Austin's Missionary Journal

Hey everybody! I'm glad to hear everything back home is going good! But Mom, Dad, and Brandon are going to New Zealand this week?! Aw, man, that sounds like a lot  of  fun. And Happy Birthday, Kenzie! But I'm having fun out here, now that I'm  in  Belfair, my new area. I'll tell you about how my week went. Monday: P-day, still  in  Silverdale. I got me some new jeans because my last pair ripped while giving service helping somebody move. We played Volleyball at the church for zone activity, which was fun. Then we went out working for a little bit, had FHE at Bishop Holyoak's home, and then spent the rest  of  the night packing. Tuesday: Transfer day! And what an exhausting day it was, too. Elder Pisciotta and Simkins had to go down to Tacoma early, so Pisciotta could take a driving exam to get his driving privileges back (apparently the car keeps reporting that he's driving too aggressively). So they left at 10, and the plan was that Elder Kido an...

Hello Family! First off, I hope Comic-con was fun, Brandon! I'm really jealous right now, just  from  the few pictures Mom sent  in  her letter. Every time I've been, it was a blast. And I keep hearing that it's been getting bigger and better every year! I can't wait to go to another one after the mission. So yeah, I got transfer calls this week. Out  of  our foursome, only Elder Pisciotta is staying  in  the area. Meanwhile, Elder Simkins is going to Olympia 2nd Ward, Elder Kido is going to Olympia 3rd Ward, and I'm transferring to Belfair Ward  in  the Gig Harbor Stake. I'm going to be serving with Elder Stuart. I'm excited, because I'm going back to the same district as Key Center, my first area! I'm  in  a companionship with a District Leader, so I might get to go on exchanges back to Key Center and see a few  of  the members there! I also just love the general area  of  the Gig Harbor Stake. It's very b...

 Hey everybody! This week has been pretty good! Unfortunately I won't have too much time to email today just because  of  scheduling reasons: We don't have our car today because Elder Pisciotta and Elder Simkins are going down to Port Orchard today to get Pisciotta's blood drawn. He's been sick with something and throwing up for the past month now, which is way longer than the doctor guessed it would have stayed. That means that now we know it isn't an ulcer or an inflamed stomach, and worse case scenario, Elder Pisciotta will need to get his gallbladder removed. So yeah, that's exciting. Well, you remember how last week Harrison came to the fireside? Well, unfortunately, we haven't been able to see him since then. We text him everyday, but he never responds. There's a young woman  in  the ward who is one  of  his friends, but even she hasn't been able to talk to Harrison at school. We honestly have no idea what's going on, but we're not givi...

Hey Family! I'm glad to hear the move went good. It's weird to think you guys have been living with Ryan and Katrina for over a year now, but now that's changing. I hope it doesn't take to long to get the whole place organized and liveable. My week went well, and this time I made sure that I remember what happened each day: Monday: After emailing, we grabbed a whole bunch  of  food  from  Costco, and then headed back to the Stake Center for Zone Activity. We played hockey  in  the gym, and for the most part I played as goalie. I got pretty good at blocking shots, but some  of  these Elders can make some powerful shots. I walked away  from  the game with a whole bunch  of  welts and some red knees. And I took a way hard shot to the inside  of  my left leg, and for the majority  of  the week I still felt it and I walked around everywhere with a bit  of  a limp. But it was still fun. Tuesday: We got a...

Hey, Family! Ah, man!!! The new house is almost finished?! That's crazy! I can't wait to see what it looks like when it's all done and moved  in . I'll need pictures! Lots  of  pictures!!!... or I could just wait until Mother's Day when I call home to see the place. Either way, I hope everything goes smoothly during the closing and move- in ! This week has just been horrible when it comes to seeing our investigators. We weren't able to meet with any  of  our investigators, save for some short contacts and phone calls with them. Probably the most stressful night this week was Thursday night, when  all   of  our appointments fell through and we were left trying to figure out what else to do. Those kind  of  nights are pretty rough. But thankfully for the month  of  March, the Brownsville Ward is shooting to have every family have the missionaries over to work out their individual mission plans and goals. Each family will sign up ...

Hey Family and Friends! This week has been exhausting!!! I'm am literally aching, and I really haven't done anything too strenuous or physically demanding at all this week... well, besides missionary work. But that still wouldn't make any sense because I don't think I'm working any harder than I did last transfer. This past week I've been super tired, esspecially while working. I have been going to be earlier a few times this week, which seems to help a little bit, but it immediately gets just as bad later on... Maybe I just need to get to bed at 9:30 every night. We'll see if that helps. Anyways, besides it being tiring, this week went fairly well. Unfortunately, Harrison still doesn't want to commit to being baptized. We met with him on Friday night and reviewed the Restoration  of  the Gospel with him again, this time having him explain it to us. I think it really helped because during the lesson he had a vague idea  of  what it all was and meant, but...

Hey Everybody! Man, it was cold this week! But through the struggles the weather presented, I learned something: Snow is fun; rain, I can deal with; but rain when there's snow already on the ground, complete and utter misery. Never before have I gotten my shoes completely soaked through and have my toes become numb like I've been walking through the snow  in  bare feet. Yeah, this week was pretty hard. It snowed until Tuesday afternoon, and then after that it continued to rain. But even then the snow stuck around until about Friday, which was surprising considering how much it rained. During this whole week, it's been nothing but dark and cold, and it seemed like everyone we talked to felt that; There was hardly anyone who even wanted to carry a conversation on the doorstep. But finally Sunday came, and how glorious it was: ​It was so bright and sunny, I could barely see because my eyes were so used to the gray, cloudy days. It felt so nice to work out  in . Made me excit...