I'm a District Leader ! November 18, 2013

Sounds like another pretty awesome Erdmann week. I hope Madison doesn't fall off that horse. Ryan I also am sorry your Chiefs lost but lets face it it's their destiny to do that ha ha JK. More cake balls are always welcomed and I am sure will make it through the mail fine if you feel so inclined to send them. So Kyle found a lady friend so cute ha-ha.  Tell him he should find someone to write me while I am out here! I hope this one works out well for him.

Well this past week was very eventful. Tuesday we went down to Fountain Valley again where I got an MRI for my knee - which wasn't anywhere near as dramatic as they make it seem on the TV series House. I actually almost took a nap while having it and probably would have if it had been any longer then 15 minutes. Wednesday we went back to Fountain Valley again but this time Brother Dunn drove us and we went for my companion, Elder Owen, for his physical therapy for his back and knees - he has a lumbar strain or something. Thursday was actually pretty normal (So I thought). We had our District meeting and then weekly planning, but one thing that was weird was that the night before, on Wednesday Leadership calls we're supposed to go out, but on Thursday no one in our zone had received a call which is unusual to say the least. The rest of the day was pretty normal. Throughout the week we were going by and teaching Jessica to help her to get ready for her interview for Baptism, which has been tough with her because I am guessing she has a learning disability of some sort because if you ask her for a definition of lets say repentance she cant give you one, but if you give her a couple small hints that it has to do with forgiveness and changing ourselves to become more Christlike she can go on about it for hours. Anyway back to Thursday - so the day was pretty normal until 9:47 P.M. when all of the sudden our phone started ringing and it was one of the Assistant to the President, Elder Dixon. calling me to be a District Leader! HUH? Who woulda thunk? So I am now a District Leader and while I am excited in some ways it is a bit nerve racking because even though I have been out 10 months now I feel like I just got here and should still be the one learning (though I am sure I will learn a lot being DL) and not the one teaching. So now I am, in addition to normal missionary work, responsible for 2 other companionships and trainings every District meeting and exchanges every transfer so we will see how this goes.

Friday brought another doctors visit as well as good news -  I do not have a torn meniscus and it looks like from what the doctor said that I am just pushing my knees to hard and am causing some inflammation and almost arthritis like pains. As long as I don't keep hurting it and over-working it, I shouldn't have any long term issues at all or even arthritis in the future.  I am on anti-inflammatory right now. Also on the plus side when we looked at my MRI my doctor said I actually have really good knees and he wishes his were as good as mine so hopefully they stay that way.

Later Friday night Jessica had her interview for Baptism and she passed - which is awesome - and she seems pretty excited about it, although she is a little nervous. Saturday was her Baptism which went really well she asked me to Baptize her so I did (twice because I messed up the wording a little bit) but thankfully both times she went all the way under and came back up fine. A funny thing was I forgot any sort of back up clothing for her Baptism but thankfully earlier that day my Zone Leaders had a Baptism so I wore Elder Bakker's wet garments and a jumpsuit.  I always seem to forget something ha ha. Sunday was busy! We went to church where Jessica got confirmed by the Bishop and then we went to another Baptism for the Sisters in our zone, and afterwards went to a departure fireside for the missionaries going home this transfer - which was really sad because a lot of them I have served pretty closely with including Elder Burns who was my second companion and so far one of my favorites. Thats pretty much sums up my week. Rica is still just waiting for her boyfriend Lamo to get a California ID so they can get married so she can get Baptized which will be awesome.

Oh  I found out that I am staying another transfer here in Whittier in Colima ward so I will have the same address for the next six weeks at least. Elder Owen and myself will be staying together - which means by the end of this next transfer I will have been in this ward for 7 months - which I am pretty stoked about because this ward is awesome and I have grown really close to a lot of the people here so I don't mind staying for Thanksgiving and Christmas at all.  

I hope you guys have another awesome week I am guessing there will be more parties, horses, and singing and probably working but I hope you have fun either way I will as usual keep you all in my prayers!

Love Elder Jensen

November 11, 2013

So just to start off because I dont want to end on a bad note - I went in to see a doc this past week for my knee and I might have a torn meniscus. I have to go to the doc again this week and get and MRI to be sure - though no worries though I am fine really!

Anyways this last week was good. Tuesday we did service at the Eddards (which is where my fiance lives) and we leveled the dirt around the edge of the house and then laid square bricks to create a path which was a lot of fun. We had a couple lessons with Rica and Jessica through out the week and they should hopefully be getting Baptized this upcoming Saturday if everything goes right. We spent a lot of time walking around in our area and trying by less active members we dont know and trying to find more people to teach without a lot of success - but it was still a lot of fun and I have realized how much more work there is to do in this area - and I have been here almost 6 months. It's crazy. Friday is when we went to visit Doctor Kelly and that took up most of the day and when we got home we were told by the mission nurse that for now I am not allowed to ride a bike and we need to either walk or see if we could get a car, so right now were borrowing a car from some other Elders so we can get around. Saturday and Sunday were really good. Church was good and we were able to teach a couple less active members in the ward and have some lessons with part member families. 

Well keep up being awesome thank you so much for everything and dont be sick I will keep you all in my prayers and hope you quit being sick haha I am almost out of cake balls too now by the way only two left!

Love Elder Jensen

November 4, 2013

This past week was really good. As you already know we went to the Temple which means that Monday was a normal working day for us but it was really good.  We had a lesson with Rica and Jessica (Tanisha has been out of town so we haven’t been able to meet with her again) but it went really well.  Jessica (who is really really shy) has opened up a lot as we have taught her more one on one which is good, and she is really excited about everything.

We also had to go and get Elder Owens bike tube fixed again. It has gone flat over and over which is annoying, but hopefully one day it decides to hold air. We also took care of that on Monday. Then on Tuesday we went to the Temple and had our P-Day which was really busy but good. It is definitely a blessing to be able to go to the Temple every three months, even if afterwards we get preached to by stupid Sister Missionaries in the visitors center ha-ha.

Wednesday we went and visited Sister Sao in the morning and just gave her some company. I have come to really grow fond of spending time with widows in the ward, which might come across as weird, but they are a lot of fun to be around and enjoy the company. Later that day we had another lesson with Jessica and Rica.

On Thursday we went to Zone Meeting, which we have once a transfer, and sadly we got assigned to give a Preach My Gospel thought on Faith, which I don’t necessarily mind except for the fact that we had to stand and give it in front of a bunch of other missionaries - and you know how I feel about standing up in front of everyone. Other then that though it was really good and I got to wear my Halloween tie which pretty much looks like I killed the cookie monster skinned him and made a tie out of it. Its fluffy and blue and it almost looks like a fluffy scarf in tie form - its sweet.

Then after that we had weekly planning where instead of weekly planning we visited with another companionship of Elders in our home. Pretty much I was just hanging out with Elder Curtis who goes home in two weeks and who I have served around a good amount. I would label him as a friend. He is older (almost 25), from Idaho, and balding so we make fun of that. Then in the evening we went and set up a booth at the church parking lot for the trunk or treat which went really well. We handed out a few Books of Mormon as well as a bazillion pass along cards, and we got to eat chili dogs which are yummy. The funny part was my fiancé was there and kept trying to get me to come and sit on the tail of her dads truck with her - 5 year olds these days are very forward about what they want!

Friday we helped our ward mission leader, who I am very fond of, move into his new home just around the corner from us, which is always fun and gets me out of the white shirt and tie – so I was all for it. Then we got pizza for lunch. At 3:30 we had set up a lesson with Jessica and Rica again so we went to go ride down to where they live to come to find....... Elder Owens’ tire flat again! Yay! So we got a ride from Brother Arnold (one of our ward missionaries) to the lesson then we went home and ate dinner with the Jackman's. Brother Jackman is really awesome and took not only Elder Owens tire to the bike shop but Elder Jacobson's (another Elder in the ward) bike and paid for them to get repaired. So while he did that we walked to our area and visited with a family in the ward and then started walking back and on the way decided to stop and get a drink at a gas station on the way and right as Elder Owen walked in and the door bell dinged, the power went out all over the block - so that was weird. Saturday was a busy day. We had set up a lesson with a lady named Tess for 12 o’clock that Brother Dunn came with us - but she wasn't home so we went and visited David Bryant (a less active member of the ward) and read out of the Book of Mormon with him. After the lesson he dropped us off at our bikes at about 12:40 and we had to go back to our place for lunch and get back in time for a lesson at 2, and when we live 20 minutes outside of our area to begin with that doesn't leave us much time - so what did we do? Got a ride from my future Father in Law (Brother Eddard) who lived across the street. We threw our bikes in his truck and he drove us home - we ate lunch and rode back down to have a lesson with a 16 year old girl named Vanessa and her Grandma Sister Russell who is a member - which went really well. Then in the evening we had another lesson with Rica and Jessica and they are set to go for their Baptism - the only issue that came up is we had to push back Rica's date to the 16th because she still has to get married to Lamo (her boyfriend of 11 years) and when they went to get a marriage license they found out he needed a picture I.D. so he had to get one from the state - so it is going to take a bit to get it mailed to them. Jessica has quit smoking and drinking and is planning on being Baptized this upcoming Saturday on the 9th. Sunday was really good - we had a great testimony meeting and a relaxing day we ate dinner with the King family and had a family home evening afterwards with them so it was a nice relaxing day. That was my week!

So hopefully this letter makes up for last weeks being so short next weeks will probably be short to since it is a holiday on Monday but I hope you guys have a safe happy week and that you keep being awesome!

Love Elder Jensen

October 29, 2013

Wow that is so awesome that Morgan got Baptized give her a huge hug for me! I love you Morgie good job! Madison that is awesome you gave one of the talks at her Baptism even I get nervous giving those and I am a missionary!

 

This last week was really good we are still teaching Rica and Tanisha and Jessica and they should be ready by the 9th for Baptism! Elder Owen and myself are back on bike since the car left with Elder Pina and last week Elder Owen had a couple falt tires so that took up a lot of time fixing buying new tubes and pumping up. I also went on exchanges whith my District Leader in his area for a day which we do once a transfer and that was a lot of fun to serve in another ward for a day and my District Leader Elder Kropf is pretty awesome this last week we had the primary program where all the little kids sang and such and it's hard to admit but it was really freakin cute haha but those were the highlights of my week!

 

Sorry again that this was so short if I forgot to respond to anything ask me again in your next email and I will email you back next week!

Love Elder Jensen!

October 21, 2013

Madison's costume is sweet - I wish I had a cool costume like that.  Morgan and Kyles sound pretty sweet as well - are you and Ryan dressing up? I am sure Ryan is getting excited to scare little kids -he's a weirdo like that. I agree Morgan probably doesn't fully grasp every concept that she has been taught but neither did I when I was 8 nor does probably any 8 year old, but as she goes to church she will get it eventually 

As far as this last week goes it was very eventful and it went really well. Each week we set goals as to how many lessons and new investigators and etc that we are going to have. This week we met every goal so that was awesome. Tuesday we taught a lesson about the Book of Mormon to a lady named Rose who wants to learn more. We are going by tonight so we will see how it goes. We also were in a trio with another Elder in the ward named Elder Stallings because his companion was at a leadership training. We did some more service for Sister Sao (if you remember her) we cleaned off her roof this time and she treated us to root beer floats afterwards. We also were able to find a new investigator this week named Tanisha who is related to two of our other investigators Rica and Jessica. So we are able to teach them all together which is cool. We have a Baptismal date set for them for Nov 9th so hopefully everything works out. On Wednesday we had a really cool experience. We were doing service for a less active member of the ward who is coming back to church and I have been teaching for awhile. So after doing service for him by cleaning up his apartment we taught a lesson on the Law of Chastity and in the past we have noticed a bunch of playboys on his shelf, so I challenged him to let us take them and throw them away so that the Holy Ghost could be with him in is home. He accepted so I left the house with about 30 playboys in my backpack and on top of my scriptures - which was awkward - and I was glad to throw them away. But that was really cool. After that on Wednesday we did service for the Eddard family in the ward where my 5 year old fiance lives :)   by ripping out a bunch of banana trees in their backyard which was fun (we used machetes).  Later that day we went to get "mandatory" flu shots (that I was set on avoiding) and everyone told me I wasn't going to get out of it -  but guess who got out of it? This guy oh yeah baby! Thursday we went and taught a bunch of lessons but the one that stands out the most is a recent convert lesson with Henry Macias that went really well . From here on out the ward missionaries should be teaching him the after Baptism lessons, though on Saturday we went and did service for him by ripping out a bunch of weeds and crab grass and tilling his dirt up which was fun. Though I am getting ahead of one of the best parts of the week which was on Friday where we went to the Morales family in the ward, and once again did service by demolishing an old two story club house that was made out of 2x4's and plywood. After knocking it down and getting it torn apart I made the mistake of stepping on a board with a nail poking out of it - and do you know what happens when you do that? It goes through your shoe and into your foot and runs into the bone directly behind your big toe  - not fun but its almost better now ha ha. So it probably sounds like all I do is service, but throughout the week we were able to have a lot of lessons that were really good, mostly with Tanisha, Rica and Jessica. They made it to church too which was really good, and they love everything we have taught them so far which is cool. Another cool thing was the ward I am in took down all of our investigators names and are going to start praying for them so thats awesome. I think that pretty much sums up my week though.

I will keep praying for you guys, especially Morgan, that all goes how it is supposed to go and that she will be happy with the decision she makes. I remember before I left on my mission she said she never wanted to get Baptized so it's awesome she changed her mind. I am looking forward to the girls letters! Until next week I love you guys and hope you have a good safe fun week!

Love Elder Jensen 

October 14, 2013

That is awesome that Morgan is getting Baptized! I love that girl! Give her a hug for me as well as Madison for being so awesome and going to the Temple so often and being involved in church! I hope that things keep going well for them and hopefully things slow down for you two at work so you can relax a little. To answer one of your questions the State of Utah worked out a way to open the parks back up and maintain them until the Feds work everything out so my parents are ok in that aspect right now. I cant wait to see pics of the girls costumes they sound super cool. 

As for this last week it was good. My new companions name is Elder Owen and he is from Cantebury, England (not sure if I spelled the city right or not but either way sound it out if you must haha) So far were getting along. I think it will work out fine. He is willing to work hard so that's good. His family lives in Utah now so he will be going home to Pleasant Grove - and he actually got here at the same time as me. We came on the same plane so that is kind of cool. Elder Pina left to Long Beach and I have missed him - even if at times he was hard to have as a companion I think it would also be safe to say that I learned more from him about being a good charitable person then any of my prior companions. Henry Macias is still doing great. He received the Gift of the Holy Ghost on Sunday and that is always awesome. We are planning on having the ward missionaries teach him the after-Baptism lessons. Rica and Jessica (two of our other investigators that I have mentioned in the past) are doing well. We taught them this week and set a date for Jessica to get Baptized on the 26th of this month -and committed Rica to talking to her boyfriend Lamo about getting married so that she can get Baptized. Things have slowed down a bit now that we had a Baptism. So hopefully we find some more people to teach soon so that we are kept busy. I am sure the Lord will provide! Other then that though there isn't a lot to mention that pops out to me, though I am sure there is and I am just not remembering it right now...
I hope all is going well and you guys are in my prayers and I miss and love you guys a ton! At the same time though it feels like I havent been gone that long and its crazy I have already been out almost 9 months! 
I will see you guys soon 
Love Elder Jensen

September 23, 2013

Sounds pretty typical busy for the Erdmann household - but it sounds awesome all the same. And just remember that while I am loving my mission and wouldn't trade it for anything else right now I do miss and love all of you!  I actually heard about The U of U winning against BYU so I rubbed it in my Bishops face here a little bit which was entertaining because he and I have a rivalry in that area ha ha. But more importantly - that is awesome that Morgan is taking the lessons again. I will absolutely pray for her and I am sure things will work out how they are supposed to. She is a good girl and she's smart and with Kyle there I am sure she will be able to feel the spirit! Speaking of Kyle that is awesome that everything is going so well for him and I hope it continues to go well I will make a deal with him that when I get home I will do all his biology homework if he does my math homework! As far as Madison goes that is actually super interesting to me that she does well on homework but bad on tests and that it is math that she is struggling with because I was the exact same way in school with math - crazy to see the similarities there are.

So one important thing  that is happening is that Elder Pina and myself are moving out of the apartment we are living in and into a members home who lives in the ward named the Jackmans. I have failed to get their address but I will either send it in a separate email or I will have Sister Montierth text it to you -though for this week you can still send stuff to my current address because while we are moving out tomorrow morning another set of Elders is moving in the same morning so I will still receive anything that gets sent there such as the two packages without any worries so dont worry about waiting to send the package today!
As for this last week it was really good. So much happens that I can't even really remember all of it so I will try and focus on some of the highlights - or more memorable moments per say. First is Rica who is investigator and Jessica who is her cousin and also an investigator who lives with Rica. Rica's Mother, who they have been living with, expectantly died this past Wednesday, which is really sad. But the interesting thing is that the day after were able to teach them how families can be together forever, which they said brought them a lot of comfort. On Saturday they had a plate sale - I know it sounds weird - but it's not. Pretty much they cooked a ton of food and were selling it for 10.00$ a plate as a fundraiser to pay for their mothers funeral. So we sent a mass text out to the ward to go and support them, as well as get some food, and I will admit I had my concerns that the ward wouldn't come through - but as usual I was proved wrong. We even had members who weren't able to make it to the fundraiser give us money to give to them which was awesome. They ended up with a really good turn out and they in turn are super grateful which is what its all about  - helping each other. That was really awesome to be able to see. On Sunday they came to church and afterwards met with the Bishop to find out if they could use the church for the funeral - so now they are going to be able to hold the funeral for free at the church, and it's hard to describe, but it's just awesome to see how much comfort and happiness and appreciation Rica and her family are showing from seeing the love of the members. Now Rica (who has been an investigator for awhile and wants to get Baptized but hasn't been able to because her and her boyfriend of 11 years arent married) is planning on getting married so she can finally get Baptized. Jessica also wants to get Baptized so it's just really cool to see. Another cool thing this week is that Henry Macias, another investigator of a part member family who we have been preparing for Baptism, canceled both appointments because he had to work late. We had appointments with him this week so that was a concern but we stopped by last night just to visit and see how he was doing and he brought up his Baptism totally on his own accord and wanted to make sure which Saturday it was, and that his son (who has recently returned from a mission) would Baptize him - so that was super cool! Other then that we had an awesome training on Wednesday from our mission president on how to find more investigators and how to talk with people and so on. While I feel most of it was people skills it was still really good, and as always, President Tew blew my mind ha ha. One not so amazing thing, but just worth mentioning, is that lately every day at lunch and at night after planning we have gone upstairs to the apartment of another set of Elders who live above us and whose names are Elder Rodriguez and Roothoff, and we end up screwing around with them by doing dumb stuff like spraying each other with water bottles and whipping each other with towels and so forth. But it has been a good time and as much as I love Elder Pina its good to have other people around to mess around with but that was the gist of my week!

Anywhoo let me know how things go with Morgan and the lessons. I hope that you guys have another good week. Thanks for always being awesome by the way, and doing so much for me let me know if there is anything I can do for you guys!
Love Elder Jensen

September 16, 2013

As for this last week it was awesome. We were really busy and I will hope to remember everything that happened. Probably the coolest thing was that Henry Macias (who is the non member of a part member family I believe I have mentioned before) is on track to be Baptized on the 28th of this month. We had a couple lessons last week with him - both of which went really well and it is awesome to see the change in him. Another awesome thing is that Josh Gasio, who is the non-member husband in another family in the ward, asked us for a blessing and we gave him one yesterday. All I can say was that the spirit was awesome and at the end of the blessing he was crying as was his wife and it was just awesome to have that opportunity. The really cool part is that Elder Pina gave the blessing and it is amazing to see how the spirit can work through people because usually when he is talking or explaining things he stumbles over his words and isn't very good at explaining things or even talking with people in general due to his autism - but as he gave the blessing everything he said flowed smoothly and he said things that I at no other time could imagine him putting together and saying in the same sentence - so that was awesome. Other then that it was just a really good week with a lot of success. One thing our zone is doing right now is every night each companionship in the zone sends one miracle they saw that day to the rest of the companionship,  so all those miracles have been awesome to see. Another thing I have personally been doing is that I have made a goal to hand out at least one Book of Mormon a day and I have found a lot of success in doing so. There seems to be a habit in the mission of only giving them out to really promising potential investigators, but as I have been handing them out I have seen people become a lot more receptive. That is all I can remember right now though I am sure there is a lot more written in my journal, but I will have more to write next week!

Anyways I hope things slow down for you guys too though by the sounds of it the girls are planning on keeping you guys busy. Ryan now I must say that while Kathy does a wonderful job at emailing me I love hearing from you specifically too so dont be shy to write longer more detailed letters - though I know your super busy so don't feel obligated to if your overly stressed or busy! I hope Kyle is adjusting back to regular life well and that things are going smoothly!
I look forward to hearing from you next week!
Love Elder Jensen!

October 7, 2013

That is super cool about Morgan getting ready to get Baptized. Take lots of pictures for me please! Also I got your package this week - finally ha ha. It was awesome. I shot Elder Pina in the eye ha ha oh wait oops. But, no really - it was awesome and the toys are more entertaining then you would expect! Tell both of the girls I am proud of them for the good grades and I hope all goes well for Morgans new singing career ha ha . I know that I always complained and was kinda a grinch about all the crazy decorations (at least I was with my Mom) maybe not with you guys, I am not sure, but I actually miss them - believe it or not (well everything except the bells on my door haha). 

Oh by the way I am staying where I am at another transfer, but Elder Pina is leaving to Long Beach my new companions name is Elder Owen. He is from England and got in the mission the same time as myself, but that's all I know about him. But I have heard he is cool so thats always a good sign.

As for last week it was awesome though we werent able to do as much teaching as normal because of General Conference. But that is ok because General Conference is what we as missionaries call the Missionary Super Bowl ha ha. In particular I liked the talks given by Jeffery R Holland, President Uchdorft, obviously Thomas S. Monson, and I even liked the one given by David A. Bednar which I usually dont like  - but I did like this one ha ha. And even more epic then conference was that Henry Macias got Baptized - which as all Baptisms are - was just plain awesome! His son Baptized him and I gave a talk on Baptism and Elder Pina gave one on The Gift of the Holy Ghost. We had the Baptism between the second session on Saturday and the Priesthood session and it was just super cool in general. The rest of the week was pretty normal and it feels like conference weekend was so busy - but at the same time there isn't much to write about it though. We also had a giant missionary tie trade ha ha - that was pretty cool. And then the rest of this weekend we mostly just went around and visited members that Elder Pina got close to when he was here so that he could say good bye to them. We also had a birthday dinner at Sister Montierths for Elder Stallings where we ended up popping a gazillion balloons which was pretty fun. As far as our teaching goes right now we need to do some finding now,  but we still have a couple people we are teaching such as the spiritual woman named Frances and a catholic lady named Georgina. We moved our recent convert Grace and her three daughters out of her apartment and they are moving to Long Beach to a nicer area and little bigger apartment for when she and her boyfriend get married. We also did service again for Sister Rogers where we started to apply the second layer of mud to the drywall. That was pretty much the extent of my week. I am sure this next week will be eventful with getting my new companion settled in so hopefully I have more to report next week!

I hope everything goes well for you all next week I would love some letters from my favorite sisters! and sorry this letter was so rushed I am short on time today but I hope you guys have a great week I will keep you guys in my prayers and I love you all! My Mom and Dad said to tell you hi!

Love Elder Jensen!

September 30, 2013

AGGH I wish it would snow here. I miss the snow so much I often find myself looking into a cup of water with ice in it and just staring at the ice cubes longing for snow! The weather never changes here - it's rather frustrating. Ha ha, I know you aren't a big fan of snow - I am also jealous of Kyle being able to go to Snowbird. But, regardless of my jealousy I would still rather be here, and the snow will be there when I get home (as will my ski's.) What I am by far more happy about and even jealous of is that Morgan may be getting Baptized. That is awesome to say the least. I can't really describe how awesome that is through email - just make sure and take lots of pictures for me! Those Halloween costumes sound pretty legit especially Morgans I hope it turns out how she wants it and that it holds together alright. 

This past week as usual was really good. We had 16 member-present lessons, or in other words we had 16 lessons where a member of the ward came with us to the lesson, as well as 3 lessons without a member and 5 less active member lessons - so all in all we had 24 lessons this week which was awesome. We have been having a lot of success. We started teaching another person whose name is Frances. We have taught her one lesson so far and she seems pretty interested so we will see what comes of that. Also Henry Macias is going to be Baptized this upcoming Saturday which is awesome. He is going to have his son (who recently got home from his mission) Baptize him and were super stoked for him to say the least. We finished teaching him all the lessons last week so now it's just waiting for next Saturday - which is also General Conference or the Missionary Super Bowl ha ha. I am pretty excited for that - but it is going to be a busy day because we have general conference to watch and then during the break between the second session and the Priesthood session we have Henry's Baptism. But as usual I am sure we will be able to work it all out. Last week we moved into a members home (the Jackmans) who are awesome - and so far I have loved living with them though. Tuesday was a hectic day because we had to move all of our stuff out and into the new place then go back to the old apartment and move all the furniture into the kitchen so that the cleaners could shampoo the carpet. Then we helped the Elders who lived above us clean and move a bunch of their stuff down to our old apartment. But it was a lot of fun though, and it took until dinner to get finished. Then on Wednesday we went back over to Sister Rogers home again to help her in the continuation of the construction of the add-on to her home. This time I had to climb up on a shelf thing and lie down and mud and tape a few spots of drywall - and let me just say it's really hard to do that while your lying down with no head room and a bunch of that stupid popcorn ceiling crap falling into the mud - but it was still a lot of fun. One of the other highlights of the week was that we took out two different priests on two different days and did everything from go knocking to teaching some less active lessons. It was pretty funny because one of the priests we have taken a couple times and he doesn't like knocking very much - but we had a lesson fall through and our back up was to go knocking. So, I gave him the option of us taking him home or he could knock with us for a bit and, despite not liking knocking, he chose to stay and go knocking. The funny part was that the first door we knocked on gave us a bunch of beef jerky chips and drinks which he was quite pleased with. That was pretty much the gist of my week nothing else in particular I can think of worth mentioning.

Love Elder Jensen

P.S. Keep it real my K DOG fo shizzle  

Staying in Whittier!

Well it sounds like you guys had a good last week. Kyle I will keep you in my prayers and I am sure you will find work soon! Just before I forget I do not have a new address for you but I am really happy about that because even though it is hot here I really wanted to stay in this ward and am excited for the next 6 weeks. Also Elder Pina is still my companion, which even though it was hard at first now that I know how to work with him, I really like having him around. So this next transfer should be a good one. Also before I forget - if you send a package this week that would be awesome. And as far as anything I need one thing I really dont need pretty much is hygiene products because the money that we get monthly more then covers any needs I would have as far as that. Ties are always welcomed and appreciated but as far as I remember from the packages you sent Kyle you seem to know the stuff that is good to get ha ha.

So this last week was really good and it flew by as most weeks do for me. It's kind of crazy how quickly it goes by - especially this last transfer - it went by super fast. I can only imagine that this one will go by as quickly. As far as our teaching is going I will focus on a few of the highlights and / or downers.

 

One of the highlights and downers is our investigator Robert who is homeless. I will admit that I originally had my concerns about teaching him and the sincerity behind him wanting to learn about the Gospel - but we had a lesson with him with our Ward Mission Leader - Brother Castruita - and it was one of the best lessons I have ever had or taught. I felt that his intentions were sincere so we set up another time with him and had another lesson where we read from The Book of Mormon with him - which also went really well. Now the downer part of it is that we set up another appointment with him and when we went to meet him he wasn't there - and we haven't seen him since. But I am hoping he will turn up soon and that he isn't in jail or something. The other person I would like to talk about is our recent convert Grace. She went to the temple last week and did Baptisms for the dead. She enjoyed it. Also her member boyfriend is proposing to her and they should be married in Decemberish which is awesome. Also we haven't been able to meet or teach her three girls yet, but the oldest one came to church and is showing a lot of interest - so we may be able to start teaching her at least.

 

Other then that the week was pretty normal - but really good. Yesterday (so Sunday evening) we went to what's called a departure fireside which is for the missionaries that are going home and anyone is invited. Normally I don't go to these but I knew that my recent convert Tammy Braun from Huntington Beach was going to be there and I wanted to see her so we went. She was there and it was super awesome to see. She she is doing super well she still hasn't had any smoking issues and doesn't have cravings anymore at all! She has been doing Baptisms for the dead and is even teaching in Relief Society. It was awesome to see her and was the highlight of my week. I also saw a bunch of my old companions there namely Jenson, Gallagher, Moala, my MTC companion Elder George, and Elder Larsen. I talked to Elder Larsen for a bit and talked to him about a less active that we reactivated that maybe you guys will remember by name of Brother Parker. He was awesome and came back to church and just went from totally inactive to totally active over- night - and right before we left we were trying to teach his 18 year old son and get him Baptized. I found out that not only did he end up getting Baptized but now he is saving up money to go on a mission! That is one of the coolest things and what being out here is all about. All I can say is that it was super rewarding. Anyways - that was my week and I am super excited to be staying here in the Colima ward in Whittier!

Anyways you guys are awesome and I really appreciate all that you guys do for me especially writing me it means a lot ESPECIALLY THE ONES FROM MY SISTERS!!!!! I hope that they get back into school well and that Morgan doesn't go to crazy from all the structure. Ryan I agree about learning and having patience as an attribute that is worth having and I am sure it is one that I desperately needed to learn so I am grateful for every opportunity I get to learn more of it ha ha (just reminds me of the time we took that stupid lawn mower back and we waited forever to get you another one but due to your patience - not only did you get another but you got like 27 bucks back with it ha ha) I look forward to hearing from all of you soon and love all of you!

Love Christopher! 

Chris has a fiance ....

Wow sounds like you guys had an awesome trip and I am glad to hear that you arrived back home safe and sound. It sounds like Kyle is adjusting rather well and I am glad you guys got the letters as well as pictures that I sent.

 

So this last week was good we did quite a bit of service as well as went to the Temple ( which I already told you about in my email home Tuesday and hope to hear a response to that email as well). One of the highlights of the week was doing some service for some members of the ward that have recently moved in. We were doing some yard work for them - but the highlight of it wasn't the actual work but was the fact that I now have a fiancé believe it or not! I didn't think that it would ever happen on my mission. Her name is Jenna and she is maybe 4 years old - ha ha. Throughout the entire time we were there she repeatedly pointed her finger at me and stated rather boldly and loudly "You're going to marry me one day and were going to have 121 zillion kids and your going to hand them to me and I am going to feed them from my boob!" she was quite hilarious to say the least. Saying all these things in front of her Mom and Dad. And she also said we were going to have five dogs and her Dad said that at least when I hear the dogs I'll know to start running.

 

Another awesome thing that happened was we got 6 new ward missionaries this week. Each one of them is one of the counselors of the auxiliaries such as young men's and women's and relief society and so on. Though they were not released from their counselor positions - which I think is awesome because it creates a link between us as missionaries and the rest of the ward and gets the entire ward involved so I am excited for it.

 

Another cool thing is the attitude behind how we are trying to get the ward involved. We looked at it almost from a business perspective in how a business can have an awesome product and tell what it is and how it works but it still doesn't sell well until they focus more on the why aspect.  Why they sell it and why it's needed.  I believe with this way of doing things it will help out the work in the ward a lot. I hope this all makes sense. I feel like in some ways it may just sound like rambling.

 

As far as the rest of the week it was pretty normal but really good. We taught roughly 2 lessons a day between lessons taught to random people, investigators, recent converts, and less active members. I am still loving my mission and wouldn't trade it for anything right now. It is helping me grow and change in ways that I never had thought it would and I am excited to see the person I become over the next year and a half.

As always though you guys are awesome and I miss you all as well. I am quite comforted by knowing you still carry around that little rhino Ryan - I give you props for doing so. I hope to hear back from you all soon and look forward to email every week! Tell everyone back at home I love and miss them! Let me know if I can do anything for you guys. You are always in my prayers! 

Love Chris

From Sunny California....

Shelby can drive now??? I am glad I am in California - ha-ha just kidding. If you can put the video of Morgan on my camera card when I send it home in a day or so then I can watch it. I am really glad that Teagan’s surgery went well and that he is recovering well.  I will continue to keep him in my prayers and I appreciate the updates on him. As far as if I need anything there is nothing that comes to mind that I need right now letters are always awesome as are care packages but I don’t need anything. Is there anything I can do for you guys? Please let me know if there is.

I am staying in my area for another 6 weeks - but both my companions are leaving.  So I will be taking over the area and will be getting one new companion, Elder Pina (or pineapple in Spanish). He came out at the same time as me so that is pretty cool.  I have served around him in the past and he is a good missionary with a lot of passion. He has a slight form of autism but from what I have seen he doesn’t have too many weird qwerks but I am excited for it and think it should be a really good opportunity to learn and grow.  Especially because he doesn’t know how to ride a bike, and we don’t have a car which means that we will be walking everywhere - which will make things interesting! ha-ha!

This past week was really good and busy with transfers and people getting leadership calls. Both  Elder Gallagher and Moala got called as Zone Leaders which is pretty cool - though they are both stressing over it a little bit it seems like ha-ha. We also found two new investigators last week. One a 14 year old girl named Fez who we have met with three times and wants to get Baptized, but has to get permission from her parents first. So, we are waiting to hear how that goes. We are also teaching her older brother Isaah who is 17 - though we have only met with him once. He seems fairly interested but he’s just a busy teenager. We actually have a lot of people that we are teaching right now - 9 in total - but we have just begun to teach most of them so I won’t write much about them until I get to know more about them. Thankfully it hasn’t been as hot here this last week as it was the week prior, and we even got lightly rained on which was weird, seeing as the weather here never really changes. But it was a nice change of things - but it was funny to hear all the locals talk about it because they made it seem like it was a huge change ha-ha. People are very spoiled here with their weather. Other than that though I don’t have much to report other then things are going well and probably won’t be as crazy as last transfer which will be good and bad. As usual though I love you guys and look forward to hearing from you. It makes my week and I am always excited to hear from you. Anyways until next time

Love ME!!!!!

Oh and P.S.

My Grandpa, from what I know, is recovering. He’s still alive and getting better I am sure - and thank you for keeping him in your prayers How is Grandma Jeri?

July 8, 2013

Wow it sounds like you guys have been having all sorts of fun back there which is awesome to hear and I am sorry I am missing out. Though I am exactly where I need to be and doing what I need to be doing. Oh and yes, Morgan there are fireworks here, though its crazy. Driving down the street was like driving through a war zone - everyone had illegal fireworks and they were shooting them off in the streets and its crazy. Madison I am still waiting on a letter from you punk - Morgan has you beat by 1 letter right now - that might mean that she loves me more! Just kidding. I know you love me but seriously! write me yo.

My Grandpa had surgery but is apparently recovering really well and should be going home in a couple days (Thank you for the prayers). My parents seem to have taken it ok. They are going to a big family camp this week with my Moms side of the family so that is good. I will also keep Teagan in my prayers.

 As far as this last week went it was crazy as per usual and I cant begin to write it all,  but I will try and do my best. First off in the ward I am serving in as of now (the Colima Ward) the ward is split in half as far as area. There are two sets of Elders in the ward, each set covering one half of the ward. The two sets being Elder Gallagher and myself and Elder Moala and Garrett but sadly Elder Garrett went home early so that left Elder Moala alone - so he is now the third member of our companionship - so all in all that means that this transfer I have had 2 areas 2 trios and 4 companions in total which I have never even heard of before so that's crazy! Although Elder Moala is awesome and one of my favorite Elders I have served around. He is from Tonga originally but has lived in Utah as well and he is a convert. He is also probably the most loving missionary I have met as of yet and makes working out in 102 degrees with tons of humidity fun. The next crazy thing that happened this past week was that we met our new Mission President (President Tew) who is awesome. He may end up being a bit strict but I am actually fine with that surprisingly because I think that he will help the work move forward in this area as well as he is just awesome. We had a testimony/training with him and he has this way of looking into your soul that makes you feel like he knows everything about you. Its crazy but awesome - ha ha. But then after our training we asked him to interview one of our investigators who was getting Baptized that Saturday. The Friday before her Baptism he interviewed her while we had a lesson with one of her daughters.  Sister Tew (The mission Presidents wife) joined us and then after the interview the mother and President Tew also joined us for the lesson - and let me just say that was pressure - but awesome at the same time to have a lesson with an investigator with our Mission President and his wife present. Then Saturday we had a BAPTISM!!! for the 32 year old mother (Grace) and it went really really well. We had a good turn out of people from the ward. The talks were good and her boyfriend Baptized her so it was really good and awesome to see another person join the church and work towards a better life. Other then all of that the rest of the week was pretty normal. Sunday was good and it was a really good week, though crazy.

Thank you by the way for sending me a letter Kathy and my memory card I will send you pictures soon. The Library card is so I can use the computers there to email and go on mormon.org . I wish we could check out books.

I love my mission and feel bad for Kyle that his is coming to an end. I hope my mission doesn't fly by quite as fast as his but I am sure it will - though I am excited to see you all again. Thank you so much for helping me get out on a mission. I look forward to every Monday getting to read your emails and love you and will email you next week .

 

Love Elder Jensen

July 1, 2013

Ok so here is this weeks letter. It seems like you guys have been having a great summer. I am jealous. haha
So I found out today that my Grandpa (My Dads father) had a heart attack this past week and is in the hospital and will need surgery. He's roughly 86ish so keep him in your prayers for me!

Also one request is if I could actually get a hand written letter to my apartment (address is in the email prior this one) I need one addressed to me so that I can get a library card. That would be awesome. April Montiereth is what you would call a mission Mom - she pretty much becomes the missionaries in the wards mother while they are there so that's pretty awesome - they are a really good family.  (I posted some pictures that April Montiereth posted of Chris on her FB page)

As for this last week it was very very hot. As I would refer to it now as "Boiling lava hot" or "eighty hundred degrees" It made working really tough this week and the humidity was killer. It got up to about 102 a couple days and all I can say is I probably drank more water then ever before in my life. I am doing my best to drink 100 ounces of water a day and stay hydrated which I have actually been doing a pretty good job at.

The work though is still good and the people here are more humble and we have a Baptism scheduled for this upcoming Saturday for the lady Grace (I believe I mentioned last week) who is 32 with three daughters who are 16, 14, and 12, and are all nice girls who will probably be Baptized in the coming month. So that's awesome. We have some other people we are teaching right now but no one super serious yet, but there are some good potentials.

I found out today that I am very possibly going to be in another trio with another Elder named Elder Moala from Tonga and he is a really good missionary and fun to have around, but his companion is having a hard time and is probably going home - so that is crazy. Other than that my crazy life as a missionary has been the usual. Anyways though I love you guys and miss you a ton. Time has really flown by and its crazy to think that in a couple weeks I will be at my 6 month mark and will be a quarter of the way done. That's nuts. It will be over before I know it.

But I hope to get a letter from you guys and thank you for the letter Morgan it made my day and your awesome I love you! I look forward to hearing from you guys and will email you again next week
Love Elder Jensen!

June 3, 2013

No worries about missing the email last week - I understand you get busy especially with the holiday and what not. Missionaries just dont really have or believe in holidays so I totally forgot there was one. But no worries - as long as your all alright thats what matters.  Oh, by the way I am not getting transfered - I am staying at the same address so no need to worry about that thankfully. So, if your sending something then I will still be able to get it here. 

I am getting a new companion who I have met briefly before but dont know too well - his name is Elder Larson and I believe he is from Colorado so that could be cool. Also I have heard nothing bad about him which is always a good sign.

So this past week was really good. Our 43 yr old investigator Tammy is doing fairly well. She was very upset that Elder Burns was leaving but has accepted it and is feeding us dinner tonight and is still on track to be Baptized this upcoming Sunday. Although we may have to push it back if she cant make it with out smoking until then. For someone to get Baptized out here they have to have not smoked, drank beer or coffee for at least 7 days before they can get Baptized. So if she smokes at all this week we will have to push her Baptism back. One really cool thing though was a week before we knocked on her door she had been praying to know for more of the truth and had even written about it in her journal. And a week later we knocked on her door, so that is really cool! I dont know if you remember my Patriarchal Blessing at all but it says that there are people praying for more of the truth and that their prayers will not go unanswered and that the Holy Ghost will lead me by the hand to them. So that is really cool to see and really makes being out here all the more worth it.

Our Egyptian investigators we still havent been able to meet with really. We stopped by and gave the wife and Arabic Book of Mormon and pamphlet and we are hoping they will read those a little more and get more interested. And we also have - as of this last sunday - a lady named Azza who is egyptian as well that the other set of Elders in the ward were teaching who got Baptized - so were hoping to take her over there and maybe that will create a better door for us to share the gospel with them if they can form a friendship.

Another really cool thing is a recently returned missionary (as of a week ago) was driving down the road and saw us and stopped and picked us up and right then took us to his home where his non-member mother and brother live as well as him. He asked us to teach them so of course we said yes. The brother right now is a little harder to teach because he is not home much - he is 23ish and works a lot and parties a lot - but he seems like a very genuine person and if we get a couple good chances to sit down with him I wouldnt be surprised if he decides to join the church as well. As far as the mother goes we have had 2 lessons with her now and we extended a baptismal invite at our last lesson that she accepted which is always cool. She seems to have a lot of the same beliefs we do so I feel that with her son's testimony and example that she will end up getting baptized which is awesome.

As always I love you guys tell Grandma with the white hair that I love her and happy birthday from me you guys are always in my prayers as well and I love you and miss you all and look forward to writing you again next week! 

May 20, 2013

Sounds like your week went well. No one spit on me this last week which was awesome. That's awesome that Morgan got that award at school and stupid that the school that is teaching our future generations can't even spell our future generations names - but you know whatevs right?? We all be chillin like a buncha villains anyways fo sho but back to reality for me at least....

 

As of now we have 5 investigators one of which is a 40-ish year old woman (Tami) who is awesome and super outspoken and funny and she randomly bought us a scentsy for our apartment which was awesome as well. She came to church with us this sunday and we were having a missionary farewell speech so as you may or may not know, usually during those often a bunch of random girls show up as well as some of the leaving missionary's friends - so there were a bunch of girls that showed up and Tami aparently saw a girl that would be perfect for me and we had to explain that we weren't looking for people to date or marry at this point in our lives. She disagreed and thinks we should still be looking for girls to marry. But then another group of girls walked in, obviously not LDS nor used to the dress code most people adhere to in a church funtion, LDS or not, and lets just say they were very scantily clad and Tami then exclaimed she understood why we weren't supposed to look for girls because that would be too much temptation right now.  But it was just hilarious all in all. 2 of our other investigators are a young unmarried couple who are non-denominational christian and smoke weed but are super nice and very outdoorsy - which I can relate to - but they are super nice but are busy so it is hard to meet with them more then once a week. So we will see where that goes.

 

Also we have 2 other investigators who are from Egypt which can be tough in the sense that their english is not the best as well as they are strong believers that the Bible is the only word from God. So that has its challenges but it's interesting nonetheless.

 

This week we also had a bbq with Elder Ferris and his new companion Elder Nez which was a lot of fun and relaxing which is always good.  Elder Burns and myself are still getting along really well and have a lot of fun together. The fact that I have had two really fun companions in a row though doesnt bode well for the next companion that I get. But hopefully I luck out and get another good one when that time comes.

 

Last night we had a general preisthood session where all of the recently returned and recently called missionaries gave talks, as well as the stake president, which was super awesome. It was interesting to see the difference between not only the talks but how the return missionaries versus the going away missionaries carried themselves.  I have a feeling that you guys are going to be very impressed with what Kyle has become on his mission and I look forward to hearing about when he does comes home. Anyways though that was the extent of my week it was awesome and I am loving it out here as per usual and I hope you guys are having a good time as well I keep you all in my prayers and love you all I look forward to hearing from you again next week!

 

Love Chris!

Pics :)

Not sure what was happening here.

Irony or conincidence?

 Elder Jensen's first baptism on 4/9/13.  Syliva (mom) and Jazmin (daughter).

 

Elder Jensen & Elder Burns

 Awesome Easter gifts :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

May 6, 2013

This last week has been going well. We are getting a lot more used to the area and know our way around a lot better - which is awesome. And we have two investigators as of now which is sweet and just doing some finding as of now. We have some sweet stuff in our area! We have the harbor which is full of freaking rich people who are super prideful but there are lots of sweet cars lamborghini, bentley, aston martin, etc so thats always enjoyable.

 

Also we have a member of our ward that lives right on the beach and he is a retired massage therapist and he has had a crazy life. He also flies planes for fun and one time he almost crashed and died but emergency landed in a military base - which is a huge no-no, but somehow he was let off the hooc and they gassed up his plane and let him go. Also his ex wife was a big cat trainer and they used to have the lion that roars for MGM (hopefully you know which lion that is) and they used to have a bunch of lions and tigers and panthers etc. which is pretty sweet.

 

Things are going well. Elder Burns is super funny and fun to serve around and he is a hard worker - which makes things nice. Also there are two other missionaries that live in our same apartment complex and we hang out with them a lot and one of them is named Elder Jenson and he is from canada. So, we make fun of him for that alot. The same two missionaries are in the same ward as Elder Burns and myself which makes things a little complicated with two Elder Jensens  - but it's a lot of fun.

 

My first sunday there I had to give another talk in sacrament which actually went well. I may have told you guys about all of this last week too, so if any of this is a repeat I apologize but other then that it has been a pretty normal week.

New Mailing Address

Hi all

Elder Jensen has requested letters, packages and what not be sent to the mission home instead of his address... I updated it to the right, but here it is again...just in case. His email is also listed to the right.  Feel free to send him a quick 'hello' - I know he'd be happy to hear from you :)

Elder C. Jensen.
6500 E. Atherton Street
Long Beach, CA  90815

Letter from 4/29

I miss you first off !  This week has been good. Elder Burns (my new companion) is pretty cool. We get along well so that is good, and the ward is pretty good

We had to give a talk in sacrament this last week but I actually feel like I did an OK job for once. We are getting to know the area, which is super rich and on the harbor.  You wouldn't believe some of the cars and houses people buy -- its nuts!

We don't have any set baptisms right now but we do have some lessons planned for next week which is awesome - and the work is moving along.

I will probably send home pictures for you guys soon.  It sounds like everyone at home is doing good so thats awesome -- and it sound like you have all sorts of critters around now. I must have left an impression of some sort!  I will be calling on Mother's day - but we can't skyle in our mission. Just a 30 minute phone call, but thats better than nothing.

I love you guys and can't wait to hear from you next week.

Elder Jensen

Hello Family.

Hello family. I am going to have to just write you all one general letter this week because we had a scheduling issue with email this week and I am really short on time so I will have to make this quick.

I will start by saying I love you all and I got a package from both you guys . All was intact and very tasty. I really appreciate the packages - thank you a ton!

This last week was good I am not sick really at all anymore - I dont think - and I dont believe that I even really have allergies anymore. So, I dunno what was up with that!  But, this week has been a good week and so far since I have been out here I have gotten fed dinner practically every night and havent eaten anything too strange by any means which is relieving - though not as adventurous as I am feeling at times haha.  Elder Ferris and I have a lot of fun together and discuss/debate some other deeper doctrines. But I am learning a ton being out here and having so much study time which I love!

I also still write in my journal - always writing at least a little about each day. I enjoy it, though at times it is hard to write something because even though I am loving it out here the days can be very similar and when writing in a journal they can come across as repetitive.

This last week was good. We have done a lot more walking then usual. We are usually in a car because Elder Ferris has super flat feet and it causes tendonitis in his ankles which is no fun. But we did a lot more walking which I enjoyed a lot actually and knocking doors which inst always super awesome - but we do run into some cool people which is fun. Other than that though - as per usual - we are just doing a lot of searching at the moment and we do quite a bit of service. Such as every week we go to a place called the Shipley Nature Center where we dig out stumps and spread mulch and so on, and we also do a lot for members. We have moved big random dressers and couches as well as weeding peoples yards and just whatever random things they have for us to do - which I enjoy. It gives us a chance to get out of the normal attire, though I have gotten pretty used to it -surprisingly!  Speaking of which, it doesn't need to be a priority by any means, but if you all ever come across some machine washable dress pants in 31 waist 34 length I could use some of those. Dry cleaning gets expensive,  but like I said not a huge deal if they are too big a pain to get just let me know. But I love you guys a ton and thank you for all you do for me. You're all in my prayers.

I miss you and Love you!

Love Elder Jensen

Baptisms!!

I apologize for not posting this last week.  This is the email we got from Chris on March 11...2 baptisms!!

This last week has been good and crappy in a sense. I have been sick and in bed a lot which is why it has been crappy but other then that it has been awesome. I gave a talk in sacrament on temple work and on Saturday the 9th I had my first two baptisms!  I was priviledged enough to perform both of them.  The mother Sylvia and Jazmin the 8 year old daughter with mild autism I have mentioned before. It was super awesome. We were a bit worried because we thought the daughter was gonna be super hard because she is terrified of water - but step by step she got in the water - probably taking 5 minutes - and a few more for her to turn around and grab my arm. Her mother was in the font with us helping her feel comfortable, and when it came time for me to dip her in the water, and I started leaning her back, she got really nervous - but I had a strong feeling that I just needed to get her in or else it wouldn't happen. So I quickly dunked her in as well as myself up to my neck - and I expected her to come up screaming but she didnt!  She just went and hugged her mom and then I performed her mother's baptism expecting it to be a little hard because her mother is pregnant - but it went smoothly and I only had to dunk them each once!  It was super awesome and I expected Jazmin (the daughter) to stay mad at me but she didnt. She loves playing with my watches which is cool. Other then that though a pretty normal week. There is a new rule that we can email anybody not just direct family so anyone can email me now and I can respond - but you guys and my parents of course will always take first priority. Please let people know they can email me and I can email them back. As far as if I need anything maybe more dayquil haha jk but really no nothing that I need I am pretty well taken care of and I love you guys a ton and look forward to hearing from you all again! I love you!

Email Address

Hi all.  Here is the email address for Elder Jensen.  Everyone is now allowed to email missionaries, not just parents!  Chris would love to hear from you all!

cito1171@myldsmail.net

March 18, 2013

So guess whats super freaking lame. Apparently I wasn't sick! I guess I have allergies here which I have never had anywhere. Super stupid. And, it made my left ear clog up and I haven't been able to hear out of it in almost a week. But, whatever. It's still awesome to be out here - though drugs a.k.a. allergy meds - are super expensive which is pretty ridiculous but I am feeling better now - other than I cant hear.

I got a free back adjustment from a member of our ward who is a chiropractor which was pretty sweet and everything is going well.

We have had a lot of fog recently which I have found to be pretty enjoyable - but its kinda odd at the same time.

It was a pretty normal week I would say - though we are just doing a lot of finding right now for new investigators and working with the ones we just baptized. They have been very blessed by the church. The ward has really been awesome and bought them all church clothes and got all the kids more clothes and such. Its awesome to get to be part of all of this and see all sorts of awesome people. I think right now one of my favorite things about being a missionary is just meeting and talking to everybody and their dog. And getting to see so many types of people with different backgrounds and where they are now. For whatever reason people love to tell missionaries their life stories and every complaint they can think of -which is kinda funny.

Yesterday we went and visited the 2nd counselor to the bishopric and he is a crime scene investigator - he told us some crazy stories of things he has had to see and deal with and let me just say you would have to pay me more money then this world has to offer to get me to do that job. Blech. 

My companion and I still get along really well. We joke with each other a ton - calling one another fat seems to be our most common joke for sure! But it's a lot of fun and I enjoy serving with him a ton.

Missions are awesome and crazy and a giant two-year awkward moment but it's great to be here. I am doing awesome and love you guys. Love you til next week. I will keep you guys as well as Ryan's mom and Teagan in my prayers! 


Elder Jensen