DECEMBER 10 - MISSION LETTER #67

CHRISTMAS CATCH UP: YEAR TWO EDITION

December 2019

Well, it has been a while. And there has been a lot of fun stuff since last I wrote!

So, since a lot has happened, let's go to the Bullet points! (Insert transition music here, preferable something that sounds like it could be from a 70's Batman Cartoon!)

• So Elder Beutler and I had pseudo-adopted a cat. We weren't sure where he came from, but one day he showed up on the tennis court while we were playing, and then he chased our balls, and we petted him. Soon after that, we found him waiting for us on our porch so he could be pet again. So we had a stray slightly malnourished cat that we had fittingly named Chubs. 

• We had a Zone activity in which we made Gingerbread Houses out of Graham crackers and sang random songs, including some from "My Turn on Earth!" I made house with a chocolate Santa in a pretzel Sled being pulled by gummy bears. It caved in after not too long. Another sister tried to build hers as high as she could, so we joked about her trying to build it to reach Heaven. Elder Beutler decided that if he was going to build a house, he wanted to build it his way! So he made the most structurally sound house out of Graham Crackers I've ever seen with his wood working skills. 

• We started working again with a wonderful family! The daughter, Mia, is 9 years old, and she has not been baptized yet! So we have been wanting to teach her and help her prepare for baptism, but it just wasn't lining up or working out. And then, one day her dad just decided that now was to time to change and get the whole family involved in the Gospel again! And so working with this girl is going to, hopefully, bring the whole family back to church and help them all to feel the joy of the Gospel!

Changing of gears because soon after this point, I got transferred! I drove across the whole Mission to be put out in Barstow! Barstow is along the I15, and use to be a classic stop along Route 66. Now, it is the midpoint between Las Vegas and Los Angeles. It's basically kind of like Radiator Springs from Cars. Kind of slowing down and falling apart, but still with some fun and quirky people! 

My new Companion, Elder Moulton, is super fun! He's from Idaho, so California is pretty interesting for him. He got pretty excited about a small patch of ice that we found. 

Merry Christmas! I have to go, but I love you all! 

Elder Richardson

Benjamin Richardson

California Redlands Mission/San Bernadino Mission

Feb 28, 2018 - March 3, 2020

DECEMBER 3, 2019 - MISSION LETTER #66

CHANGE AND REFLECTIONS

December 3, 2019

Happy late Thanksgiving, everyone! And also, Happy December!

We had a great week this week, where we talked with a lot of new people. 

One interesting experience was something that our mission is testing out called the Chalkboard Experiment. Basically, we went to a street fair and set up some giant Chalkboards, and then we asked people to come and write on our boards. 

 The boards each had a question written at the top, like, "Family to me means..." or "What is my purpose in life?" 

Many people hadn't really given those questions much thought, and so some rejected our invitation to come and write on our boards, but many also hesitantly took a piece of chalk and wrote something. The idea was that we would be able to talk with them about what they had written, and help them connect that to what we share. We weren't able to do that or set something up with everyone, but I will tell you that everyone who wrote on that board was smiling by the end, either because they wrote something funny ("Pickle ball is the purpose of my life!"), or because they took a moment to really ponder something of eternal importance, and it brought them a special feeling. I thought that was pretty amazing!

But here's one of the most interesting parts! For this activity, we were instructed to not wear our normal Missionary attire, including our name tags that we wear. Not only that, but we were told to go by our first names only! So, for a while on Saturday, Elder Richardson disappeared, and some weird kid named Ben resurfaced in jeans and a striped shirt. No one has really seen that kid in a while, at least 21 months, but he disappeared after too long, so maybe we just imagined his appearance. XD

But really, while it was weird to dress in normal clothes and go by my first name again for a bit, it was pretty eye opening to see what kind of a person I have become since the last time I found myself in that situation. I've pondered on that a bit this week. When we trust in God and try our best to serve Him, I feel like we make lots of mistakes and we are very much aware of them. But then we have access to the Grace and Mercy sufficient to help us change and move on. I have become maybe a bit less cautious, but I am much more excited and motivated to correct mistakes, which really has helped me to grow from my failures. 

I haven't been able to make all of the impact and help quite as many people as maybe I would've liked in this area, and maybe on my mission as a whole. But I have seen a great change in myself over the course of this time. And I have had many days and nights where I can honestly say that I was where God wanted me to be. That has been all of the success that I can ask for. And I can trust that I'm doing what he wants me to, because of the confirming feeling I get from the spirit. 

I love you all so much! 

Elder Richardson