gotten lately. I was telling him about all of the weddings I've gone to and how different all of them are. Some with no dancing, some with lots, different venues and foods and all that good stuff. All I know is that at my wedding we're going to have dancing! Because it's boring without it haha.

"Our wedding will be so much better, I will refuse to do it in a chapel because you feel like you need to be reverent, no I am going to roast an entire pig and we are going to dance and it will be fun buy golly!

Just think that all these weddings are helping you to plan the best one yet! and their cant be that many more before I get back right? the summer bulk is probably almost over and then you got the winter weddings right? probably not haha.... people are just marry hungry."

"We had a braai at Brother Thebes house. Ate with our hands right out of the bowl, African style!"

"Interesting week. the week started off just as any other, teaching preaching and knocking on doors. Come Thursday we went to the mountains to continue to help Sis Lineo (Di-nay-O).  We spent most the day up there just digging holes, not in the snow this time. 

We went to go teach Bolelang a little bit latter and boy was that an interesting lesson. We got there and started to follow up on the lesson when me and my companion just started laughing.... we couldn't stop. It was an inside joke from earlier and it just erupted in an unprecedented fashion. We would stop for a few honorable second but inevitably erupt into laughs and tears. All the while Bolelang sat, waiting, confused and probably concerned, not just for us but probably for her safety as I am sure.  We seemed to have completely lost our minds. Eventually we were able to start the lesson though. We are currently undergoing addiction recovery with her and that is a first for me so we are really praying for the guidance on how to help her kick her habit. We asked about her Book of Mormon reading and she told us she finished first Nephi but restarted it so she could go through it with the student study manual we gave her so she could understand everything. She is power and always has great questions. She hasn't missed a day of church since I met her over two months ago!!!!

We are beginning the last week of our transfer which just blows me away. I don't know how the time is going so fast. Days are longs and weeks are short, that is so true! Elder Leonard has been a hoot, but think I may be getting transferred this time. I don't know how I feel about it but I think I am ready for a new area and a good kick start for the year. 

Elder Leonard will be going in for surgery to get a new cornea in his eye this week. when he comes back he will be on bed rest for about one to two weeks. so that's going to be tough on us both. I will be rotating with the other missionaries every day so that I can still do missionary work and not sit on my rump for a week and a half. but it will still be weird not really working in my area."

Soda Floats!

"So the big news was President Thompson this week. He is here!!! I was quite anxious to meet him but also thought it would be super awkward when we did.  However, it actually felt quite normal. I really like him. He loves the outdoors. He likes to laugh and smile and I just think I will get a long really well with him. I feel like we have a lot of the same interests. He also brought his 18 year old daughter who will be here for maybe a month or a few. So the mission was quite the  buzz and about seeing her haha I guess that's what happens when you don't have sister missionaries in your mission. I also found out that sister Thompson, our new and amazing mission mom, has been reading my letters... eish..... and so she may read this as well..... I hope she like it..... maybe not the part about mentioning how excited the mission was to meet her daughter haha. They are from Boston but have lived in Alpine Utah for the past little while. I am very excited to see the new things that President implements into the mission. I think we are going to focus a lot more on the Book of Mormon which is great!"

"Getting swole digging in the mountains"

"I ate myself sick while we were in Bloem. it was worth it... but not really the next day if you know what I mean haha. We went to a buffet for dinner which was pretty good but I think that's what killed all of our stomachs the next day. We had McDonalds for lunch and then the next day a buffet at the hotel, then unlimited pizza for lunch and yes McD's for dinner again.... Needless to say I am out of money and probably chubby now but hey when you live Lesotho and you don't have any of these things you get excited.... :)

So I have related mission to a big hill before, and I think it is quite true. You spend your first year going up, it is hard, you slip but you keep going up and working hard. You get to the top and look and see the beauty of it all. You have done so much worked so hard. but now you got the second half, down hill. Now I see two approaches. One, you go down and hit the brakes. You slow down, and coast. You see this a lot as missionaries are getting ready to go home. Or you run. you go down the hill faster than you came up. You do as much as you can and you don't stop, don't slow down, and you "finish strong"as we say. I  hope I continue to run rather than slow down as I go through my second year of mission. I am so excited that I get to spend another entire year serving my Lord and God."

"I know that the work I am doing is good, I know it is true! I know that our savior Jesus Christ died, rose, and continues to lead us today through a living prophet named Thomas Monson. I know that the work of God is lead by His power and watchful eye. I know that my Father in Heaven loves me. I know that the book of Mormon is the most true book you can find here on earth today! I love it, I know it!"

"apparently I am getting more mature according to my last mission president. I still think I do a lot of childish things though but then again I will always retain a bit of the goofy childishness because I lauve it :)

We sure are getting along great, He is awesome! we laugh a lot!!!! I love you babe, we are almost there. Dont forget when it seems so hard you have to temple. and you can remember why.

Always

Elder Mookie"

One Year of Learning

Wow sometimes Monday's sneak up on me! (Hence the reason I'm posting this two weeks after I got the emails) The days are long but the weeks are short and summer is almost halfway over. Well, for me it's almost over because we start fall camp for soccer on August 2nd. It's getting so close!! I don't think I've ever been more excited to play soccer in my life haha. It's been over 8 months since the last time I put on my jersey to play, which is wayyy longer than I've ever been away from the game. I have been training and running and all that stuff up to this point, but I've never been limited as to my ability to play until this injury so it's been quite the experience. Needless to say I'm more than ready for this season to start :) It's crazy to think that this is my last season before Mikel gets home! Ahh! I've been really thinking about what it's going to be like when I'm playing again, how well I'm going to do, where I'm going to play and how much I'm going to play. I'm not sure what to expect and it's kind of making me nervous. But Mikel is always comforting and reassuring when I'm a worrier and vent to him about things. "I know that you are going to be an even better player than before and better person, hope, hope is key. an assurance that thing will work out. I love you and know that anything less then better wont cut it and you will get there."

Well his mass email had lots of good stuff in it this week, so I'll mostly just put all of that in here.

"Wait wait wait. no the subject says what!?!?

this cant be right. I just came on mission and the calendar is telling me I have been here for one year. It is crazy and cliche but time flies ay?

Well one year. what have I learned? the list is too big to begin. I have learned so much about myself, about life, others, trials, fears, joy, sadness, addiction, recovery, prayer, answers, blessings and more!!!

I have been blessed beyond measure this past year. Although I seem to make many mistakes, get frustrated or angry at times the Lord seems to bless me still. When I feel inadequate He lifts me up and pushes me forward.

This year has been hard for sure, but worth it! Oh it has been so worth it. Worth the initial home sickness, the leaving of friends and family, the not knowing what I am doing here, the want to go home, the I want to punch my companion, the I want to give up, the this is hard, the is it worth it, the can I do it, the countless prayers for help, the feeling of lacking, the everything that mission throws at you. YES  it is all worth it! and at the end of the day I LOVE IT!"

"It's getting cold in South Africa!"

"I love the people, the land, the language, the buildings, the dirt roads, the pot holes, the struggle, the joy, the peace, the love, the hope, the comfort, the lessons, the blessings, the growth, the spirit, the brotherhood, the desire, the smiles, long days, the falling asleep during your prayers, the waking up the next day on your knees, and just everything mission really does give you! Do it! Love it!

Its kinda weird to think I am a year and considered "old on mission" and my babe just went home today. sad day.

So to celebrate no I did not burn a shirt even though a lot of them have holes and rips that have been stitched. instead I took my companion out and we had a nice dinner of steak and ribs! it was awesome. I haven't had steak in exactly one year. (we took him out to eat for his last meal and he chose Longhorn Steakhouse)

I have come to love this gospel. I have come to love the scriptures and recently love the Bible, its soooo good haha. I love my savior, brother, and friend Christ. He is my hope, my salvation, my safety. I love my Father in Heaven. His love fills my heart! I am so grateful I get the chance to testify every single day about Their divine love for us. About our purpose here on earth, where we came from, what we are to do. and testify of the blessings of a modern day prophet who leads and guides us. I know it, I know it, I know it. That's just it. It's so perfect and beautiful and simple. It brings the sweetest and best feeling I have ever felt in my life. 100x times better than your first kiss 100x better than perfecting a back flip 100x better than scoring the championship goal to win the game! Nothing compares to the love I feel when I am doing what my Father in Heaven wants, when I am testifying that He lives! When I feel the comfort and truth when reading and praying over my scriptures."

"Birthday (one year) meal!"

"my companion is great and we are getting along quite nicely he is a super funny guy but sometimes I just want to sleep at night and he keeps talking haha oh well. he is good. our investigators are okay but running into so stumbling blocks that we first have to climb, but we will get their :)

I love you and I too have been thinking about you so much this week, well I always do but like more than usuall. I miss you.... as you said though, such is life and we will continue to push through like we do :)

Love

Elder Mookie"

I love his testimony and love of the people he is serving!