12-17-12

Annie’s Letter

SOMEONE PLEASE GO WATCH SINGIN IN THE RAIN FOR ME!

Hi dearest family! I just love you guys! I love getting your emails and I am SO EXCITED TO TALK TO ALL OF YOU! I can't skype. I will be calling sometime after 7 here. (5 there) so if you have any last minute time requests or instructions... email me. I'll get in...maybe on Monday.. I'm not sure what the PDay situation is going to be next week since it's Christmas Eve... well... after 5. be there or be square! all of you! (JUSTIN AND JON ARE INCLUDED!) If possible. I want to talk to my WHOLE family! Because I love all of you! This week has just been a little crazy. Investigators, walking, Christmas Devotional, Crazy angry, GOLDEN BEAR, Shawn Bradley, walking, walking, walking... sick, happy, sad, confused, worried, excited, optimistic, basically, you name an adjective this week I felt it. So let's start at the beginning, a very good place to start! SO on Monday I experienced the joy and pure happiness that comes in a can with a GOLDEN BEAR label. What, you might ask, is this thing of which I speak? We had a similar question. The Elders assured us (constantly for the last month) that Golden Bear was basically liquid happiness and just the best thing ever! They also compared it to fine wine, which concerned us a bit. What do these NOT 21 year old boys know about fine wine? ...? Anyway, On Monday we went to Walgreens (basically the only place that sells Golden Bear) and got some. WOW. It is lemonade made by Arizona (it doesn't have tea in it don't worry) there is lemonade with honey and strawberry lemonade. It is really really good. We love Golden Bear. So Tuesday we went to the Christmas devotional. It was so fun! Shawn Bradley was there. He played for the 76ers, NJ Nets (yes, New Jersey) and a long time for the Dallas Mavriks. He is 7'6". I got to play the piano for a professional basketball player! He also played for BYU and went on a mission to Australia! He is so awesome! And SO TALL! seriously... I'll show you guys a picture when I get it. It's crazy. 7'6". That's more than 2 feet taller than me! I have never felt so short in my life! At lunch, we were sitting with President and Sister Nilsen and so then, naturally, Shawn Bradley came and sat there too. So I got to sit right next to him! He said "I just thought I'd sit by you so I could elbow you." something like that... and he elbowed me! Now, when most people elbow you it hits somewhere around your rib area... HIS ELBOW HIT MY HEAD! yeah, I go up to like... his stomach. Tall. 7"6"! WOW! The devotional was really fun! We had a talent show that was just so much fun! Sister Twitchell and I did Abbot and Costello's "Who's on first" IT was so fun! I was Costello. I wore a jersey from... THE ST LOUIS CARDINALS! Because Brother Smith (in my ward... was totally a pitcher for them! Until he got hurt so he never went to the majors) Still, awesome! And I got to be crazy angry! because Sister Twitchell (Abbot) just wouldn't answer my question! I feel for Costello. Poor guy. If you're not familiar with that sketch or if it has been more than...a month since you saw it, please go to youtube at the conclusion of reading this email and watch it. Oh. and President gave us all Golden Bears. haha.

So, moving forward a couple of days and to a much more serious note... we were devastated by the news that we heard about the shooting in Connecticut. How awful! It has made me really grateful for the wonderful blessing of the gospel in my life. What comfort it brings! On that night we were visiting a less active member. She had the TV on in the background (of course about that story) and we were singing. What were we singing you might ask? "JOY TO THE WORLD!" Guys, I was just struck with such comfort. It is so amazing that eve though we live in such a scary world where such terrible things can happen... MEN ARE THAT THEY MIGHT HAVE JOY! We can still find joy in the midst of all the tragedy that surrounds us because we have the Savior. Because He took upon Himself all of our sins, sadnesses, sorrows, illnesses...EVERYTHING! He did it all! That's so amazing! We have been talking a lot about Alma 31:38 where it talks about all affliction being swallowed up in the joy of Christ. Compare that to John 16:33 where the joy of Christ is defined. No matter what happens, everything is going to be okay! Because we have the Savior! It's just amazing!!!!!!

Fast forward another couple of days: we had an incredible miracle yesterday... 4 PEOPLE CAME TO CHURCH! It was such a wonderful blessing! We have been working so hard to get people to church and this week it was just awesome! We are doing everything we can to combat Satan. In the words of Sister Eby (who has more faith than ANYONE I know) "Get behind me Satan. Go to hell, it's where you're gonna be anyway!" HAHA! We are doing everything we can to send him away to where he belongs RIGHT NOW! He has no place in this work! "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ" 2 Timothy 2:3 It's become a favorite scripture of mine. Satan is so against us, he places stumbling blocks in our way and in the way of our investigators but we just have to be good soldiers, endure hardness. And we can do it because... "God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power and of love, and of a sound mind" MAN! Timothy got all sorts of great advice! I'm so glad we get that too! Anyway... this letter is kind of babbly and scatter brained...sorry. I know the gospel is true! I do! "I know it, I live it, I love it!"...and I share it!

Mom, I'm willing to do anything to get past all this junk! So, I'll look for that stuff today. Will I be able to find it? Transfers are January 3.

I'm so glad you guys enjoyed the Forgotten Carols. We'll definitely have to go next year so Megan, Justin, and I can see it! That will be great!

Natalie, good job, you finished your first semester of college! Congratulations! I'm so proud of you! Relax!

Rachel, have fun at the work party! (I'd skip school too!) That's lame that you have that dumb schedule. No worries though. You have Christmas break! YAY!

Meg and Justin-thanks for the box! You guys are great! I hope all is going well for you! During 3 hour yesterday we had a combined youth, RS, Priesthood lesson about the new curriculum. It sounds amazing! I'm excited for it to start happening! It's going to make these youth become such better missionaries. The missionaries who will come from this program are just going to be amazing!` They are really going to understand how to teach by the spirit! It's going to be amazing! Missionary work is going to explode guys! Make sure you are all a part of it!

Dad, thanks for being my dad! I hope you keep going out with the missionaries! And feeding them! That's also really important!

Have a great day guys! Thanks for your prayers! They are felt! Also...pray for my fingers this week! I am accompanying the choir this week for church I've had the music for just a couple of days and I don't have a lot of time to practice it! Less time than I had when I played for Elder Maness in the MTC! Ah! It's a gorgeous arrangement of Oh Holy Night. The words, harmony, piano part and organ part are all just so beautiful. It's great. It's a really good reminder of what this season is all about. Our wonderful Savior. Thank goodness for Him! Well, I gotta go! I love you all so much! Have a wonderful week! Tata!

Annie

Landon’s Letter

Hi :)

So I have 13 minutes to write and the library says I have 3 hours so really I should have 2 more hours but I won't chance it. So this week it has been absolutely stressful and it is self stress pretty much. Anyway my son (Elder Washburn) is great. He is a hard worker and wants to serve the Lord. It has been fun and I do enjoy training because like Annie said over 3 months ago, "I think I am training because I need to go over all of this stuff again." It has been really fun though. Don't get me wrong, it is really fun to whitewash it is just hard and stressful. I do enjoy serving the Lord and there is no where else I would rather be then here serving the Lord. One of my favorite ZL's just went home. Before he left he wrote me a letter and it said "Some people just serve the Lord for 24 months, others just serve the Lord. Which one will you be? You get to choose." Such a great missionary. I will really miss him.

Rachel good luck with the party

Natalie ok I am waiting!

Annie short stuff ;) and I sang it. (Apostate)

Megan & Justin hope things are going well

Mom thanks for talking

Dad thanks for the advise

If I have more time I will write more.

Love your favorite Elder, Brother, and Son

Elder Webb