Festival of Lights

We started the week off pretty good with district meeting, and also dinner with M- (recently baptized) and M- (his fiancée).  It was super fun!  We were able to talk a lot with M- about lots of his questions and all that was going on in his life.  It was awesome.  I really like working with M-.  He also brought lacrosse sticks for us to play with, but we got stuck in traffic, so we weren't able to get there before it was dark... 

Wednesday we had institute and a really good lesson with C-. I honestly just love the people we get to work with!!  It's so fun here! 

Then Thursday was the day of “every single person ever canceling appointments.” This forced us to do everything on the fly and be led by the spirit!  Yay! I hope we were still effective though.

Then Friday we worked on our assignments from the Bishop and President Cooke to check on less actives and those unassigned to home teachers.  We also went into DC to help with parking at the Visitors’ Center. The Festival of Lights started this week, which brings a good crowd every night. The missionaries are enlisted to help with parking and assisting the visitors each evening. So, we get to stand out in the cold and help people cross roads, and know where to park their cars and all that.  It was really exciting even though it is cold.  I actually saw someone from back home- Elder James Lawlor!  He was pretty good friends with a few of my friends, so we saw each other a couple times.  He went to Orem High, and plays the guitar really well.  We talked for a minute, and it was fun to catch up with someone from back home.  I'm not sure which mission he's in, but I'm pretty sure he's in the Baltimore mission.   That is interesting that they pull surrounding missions in also to help with festival and everything. 

Saturday morning I felt sicker than... a moderately sick person.  I felt really fluey.  Elder Herring and I hung out with our roommates and made a gingerbread house, and just stayed calm so I could feel better.  Then around 3 o’clock we had appointments, so we went to those.  We got to go back to The Festival of Lights with C- and G- and a few other ward members. We were able to watch this time and I really enjoyed it! 

We also received information about our transfer that night too. I'm not sure if I've ever talked about this part of transfers, so I'll describe it. The Saturday night before transfers the APs and President get everything finalized.  They then send a spreadsheet out to the Zone Leaders around 10:15. Next, the Zone Leaders leave a voicemail on our phones with details about who's leaving and who's staying.  We waited with our roommates, and found out that both Herring and me are staying, and then my roommate who's been in the apartment since I've been here is leaving, but the other one is staying.  I am happy to stay through Christmas and I’m also

happy that one of the guys from the other companionship is staying too because I like both of them really well. 

Sunday was Sunday: meetings all day, then Break the Fast, and also checking on a couple more unassigned list people, then also the First Presidency Christmas Broadcast.  It was a busy but pretty good day. 

Then today- We're on our way back from touring the Capitol building.  It made for a fun and different p-day for us.  We got to go with Elder Summit  (from my MTC District) and Elder Gold (from my home stake.)  It was interesting to be there and understand more about the building.  I'm sort of finding out more and more that I'm not so much of a “museum person.” But that's okay. I can appreciate the history there still. 

I had a missionary/parent moment this week.  It was Sunday, and we were teaching A- (first baptism.)  Well, he just got called as a ward missionary, so A- was teaching T-, one of our ward members.  T- had gotten A- a gift for Christmas.  T- gave him a tie, a journal, and a picture of Christ.  It brought me to tears. I was so happy to see someone taking care of the person who I cared a lot about; plus, I had been a bit worried about him, so it was super touching to see someone help him and show him kindness..  

Tonight we have to shuffle a little, Elder Herring is going over to his old apartment cause they're doing a White House tour tomorrow, and I will stay out with our roommates all day.  So I'm pretty happy I get to spend the day with Elder Bodda right before he leaves.  It was a good week, but hopefully this one is better, with appointments  holding and all that.  I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

Elder Sorensen