Hello!
The work has kind of been slow. Just the usual disappointment in delayed and dropped appointments. What else is new? We have had some success in re-activation of members in the ward. Our efforts of befriending and visiting have payed off in their desire to return to church. Last sunday Allan King got the courage to come to church with his daughter, and he told us that he enjoyed it. But he didnt show up this week which was kind of disappointing. That same week a single man in his 30's that we have been re-activating came to church for the third time, and this time he even took out his earrings without our notice and to our surprise. So even though we haven't had much success with non-member work here, we are starting to see some flourishing in the Less-Active and Part-Member Family Categories.
Yes I do wear my helmet. It is unsurprisingly a church rule, but even more so it is a law in Australia to ride even a push-bike with a helmet. Which we haven't been doing this transfer because. . .
. . . we have the car full-time now!!! It's because the new sister missionaries in Tweed Heads don't have drivers licenses, so that means they have to either "walk, ride, or float"- that is President Langelands saying to those companionships that dont have a car at all. But its alright because the sisters have reliable members to help, and they also use the bus system often. We kind of feel bad because our area is heaps smaller than theirs, but nobody can do anything about it, because neither of them can drive :)
Anyway, I have a feeling that I will get transferred at the end of June, because I will have been here six months at that time, which is a huge chunk of my mission. Once again, I will find out the usual way, but I'm kind of ready to move on and experience some more successful work and meet a whole new batch of people in a new environment. I love the Gold Coast, but i'm kind of getting itchy feet. I wont find out for a while thought, I won't be going anywhere for the next month.
Oh mum I forgot to tell you. After meeting you on skype, Elder Higham told me that he thinks he knows you from somewhere. Of course I laughed and I told him that you get that a lot, and that you are "familiar" to everyone. Even all the way over here your mark has been made. I thought it was so funny! What did you do in the Pre-Mortal Life that made you so famous?
Love Elder Stringy
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Almost 2 months worth! Sorry!
I'm sorry I've been slacking with posting Elder Stringfellow's letters! Here's about 4 in a bundle! Enjoy reading :D
MARCH 1, 2011:
Tell everyone thanks for the empathy. I have tried not to stress about it, because the most important thing is that i'm still working, and that the drama is not going to stop the work, no matter how much Satan wants it to. Brother Burnett hasn't called us back about needing a replacement or the money (and i dont know if he will, because he is getting released soon so he is pretty relaxed right now) but until i get a call or somehow it comes up, im just going to continue in the way things have been going. If i get a call or something i'll let you know, but dont worry about the money right now, im not. So just put it in the back of the brain for now....
Ok fun stuff now :) Im glad everyone is enjoying the pictures.
How is everyone? whats everyone up to? We havent taught Jodie again yet, but she is still interested. Hopefully she will be ready soon. We found two cute kids to teach, a boy named Harley(10) and a girl Tayla(12). They are way excited and have heaps of questions. The only possible concern we have is that their biological mother might not be supportive, and thats one of the biggest concerns they can have. Anyone under 18 has to have permission by parents to be baptized, and if they dont give permission, we have a big problem. We also have some more potential investigators, once we contact them i'll tell you more about them.
Jade is not progressing. He doesnt want to come to church; "its too early" or "its too loud with the kids" or just plain "no". Well, then Jade, you arent going to find out if our church is true if you are attending a Born Again Christian Church up in Southport. Ugh, we dont know what to do with him. One of the hardest things to do is to drop an investigator because they aren't keeping commitments and progressing. . .
The Brisbane Temple was nice today. Its the cutest little temple. . . it's tiny. room for 20 men and 20 women. There isnt even a chapel!!! its pretty though, just a minature version. Same feeling inside, other than its small-as. ("as" or "az" added on to a sentence is only expressive, it has no technical meaning.) Small-as, big-as, hot-as, all just added on for extra expression. Anyway, there is your Aussie lesson for the week. . . Aussie is pronounced Auzzie. ( i got torn apart my first week by elder prina about that lol)
Tell Whit happy birthday from me and i love her and miss her! Im thinking about her all the time today!!! I cant believe she turns 24 this year and i turn 20. She really isnt that much older than me, and the twenty part makes it seem even smaller. Far out! (thats another expression that you might like to know) :) Hope she has a wonderful day! Tell her that we have a washer and dryer in our flat(so no worries about laundry) and that the cloths are so much more practical and that i love them!!!
This afternoon we might go to Q1 (the tallest building in Queensland and is on the Gold Coast!) Its not set in stone, but i'll send pictures if we go. If we do go, i'll wait until i can print them, and then i'll send them with the other prints i have made, so that will be next week. if not, i'll get them off today or tomorrow.
Tell everyone hi and and love them and want to hear from them. I might not always have time to reply but i always make time to read!!! Love you all sooo much! Have fun, be safe and talk to you soon :)
Love Elder Stringfellow
MARCH 13, 2011:
Ooo Moab and Amarillo Texas eh? I'd like to see Texas someday, maybe when I get back we can take a trip to Barbara's so i can see Okie, Texas and Arkansas. I'd love to see the southern US. There is some unique scenery and landscape down there, you make it sound like there will be nothing to see. There will be plenty to see, but just not as much as here ;) JK There is some pretty rich Civil War History down there that would be neat to see as well look for it and send pictures!
There is good news this week. We taught Jodie again and we set a Baptismal Date with her for the 27th of March! She exclaimed; "i wanna get dunked!" she is a little different but extremely nice. We might have some trouble with her with the Word of Wisdom because she is a drinker, but i think if she wants to change enough, she might be alright with it. Pray for her and us! We also started teaching a Part-member family from New Zealand. The non-member's name is Ayla, and her hubby is a less-active member and their 1 yr old son was blessed in the church. She is what we call a "dry mormon". She comes to church to support her son and hubby, but hasn't really thought about becoming a member herself. The reason she is a "dry mormon" is because she comes to church and does basically everything a mormon does, except she isn't baptized. So she allowed usd to come and teach her about the Restoration, and she said she'd like to hear more, and that she will get baptized if she finds out it's all true. So in theory she should be an easy Baptism, but she is a little less keen than Jodie, and unless we really catch her interest with Eternal Families and Exaltation she could slip away. But she is super nice and fun to talk to.
Today we are going to Natural Bridge, which is kind of by Springbrook (where we saw the big waterfall). I'll take tons of pictures, and you will see them when i send the card :)
We are approaching the end of the transfer. And because Elder Prina is going home, I will for sure be getting a new companion, but im not sure if I will be staying in Mudgeeraba or if I will be transferred to a new area as well. Here's the deal, if i am being transferred up north (north being defined as any mission area farther north than the Sunshine Coast) then i will find out on Friday the 25th of March, and will be travelling to my new area during the weekend. But if i am going anywhere from the Sunshine Coast or south of there, I will have to attend the transfer meeting on the 29th of March. That is a Tuesday, so my P-Day will be on that day (the 29th). But no matter where i go or what happens I will tell you where i am as soon as i know lol.
I feel bad about the recent Earthquakes in Japan and New Zealand. It makes me think of you often. Please keep yourselves safe, GET 72 HOUR KITS NOW!!!!!!! im dead serious about that!! Be prepared for whatever disasters are on their way. You never know when you will be struck unprepared. Be safe, and take care of yourselves physically, but more importantly spiritually. No matter what happens to either me, or you all (in any circumstance) if WE as a whole family are prepared spiritually and live worthy of the temple covenants that bind us, we shall not fear death and separation. I'm not prophesying the worst, i'm giving fair warning and comfort. Being so far away from you right now makes me uneasy enough, but knowing you are prepared physically and spiritually will bring me comfort. Encourage other family members to be prepared in all aspects as well. It is our duty as a family in God's eternal plan for us to lift and inspire one another. We will conquer together, or we will fail together. Let nothing come bring between ourselves and exaltation. I love each of you way too much, and give me comfort to know that you are alright, prepared and fearless before God. I'm trying my hardest to be the best i can. I'm alright, and healthy and well taken care of, and i hope you are as well. I'll talk to you soon. Love you and God be with you! Tell everyone hi for me!
-Elder Stringy
MARCH 20, 2011:
Hey Everyone! I know you are travelling right now, please be safe. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM! I wanted to get a nice card, i knew you would cry, but im glad you are alright now lol. I thought about you all day! I hope you enjoyed it and i hope the party was fun with all the family there :) Deb's birthday is tomorrow (tuesday) I hope she enjoys the card. Mum, if you call her, tell her loves from her missionary and Happy Kangaroo/Birthday! Oh, im sending a picture in my package that i want you to show Lindsey. As you know, transfers is next week and we get a new set of missionaries fresh from the MTC. An Elder Forman is coming from Riverton UT, and i wondered if she went to school with him, or if he went to Bingham or something. . . Show her the picture and see if she recognizes him. Tell grandma hi from me. I hope she got her letter as well, i hoped it would be home waiting for her. Did she survive the trip alright? has she fattened up since being at Barbara's? I'm sending my package this week that has my photo prints, a note and Carver's birthday card in it. I'll let you know when i get the package you send. Thanks a bunch!!!
Nevermind on the Baptismal Date with Jodie. We lost it again, this time because she has to go back to Drug Rehab for 9 months. She can't quit smoking pot. We told her that we as missionaries we teach a 15 Step/Quit in 7 Days program that she can do, she liked the idea but she had already registered for the Rehab Centre. She is still excited about the Gospel, so she will give us(or the missionaries in the area at the time) a call in 9 months.
Anyway, at least she recognises her problem and wants to fix it.
I now have custody of the keys to the flat, because this transfer alone, not including last transfer, Elder Prina has locked us out with the keys inside 4 TIMES. The landlords have gotten quite shocked at our track record. Suzy (the landlady) says she loves the Mormons, and they pay their rent on time, but they lock the keys inside way too often LOL. So now i hold the keys so we won't get locked out.
I got Nash's email and letter. Tell her good on her for doing missionary work. Help her find the missionaries that proselyte in our area, and invite them to go over with her to Joanna's house one Sunday. I think having the missionaries there to help her and her family make and keep commitments will play a huge role in their conversion. If they accept to hear from the missionaries, ideally the lessons should be taught not only with Nash and Dalene there, but in their home as well (the spirit is felt much stronger in a member's home). Im excited to hear about my little sister's missionary work! ;) A saying in our mission is: "Every Missionary a Member, and Every Member a Missionary". It is true. Elder Prina and I had dinner last night at the Hapi's house. Sister Hapi made a really interesting comment. She said: "You as missionaries don't come on your missions to tract around and set up appointments to teach, you come to teach the lessons at appointments that we, the members, have set up." Every member should be looking for opportunities to invite their non-member friends to be taught by the missionaries. Even though yes we tract to look for investigators as missionaries, ideally we should be teaching those whom the members have reffered us too. The statistics say that 1/1000 doors that are tracted into will get Baptised, but 2/5 referrals taught with a member present will get baptised. It is a better use for the missionaries time to teach a member referral with that member present than to knock doors. The leaders of the church are emphazising missionary work, because it is a commandment required for our salvation. Even if we dont serve full-time missions, we are still commanded to spread the word. Again I ask you and the whole family to help the missionaries in their respective areas. You will recieve the blessings that come from helping another individual or family recieve the gospel. Why should i be the only one to convert someone during the next two years. . .? lol
Next week expect to hear from me on Tuesday, not Monday. Transfers are on the 29th, so i'll let you know whether im staying here or going somewhere else. I love you all so much. I'm alright, it's just so bloody humid right now its not even funny. Ugh. Back out into the sauna. I miss you all. Love you sooo much! Take care!
Love, Elder Stringfellow
MARCH 28, 2011:
I'm glad the trip was alright. Tell shelby and grandma sorry, those letters i wrote two weeks ago i just barely found in the flat and sent them off today. I thought i had sent them off, but i was wrong. Sorry :(
Anyway Elder Prina is in Brisbane right now at the mission home getting interviewed, staying the night and then flying home tomorrow morning. He was trying to be excited to go home because he loves being a missionary, but he's got family back home and a new neice to meet (like i'm going to have a new baby to meet when i return ;) ) so its good that he is going.
I'm still in the Mudgeeraba Area on the Gold Coast, but my new companions name is Elder Higham. He is from Shelley, Idaho and has been on his mission almost eight months. So he has been out only four months longer than i have been out! Anyway he is super cool, he is (like Elder Prina was) taller than me, and he's skinny. You will see the picture of him when i send the SD card back home.
I'm glad Everett likes Mickey. He must be more like me than we ever thought. So fun. don't worry too much if he pulls the tags off, i'm not gonna freak out if he does :).
Yeah everything is going well so far. All i have to do is get to know my new companion a bit better, but at least i'm still in a familiar area. Everyone thinks that we will get along very well, and i think so too! :)
Spiritual thought for the week: Sometimes my zone leader (Elder Hogg who went home as well) would bother me because he would come and eat all our food because he would spend all his money on other things and not on food for himself. I still think that it is a legitimate reason to be upset, but hear the rest of this out. When he came over yesterday, he and his comp. came at lunch time and started to ask what we had to eat (also we didnt have very much either because we haven't done shopping yet this week). I didn't handle the situation very well, i told him he could go to the shops, buy his own food and make it himself. He walked off not feeling very offended because he is kind of weird like that. But while i was eating my lunch (while he was still here) i was listening to the primary song "I'm Trying to be like Jesus" on a cd. Of course i felt bad because i had been so rude, especially in denying them food because they had none and we didnt have much more. The more i listened to the words and pondered them i realized that even though he was making the bad choices, i had not been like Jesus in telling him to get his own food. Even though we didn't have much, i decided to do what Jesus would do and give him the rest of the food we had so that he could eat lunch.
Just think about your daily actions and don't justify them just because you aren't in a better situation than they might be. Even though they aren't doing the right thing, still give selflessly, and you will find joy and blessings, because Jesus loved everyone no matter what they did (good or bad).
Thanks for the brownie mix!! We made them this weekend and they tasted yummy! Loved them!
Tell everyone hi, give them loves and tell them i miss them (even baby #3!!!) I'm looking for the package you sent, and look for mine that i sent as well!!! Love you all so much!!!!!
Love Elder Stringfellow
APRIL 3, 2011:
Hey Everyone! Yeah, i just looked on my Utah time clock and i saw that the afternoon session ended not too long ago. It is so weird not being there to watch conference live. Because of the time difference, it still isn't practical to have a live satellite broadcast to Australia. So what happens is next week, they will rebroadcast the sessions at the Stake Center respectively on Saturday and Sunday. It will be interesting to view conference in such a way. I am not used to being so far away, and i kind of feel out of the loop by not being able to watch conference as it is happening. But i guess i'm actually in the norm, because most of the members of the church live in other parts of the world than Utah, so it's actually a rarity to watch conference live. I miss Utah so much, you don't realize how much of being in Utah you take for granted, until you live out of the country :) I'm so glad that my home is so close to church headquarters that i could drive to conference quicker than i can drive to the closest temple here in Australia.
I got my package this week! Thanks for all the candy and stuff! The Journal is exactly what i needed, the songbook will be very handy, and the oil vial is perfect. Thanks also for the Priesthood line of Authority! Its the perfect size for my quad! The problem is i dont always take my quad with me wherever i go, but obviously i have to keep my ministerial certificate with me all the time (the certificate allows me to legally proselyte for the church), so if you could make another pocket sized one that i can stick with that (3 inches by 4 1/2 inches) that would be spectacular. I love the design on it! it looks very nice, thanks dad! It was surprising to see how short my line of Authority was compared to Elder Prina's. He had quite a few more names than i did. :)
I enjoyed the picture book! Everett and Carver are growing up too fast. . . before we know it they will have a brand new sibling to mess around with. They will be the troublesome trio, especially if it is another boy :) But i hope to have a niece somewhere in the mix soon ;)
Oh my gosh Shelby your hair is so cute!!!! why did you not tell me you got an a-line cut? You look so grown up! you look like you're 30 years old! (in a good way) lol Mum and Lindsey, your hair looks good as well. And Deb's still looks good, but it hasn't changed since, so good on ya anyway lol :) Tell grandma and barbara and the rest of the family hi as well! I enjoyed the pictures :)
I'll continue to send pictures as i take them. in the next couple of weeks i'll send my sd card back with captions and everything again. So everett can see "more Parker". I'm so proud that he loves church and wants to go. Tell whitney and chris "good-on them" for instilling a love for the gospel in their children early. And thanks to you for doing the same for us ;)
Just ponder for a moment how lucky we really are to be members of the church. out of the billions of people on the earth, we are out of 13.5 million members who are lucky enough to partake of the blessings and peace and comfort from knowing that no matter what happens the Lord is on our side because we are righteous. Being with people who don't understand the truth really builds my faith and my gratitude for the Lord for placing me in the path of righteousness. We all should NOT take that for granted and remember who we are and why we are members of the church. The Lord has a purpose for placing us in the gospel, and i think it is to share it with as many people as we can. How dare we be selfish and not make an effort to share the blessings that we so dearly treasure? I love you all so much and I love the gospel. Save me a piece of the oreo dessert for when i get back (lol) not. Enjoy the rest of your sunday. Tell everyone hi. I love you all sooooo much!!! I miss you!!!!! Take good care and "have luck". Happy Kangaroo Cranneys!!!
Elder Stringy
APRIL 11, 2011:
Conference was wonderful! I recieved some great revelation for myself and also for my investigators. It is a funny feeling having stewardship over someone else, because i am entitled to revelation for them. It was so fun to see a familiar scene all the way around the world. And yes i enjoyed the talks concerning marriage! The talks don't apply to me, but just not yet. I still payed attention because I am moving into that stage of my life, and it won't be long until i'm in that situation. But for now, i'm receiving the counsel for a different purpose, because of my full-time calling. I hope you and dad, and Whit and Chris saw the talks as well, because there was some great counsel for married couples in there, even in President Monson's Priesthood Session Address talked about marriage. Look it up on the internet or read it in the Ensign next month :) The General Authorities know exactly what we as the members need to hear, as Jeffery R. Holland testified of in his talk Sunday Afternoon. We all should heed the counsel with the highest degree of priority, i know i will :)
I'm glad the boys liked the pictures! I'll send more when i send my other SD card back.
I'll try the trick with the ties. Do hold off with getting anything just yet, because my pants are deteriorating rather quickly, and it won't be but maybe a couple of months before i need them. And one of my white shirts is out of order already because of a stubborn stain on the back of it that even bleaching (diluted or straight) didn't phase. So if im gonna need more things in the next couple of months, just hold off until i tell you i need more, because everything might as well just be sent all at once instead of something this month and something three or four weeks later- you know what i mean?
I'm glad that Shelby and Lindsey are moving in together, it will be a great thing. Hopefully they will both attend the ward, enjoy it and enjoy institute as well. It would be refreshing for both of them to be able to go to all of their church meetings and live worthy of temple recommends (as was also taught in conference). Do everything you can to help them, and also everyone else who doesn't have a recommend to remember what is most important (the work that is required to be done of us (baptisms) and covenant making (endowments and sealings)) and strive to find again the joy that comes from temple work. Set an example for them, and tell them of your joyful experiences. I know that as you all strive to do what the Lord has asked us to do at this conference, no matter what is holding us back can be healed and eliminated through the power of prayer and enduring to the end, and the atonement. The Lord does not and will not condemn us. We only do that ourselves. I pray for your safety and well-being every personal prayer i say. Tell everyone hi! I miss you all so much!!! I love you all soooooo much!!! Have a good day and i'll talk to you soon!
Elder Stringy
MARCH 1, 2011:
Tell everyone thanks for the empathy. I have tried not to stress about it, because the most important thing is that i'm still working, and that the drama is not going to stop the work, no matter how much Satan wants it to. Brother Burnett hasn't called us back about needing a replacement or the money (and i dont know if he will, because he is getting released soon so he is pretty relaxed right now) but until i get a call or somehow it comes up, im just going to continue in the way things have been going. If i get a call or something i'll let you know, but dont worry about the money right now, im not. So just put it in the back of the brain for now....
Ok fun stuff now :) Im glad everyone is enjoying the pictures.
How is everyone? whats everyone up to? We havent taught Jodie again yet, but she is still interested. Hopefully she will be ready soon. We found two cute kids to teach, a boy named Harley(10) and a girl Tayla(12). They are way excited and have heaps of questions. The only possible concern we have is that their biological mother might not be supportive, and thats one of the biggest concerns they can have. Anyone under 18 has to have permission by parents to be baptized, and if they dont give permission, we have a big problem. We also have some more potential investigators, once we contact them i'll tell you more about them.
Jade is not progressing. He doesnt want to come to church; "its too early" or "its too loud with the kids" or just plain "no". Well, then Jade, you arent going to find out if our church is true if you are attending a Born Again Christian Church up in Southport. Ugh, we dont know what to do with him. One of the hardest things to do is to drop an investigator because they aren't keeping commitments and progressing. . .
The Brisbane Temple was nice today. Its the cutest little temple. . . it's tiny. room for 20 men and 20 women. There isnt even a chapel!!! its pretty though, just a minature version. Same feeling inside, other than its small-as. ("as" or "az" added on to a sentence is only expressive, it has no technical meaning.) Small-as, big-as, hot-as, all just added on for extra expression. Anyway, there is your Aussie lesson for the week. . . Aussie is pronounced Auzzie. ( i got torn apart my first week by elder prina about that lol)
Tell Whit happy birthday from me and i love her and miss her! Im thinking about her all the time today!!! I cant believe she turns 24 this year and i turn 20. She really isnt that much older than me, and the twenty part makes it seem even smaller. Far out! (thats another expression that you might like to know) :) Hope she has a wonderful day! Tell her that we have a washer and dryer in our flat(so no worries about laundry) and that the cloths are so much more practical and that i love them!!!
This afternoon we might go to Q1 (the tallest building in Queensland and is on the Gold Coast!) Its not set in stone, but i'll send pictures if we go. If we do go, i'll wait until i can print them, and then i'll send them with the other prints i have made, so that will be next week. if not, i'll get them off today or tomorrow.
Tell everyone hi and and love them and want to hear from them. I might not always have time to reply but i always make time to read!!! Love you all sooo much! Have fun, be safe and talk to you soon :)
Love Elder Stringfellow
MARCH 13, 2011:
Ooo Moab and Amarillo Texas eh? I'd like to see Texas someday, maybe when I get back we can take a trip to Barbara's so i can see Okie, Texas and Arkansas. I'd love to see the southern US. There is some unique scenery and landscape down there, you make it sound like there will be nothing to see. There will be plenty to see, but just not as much as here ;) JK There is some pretty rich Civil War History down there that would be neat to see as well look for it and send pictures!
There is good news this week. We taught Jodie again and we set a Baptismal Date with her for the 27th of March! She exclaimed; "i wanna get dunked!" she is a little different but extremely nice. We might have some trouble with her with the Word of Wisdom because she is a drinker, but i think if she wants to change enough, she might be alright with it. Pray for her and us! We also started teaching a Part-member family from New Zealand. The non-member's name is Ayla, and her hubby is a less-active member and their 1 yr old son was blessed in the church. She is what we call a "dry mormon". She comes to church to support her son and hubby, but hasn't really thought about becoming a member herself. The reason she is a "dry mormon" is because she comes to church and does basically everything a mormon does, except she isn't baptized. So she allowed usd to come and teach her about the Restoration, and she said she'd like to hear more, and that she will get baptized if she finds out it's all true. So in theory she should be an easy Baptism, but she is a little less keen than Jodie, and unless we really catch her interest with Eternal Families and Exaltation she could slip away. But she is super nice and fun to talk to.
Today we are going to Natural Bridge, which is kind of by Springbrook (where we saw the big waterfall). I'll take tons of pictures, and you will see them when i send the card :)
We are approaching the end of the transfer. And because Elder Prina is going home, I will for sure be getting a new companion, but im not sure if I will be staying in Mudgeeraba or if I will be transferred to a new area as well. Here's the deal, if i am being transferred up north (north being defined as any mission area farther north than the Sunshine Coast) then i will find out on Friday the 25th of March, and will be travelling to my new area during the weekend. But if i am going anywhere from the Sunshine Coast or south of there, I will have to attend the transfer meeting on the 29th of March. That is a Tuesday, so my P-Day will be on that day (the 29th). But no matter where i go or what happens I will tell you where i am as soon as i know lol.
I feel bad about the recent Earthquakes in Japan and New Zealand. It makes me think of you often. Please keep yourselves safe, GET 72 HOUR KITS NOW!!!!!!! im dead serious about that!! Be prepared for whatever disasters are on their way. You never know when you will be struck unprepared. Be safe, and take care of yourselves physically, but more importantly spiritually. No matter what happens to either me, or you all (in any circumstance) if WE as a whole family are prepared spiritually and live worthy of the temple covenants that bind us, we shall not fear death and separation. I'm not prophesying the worst, i'm giving fair warning and comfort. Being so far away from you right now makes me uneasy enough, but knowing you are prepared physically and spiritually will bring me comfort. Encourage other family members to be prepared in all aspects as well. It is our duty as a family in God's eternal plan for us to lift and inspire one another. We will conquer together, or we will fail together. Let nothing come bring between ourselves and exaltation. I love each of you way too much, and give me comfort to know that you are alright, prepared and fearless before God. I'm trying my hardest to be the best i can. I'm alright, and healthy and well taken care of, and i hope you are as well. I'll talk to you soon. Love you and God be with you! Tell everyone hi for me!
-Elder Stringy
MARCH 20, 2011:
Hey Everyone! I know you are travelling right now, please be safe. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM! I wanted to get a nice card, i knew you would cry, but im glad you are alright now lol. I thought about you all day! I hope you enjoyed it and i hope the party was fun with all the family there :) Deb's birthday is tomorrow (tuesday) I hope she enjoys the card. Mum, if you call her, tell her loves from her missionary and Happy Kangaroo/Birthday! Oh, im sending a picture in my package that i want you to show Lindsey. As you know, transfers is next week and we get a new set of missionaries fresh from the MTC. An Elder Forman is coming from Riverton UT, and i wondered if she went to school with him, or if he went to Bingham or something. . . Show her the picture and see if she recognizes him. Tell grandma hi from me. I hope she got her letter as well, i hoped it would be home waiting for her. Did she survive the trip alright? has she fattened up since being at Barbara's? I'm sending my package this week that has my photo prints, a note and Carver's birthday card in it. I'll let you know when i get the package you send. Thanks a bunch!!!
Nevermind on the Baptismal Date with Jodie. We lost it again, this time because she has to go back to Drug Rehab for 9 months. She can't quit smoking pot. We told her that we as missionaries we teach a 15 Step/Quit in 7 Days program that she can do, she liked the idea but she had already registered for the Rehab Centre. She is still excited about the Gospel, so she will give us(or the missionaries in the area at the time) a call in 9 months.
Anyway, at least she recognises her problem and wants to fix it.
I now have custody of the keys to the flat, because this transfer alone, not including last transfer, Elder Prina has locked us out with the keys inside 4 TIMES. The landlords have gotten quite shocked at our track record. Suzy (the landlady) says she loves the Mormons, and they pay their rent on time, but they lock the keys inside way too often LOL. So now i hold the keys so we won't get locked out.
I got Nash's email and letter. Tell her good on her for doing missionary work. Help her find the missionaries that proselyte in our area, and invite them to go over with her to Joanna's house one Sunday. I think having the missionaries there to help her and her family make and keep commitments will play a huge role in their conversion. If they accept to hear from the missionaries, ideally the lessons should be taught not only with Nash and Dalene there, but in their home as well (the spirit is felt much stronger in a member's home). Im excited to hear about my little sister's missionary work! ;) A saying in our mission is: "Every Missionary a Member, and Every Member a Missionary". It is true. Elder Prina and I had dinner last night at the Hapi's house. Sister Hapi made a really interesting comment. She said: "You as missionaries don't come on your missions to tract around and set up appointments to teach, you come to teach the lessons at appointments that we, the members, have set up." Every member should be looking for opportunities to invite their non-member friends to be taught by the missionaries. Even though yes we tract to look for investigators as missionaries, ideally we should be teaching those whom the members have reffered us too. The statistics say that 1/1000 doors that are tracted into will get Baptised, but 2/5 referrals taught with a member present will get baptised. It is a better use for the missionaries time to teach a member referral with that member present than to knock doors. The leaders of the church are emphazising missionary work, because it is a commandment required for our salvation. Even if we dont serve full-time missions, we are still commanded to spread the word. Again I ask you and the whole family to help the missionaries in their respective areas. You will recieve the blessings that come from helping another individual or family recieve the gospel. Why should i be the only one to convert someone during the next two years. . .? lol
Next week expect to hear from me on Tuesday, not Monday. Transfers are on the 29th, so i'll let you know whether im staying here or going somewhere else. I love you all so much. I'm alright, it's just so bloody humid right now its not even funny. Ugh. Back out into the sauna. I miss you all. Love you sooo much! Take care!
Love, Elder Stringfellow
MARCH 28, 2011:
I'm glad the trip was alright. Tell shelby and grandma sorry, those letters i wrote two weeks ago i just barely found in the flat and sent them off today. I thought i had sent them off, but i was wrong. Sorry :(
Anyway Elder Prina is in Brisbane right now at the mission home getting interviewed, staying the night and then flying home tomorrow morning. He was trying to be excited to go home because he loves being a missionary, but he's got family back home and a new neice to meet (like i'm going to have a new baby to meet when i return ;) ) so its good that he is going.
I'm still in the Mudgeeraba Area on the Gold Coast, but my new companions name is Elder Higham. He is from Shelley, Idaho and has been on his mission almost eight months. So he has been out only four months longer than i have been out! Anyway he is super cool, he is (like Elder Prina was) taller than me, and he's skinny. You will see the picture of him when i send the SD card back home.
I'm glad Everett likes Mickey. He must be more like me than we ever thought. So fun. don't worry too much if he pulls the tags off, i'm not gonna freak out if he does :).
Yeah everything is going well so far. All i have to do is get to know my new companion a bit better, but at least i'm still in a familiar area. Everyone thinks that we will get along very well, and i think so too! :)
Spiritual thought for the week: Sometimes my zone leader (Elder Hogg who went home as well) would bother me because he would come and eat all our food because he would spend all his money on other things and not on food for himself. I still think that it is a legitimate reason to be upset, but hear the rest of this out. When he came over yesterday, he and his comp. came at lunch time and started to ask what we had to eat (also we didnt have very much either because we haven't done shopping yet this week). I didn't handle the situation very well, i told him he could go to the shops, buy his own food and make it himself. He walked off not feeling very offended because he is kind of weird like that. But while i was eating my lunch (while he was still here) i was listening to the primary song "I'm Trying to be like Jesus" on a cd. Of course i felt bad because i had been so rude, especially in denying them food because they had none and we didnt have much more. The more i listened to the words and pondered them i realized that even though he was making the bad choices, i had not been like Jesus in telling him to get his own food. Even though we didn't have much, i decided to do what Jesus would do and give him the rest of the food we had so that he could eat lunch.
Just think about your daily actions and don't justify them just because you aren't in a better situation than they might be. Even though they aren't doing the right thing, still give selflessly, and you will find joy and blessings, because Jesus loved everyone no matter what they did (good or bad).
Thanks for the brownie mix!! We made them this weekend and they tasted yummy! Loved them!
Tell everyone hi, give them loves and tell them i miss them (even baby #3!!!) I'm looking for the package you sent, and look for mine that i sent as well!!! Love you all so much!!!!!
Love Elder Stringfellow
APRIL 3, 2011:
Hey Everyone! Yeah, i just looked on my Utah time clock and i saw that the afternoon session ended not too long ago. It is so weird not being there to watch conference live. Because of the time difference, it still isn't practical to have a live satellite broadcast to Australia. So what happens is next week, they will rebroadcast the sessions at the Stake Center respectively on Saturday and Sunday. It will be interesting to view conference in such a way. I am not used to being so far away, and i kind of feel out of the loop by not being able to watch conference as it is happening. But i guess i'm actually in the norm, because most of the members of the church live in other parts of the world than Utah, so it's actually a rarity to watch conference live. I miss Utah so much, you don't realize how much of being in Utah you take for granted, until you live out of the country :) I'm so glad that my home is so close to church headquarters that i could drive to conference quicker than i can drive to the closest temple here in Australia.
I got my package this week! Thanks for all the candy and stuff! The Journal is exactly what i needed, the songbook will be very handy, and the oil vial is perfect. Thanks also for the Priesthood line of Authority! Its the perfect size for my quad! The problem is i dont always take my quad with me wherever i go, but obviously i have to keep my ministerial certificate with me all the time (the certificate allows me to legally proselyte for the church), so if you could make another pocket sized one that i can stick with that (3 inches by 4 1/2 inches) that would be spectacular. I love the design on it! it looks very nice, thanks dad! It was surprising to see how short my line of Authority was compared to Elder Prina's. He had quite a few more names than i did. :)
I enjoyed the picture book! Everett and Carver are growing up too fast. . . before we know it they will have a brand new sibling to mess around with. They will be the troublesome trio, especially if it is another boy :) But i hope to have a niece somewhere in the mix soon ;)
Oh my gosh Shelby your hair is so cute!!!! why did you not tell me you got an a-line cut? You look so grown up! you look like you're 30 years old! (in a good way) lol Mum and Lindsey, your hair looks good as well. And Deb's still looks good, but it hasn't changed since, so good on ya anyway lol :) Tell grandma and barbara and the rest of the family hi as well! I enjoyed the pictures :)
I'll continue to send pictures as i take them. in the next couple of weeks i'll send my sd card back with captions and everything again. So everett can see "more Parker". I'm so proud that he loves church and wants to go. Tell whitney and chris "good-on them" for instilling a love for the gospel in their children early. And thanks to you for doing the same for us ;)
Just ponder for a moment how lucky we really are to be members of the church. out of the billions of people on the earth, we are out of 13.5 million members who are lucky enough to partake of the blessings and peace and comfort from knowing that no matter what happens the Lord is on our side because we are righteous. Being with people who don't understand the truth really builds my faith and my gratitude for the Lord for placing me in the path of righteousness. We all should NOT take that for granted and remember who we are and why we are members of the church. The Lord has a purpose for placing us in the gospel, and i think it is to share it with as many people as we can. How dare we be selfish and not make an effort to share the blessings that we so dearly treasure? I love you all so much and I love the gospel. Save me a piece of the oreo dessert for when i get back (lol) not. Enjoy the rest of your sunday. Tell everyone hi. I love you all sooooo much!!! I miss you!!!!! Take good care and "have luck". Happy Kangaroo Cranneys!!!
Elder Stringy
APRIL 11, 2011:
Conference was wonderful! I recieved some great revelation for myself and also for my investigators. It is a funny feeling having stewardship over someone else, because i am entitled to revelation for them. It was so fun to see a familiar scene all the way around the world. And yes i enjoyed the talks concerning marriage! The talks don't apply to me, but just not yet. I still payed attention because I am moving into that stage of my life, and it won't be long until i'm in that situation. But for now, i'm receiving the counsel for a different purpose, because of my full-time calling. I hope you and dad, and Whit and Chris saw the talks as well, because there was some great counsel for married couples in there, even in President Monson's Priesthood Session Address talked about marriage. Look it up on the internet or read it in the Ensign next month :) The General Authorities know exactly what we as the members need to hear, as Jeffery R. Holland testified of in his talk Sunday Afternoon. We all should heed the counsel with the highest degree of priority, i know i will :)
I'm glad the boys liked the pictures! I'll send more when i send my other SD card back.
I'll try the trick with the ties. Do hold off with getting anything just yet, because my pants are deteriorating rather quickly, and it won't be but maybe a couple of months before i need them. And one of my white shirts is out of order already because of a stubborn stain on the back of it that even bleaching (diluted or straight) didn't phase. So if im gonna need more things in the next couple of months, just hold off until i tell you i need more, because everything might as well just be sent all at once instead of something this month and something three or four weeks later- you know what i mean?
I'm glad that Shelby and Lindsey are moving in together, it will be a great thing. Hopefully they will both attend the ward, enjoy it and enjoy institute as well. It would be refreshing for both of them to be able to go to all of their church meetings and live worthy of temple recommends (as was also taught in conference). Do everything you can to help them, and also everyone else who doesn't have a recommend to remember what is most important (the work that is required to be done of us (baptisms) and covenant making (endowments and sealings)) and strive to find again the joy that comes from temple work. Set an example for them, and tell them of your joyful experiences. I know that as you all strive to do what the Lord has asked us to do at this conference, no matter what is holding us back can be healed and eliminated through the power of prayer and enduring to the end, and the atonement. The Lord does not and will not condemn us. We only do that ourselves. I pray for your safety and well-being every personal prayer i say. Tell everyone hi! I miss you all so much!!! I love you all soooooo much!!! Have a good day and i'll talk to you soon!
Elder Stringy
Monday, February 21, 2011
2/20/2011
Hey everyone! I got my package!!!! thanks a bunch! we will probably make the brownies soon and im already digging into the American candy. The only places you can buy American Candy in Australia is at an IGA convenience store, and there arent too many of those around, but they are around :) I am getting used to the Australian candy though, and its not bad. maybe my next package i'll send some back! Tell whit thanks for the dishcloths, i love them and use them everyday! Thanks also for the hot pads, they dont use hot pads over here, they just use hand drying towels and everything, so its nice to actually have hot pads! The cd's are awesome and if there are anymore like them there please send more! There is some good stuff on them, and you can also send more MOTAB as well, they never get old :)
We also have a bunch of more potential investigators, and a couple of them are really keen! Last night we attended a baptism for the Sister Missionaries in our district, they taught a young man named Peter and he was absolutely glowing after the baptism! he was so excited :) Hopefully we will have one of our own soon!
And now the bad news; and the fun begins of being a missionary. our bikes got stolen this last week. well its our own fault, we didnt lock them up, but there is a reason we didnt lock them up, we were dropping off an Arabic Book of Mormon for our investigator Jades' friend. We parked them just outside the front gate and we knocked on the door not expecting to stay. However he gave us some water and he asked us to stay and answer some of his questions and concerns, and naturally we were thrilled, and of course forgot all about the bikes until a girl knocked on the front door telling us that she just saw our bikes get taken from out in front of the house. Jade drove us around to look for them as we were calling the police to report it. Unfortunately we couldn't catch up with them. Our Zone Leaders gave us permission to drop proselyting and do everything we could to find the bikes, because if we couldnt get them back, it's $500 for each bike to be replaced. Friday, when we had the car we drove around the suburb Varsity Lakes to see what we could see when out of randomness we were driving past a dead grass patch in the corner where two fences meet, and there was Elder Prina's bike, just lying there. We picked it up and stuffed it in the car (that was a fun task) and continued to look for my bike without luck. We are still going to look around this week to try to find it, but if we cant find it, i have to pay $500 to replace it. So im still gonna hold off on my buying those things I asked about last week because im sure im going to need that to help pay for the bike. Im sorry, i hope that doesnt put us all in a hole. . . im guessing its Satans way of trying to stop the missionary work. I will keep you updated and you might get some contact from our vehicle coordinator Brother Burnett. I hate to tell you this but i have no other choice :( No worries though, because i still have a bike to ride, our Zone Leaders let us borrow their bikes because they dont use them because they have a car full time. Let me know what we can do. . . Keep praying that we might find mine!
Anyway we are going down to New South Wales today to visit Byron Bay. It's an area similar to Cape Cod in Massachusetts, but more tropical. There is a cool lighthouse there, and a few other things to see! Its about an hours drive south of here, but it should be way fun. I'll take tons of pictures. It's also our Zone Leaders birthday tomorrow and we are throwing a surprise party for him during the trip. My assignment was to make a cake. Sister Yost (in our district) had a good German Chocolate cake recipe that I used. Its layered and has two different frostings, the frostings i also made from scratch. the middle frosting had the coconut in it and the top frosting is chocolate and cream melted together. It should be good! We are excited to eat it. It was fun to make, and i got a picture of it that will be on the SD card when i send it.
Did you get the mini package yet? Hopefully because Whitney's B-day is coming up and her card is in it, along with yours, Deb's and Nash's. NO peeking till the 18th!!!! As soon as i get the SD card back from ya i'll send this other one and we will just cycle them back and forth.
We get to go Kangaroo Point (the chapel right next to the Temple in Brisbane) on wednesday for a new missionary meeting (since i missed mine last month because of the flooding. We also get to go to the Temple this transfer! we go to the temple on Wednesday March 2nd (Whit's Bday!), which means that that day is our pday for the week, so dont expect an email on monday of that week, but expect one on the 2nd. We go to the Temple in the morning so i'll tell you about the Brisbane Temple in that email :)
I love hearing about the boys playing and getting in trouble together. Its so cute! I wish i had a brother to get into mischief with :):) Tell Whitney and Chris and the boys and the cranneys and grandparents and everyone hi!!! i miss you all too much too! Sometimes its hard to not think about coming home, because i miss everyone so much, but i am thinking of how I would regret it; all the wonderful experiences that i would miss out on, the wonderful people i would never get to meet and the fun places i would never get to see, but most importantly the great joy i experience when i see someone who wants to change their life. I know that there are people out here that need me, and it would be selfish to put my joy (being with my family) ahead of their joy. I know that i will be with my family forever, and i would hate to see that someone else cant because i wasnt there to help them. My eternal joy wouldnt be complete with that hanging over my shoulder. I dont know how often you see the missionaries in Provo, but if you get the chance, invite the ones in your area over for dinner, give them a referral, and do everything you can to help them succeed in their missions. I love it when members are so active in missionary work and will do everything they can to help us succeed. Every member should be a missionary, because its what the lord has asked. Do your part :) :)
I love you all soooo much! I miss you terribly, but keep sending the support. I need it!
I love you all so much!
Elder Stringfellow
We also have a bunch of more potential investigators, and a couple of them are really keen! Last night we attended a baptism for the Sister Missionaries in our district, they taught a young man named Peter and he was absolutely glowing after the baptism! he was so excited :) Hopefully we will have one of our own soon!
And now the bad news; and the fun begins of being a missionary. our bikes got stolen this last week. well its our own fault, we didnt lock them up, but there is a reason we didnt lock them up, we were dropping off an Arabic Book of Mormon for our investigator Jades' friend. We parked them just outside the front gate and we knocked on the door not expecting to stay. However he gave us some water and he asked us to stay and answer some of his questions and concerns, and naturally we were thrilled, and of course forgot all about the bikes until a girl knocked on the front door telling us that she just saw our bikes get taken from out in front of the house. Jade drove us around to look for them as we were calling the police to report it. Unfortunately we couldn't catch up with them. Our Zone Leaders gave us permission to drop proselyting and do everything we could to find the bikes, because if we couldnt get them back, it's $500 for each bike to be replaced. Friday, when we had the car we drove around the suburb Varsity Lakes to see what we could see when out of randomness we were driving past a dead grass patch in the corner where two fences meet, and there was Elder Prina's bike, just lying there. We picked it up and stuffed it in the car (that was a fun task) and continued to look for my bike without luck. We are still going to look around this week to try to find it, but if we cant find it, i have to pay $500 to replace it. So im still gonna hold off on my buying those things I asked about last week because im sure im going to need that to help pay for the bike. Im sorry, i hope that doesnt put us all in a hole. . . im guessing its Satans way of trying to stop the missionary work. I will keep you updated and you might get some contact from our vehicle coordinator Brother Burnett. I hate to tell you this but i have no other choice :( No worries though, because i still have a bike to ride, our Zone Leaders let us borrow their bikes because they dont use them because they have a car full time. Let me know what we can do. . . Keep praying that we might find mine!
Anyway we are going down to New South Wales today to visit Byron Bay. It's an area similar to Cape Cod in Massachusetts, but more tropical. There is a cool lighthouse there, and a few other things to see! Its about an hours drive south of here, but it should be way fun. I'll take tons of pictures. It's also our Zone Leaders birthday tomorrow and we are throwing a surprise party for him during the trip. My assignment was to make a cake. Sister Yost (in our district) had a good German Chocolate cake recipe that I used. Its layered and has two different frostings, the frostings i also made from scratch. the middle frosting had the coconut in it and the top frosting is chocolate and cream melted together. It should be good! We are excited to eat it. It was fun to make, and i got a picture of it that will be on the SD card when i send it.
Did you get the mini package yet? Hopefully because Whitney's B-day is coming up and her card is in it, along with yours, Deb's and Nash's. NO peeking till the 18th!!!! As soon as i get the SD card back from ya i'll send this other one and we will just cycle them back and forth.
We get to go Kangaroo Point (the chapel right next to the Temple in Brisbane) on wednesday for a new missionary meeting (since i missed mine last month because of the flooding. We also get to go to the Temple this transfer! we go to the temple on Wednesday March 2nd (Whit's Bday!), which means that that day is our pday for the week, so dont expect an email on monday of that week, but expect one on the 2nd. We go to the Temple in the morning so i'll tell you about the Brisbane Temple in that email :)
I love hearing about the boys playing and getting in trouble together. Its so cute! I wish i had a brother to get into mischief with :):) Tell Whitney and Chris and the boys and the cranneys and grandparents and everyone hi!!! i miss you all too much too! Sometimes its hard to not think about coming home, because i miss everyone so much, but i am thinking of how I would regret it; all the wonderful experiences that i would miss out on, the wonderful people i would never get to meet and the fun places i would never get to see, but most importantly the great joy i experience when i see someone who wants to change their life. I know that there are people out here that need me, and it would be selfish to put my joy (being with my family) ahead of their joy. I know that i will be with my family forever, and i would hate to see that someone else cant because i wasnt there to help them. My eternal joy wouldnt be complete with that hanging over my shoulder. I dont know how often you see the missionaries in Provo, but if you get the chance, invite the ones in your area over for dinner, give them a referral, and do everything you can to help them succeed in their missions. I love it when members are so active in missionary work and will do everything they can to help us succeed. Every member should be a missionary, because its what the lord has asked. Do your part :) :)
I love you all soooo much! I miss you terribly, but keep sending the support. I need it!
I love you all so much!
Elder Stringfellow
Thursday, February 17, 2011
2/15/2011
Happy Valentines Day! Sorry I missed you, i told dad the reason why i'm a day late. Anyway, i got tons of business to ask and tell; ..........
................ Ok. Next, i am really thinking of how when i get home, i would like to attend a General Conference session with the whole family. We have never done that and i would love to have the whole family there. Not that you can do anything about it now, but maybe dad has some connections that we can get some tickets ahead of time so we can attend a session as a family (when i get back for April 2013).
Maybe you have seen in the Ensign this month an article talking about a Rangi Parker from New Zealand who is an expert Family History and Information for the Maori people. The Maoris are the native people who originated from New Zealand. Rangi Parker is the mother of two members of our ward. Scott and Moana. Scott is about 40 years old with a family and his sister, Moana, is single mom of about the same age. They are both awesome and are some of my favorite people in the ward. Anyway their mom, Rangi, is in the Enisign. Take a look if you havent already :)
We kind of set a baptismal date, with a lady we tracted into. She just got out of drug rehab and wants to change her life. We taught her the Plan of Salvation, and she loved it! We set a Baptismal date with her for the 5th of March, but the next day she said she wants drop the date for now. She wants to get a job and a car before she does anything else, but she says she still wants to hear more and to eventually get baptized. We are still gonna keep in touch with her for the next few weeks so we dont lose her, and so she doesnt lose the spirit that she has already felt.
I also met a Ballroom Dance Champion. There is an 80 year old man who lives in Burleigh Waters who was a champion and also did judging for a long time. He used to house missionaries back when he lived in Sydney and he loves to hear about our religion. He is from Malta (a mediterranean island) and has a thick accent, but is really nice and fun to be around. He is a strong catholic, but likes to hear what we have to say anyway. He is gonna make Spaghetti for us next week for dinner at his house, he invited us for that :) He is a sweet old man!
Transfers are this week, but Elder Prina and I are staying right here for the next six weeks. This is his last transfer and then he is going home. So i will definantly have a new companion next transfer, but im not sure if i'll stay in Mudgeeraba or go to a new area. I hope to stay on the Gold Coast a little longer anyway, because it is beautiful here:)
Anyway, thats it for now. I love you and miss you! Tell everyone Hi and tell them all the news ;) Love you!!!!!!!!
Elder Stringfellow
................ Ok. Next, i am really thinking of how when i get home, i would like to attend a General Conference session with the whole family. We have never done that and i would love to have the whole family there. Not that you can do anything about it now, but maybe dad has some connections that we can get some tickets ahead of time so we can attend a session as a family (when i get back for April 2013).
Maybe you have seen in the Ensign this month an article talking about a Rangi Parker from New Zealand who is an expert Family History and Information for the Maori people. The Maoris are the native people who originated from New Zealand. Rangi Parker is the mother of two members of our ward. Scott and Moana. Scott is about 40 years old with a family and his sister, Moana, is single mom of about the same age. They are both awesome and are some of my favorite people in the ward. Anyway their mom, Rangi, is in the Enisign. Take a look if you havent already :)
We kind of set a baptismal date, with a lady we tracted into. She just got out of drug rehab and wants to change her life. We taught her the Plan of Salvation, and she loved it! We set a Baptismal date with her for the 5th of March, but the next day she said she wants drop the date for now. She wants to get a job and a car before she does anything else, but she says she still wants to hear more and to eventually get baptized. We are still gonna keep in touch with her for the next few weeks so we dont lose her, and so she doesnt lose the spirit that she has already felt.
I also met a Ballroom Dance Champion. There is an 80 year old man who lives in Burleigh Waters who was a champion and also did judging for a long time. He used to house missionaries back when he lived in Sydney and he loves to hear about our religion. He is from Malta (a mediterranean island) and has a thick accent, but is really nice and fun to be around. He is a strong catholic, but likes to hear what we have to say anyway. He is gonna make Spaghetti for us next week for dinner at his house, he invited us for that :) He is a sweet old man!
Transfers are this week, but Elder Prina and I are staying right here for the next six weeks. This is his last transfer and then he is going home. So i will definantly have a new companion next transfer, but im not sure if i'll stay in Mudgeeraba or go to a new area. I hope to stay on the Gold Coast a little longer anyway, because it is beautiful here:)
Anyway, thats it for now. I love you and miss you! Tell everyone Hi and tell them all the news ;) Love you!!!!!!!!
Elder Stringfellow
Monday, February 7, 2011
2/6/2011
I'm glad the surgery went well. Send the Boyds my love :)
Expect a small package in the mail in about 1 1/2 or 2 weeks. I sent a big bunch of letters for you to dish out, March Birthday cards and my SD Picture card. Tell Grandma Stringfellow a letter is on its way to Arkansas, and tell Grandma Kendall that i got her letter as well and to expect an answer in a couple of weeks. I still havent received your package yet, hopefully soon. Tell everyone hi for me!
This morning, like really early this morning, like 2 am we got up, drove down to New South Wales to climb what is called Mt. Warning. At the top of the mtn is the first place in Australia to see the sun each morning, which is why we hiked it so early (to watch the sunrise). It is one of the tallest mountains in our area, and it is actually a Sacred mtn. to the Aboriginals. Apparently the Aboriginal Elders dont want people climbing it, because only people whom they select can climb it (it must have something to do with their religion). The government allows people to climb it, but they post signs asking whoever climbs it to remain dignified and respectful because it is sacred ground. Although we hiked it early, we were unable to see the sunrise because there were clouds at the top. I took pictures anyway, but we didnt get a good full view by any means. The roundtrip was about 5 hours, so it was long and tiring, but fun anyway.
We still dont have any baptismal dates yet, the work is really slow, but we are finding and contacting new people every week, so hopefully we will find someone who believes our message will change their life. Jade is still waiting for his answer that the Book of Mormon is true, but he isnt coming to church, so that is what is holding him back. Once we get him to make an effort to come to church, the Lord will bless him for that effort. We have another lesson with him this week at a members home, so we are praying that will go well.
Talk to you later! tell everyone hi and that i love them! LOVES!!! XOXOXOXOXO!!!!!!
Elder Stringfellow
Email #2:
Hey! Yep, Cyclone Yasi missed us, it didnt really rain or anything here, but it kind of is raining today. The missionaries in Cairns and Townsville stayed with members during the storms, but luckily the big cities didn't get smashed, unfortunately it was the small rural towns in between Cairns and Townsville that got wiped over. It looked like a tornado hit the area, not a cyclone. Luckily all the missionaries are safe.
The Gold Coast does get hit with cyclones, so if one heads our way, there is a possibility that we could get hit. But not to worry, President Langeland will do everything he can to make sure we stay safe!
Maybe you can find an older Bronco with an automatic in it, there are some nice looking ones. Just as long as the top can come off of whatever you get, because Moab with everyone piled in was so fun :)
How is the house work going? ready to sell yet? i hope so.
Love you!
Elder Stringfellow
Expect a small package in the mail in about 1 1/2 or 2 weeks. I sent a big bunch of letters for you to dish out, March Birthday cards and my SD Picture card. Tell Grandma Stringfellow a letter is on its way to Arkansas, and tell Grandma Kendall that i got her letter as well and to expect an answer in a couple of weeks. I still havent received your package yet, hopefully soon. Tell everyone hi for me!
This morning, like really early this morning, like 2 am we got up, drove down to New South Wales to climb what is called Mt. Warning. At the top of the mtn is the first place in Australia to see the sun each morning, which is why we hiked it so early (to watch the sunrise). It is one of the tallest mountains in our area, and it is actually a Sacred mtn. to the Aboriginals. Apparently the Aboriginal Elders dont want people climbing it, because only people whom they select can climb it (it must have something to do with their religion). The government allows people to climb it, but they post signs asking whoever climbs it to remain dignified and respectful because it is sacred ground. Although we hiked it early, we were unable to see the sunrise because there were clouds at the top. I took pictures anyway, but we didnt get a good full view by any means. The roundtrip was about 5 hours, so it was long and tiring, but fun anyway.
We still dont have any baptismal dates yet, the work is really slow, but we are finding and contacting new people every week, so hopefully we will find someone who believes our message will change their life. Jade is still waiting for his answer that the Book of Mormon is true, but he isnt coming to church, so that is what is holding him back. Once we get him to make an effort to come to church, the Lord will bless him for that effort. We have another lesson with him this week at a members home, so we are praying that will go well.
Talk to you later! tell everyone hi and that i love them! LOVES!!! XOXOXOXOXO!!!!!!
Elder Stringfellow
Email #2:
Hey! Yep, Cyclone Yasi missed us, it didnt really rain or anything here, but it kind of is raining today. The missionaries in Cairns and Townsville stayed with members during the storms, but luckily the big cities didn't get smashed, unfortunately it was the small rural towns in between Cairns and Townsville that got wiped over. It looked like a tornado hit the area, not a cyclone. Luckily all the missionaries are safe.
The Gold Coast does get hit with cyclones, so if one heads our way, there is a possibility that we could get hit. But not to worry, President Langeland will do everything he can to make sure we stay safe!
Maybe you can find an older Bronco with an automatic in it, there are some nice looking ones. Just as long as the top can come off of whatever you get, because Moab with everyone piled in was so fun :)
How is the house work going? ready to sell yet? i hope so.
Love you!
Elder Stringfellow
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
January 22, 2011
Hello everyone! Guess what? the rain stopped! well for now, we are hoping its finally done, but im sure its not. Its been beautiful this week! i'll send some pictures of the beautiful weather. its been quite warm, and quite humid. Tracting (door to door knocking) has been relatively successful, but getting a hold of the people who were a bit interested and actually setting up an appointment is the trick. We are teaching the Prasad Family. The dad, Neel, is a member, but he wants his wife, Anny and his nine year old daughter Zinia to get baptized. Zinia wants to get baptized, but Anny isnt quite feeling it all yet. We are working with the relief society president to find Anny some fellowship, and maybe we can soften her up a bit. Hopefully we will set up a Baptismal Date with them within the next couple of weeks.
You will see pictures of the chapel where we attend, but the chapel is not actually in Queensland. Its only 25km south of Mudgeeraba, but it lies in New South Wales, which is the state that Sydney is in. Its not too far in, but nonetheless we cross the border a couple of times a week.
We still don't know when we will go up to Brisbane for my orientation meeting that was cancelled because of the flooding. Clean-up is slow going, but progressing nonetheless. We called the AP's (Assistants to the President(Langeland)) and we offered to come up and offer service, but they said no. Its just as well, because there is too many people trying to offer service that it is quite un-organized. I am more than halfway over with my first transfer (transfers last 6 weeks). Its kind of amazing how fast it has gone. I will probably remain in Mudgeeraba for at least the next transfer, but who knows? I might go to a new area, you never can tell.
The new vehicles look cool! its kind of nice to see so many changes happening at home as well. I dont like the idea of me having new experiences everyday and you all are stuck in the same old. I hope the Expedition gets running well. The jeep is really cool! See dad, I told you if you just try a car, it might call to you. And it did it sounds like :) Keep looking for a Camaro, i still want one :)
I saw my first Wallabys the other day! (wallabys are smaller versions of Kangas)
We were out for our run and there was two of them just up the hill from us. I didnt get pics because i didnt have my camera on me, but we are going to a place called Springbrook today, and apparently it has hiking trails and waterfalls and overlooks, so maybe i'll see some kangas and koalas, and i'll have my camera on me!
Shelby, you would love it here. The tropical sounds, the forests everywhere are nice! there are large areas of natural forests that havent been destroyed for housing, so even right in the middle of our city Robina are small swampy like forests that are left unchanged. Its pretty cool. I'll send more pics as i get them! the next couple of emails should be all or almost all the pictures i have so far! Enjoy! Love you all soooo much! Miss you! XOXOXO send my love to everyone!
You will see pictures of the chapel where we attend, but the chapel is not actually in Queensland. Its only 25km south of Mudgeeraba, but it lies in New South Wales, which is the state that Sydney is in. Its not too far in, but nonetheless we cross the border a couple of times a week.
We still don't know when we will go up to Brisbane for my orientation meeting that was cancelled because of the flooding. Clean-up is slow going, but progressing nonetheless. We called the AP's (Assistants to the President(Langeland)) and we offered to come up and offer service, but they said no. Its just as well, because there is too many people trying to offer service that it is quite un-organized. I am more than halfway over with my first transfer (transfers last 6 weeks). Its kind of amazing how fast it has gone. I will probably remain in Mudgeeraba for at least the next transfer, but who knows? I might go to a new area, you never can tell.
The new vehicles look cool! its kind of nice to see so many changes happening at home as well. I dont like the idea of me having new experiences everyday and you all are stuck in the same old. I hope the Expedition gets running well. The jeep is really cool! See dad, I told you if you just try a car, it might call to you. And it did it sounds like :) Keep looking for a Camaro, i still want one :)
I saw my first Wallabys the other day! (wallabys are smaller versions of Kangas)
We were out for our run and there was two of them just up the hill from us. I didnt get pics because i didnt have my camera on me, but we are going to a place called Springbrook today, and apparently it has hiking trails and waterfalls and overlooks, so maybe i'll see some kangas and koalas, and i'll have my camera on me!
Shelby, you would love it here. The tropical sounds, the forests everywhere are nice! there are large areas of natural forests that havent been destroyed for housing, so even right in the middle of our city Robina are small swampy like forests that are left unchanged. Its pretty cool. I'll send more pics as i get them! the next couple of emails should be all or almost all the pictures i have so far! Enjoy! Love you all soooo much! Miss you! XOXOXO send my love to everyone!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
January 11, 2010
Yep i'm busy busy. We've taught a couple of lessons and did more tracting and found some people who were interesting. Yeah i got rid of my bug and im feeling great now. Take off was my favorite, because they rev up the engines loud and it rumbles quite a bit, and they dont have to do that on landing, but langing was pretty exciting too. Both pilots did a good job landing
Today is actually the first day i've seen some sun since the morning i flew in. Yesterday the AP's (mission president assistants) sent out texts to all the missionaries and told us to make sure we have plenty of food and water and return to our flats. So we hung out, did some laundry and some other things that needed to be done. The city of Brisbane as you might have heard has kind of been flooding out, and the missionaries in the Brisbane Zone had to be evacuated because they lived on low ground, our temple trip that was supposed to be today was cancelled, because we couldnt get into the city anyway, they shut down power to the CBD (central business district near where the temple is) and there wouldnt have been any temple workers there obviously. We are allowed to go to the temple once every transfer (every six weeks) so hopefully we will either reschedule, or we might just have to wait till next transfer.
Our area (Gold Coast) has been alright as far as flooding goes. . . we live right off a river, so if for some reason they did need to evacuate Robina (the city we are in) we would be one of the first to leave. But that will most likely not happen, at least over the next couple of days, because its supposed to clear up friday and saturday, but the rain will probably continue after that. There is no reason to worry, because if our district or zone is in danger, President Langeland would make sure you all are informed if there is serious trouble. Until you get a phone call, know that we are alright and taken care of.
Its funny, there are quite a few members here, and if they see us walking around, they will always give us a ride, even if they are not in our ward. Its kind of a special relationship between members and missionaries here, they all watch out for us all the time, and they are all so nice and accomodating.
Sunday was nice, they called me up to introduce myself, which i wasnt expecting, but what could i do? it was fine and i knew it would be, but it just took me by surprise. The ward covers a big area, and there was tons of people in the tiny chapel, and it would be nearly impossible to learn all of their names and remember them.
I'm gonna put my SD card in the mail probably tomorrow. Elder Prina says it usually takes two weeks for mail from the states to get to the Mission Office, and then probably a couple of days from Hamilton to Robina. So i'll send it directly to you, so expect it in about two weeks. I still havent received the stuff that you sent when i left, which makes sense if it takes two weeks. So almost all of our correspondence will probably be email. Thank heavens for email then eh?
I hope the explorer gets running soon, and the ice melts too. There is no way that ice will be here anytime soon, even with the "cold" stormy weather. Good luck shelby with selling your car and getting a new one. Any good Camaro's on KSL?
I still havent seen a Kanga, Koala or a Wallaby. Someday. . . but there are still plenty of spiders, funky ducks, and other weird things. The other night we were eating dinner at a members home that is right next to a forest. Here, they dont have central air systems, they use electrical cooling units that are up on the wall if it gets extremely hot and muggy, but most of the time the doors are open with the screen doors. We were eating and the doors were open and there were tons of tropical sounds in the forest. Sister Reid said that most of them are frogs, maybe some other bugs, and possibly birds, but she said they were most likely frogs, and that she actually never noticed the sound before. (which makes sense because she has grown up in Australia and i havent) Its pretty though. I love the feeling of being in a jungle with all the exotic plants, animals and bugs. Note they do have cockroaches here, but i havent seen any yet because we keep our flat very clean :)
As much as I love it here, i am still looking forward to coming back to Utah. But that wont be for awhile, so i'll enjoy this! ...
...It might interest you to know that they dont sell 1%, 2% or even Skim milk in Australia. It's all full cream, all the time. They have a few brands of foods here that are the same. Paul Newmans Salad Dressing, Ferrero Roche Chocolate and Lindt Chocolate. I cant think of anymore off the top of my head, but there are quite a few. All the rest are the same product in a slightly differently designed box, and or under a different name, and there is still a bunch that is all new. A lot of things are more expensive, but some arent quite as much as double. A cheap loaf of bread is about $1.39, and a bag of large carrots is about $1.98. Contrary, a box of cereal is commonly about $7.00, and a Kg of meat can cost up to $35. But, a Kg of meat is still a lot, and we usually buy $8 worth of lunch meat, and it is about as much as a bag of lunch meat in the states. A two litre (yes, litre; and centre, and flavour, and colour) I know weird spellings; A two litre bottle of juice is about $4.50 or $5.00 (a cheap one). Lots of differences, and not enough time to tell. . .
I left one of my watches on Utah time, and its kind of fun to see how far behind us you are. I'll always keep it on Utah time so that I have that part of Utah still with me (besides all the pictures and other things).
Tell everyone I love them, tell the boys to get feeling better and that i laughed out loud when i read about the snot bubbles :) cute cute. I love you all too much, miss you all too much, and i have to constantly pull myself out of my thoughts to make sure i'm focused on the work! I will try to think of you less, maybe hoping the time will go by faster, but I will always dedicate this one hour a week to thinking of you.
Today is actually the first day i've seen some sun since the morning i flew in. Yesterday the AP's (mission president assistants) sent out texts to all the missionaries and told us to make sure we have plenty of food and water and return to our flats. So we hung out, did some laundry and some other things that needed to be done. The city of Brisbane as you might have heard has kind of been flooding out, and the missionaries in the Brisbane Zone had to be evacuated because they lived on low ground, our temple trip that was supposed to be today was cancelled, because we couldnt get into the city anyway, they shut down power to the CBD (central business district near where the temple is) and there wouldnt have been any temple workers there obviously. We are allowed to go to the temple once every transfer (every six weeks) so hopefully we will either reschedule, or we might just have to wait till next transfer.
Our area (Gold Coast) has been alright as far as flooding goes. . . we live right off a river, so if for some reason they did need to evacuate Robina (the city we are in) we would be one of the first to leave. But that will most likely not happen, at least over the next couple of days, because its supposed to clear up friday and saturday, but the rain will probably continue after that. There is no reason to worry, because if our district or zone is in danger, President Langeland would make sure you all are informed if there is serious trouble. Until you get a phone call, know that we are alright and taken care of.
Its funny, there are quite a few members here, and if they see us walking around, they will always give us a ride, even if they are not in our ward. Its kind of a special relationship between members and missionaries here, they all watch out for us all the time, and they are all so nice and accomodating.
Sunday was nice, they called me up to introduce myself, which i wasnt expecting, but what could i do? it was fine and i knew it would be, but it just took me by surprise. The ward covers a big area, and there was tons of people in the tiny chapel, and it would be nearly impossible to learn all of their names and remember them.
I'm gonna put my SD card in the mail probably tomorrow. Elder Prina says it usually takes two weeks for mail from the states to get to the Mission Office, and then probably a couple of days from Hamilton to Robina. So i'll send it directly to you, so expect it in about two weeks. I still havent received the stuff that you sent when i left, which makes sense if it takes two weeks. So almost all of our correspondence will probably be email. Thank heavens for email then eh?
I hope the explorer gets running soon, and the ice melts too. There is no way that ice will be here anytime soon, even with the "cold" stormy weather. Good luck shelby with selling your car and getting a new one. Any good Camaro's on KSL?
I still havent seen a Kanga, Koala or a Wallaby. Someday. . . but there are still plenty of spiders, funky ducks, and other weird things. The other night we were eating dinner at a members home that is right next to a forest. Here, they dont have central air systems, they use electrical cooling units that are up on the wall if it gets extremely hot and muggy, but most of the time the doors are open with the screen doors. We were eating and the doors were open and there were tons of tropical sounds in the forest. Sister Reid said that most of them are frogs, maybe some other bugs, and possibly birds, but she said they were most likely frogs, and that she actually never noticed the sound before. (which makes sense because she has grown up in Australia and i havent) Its pretty though. I love the feeling of being in a jungle with all the exotic plants, animals and bugs. Note they do have cockroaches here, but i havent seen any yet because we keep our flat very clean :)
As much as I love it here, i am still looking forward to coming back to Utah. But that wont be for awhile, so i'll enjoy this! ...
...It might interest you to know that they dont sell 1%, 2% or even Skim milk in Australia. It's all full cream, all the time. They have a few brands of foods here that are the same. Paul Newmans Salad Dressing, Ferrero Roche Chocolate and Lindt Chocolate. I cant think of anymore off the top of my head, but there are quite a few. All the rest are the same product in a slightly differently designed box, and or under a different name, and there is still a bunch that is all new. A lot of things are more expensive, but some arent quite as much as double. A cheap loaf of bread is about $1.39, and a bag of large carrots is about $1.98. Contrary, a box of cereal is commonly about $7.00, and a Kg of meat can cost up to $35. But, a Kg of meat is still a lot, and we usually buy $8 worth of lunch meat, and it is about as much as a bag of lunch meat in the states. A two litre (yes, litre; and centre, and flavour, and colour) I know weird spellings; A two litre bottle of juice is about $4.50 or $5.00 (a cheap one). Lots of differences, and not enough time to tell. . .
I left one of my watches on Utah time, and its kind of fun to see how far behind us you are. I'll always keep it on Utah time so that I have that part of Utah still with me (besides all the pictures and other things).
Tell everyone I love them, tell the boys to get feeling better and that i laughed out loud when i read about the snot bubbles :) cute cute. I love you all too much, miss you all too much, and i have to constantly pull myself out of my thoughts to make sure i'm focused on the work! I will try to think of you less, maybe hoping the time will go by faster, but I will always dedicate this one hour a week to thinking of you.
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