This week has probably been the hardest and craziest week of my life.

Hello family!

Thanks for all the nice emails from you guys! This week has probably been the hardest and craziest week of my life. So my new area is in the Jones Falls ward here in Towson, Maryland. Towson is a nice area and 80 percent of the population in Towson city is under 25. 

My area is huge! Our ward is the biggest ward in the mission, with 900 plus people on the roles and average of 320 people at sacrament! Its bigger than most Utah wards. It is a very young ward because The Johns Hopkins hospital is in my area and half of the ward is working and going to school there. There are about 12 colleges in my area! Our area covers some inner city and some really bad spots in Baltimore. 

Today we had district meeting in Essex which has the the two most dangerous streets in America haha. There are places called blue light areas in my mission area, which means that they have blue lights and cameras all over the streets. Police pretty much don't even respond to phone calls in this area any more haha. To put in perspective how crazy this area is, there are about 500,000 people covered by us and another set of elders and two sets of YSA missionaries. 

It has been a crazy adjustment. Not to mention me and my new companion Elder Benard "shot gunned" the area, which know one cared to tell me. I found out we were "shot gunning" at transfers from Elder Benard. 

This week has been very hard. First of all they took the car away from this area and the start of this transfer  and gave it to another area. We soon figured out that this area would be impossible as a car and out ward mission leader called president Richards and "told him off" about taking the car, haha. So we got a car from the mission office yesterday which was such a life save. We had already walked to everybody who was in walking distance of out apartment. It took us three hours to walk to a members house each way.

These last couple days me and Elder Benard have been completely exhausted after walking about 25 miles in 2 days. But luckily we have a full time car now. These last couple weeks I have been having bad migraines almost everyday, so today I'm going to call sister Richards and see what we can do for it. Two days ago it was so bad I felt like I was going to throw up. So yea you could say its been tough. 

I'm so glad to have the best family and friends in the world, I don't think I could any of this without you guys! 

I love you guys so much, I'm glad to here that everything is going well back at home. I hope the weather there has been better that it is here. The weather has been an absolute joke. The entire state of Maryland was almost in chaos. But today there hasn't been a cloud in the sky and its 50 degrees! :) Tonight I get to go play basketball at the church with a bunch of people and some less active members, so I'm very excited about that. :)

 We have a very good investigator who is being baptized next month who is a school teacher in inner city Baltimore. He is a very humble sincere guy who is VERY solid and ready to be baptized. And we have another lady were about to start teaching who just got married to a member and told us she is going to join the church with her husband! So we pretty much got a free baptism haha. She is an anesthesiologist at Johns Hopkins hospital and her husband is an RM who grew up in Maryland and is a Navy Seal. 

So that's sweet. Well I'm in the Towson library and have to get off now but I love you guys very much hope you guys have a good week!

love,

Wes 

Transfer to Jones Falls, MD (Suburb of Baltimore)!

Hey guys!

So yes I'm getting transferred after six months in Woodstock. I'm headed to Baltimore! Apparently my area has been the zone leader area in Baltimore for a really long time but I guess they moved it because I'm not a zone leader! Elder Tilley tells me I'm not it the hood but I'm in the really rich area, probably the richest area in the mission.

It is supposed to be a good size ward though. I'm pretty excited, I will be going on exchanges in  the hood though in inner city, so that will be fun! ;) My new companion is someone named Elder Bernard. No one has a clue who he is, so it should be interesting.

 

Yesterday I got to hang out with the whole Harris clan for the last time. I was sad I had to say bye to all them but it was a good time, and I got some pictures with them so its all cool. This last week nothing really happened to much, the three investigators I'm leaving behind are doing well and are going to be baptized this next month.

 

But I'm excited to go to Jones Falls. It really is one of those areas that a lot of missionaries wish they could serve in. I hope my new companion is cool.

 

Thanks for the package you guys sent me, I loved it. Thanks for the nice things you liked about me to, it made my day. Thanks Sarah and Lynz for the emails too! It is good to here both of you are doing good :) I hope school is still fun for you.

 

Thanks dad for the update on sports it was cool to here the jazz beat the heat. Well I hope you guys have an awesome week and have a good Valentines Day I love you guys very much. 

Letters from January 20, 27 and February 3 2014

January 20, 2014

Hey guys! 

Elder Tilley and I had a great week. We were able to take our investigator Chris to a baptism in a near by ward because elder Tilley was the elder who began teaching her so we got to go and bring him. Afterwards we had a sweet lesson with him and when the spirit was super strong we invited him to be baptized and he knew that he really wanted to, so he is scheduled for the 22 of February because we have some stuff to work on with him, like the word of wisdom. But no biggie, the spirit can do all things! Hopefully his girlfriend and friend who are doing awesome and taking the lessons will get baptized too! I sadly will probably will not be able to see it though because I am 90 percent sure I am getting transferred. But oh well, it doesn’t matter. I hope you all had a good week. I dont know about you but I am sooooo done with this cold weather. I am ready for it to warm up! I was bummed to here that the Niners lost but I am glad the Broncos are.  I love you guys very much, I am excited for the package and letter! Have an awesome week!

Elder LeGrande and Elder Tilley fill up water containers
 for a member from a water spring

January, 27, 2014

My knowledge of the Gospel has just grown tremendously, I have also just mainly learned about people which are super important in missionary work. Missionaries, [I know]  aren’t so robotic anymore. You have to read people with help from the spirit and just teach to there needs and ask question to help them teach themselves.

Briefly, this week has been very good, our investigators who chewed tobacco during every lesson we have taught so far all committed to live the word of wisdom. Me and elder Tilley were both super nervous because we didn’t want to lose them as investigators, we studied and real played it a lot and as we taught them the spirit was stronger than any lesson I have ever taught or been in. It was a miracle just to see how the lord has our back. Chris is on date and his two friends have committed to be baptized but not on a specific day yet. Mission conference was also super awesome this week. S Gifford Nielson is THE MAN. Btw he is 6'6! But it was an awesome mission conference, he really talked about how the second coming is coming soon and how we just need to be the help in the wards and branches to bring others to his gospel. Another thing he taught that our mission is already focused on is real growth and about finding those big fist investigators. We could be baptizing thousands in Baltimore but the numbers are not what were focusing on. Anyway that was my week! Played ball with a bunch of really good elders today including my best buddy elder bell who was my MTC companion, almost all of us played HS ball. Thanks for all you do for me guys I love ya very much I pray for you guys every night! Love ya :)

Love wes

February 3, 2014

Dear family,

Had a pretty good but tough week. We had pretty much no miles this week so we had to walk a lot. We walked 10 miles one day and my shoes are starting to get decently worn out. We were able to see our investigators the 3 amigos  and that was really good. We bought them jolley ranchers, gum and mountain dew to replace there tobacco and coffee. We were also able to go over there house yesterday with two other friends they invited to watch part of the super bowl because we were able to get permission from president! I only saw the first half of the game and I must say it was a joke of a game. But oh well me and elder tilley had fun with them and the had steak and shrimp for us, so that was pretty sweet. The weather here is terrible. I am so done with this stupid snow and cold. It snowed a little this morning and our cars got grounded, so we cant really go anywhere on our preparation day which stinks. I heard we could get up to 30 inches of snow later this week. I don't know how much more of this crappy weather I can handle. But anyways I hope you guys had a good week, I liked the pictures you guys sent of Dad playing Austin [McCombs] in church ball! Whats he up to these days? Anyways transfers are next Wednesday and we should find out where and what on Sunday night. So I just now found out that two of my good friends just came home from there missions. I'm not going to name anyone but I am kind of upset about it. I guess I cant really blame them at all, because missions are the hardest thing ever, but I wish they could have stuck it out. But oh well. I will be looking for your letters in the mail! Thanks for always supporting me and encouraging me. It really does make a difference. I love ya guys have a good week!

Love,

Wes