You know what happens when you give your blog a theme? You go a whole month without bloggin anything and then decide to forget the theme and just type whatever comes to mind. This whole theme or no theme thing reminds me of another expirience in my life. I was once asked to describe myself with one word. I thought for what felt like several minutes. Many words came to mind, some complementary, some not, but I couldn't pick just one word to describe everything about me, so I went with an honest answer; I am indecisive. Of course, a better answer would've been Complex, but then again, who isn't complex? Honest would've been a good answer; and it's an honest evaluation, so it virtually would have validated itself.
But I don't want to talk about myself right now. Maybe I should talk about stuff I've done instead. I've got an interesting story that I think is worth sharing. See, I was volunteering at the Bishop's Storehouse yesterday, I rode my bike to get there, and when the work was done, I decided to ride my bike along the river. I knew what general direction it was in, so I went that way. Eventually, I found it and I rode along it for a little while, but after a certain point, the pavement stopped, but I kept going, across gravel. A flat tire later, I decided that I had made a bad decision. That was about noontime. I knew which general direction to head in to get home, and I soon found territory that was familiar enough to chart a direct route home. It wasn't all that hard. It was, however, very long. My bike's tire went flat at noon. I got home sunburnt and thirsty at three O'clock. What was meant to be a mid-morning outing turned into an all-day adventure. But it had it's perks. When my tires went flat, I went straight south through the downtown area, and I happened to pass right through Capitol Square on my way back. I saw cops on horses. As I walked through a residential area, a nice man gave me some water to help me on my way. I found out that I was capable of walking for three hours straight in the middle of summer without asking 'why is this happening to me?' I learned that Aloe Vera is good to use, even if it is slimy and goopy. It was good excersize for both body and spirit. I would do it again.
I gave myself a haircut today. I'm glad I got the right equipment and learned how to use it when I did. I like keeping my hair short now, so it saves a lot of time, money and hassle for me to be able to cut my own hair. By keeping my hair short and running a glob of gel through it, I'm able to make my hair look sharp ... because it is. And prickly, like a hedgehog. But I like this style. I think it looks really good. It's fun, yet it can be professional. And it's really easy to maintain.
A day has two sets of Twelve hours in it. A year has a set of Twelve months. An hour has Sixty minutes in it. A month has, at most, only Thirty-One days. If you were born on May 22nd, your birthdate would be 5-22. The number 5:22 can be seen twice a day on a digital clock, once early in the morning, and once in the late afternoon. If your birthdate is December 1st, you can see your birthdate right after noon and/or right after midnight. Even if you were born in March, you can still see your birthdate at least once per day, in the afternoon. The really lucky people were born between June and October. They get to, conveniently, see their birthdate-minute twice! I think my Mom is one of those people.
I think I'm rambling now. Actually, I think I've been rambling since the first paragraph.
This laptop is crazy. When I type, my right hand brushes the touchpad, so the mouse moves when I type. That wouldn't be so bad, but sometimes the computer thinks I clicked the mouse when I really didn't mean to, so the words I type end up somewhere other than where I typed them. It's a pain to fix that.
I don't know how, but I just accidentally highlighted the whole post. Good thing I didn't type anything just then! Maybe I should publish this post before the crazy laptop deletes it.
By the way, please don't get me wrong. I'm grateful that I get to use this laptop. If I didn't have this laptop available to use, I probably wouldn't be blogging right now. I know I should blog regularly, but I don't. At least I blog occasionally. That's worth something. I take my pescription acne medications regularly, as directed, for what it's worth. And I think they're working, too. My face looks better than it used to, and there are no noticeable side effects. It's good stuff.
I really like Joe's belt. It's a good-looking belt. I love my belt, too. They're both good.
I hear the gate. Maybe that's Mom. Or it could be Ben, maybe. I wonder...
I would say that I can't cook. There are only a few things I know how to cook. Some of those things, we don't have. Some of those things, my family wouldn't eat even if we had it. They should try it, though. It's pretty good. And it's cheap! I would have it more often, but we ran out of the ingredients and we haven't bought more yet. Plus, it's a warm food, and this is a warm place in the summer. Now is not the best time to try the Proctor Place Special. Wait for a colder day. Maybe a rainy or snowy day. But try it. It's really good.
I feel like Sam I Am.
Highlighted the whole post again. Second warning. Time to publish.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Battle for Freedom
It seems that recently I've been blogging only on major holidays. If that's the case, I hope the holidays continue.
When I think about Independence Day, I think about Freedom, how much it's worth, and what price must be paid to obtain it and maintain it. As with many other things, I've started thinking of all of this on a spiritual plane rather than a physical one. You'll remember that on Father's Day, I spoke of God, our Heavenly Father. On this Independence Day, I speak of the war fought for our freedom, a war which began long before people knew that North America existed and which continues even now, long after all of the founding fathers have died. This is the war in which each of us participate. This is the war for which we need to put on the Armor of God.
Satan is the enemy in this war. He uses all sorts of tricks and temptations to try and destroy our freedom. He would like to control us, with the intent of making ourselves and everyone else miserable. Though he can't actually make us do anything against our will, he can and does tempt us to make bad decisions, knowing that if we give in to his temptations enough times, our actions will become habits, and controlling us will become much easier.
But we can fight back! We can make good decisions rather than bad decisions. We can form good habits rather than bad habits. We can choose to follow the path that leads towards happiness rather than the path that leads towards misery. Putting it that way, it almost sounds like an easy choice. Anyone in their right mind would choose happiness over misery. ...So why don't we?
Some people become casualties in this war against evil when they realize that it's not just a choice between happiness and misery, but between hard-earned happiness and easily-obtained misery. Many people take the downhill path because it takes less effort, and perhaps they don't feel strong enough to do otherwise.
But still, there are many people who are willing to fight for freedom and happiness. We owe our wonderful country to such people. These people, Satan cannot overpower. Like I said, he can't force us to do anything. So when people really want happiness, he propels them away from it by telling them that it can be found somewhere else. If you lose your wedding ring in the living room, you're not going to find it by looking in the garden. Similarly, you can't find true happiness by traveling down the path of sin. Satan tries to convince us that we can gain the happiness we seek by having 'fun'. Casinos try this gimmick, offering people thrills and excitement that ultimately only leave their hearts and their wallets empty. But if you're feeling down, what better way to cheer yourself up than with a good thrill? So the cycle continues, a habit forms, and Satan starts to take control.
Many of us, I'm almost daring enough to say 'all of us', already have a bad habit of some kind or another. Satan plays on our bad habits to sway us towards making bad decisions, which deepen our habits and his control over us. Then is there no hope? Of course there's hope, because the power always lies with us. We make the decisions. We can fight against the current, no matter how strong, and we can make the right decision, no matter how difficult it seems. Naturally, Satan would like us to forget about that. In fact, he'd like us to forget, or not realize, that there's even a war going on in the first place. Because if we don't know there is a war, we won't be fighting in it. And if we really fight against Satan, Satan will lose.
There's a quote floating around that says that 'life is not a cruise ship. It's a battleship.' I couldn't agree more. The quote goes on to say that 'if you're not currently getting shot at, be grateful for that.' But our enemy can be very subtle. In light of that, I encourage anyone who's not currently getting shot at to check again. If he's not attacking you openly, he's attacking you secretly. He is always on the attack. Hence the need for the Armor.
So we need to know that there is a war going on over the welfare of our souls, we need to know the enemy's tactics, we need to know a good counter-strategy (choosing the right, keeping the commandments, following the example of our Savior, Jesus Christ), and most importantly, we need to apply the correct counter-strategy.
I've been thinking about a theme for my blog. A popular blog theme is Recent Events, but that doesn't seem to work as well for me. As mentioned earlier, my mind tends towards spiritual things rather than physical things, and I want to develop that by continuing to post spiritual things on my blog. But as implied in the last paragraph, merely knowing about spiritual things isn't enough. We need to bridge the gap and complete the circle. So that may well prove to by the underlying theme of my blog; bridging the gap between the real world, a spiritual perspective, and our daily actions; how our spiritual perspective can affect our real-world decisions. For example:
The real world: The people of the United States are celebrating the victory of the battle for their freedom. A spiritual perspective: We are all fighting for our own freedom. Bridging the gap: We should treat keeping the commandments with the same level of importance as a real, physical war. It is, after all, a matter of life and death; Eternal Life or spiritual death. That's the moral of my blog post today.
Will all of my blog posts be like this one from now on? I'm not sure. I don't want to be preachy, but I do like the idea of applying gospel principles to the real world. Those who have commented seemed to like my Father's Day post. If this post proves popular as well, I'll take that as encouragement. If not, I can try to limit myself to the genre of Recent Events.
When I think about Independence Day, I think about Freedom, how much it's worth, and what price must be paid to obtain it and maintain it. As with many other things, I've started thinking of all of this on a spiritual plane rather than a physical one. You'll remember that on Father's Day, I spoke of God, our Heavenly Father. On this Independence Day, I speak of the war fought for our freedom, a war which began long before people knew that North America existed and which continues even now, long after all of the founding fathers have died. This is the war in which each of us participate. This is the war for which we need to put on the Armor of God.
Satan is the enemy in this war. He uses all sorts of tricks and temptations to try and destroy our freedom. He would like to control us, with the intent of making ourselves and everyone else miserable. Though he can't actually make us do anything against our will, he can and does tempt us to make bad decisions, knowing that if we give in to his temptations enough times, our actions will become habits, and controlling us will become much easier.
But we can fight back! We can make good decisions rather than bad decisions. We can form good habits rather than bad habits. We can choose to follow the path that leads towards happiness rather than the path that leads towards misery. Putting it that way, it almost sounds like an easy choice. Anyone in their right mind would choose happiness over misery. ...So why don't we?
Some people become casualties in this war against evil when they realize that it's not just a choice between happiness and misery, but between hard-earned happiness and easily-obtained misery. Many people take the downhill path because it takes less effort, and perhaps they don't feel strong enough to do otherwise.
But still, there are many people who are willing to fight for freedom and happiness. We owe our wonderful country to such people. These people, Satan cannot overpower. Like I said, he can't force us to do anything. So when people really want happiness, he propels them away from it by telling them that it can be found somewhere else. If you lose your wedding ring in the living room, you're not going to find it by looking in the garden. Similarly, you can't find true happiness by traveling down the path of sin. Satan tries to convince us that we can gain the happiness we seek by having 'fun'. Casinos try this gimmick, offering people thrills and excitement that ultimately only leave their hearts and their wallets empty. But if you're feeling down, what better way to cheer yourself up than with a good thrill? So the cycle continues, a habit forms, and Satan starts to take control.
Many of us, I'm almost daring enough to say 'all of us', already have a bad habit of some kind or another. Satan plays on our bad habits to sway us towards making bad decisions, which deepen our habits and his control over us. Then is there no hope? Of course there's hope, because the power always lies with us. We make the decisions. We can fight against the current, no matter how strong, and we can make the right decision, no matter how difficult it seems. Naturally, Satan would like us to forget about that. In fact, he'd like us to forget, or not realize, that there's even a war going on in the first place. Because if we don't know there is a war, we won't be fighting in it. And if we really fight against Satan, Satan will lose.
There's a quote floating around that says that 'life is not a cruise ship. It's a battleship.' I couldn't agree more. The quote goes on to say that 'if you're not currently getting shot at, be grateful for that.' But our enemy can be very subtle. In light of that, I encourage anyone who's not currently getting shot at to check again. If he's not attacking you openly, he's attacking you secretly. He is always on the attack. Hence the need for the Armor.
So we need to know that there is a war going on over the welfare of our souls, we need to know the enemy's tactics, we need to know a good counter-strategy (choosing the right, keeping the commandments, following the example of our Savior, Jesus Christ), and most importantly, we need to apply the correct counter-strategy.
I've been thinking about a theme for my blog. A popular blog theme is Recent Events, but that doesn't seem to work as well for me. As mentioned earlier, my mind tends towards spiritual things rather than physical things, and I want to develop that by continuing to post spiritual things on my blog. But as implied in the last paragraph, merely knowing about spiritual things isn't enough. We need to bridge the gap and complete the circle. So that may well prove to by the underlying theme of my blog; bridging the gap between the real world, a spiritual perspective, and our daily actions; how our spiritual perspective can affect our real-world decisions. For example:
The real world: The people of the United States are celebrating the victory of the battle for their freedom. A spiritual perspective: We are all fighting for our own freedom. Bridging the gap: We should treat keeping the commandments with the same level of importance as a real, physical war. It is, after all, a matter of life and death; Eternal Life or spiritual death. That's the moral of my blog post today.
Will all of my blog posts be like this one from now on? I'm not sure. I don't want to be preachy, but I do like the idea of applying gospel principles to the real world. Those who have commented seemed to like my Father's Day post. If this post proves popular as well, I'll take that as encouragement. If not, I can try to limit myself to the genre of Recent Events.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Happy Father's Day
So... It's kind of been a while. To be honest, I don't really know what to say. I just know that I need to say something because it's been way too long since the last time I've posted anything.
It's Father's Day, so I guess I could talk about a very important father I know, our Heavenly Father. The trouble is, the things I would like to say about Heavenly Father are a bit controversial, and I'm not even sure how much of it is true. I know that parts of what I would like to say are true, but other parts of what I believe may just be my opinion, but I still believe it, though I know I may be wrong.
I hope I don't offend anyone when I say that I like to think of my relationship with God is something closer to Father and son than King and servant. I know that God knows me personally, and that He loves me like a Father loves his son. I know that He wants what's best for me and that He wants me to succeed, like any good father would.
Sure, He wants me to keep His commandments, just as a King expects his subjects to obey his laws, but fathers often have to lay down the law, too. Fathers set curfews, limits on privileges, and even some 'thou shalt not's, all out of a desire to protect their children. For example, a father might forbid his child from going to a certain party, not just because the King doesn't want any drunkards in his kingdom, but because the father doesn't want his children to get themselves hurt, or hurt each other.
Plus, that kind of Father/son perspective is helpful when I really need someone to talk to. When I need to have a heart-to-heart with someone who knows me perfectly, and loves me anyway, I know that I can always call my Heavenly Father. Sometimes, in those situations, I refer to Him as my Dad. Now, I really hope it's not sacrilegious for me to say that, that is to say, I hope God doesn't have a problem with me calling Him that, in certain situations. I'm sure that, in some situations, He probably would have a problem with such casual language. He is our God. Therefore, we owe Him reverence and respect. On the other hand, when I really need Him, I know that God will be there for me, not as my Great Eternal Judge, but as someone who cares.
I don't know. It's kind of complicated. I hope that someday I'll understand my relationship with Him more completely while I'm still alive. But for now, in my opinion, my relationship with God is such that it makes perfect sense to fold my arms and close my eyes and wish Him a happy Father's Day.
It's Father's Day, so I guess I could talk about a very important father I know, our Heavenly Father. The trouble is, the things I would like to say about Heavenly Father are a bit controversial, and I'm not even sure how much of it is true. I know that parts of what I would like to say are true, but other parts of what I believe may just be my opinion, but I still believe it, though I know I may be wrong.
I hope I don't offend anyone when I say that I like to think of my relationship with God is something closer to Father and son than King and servant. I know that God knows me personally, and that He loves me like a Father loves his son. I know that He wants what's best for me and that He wants me to succeed, like any good father would.
Sure, He wants me to keep His commandments, just as a King expects his subjects to obey his laws, but fathers often have to lay down the law, too. Fathers set curfews, limits on privileges, and even some 'thou shalt not's, all out of a desire to protect their children. For example, a father might forbid his child from going to a certain party, not just because the King doesn't want any drunkards in his kingdom, but because the father doesn't want his children to get themselves hurt, or hurt each other.
Plus, that kind of Father/son perspective is helpful when I really need someone to talk to. When I need to have a heart-to-heart with someone who knows me perfectly, and loves me anyway, I know that I can always call my Heavenly Father. Sometimes, in those situations, I refer to Him as my Dad. Now, I really hope it's not sacrilegious for me to say that, that is to say, I hope God doesn't have a problem with me calling Him that, in certain situations. I'm sure that, in some situations, He probably would have a problem with such casual language. He is our God. Therefore, we owe Him reverence and respect. On the other hand, when I really need Him, I know that God will be there for me, not as my Great Eternal Judge, but as someone who cares.
I don't know. It's kind of complicated. I hope that someday I'll understand my relationship with Him more completely while I'm still alive. But for now, in my opinion, my relationship with God is such that it makes perfect sense to fold my arms and close my eyes and wish Him a happy Father's Day.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Almost weekly updates.
I need to pick a day of the week. The day used to be Monday, since I had no other option, but now that I have quite a bit of freedom, any day will do. Like I said, I just need to pick one. I'll get back to you on that.
In the meantime, life has been going okay. There has always been something to do each weekend for the past several weeks, and this week is no exception. There's an Aaronic Priesthood commemoration Campout this Friday and Saturday, and I'm giving a talk in church on Sunday, which also happens to be my birthday. I'm feeling just a little bit stressed.
Registering for classes has been frustrating. I'd like to get started on this next phase of my life as soon as possible, so as not to fall even farther behind my peers, but I hesitate because 1) Money is tight; how are we going to pay for these classes? and 2) it's a pain in the neck to sign up. I would LOVE to get a job before going in for schooling, so I could pay for the education, and rent, and maybe, just maybe, have some money left over so I'll be able to get things that I want/need without being a burden on my family's finances. Money is tight, and it would take a lot of motivation to get me to do something complicated, difficult, frustrating, and just a little bit scary (What if I'm not smart enough for school?) that would cost my family money.
-sighs- That's life. I posted on Facebook that real life was hard, and I hadn't even gotten to the hard part. I am not looking forward to the really difficult parts, like raising infants and teenagers. I'm going to have to get MUCH better and handling things before I try and tackle a challenge like that! I would much prefer I less-difficult challenge, like holding down an entry-level job and going through a few college classes.
Sometimes I think trials are like Bowling balls that God ties to your wrists. Yeah, it makes doing things a LOT harder, but eventually, you get much stronger because of it. I'm looking forward to the 'being-stronger' part.
I'd better get going. This is Mom's computer that I'm on, and she has come home and wants to use it.
In the meantime, life has been going okay. There has always been something to do each weekend for the past several weeks, and this week is no exception. There's an Aaronic Priesthood commemoration Campout this Friday and Saturday, and I'm giving a talk in church on Sunday, which also happens to be my birthday. I'm feeling just a little bit stressed.
Registering for classes has been frustrating. I'd like to get started on this next phase of my life as soon as possible, so as not to fall even farther behind my peers, but I hesitate because 1) Money is tight; how are we going to pay for these classes? and 2) it's a pain in the neck to sign up. I would LOVE to get a job before going in for schooling, so I could pay for the education, and rent, and maybe, just maybe, have some money left over so I'll be able to get things that I want/need without being a burden on my family's finances. Money is tight, and it would take a lot of motivation to get me to do something complicated, difficult, frustrating, and just a little bit scary (What if I'm not smart enough for school?) that would cost my family money.
-sighs- That's life. I posted on Facebook that real life was hard, and I hadn't even gotten to the hard part. I am not looking forward to the really difficult parts, like raising infants and teenagers. I'm going to have to get MUCH better and handling things before I try and tackle a challenge like that! I would much prefer I less-difficult challenge, like holding down an entry-level job and going through a few college classes.
Sometimes I think trials are like Bowling balls that God ties to your wrists. Yeah, it makes doing things a LOT harder, but eventually, you get much stronger because of it. I'm looking forward to the 'being-stronger' part.
I'd better get going. This is Mom's computer that I'm on, and she has come home and wants to use it.
Saturday, May 7, 2011
I almost forgot I had a blog!
Dear... Home?
I am home. I've been home for over a week (and I still haven't posted anything!). So, would it be 'Dear Loved Ones'? 'Dear Friends'? That sounds sappy. Maybe I should say something that matches the title of my blog... Hail, Soldiers!
What does 'Hail' mean anyway? Where's a dictionary?
1. to cheer, greet, or salute; welcome
2. to acclaim; approve enthusiastically: the crowds hailed the conquerors.
That works! Thank you, Dictionary.com =)
But anyway, part of the reason I chose the title The Armor of God is because we are all at war. You know that war that started in heaven before the earth was created? That one where Satan was trying to get everyone to let him control them like a puppet master? It's still going. Our enemy, the enemy of all righteousness, is employing every evil, underhanded method he can think of to reduce mankind's control of themselves. I think drugs are his favorite weapon. Other addictions are very effective, too. And there's the emotional loss-of-self-control to worry about, also. The first emotion that comes to mind is anger, but there are others.
Satan is constantly attacking all of us, so whether we like it or not, we are IN the ultimate battle of Good vs Evil. That's why Paul said we need to put on the whole armor of God. We need to defend ourselves.
I love the war chapters in the Book of Mormon because just about every story in that section describes either what Satan is trying to do to us, or what we can do to counter Satan.
Example: The Nephites knew that a war was coming, so the Nephite war captain gave his soldiers armor and started building fortresses.
How it Applies: Satan may not be attacking us at his very moment (or maybe he's just being extremely subtle), but we can start defending ourselves right now. We can put on our armor and build up our fortresses by reading our scriptures and going to church, etc. So that when Satan DOES attack us, we'll be ready for him.
Another Example: The Nephites were trying to take over a Lamanite stronghold, but the Lamanites were too strong, so the Nephites drew the Lamanites out with a decoy, and captured to fortress without much of a fight.
How it Applies: Satan is trying to destroy us, but we have more power than he does, so he tries to distract us with things that don't matter so he doesn't have to worry about us so much.
By knowing what Satan is up to and knowing what possible counter-attacks there are and how well they worked for the Nephites and the Lamanites, we can give ourselves an upper hand in this battle.
God speed the right.
With love, from your Red-Headed Warrior, Andrew James Robarts.
I am home. I've been home for over a week (and I still haven't posted anything!). So, would it be 'Dear Loved Ones'? 'Dear Friends'? That sounds sappy. Maybe I should say something that matches the title of my blog... Hail, Soldiers!
What does 'Hail' mean anyway? Where's a dictionary?
1. to cheer, greet, or salute; welcome
2. to acclaim; approve enthusiastically: the crowds hailed the conquerors.
That works! Thank you, Dictionary.com =)
But anyway, part of the reason I chose the title The Armor of God is because we are all at war. You know that war that started in heaven before the earth was created? That one where Satan was trying to get everyone to let him control them like a puppet master? It's still going. Our enemy, the enemy of all righteousness, is employing every evil, underhanded method he can think of to reduce mankind's control of themselves. I think drugs are his favorite weapon. Other addictions are very effective, too. And there's the emotional loss-of-self-control to worry about, also. The first emotion that comes to mind is anger, but there are others.
Satan is constantly attacking all of us, so whether we like it or not, we are IN the ultimate battle of Good vs Evil. That's why Paul said we need to put on the whole armor of God. We need to defend ourselves.
I love the war chapters in the Book of Mormon because just about every story in that section describes either what Satan is trying to do to us, or what we can do to counter Satan.
Example: The Nephites knew that a war was coming, so the Nephite war captain gave his soldiers armor and started building fortresses.
How it Applies: Satan may not be attacking us at his very moment (or maybe he's just being extremely subtle), but we can start defending ourselves right now. We can put on our armor and build up our fortresses by reading our scriptures and going to church, etc. So that when Satan DOES attack us, we'll be ready for him.
Another Example: The Nephites were trying to take over a Lamanite stronghold, but the Lamanites were too strong, so the Nephites drew the Lamanites out with a decoy, and captured to fortress without much of a fight.
How it Applies: Satan is trying to destroy us, but we have more power than he does, so he tries to distract us with things that don't matter so he doesn't have to worry about us so much.
By knowing what Satan is up to and knowing what possible counter-attacks there are and how well they worked for the Nephites and the Lamanites, we can give ourselves an upper hand in this battle.
God speed the right.
With love, from your Red-Headed Warrior, Andrew James Robarts.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Open House
Come visit with return missionary Andrew Robarts
Saturday, May 7
7-8:30 pm
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
3001 Wisseman Dr
Sacramento
off Folsom Blvd between Watt & Howe
Enjoy music provided by Wojohowitz - the best DJ ever
Dance if you like with your sweetie, your friends, Andrew, your children and/or by yourself
Play games
Potluck finger food refreshments appreciated, but not required! Do come!
Saturday, May 7
7-8:30 pm
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
3001 Wisseman Dr
Sacramento
off Folsom Blvd between Watt & Howe
Enjoy music provided by Wojohowitz - the best DJ ever
Dance if you like with your sweetie, your friends, Andrew, your children and/or by yourself
Play games
Potluck finger food refreshments appreciated, but not required! Do come!
Monday, April 25, 2011
April 25, 2011 The Last P Day
Dear Home,
Today is my final P-Day on the mission field. By this time next week, I'll be home in California. WOW. Am I looking forward to it? OH, YEAH. Big time. Sure, it'll be hot in California, but I'll be with my family again! And I'll be able to ride my bike, watch movies, play video games, bounce ideas off my brother's head (until he goes on HIS mission!). It'll be great. ^^
In the meantime, Elder Roth and I have work to do. =/ The apartment has to be spotless and completely empty by the end of the day. Tonight, we'll be spending the night with the Zoneleaders, and tomorrow, after District Meeting, we'll be meeting with our apartment manager to walk-through our apartment, give an accounting of its current condition, check the mail one last time for rogue, San Franciscan packages (long story - don't ask), and hand over the keys. After that, we'll be doing some stop-bys and saying some goodbyes, followed by another sleepover at the Zoneleaders' apartment before our departure on Wednesday morning. Wednesday will be spent traveling. Regina to Winnipeg can take a while. Thursday, we'll have interviews with President Paulson, who will probably remind us what our Highest Priority is. Friday, we fly home.
I'm anxious. And a little nervous. I'm also pretty excited. I don't know what I'll do first. Sure, we'll have the picnic at the park (that will be so nice!!), but after that...? Unpack, maybe? That's not very exciting. Will there even be room for all of my junk?? @_@ Two very full suitcases, a very full backpack, and three boxes of stuff that's going to have to be sent by mail. I'm going to die. But first I'm going to spend the family fortune on postage and overweight baggage fees. THEN, I'm going to die. Because my mom is going to kill me. x_x
Eh, it'll probably be fine. I just wish I could remember my PIN so I could check to see how much money I have available to me. If it's not enough to pay for postage and baggage fees, I'm really in trouble. It SHOULD be enough... I think. But still, it would be great if I could make sure. =/
I'm probably boring all of you to death. I'm not sure how many faithful readers I have left at this point, but I'm certainly not giving them the quality letters they deserve. Sorry about that. Maybe my blog posts will be more interesting when I get home.
Until then, this has been your weekly-reporting missionary who still, somehow, thinks he has some potential as a professional writer, Elder Andrew James Robarts.
Today is my final P-Day on the mission field. By this time next week, I'll be home in California. WOW. Am I looking forward to it? OH, YEAH. Big time. Sure, it'll be hot in California, but I'll be with my family again! And I'll be able to ride my bike, watch movies, play video games, bounce ideas off my brother's head (until he goes on HIS mission!). It'll be great. ^^
In the meantime, Elder Roth and I have work to do. =/ The apartment has to be spotless and completely empty by the end of the day. Tonight, we'll be spending the night with the Zoneleaders, and tomorrow, after District Meeting, we'll be meeting with our apartment manager to walk-through our apartment, give an accounting of its current condition, check the mail one last time for rogue, San Franciscan packages (long story - don't ask), and hand over the keys. After that, we'll be doing some stop-bys and saying some goodbyes, followed by another sleepover at the Zoneleaders' apartment before our departure on Wednesday morning. Wednesday will be spent traveling. Regina to Winnipeg can take a while. Thursday, we'll have interviews with President Paulson, who will probably remind us what our Highest Priority is. Friday, we fly home.
I'm anxious. And a little nervous. I'm also pretty excited. I don't know what I'll do first. Sure, we'll have the picnic at the park (that will be so nice!!), but after that...? Unpack, maybe? That's not very exciting. Will there even be room for all of my junk?? @_@ Two very full suitcases, a very full backpack, and three boxes of stuff that's going to have to be sent by mail. I'm going to die. But first I'm going to spend the family fortune on postage and overweight baggage fees. THEN, I'm going to die. Because my mom is going to kill me. x_x
Eh, it'll probably be fine. I just wish I could remember my PIN so I could check to see how much money I have available to me. If it's not enough to pay for postage and baggage fees, I'm really in trouble. It SHOULD be enough... I think. But still, it would be great if I could make sure. =/
I'm probably boring all of you to death. I'm not sure how many faithful readers I have left at this point, but I'm certainly not giving them the quality letters they deserve. Sorry about that. Maybe my blog posts will be more interesting when I get home.
Until then, this has been your weekly-reporting missionary who still, somehow, thinks he has some potential as a professional writer, Elder Andrew James Robarts.
Monday, April 18, 2011
April 18, 2011
Dear Home,
This is my second to last P-Day. All of the other missionaries are thinking about transfers, wondering whether they'll stay or leave, and, if they leave, where are they going to go? I don't have any of those questions, but I do feel some of the apprehension that some of them feel. No offense towards the many people that I'm looking forward to seeing when I get home, but I'm not sure if I'm emotionally ready to go home yet. I don't want my mission to be over yet.
Maybe I'll just think of this as 'being transferred'. I'm still a missionary (every member a missionary, right?), I can still study the gospel every morning (or some time every day) and I'm still going to be serving the Lord as much as I can. At least, that's the plan. It has a lot to do with how much motivation I'll still have when I'm back home. =/ If there's one thing that scares me about myself, it's my lack of motivation and will-power. I can do anything. But will I? Will I want it badly enough to put in the effort it will take? I probably shouldn't post this. Any wise employer will be looking at this message to try and find out what kind of person I am, and what kind of worker I'll be. Poor motivation? That doesn't sound good. But I'm honest. I know that I have weaknesses, and I know what most of those weaknesses are.
But here's another thing that I want my perspective employers to know: I don't want to be in debt to anyone. If I expect someone to give me money or benefits or anything like that, I want to make sure that I earned that, or at least that I'll pay them back. For example, there's a gift that Elder Roth said that he's planning on giving me before we go home. I know approximately what it had cost him, and I know approximately what it's worth. Also, I know what the gift is worth to him, and I know what it's worth to me. It's a good gift. But I don't want to just take it. I want to pay for it somehow. He won't take money, so I'm buying treats and sharing them with him. I bought ice cream a while back, and shared it. I bought a dozen doughnuts a few days ago, six for me, six for him. I'm buying more ice cream for both of us today. (We haven't used up all the toppings yet from last time.) Yes, I want what Elder Roth is planning on giving me, just like I'll want a regular paycheck when I start working for you, but I DON'T want to get something for nothing.
I don't want to be a burden or an expense to anyone. I'll be living with my mom and my brothers when I get back home. Free room and board? I don't plan on it! I want to pay rent to my mom when I can. I will ALWAYS be in my parents' debt for everything they've given me, and I don't think I'll ever be able to repay them, but at the very least, I'd like to be able to stand on my own two feet from now on. If I can pay for my share of the food and utility bills, plus any other expenses that I cause, I'll consider myself worth keeping around.
And the same goes for the workplace. My goal is to produce more wealth for whomever I'm working for than whatever they're paying me. I want to be an asset to any organization I'm in. I don't plan on being anyone's dead weight. Except for Christ. And I'm only okay with the debt I'm in to Him because there is literally no way for me to repay Him. I've accepted that there are some things that I can't do. But I can do what He has asked me to do, and I really want to do it.
But that brings us back to the question of motivation. Yes, I want to work hard and be the best that I can be, but do I want it badly enough? That's a risk that we're all going to have to take. We'll roll the dice and see what kind of number we get. In the meantime, all I can say is that I hope so. I want to have the kind of motivation that it will take to reach my full potential. I want to work my hardest to do good things. I want to be a worthwhile son, Christian, and employee. So now the question is: Do you want me to work for you?
Signed by a man who is trying to apply the principle of Diligence into all that he does,
Elder Andrew James Robarts
This is my second to last P-Day. All of the other missionaries are thinking about transfers, wondering whether they'll stay or leave, and, if they leave, where are they going to go? I don't have any of those questions, but I do feel some of the apprehension that some of them feel. No offense towards the many people that I'm looking forward to seeing when I get home, but I'm not sure if I'm emotionally ready to go home yet. I don't want my mission to be over yet.
Maybe I'll just think of this as 'being transferred'. I'm still a missionary (every member a missionary, right?), I can still study the gospel every morning (or some time every day) and I'm still going to be serving the Lord as much as I can. At least, that's the plan. It has a lot to do with how much motivation I'll still have when I'm back home. =/ If there's one thing that scares me about myself, it's my lack of motivation and will-power. I can do anything. But will I? Will I want it badly enough to put in the effort it will take? I probably shouldn't post this. Any wise employer will be looking at this message to try and find out what kind of person I am, and what kind of worker I'll be. Poor motivation? That doesn't sound good. But I'm honest. I know that I have weaknesses, and I know what most of those weaknesses are.
But here's another thing that I want my perspective employers to know: I don't want to be in debt to anyone. If I expect someone to give me money or benefits or anything like that, I want to make sure that I earned that, or at least that I'll pay them back. For example, there's a gift that Elder Roth said that he's planning on giving me before we go home. I know approximately what it had cost him, and I know approximately what it's worth. Also, I know what the gift is worth to him, and I know what it's worth to me. It's a good gift. But I don't want to just take it. I want to pay for it somehow. He won't take money, so I'm buying treats and sharing them with him. I bought ice cream a while back, and shared it. I bought a dozen doughnuts a few days ago, six for me, six for him. I'm buying more ice cream for both of us today. (We haven't used up all the toppings yet from last time.) Yes, I want what Elder Roth is planning on giving me, just like I'll want a regular paycheck when I start working for you, but I DON'T want to get something for nothing.
I don't want to be a burden or an expense to anyone. I'll be living with my mom and my brothers when I get back home. Free room and board? I don't plan on it! I want to pay rent to my mom when I can. I will ALWAYS be in my parents' debt for everything they've given me, and I don't think I'll ever be able to repay them, but at the very least, I'd like to be able to stand on my own two feet from now on. If I can pay for my share of the food and utility bills, plus any other expenses that I cause, I'll consider myself worth keeping around.
And the same goes for the workplace. My goal is to produce more wealth for whomever I'm working for than whatever they're paying me. I want to be an asset to any organization I'm in. I don't plan on being anyone's dead weight. Except for Christ. And I'm only okay with the debt I'm in to Him because there is literally no way for me to repay Him. I've accepted that there are some things that I can't do. But I can do what He has asked me to do, and I really want to do it.
But that brings us back to the question of motivation. Yes, I want to work hard and be the best that I can be, but do I want it badly enough? That's a risk that we're all going to have to take. We'll roll the dice and see what kind of number we get. In the meantime, all I can say is that I hope so. I want to have the kind of motivation that it will take to reach my full potential. I want to work my hardest to do good things. I want to be a worthwhile son, Christian, and employee. So now the question is: Do you want me to work for you?
Signed by a man who is trying to apply the principle of Diligence into all that he does,
Elder Andrew James Robarts
Monday, April 11, 2011
April 11, 2011
Dear Home,
My mom brought up a good point that I've been forgetting to mention. Since I'm coming home soon, I won't be in the apartment where I am for much longer, so consider this the 'Week 5 Warning'. Also, since I'll be leaving all of Canada, rather than just a part of it, it may be best to not send anything to the mission office either. If you really want to mail me something, mail it to California. Or, if you're already in Sacramento, just hold onto it and save yourself the stamp. I'll be there to get your letter in person before too long.
In the meantime, I'll still be working hard to save some souls. Unfortunately, even though I have enough motivation to keep knocking on doors, facing rejection, I don't seem to have quite enough courage to call people we've already met. That's a weakness of mine. I don't like talking on the phone. =S I'd much rather talk to people (even strangers) in person, like on their doorstep.
You know how we use different computers for Emailing every week? Someone did something to this computer so that everything on the screen looks like I've zoomed in on it, and I don't know how to zoom out. As a result, what I've written so far is taking up the entire screen.
I like playing 'Hit It'. It's a game I made up. You take a volleyball (or some other kind of ball, but volleyballs are best) and you hit it against a wall. When the ball comes back to you, you hit it again. And again. You can use any part of your body for hitting the ball. Eg. you can kick it, you can punch it, you can headbutt it (but not with a basketball). You can basically just do whatever you want except for letting the ball roll. Catch it if you have to, but whatever you do, don't let it roll. The game involves a lot of running around. Coincidentally, I think I need a shower. =P
In a recent Email my mom sent, she said that a part of me will always be partly Canadian. I think that's true. I've never said 'chesterfield', and I don't like perogies, but I'm going to be rooting for Canada at all of the Winter Olympics now. I want them to at least beat the US at Hockey every year (like they did this last time!!! =D). If anyone deserves to win at Hockey, it's them. =)
As for things other than that... I'm still American. I like stars better than maple leaves, and the colors red and white just aren't complete without a little bit of blue (which kind of makes me wonder why I'm wearing a red tie over a white shirt. o_O Aha! There's some blue on my watch! =P)
Wow, this watch has lasted me a long time. Two years of hard work and it still works like a charm. ^^ I can even take it into the shower without it getting any problems. All of the features still work, as far as I know, and besides a few places where the paint has worn off, the only thing that makes me think that the watch could be better is that the latch is very slightly bent, so I have to move the little stick-thing over every time I put my watch on, but really, how hard is that? I've already got all my fingers right there. Moving one of them over a little bit isn't that much of an inconvenience. I love my watch. ^^ Plus, I compared it to the General Conference countdown timer, and my watch is only 17 seconds off. Close enough, eh! xD
Ooh! That reminds me of something that I forgot to tell you. And talking about that reminds me of something else that I keep forgetting to tell you. =/
The first thing is 'Currant Bush'. You remember that story told in General Conference about a guy who pruned a Currant Bush and then got pruned down himself? Sister Paulson, our Mission President's wife, told all of the missionaries that story BEFORE General Conference! (And she told the story WAY more movingly. I almost cried. Just teared up. A little.) It's a good story.
The second thing is: I don't know if I told you that one of the missionaries in our MTC group is also from California. He lives in Modesto, which, I hear is about as close to Sacramento as it is to Oakland. I also heard that those are the two major cities with airports close to Modesto, so someone wanting to fly to Modesto might as well fly to either Sacramento or Oakland (how come Oakland doesn't have a Spanish name??) and drive the rest of the way from there. Guess what. That's the plan. Elder Goodrich is going to be flying to the Sacramento airport at exactly the same time I am on exactly the same plane. He'll be meeting his family there and they'll all drive to Modesto together. So, Sacramento people, keep your eyes open for the Goodrich family on April 29. ^^ And, if you see them, tell them I said 'hi'.
Time to get going. =/ Have a great week! See you soon, some of you. =)
Love, your still-a-full-time-missionary-until-I-get-released-by-a-member-of-the-Stake-Presidency ie. still-giving-the-Lord-my-all-until-then missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
PS, I wonder if it's against the rules for a full-time missionary to hug his Mom. I'll have to check the handbook...
My mom brought up a good point that I've been forgetting to mention. Since I'm coming home soon, I won't be in the apartment where I am for much longer, so consider this the 'Week 5 Warning'. Also, since I'll be leaving all of Canada, rather than just a part of it, it may be best to not send anything to the mission office either. If you really want to mail me something, mail it to California. Or, if you're already in Sacramento, just hold onto it and save yourself the stamp. I'll be there to get your letter in person before too long.
In the meantime, I'll still be working hard to save some souls. Unfortunately, even though I have enough motivation to keep knocking on doors, facing rejection, I don't seem to have quite enough courage to call people we've already met. That's a weakness of mine. I don't like talking on the phone. =S I'd much rather talk to people (even strangers) in person, like on their doorstep.
You know how we use different computers for Emailing every week? Someone did something to this computer so that everything on the screen looks like I've zoomed in on it, and I don't know how to zoom out. As a result, what I've written so far is taking up the entire screen.
I like playing 'Hit It'. It's a game I made up. You take a volleyball (or some other kind of ball, but volleyballs are best) and you hit it against a wall. When the ball comes back to you, you hit it again. And again. You can use any part of your body for hitting the ball. Eg. you can kick it, you can punch it, you can headbutt it (but not with a basketball). You can basically just do whatever you want except for letting the ball roll. Catch it if you have to, but whatever you do, don't let it roll. The game involves a lot of running around. Coincidentally, I think I need a shower. =P
In a recent Email my mom sent, she said that a part of me will always be partly Canadian. I think that's true. I've never said 'chesterfield', and I don't like perogies, but I'm going to be rooting for Canada at all of the Winter Olympics now. I want them to at least beat the US at Hockey every year (like they did this last time!!! =D). If anyone deserves to win at Hockey, it's them. =)
As for things other than that... I'm still American. I like stars better than maple leaves, and the colors red and white just aren't complete without a little bit of blue (which kind of makes me wonder why I'm wearing a red tie over a white shirt. o_O Aha! There's some blue on my watch! =P)
Wow, this watch has lasted me a long time. Two years of hard work and it still works like a charm. ^^ I can even take it into the shower without it getting any problems. All of the features still work, as far as I know, and besides a few places where the paint has worn off, the only thing that makes me think that the watch could be better is that the latch is very slightly bent, so I have to move the little stick-thing over every time I put my watch on, but really, how hard is that? I've already got all my fingers right there. Moving one of them over a little bit isn't that much of an inconvenience. I love my watch. ^^ Plus, I compared it to the General Conference countdown timer, and my watch is only 17 seconds off. Close enough, eh! xD
Ooh! That reminds me of something that I forgot to tell you. And talking about that reminds me of something else that I keep forgetting to tell you. =/
The first thing is 'Currant Bush'. You remember that story told in General Conference about a guy who pruned a Currant Bush and then got pruned down himself? Sister Paulson, our Mission President's wife, told all of the missionaries that story BEFORE General Conference! (And she told the story WAY more movingly. I almost cried. Just teared up. A little.) It's a good story.
The second thing is: I don't know if I told you that one of the missionaries in our MTC group is also from California. He lives in Modesto, which, I hear is about as close to Sacramento as it is to Oakland. I also heard that those are the two major cities with airports close to Modesto, so someone wanting to fly to Modesto might as well fly to either Sacramento or Oakland (how come Oakland doesn't have a Spanish name??) and drive the rest of the way from there. Guess what. That's the plan. Elder Goodrich is going to be flying to the Sacramento airport at exactly the same time I am on exactly the same plane. He'll be meeting his family there and they'll all drive to Modesto together. So, Sacramento people, keep your eyes open for the Goodrich family on April 29. ^^ And, if you see them, tell them I said 'hi'.
Time to get going. =/ Have a great week! See you soon, some of you. =)
Love, your still-a-full-time-missionary-until-I-get-released-by-a-member-of-the-Stake-Presidency ie. still-giving-the-Lord-my-all-until-then missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
PS, I wonder if it's against the rules for a full-time missionary to hug his Mom. I'll have to check the handbook...
Monday, April 4, 2011
April 4, 2011
Dear Home,
I'm not counting down the days, yet, but it is scary how little time I have left here in Canada. =/ I'm not looking forward to the time when I stop going door to door, trying to help people. I keep thinking that there's more that I could do. I want to keep working hard. I want to do the best I can. I want to keep helping people feel the Gospel in their lives. I want to feel it more in MY life! I don't feel ready to quit.
But on a more positive note, General Conference was wonderful! All of the talks were very insightful. I don't think that there was any one talk that was aimed towards my specific needs (as there had been in Conferences past), but almost all of them shared something that applied to the question that I wanted the Lord to answer.
And many of them touched upon another question that I had: What should I do when I get home? I know that President Monson dropped a few hints, as did Elder Richard G. Scott, who spelled it out quite clearly what my highest priority should be. Am I nervous about that? Oh, yeah! Especially the part that Elder Scott said about being an exceptional person. I'm going to have to get VERY creative and use the skills that I practiced durring the Christmas Schooner to pull that one off! But it's worth a try. And I've got to make it work. It is, apparently, my highest priority.
Of course, 'highest priority' doesn't mean 'thing you do first'. On a Sunday Morning, your highest priority is to go to church, so if you have to choose between church and a baseball game, you go to church, but you don't go to church as soon as possible after you roll out of bed. That's not when church starts. The time isn't right yet. You still have time to get dressed, brush your teeth, have breakfast, and maybe even sit down with an Ensign before you have to leave for church. I'll have time.
But fulfilling my new highest priority isn't as easy as going to church. With church, all you have to do is show up at the building at the right time. With my new goal, there's a lot of preparation that needs to take place, so I plan on making a few preparations (if you know what I mean) while I'm doing other things, like getting a job/career and getting an education (hopefully).
Since there's going to be a temple in Winnipeg pretty soon, I'm half-thinking about saving up my money so I can go there when it gets dedicated, but I've never served in Winnipeg. The only people I would know there are other missionaries. I should probably save my pennies for other things, like car payments, house payments, paying off a student loan that I may have to get, and fulfilling my highest priority. THAT'S going to take some dough!
I'm worrying too much. Yeah, it's tough to be an adult. There's a lot of money management that needs to happen. I'll have to make tough investment decisions, like 'Can I afford to enroll in college right now?' 'Where will I work? What will I do?' 'What will I major in?' 'How much money can I afford to spend on Wants, and how much do I need to save up?'
Oh, yeah. I'm worrying WAY too much!
Anyway, to get back to the point, yeah, life's gonna be hard, but I can handle it. My parents did, my siblings are, and so can I. I've given God some of my time and effort- I've offered Him the crumb of what I managed to accomplish- Now I have to trust Him, seek His direction, work as hard as I can, and look for the loaf.
Speaking of looking for food, I just realized this morning that I'm coming home a few days after Easter. If I had my brother hide some eggs for me, I'd be almost guaranteed to be the last one to find all of mine. xD
Coming home is going to be interesting. I have SO much junk! It's amazing how many knick knacks you can build up over the course of two years. And I hope to fit all of this into two 50 pound suitcases and a carrying bag? Not likely! I threw a lot of stuff away. You know those little yellow capsules you get inside of Kinder Surprise eggs? I had DOZENS of them! Threw them all away. I have lots of golf balls, too. Those will probably get tossed. For Christmas, some members gave all of the missionaries in Regina a pair of pajamas. I don't fit mine. Do you think they'd be offended if I gave the PJs to Salvation Army? I hope not, because I don't know what else I could do with them.
I have a plan, though. After separating everything that I would like to keep, if any of it doesn't fit within the 50-pound limit, I'll put them in boxes and mail them to myself. Postage will be cheaper than overweight bag fees. Then again, I just realized something.... Don't we still have some boxes in the house from the time my oldest brother did that? And that was how many years ago?!?? Oi. =/ What am I going to do with all this STUFF?
I have something that I could give to someone. I would've had to ship it anyway, so I may as well ship it now. I don't know whether it'll be cheaper now or later. Worth the risk? -shrugs- I stink at making decisions.
My companion is probably done by now. I think we've been here for about an hour. I have another Email that I need to send after this one. Actually, I'll save this as a draft and get the other Email out of the way really quick.
Done. But I'm out of time. =/
Talk to you next week!
Love, your almost literally 'trunky' missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
I'm not counting down the days, yet, but it is scary how little time I have left here in Canada. =/ I'm not looking forward to the time when I stop going door to door, trying to help people. I keep thinking that there's more that I could do. I want to keep working hard. I want to do the best I can. I want to keep helping people feel the Gospel in their lives. I want to feel it more in MY life! I don't feel ready to quit.
But on a more positive note, General Conference was wonderful! All of the talks were very insightful. I don't think that there was any one talk that was aimed towards my specific needs (as there had been in Conferences past), but almost all of them shared something that applied to the question that I wanted the Lord to answer.
And many of them touched upon another question that I had: What should I do when I get home? I know that President Monson dropped a few hints, as did Elder Richard G. Scott, who spelled it out quite clearly what my highest priority should be. Am I nervous about that? Oh, yeah! Especially the part that Elder Scott said about being an exceptional person. I'm going to have to get VERY creative and use the skills that I practiced durring the Christmas Schooner to pull that one off! But it's worth a try. And I've got to make it work. It is, apparently, my highest priority.
Of course, 'highest priority' doesn't mean 'thing you do first'. On a Sunday Morning, your highest priority is to go to church, so if you have to choose between church and a baseball game, you go to church, but you don't go to church as soon as possible after you roll out of bed. That's not when church starts. The time isn't right yet. You still have time to get dressed, brush your teeth, have breakfast, and maybe even sit down with an Ensign before you have to leave for church. I'll have time.
But fulfilling my new highest priority isn't as easy as going to church. With church, all you have to do is show up at the building at the right time. With my new goal, there's a lot of preparation that needs to take place, so I plan on making a few preparations (if you know what I mean) while I'm doing other things, like getting a job/career and getting an education (hopefully).
Since there's going to be a temple in Winnipeg pretty soon, I'm half-thinking about saving up my money so I can go there when it gets dedicated, but I've never served in Winnipeg. The only people I would know there are other missionaries. I should probably save my pennies for other things, like car payments, house payments, paying off a student loan that I may have to get, and fulfilling my highest priority. THAT'S going to take some dough!
I'm worrying too much. Yeah, it's tough to be an adult. There's a lot of money management that needs to happen. I'll have to make tough investment decisions, like 'Can I afford to enroll in college right now?' 'Where will I work? What will I do?' 'What will I major in?' 'How much money can I afford to spend on Wants, and how much do I need to save up?'
Oh, yeah. I'm worrying WAY too much!
Anyway, to get back to the point, yeah, life's gonna be hard, but I can handle it. My parents did, my siblings are, and so can I. I've given God some of my time and effort- I've offered Him the crumb of what I managed to accomplish- Now I have to trust Him, seek His direction, work as hard as I can, and look for the loaf.
Speaking of looking for food, I just realized this morning that I'm coming home a few days after Easter. If I had my brother hide some eggs for me, I'd be almost guaranteed to be the last one to find all of mine. xD
Coming home is going to be interesting. I have SO much junk! It's amazing how many knick knacks you can build up over the course of two years. And I hope to fit all of this into two 50 pound suitcases and a carrying bag? Not likely! I threw a lot of stuff away. You know those little yellow capsules you get inside of Kinder Surprise eggs? I had DOZENS of them! Threw them all away. I have lots of golf balls, too. Those will probably get tossed. For Christmas, some members gave all of the missionaries in Regina a pair of pajamas. I don't fit mine. Do you think they'd be offended if I gave the PJs to Salvation Army? I hope not, because I don't know what else I could do with them.
I have a plan, though. After separating everything that I would like to keep, if any of it doesn't fit within the 50-pound limit, I'll put them in boxes and mail them to myself. Postage will be cheaper than overweight bag fees. Then again, I just realized something.... Don't we still have some boxes in the house from the time my oldest brother did that? And that was how many years ago?!?? Oi. =/ What am I going to do with all this STUFF?
I have something that I could give to someone. I would've had to ship it anyway, so I may as well ship it now. I don't know whether it'll be cheaper now or later. Worth the risk? -shrugs- I stink at making decisions.
My companion is probably done by now. I think we've been here for about an hour. I have another Email that I need to send after this one. Actually, I'll save this as a draft and get the other Email out of the way really quick.
Done. But I'm out of time. =/
Talk to you next week!
Love, your almost literally 'trunky' missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Homecoming Plans
Faithful readers, family and friends,
If you follow this blog, you are invited.
Elder Robarts will be flying in on United Airlines flight 103 expected to arrive at the Sacramento Airport Terminal B at 2:08pm Friday, April 29, 2011. Anyone who would like to is welcome to come welcome Elder Robarts back.
If the weather is good, everyone is welcome to come to a picnic at Tahoe Park - probably around 4pm - after we greet Elder Robarts and take him home to exchange luggage for food. Potluck contributions welcome, but not required.
If the weather is wet or cold, Mom will take Elder Robarts and his immediate family to an all you can eat (yet to be chosen). (Friends and extended family are welcome to come on their on dime.)
Andrew plans to participate in the Mormon Helping Hands Project at Golden Empire Elementary School Saturday morning April 30 beginning at 9am. A good opportunity to serve and socialize.
Andrew has private plans for the rest of Saturday and Sunday. Well, he will be attending his home ward, Perkins Ward which meets at 1 (3001 Wisseman Dr)
Everyone is invited to an Open House 7pm Saturday, May 7 at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Sacramento Cordova Stake Center 3001 Wisseman Drive. (potluck finger foods welcome, but not required)
Then Andrew is on to the next phase of life as a young adult -pursuing education, employment, etc -and will be making most of his own social arrangements. : )
If you follow this blog, you are invited.
Elder Robarts will be flying in on United Airlines flight 103 expected to arrive at the Sacramento Airport Terminal B at 2:08pm Friday, April 29, 2011. Anyone who would like to is welcome to come welcome Elder Robarts back.
If the weather is good, everyone is welcome to come to a picnic at Tahoe Park - probably around 4pm - after we greet Elder Robarts and take him home to exchange luggage for food. Potluck contributions welcome, but not required.
If the weather is wet or cold, Mom will take Elder Robarts and his immediate family to an all you can eat (yet to be chosen). (Friends and extended family are welcome to come on their on dime.)
Andrew plans to participate in the Mormon Helping Hands Project at Golden Empire Elementary School Saturday morning April 30 beginning at 9am. A good opportunity to serve and socialize.
Andrew has private plans for the rest of Saturday and Sunday. Well, he will be attending his home ward, Perkins Ward which meets at 1 (3001 Wisseman Dr)
Everyone is invited to an Open House 7pm Saturday, May 7 at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Sacramento Cordova Stake Center 3001 Wisseman Drive. (potluck finger foods welcome, but not required)
Then Andrew is on to the next phase of life as a young adult -pursuing education, employment, etc -and will be making most of his own social arrangements. : )
Monday, March 28, 2011
March 28, 2011
Dear Home,
I'm not trunky.
Recently, Elder Brock Peery, who was serving as our District Leader until recently, went home. His parents drove up to meet him here, in Canada, and because of how the transportation worked out, my companion and I were there to meet them. Elder Roth and I had just finished an hour or two of pulling chunks of cement out of a room in a member's basement, so we were wearing jeans and T-shirts. xD That's not what missionaries normally wear! xD Unless they're doing service, that is. =)
I love doing service. ^^
I'm not trunky.
"FREDDIE" GOT BAPTIZED THIS SATURDAY!!!!
I'll attach pictures for sure. ^^ It was such a joy to be able to help Freddie accept the gospel. (I really should ask him if it's okay for me to use his real name. When I get home, I'll share really names, but since this is online.... I don't know. =S)
Anyway, that was very exciting. ^^ And it's also super exciting that General Conference is coming up! I'm SO looking forward to listening to the Lord's prophets! I wonder what they'll tell us. =)
AND! The tradition lives. -grin- My first GC in the mission was great. ^^ I was serving in Prince Albert with Elder George, Elder Butterfield and Elder Clarine. And we had ice cream. ^^
My second GC, I was in the Oakwood area of Saskatoon with Elder Brown. We organized a Zone-Wide ice cream party. That went alright.
Third, I was with Elder Sheffield and Elder Hall in Pendygrasse Area of Saskatoon. Our apartment was a mess, but we had all the missionaries over anyway. It was kind of a pandemodious event.
This time, I'M calling the shots. This is MY Ice Cream party. We're doing it in the church's kitchen (I wonder if I can see about getting that booked). We're all going to just eat ice cream, hang out, and have a good time. None of this throwing-balls-at-each-other nonsense. None of this everybody-pitch-in-a-little stuff (I made sure I'd have enough money to just buy all the ice cream and stuff myself ((And I keep the leftovers!!! =D ))). This time, everything is going to go smoothly.
I'm looking forward to this. ^^
Love, your not-trunky missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
I'm not trunky.
Recently, Elder Brock Peery, who was serving as our District Leader until recently, went home. His parents drove up to meet him here, in Canada, and because of how the transportation worked out, my companion and I were there to meet them. Elder Roth and I had just finished an hour or two of pulling chunks of cement out of a room in a member's basement, so we were wearing jeans and T-shirts. xD That's not what missionaries normally wear! xD Unless they're doing service, that is. =)
I love doing service. ^^
I'm not trunky.
"FREDDIE" GOT BAPTIZED THIS SATURDAY!!!!
I'll attach pictures for sure. ^^ It was such a joy to be able to help Freddie accept the gospel. (I really should ask him if it's okay for me to use his real name. When I get home, I'll share really names, but since this is online.... I don't know. =S)
Anyway, that was very exciting. ^^ And it's also super exciting that General Conference is coming up! I'm SO looking forward to listening to the Lord's prophets! I wonder what they'll tell us. =)
AND! The tradition lives. -grin- My first GC in the mission was great. ^^ I was serving in Prince Albert with Elder George, Elder Butterfield and Elder Clarine. And we had ice cream. ^^
My second GC, I was in the Oakwood area of Saskatoon with Elder Brown. We organized a Zone-Wide ice cream party. That went alright.
Third, I was with Elder Sheffield and Elder Hall in Pendygrasse Area of Saskatoon. Our apartment was a mess, but we had all the missionaries over anyway. It was kind of a pandemodious event.
This time, I'M calling the shots. This is MY Ice Cream party. We're doing it in the church's kitchen (I wonder if I can see about getting that booked). We're all going to just eat ice cream, hang out, and have a good time. None of this throwing-balls-at-each-other nonsense. None of this everybody-pitch-in-a-little stuff (I made sure I'd have enough money to just buy all the ice cream and stuff myself ((And I keep the leftovers!!! =D ))). This time, everything is going to go smoothly.
I'm looking forward to this. ^^
Love, your not-trunky missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Elder Robarts' travel itinerary !!
CHURCH TRAVEL CWT DATE 14MARCH11
50 EAST NORTH TEMPLE ST AGENT VH/NO BOOKING REF ZMPH4I
SALT LAKE CITY UT 84150
TELEPHONE: 801 240-5111 GOODRICH/AUSTIN GLE 153282-R
FAX : 801-240-5115
MISSIONARY TRAVEL
CANADA WINNIPEG MISSION
SERVICE DATE FROM TO DEPART ARRIVE
_____________________ _____ ______________ ______________ _______ ______
UNITED AIRLINES 29APR WINNIPEG MB DENVER CO 807A 925A
UA 6730 FRIDAY J A RICHARDSON DENVER INTL
W ECONOMY
RESERVATION CONFIRMED 2:18 DURATION
FLIGHT OPERATED BY UNITED EXPRESS/SKYWEST
AIRCRAFT: CANADAIR REGIONAL JET
SEATS 03A/03B NO SMOKING CONFIRMED
UNITED AIRLINES 29APR DENVER CO SACRAMENTO CA 1239P 208P
UA 103 FRIDAY DENVER INTL INTL
S ECONOMY
NON SMOKING FOOD AND BEVERAGES FOR PURCHA NON STOP
RESERVATION CONFIRMED 2:29 DURATION
Monday, March 21, 2011
March 21, 2011
Dear Home,
How is it 1:45 already? Where has the time gone?
P-Day activity was great today. Since Elder Morse had gotten transferred, which is sad (but at least Elder Roth and I are both staying), we all played sports rather than UNO. Elder Felix, our new District Leader, is very good at sports. He won at Ratsmere (a dodgeball-type game in which you, personally, have to get EVERYONE out to win). It's not easy to win at that game. It usually lasts a long time, since every time someone gets knocked out, everyone that they took out go back in. It's fun. ^^
We also played Lightning, or Knockout, or whatever you want to call it, where there are two basketballs and the players take turns trying to make their shots before the person before you or behind you does. If the person ahead of you scores before you do, he passes his ball to the person behind you, but if the person behind you scores before you do, you're out, and you hand over your ball to the next player. That continues until there's only one man left standing. It's fun, too. I usually do pretty well at that game. =)
So, anyhow, Freddie is going to take his Baptismal Interview in the next few days, so tonight, Elder Roth and I are going to go over the questions with him again and make sure he's ready. He is ready, though. Super-ready. We just want to make sure. =) We're excited for him. =)
We're also excited for General Conference. This is going to be our last General Conference before we go home, so I'm anxious to see what the Prophets and Apostles will say. Hopefully, a few of them will have a few pointers on what a person should do with the rest of his life. Personally, I'm leaning towards A) getting a job, B) taking a year or two of General Education and maybe a writing class or two, while C) trying to get some good, solid career advice. I'll be attending church with my family for the first while (whether that's going to be a short while or a long while), but after a (short or long) while, I'll probably (or at least 'possibly') be switching over to a Singles Ward. Getting married is part of my long-term goals, and the first few steps involve meeting female people my age, despite how frightening as that is. It has to happen. Throwing in a little humor and perhaps an exaggeration, I'm a pretty good actor; I could probably trick some unfortunate soul into marrying me. She'd have to be blind, though. Despite the Accutane I've been taking, my complexion still isn't the best, and as we saw with the Govenator pictures, my face is way too red. And my hands turn purple when they get cold. Personally, I think that's pretty cool (I'm like a lizard!), but everyone else is worried that my hands are going to freeze off, so I keep them in gloves with handwarmers (when it's cold enough to even wear gloves, that is).
Wow, rereading that last paragraph, I've realized that I was just going off on a long string of tangents. =/ Maybe I shouldn't be a writer. If I can't keep my thoughts and words organized, how can I expect anyone to try to follow them?
I leaned back and saw a TV the size of the one in our living room. How long has that been there? o_O
Then I looked over my shoulder and saw someone doing some very complicated-looking math. I hate math.
I should probably get going. My companion is probably done by now. And I'm just rambling anyway. No one wants to read stuff like this. I'm just going to sign off now before I waste any more of your time.
I felt like I should throw in something spiritual and inspiring I learned from my scripture study. Don't be like Zoram from Alma 30. How's that?
Love, you boring missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
How is it 1:45 already? Where has the time gone?
P-Day activity was great today. Since Elder Morse had gotten transferred, which is sad (but at least Elder Roth and I are both staying), we all played sports rather than UNO. Elder Felix, our new District Leader, is very good at sports. He won at Ratsmere (a dodgeball-type game in which you, personally, have to get EVERYONE out to win). It's not easy to win at that game. It usually lasts a long time, since every time someone gets knocked out, everyone that they took out go back in. It's fun. ^^
We also played Lightning, or Knockout, or whatever you want to call it, where there are two basketballs and the players take turns trying to make their shots before the person before you or behind you does. If the person ahead of you scores before you do, he passes his ball to the person behind you, but if the person behind you scores before you do, you're out, and you hand over your ball to the next player. That continues until there's only one man left standing. It's fun, too. I usually do pretty well at that game. =)
So, anyhow, Freddie is going to take his Baptismal Interview in the next few days, so tonight, Elder Roth and I are going to go over the questions with him again and make sure he's ready. He is ready, though. Super-ready. We just want to make sure. =) We're excited for him. =)
We're also excited for General Conference. This is going to be our last General Conference before we go home, so I'm anxious to see what the Prophets and Apostles will say. Hopefully, a few of them will have a few pointers on what a person should do with the rest of his life. Personally, I'm leaning towards A) getting a job, B) taking a year or two of General Education and maybe a writing class or two, while C) trying to get some good, solid career advice. I'll be attending church with my family for the first while (whether that's going to be a short while or a long while), but after a (short or long) while, I'll probably (or at least 'possibly') be switching over to a Singles Ward. Getting married is part of my long-term goals, and the first few steps involve meeting female people my age, despite how frightening as that is. It has to happen. Throwing in a little humor and perhaps an exaggeration, I'm a pretty good actor; I could probably trick some unfortunate soul into marrying me. She'd have to be blind, though. Despite the Accutane I've been taking, my complexion still isn't the best, and as we saw with the Govenator pictures, my face is way too red. And my hands turn purple when they get cold. Personally, I think that's pretty cool (I'm like a lizard!), but everyone else is worried that my hands are going to freeze off, so I keep them in gloves with handwarmers (when it's cold enough to even wear gloves, that is).
Wow, rereading that last paragraph, I've realized that I was just going off on a long string of tangents. =/ Maybe I shouldn't be a writer. If I can't keep my thoughts and words organized, how can I expect anyone to try to follow them?
I leaned back and saw a TV the size of the one in our living room. How long has that been there? o_O
Then I looked over my shoulder and saw someone doing some very complicated-looking math. I hate math.
I should probably get going. My companion is probably done by now. And I'm just rambling anyway. No one wants to read stuff like this. I'm just going to sign off now before I waste any more of your time.
I felt like I should throw in something spiritual and inspiring I learned from my scripture study. Don't be like Zoram from Alma 30. How's that?
Love, you boring missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
Monday, March 14, 2011
March 14, 2011
Dear Home,
I was so busy writing to you about UNO last week (today, Elder Morse had over a hundred cards in his 'hand'/DECK near the end of the game. Elder Roth had close to 50. I had gone down to three cards, but then Elder Morse played a Victory Lap card and pretty much won the game. We didn't get to officially finish, though. Oh well.)
ANYWAY! I spent so much time talking about UNO last week that I completely forgot to tell you all about Freddie! (names have been changed) Freddie is great! He's from China. He delivers pizza, and one night, he delivered pizza to a member of the church and made a new friend. Then, that friend told him about the gospel, and Freddie is super-excited about it! He wants to be baptized by the end of the month (Just in time for General Conference!!!! I'm so excited!), so Elder Roth and I have been meeting with him almost every day, teaching him everything that a member of our church needs to know. (For example, we've taught him about tithes and fast offerings, and pretty soon we'll be showing him a tithing slip and teaching him how to fill it out.) He is GOLDEN! He's so excited about being baptized, and we're all excited for him. He's going to be a great member of the church. He invited his roommate to come to church with him, and he did! Freddie is the best!
My companion is done Emailing already. (How does he type so fast?) I should probably get going before he gets bored. Plus, we need to go grocery shopping, and I have a letter that I hope to finish writing today. Busy, busy.
Love, your not-writing-very-much missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
I was so busy writing to you about UNO last week (today, Elder Morse had over a hundred cards in his 'hand'/DECK near the end of the game. Elder Roth had close to 50. I had gone down to three cards, but then Elder Morse played a Victory Lap card and pretty much won the game. We didn't get to officially finish, though. Oh well.)
ANYWAY! I spent so much time talking about UNO last week that I completely forgot to tell you all about Freddie! (names have been changed) Freddie is great! He's from China. He delivers pizza, and one night, he delivered pizza to a member of the church and made a new friend. Then, that friend told him about the gospel, and Freddie is super-excited about it! He wants to be baptized by the end of the month (Just in time for General Conference!!!! I'm so excited!), so Elder Roth and I have been meeting with him almost every day, teaching him everything that a member of our church needs to know. (For example, we've taught him about tithes and fast offerings, and pretty soon we'll be showing him a tithing slip and teaching him how to fill it out.) He is GOLDEN! He's so excited about being baptized, and we're all excited for him. He's going to be a great member of the church. He invited his roommate to come to church with him, and he did! Freddie is the best!
My companion is done Emailing already. (How does he type so fast?) I should probably get going before he gets bored. Plus, we need to go grocery shopping, and I have a letter that I hope to finish writing today. Busy, busy.
Love, your not-writing-very-much missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
Monday, March 7, 2011
March 7, 2011
Dear Home,
I currently personally own 5 UNO decks.
I used to own Zero UNO decks, then the rule changed. The rule used to be 'No Board Games! No Card Games! EVER!!!' but then the rule changed to 'You may play games on P-Days.' I promptly bought myself an UNO deck.
Then I found another one. It had been left in a missionary apartment, and I (stole) adopted it. I drew a few dots on some of the cards in one of the decks, so I could easily split that UNO deck into two regular playing card decks, good for all other games.
Several months later, I saw a Disney Princess UNO deck. ... I only bought it because it has DRAGON cards! Really!
I found a Toy Story UNO deck, and thought I'd try it out. It's pretty good, but there's no Mr Potato Head! WHY is there no Mr Potato Head?? They have Wheezy the Penguin! They have STINKY PETE, for crying out loud!!! But NO MR POTATO HEAD. They even covered Hamm TWICE! It would have been SO easy to replace any one of those with a Mr Potato Head, but nooooooo, they just couldn't let that happen, could they? They had to leave him out.
But it really doesn't matter. I'll get over it.
But anyway, the fifth deck. This is a version of UNO that I have played and loved before, with my family. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Why do I care about UNO now, while I'm on my mission? Because Elder Morse doesn't play sports. Elder Roth, my companion, isn't crazy about sports. I'm more crazy about UNO than I am about sports. Therefore, every Monday, while the other missionaries are playing basketball, Elder Morse, Elder Roth and I play UNO. We mixed the Princess Deck and the Toy Story Deck together to make one SUPER CRAZY UNO DECK. We've been having LOADS of fun! But you know what would make it even better? The fifth deck. CARS UNO!
I had to look everywhere to find a Cars UNO deck! It wasn't in Superstore. It wasn't in Walmart. But I tracked one down in a ToysRus. Yes, I went to a ToysRus on my mission. Don't judge me. I bought it last week. We were going to play with it this week, but guess what? All the missionaries in Regina went bowling instead.
Oh, well. There's always next week.
Love, your Card-Shark missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
I currently personally own 5 UNO decks.
I used to own Zero UNO decks, then the rule changed. The rule used to be 'No Board Games! No Card Games! EVER!!!' but then the rule changed to 'You may play games on P-Days.' I promptly bought myself an UNO deck.
Then I found another one. It had been left in a missionary apartment, and I (stole) adopted it. I drew a few dots on some of the cards in one of the decks, so I could easily split that UNO deck into two regular playing card decks, good for all other games.
Several months later, I saw a Disney Princess UNO deck. ... I only bought it because it has DRAGON cards! Really!
I found a Toy Story UNO deck, and thought I'd try it out. It's pretty good, but there's no Mr Potato Head! WHY is there no Mr Potato Head?? They have Wheezy the Penguin! They have STINKY PETE, for crying out loud!!! But NO MR POTATO HEAD. They even covered Hamm TWICE! It would have been SO easy to replace any one of those with a Mr Potato Head, but nooooooo, they just couldn't let that happen, could they? They had to leave him out.
But it really doesn't matter. I'll get over it.
But anyway, the fifth deck. This is a version of UNO that I have played and loved before, with my family. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
Why do I care about UNO now, while I'm on my mission? Because Elder Morse doesn't play sports. Elder Roth, my companion, isn't crazy about sports. I'm more crazy about UNO than I am about sports. Therefore, every Monday, while the other missionaries are playing basketball, Elder Morse, Elder Roth and I play UNO. We mixed the Princess Deck and the Toy Story Deck together to make one SUPER CRAZY UNO DECK. We've been having LOADS of fun! But you know what would make it even better? The fifth deck. CARS UNO!
I had to look everywhere to find a Cars UNO deck! It wasn't in Superstore. It wasn't in Walmart. But I tracked one down in a ToysRus. Yes, I went to a ToysRus on my mission. Don't judge me. I bought it last week. We were going to play with it this week, but guess what? All the missionaries in Regina went bowling instead.
Oh, well. There's always next week.
Love, your Card-Shark missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
Monday, February 28, 2011
February 28, 2011
Dear Home,
I have five minutes. I might go overtime today.
I've been spending the past hour sending a few quick notes to assorted people, arguing with the dumb computer about whether or not I can send a few pictures to a missionary friend of mine, and making plans for what I'm going to do with my family shortly after I get home (hopefully a lot of hanging out, and maybe some eating).
It's strange to think of how little time I have left. Two months. Less than two months. Oi. =/
Oh, well. All I can do about it is try to make the time count. I'm going to try to spend every hour I can working. I want to find people to teach. I want to get a hold of people to teach. (Some people are really hard to catch at home!) I want to teach people about the Gospel, and I want to help people accept the Gospel so it can bless their lives like it has blessed mine. Sure, there are still difficulties. I still feel down sometimes. But I feel the influence of the spirit more often than I think I would if I hadn't received the gift of the Holy Ghost.
For example, just now, I was thinking 'if the Spirit gives us feelings of happiness and the gift of the Holy Ghost promises that we'll always have the Spirit with us, as long as we're worthy, how come some worthy people can still be sad sometimes? Do they not really have the Spirit with them?' But then the Spirit touched my heart, letting me know that He is there. People can experience things that make them happy, like feeling the Spirit, while also experiencing things that make them unhappy, like getting hurt. The Spirit didn't leave them, but His influence is so gentle that we can easily get distracted and forget that He's there. At that point, we might be tempted to believe that He's not there, that God, for whatever reason, turned His back on us. But that's not true. God is always there for us. I believe that if we look for His influence in our lives, we'll see it. If we feel for His peace, we'll feel it. Sometimes, all we need to do is ask God if He's still there. He'll remind us.
I leave that testimony with you (fifteen minutes overtime), wishing that I could write more (and better).
Love, your good friend, Elder Andrew Robarts
I have five minutes. I might go overtime today.
I've been spending the past hour sending a few quick notes to assorted people, arguing with the dumb computer about whether or not I can send a few pictures to a missionary friend of mine, and making plans for what I'm going to do with my family shortly after I get home (hopefully a lot of hanging out, and maybe some eating).
It's strange to think of how little time I have left. Two months. Less than two months. Oi. =/
Oh, well. All I can do about it is try to make the time count. I'm going to try to spend every hour I can working. I want to find people to teach. I want to get a hold of people to teach. (Some people are really hard to catch at home!) I want to teach people about the Gospel, and I want to help people accept the Gospel so it can bless their lives like it has blessed mine. Sure, there are still difficulties. I still feel down sometimes. But I feel the influence of the spirit more often than I think I would if I hadn't received the gift of the Holy Ghost.
For example, just now, I was thinking 'if the Spirit gives us feelings of happiness and the gift of the Holy Ghost promises that we'll always have the Spirit with us, as long as we're worthy, how come some worthy people can still be sad sometimes? Do they not really have the Spirit with them?' But then the Spirit touched my heart, letting me know that He is there. People can experience things that make them happy, like feeling the Spirit, while also experiencing things that make them unhappy, like getting hurt. The Spirit didn't leave them, but His influence is so gentle that we can easily get distracted and forget that He's there. At that point, we might be tempted to believe that He's not there, that God, for whatever reason, turned His back on us. But that's not true. God is always there for us. I believe that if we look for His influence in our lives, we'll see it. If we feel for His peace, we'll feel it. Sometimes, all we need to do is ask God if He's still there. He'll remind us.
I leave that testimony with you (fifteen minutes overtime), wishing that I could write more (and better).
Love, your good friend, Elder Andrew Robarts
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
February 22, 2011
Dear Home,
Happy Family Day!
That's what the Canadians were celebrating to keep me away from Emailing ya'll yesterday. Oh, well. I'm a day late and 6 cents short, and it's okay. =)
Anyhow, my Mom (who is probably just about as trunky as I am) continually reminds me to really BE on my mission, to really think about what's going on up here in Regina and to not think so much about what's going to happen in Sacramento and the surrounding areas when I get home. I'll try to do that today. As much as I would like to talk about family dinners, courts of honor, camping trips and baptisms, I'll just have to tell you about life over here.
There is never enough time to do everything. BUT, the members here are wonderful. Brother G is helping his friend work towards baptism, and Brother C is fellowshipping a Part-Member family into full activity in the church. The work is rolling along smoothly. ^^
I'm also improving a lot in my own personal progress. Working hard towards worthy goals. The hardest part about goals is remembering that you set them. If you forget a worthy goal, it's impossible to reach it. I need to post reminders for myself around the apartment. That should do the trick. I wonder how many people set New Years Resolutions and then forget what their resolutions were by late February. I guess they weren't very Resolute about them, not that I can blame anyone for that. I've set good goals, then fell short of them. That's when you have to evaluate your goals, reestablish your commitment, and maybe set different goals towards the same aim.
I'd love to write more, but I am seriously out of time. =( I know and communicate with too many people when I Email. It can't be done in just one hour. =/ But anyway, I'm sorry for not giving you more of my time.
Love, you anxiously engaged missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
Happy Family Day!
That's what the Canadians were celebrating to keep me away from Emailing ya'll yesterday. Oh, well. I'm a day late and 6 cents short, and it's okay. =)
Anyhow, my Mom (who is probably just about as trunky as I am) continually reminds me to really BE on my mission, to really think about what's going on up here in Regina and to not think so much about what's going to happen in Sacramento and the surrounding areas when I get home. I'll try to do that today. As much as I would like to talk about family dinners, courts of honor, camping trips and baptisms, I'll just have to tell you about life over here.
There is never enough time to do everything. BUT, the members here are wonderful. Brother G is helping his friend work towards baptism, and Brother C is fellowshipping a Part-Member family into full activity in the church. The work is rolling along smoothly. ^^
I'm also improving a lot in my own personal progress. Working hard towards worthy goals. The hardest part about goals is remembering that you set them. If you forget a worthy goal, it's impossible to reach it. I need to post reminders for myself around the apartment. That should do the trick. I wonder how many people set New Years Resolutions and then forget what their resolutions were by late February. I guess they weren't very Resolute about them, not that I can blame anyone for that. I've set good goals, then fell short of them. That's when you have to evaluate your goals, reestablish your commitment, and maybe set different goals towards the same aim.
I'd love to write more, but I am seriously out of time. =( I know and communicate with too many people when I Email. It can't be done in just one hour. =/ But anyway, I'm sorry for not giving you more of my time.
Love, you anxiously engaged missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
Monday, February 14, 2011
February 14, 2011
Dear Home,
I have proof. O_O I'll try to figure out how to attach it... A member
made this after a dinner appointment.
No way. That worked! =D I love computers! I hope you all can see it.
^^ Man!! If only I were not so red! =/ I think I'm part German. I'm
almost certain I'm part German.
My companion is done Emailing already. Where has the time gone??
I recently got a letter that inspired me to set goals for my
happiness. If I could sum up my new goals in a nutshell, it would be
to Think Positive. If I do something, I think of how well I did it, or
how good it was that I did it. For example, I did pretty well at
touch-typing in the Emails I sent to Mom and Sariah. If I see
something, I make notice of the good in it. For example, I'm grateful
that I'm able to Email you all, even though I have no time left to do
it. If someone else does something good or well, I compliment them.
For example, I thanked Elder Roth for washing the dishes and cooking
breakfast, and for letting me listen to his CDs.
Of course, there's another element to the Think Positive, Seek
Positive goal that I really like. This was a suggestion that was in
the letter I got. Eat Chocolate. I expanded this to Do Things That You
Enjoy, like eating chocolate, bearing testimony, playing UNO with
other missionaries during P-Day activity, and singing hymns. Hope of
Israel, Rise in Might! =D
Good stuff. ^^
But I've got to go. Have a great week!
Love, your happy (and handsome?) missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
I have proof. O_O I'll try to figure out how to attach it... A member
made this after a dinner appointment.
No way. That worked! =D I love computers! I hope you all can see it.
^^ Man!! If only I were not so red! =/ I think I'm part German. I'm
almost certain I'm part German.
My companion is done Emailing already. Where has the time gone??
I recently got a letter that inspired me to set goals for my
happiness. If I could sum up my new goals in a nutshell, it would be
to Think Positive. If I do something, I think of how well I did it, or
how good it was that I did it. For example, I did pretty well at
touch-typing in the Emails I sent to Mom and Sariah. If I see
something, I make notice of the good in it. For example, I'm grateful
that I'm able to Email you all, even though I have no time left to do
it. If someone else does something good or well, I compliment them.
For example, I thanked Elder Roth for washing the dishes and cooking
breakfast, and for letting me listen to his CDs.
Of course, there's another element to the Think Positive, Seek
Positive goal that I really like. This was a suggestion that was in
the letter I got. Eat Chocolate. I expanded this to Do Things That You
Enjoy, like eating chocolate, bearing testimony, playing UNO with
other missionaries during P-Day activity, and singing hymns. Hope of
Israel, Rise in Might! =D
Good stuff. ^^
But I've got to go. Have a great week!
Love, your happy (and handsome?) missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
Monday, February 7, 2011
February 7, 2011
Dear Home,
What a week! The last few days have been especially good. My new companion, Elder Roth, and I get along Super well!
So, let's see what's been happening: Elder Higginson had been spending his last few days in this area having a few Goodbye meetings with people he had become friends with. Then, on Thursday morning, he left. Wednesday night was spent packing for him, and for me, I was spending time with Elder Roth and Elder Hall, who had come down from Saskatoon. Elder Hall was transferring to Winnipeg, and spending the night with us. It was great talking with him again, and I'm really happy about serving with Elder Roth. After saying goodbye to Elders Hall and Higginson, we spent the whole morning cleaning up the apartment. (It's amazing how bad things can get if you let them go for too long!) Now our apartment is super clean, and thanks to Elder Roth's air-freshener, it smells great, too. =) It's such a good atmosphere. ^^ I can really feel the spirit in our apartment.
AND we have music now!!! =D Not only do we have a car this transfer, complete with a built-in CD player, Elder Roth has a CD player of his own, so we've been able to listen to music a lot lately, and it is wonderful. Elder Roth has a lot of good music. Some soundtracks, some Celtic, some classical. It's all good. ^^ And he has been letting me listen to my new EFY CDs, even though I can kinda tell that EFY isn't his favorite kind of music. Luckily, he likes piano music, so those Paul Cardall CDs that Sariah has sent me are being put to good use. ^^ I love music. I don't think I could live without music. I think there was someone in our church who said that there is no music in hell ( D= ) because all good music belongs to heaven. I want to listen to the kind of music that I can listen to in heaven. I think God would let me listen to EFY. I know that He would love classical piano music, and if He's not in favor of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, we're doing something wrong. He may or may not like Celtic music. It might depend on the piece. I'll probably ask Him about it next time I see Him. (Which hopefully won't be for another few decades!)
It's a good thing that Elder Roth and I get along so well. Not only has it been doing wonderful, amazing things for my spirituality and self-esteem, we each only have 3 months left (this transfer, then another one), and we've been told that our area will be closing in three months (so the missionaries that are here now will go elsewhere, and other missionaries will start teaching the people that we've been teaching), and Elder Roth has heard from President Paulson that he (Elder Roth) and I will be serving together for our last 3 months, and closing the area together. Man, I really hope that's true!! It only makes sense. Plus, since Elder Roth and I get along so well, they'd better not split us up just for the last month of our missions! That would be so disappointing! But we don't have to worry about that kind of stuff until mid-march. For now, all we have to worry about is working hard where we are for as long as God keeps us here. President Uchtdorf might call that Lifting Where We Stand, and if I'm not following President Uchtdorf's advice, I'm probably on the wrong track. I love that man.
I want a General Conference so badly! My only upset about next GC is that I won't be with my family for it. =( Oh, well. I'll be with my family only a few weeks after that, so I'll catch the next General Conference with them for sure! Plus, if the tradition of having the missionaries over is still the same as it always was (for as long as I can remember), General Conferences should be even more special for me from now on. Before my mission, I never really thought about the missionaries. Sure, Mom would have them over for dinner sometimes (I'll always remember that Mom had them sing hymns after dinner), and I saw them at every General Conference (picnic lunches between the morning and afternoon sessions), but I never really thought about who they were or what they were doing. They were (and are) servants or God. They are messengers of God. They teach His gospel to His children every single day. That's amazing to me.
I'll admit that there are some days when I feel like I'm ready to stop being a missionary and just be home with my family already, but when I'm actually doing the Lord's work, the Lord's way, by the Lord's power, there's nothing else that I could think of wanting to be doing (except maybe riding my bike). Nothing is better than living and teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I love being a missionary. Yes, it is hard, and it can be lonely, but I love it. I love the spirit I can feel, serving God's children. I want to continue serving His children even after I go home. I want to keep touching people's hearts and blessing people's lives. If I stop doing that, I'll stop enjoying life, and I never want that to happen. I love life. I love God. I love my Savior. I love the Spirit. I love nature. I love my family. I love hymns. I love myself. That's a hard thing to say sometimes: I love myself. But I do. I really do. I'm grateful for who I am. As someone who sometimes struggles with low self-esteem, I don't feel bad for talking highly of myself. I'm a good person, and I need to remember that. I do good things and I do them well, and I feel confident that God is pleased with me. Of course, He's not done with me. He won't be satisfied with who I am until I'm like He is, but I'm working on that. I daresay that I'm getting there. I follow Jesus Christ (as closely as I can), And I'll keep following Jesus Christ long after my mission and LONG after I die. He is my Redeemer. I would be ungrateful if I wasn't His servant for a while - at least long enough to become His friend.
But my time is about up (and I have to use the washroom (not that you needed to know that!)), so I'll wrap things up.
I hope that you all have a great week and remember that I love you and that I'm looking forward to being home with most of you in a few months. Until then, may God and His spirit be with you always.
Love, your Christian missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
What a week! The last few days have been especially good. My new companion, Elder Roth, and I get along Super well!
So, let's see what's been happening: Elder Higginson had been spending his last few days in this area having a few Goodbye meetings with people he had become friends with. Then, on Thursday morning, he left. Wednesday night was spent packing for him, and for me, I was spending time with Elder Roth and Elder Hall, who had come down from Saskatoon. Elder Hall was transferring to Winnipeg, and spending the night with us. It was great talking with him again, and I'm really happy about serving with Elder Roth. After saying goodbye to Elders Hall and Higginson, we spent the whole morning cleaning up the apartment. (It's amazing how bad things can get if you let them go for too long!) Now our apartment is super clean, and thanks to Elder Roth's air-freshener, it smells great, too. =) It's such a good atmosphere. ^^ I can really feel the spirit in our apartment.
AND we have music now!!! =D Not only do we have a car this transfer, complete with a built-in CD player, Elder Roth has a CD player of his own, so we've been able to listen to music a lot lately, and it is wonderful. Elder Roth has a lot of good music. Some soundtracks, some Celtic, some classical. It's all good. ^^ And he has been letting me listen to my new EFY CDs, even though I can kinda tell that EFY isn't his favorite kind of music. Luckily, he likes piano music, so those Paul Cardall CDs that Sariah has sent me are being put to good use. ^^ I love music. I don't think I could live without music. I think there was someone in our church who said that there is no music in hell ( D= ) because all good music belongs to heaven. I want to listen to the kind of music that I can listen to in heaven. I think God would let me listen to EFY. I know that He would love classical piano music, and if He's not in favor of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, we're doing something wrong. He may or may not like Celtic music. It might depend on the piece. I'll probably ask Him about it next time I see Him. (Which hopefully won't be for another few decades!)
It's a good thing that Elder Roth and I get along so well. Not only has it been doing wonderful, amazing things for my spirituality and self-esteem, we each only have 3 months left (this transfer, then another one), and we've been told that our area will be closing in three months (so the missionaries that are here now will go elsewhere, and other missionaries will start teaching the people that we've been teaching), and Elder Roth has heard from President Paulson that he (Elder Roth) and I will be serving together for our last 3 months, and closing the area together. Man, I really hope that's true!! It only makes sense. Plus, since Elder Roth and I get along so well, they'd better not split us up just for the last month of our missions! That would be so disappointing! But we don't have to worry about that kind of stuff until mid-march. For now, all we have to worry about is working hard where we are for as long as God keeps us here. President Uchtdorf might call that Lifting Where We Stand, and if I'm not following President Uchtdorf's advice, I'm probably on the wrong track. I love that man.
I want a General Conference so badly! My only upset about next GC is that I won't be with my family for it. =( Oh, well. I'll be with my family only a few weeks after that, so I'll catch the next General Conference with them for sure! Plus, if the tradition of having the missionaries over is still the same as it always was (for as long as I can remember), General Conferences should be even more special for me from now on. Before my mission, I never really thought about the missionaries. Sure, Mom would have them over for dinner sometimes (I'll always remember that Mom had them sing hymns after dinner), and I saw them at every General Conference (picnic lunches between the morning and afternoon sessions), but I never really thought about who they were or what they were doing. They were (and are) servants or God. They are messengers of God. They teach His gospel to His children every single day. That's amazing to me.
I'll admit that there are some days when I feel like I'm ready to stop being a missionary and just be home with my family already, but when I'm actually doing the Lord's work, the Lord's way, by the Lord's power, there's nothing else that I could think of wanting to be doing (except maybe riding my bike). Nothing is better than living and teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I love being a missionary. Yes, it is hard, and it can be lonely, but I love it. I love the spirit I can feel, serving God's children. I want to continue serving His children even after I go home. I want to keep touching people's hearts and blessing people's lives. If I stop doing that, I'll stop enjoying life, and I never want that to happen. I love life. I love God. I love my Savior. I love the Spirit. I love nature. I love my family. I love hymns. I love myself. That's a hard thing to say sometimes: I love myself. But I do. I really do. I'm grateful for who I am. As someone who sometimes struggles with low self-esteem, I don't feel bad for talking highly of myself. I'm a good person, and I need to remember that. I do good things and I do them well, and I feel confident that God is pleased with me. Of course, He's not done with me. He won't be satisfied with who I am until I'm like He is, but I'm working on that. I daresay that I'm getting there. I follow Jesus Christ (as closely as I can), And I'll keep following Jesus Christ long after my mission and LONG after I die. He is my Redeemer. I would be ungrateful if I wasn't His servant for a while - at least long enough to become His friend.
But my time is about up (and I have to use the washroom (not that you needed to know that!)), so I'll wrap things up.
I hope that you all have a great week and remember that I love you and that I'm looking forward to being home with most of you in a few months. Until then, may God and His spirit be with you always.
Love, your Christian missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Monday, January 31, 2011
January 31, 2011
Dear Home,
I'm staying here! We got our transfer calls last Saturday, and I'm spending my second-last transfer staying in Regina. Elder Higginson is getting moved to Winnipeg, where he'll be serving with one of my favorite companions for that missionary's last transfer, and I'm only 6 weeks behind him. Only three months left. The End of April is only three months away. Scary.
I think I've had a good mission. Lot's of fun experiences and learning experiences. I've met a lot of great people. I'll be serving with Elder Roth now. He was in my MTC group, and we'll be going home at the same time. Our missionary apartment will probably close around the same time that we leave, too. Since the mission is down-sizing, we won't need as many apartments to house the smaller number of missionaries, and the apartment I live in now is one of those apartments that we're not going to need anymore. From here, it looks like Elder Roth and I will serve together for our last 3 months, and then the apartment will stop being inhabited by missionaries. We've got a lot of junk to throw away. =S
But it'll be alright. I've been around Elder Roth quite a few times already, and I think we'll get along fine. I'm sorry to say goodbye to some other missionaries that were serving here in Regina, but I bet we'll keep in touch. If we happen to lose contact with each other, we can find each other again on Facebook, so no worries.
The only thing I DO worry about is how well the area is going to do now that Elder Higginson is leaving. He was so good at remembering everyone we talked to and everything that was said. Often, he would say 'Oh, we need to call so-and-so.' and I would say 'Who?' and he'd say 'You know, that Filipino lady, in her 30s, she has a son in Australia...' and I'd still have no clue who he was talking about. My memory is
terrible. I guess that's why they have missionaries write everything down. I would be completely, hopelessly lost without my planner. And our area book is vital, too. Man, if we didn't have those records, A LOT of people would fall through the cracks. =( I wonder how God keeps track of us all...
I've got a long way to go before I can even comprehend how amazing God is. He is, by far, the best. And I'm really grateful for that. I don't know how God knows and loves each and every one of us; I just know that He does, and that's really something. More than that, He wants us to be happy, and He knows what's going to make us happy, so He reaches out and lovingly, patiently guides each of us to where He is. I find that incredible. To think that God knows everything, absolutely everything... Wow. That just blows my mind.
Now my time should be about up. I don't want the other Elders to have to wait for me, so I'd better sign off.
Love, your cold hands, warm heart missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
- note from Mom - Andrew attached some pictures but I cannot put them on now from here at work. Hopefully, we can get them up later.
I'm staying here! We got our transfer calls last Saturday, and I'm spending my second-last transfer staying in Regina. Elder Higginson is getting moved to Winnipeg, where he'll be serving with one of my favorite companions for that missionary's last transfer, and I'm only 6 weeks behind him. Only three months left. The End of April is only three months away. Scary.
I think I've had a good mission. Lot's of fun experiences and learning experiences. I've met a lot of great people. I'll be serving with Elder Roth now. He was in my MTC group, and we'll be going home at the same time. Our missionary apartment will probably close around the same time that we leave, too. Since the mission is down-sizing, we won't need as many apartments to house the smaller number of missionaries, and the apartment I live in now is one of those apartments that we're not going to need anymore. From here, it looks like Elder Roth and I will serve together for our last 3 months, and then the apartment will stop being inhabited by missionaries. We've got a lot of junk to throw away. =S
But it'll be alright. I've been around Elder Roth quite a few times already, and I think we'll get along fine. I'm sorry to say goodbye to some other missionaries that were serving here in Regina, but I bet we'll keep in touch. If we happen to lose contact with each other, we can find each other again on Facebook, so no worries.
The only thing I DO worry about is how well the area is going to do now that Elder Higginson is leaving. He was so good at remembering everyone we talked to and everything that was said. Often, he would say 'Oh, we need to call so-and-so.' and I would say 'Who?' and he'd say 'You know, that Filipino lady, in her 30s, she has a son in Australia...' and I'd still have no clue who he was talking about. My memory is
terrible. I guess that's why they have missionaries write everything down. I would be completely, hopelessly lost without my planner. And our area book is vital, too. Man, if we didn't have those records, A LOT of people would fall through the cracks. =( I wonder how God keeps track of us all...
I've got a long way to go before I can even comprehend how amazing God is. He is, by far, the best. And I'm really grateful for that. I don't know how God knows and loves each and every one of us; I just know that He does, and that's really something. More than that, He wants us to be happy, and He knows what's going to make us happy, so He reaches out and lovingly, patiently guides each of us to where He is. I find that incredible. To think that God knows everything, absolutely everything... Wow. That just blows my mind.
Now my time should be about up. I don't want the other Elders to have to wait for me, so I'd better sign off.
Love, your cold hands, warm heart missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
- note from Mom - Andrew attached some pictures but I cannot put them on now from here at work. Hopefully, we can get them up later.
Monday, January 24, 2011
January 24, 2011
Dear Home,
I promised all of you pictures. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera cable, so even though I remembered to bring my camera Emailing with me, I can't get any pictures onto the computer. =( Sorry! I'll make a note to bring my cables next week.
Speaking about next week, that's when I'll be able to tell you my new transfer calls. We'll be getting our calls this weekend, and even though it's not likely that I'm leaving this apartment right now, it's possible, so for those of you who mail me directly, not through the Mission Office, (which is mostly just Mom) hold onto your mail for a week. Next Monday, I'll tell you where to send it.
So, in addition to forgetting the camera cable, I also forgot my planner, which had all my notes of what I wanted to write to you, but I think I can remember the two big things.
First, my companion and I walked across the world's largest bridge over the smallest body of water. At least, I think that's what it is. It's the bridge on Albert street close to the center of Regina. I heard that, in the Guiness Book of World Records, it's listed as the largest bridge over the smallest body of water. If I'm not mistaken, that means that if there's a bridge that's larger than this one, it's over a bigger puddle. If there's a bridge over a smaller puddle, it's gotta be a smaller bridge. I heard that they built it during the depression, when everyone was just itching for something to do, so they built themselves a bridge that's WAY bigger than it needed to be. I've got pictures of it... on my camera. =/
The other piece of big news- well, it's not big news, but it's funny- is that I just recently got a bunch of CDs from a past companion. I've been burning music onto re-writable CDs for most of my mission (it's not illegal here, or so I'm told). Since I plan on re-using these CDs later, instead of labeling the CDs based on the music they have on them now, I gave them crazy nick-names. For example, I have a CD of Celtic Music playing well-known hymns. Instead of naming the CD 'Celtic Hymns', I named it 'Red Ice Homicide', just for fun. And Elder Sheffield had loads of fun naming the 5 CDs he sent me. Most of these titles are going to be in-jokes, so don't worry if you don't get it. 'Abraham Lincoln', 'Seeth Lame Go', 'Andrew, we R DNA', 'Klien Fell Over Dead', and 'Romantic Lyrics and Overtones'. I couldn't stop laughing when I read them, but I can't listen to them because I don't have a CD player right now, but I bet I'll have access to one in about a week from now.
Gotta go. Our ride is leaving.
Love, your ride-bumming missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
PS. Miriam, I got your package. Thanks! =)
I promised all of you pictures. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera cable, so even though I remembered to bring my camera Emailing with me, I can't get any pictures onto the computer. =( Sorry! I'll make a note to bring my cables next week.
Speaking about next week, that's when I'll be able to tell you my new transfer calls. We'll be getting our calls this weekend, and even though it's not likely that I'm leaving this apartment right now, it's possible, so for those of you who mail me directly, not through the Mission Office, (which is mostly just Mom) hold onto your mail for a week. Next Monday, I'll tell you where to send it.
So, in addition to forgetting the camera cable, I also forgot my planner, which had all my notes of what I wanted to write to you, but I think I can remember the two big things.
First, my companion and I walked across the world's largest bridge over the smallest body of water. At least, I think that's what it is. It's the bridge on Albert street close to the center of Regina. I heard that, in the Guiness Book of World Records, it's listed as the largest bridge over the smallest body of water. If I'm not mistaken, that means that if there's a bridge that's larger than this one, it's over a bigger puddle. If there's a bridge over a smaller puddle, it's gotta be a smaller bridge. I heard that they built it during the depression, when everyone was just itching for something to do, so they built themselves a bridge that's WAY bigger than it needed to be. I've got pictures of it... on my camera. =/
The other piece of big news- well, it's not big news, but it's funny- is that I just recently got a bunch of CDs from a past companion. I've been burning music onto re-writable CDs for most of my mission (it's not illegal here, or so I'm told). Since I plan on re-using these CDs later, instead of labeling the CDs based on the music they have on them now, I gave them crazy nick-names. For example, I have a CD of Celtic Music playing well-known hymns. Instead of naming the CD 'Celtic Hymns', I named it 'Red Ice Homicide', just for fun. And Elder Sheffield had loads of fun naming the 5 CDs he sent me. Most of these titles are going to be in-jokes, so don't worry if you don't get it. 'Abraham Lincoln', 'Seeth Lame Go', 'Andrew, we R DNA', 'Klien Fell Over Dead', and 'Romantic Lyrics and Overtones'. I couldn't stop laughing when I read them, but I can't listen to them because I don't have a CD player right now, but I bet I'll have access to one in about a week from now.
Gotta go. Our ride is leaving.
Love, your ride-bumming missionary, Elder Andrew Robarts
PS. Miriam, I got your package. Thanks! =)
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