Letter from Tacoma #96: August 28, 2017

Yo! So all you at home probably heard from Mom and Dad already, but this week I got a root canal on one of my teeth!

Last Monday, P-day, we went to a dentist's office because I've been having some tooth pains lately. We get there and they took an x-ray where the pain was and found a giant hole in my tooth. As soon as the dentist came in and saw it, the very moment he looked at it, he was like, "Oh! You need a root canal!"

The dentist is a member, so we thought he was just joking with us missionaries. Then he started to explain why and we realized that he was being completely serious. So, I was back in the dentist office Tuesday morning at 7 for a root canal.

The one part of any dentist check-up/procedure that I hate the most is the shots. I know it would hurt a lot worse without them, but I just don't like them. The dentist gave me about three shots at the start, and then waited a little while for my mouth to numb up before going to work drilling my tooth. But as he started to reach the root, I felt the pain still! So he again gives me three more shots to numb it up! With all that anesthesia injected in my face, it felt numb for the next 24 hours, I swear.

But at the start of the operation, they asked me if I wanted to watch a movie. Wanting to be a good missionary, I declined after seeing they didn't really have any movies that I could reasonably justify as okay to watch. So they're about to start, and I realize that I'm already jumpy and nervous about them drilling my teeth. I needed a distraction, so I wimped out and got to watch a Final Fantasy movie. I couldn't hear half of it over the drill going in my mouth, but I still enjoyed it.

So after the root canal was done, I felt completely exhausted: early-morning groggy, nerves fried from anxiety, and a dull throbbing in my mouth. When we got back to the apartment, I literally slept for seven hours straight. I kind of feel sorry for my companions because they were bored out of their minds just hanging out in the apartment while I was unconscious. But honestly, I didn't feel good enough to work most the day, and I didn't look like it either.

But to make matters worse, I'll have to get a crown on it when I get home... which means more anesthesia shots! UGH!!!!

That was probably the most eventful part of the week. The rest of it was alright, but honestly these past few weeks have been going pretty slow. It's just been way hot, and it seems everybody is either gone on summer vacations or are just in no mood to talk with us. So, not a lot going on, and we're getting very bored with how monotonous each day is.

But in contrast, it seems like every week I have ahead of me is going to be very eventful. Trust me, I'm not trunky, but I am looking forward to these last seven weeks ahead of us. This week we'll get transfer calls, and we're hoping to get Willy baptized this Saturday! (I'll talk more about that later in this email). Then during my final transfer, we've got transfers, a mission tour with Elder de Hoyos of the Seventy, an Olympia Stake Conference, our mission temple trip, General Conference (WOOT!), another temple trip for all the departing missionaries (I think?), and then transfers again.

So yeah, I'm looking forward to it all, but I'm still working hard now. Like I said, this week we're hoping to get Willy baptized. He just needs to quit smoking and coffee this week. Last time we met with him, we actually made and drank a coffee substitute with him... it was way gross, but according to Willy it tasted just like coffee and he liked it. (I honestly don't think I'll have any problems living that part of the Word of Wisdom for the rest of my life if that's what it tastes like). Having this substitute available to him, Willy seemed to catch a glimmer of hope that he'd be able to quit coffee and smoking altogether. He's really determined to get baptized this Saturday, so we're preparing the best we can for it.

Life is good. And it looks like it is for everyone back home, too! Oh my gosh, Kobe is looking so cute! And Tia could have her baby any week now! I'm way excited to meet some new babies when I get back!

And I know I'm talking about going home a lot, but trust me, I'm not trunky... er, or at least, not in the hazardous way of trunkiness.  I'm just looking forward to it, not waiting for it to come. There is a difference.
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But that's about it for me!

Love you all, and thanks for reading!

-Elder R. Austin Moe

Wa-Tac Missionary