October 25, 2010

Hello!!!! :)

I did not manage to get pictures of my shoes before they got repaired. I dont know if you read my email last time but i said that i had already taken them to get repaired before i sent you the email. but as you wish i will take a picture of the shoes now that they are repaired. I am also letting my camera get repaired still. He said that i dont need to pay again for it because he didnt fix it right the first time. so all is good there. The week went super great by us. We had a great time going to munchen for an exhchange. That was cool 10 hours in a train to go there and back for only 24 hours of work. Coolio. The assistents are really good and that was a great opportunity to work with them.

How was your week mom? did you start feeling better. Did you go to the chiropractor? Elder Simon also started to have bad back problems. I cracked his back with the twisty one and he cracked so bad. that was intense.

I got a card from grandma this week. Tell her thankyou and that i will be sending something back.

speaking of that you asked me at one point in time what i wanted for christmas. i want a hippopotomus for christmas. But then i thought about that a second and realized that i dont have a lot of room in my suitcases to carry around a hippopotomus so its ok if you dont send me anythin. Seriously. I am having to give stuff away to little kids on the street. not really but when it comes time for me to leave wien the flea markets will have an increase in economy and it will become a bull market.

Speaking of leaving wien..... IM STAYING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I get another transfer here. I am so lucky. We are so blessed here in this area and i worked hard here to build it up and now that it is going the way that the Lord wants it to, its gotta stay that way and im going to give my best to do what the Lord wants here. So stoked. But i realized that as this transfer ended that my time here on my mission has become considerably shorter. Das mag ich nicht. das mag ich überhaupt nicht.

Anyhow we will not talk about it and hope that i can get an extension on my mission call. this week went great i was on exchange with elder ray we had a good time taught a really cool guy whose name is antonello. That was a really cool experience. I love teaching. There is nothing better than teaching. Oh wait i lied giving sincere heartfelt testimony is also my favorite. I have two favorites.

I just love serving the Lord. could there be anthing better than serving the One who loves us the most and who served us more than we could ever think of serving Him? I submit that there is nothing better. and with that i will end.

Peace out,

LOVE ELDER ADAMS

ps im not really done writing i just wanted that to be like a dramatic ending or like a grand finale type of thing. That is great that spencer had a great time at soccer awesomeness. that is really cool tell him congrats. tell brannen also congrats and that i wish him well. I wrote him a letter a while ago and i hope that he got it.

Wanna know something really cool i am a haircuting master. Elder simon will not pay for a haircut. so he has a haircutting machine and scissors, he just pushed them in my hands and said i trust you to go to town. I didnt really go to town. I went to chinatown. and then i came back and gave him a sweet lookin hairdo. it doesnt even look to shabby. I love all the experiences that i get to make here on my mission. I can now sew and cook and clean and cut hair and pop companions pimples for them when they cant reach those ones on their back. that might sound creepy and pretty gross "but no greater love hath man than this" to...... ya it was pretty wierd. well i think that that is all for me. hope ya´ll have a good week. LOVE YA TONS

ELDER ADAMS

October 18, 2010

Mom,

Mom I hope that you know that i always send prayers your way.

Ya the baptism was so great. The confirmation was even better. Heidi was crying the whole time. just smiling and crying. WE had a great week. We had a lot of lessons. I was pretty much on my own, because We had a couple of exchanges to do and because Elder simon got transfered in here about halfway through the transfer he didnt know our investigators and because of other previous exchanges he hasnt really had the chance to get to know them either. So i have been on exchange this week with other missionaries and ya. THe week didnt start out the way i wanted it too. Everything seemed to be going wrong. Heidi said that on monday and tuesday she felt way alone. She felt really confused and was wondering if this really was the path that she wanted to be going on. I visited her and called about half of the ward to repentance so that they would get into contact with the newest member of the ward and so that worked out pretty well. Since Elder simon was on exchange and i was working with other people who didnt know our area, i kindof took advantage of their readiness to just follow me around, (i know it sounds kind of mean but) it worked out pretty well. I planned out a couple of appointments or people that we could visit on each day and it worked out really great. So the week ended well. Because of Elder Ronna's willingness to just follow me around and do what i do, as well as Elder Blomquist, we had to run a bit to get to all of our appointments. i wanted to reach a goal of 15 lessons this week and we almost got it. I had a lot of appointments planned out with potential investigators who i had contacted in trains and busses and bahns and some of them went through and others didnt. I love the work. It s going great.

speaking of running and getting around as missionaries I think that no matter what kind of shoes i have they are all not made for the kind of walking we do as missionaries. My shoes that you sent me when i was in bamberg, ya the new ones are tearing as well. so i took my old two pairs as well as my new pair to a professional shoe maker place and he said that he has never seen anything like that on such a decent pair of shoes like eccos. so he is going to put glue in the cracks then sew them together and then cover the sole with a brand new sole. it costs twenty bucks a pair and so its going to be about 60 euro for the three pairs. I am wearing the new black ones that you sent me, they are not all the way cracked yet but they are starting. so ya. that will be thursday when i have to pick those up so if you could put money from my savings into my checking account for me that would be great.

Its good to hear that the weather there is great. its freezing cold here. THe weather is so gray and ugly. Not so cool in winter. Wien is a pretty city in the summer but in winter it just looks ugly. whateva. I really dig on the people here. i have such a love for them. We are working so hard and it tears me up inside when an investigator doesnt read in the book of mormon or come to church, but i love them so and i dont want them to lose this opportunity at eternal life. So what i usually do is spend ridiculuous amounts of time on my knees before bedtime and i give my whole heart might mind and strength towards helping them find the truth. Heidi is doing great and just to see her and how happy she is and the happiness that she has found through the gospel brings me infinite amounts of happiness. I love you all and wish you all a wonderful week.

ELDER ADAMS

ps i busted out my scarfs and i love them!!!!! thanks again mom!!!!!

October 18, 2010

October 18, 2010  1:51 PM

Sister Condie,

Josh wrote today and said that his brand new shoes are cracking.  Please have him take a picture of them BEFORE the repair man fixes them so that I can get them replaced.  This is how I understand it.  He is having the old shoes basically resoled along with one of the new pair, and wearing one of the new pair that hasn't quite started to rip.  Again I need pictures of the soles like last time and details of which shoe is being shown in each picture.  He said he is picking these up Thursday, so if you could contact Josh ASAP and have him go and get pictures ASAP. 

Thank you,

Sister Adams

October 18, 2010  3:43 PM

Sister Adams,

I tried to call him tonight as soon as I got your message but wasn't able to reach him.  I left a message for him to call me ASAP and I will try again tomorrow morning if I haven't heard from him.  We are going out of town so I might not be able to email you right away to let you know, but will do so as soon as I have internet connection again.

Sister Condie

October 19, 2010  12:26 AM

Sister Adams,

I just talked with Elder Adams.  He said he had already given the shoes to the repair man before he wrote to you. He mentioned that he hadn't taken a picture beforehand because his camera is broken.  Sorry--I know that is not what you wanted to hear.

Sister Condie

October 11, 2010

MUTTI!!!!!!!!!!

Wow what a great stressful and wonderfully tiring week. I am so dead. I stressed so much that heidis baptism would go well. With elder simon here now he didnt have that strong of a relationship with heidi before her baptism and so he wasnt too stressed out, but as for me i have developed such a love (dont worry its christlike) for Heidemarie Pohorsky. So this week we started out great we had interviews with president. Elder simon and i had to plan a workshop that we would give four different times to the four different disttricts of our zone. that took the whole day and we didnt get the chance to eat anything, then we ran on that same day to have the baptismal interview with heidi. That went great then on the next day we had exchange with the wien 4 elders. We had several appointments in the middle of all these things. then we excahanged back together elder simon and i were together for 2 hours on a train ride to graz where we talked to a really cool guy named bernhard. He told me where i could get a super schick suit tailored and everything for about 200 euro. That would or could be something for christmas. but im not wanting to think about that right now because that means time is going by much to much to fast.

Speaking of everything going by too fast ja oktoberfest is already past and i only got to wear my lederhosen 2 times or so. But it was cool. In austria they dont have to much of a big party, because everybody in austria goes to Munich for the fest. But cool stuff we were in munchen as it was oktoberfest time. there were so many people going around in lederhosen and dirndls. Speaking of dirndls they are probably the best looking dresses that there is. my wife is totally going to have one. but anyhow.

WE were in graz, the elders there are not doing so hot and they havent found a new investigator for the past 6 weeks and they have only taught 1 lesson a week for the past transfer as well. so we got there, elder simon and i and after being together for about 2 hours we separated again adn tore it up in graz. we showed them how it is done. made out 6 appointments for them, built relationships with the ward and found new investigators and new potential investigators. than after leaving a wake of gospel truth in graz we made our way home and talked with a super cool lady for two hours on the train ride home. Her name is eva. She thinks that missionaries are awesome. She also wanted to come to heidis baptism but wasnt able to make it. WE have her information however, but with her we had the best conversation about the gospel and we were able to also have a good laugh. Super funny conversation. By this point it was already friday night. we met with the burgholzers a part member family. Christian is so cool. He really likes us and has such a great trust in us. He actually compared us with other missionaries that have been there earlier and said that he hopes we dont get transferred because we are so good.

saturday we met with heidi, she made us amazing food, and was excited about the baptism and a little bit nervous as well and so we just talked to her about that, and we practiced the baptism. then we planned a bit for the next week because we didnt get that done, and then we had to clean out the baptismal font. ya it was a little bit... unused for the past long time.

then we had an amazing sunday, the day of the baptism. I was a little nervous as well. But we had an amazing turnout. so many people came to the baptism. Lots of investigators that we invited and it just went really good. The musical numbers were unbelievable and the baptismal font here in wien 2 ward is uncomparable. it was made in mosiaic form from an artist member who tried to capture the feeling of a rising sun. The tiles on the wall are all hand placed and it looks just amazing. The speakers marvin till and Sister Wade a senior sister here spoke wonderfully. Then it came time for the baptism. I was stressed and nervous all up untill the point that my foot touched that warm water. It seemed as if the warmth of the water ran from the tip of my toe up my whole body, though i know that it was the Spirit of the Lord bearing witness to the holiness of the ordinance of baptism. i remembered in the clearest vision the meaning of my own baptism and the feelings i had there. i waded across the water to the other side to grab heidi by the hand and lead her down the steps into the water. She was crying, and smiling, her own tears adding to the water in the font. Silence. for a moment. I felt the spirit fill me. So amazing. I performed the ordinance of baptism and then let heidi slowly in the water. Her dress filled with air and i had to push her lower into the water. then i lifted her up an out of the symbolic grave. It was truly a wonderfull and spiritual experience.

I found time a little earlier before my study time this week and i took that time to paint Heidi a picture. A member had given me a pretty cool watercolor set a while ago, and i painted a pretty decent picture on that and wrote my personal thoughts and feelings and testimony on the backside for heidi, she said later aftter reading it that she loves me, and that she wants to adopt me. She is such a wonderful lady. After her baptism she gave her personal testimony and she said that she knows that her family just got a lot bigger, we adopted her. She bore her testimony and said that she knows that her family is there for her and that she would be there for the family as well.

Im so happy. Heidi said to me that she was eternally greatful. A lot of other members also expressed their thanks to me for being such a good elder.

I have been thinking about wanting to live here and study here after my mission. The relationships that i have made with people in salzburg, bamberg, innsbruck and especially here in wien are so amazing. i have expressed this desire to a lot of people here and they have told me that they would be willing to do anything for me. Heidi said that i could live with her other members have said that as well . Other members have offered me jobs. I have seriously pondered that. THey have also told me that my passion for the language and how good i have mastered it would be a waste if i didnt live here. I could really see that as a reality, living here and ya living. well my words that i have written cannot describe a thousanth of the feelings i have about the love for my mission and for the love for the people here. I wish you all a wonderfull week. may the Lord bless your buttons and i hope that you have fun. :)

LOVIES FROM
AUSTRIAS NEXT TOP MODEL (oops wrong title)

(i meant) ELDER ADAMS

ps my camera i paid for it to have it fixed adn whatnot but the guy didnt fix it right. When i take pictures it has crappy lines through the whole thing and so im going to see if i can fix that again today that is why i dont have a lot of pics from the baptism because my own camera doesnt work. :)

October 4, 2010

Family, friends, loved ones and relatives, brothers and sisters, i write to you this day, the fourth of oktober in the year of our Lord 2010, to say.....

WHOA!!!!!!! There is other people there in america who are mormons too!!!!! Whoa conference was such a schock! I cant believe how many people were in that conference center. That choir was amazing and the church is growing.!!!!!!! holy smokes i totally forgot how the church is like there in utah. i am amazed at how true the words were of the prophets and apostles who spake to us. I was praying that their words would be inspired so that our investigators who were there would feel the spirit and realize, through the answers that the talks gave to their questions, that the church really has been restored and that we have a living prophet today. So cool. I loved conference. I spent the entire time in the german translation. Elder Simon speaks good english but his german is better, because he is a german, and we had a ton of investigators who came and so i sat next to them and when they had questions i would answer them. I love german. I love being here. This is such a beautiful language. I remember writing you before, so at last general conference time and i said that i understood the talks, but i have noticed that i have even made more progress and that i understood even more this time. I could feel the spirit talking to me so strongly during the talks and i realize that the topics were also for me. So wonderful. Elder simon is my angel. He is funny and he wants to work hard and most of all he wants to be obedient. Thank goodness.
Hey thanks mom for the Email. So ya heidi is going to be baptised on the tenth. That is the tenth day in the tenth month in the year of our Lord 2010. cool. I am so stoked!!!!!! That is all i can think about. When i am not busy that is with something else my mind just wanders to how amazingly sweet and wonderful the spirit will be by her baptism. i have the clearest vision of it in my mind, and yet it is so hard to imagine that she is finally going to get baptised. I am so happy for her. My joy is brimming over. Like it says in the psalms "my cup runneth over, my cup runneth over" :)
THis weeek was great we got transfers out of the way. I got elder simon now. then right after he came we rode to munich adn had mission conference, or zone leader konference. That was awesome. we are going to prepare a little more for the upcoming interviews with president condie so that we can give a good workshop there and get the missionaries pumped. Im stoked. Nothing is better than being a missionary and i am diggin on it!!!!! oh cool thing as well is that we also have the opportunity to teach the priesthood class next sunday, Heidis baptism, and the priesthood class will be about... yup you guessed it baptism. but they asked us to do that about a month ago. that was before heidi said that she would get baptised. Inspiration? i think so. ANother cool thing is that Elder Paschen and i had planned also about a month earlier that Heidi would be ready to get baptised on the tenth of oktober and then she said that she wanted to be baptised then. Inspiration? AFFIRMATIVE. cool stuff. well we are super busy this week we have about 100 appointments and on top of that we have to go to graz to do an exchange with them. Its not going so well there and hopefully we can get them inspired and full of hope for the work. plus a non member who we are teaching right now wants to come down there with us and help us get them excited about the work of the lord. NOw how cool is that?
LOVE YOU ALL: HAVE A WONDERFULL WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!