Elder Kolton William Willden

Wow, those fires sound crazy. It is pretty hot out here too. That is weird that you are not coaching. I miss those days haha. My week was nice and long. It is so hot here and there is nothing to burn so there was no fires. The air feels like fire though.

Sounds like things are going good back home. I am really happy out here and love everyone here. My mission president is way cool. Thank you for the prayers it means so much. Prayer is something that has really grown in my testimony the past month. It has been a rough 4 weeks, but through prayer I have received peace and comfort. The ward I am serving in is super awesome. They are all supportive. And they have really strong testimonies. I get to play basketball today which I am super excited for.

I feel like I am getting fat.

Dad, I have some weird dreams out here. Like really weird. They are about random people back home and I cannot remember all of them but they are weird.

Thanks for pushing me to go on a mission. It has been the best experience of my life. I am so tired 24/7, but I can rest in two years. Love you. Make sure you read my weekly report!

Hey Family and Friends,

I'll get straight to the point! I am in a trio with Elder Spikes and Elder Maxwell. There was such an influx of missionaries that I got put into a trio. Elder Spikes is kind of a stinker lol but Elder Maxwell and I keep him in line;) We are serving in an area called Manteca. Our specific assignment is the Union Ward. The members here are super awesome and very humble! We get fed every single night, so I am doing okay:) The first thing I am going to tell you right now that when I ride my bike it feels like there is a 100 degree blow dryer right in my face. haha. Funny thing is that Elder Spikes and I were at the MTC together and we were talking about if we were companions. And we ended up together so that's cool. Elder Maxwell is super cool and just got transferred from being an Assistant to the President. Just so you know Mom my Preparation Day is on Monday.

We ride bikes everywhere. President Palmer likes that because we can talk to everyone that we pass. It has been so cool meeting the people here. Everyone knows who the missionaries are. Some of them are very nice and some are very questionable. haha. And a lot of them are either high or drunk. But hey that is what the Atonement is for. My companions are awesome. I love it here. I have a feeling I might get transferred in 5 weeks so be ready for that.

My bike is super cool. I love that thing, Elder Spikes and I ride dirty. I taught him the ways and he caught on really fast. So when we get on our bikes we look at Elder Maxwell and say "LETS RIDE!" haha and then when we go through the city we "ride dirty." I absolutely love it here. We went to church on Sunday at 9AM. It is different then back home, but the saints here are awesome. Brother Campbell is my favorite. He is the 2nd Counselor in the Bishopric. He bought us dinner twice last week. I had this "wet burrito" at this authentic mexican place. And then he bought us KFC on friday. I really am going to get fat. But when we are on bikes all day it is hard to get chubby. God has blessed me Mom, my taste buds have changed. (not a lot, but I can eat more than I thought). So about the heat here, we got in our car to drive home from church and it read 114 degrees. When we got to the apartment it was 111 degrees. It is HOT. It's a good thing it's not humid or I would die.

So I am going to tell you about the investigators here. We have a guy named Mark, he is the coolest guy. I don't know how, but I already love him. We committed him to baptism last week and he is progressing fast. I got emotional during the lesson and let me tell you why. Mark had a desire to learn, he was listening to every word we were saying and soaking it in like he was a young kid. He is almost 30 years old and he looked like a child learning how to ride a bike. It humbled me so much. That was a really good experience and I felt the spirit in the room so much. I am so happy to be here. We have a less active named Larry. He should not really be a less active because he cannot make it to church. He had a stroke when he was younger, but he lost feeling in his left arm and the filter in his brain. So you can say he says stuff that is on his mind. Larry really likes golf he goes to putt putt tournaments and wins money haha. He was a blessing because you know my humor and I was having a hard day and he lifted my spirit.

Back to the investigators. We have a family named the Vaultours, they are ready to be baptized, but the husband is holding them back. We also have an old lady named Marilyn. She is a good lady and she wants to progress. She has a really hard past to get over but we are excited to help her.

I love the work and I love my companions now. The Lord gave me a break. Well, not really because missionary is hard. I try to stay positive and I am blessed for it. We are eating really good out here and I am so happy. Love everyone back home! Have a good week!

Love,

Elder Willden