Londonderry Chapter 17

Well this week was...(I don't know what to call it). So many things happened good or bad, I don't know.

Monday

oh ya I already told you about Monday and most of Tuesday

Tuesday

Well the only thing new is that we had supper with Massey's. They are a great family. They were telling us about all of the missionary experiences that they have had in the past. They are so missionary minded and so willing to help out. It's awesome.

Wednesday

Well we went out and did some early morning proselyting. That is going to take some getting used to, but it is so much more effective than what we have previously been doing. After lunch we went on exchanges. I was in Londonderry once again. I realized I haven't left my area in two transfers. Oh well. We met Massey's at Lucia's, but she wasn't home. We were really hoping to have a good lesson with her. We then went to Rick's. We showed him the D&C video to really try and show him the beginnings of the church. He isn't accepting of much. We might be dropping him. He just isn't ready for the gospel. We then went to Bro Duckworth's. He was doing well. It was a good visit. We then had supper on our own. We then went and had a lesson with Cody. It was a bit of a rough lesson. I didn't know what to share with him. We were mainly waiting for the other elders. It was going to be the last time we saw Cody before his baptism. We then hung around. Some of the sisters needed a blessing, so regardless it was kinda long night, but very powerful.

Thursday

Well we had district meeting. There was a bit of chaos trying to figure out where to go for lunch. I have finally figured out that there are a lot of conflicting personalities and strong egos around. I'm trying by best to stay collected. We were supposed to have a pass-over lesson with the ZL's but it fell through. We moved it to Saturday. We then went back and since Bro Palmer is going to be coming to check the apartment later this week we took some time to deep clean it. Forsyth's had to cancel supper, but they dropped off a pizza for us. We then went to a lesson with CD1. Their investigator is in the military and they wanted Elder H to come and talk to him how to be a mormon in the military. It was a really good lesson. The 3 of us mostly just listened, while Elder H talked to him.

Thursday we also started a mission-wide fast to help us focus on our purpose more. It was really powerful.

Friday

We went early morning contacting and then came back and had breakfast. We went to a lesson with Annette and Jordi. We taught them the first lesson to try and get them on the same teaching plane. It was really cool to see Annette being able to share her testimony, even if she doesn't know she has one. We then came back, had studies and did Weekly Planning. We went to supper at Thiessen's. They were great. They made us a Valentine's dinner. It was Breakfast for dinner, but the Pancakes were pink. There were also Bacon roses. It was really cool. "As if Valentine's day doesn't make missionaries trunky enough". They were awesome. We then went to a lesson with Davin. It had been a while since we have seen Davin. He is really trying to change his life around. He has been going through a hard time for a while and wants a change. He has already seen a difference in the past few weeks when he has come to church. We shared the Faith mousetrap lesson. It was prefect for him.

Saturday

Well we had studies then went to help Dave. We came back and had to hurry and change to go to the pass-over lesson with the ZL's. It was a very interesting lesson. We walked in and it was really smoky. We then go into another room to have privacy for the lesson. Well we had a lesson on this dudes bed. Whatever works. We then came back and had lunch. We then rode the bus up to Branco's. We had called to see if they would feed us, but were busy, but wanted to give us food that we could take home. It was sweet. We then went back home and had supper. We then went and did more drumming with David. The chili for supper didn't sit well. We had to hurry home afterwards. :)

Sunday

Well church was really good. We ended up having a lot of people at church. Annette and Marie came. Trevar was there. Davin and Bro Lindberg also came. So 2 investigators and 3 LA's. Not a bad week. It was a little confusing for Annette. It was Ward Conference. The talks and lessons weren't really tailored to investigators or LA's. We then went back and had lunch and studies. We then went to McLean's for supper. We then went and taught Son English. It was a miracle. He was able to understand much more of what we were teaching him. He would read it once in english once in Vietnamese and then explain it back to us in English. There was some definite progress. We then went home and called Cody. He said that everything worked out perfectly. His girlfriend got him his own scripture set with his name on it. I can't wait to see him on Tuesday.

Well that was my week. Transfer calls come next week. I don't think I'm going to be leaving quite yet, but who knows the Londonderry book might be ending. :)

Love you,

--
Elder Colin O'Neill

Londonderry Chapter 16

So relieved that this finally came. It is hard on a MOM and DAD to have to wait one whole day to hear from your son. Love this missionary! Enjoy the news! Sheila

 

This past week has been truly pretty incredible. So much happened, and so many things are going so well.

Monday

We had p-day. We had supper with Dorey's that night. We also went to Van Orman's to follow up with their missionary work. They actually have some work and things to actually discuss. It was really cool to hear. They told us to do a tracting approach with one of their friends. Kinda a typical Monday.

Tuesday

We went to the Food Bank in the morning. We had lunch at K. mall. We then went and helped Bro Duckworth clean more of his carpets. We will finish sometime. We were cut short again. We then went to stop by some LA's. we had dinner on our own. We then went to stop by Alec, someone we tracted into last week and he wasn't home (typical). We then had a lesson with Noberts instead. We tracted Van Orman's friend and they weren't interested, but we found a Phillopino woman to give to the Tagolag missionaries. We then had a lesson with Cody. We were really figuring everything for his baptism. He is getting baptized this coming weekend in Calgary. It is exciting. MY FIRST BAPTISM!!! We had a lot to figure out.

Wednesday

It was kinda crazy day. We went and did service with Dave in the morning, then we came back and changed. We had lunch with Kingway and some people that Elder Hentunen knew in his last area. Kinda boring for me. We then went and met with President about Cody's baptism. We were able to figure a lot of it out. We had to call the missionaries, bishop, and mission president all down in Calgary. Holy cow. We WILL figure all of this out. We then had a supper at Tony Roma's with another lady from Elder Hentunen's last area. She actually talked to all of us and I enjoyed it more. She is also really good friends with one of the members here in Londonderry. We then had a lesson with John. He is an old Italian man. He has so many questions that we are able to answer if he is willing to listen. We then had another lesson with Cody where we filled him in on everything that is going on and what has to happen.

Thursday
Well we got up and did mormon.org time. We then had a quick lunch and went to pick up the CL1 elders for ZTM. ZTM was pretty good. The trainings were really helpful, but all of the announcements were a bit much. The way the ZL's were presenting everything just made a lot of us upset. It wasn't the best ZTM that I've been to. We then went and met with Lindbergs. We watched the Restoration DVD with them. They are going to be a tough family to teach. We then went and tracted around Jackson's before supper. We had supper with Jackson's. I didn't know them very well so supper was interesting. We then went to Thomas' to follow up on their missionary work. The kids are doing really well on sharing the gospel with their friends at church. That was pretty much our night.

Friday

Friday was really good. We went and had a lesson with Annette and Jordi in the morning. We taught the Plan of Salvation and it went really well. Annette is really catching onto things. We challenged them to be sealed in the temple one day and they accepted. We also told them flat out that they have to be married before they can be baptized. Hopefully things will go well as Annette really gets serious about the church. We then went to have a lesson with Lucia, but she was called into work. We then went home and had lunch and then did Weekly Planning. We had supper with the Johnston's. I haven't been over in a while. We then went to John to try and help him understand why we worship on Sunday and not Saturday. The answer was clear, but he was just too stubborn to accept it. It's going to be harder to teach him than we thought. We then went to the church and watched the Testaments with Cody. Really gave him a better glimpse at the Book of Mormon. He is so ready. Baptismal Interview is Sunday night.

Saturday

Today was a long day of service. We went to help Sis Bennett move apartments. Then we helped CL1 with some things after lunch. We then went and helped Dave for a bit. We then came back and had a lesson with Kingsway and Ken. It was interesting. We then went to Tanners for supper. They are great. We are going to start doing laundry at their house again. The sisters are moving into the other apartment so we won't be able to do laundry there anymore.

Sunday

Well we had church. Annette and Marie came. They also stayed for all three hours. It was incredible. After church was a bit crazy. We were trying to find so many people in such a short time. We then had Coordination. Bro Palmer is an amazing ward mission leader. We then went back and had lunch and studies. I had bought a plantain last monday to make chips. It was getting pretty yellow so I decided I needed to make them. It takes a lot of practice. Some of the chips soaked in the oil instead of fried. Weren't the best, but they were pretty good. We then went to the Greep's for supper. I hadn't ever been over there. Their family is really cool. We then went and taught Son some more English. That is a Gong Show. We got him some Vietnamese material to help translate. Don't know how effective it is going to be. We then went to the Church and Cody had his Baptismal Interview. He is just steps away. Can't wait for this weekend.

Monday

Well I don't know if I told you about the experiment that us and the sisters are doing, but we are doing early morning proselyting. We leave at 7 and ride the bus and LRT trying to talk with people. Well Monday wasn't very good. I was having a bad day and was having a hard time talking to people. Hopefully later on will be better. We then came back and had breakfast and then studies then lunch. We had a lesson with Lucia. She has a tough situation, but she is really accepting of the gospel and already believes that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. We then went and stopped by some people. We had supper with Higgins. We haven't been able to see them in a while. It was a good time there. We then went with Cody to the Stake Center to show him the baptismal font. The Calgary missionaries figured out everything for the baptism and everything is set. It's going to be really good. His family, who aren't members, are very supportive as well. It will be really good. We we could go. :P

Tuesday

Well if you were wondering why it is Tuesday and you are now just getting an email it is because we went to the...TEMPLE!! :) It was so amazing. So no one ever told me that there are multiple temple films. It was a shock to see a new one. It was so incredible to go though. It was really helpful. I love the temple so much. We then went to Lunch at Chili's with the Spruce Grove missionaries. Elder Hentunen used to be in a district with them. We all went to Lunch and to Generations (LDS bookstore). I really got to know them pretty well and they are really great missionaries. We then came to email and now your caught up.

Like I said this past week was really good. Everything is going great in Londonderry.

I Love you,

--
Elder Colin O'Neill

Londonderry Chapter 15

 I think he is catching fire! Little sparks every week. Mom

 

Hey There,

This week we were on fire.

Monday

Well we had pday. We have a new rule that we have to be out of the stake center by 4. It is something from the stake president. So we have to adjust our schedule so we still have a decent amount of time to play. Well after playing basketball we went shopping and then went to Stewarts for supper. They are pretty great. Didn't know them before too well. We then had a lesson with Cody. He is progressing so well.

Tuesday

We went and helped out at the Food Bank and then went to lunch at Kingsway. We then exchanged with CD1. We went to see Bro Duckworth. I love going to visit him. He's having a hard time, but doing well to get through it. We then went contacting, until supper. We were going to go to Higgins, but they called and cancelled. So we had supper on our own, then went and helped Sturgeon with their new apartment.

Wednesday

We didn't really get much done that day. The highlights were going to see sis Hernandez and Cody. We had a pass-over lesson with Sis Hernandez and the Sisters. It went really well. Our lesson with Cody went really well too. We were talking about the temple and he was asking us how long after he is baptized can he go do baptisms for the dead. He is so ready, just have to be patient.

Thursday

Well we had a combined district meeting today. It was a ton of fun. We really didn't know some of the others very well so it was good to get to know them. We then all went to Humpty's for lunch. It was for someone's year mark. We then came back and had a lesson with Rick. It is really going to challenge us to keep him focused and on topic. It will be good. We didn't have anything else. We stopped by some LA's and went tracting. We then rode to Calverts. We got there early so we decided to tract their street. It was amazing. Every house that answered we were able to have a QGC with them. We then had supper at Calverts.

Friday

Well one of the houses that we tracted into on Calverts street wanted us to come back. Well we had some conflicting appointments. It could have worked out if we had a car, but we were going by bus and it made things a bit more difficult. The Sisters ended up going to our lesson with Annette and we went to this other family. Well the guy that we talked to, and didn't get his name, wasn't there. It was annoying. We just went back to our apartment and had lunch then weekly planned. We then later stopped by Guinard, who wasn't home. We then went down by where our supper was, Nobert's, and tracted. We had some more QGC's down there and a return appointment for this next week. We then had supper at Nobert's. They are great. So the last time I went over there I had told them about Dad forgetting the salsa. Well that story is pretty catchy apparently.

Saturday

Well we started by going to the Bread Truck. Then came back and had lunch. We then went to stop by some LA's. We went to stop by Lindbergs, but their address isn't a street, so we called them. We ended up finding their house. We had a good visit with them. They are really lacking some gospel knowledge. Missionaries haven't been there for like 4 years. It's a good thing that we are going to start going there. We then got a ride from Bro Palmer to a lesson with Threesa. She wasn't home this week again. One day. We then went to try the house by Calverts again, but they weren't home. We then went tracting around Bonnell's. We ended up finding a few strong potentials and a new investigator. We knocked on her door. All she heard us say was "Jesus Christ" and she let us in. She is amazing. We are going to start teaching her and hopefully her kids. We then had supper with Bonnell's. They are so missionary minded. They gave us some more LA's that our ward just got their records. We then tried to have a lesson with Ken, but he wasn't home. We stopped by some people, but nothing. Still a really great day.

Sunday
Well we went to church and had coordination. After coordination we went with Bro Palmer to meet a potential. I had texted a bunch of the names in our phone that we didn't know and this guy was really close with Elder Crow. We set up to meet him at Tim Hortons. He is a Jewish Elder. We had a very interesting conversation with him. His knowledge was great. He is pretty much a member just before Christ came. He believes in all of the same things, but doesn't accept Jesus Christ. We then went to Thomas' for supper. We then went to Thiessen's to follow up with them on their missionary efforts. They are super great.

Well that was my week. We accomplished a lot. A lot of our appointments fell through, but we were being led to others that need the gospel. Our next week is almost already full with appointments.

Love you,

Elder O'Neill

Londonderry Chapter 14

Last weeks email, sorry I forgot to post it last week. Hope I remember tomorrow. hehe Enjoy!

This past week has been really great. We had a lot more success than I have seen in a long time. Things are really getting done in this area now.

Monday
Well we had Pday. It was different from what it has been in the past. We were riding around with CL1 for most of the day. We went to the Van Orman's for supper. They are a pretty cool family. I didn't know them before. We had a great time over there. After that our lesson with Cody fell through so we stopped by some other members. We stopped by Bonnells and shared a quick message with them. Bro Bonnell is the EQ pres so he gave us a list of LA that he wants us to stop by, check address, check interest. It really gave us something to do this week. We then went to Thomas' and shared a message. We are trying to help get the ward excited about missionary work and getting them to have their own experiences. And we are going to follow up with each family.

Tuesday

So we went and helped out at the Food Bank in the morning. It was interesting, because pretty much all of us that went were new. I knew about going to the Food Bank, but didn't know what to do when we got there. We got everything figured out. We then had lunch at Kingsway mall. We then went back and went and met with Bro. Duckworth, then we went to meet with a potential investigator Maurice. He wasn't home. We ended up parking the car at the LRT and riding it around for a little bit, trying to talk to people until supper. We had supper with Andersons. They are a great older couple. I really enjoyed being over there. They were able to tell us about some people they are working with and they gave us the correct address for a LA that we have tried to stop by before. We then went and started to stop by Bro Bonnell's list of LA. Didn't get in but found out some info on some of them.

Wednesday

We had mormon.org time in the morning. I'm going to say it again. I love the church videos. They have really great messages behind them and you can really feel the Spirit strongly by watching them. It really helped brighten my day and keep me going. We didn't have anything to do for about 4 hours after lunch. We were going to stop by LA and tract around their house. Elder Hentunen wasn't too excited about it, but we still did it. We took a small break after about 2 hours then kept going. We were able to find out some info on some LA and were able to have some good conversations. We went to Palmers for supper. I had been to their house many times, but not for supper. They are a great family. We then had a lesson with Cody. We taught him the Plan of Salvation. He is so great to teach. He really wants to learn and as we teach him, he isn't afraid to ask questions and we were able to have a really good lesson about the Plan of Salvation. He is so ready for baptism. We just have a lot of things to figure out, logistic wise.

Thursday

We had District meeting and then District Lunch. Our district is really doing good. We have a lot of good ideas. Well after that we were going to have a pass over lesson from the sisters and it was really just one of their investigators they were giving to us. It ended up just being us and Bro Palmer. His name is Rick. It is going to be interesting to teach him. We then went and helped clean his carpets. That takes forever. We then went to Fixsen's for supper. They are great. There is a reason she is RS pres. We then stopped by some LA and then had another lesson with Cody. We went through the Baptismal interview questions to just see really where he is at and what points we could reinforce. It was really good to do. It brought of some much needed info. He is really going to be baptized no problem. I just get so excited everytime we meet with him and when I talk about him.

Friday

Well for a change we never actually got to do weekly planning today. We had lesson with Annette that morning. We were going to have a passover lesson with the sisters, but we are going to keep her as our investigator. The lesson was really long and scattered, but she is understanding a lot. We then went and helped Dave. We are helping him with his garage, but it was warming up so we ended up clearing the sidewalks so it wasn't too slippery to do the rest of the work. We then came back and had lunch. Then we went on exchanges with the ZL's. I was with Elder Shreeve. It was pretty fun. We have been serving around each other my whole mission. He was Red Deer Spanish when I was in Innisfail, then when I was transferred up here to Londonderry, he was also transferred to Spanish North. Now he is the ZL in Clareview. We stopped by some LA and tracted. We had supper with Branco's. We then went back to try LA again. We stopped by Betty who we got the address from Sister Anderson. She can talk your ear off. We stopped by some of the usuals and then went home. We were still able to get a lot done.

Saturday.

Well that morning was a gong show. Sister Nelson had passed away so there was going to be a funeral for her. We were invited to come, because there were going to be a lot of non-members and LA. Well we were told that the funeral was at 10:30. We got to the church and no one was there. We were confused. Slowly people starting showing up, but not for the funeral. Found out they were coming to prep the food for the funeral. We helped out a little bit, but really wasn't too productive. We tracted a little bit, then had lunch. We then went and had our interview. It was really good. Elder Shreeve and I were able to talk about a lot of things. and really be able to recommit myself to work hard. We then exchanged back and went back to our apartment for some weekly planning. We had a lesson with a potential that fell through. We got there and were waiting for Bro Thiessen to come, because he got lost. He finally showed up. We walked up to the door and there was a note for us. "I had to go out. Please come back next Sat." Kinda frustrating, but I really like that she is interested and remembered our appointment. We went back finished weekly planning and talked some things out. We then went to Laubman's for supper. We then went to David's for some drumming. It was a ton of fun. We started by just having a jam session, then we had David play a beat and we would sing a hymn. We could really feel the Spirit strong. It was so cool.

Sunday

Well we had an early morning. We got up at 6:30 and had to be at Ward Council at 7:30. It didn't really go as we had planned. We are really trying to work with the ward and we are having some resistance. We'll just have to keep working with those that are willing to work with us. We then went into the chapel. Well a handful of people were there when suddenly we saw Annette, Marie and Annette's daughter. They were super early. They had to ride the bus so they didn't have much choice, but it was awesome that they were early rather than late. Church was really great. They ward is really willing to have us over for supper. We had to ask some people, but we have a full week this week. We then had coordination. We were able to talk through some things and it really gave me encouragement that this ward is still good. We then went home and had our studies. We then went to Stebners for supper. I had been there a few times, but never for supper. It was fun and interesting. We then went and taught English to Son. We gave him a Restoration pamphlet and had him read through it and underline and words that he didn't know. Well it honestly is most of the book. But we are going to slowly go through it and explain each of the words and help teach him english and gospel principles. We're tricky. We then had another lesson with Cody. We had answers to some of his concerns and then taught him about the organization of the church. It is coming close. We have a lot to discuss with President Manion, the mission president in Calgary, the Calgary missionaries, and Cody about the baptism. It will all work out and be totally worth it.

Well that was our week. There was a lot more to talk about this week. We are getting a lot of work done. I'm excited. I just hope I don't burn myself out.

Love you,

Elder O'Neill

Londonderry Chapter 13

Well this week has been pretty crazy honestly. With transfers and everything that is going on, it was a gong show again. I think I live in a continuous gong show sometimes. I'm really learning patience and charity.

Monday

Well we had pday. It was pretty nice. We had the car to ourselves. We went and played basketball with Bro Thomas in the morning. One of the games was really great. It was all about if I could make the 3 point shot. Well a few shots later the game was over. It's really cool to see what I'm good at in basketball and really using those skills. Never thought I would have basketball skills, but I do. We then followed Spanish and helped Poulins (housing coordinators) move things from storage into a new apartment for the Forest Heights sister. We then went to their old apartment and helped them move some other things. Finally around 12 we were done. We continued on with the rest of P-day. We went over to Calverts for supper since 3 of them were leaving. We then went to a lesson with Cody to fill him in on what is going on, and kinda fill me in. It was a really good day.

Tuesday

Well most of today was finishing up what we didn't get to on Monday and Elder Phillips packing up. We went to lunch with LD1, Spanish, CL, CD2 at Pizza hut. It was pretty fun. We went to supper with Thomas that night. After that LD1 dropped us off at Higgins and Sis Higgins gave us a haircut and Elder Phillips said goodbye. St. Paul picked us up and we went back to our place.

Wednesday

Well today was transfers. We got up and got ready. CL was going to transfer meeting for leadership training so they came to help haul Elder Phillips' stuff. Then we went to transfer meeting. I met Elder Hentunen. He is a pretty cool. I told you a little bit last week. He is from Finland. He has been on his mission for 3 months. He is ready to get work done. Well we had to wait until the leadership meeting was over to get a ride back with CL1. So that took a while. We had supper with Dorrey's and then went over to Thiessen's. Bro Thiessen was going to come with us  to a lesson, but we never made it there. We went to pull out of the parking lot and got stuck. It has been incredibly warm for January and so most of the snow has been melting. Well we got the car stuck. We finally got it out of the way and got it stuck in another snow bank. We saw some others were stuck so we went down to help them. After some anger and colorful language we got them out and they came to help us. We finally got the car so it could go again. By then we wouldn't be able to make it down to where we were going and back it back for a lesson with Cody so we just went to the Church to wait for Cody. We ran into some of the members while we were there. It was mutual. Well Bro Bonnell was there. He served his mission in Finland so him and Elder Hentunen went off in Finnish. Later we found Bro Forsyth who also went to Finland. Elder Hentunen has made more connections than I have. We had a really great lesson with Cody and the sisters. Then walked home. We are now in a car share with CL1. This isn't going to be as easy as it was with the other Londonderry.

Thursday

We had district meeting and then District Lunch. I don't know why things are so much different then they were before, but they sure are. We then met with the sisters so I could tell them some different things about the area. We then went back and changed. Then we went to see Bro Guinard. We had a good visit with him. We have realized the couple of things keeping back from coming to church. One his health. He can't walk around very well during winter. Another is Sis Guinard, she is not too keen on everything we don't think. Well we then went to Senuk's for supper. It was crazy. Their kids are little balls of fun. Elder Hentunen really gets along well with kids. Well we were there for a while so we wouldn't be able to make it to Sis Stamp. So we walked home and talked to some people. Tried stopping by Alosious. and then went home.

Friday

We had a lesson with Annette in the morning. It went really well we were able to help resolve some of her concerns. She accepted the baptismal invitation. When she knows it's true she will be baptized. It's exciting. We then went back and had weekly planning. We discussed about a lot of things. We are going to get a lot done. We then went to see Bro Duckworth and introduce him to Elder Hentunen. We had supper on our own and then we traveled down to Joe and Sheena. We got there and I'm pretty sure they forgot about it. Joe and his dad had just gotten home from work so we went in and just chatted for a little bit. Next week we are going to start teaching her for sure.

Saturday

Well we had service with Dave. It's been a while since we've done anything with him, but we are helping him move things around in his garage. It's a weekly service project. He then took us to Tim Hortons for doughnuts and hot chocolate. We then went back and had lunch. We went to the library to create a form for ward council next week. We then went to the Palmer/Calkins baptism. It was really cool. Lila Calkins has down syndrome and so she doesn't need to be baptized, but she still wanted to. It was a really cool experience. We then had supper with Thiessen's. They are super awesome. They are so ready and willing to do missionary work. We challenged them to pray for missionary oppurtunities and they are going to be the first people that we have a date to follow up with them. Following up with members really pushes them to get things done. It will be really good. We then went to David's for some more African drumming. It was similar to what Elder Phillips and I did last week, just learning basic drum patterns. Still super fun. We are going to see if David will play for a mutual some night or see if we can get it approved to have him drum for a musical number and have us sing.

Sunday

Well we had Church, then coordination. Bro Palmer has some great ideas so after we were done talking with the auxilaries he brought lunch and then we talked about what we want to get done in the ward and talking about ideas for like 2 hours. We then went back home. That was interesting. The sister took off for a lesson with Kenneth. Well we were walking home and Sister Brimacombe was going to go to the lesson with them and stopped to ask if it was us she was going to a lesson with. Nope. So she kept driving, but turned down our street. I knew something was up. We ran down and saw the sisters waiting for Sister Brimacombe at the door. They were going to meet with Ken Chen, our LA neighbor. Not a good sign. We ended up going to the lesson with them and we are going to start teaching him. His story is crazy. Oh the fun of crazy. We then went to our apartment and had supper and studies. We then went and contacted a referral from ZL's and are going back Tuesday. We then found out how crappy public transit is on weekends. We waited around for a while to catch the bus. Which didn't go where I thought it did. So we ended up bus hoping until we were close to where we needed to be. While we were waiting on a bus to leave, we did run into Alosious. Told him where Elder Phillips went and talked to him for a little bit. We were supposed to teach Son english, but we were like 50 min late. We stopped by to say that we will be back next week. We then went to Palmer's. In hindsight we could have probably taught english instead. I wasn't thinking. Oh well.

We had a pretty good week overall. Everything went well. Considering. It's different when half of the zone is brand new to the area. I'm just going to be stronger.

Love you all,

Elder O'Neill

Londonderry Chapter 12

 Sorry Folks I missed posting this last week. It was a crazy week, with not much pc time. So you get two this week. ENJOY! Sheila

 

Hey there,

So this past week has really been quite interesting. It has been a lot of prep for transfers. We already knew that a lot was going to happen in our zone, but I'll tell you more later.

Monday

It was p-day, it was pretty good. Did the usual things. We went to supper at Tanner's. It was Ukrainian Christmas I think. So Sis Tanner made a bunch of Ukrainian food. Perogies, sauerkraut soup, and lazy cabbage rolls. It was all pretty good. Reminded me of the little bit of what I remember from Ukraine. Lots of cabbage. We didn't do much else that night.

Tuesday

Well we had Interviews with President. We drove out to the mission home and got to talk with President. It was really cool just to be able to sit down and talk with him. He did tell Canfield, Bowles, and Philips a little what could be expected from transfers. Didn't really tell me much, but it sounded like I was going to the only one left. We then went to lunch at 5 Guys. We then went back and dropped the others off and went to our apartment to wait until exchanges. I went on exchanges with Elder Shettell. It was definitely interesting. We had supper at Fixsen's. Well as we were heading to supper we realized we had both areas phones. So we had an adventure trying to get it back to them. Luckily they were having supper with CD2, so we could call them and find things out. We gave them the phone back and then went and picked up Canfield and Bowles to give them a ride. We were heading to Bro Duckworth's when they called and asked if they could have the car for the night. Crazy confusion. We ended up bussing to Bro Duckworth's and teaching a short lesson so we could catch the next bus. A bit of a gong show.

Wednesday

Well we met with Annette and Marie that morning. Marie isn't doing really well. She apparently has so many kidney stones that it looks like a mass in her kidney's. The doctors call it a gravel pit. So the lesson was interesting. We read through Alma 32 and talked about faith. Bro Massey was there too. Bro Massey asked Marie if she would like a blessing. She denied and Bro Massey pushed a little hard. That's what really made it interesting. Craziness. Well we went back and had lunch then tried by some people. Well we were going to exchange back at 3:00, but some of the other elders went to the food bank for service that morning and went to a stake house for all-you-can-eat ribs. Pretty much they all ate until they were sick. We finally caught up with them and everyone was dead. Elder Shettell hadn't been felling well so really I was the only one that was good to go. Well after that we had supper. The others were too excited. We had supper with Shaw's. It was really good. Canfield and Bowles ate a little bit. Elder Phillips didn't really eat anything. Kinda a weird supper. We didn't really have much, so we turned in early since Elder Phillips didn't feel that good.

Thursday

Well we started with Mormon.org, had lunch and then went to ZTM. We weren't too excited, because it was going to be the other ZL's and the leadership went to their heads. The Sister's training was the most inspirational. After that we got a chance to talk with everyone. PS people really like the Peanut butter cookies. We then went and stopped by Alosious. He said that Thursday was going to be a good day for him. When we got their though he was busy. We went to Poon's for supper. It was really good. They are a great couple. Just a few stop-bys after that.

Friday

We had Weekly Planning as usual. We then went and watch Alosious play basketball. His school was playing in a tournament and he asked us if we could come. It really meant a lot to him that we showed up. We stopped by some others then went to Thomas' for supper. They are great. After that we went to David's for some African drumming. It was A LOT of fun. It's funny to go over and visit with them. David is a LA who knows pretty much exactly why we go over, meanwhile his wife doesn't really know. One day soon we will get him back to church and her taking the lessons.

Saturday

Well we literally did nothing today. We walked around and tried stopping by as many people as we could down south. We ended up walking around China town for a bit and then walking back to the LRT and riding it back and forth for a little ways until supper. We didn't have anything to do. We had supper with Skinners. They are such a great couple. So missionary minded. We then stopped by this family that the YSA sisters tracted into. They are this Vietnamese family that their son, Son, wants to learn English. So we went by to teach him English. Well the rest of family didn't know about it and they were having supper. Well we are going back Sunday.

Sunday

Well we went and had church. It was really good. I really enjoyed seeing some of the people that have been gone for the Holiday's back in the ward again. Well after church we had our usual coordination. That was interesting. The other Elder are leaving and we are getting sisters. Elder Phillips is also likely to be leaving. So pretty much it was whatever needed to be done in the ward is up to me. I had a lot of notes. We then went back to our apartment and had lunch and our studies. We had supper on our own and then did stop-bys. We met the sisters at Son's. It was really interesting teaching English to someone. It's going to be quite an experience. We then went to Palmer's for our weekly visit. They are pretty great.

Well that was my week this last week. It's slowed down since everyone was anticipating transfers. Well so ya transfer calls were this morning. We pretty much had it right. I'm staying and getting a new companion, Elder Hentunen. All I know about him is that he is from Finland. Pretty unique. Elder Phillips is going to Camrose. It's outlying like he was hoping. The Sisters coming are Sister Galovich and McEwan. Pretty weird that I came out with both of them. It is definitely going to be interesting.

Love you,
Elder O'Neill

Londonderry Chapter 11

Hey there everyone. This past week has been super fun and super crazy.

Monday

Well today was kinda a boring p-day. A lot of the zone was doing different things so we really didn't get together. We ended up hanging out with the ZL's and Spanish at Londonderry chapel. It was pretty boring. We went with Spanish to Nobert's for supper. They are so great and fun to visit. On the way out the front right tire was stuck in a hole. Well you had Simms, Phillips, Shreeve and me. It wasn't too cold outside, so we got it out in no time. It was pretty awesome. That was about all that happened.

Tuesday

Well we went to the Food bank and did service in the morning. It was a little weird. We got a ride with the ZL's but they set up an appointment at 12. We didn't get there until like 10:30. So we got a ride with CD1. We went to Kingsway mall for lunch. After they dropped us off we went to see if we could get in with Sister Allen's mom. Sis Allen said she wanted us to go visit her mom. Well so far we just have awkward conversations through the window. Still haven't gotten in. We headed back home and ran into Alosious who we were going to go meet up with to play basketball at the church. It was a small miracle. He had to get new glasses so couldn't make it. We met up with the other guys and went to supper at Sister Forsyth's. It was a little awkward. It was a supper with her, her roommate, her old roommate and her old roommate's husband. Pretty strange. It was like having a YSA dinner, but we are serving in a family ward. Strange for us. Oh well. We then headed back home. We were supposed to be in by 6. So we played chess, uno and nerts until we were bored. I went to bed the usual time. I didn't stay up this year. Whatever.

Wednesday

I don't remember what we did that morning, but at noon we met the other elders and played basketball at the church with Alosious. We went and picked him up and walked to the church with him. It was really great. We played some Basketball and then took him on a tour of the church. He is really anxious to learn, but won't come to church. We went to the Calverts at 3 for fondue. It was pretty good, but really long and slow. Too many people to do fondue. There was probably 12 of us all having fondue. Gong Show. After that we went over to Bro. Duckworth's. Crazy day.

Thursday

We had district meeting. We then went to Red Robin for district lunch. It was really good. I like being in the city for that reason. We get to go to cool places for district lunch. We then had mormon.org time. We then went to try and stop by Bro Guinard, but he wasn't home. We ended up talking with his neighbor. He is a really cool guy. We then stopped by some other people. We had supper on our own, because supper was supposed to be a 6 but we had another appointment then so we couldn't go. We went to David's. He is the LA that is into african drumming and thai chi. Pretty interesting dude. We might go back sometime next week and play some drums with him. It will be super fun. We then went to Sis Hernandez. We were finally able to meet with her since our many attempts since before Christmas have fallen through. It was good. She got us a 4-in1 extendable backscratcher/pen/magnetic pick up tool/ ball rolling massager. It is pretty cool. We've unscrewed the backscratcher and put on the magnetic part as a pen lid and use it as a cool extendable pen. She is so nice.

Friday

Well we had some time today, so we had to clean up. We got a letter saying that the managers were going to come inspect the apartment again so we had to clean up what they had asked and just cleaned up period. It was good. We then had lunch and then did weekly planning. Bro Bonnell came by around 5 and helped us take our couch to Bro Duckworth. We finally got rid of it! It really opened up our apartment. Now we just have to get rid of our coffee table and we'll be good. We had supper at Branco's with everyone. All 6 of us. ZL's, Spanish and us. Cramped but fun. We then had a lesson with Joe. We were hoping to start teaching his sister, but she was kinda in and out. We taught Joe about PMG and next week we are going to go back and Joe is going to help us teach her lesson 1. It will be great for both of them.

Saturday

Well we did some stop-bys in the morning. We then had lunch. Went and stopped by Bro Guinard, not home again. We were going to play basketball at the stake center with some LA and investigator in Castledowns, but we had a lesson with Alosious instead. We then went and had supper with Laubman's at 3. Sis Laubman's mother isn't doing well so see had us over early so she could go back to the hospital. We then stopped by a few people and then went to Spanish's baptism of Marisela. Part member family in our ward. They have been teaching her for a while and she was finally baptized. It was really cool to go to. We were asked to come so Elder Phillips could play piano and I could lead the music. We probably would have gone anyways. We didn't really do much the rest of the night.

Sunday

Well we were moved to the 9 o'clock church time. It is different, we usually have studies before church, but now it's going to be in the afternoon. Well we had a interesting experience going to church. Pretty much I hit a pretty big snow pile going to church and popped the tire. So after church we had to put the spare on it. Then we had coordination. Bro Palmer wanted to talk to us after coordination. We were there until 3. We then went to stop-by some one that Barrhead called us about. They told us about a LA that was taken to the hospital the night before for premature labor. She had her baby 6 weeks early. We went to stop by and couldn't find her. We had supper with Hoag's and then went back to the Hospital. She was in under her maiden name. She and the baby are doing well. We then went and picked up the others and went to Palmers for P-day eve. They are super great.

Well that was our week. Gong show at most times. This week might not be much better. Just craziness all around. Hopefully things will settle down when transfers come next week.

Love you all,

Elder O'Neill