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Bro. Pool

Goodbye Parkersburg District: Elder Squires, Penn, Tyler (invetigator), Moreang and I. 

Elder Reidhead, Allred, and Muirbrook. 

Reidhead was in Parkersburg South when I first got there. 

Allred and Muirbrook and I all came out of the MTC together. 

Muirbrook and his companion also share an apartment with us.

Elders who've served in the Cave Spring area: 

Pendleton, Maxwell (Canadian), Dumpke, Myself, Conger. 

Bro Shorter in front of course!

Short email and roadkill

Hey Everyone! 

I've been working on uploading pictures when I realized that I only have 8 mins left to write a letter! So Its going to be Short, But there are pictures!

Its been a much better week after a week of investigatorial Drought. Thank heavens! We stared teaching an 17 year old kid who never grew up with a religious background but believes there is a God. After sharing a little of the Plan of Salvation with him we invited him to pray and he gave a super sincere prayer to know the Truth! Big Win! Then, we had an appointment Cancel on us, but decided to go try a family that had a maybe a sliver of potential. Well, We didn't quite get there because a young family stopped us on their lawn on the way over. He was a self proclaimed Heathen, but with a heart of Gold. She bore a solid testimony of God and told us how she was searching for Wisdom and Guidance on how to follow in Gods path. HELLO! They also have a 3 month old girl whom they both adore. Its so exciting to have some people to teach, and not just anyone, but those who've been prepared by the Lord and are ready to listen with open hearts :)

Looks like my time is up. Love Yall!

Elder Sunada

Yarnball FIGHT!

Hey everyone!

 

Its been another great week in the West Virgina Charleston Mission! Elder Heiner and I have been able to recover from the slight drop in the past weeks performance despite me even getting sick for a day! I think something I ate didn't agree with me and for the last part of the day into the night I wasn't doing so Hot. But I got everything cleared up and felt back too 100% by the morning.

 

We've been able to teach some great lessons this past week and were able to pick up 5 new investigators, included in which are 2 young families :D! Its so much fun to teach when you can teach a family together, even though it presents its own challenges. We were also able to get some people to Church on Sunday and it was a great meeting! One of the most stressful things is waiting before church for Investigators who say they are coming. We try to help greet them and make sure they know where they are going. But it always gets down to the last 5 minutes and you start to sweat, Are they coming?! Thankfully this time they did! well at least a few of them.

 

Talking to one who we've been trying to get to come for the past month she was telling us how much she enjoyed it and felt welcomed. Everything went well once she was there but there's always so much opposition from the other side that stops them. I've noticed that especially as we've had more success there have been more things that have been more problems that come up that prevent people from being able to meet with us, or come to church or read. Whatever it may be there is always a struggle. But more from the mouths of our investigators than our own, when you just put those struggles aside and try and live the Gospel, you find that it really wasn't such a struggle, and it was all worth it. Its such a wonderful thing to see people come to know for themselves that they can be happy and that they know they are loved.

 

Want you all to know I love you too!

Elder Sunada

 

 

Parkersburg along the Ohio

Sweet Mama they got a Timmy's!

Yarn Ball FIGHT!

I won.

 

Mmm That's good stuff...‏

Hi Everybody!

This has been another good service week for us. We've been helping The Smoots chop wood several days and getting in a good work out while were at it! In Fact, We decided to spend the better part of our P-Day today helping some more. It always feels good to put on a pair of work gloves and just "Get 'er Done!" My experience of cutting down tree's at LaFarge has come in handy as well. Everytime I pick up a chainsaw I think "yeah, I could be a lumberjack." But I've also had to learn how to cope with the hardwoods out here. It takes a little more"Umphff" To get through some of them. Last week one log in particular got the better of me. It was being stubborn and I couldn't get it to crack or stick enough to drive it with the sledge hammer. I kinda got into a frenzy swinging as hard as I could at the same spot. This mini rage got the better of me and my accuracy was off. I swung a little to far ahead and the handle hit the log breaking off the wedge. I was just a little upset about the whole ordeal. But I learned that sometimes its just not worth it to get too worked up over a little stump. I felt a little better when this morning Elder Wilder did pretty much the same thing and broke his axe handle.

Last Friday night the Covingtons took us out to a real Southern Restaurant which featured good ole country style cooking. Yes, there was fried chicken, Fried Fish, Biscuits, Buttery mash Potatoes and BBQ Ribs. But There was also some other things that I'd never seen before. Try Pork feet for instance. Pretty much from the Elbow of the hog down, just boiled I think. Tasty right? Well you know I had to try some, cause I'll try just about anything once, and there might now be another time to try this so what the heck. It was very fatty. Lots of Cartilage and goupy tissue. In the Heel I did find some meat that was a little more palatable though. I tried to eat as much of the Non-Fat parts as I could. Apparently people who like it will suck everything off down to the bone. Mmm. Then Brother Covington coaxed me into trying one of his favourite dishes. Its called Souse (pronounced Sao-se) meat. Its served in little inch sized cubes and looking at it is a mixture of pink and white gelatinous mass. Wanna Guess what it is? More pork feet. Just ground up and pickled or something. This was a little more hard to get down. I had to pull a bone out, gag twice and drink a glass of water to swallow. Interesting aftertaste as well. Gotta Love that country cookin!

So I'm still learning a lot about the south. Another fun Family is the Rainville's, who are originally from the New England area. I think the Cockney accent is awesome! One of these days I'll have to make a trip back down here and swing by the North East Just to see how things are different up there.

But I think thats all thats going on this week. I'm going to plan on getting some new investigators in the upcoming weeks. I'm excited to do some more teaching and hope that we'll be blessed in our finding but We'll just have to see how things pan out. Holiday season gets people busy so I hope that by having a bunch of names to go visit at least one of them will always come through.

Love you all! Enjoy the Good Eats back home!
Elder Sunada

BAPTISM!!!

Filling the Font

 

 

I feel like a Hobbit

 

 Tiffiney's Baptism! President Fowler on right

  

 The Lawn Mower I killed...Don't worry it got fixed!!

 

Campbells and I

 

 At the Training meeting. 

L-R Sis. Stoutenburg from Wyoming, ME, Elder Klain from Cardston, Sis. Robago from California.

Sept 2011 pics

 

Chillin With Freddie at his B-Day

 

The Lynchburg District. Minus myself..

 

More Great Southern BBQ! (I still haven't gained any weight since Cave Spring FYI)

 

This is in memory of the Don, (Bro Blackmore) One day I will own a corduroy suit coat. 

Just try and Stop me.

Rockin it

Still Rocking it out here in Virginia!

My Bud, Elder Houghton

Doing my Best to Represent!

You know we're cool....

yup I found another Fire Hall :D

Hanging by a thread

Sis. Robago made a missionary Pinata! I tied the Noose.

Some great Elders from our District.

Freddie and I. He's way sweet. Gave me a cool jacket!

Elder Bolan and I on the Way to Buena Vista

Gluttony fest at Macado's

In all we ordered 50 wings and two 2 foot long Hindinburgs between 4 of us.

Picture from Fishing a few weeks ago. This is Bruce. one of my Favorite Rednecks.

Our little Salamander Stow away.

Bye Bye Fisher; Hello Bolan

Bye Elder Fisher!

Elder Bolan

The Campbells

(Bro Campbell is blind and probablyone of the coolest members of the branch)

Elder Fisher and I at the Smith Mountain lake Dam on our Birthdays!

Bee Keeping! ( I want one when I get home)

More HUGE spiders.

Everytime I see a nasty big spider I have to take a picture.  I don't know why.

Goodbye President & Sister Thornock!

Pres. & Sis. Thornock

Transfer day

I'm travel size

RedNecks are awesome!

Curtis(Grey Ghost), Kym, Kenny, Us, J.J.

Road kill, anyone?

OK 8 mins to write so I'll just have to send this all at once.

 

Last week we had Zone Conference. Which was Way sweet as we got to go to Buena Vista (pronounced: BYU-NA VIS-TAH) and meet the rest of the Zone. Sadly though this was President Thornocks last visit to the mission, and Likely the last time I'll see him on the mission. :( Sad day. He leaves the end of this month And President Pitt will be here on the 30th of June I think. So some big changes coming up in the mission. It was a great Conference and we watched probably one of the coolest MTC talks by Jeffery R. Holland. It was so intense and made me want to work so much harder.

 

I hate ticks. They are the worst. I've had to pull 2 out of me so far, as well one day I found up to 5 crawling on me. Nastiest little things... egh. We've been excited for some people we are working with in the Branch though. It was pretty dry when I got here as we only had 1 real investigator on the road to baptism. But as of these past few weeks we've been able to find and teach some good potentials as well as get investigators to church! Yesterday in Fast and testimony meeting an investigator actually got up and bore her testimony of Christ and you could tell that she was feeling the spirit. I'm so excited for all of the people! Country folk are so much nicer, if only slightly more awkward to get along with, but that's all good.

 

We've been spending a good amount of time with some of the Lynchburg Elders. I'm actually in Lynchburg yet again. We'll be going back to Gretna tonight for some appointments, then back here tomorrow morning for a District meeting. I've been learning lots of cool tricks and life skills out here. Such as how to throw cards, read minds, play crazy red neck games and make egg nog in a blender in June! Missions are pretty great, I highly recommend for anyone thinking about serving the Lord.

 

Elder Houghton and I are also making big plans for when we get back. He's from Fresno CA, and a pretty rocking dude. We're going to go do a survival hike in Southern Utah, then up to the Canadian Rockies for some Fantastic vista's and climbing!

 

This past weekend we also went to a small local Event Called Uncle Billys day in Alta Vista. We decided that instead of knocking a bunch of doors with no one home we'd go down and work the crowds. It worked out well as we found some long lost Less active members and now we get to go visit them! Towards the end of the day we did some tracting and found a man who's day we were able to brighten and enlighten. We're going back to teach him next week :)

 

The Work is great and the cause is Glorious. I'm so Pleased to be out here doing this. I miss you all and would love some mail! I hear there's a postal strike going around in Rotation so hopefully that won't mess too much up.

 

Catch ya later!

Elder Sunada