$ MTC Cribz $

 เฮลโล Hello!

What's up?? It's been a pretty uneventful week, but there are a few things that happened that I'm pumped to share. This email just might be a little fun-sized.

MECHANIC? YEAH THATS ME.

We were facing a very empty week, so a member proposed that we help him with taking out an old Land Rover engine. We were in!!! Tell you what, this thing is a beast!! I don't know a thing about engines, but my comp and the member kept talking about how they've never seen anything like it. 2 days, not much progress. But I did unscrew some stuff for a while, so from the outside it probably looked like I knew what I was doing! 

THANKSGIVING

Y'all, this is just my favorite holiday. We tried pickleball finding, the courts were flooded. Seattle, right? What can you do? We raked leaves instead! It was pretty fun. We've gotten pretty good at raking leaves. We can get a whole yard done in such a short amount of time, it's hard to talk about it and still be so humble. We had too much food, which is the perfect amount on Thanksgiving, and got to play a card game with some members at the end of the night. 

REDECORATING IS MY PASSION

Our apartment is getting upgraded like every few days it feels like. Since finding the treadmill, our Ward Mission Leader has given us 2 guitars, an amp, and now a bunch of home workout equipment. We looked at our apartment and realized that with our current furniture layout, we wouldn't be able to fit any of the workout things. So, naturally we rearranged the while layout. It is beautiful. MTV, come check out my crib!

LAST THINGS LAST

- it is now socially acceptable to put up christmas decorations.

- shoutout to everyone who sneezed while reading this email, and BLESS YOU!

- just so you know, with it being Thanksgiving and all, I love you and I'm thankful for you!!

เอ็ลเดอร์ ซ่อมรถ (Elder car repair)

Elder Barrett

 

It's a Fitness Miracle!!

 เฮลโล Hello!

Interesting week. Sit back, grab some popcorn, make sure to eat it with only one hand so you can use the other one to scroll without getting your screen all oily, and enjoy a week in the life of Elder Barrett.

ONE MAN'S TRASH

Is another man's treasure. That man's name is me. We were coming home late one night and we saw something odd by the dumpster of our apartment. Could it be...? No, it couldn't. Unless...? It IS! A treadmill! We had to get a better look. So, we carried that bad boy inside our apartment to conduct some experiments. We moved the blanket we've been using as a rug off to the side and set down this giant piece of machinery. We plugged it in and saw it light up, for just a second. It was a literal flicker of hope. But beyond that, we couldn't get it running (pun intended). We noticed a little spot for a magnetic key. So, we looked all over the house to find a key to unlock this treasure. Nothing. When we thought all hope was lost, we decided to stop looking outward for the solution, and start looking inward. I looked down at myself and noticed the magnetic nametag that was clipped onto my chest. And in hindsight it was obvious. But it's ok, because better late than never. It's like how God showed the Jaredites how to make the barges, and then they just had one missing piece. They said well now what? And God said I was going to ask you the same question. I'm not saying that I'm the Brother of Jared. But when it comes to treadmill-related miracles, I'm pretty much the Brother of Jared. So to make a long story short, we now have a working treadmill in our apartment. Daily runs are back!

THE X IN BMX IS FOR X-TREME

Let me describe my bike to you. It's an old, hand-me-down mountain bike with two functioning gears (never stray from 4 and 6), a mud guard that drags on the front tire, and two brakes: one that barely works and another that doesn't work at all. Perfect for riding down steep, windy, busy roads, right? Well, I was going to put it to the test. We had an appointment, and we were going to be on time, come what may. We start heading down. I pick up speed as we approach the first turn. I calmly grip both brakes to try to slow my acceleration. I quickly realize that these brakes are NOT going to be helpful. I turn the corner successfully. No cars. I made a realization. When you're going fast, making sharp turns becomes less and less of an option. So when I turned a corner, I tended to fly into the middle of the road. Squeezing my brakes and digging my shoes into the road were not going to save me at this point. I'm really picking up speed now. Faster. Faster. I'm just zooming. I'm pretty sure I was time traveling at some point. As I turn the last corner, reaching maximum velocity, a car comes up on the other side of the road, as they tend to do. I fly into the middle of the road. I'm looking right into the eyes of the driver of the car. Trying to communicate through eye contact that I'm not an adrenaline junkie trying to cheat death, I'm just your average everyday idiot. I turn out of his way with a few yards to spare and I was out of the woods. I dug my feet into the pavement and I slowed myself down just enough to make the turn onto the main road and we were finally safe and on our way to our appointment. MORAL OF THE STORY: Don't be a goon, find a detour.

LAST THINGS LAST

- I was hit in the face by a stray bottle of Sunny D.

- It's time to double-sock it.

- Shoutout to my Uncle John, who was the artist of the painting on top of last week's section of Come Follow Me!

- No matter what past Calvin told you, present Calvin loves you.

เอ็ลเดอร์ จมูกช้ำ (Elder bruised nose)

Elder Barrett

 

Pickleball Masterz

 เฮลโล Hello!

What is up my good people? Its been a week, that's for sure. More work than usual, plenty of service, a little bit of pickleball, and maybe even a little bit of tracting...?? All this and more in Mr Elder The Bear's weekly email.

DESTROYED BY AN OLD LADY

We found out about an awesome pickleball court that's just outside of Benson Hill, so naturally we hopped on our bikes on the first day that didn't look like God was gonna break his promise to Noah and we booked it over. May or may not have bumped into a guy who was walking on the sidewalk and didnt hear my warning him because of his groovy tunes rocking in his headphones. But when we got there, there was already a group of like 10 retired people playing. Amazing. Two old ladies challenged us to a game. Game time. Y'know what happened? Well, anyone well versed in the dynamic of St. George should be able to guess that old people are unbelieveably good at pickleball. We got our lunch eaten. But it was awesome! We won the second game, and we got into the groove of things. Did we lose a ton of games? Oh yeah. Did we meet some awesome people and possibly some new friends? Uh huh. Was it a party? These questions are so easy. YUP!

YOU GET A BOM AND YOU GET A BOM

This week, we made a goal to get 5 return appointments using the Book of Mormon. We made it all the way to Sunday and realized that we had given out exactly 5 short of our goal. Yep. So, we decided we were gonna knock out an entire neighborhood right next to us. The rain was coming down like crazy. I was hoping that it might lead some people to have sympathy and let us in. I was wrong. We mostly got a few "kudos for doing this in the rain!... k bye." But yknow what? It doesnt matter, because we gave out 3 Book of Mormons!!!! Yesssss! And what's even better? We had a self referral for a Book of Mormon! We got to go see her and she's going through a tough time right now, so I'm sure that God is leading her right to the truth. So excited to see her some more in the future.

SERVICE? YEAH I CAN DO THAT

It's cold, y'all. Not below freezing or anything, but it's like a deep cold. Sinks right into your bones. No bueno. But it's ok, and I'll be ok. We helped one of our friends clean out her garage and fix a fence while I was trying not to have my toes freeze off through my super thin socks that are Thailand approved, but November in Washington laughs at. We also helped with some more mulch moving. Always a party.

LAST THINGS LAST

- Go cougs, but you already knew that.

- Every day is one day closer to Thanksgiving. That means members are making us lots of mashed potatoes :)

- Hey you! I love you!

เอ็ลเดอร์ พูดช้าๆ (Elder spoke slowly)

Elder Barrett

Ooo leaf blower, shock me like electric eel

 เฮลโล Hello!

Fun week! This week I got a new companion! He's Elder Prasek from Logan, UT and we're going to have a great transfer. Even better news? We're going on transfer number 4 in Benson Hill!!! Let's go!!!

BABYSITTER MAN

Who knew you would need to be good with kids to be a good missionary? Probably Jesus, and that's why he blessed them all in 3 Nephi... anyways. Being able to deal with little kids has become the theme of this last weekend. We had to spend one night distracting a member's sisters so the Sister missionaries could teach her. At church, I had to greet people coming in while also dealing with a little girl dangling from my arm. And at a member's house for dinner, we had to keep her kids happy by drawing with them and spelling their names while also having a meaningful conversation with their mom. That's right, this weekend was the best!!

LEAF RAKER ON THE ROOF

If I was a rich man, I would hire someone to watch me do this and applaud, because it is awesome. We've been helping someone out with his house. We've raked leaves, weedwhacked, mowed, ripped out carpet, raked some more, organized a woodshop, swept up pine needles, and finally, we raked some leaves. I even got to stomp the leaves down into the waste bin. It felt like I was squashing grapes to make wine, which is one of my bucket list items. Non alcoholic of course... While we were getting leaves off of their deck, we noticed a ledge that was covered in leaves. Naturally, we hopped up and raked it clear. But now that we were here, we saw the roof. Wouldn't you know it, the roof was covered in leaves!! Being the tireless servants we are, we grabbed a leaf blower and got up on there! It was a perfect plan. We even cleaned out his gutters with it. Quick note, try to only touch the handle of the leaf blower. The bottom tends to give little static shocks. But I have no regrets.

WORD OF WIZZUM IS THE SHIZZUM

We set up a day and time to teach our most progressing friend, Nicole, this week. We were going to teach her all the commandments, including the law of chastity, tithing, and the word of wisdom. We opened up the video call, and there she was, sipping a latte. Y'know when you want to tell someone something immediately, but you also wanna be polite and let them finish, even though you're positive what you have to say is more important? Yep. It actually went well and she committed to keep all the commandments! So let's go!!!

LAST THINGS LAST

- BYU football. Way to blow out Boise St. Sko Cougs.

- My spirit animal is a sloth.

- It's a little uncomfy when a member gives you zucchini bread at church... in a Starbucks bag. I'm sure some people had questions when they saw us carrying that around.

- Welcome to PeopleILovesburg. Population: YOU!

เอ็ลเดอร์ กินเหมือนกับนก (The elder eats like a bird)

Elder Barrett

The Tour de Benson

 (Pronounced Tour de BenSEAUX)

เฮลโล Hello!

What a crazy crazy week, y'all. This being the last week of the transfer, unfortunately Elder Stradling will not be with us anymore. But no need to be glum, sugarplum. I'm getting a new companion, who I will meet later today. It should be a glorious experience, at least for him. 

THE TOUR DE BENSEAUX

On Sunday, as our last day for Elder Stradling, we met with all of our favorite families from around the ward. Yep. All. We biked the entire area to meet with all these people. If that's not dedication for a great farewell tour, I don't know what is. We aren't Kobe, but then again neither was Paul Pierce so I'd say we're in good company. We biked to 10 houses (on fast sunday, so we were naturally speedier, granted) after church. With plenty of time to say hi, take a picture and reassure them that even though Elder Stradling would be leaving, I am still loyal to Benson Hill. We did get fed two dinners on our tour, a jug of orange juice, and a box of chocolates. Also, side tangent, life is not like a box of chocolates. Every single time you grab something out of one, you got chocolate. Foolishness.

GENEOLOGY I AM DOING IT

We have been trying to do a little more family history work. We were at a members house and we all decided to open the family search app and naturally find out how far you can go. I traced my way back to Adam and Eve a few times. Pretty cool, pretty cool. Thanks family members who actually put in work so I can tap on the screen for a few minutes.

GIVE THEM LEARN

We taught a few more english classes and an actual lesson with one of our friends. What happened? I'm so glad you asked. We taught the Plan of Salvation to a Buddhist monk, for one. It was probably one of the coolest moments of my mission life. Not gonna lie, if you told me I'd teach lessons to a monk on my mission, I wouldn't think you meant in Washington. Another one of our lessons, our friend had to use headphones that had the absolute worst microphone in the world. So now ive spoken English, Thai, and Robot. And finally, we got one of our friends on date for baptism! She was a referral and it was our first lesson with her, but we were both feeling it so we just shot the question! She accepted, no hesitation. It's the best.

LAST THINGS LAST

- one more transfer in Benson Hill, let's go!

- I pulled a muscle in my forearm while I was ripping out some carpet. So typing this email is a labor of love.

- hope y'all had a great Halloween! We've got more candy than we know what to do with, so please come by and partake ;)

- have you ever wondered, who does Elder Barrett love? The answer may surprise you: YOU!!

เอ็ลเดอร์ปั่นจักรยาน (Elder Cycling)

Elder Barrett