Canada Vancouver Mission: 11/04/14 - 9th LETTER FROM DUNCAN

Well, Colton hasn't been out 3 months and I can't live without my Missionary Monday email. So picture how happy I was when I didn't receive an email from my boy on Monday. That afternoon I went to facebook and discovered other moms who didn't have their expected email. (by the way, what did parents do before email?!? I need my weekly letter, how did so many go without contact for weeks on end!) Someone finally posted that there was a Zone Conference on Monday. One mom posted this, "I just read all the comments. Mine is in Victoria too, so that makes sense. I'll stop yelling at him now." (and NO, I was not the mom that wrote that) Tuesday evening, we discovered that Colton had written!!!!!! This is what he told me, "Hello, mother! How was yesterday?! I hope you didn't panic. When our zone leaders told us that the zone conference was going to be on Monday, the first thing I said to Elder Orr was, "My mom is going to be ticked!" Oh, how that boy knows me! Without further ado, his highly anticipated letter.

Dear General Public:

(The following must be read in an epic Law and Order-esque TV Narrators voice)

Last week on Canada Vancouver Mission: Duncan Elders' Adventures:

Elder Stock and Elder Orr had an amazing preparation day last week. With barely any money left from a stupid move at Boston Pizza that only two hungry teenage men could make, they were left to wander around in Duncan, looking for free souvenirs. They were saved by Elder and Sister Nickels, an incredible senior couple, who gave them homemade sushi from a man in North Island. Balance was restored. And from this experience, they now budget their grocery spending extremely well. Later, Elder Stock journeyed to the harbor city of Nanaimo on an exchange with Elder Camp, his senior zone leader. Together, they taught a Chilean woman about the plan of salvation who gave them hot chocolate and dulce de leche. It was epic. They read the Book of Mormon with a man in the hospital, and felt the Spirit very strongly there. They ended the night with two dinner appointments. Food is good. The next day, they all attended a district meeting led by the glorious Elder Durfee. Afterward, they ate homemade breakfast burritos at the zone leaders' apartment, where Elder Stock discovered that potatoes are worth their weight in gold in the mission field. The next day, Elder Stock and Elder Orr taught their incredibly solid investigator named Will about the Word of Wisdom...at a coffee shop with a coffee in his hand. Hoping that he wouldn't beat them up for telling him that he shouldn't drink coffee, they waited for his response to the question: "What do you feel about the Word of Wisdom?" To their utter surprise, he said, "Well, sacrifice is necessary for the Lord..." and threw his coffee cup away. God is real. Every commandment He gives to us is for our benefit. The Word of Wisdom helps us remain healthy and live active life styles to help us serve those around us and help free us from addictions. It's so inspired. Then, Halloween came. The rule in their mission is to go inside by 6:00 at night and do weekly planning while the Hallow's Eve shenanigans rage outside of their windows. They entered the home of a member in their ward: Brother Gedcke. He gave them chocolate Santa Claus's. This was the only Halloween candy they received. And it was basically just a stocking stuffer... It was awesome. With them, they took a picture that will be their Christmas card for forty years at least. It was a crazy Halloween. Lots of lessons taught, and it ended with them celebrating the holiday with a feast at A&W (Canada worships American fast food). While they were walking on Saturday, they ran into extremely drunken people, and it led into a hilarious conversation. This truly is...Drunken Duncan as they call it. ;) We fasted for revelation at the zone conference on Monday, and when it came, it was awesome. We watched Meet the Mormons. Following is a review of the movie.

This Monday, we watched an incredible movie as two zones on Vancouver Island combined. It was simply titled Meet the Mormons, and it briefly examined the lives of six LDS families that all have one common thread together: they're ordinary human beings, united by an extraordinary gift: the gospel of Jesus Christ. They're Mormons. It's a movie that aims to help viewers understand that Mormonism is not a cult, that it is indeed a worldwide church, even a worldwide family united in their beliefs and their values and their goal: to follow the example of Jesus Christ. Both hilarious (the 30 Rock and The Simpsons references were outstandingly and flawlessly edited into the film) and utterly heartfelt (the stories of these Latter-day Saints are genuine and incredibly inspiring), the movie is remarkable. It manages to introduce the world to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints without preaching to them. It's an incredible missionary tool. It shows what we value: that we enjoy life, that we are here to experience mortality with a physical body to one day become like our Heavenly father. That's what He wants for us. And we are here to serve others and to follow the example of Jesus Christ. Who didn't laugh their heads off when the football coach showed his perhaps unhealthily competitive side? Who didn't tear up at the missionary mom's story of sacrifice and faith in the Lord? Whether you're a pro-active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or the most ravenous Anti-Mormon fiend known to man, this movie will touch your Spirit in ways that you could never imagine. It is quite literally perfect. 5/5 This and Pacific Rim are pretty much Best Picture Nominees for Life... That's my review.. :D

What will happen next on Duncan Elders' Adventures? Will Elder Stock and Elder Orr baptize the entire town? Will miracles happen? Tune in next week for more!

Christmas Santas for Halloween....why not!