Canada Vancouver Mission: HIS FIRST AREA

P-day is now on Monday and I plan on posting Elder Stock's latest email every week (hopefully, sooner than Thursday night). Thanks to facebook, I was able to discover where Colton was on Saturday. I love technology!!!

HE'S IN DUNCAN ON VANCOUVER ISLAND!!!!!

It's fun to see him maturing even in a couple of weeks. Here's his letter:

Kyler:

I love you, bro!!! So much! You are super hilarious and awesome to be around. I hope I got to tell you that while I was home. But if not, if all you heard was my annoyed yells, then I'm sorry haha. I saw a kid in primary yesterday, a Canadian kid, that reminded me of you. He was the coolest kid in the class.... He had that same attitude that you do on life: he knew he was awesome, but he wasn't too annoying about it. Keep up the good work, Ky. Church is true. Stay in school. Don't do drugs. Even prescription ones. Lol jk. Well....just about the last thing: still stay in school....... ;)

Asher:

Dude!!! That sounds like an intense schedule lol. I haven't had TOO much workout time....but I have lost, like seven pounds just from not eating a lot. So BOOM! beat that lol. It'll probably go back up to normal after Elder Orr and I go shopping for food after this... {:>O Anyways, I honestly laughed SO hard when you told me about your incident with Sam on the bus. Haha! Alma 37:35! That needs to be the young men's theme one year, am I right?! Fav. scripture. And the two after it. They are powerful testimonies of prayer, man. Keep up the awesome example at school, man. It makes a difference. People watch us. It's because we have the truth, and they know it. Humans are all the same underneath (pink and gross) In all seriousness, we are all children of our Heavenly Father. All of us recognize his voice, his truths, and his teachings. And so we need to realize that and act according to it, you know? Haha I'm proud of you, man! You're awesome. I miss you so much right now, and it's only begun! But don't worry about me: I'm a survivor. Who graduated ACP w/ AP Scholar with Distinction?! Who defeated Terramorphous the Invincible?!?! Who survived the harrowing journey through Hell's gate?!?!?! Muhaha! I'll give you a hint: it wasn't me. Everything you do is ONLY possible through the Lord and through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Without our Savior, we would all be doomed for eternity. So, remain worthy of your priesthood, and be an example to others, as I know you already are. ;) I love you, man! Get those sympathetic hugs!!! They're only gonna last for two measly years, bro! And then you gotta use your own effort! Lol. Tell me how Destiny and all that stuff is next week lol. I bet you're having fun. Talk to ya next week!

MOM:

Hello, my favorite mother!!!!!!!! Haha how's life without your favorite son?! Totally kidding.... ;) All right, I'm sure life in Gilbert is basically the same....so, I'll tell what isn't: LIFE IN CANADA! {:O Ok: let me give you the run down of my week. I'll attach pictures at the end, too. Lol. Ok, so Wednesday we boarded the plane to Vancouver, Canada. No offense, but I wish I hadn't talked to you two before I left on the phone. My eyes sweat a lot! Lol. We're talkin' Bridge to Terabithia/Up level... But it was awesome to hear your voices again. Thanks for answering the phone. This one girl didn't get to talk to her parents and she was balling... Yikes! But anyways, we boarded the plane. I drew Elder Zilla. You'll see him later lol. It was a cramped plane ride. But fun. Elder Stone taught a whole first lesson to an Asian lady! Lol. I sat next to another Elder. We tried to convert each other, but fell asleep..... Then, we landed. I got off the plane and....it wasn't hot outside... I knew I was in an alien world. There are SO many Asians in Vancouver! I felt like the minority, so we concluded it was ok to be racist. Kidding! Eventually, we made it through Canada's FABULOUSLY efficient border patrol thingy, and saw President Burt and his wife. They rock. Instant Christ-like love radiating everywhere. Chills! Love them to death, and they love us. We stayed with them for the day in Richmond, went over health care and driving stuff, and I found out that it takes, like, a month for mail to reach me at all times. :O So....stick to e-mails, and send big packages through the mail. Send them to the Point Roberts PO box thing. It'll cost less. So the next day, after we stayed in a luxury hotel in Richmond for one last night of bearable sleep for two years, we went to the transfer meeting. I got paired up with Elder Orr, my trainer. He's cool! We look pretty similar....just a little weight difference. ;) He says I look like Clark Kent. So we were assigned to Duncan, an easy-going town in the southeast corner of Vancouver Island, a little north of Victoria and Langford and stuff. But south of Nanaimo... It's very pretty here in Duncan. LOTS of trees, and a temperate climate. Like, it was eighty-ninety degrees yesterday. Or, I guess 28-32 degrees...Celsuis, remember lol. To get there from Richmond, we'd have to take ferry, and since our car was in Nanaimo (thanks previous Elders), we had to bum a ride with the Victoria 3rd Ward Elders. So, we went onto the ferry with them. All of our luggage was crammed in the back seat of the Chevy Cruze with us lol. It was cramped! We had a nice ferry ride, and ended up in the Vic 3rd apartment, then stayed there for the next day. We tracted ALL. DAY. My feet died. It was great, though, lots of rejection, but very rewarding when you actually get to talk to people it's awesome. We finally made it to Duncan two days ago and got settled in kind of. It's so overwhelming. We were whitewashed (so we're both brand new to the area) and so we have to start over with ward member relationships and at the same time maintain the teaching records that both the sisters and the elders previous have started. I'm super disoriented lol. To be honest, these past few days I've been kind of home sick. It's much harder to cope with life in the field than in the MTC I'm discovering. there it was like a frat house for soon-to-be missionaries. out here, it's the real deal. But I'm much better today and yesterday I was, too. I'm getting used to it, I'm lovin' it, I'm praying more fervently than I ever have, and I'm coming closer to Christ as we speak. It's awesome, super hard, scary, and intimidating at the same time lol. Our bishop is awesome here, and yeah... Canada is weird as heck. The people are strange but loveable. They really do say aboot and aboat and eh and stuff. I love you, mom. I miss you so much. You've been a true blessing in my life. Thank you for dealing with me and knowing who I can eventually become. :D It takes skill!!!!!!!!

Dad:

Hahaha I love you, dad!!!!!!! Don't miss me: if I was home, life would be a lot worse lol. I know I'm out here in the right place, at the right time, and that we will all be blessed for my service. :) I choked up so much calling you guys lol. But I was so glad to hear you again. I love you all SO much. Vancouver Island is very pretty. Lots of trees, lots of wildlife, etc. We saw a deer just chillin' in Langford on Friday and we laughed. OK: the mission here is SUPER strict. They are very letter-of-the-law, a lot of which was brought about by former Pres. Tilleman. Hopefully Burt will lighten them up... They are very set on EXACT obedience, which is great, but...yeah...let's just say I've hidden my Godzilla toy lol. My comp. is very strict. It's good for me, but again....not what I'm used to. One of our investigator's name's is Billy jean. Like I'm not gonna break out into MJ song!!! Oh, and another one is named Walter White!!!! (He lives!!!) Lol jk. My comp. says it's too worldly. Ha! Ok...ok.... Submission's fun, too.... Lol! But in all seriousness, it's great out here. I'm having a good time, and I feel my Savior's love stronger than ever. I've never prayed this hard before. It's great! So keep being the awesome bishopric member you are and endure to the end. You're my role model, dad! (And mom!!!!) So keep it up. If you want to send stuff: cool ties and snack food would be greatly appreciated. Lol. Love you! Thanks for everything you've done for me. You are amazing. :D

-Elder Stock

P.S.: Roscoe, Coco: be good. Lol.

Sister Burt, Elder Stock, President Burt