Harrisonburg, Interesting Mennonite Discussion, Gross Toe Accident: April 29, 2013

Hey Family, 

So for those who want to write me my new address is: 1721 Park Rd. Apt. D , Harrisonburg, VA 22802.

My week went okay. It was super stressful to leave Lawrenceville. I got all the records organized so when the area splits, it’s all good. Saying good-bye when we dropped off Elder Low at the mission house was okay. We had to bring Marcus with us to have a third male on the way home and everyone that had served in Lawrenceville came out and were like, "Ah, Marcus." I got funny pictures with a lot of members and a few investigators. My top two favorite goodbye pictures are the one of me and Marcus with Do-rags on and the one with the Lewises (Bro.Lewis looking like he was going to lick me and the kids just soaking wet and muddy). The best goodbye was from the Pearces cuz they really are going to miss me and want me to write. The best goodbye from an investigator was with Tiffany. We were going home from South Hill and it was 9:04pm so I look at Arby’s (Tiffany is often there at work at that time) and just made up my mind to say bye. When we got in and said hi, she came up and gave me a hug and said, “I missed you!”  When I told her I was leaving, she immediately said, “You are coming back for my baptism, right?” She had dropped us previously out of the blue, so her news that she was still planning on being baptized was so cool to hear. The rest of the time that day I said goodbyes and had people write in my book.  B. Lewis did half of it in Russian so that’s hard to understand. 

Transfer day was crazy. I had a lot of luggage so it was annoying and we ended up driving all the way up. We got up early so we went to McDonalds with our Zone Leaders for breakfast. This guy came up to us talking about this bishop who defended himself against 6 muggers using a Samurai sword.  After the guy left, everyone looked at me because I know Tae-Kwon-Do (and I do have a sword). The crazy part of transfers was all the new missionaries and then all the people who now have to train them. I got pictures with some of the Elders I know.  Me, my former companion (now ZL Elder Canova), Elder Anderasen, and my new comp. Elder Quiambow (who is from the Phillipines) drove to Staunton.  My comp and I got dropped off – we waited 3 hours then a member from Harrisonburg came to pick us up.  We had 4 elders in this small older Jeep and there were 4 big suitcases on the roof. The weight kept making the car shake when it went too fast. We got there safe and sound. Elder Moon took us to the apartment which had been formerly owned by sisters so it has some pretty things all around and a full-sized piano.  Our new area in Harrisonburg has two universities and a frat house street that is crazy. Harrisonburg is like the 2nd nicest place to live in America. Our apartment is surrounded by Mennonite apartments and close to one of their schools so we see a lot of them.

The first real day in Harrisonburg was super busy. We saw two less actives and taught this investigator and gave her a blessing for health reasons. The funniest thing was that after reading the scriptures with a less active, this Mennonite couple asked us to come over and talk. It was a super long conversation and they were pulling up all these weird things they think we believe in like that the CIA headquarters has papers on us and know who we are and stuff. We kept trying to bring the conversation back to the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith. The lady, named Dawn, believes Joseph Smith was a prophet but that the Book of Mormon was changed after he died to fit man’s way. It was weird and Elder Moon hated when she asked for our first names. It was crazy. We didn’t do much the rest of the week other than helping a member, B. Richards, with yard work and having dinner with this fun family, the Frankies. B. Frankie has a lot of humorous things to say and stuff.  Before we got here, the Spanish-speaking Elders here were doing yard work on this steep slope and it was a little wet and slippery. Elder Burbank slipped and his foot went under the lawn mower. It sliced open his big toe and shattered the bone and cut off some of the toe next to it. It looked really gross in the pictures. So the Spanish-speaking elders are decomished for a bit. 

Well, I love you all and will update you on this week next P-day.

Elder McClure

Craziest Prayer, Tornado, My Birthday: April 22, 2013

Hey people!  Crazy week this week!
I will have to dull it down, but it was weird. One of our new investigators is named Lucy.  She is an older lady in these crazy apartments and everyone is taking advantage of her and her disabled son. So we tried to teach her the Restoration out of the pamphlet but only got past page one because she wanted to tell us about her woes and pains and stuff that has happened to her. When we had to leave she wanted to pray and then said the most cursing prayer against the other people who live in her apartment building, but said blessings for us and President Evans. Her prayer lasted a whole 10 minutes with "Amen and Amens" in between which was interesting to hear. She literally followed us out to our car to continue to talk to us about stuff and it was really interesting to see. She also showed us her ingrown toenails and stuff.  Yeah, I know. . . weird.

We also had our last district meeting with Elder Atkinson before transfers. We just watched the Restoration video. Afterward, we ate at WaWa, which was delicious. After that we went to Jen’s house and she was braiding hair. All of Jen’s college friends came over and thought my tie was funny (panda tie). We were joking how white we were and the people coming into the apartment would stop, close the door, then open it again to see if we had left. We also had a good lesson with Doris that day and had dinner with the Jones.

The day the tornado warnings and touchdowns happened it was really windy in the morning. We helped the APs put mattresses in the apartment where the second set of Elders for Lawrenceville were going to be. I hid a Mountain Dew in their car for fun. Then we drove to South Hill to see people. We tried to catch Tiffany at Arby’s by buying milkshakes.  She wasn’t there, but those were good milkshakes! We went to the Pearce’s to talk and we went outside and threw a football with Abby Pearce while the storm was moving nearby. It got thunderous and then when it started coming toward us, we all had to go. We didn’t freak out until all of a sudden a rain storm came and it got really, really windy. We drove with the Pearce’s to their grandma’s basement to hang out until the storm went over us. That was fun and we just hung out until it left. After the possible tornado had passed, it was just very rainy.  We had to stay in South Hill till the rain died down enough to drive. We heard from a couple people that tornados touched down in South Hill, near Lawrenceville and Emporia.  The people there didn’t act like it was a big deal, though.

Saturday was my birthday and I opened a package I had gotten from my mom with treats and two books.  I got another package from Grammy, too, with a cool journal, which I needed.  I also got birthday cards from Nana and McClure grandparents, as well.  Everyone back home was so nice to send packages and cards!  My birthday rocked!  We had a branch breakfast at the church on that day and when I revealed to them it was my birthday they sung “Happy Birthday Bubba” since they didn’t know my first name – it was funny. They made a lot more food than there were people to eat it. Only one person we invited came to the breakfast:  Candace. Later that day, we taught a good lesson to this lady and had dinner with the Kings. I love soft tacos!!

We have been contacting many more people interested in the gospel in Lawrenceville right before the split.

Sunday church was good. The kids ate all the leftover breakfast food after church.  Two of the men who came to church knew each other and were reunited.  One was a missionary in this mission a long time ago and the other  guy was the son to the mother that missionary converted.  It was cool to see them meet again after so many years.  After church, we helped out Nick with some branches and watched him break in his horses. Then we saw a couple other people and then hung out with the Andrews waiting for the parents to get home for dinner. We played on the trampoline and waited for a pig to give birth. It was funny.

Transfer calls came.  I feel like the same thing keeps happening:  I help to grow an area and it starts to get better, then I get transferred!  I am being called to the Harrisonburg 2 area, which means it used to be one big area and then was split. I will be in a trio with Elder Moon and Elder Biscocho. Elder Chapman is taking over Lawrenceville for me (well the Emporia half) and the other side is South Hill.  It’s been fun. I am sad but it’s just my thing to grow an area and get attached, then leave.

Enjoy the email and enjoy life!
Elder McClure

Service Fun, Dropped on my Face, Salvation for my Toe: April 15, 2013

Hey my eternal family,

Had a half and half week of sad and good. We have been doing good trying to find new investigators. We call it the "potential/tract:" we go to find potentials in the areabook and see if they are interested in being taught. If they are, we go back and if not we update a very old record. It’s been time consuming which is good because we have a lot of free time on our hands. It’s been fun, actually. We found two new investigators through this method, by tracting these areas that I didn’t know existed. They are nice people, but I don’t know how far they will go with the information we teach them and with the gospel. We have been meeting with a lot of people who missionaries have talked to a while back. One of them is Lucy. She used to live in Lawrenceville but now lives in an apartment complex tucked in some trees in South Hill. We were on our way to visit a less active member but she came out of her apartment when we went by because she recognized our attire.  She asked us to come into her house to pray with her. Lucy and her son Jed have been through a lot of. She knew about us and believed that through our prayers we could help her. She talked our ear off some but we were able to give her another Book of Mormon and pamphlets to read on eternal families since the murder of her husband really hurt her.

I finally got my toe fixed for good and now it doesn’t hurt anymore. The doctor told me that it was getting bad and if I hadn’t gotten anything done on it I would have lost the foot. But now it’s all better.

Well, sadness struck when we were talking with S. Pearce; Tiffany, our baptismal date, texted us and told us she was no longer interested in seeing us but might still come to church. This hit me hard because we’ve helped her quit smoking and were around when she and her boyfriend made the decision to get married.  Actually, we think the boyfriend might be the problem. It’s also hard because she felt the Spirit and we know she felt the Spirit so she is now held accountable for getting a witness but not following through. I didn’t want this to happen but I hope she will come to her senses.

Last Saturday we got to do a whole day of service for Nick Russo and the Raplees. For Nick we helped cut boards and board up a stall near the pasture so it will be easier for the mom and baby horses to get out.  It will also protect the baby from predators. We had fun and most of the time there Nick was looking for a box of nails but after leaning on a pole, I found them on a step stool, so it was funny. We got the job done and he appreciated it. We cut and chopped wood for the Raplees and help rake leaves. This guy named Buck there is 69 years old and he splits them pretty easily. He’s really funny at it too. We also helped move a lot of pork for some members and we got a giant bag full of meat when we were done.

Sunday was good from seeing a few less active families at church.  We helped Marcus, a recent convert, pass out flyers advertising a church breakfast.

That’s about it for this week!  Love you all!

Elder McClure

General Conference, Surprise Marriage, and a Baby Horse: April 8, 2013

Hey Ya’ll!

This week was nothing to brag about. We did see some crazy stuff lately. On Monday we played games like Monopoly Deal with B. Rogers, one of the members.  That night I set up some Saran wrap in the bathroom to prank Elder Low and Chapman the next morning. The next day it worked out. We had a lesson with Tiffany where she gave her boyfriend an ultimatum to marry her the second time and we were just trying to get it in her mind that she wants someone that can take her to the temple - that is most important for marriage.  It’s not just so she can have a legal relationship. We had a Nerf war at the end of the day and I got a lot of people out with my pistol. It rocks from it being modified. We also got this new lady we are teaching, Latesha Verrar, who was grateful and knew there was a purpose for us talking to her.

 

Thursday was just trying to see people. We saw Jerritt King before he left on a 9-month tour in Afghanistan.  I gave him my military version Principles of the Gospel booklet for him to have. He loved it because he lost his a time or two ago. We said our last "MY MOM" jokes before he left.

 

On Thursday we also had district meeting, during which I gave a training on relationships with your companion. Elder Atkinson, the district leader, just had us watch a 5 minute video of the district 2 for his training.  Later, we did an exchange with Elder Bird and we were just trying to find things to do. When we came back to the apartment early, we saw the guy a level below us in the apartment complex halfway out the screen door smoking with no pants on so we got a very graphic image to blind us and then it made us all die laughing. He walked back inside when he saw us coming.  One of my old companion’s (I won’t name him) shirts don’t fit him anymore because of him drinking so much soda and gaining weight.

 

On Friday we exchanged back and Elder Chapman didn’t like it. We talked to Tiffany again and she now is marrying her boyfriend after the ultimatum. She put this temple picture I gave her in her bathroom so we’ll see where that goes.

 

Saturday was conference, and we spent the second session alone. I made a gallon of Tang to drink during the conferences to stay focused and awake. Really loved what they had to say to us. I am unable to write even a 100th of what they said, it was so great but I can say “Catch the Wave.” We were able to eat chili for lunch with one member and pizza for dinner with another. We had a fun time with the branch during priesthood since the branch is very funny about pointing things out.

 

Sunday was cool to since we saw a baby horse at Nick Russo's farm and we talked to a potential named Jo-Jo who was so buzzed that she tried to smoke an unlit cigarette.  She said she will test us by having us make a lesson according to her. Later on for dinner, I ate the pizza of my picky childhood (Freschetta). Still good.

 

Well, love you all!

Elder McClure

 

 

Zone Meeting, Virginia Beach, Easter: April 1, 2013

Hey People in the Idaho Area and Beyond,

This week was a pretty hard one as far as teaching lessons because everyone cancelled our appointments.  Here are the fun parts of the week: 

On Monday we had dinner with a less active lady named S. Hardy. Got into a Nerf war with her sons and it was brutal. We played this game with her little girl, Ari, where she holds onto this metal pole we hold between us and we lift her up and randomly she lets go and hits the ground.

On Tuesday we tried to see people but it just wasn’t happening. We did get to go to Applebee’s using a $25 gift card a member gave us. It was great to get fancy food for a change. We caught Tiffany in Arby’s and she told us on the 1st of April she is going to court for getting caught 3 times with an expired driver’s license, so there is a possibility that she could go to jail for 10 days to a year. I’m hoping she doesn’t have to go to jail at all, but we’ll see what goes on. Very disappointing for her and it may impact her baptismal date quite a bit, which makes us sad. 

On Wednesday it was same thing except we got to deliver a Gospel Principles book to S. Raplee's son Michael. He’s not a member but is showing some interest in becoming one. We played a game where we hit a soccor ball with golf clubs really hard. Elder Chapman and Jerritt had a fun time talking about an anime show called Naruto. They went off on it and it was hard to listen to their conversation and stay on track. Later that day we spoke with a lady named Dotsy.  She was puzzled why the Book of Mormon didn’t start out like Genesis in the Bible.  She thought the Book of Mormon was another version of the Bible, so we had to set her straight on it being a different book. We had the same problem the next day with this guy who owns a thrift shop. I guess that’s a common misunderstanding – that the Book of Mormon is a retelling of the Bible, but the same information. 

On Thursday, Elder Chapman and Low got haircuts. That night B. Rogers took us out for pizza and we got fried chicken pizza and it was delicious.  Sounds weird, but really good! 

On Friday morning, B. Rogers took us to Waffle House for breakfast.  I got chocolate waffles.  Afterward, we went to our zone meeting. Zone meeting focused on dis-establishing causalness in missionary work. The only thing I will not do is wear a suit constantly (other than church or a meeting).  I can’t do it! After the zone meeting, we got Taco Bell with B. Rogers. We had a lesson with an investigator who is upset about how lust has become a controlling factor in her life. But we are going to always help her get through the struggles she has. 

On Saturday we took a long trip to Virginia Beach for Elder Chapman to go to a baptism. It was so nice to be near the ocean again. B. Rogers bought us lunch, which made 5 meals that he bought for us.  What a great guy! The baptism was nice.  We found out that every companionship in the Virginia Beach area has a baptism scheduled. That was crazy, but awesome! I got to see a battleship and later spent the day with the Kings.

Sunday was good since it was Easter. We watched The Lamb of God during the last hour of church.  What a wonderful video!  After church, we had a lesson with Juanita and George. Juanita was just stating hard core that she didn’t understand all too much but will still listen. Then we had dinner with the Evans which was filling.  They asked us how to increase faith in Christ. We talked about remembering the service that Christ performed during his mortal life as a way to increase faith in him.

Although we had many cancellations this week, it was a productive few days and we had some enjoyable conversations and experiences. 

I love you all,

Elder McClure