Email 8/12/13

I can't believe that the school year is already underway! Do you know what that means? I have been out for almost a year now! That is crazy! It is good to hear from you all and I can not wait to hear how everything went.

Hey Rat, how did 2-a-days go? I am always interested to hear how the hardest 2 weeks of the season are, even though those are the ones that you end-up missing the least...or the most. You know I have never been able to make up my mind on whether or not I liked 2-a-days. They really were great for helping me grow, but they were a killer for trying to do just about anything else, like work. But in the end, I still think that it was football that prepared me most for my mission. I am not going to say that I prepared perfectly, in fact I probably prepared the farthest from it, but the things that I learned from this wonderful sport help me in my everyday life and will continue to help me in the days to come.

Anyway, now that I made myself "trunky," how are the rest of you doing? What is Ship up to these days? When are you expecting Kale's call to come? What other questions can I ask?... I did hear that Devon finally got to go to Peru, which is fantastic. It still is not Washington or Oregon though. He will have an amazing time there because of the man (no mun intended) he is.

I just thought that I should let you know that I have the best companion ever, Elder Ewell. He is quite the amazing fellow and has a burning testimony of the gospel, I think that it puts all others to shame. He just simply has a kind heart and a deep and abiding desire to serve others in any way possible. It has been a great two weeks with him. We have been working really hard here in the Longview III Ward. Did I tell you that Elder Babers previously served here? Everyone loves him and he has set the bar very high for the missionaries to reach. There have been times that we have walked down the street and been stopped by someone who Elder Babers has talked with just so they can see if they can talk with him again. Not only that but I think that just about every member here is absolutely in love with Elder Babers and wishes that we could be transferred so he could come back and serve there again. It is too bad that he is in the other mission now, because he seems to be a very good guy.

Well, I think that is it for the week...I can't think of anything as of right now. Love you!