We went to the soup kitchen again, it gets more and more fun each time. Now that I recognize people and they recognize me, I can have conversations beyond "you come here often?" The answer is usually yes btw. They are all super nice and incredibly humble people (90% of the time). This time towards the end, the woman who runs the thing gave us shirts. They only had XLs though... so mine is a little tight.
This one guy that I haven't seen before came in right before we were going to leave. He sits down and starts going crazy on his guitar. He was crazy, it was so cool. We stood there for about 5 minutes and just watched in amazement. He was singing too and it was surprisingly good. I wanted to talk to him, but we were leaving and he was still singing, so I didn't get the chance.
This past week I did two blitz-exchanges with Elder Heiner and Elder Masaki, respectively. The first one was Elder Heiner and I in their area, it was a good time. We were riding bikes and I got chased by a dog. So that's fun. And then on Saturday I went with Elder Masaki in their area again. I also got chased by a dog on that blitz. Like I said a while ago, I'm really starting to dislike dogs. Texas dogs. Although we did see one puppy that was TINY. It was also very nice and it let me pet it. Perrito. (Puppy)
The blitzs were great though, I got to know them both a lot better, they're great guys. I'm excited to do actual exchanges next week.
Yesterday Elder Child and I were wandering around street contacting, cause we had nothing else to do, when Brother Jeter called us and told to come over for Crawfish. Their neighbors had given them A TON. And since they're an old couple with no one else in the house, they wanted help eating it. Also, Sister Jeter, who grew up in this area, had NEVER eaten crawfish before. Ever. Thus was her first (and she said last) time. Crazy. Afterwards we went over to thank the neighbors while they were still outside. I got talking to the mother, Angi, and she started talking to me about when she visited Utah and went to one of our churches over there. FIRST OF ALL, why was she not introduced to the missionaries when she visited. Wards need to watch for people who visit, and fellowship them. But whatever, I was talking to her and I invited her to come to church with us again. I also got her information and gave it to Elders Heiner and Masaki since she lives over in their area.
Very effective use of tike if you ask me. Free dinner and a new friend. Boom.
I also got to talk to Sister Jeter about her family. She has 11 children! Crazy.
This past week I studied a lot about the Plan of Salvation. There's a lot of misconceptions about the Plan in other faiths. One of the biggest being about Heaven and Hell. I'm grateful for the knowledge we have and that our loving Father in Heaven has prepared such a perfect plan for us. Of course, the biggest aspect is whether or not we choose to follow the Savior. 2 Nephi 2 is a fantastic chapter for this subject, and verses 24 & 25 will be some of my favorite scriptures for a long time. Probably forever.
The Plan is real! And for those of our loved ones who have stepped off the path, we must be loving examples to help them see the blessings that they are depriving themselves of. In the end, every knee shall bend and every tongue confess. I probably botched that, but ya'll get my meaning.
Have a great week! Be careful with your gas...
-Elder Peterson
1) Little Puppy (perrito)
2) Little Puppy
3) Antique Organ at the Jeter's
4) Crawfish at the Jeter's
5) A cool train parked at a... park. I don't like how that sounds. Whatever. Train.
