Week 28

**WARNING: you might need 15 minutes to read this one!**

 

 

Week 28 wow… I AM ALIVE. I am sorry for not writing in a while…been kind of crazy. umm I’ll be honest, a lot has changed and when I say that I mean it… sooooo my 6 month mark is up. I am in a new area with a new companion. I’m training again. I’m in the biggest area in the mission. I’m the furthest away in all the mission the furthest down south away from everyone. Stephenville - they call it “Cowboy Capital of the World” and being here for a couple days I can tell why. I’ll come back to this, but let me tell you about my last transfer in Clear Creek.

 

 

I think last time I wrote was when Elder Johnson just got covid after I had it. WOW going through 2 weeks of straight quarantine NOT FUN!!! OHHHH and to make everything worse, 2 days after Johnson tested negative we got out and about right? WRONG!!!!!!! The fattest ice storm hit Texas just like last year not as bad but made us ALLLLLLL go into quarantine again!!!!!!!! So from 12 on Wednesday all the way up till Sat at 4 was when we were able to leave, LIKE WHAT?!?!?!?!??! Texas was covered in so much ice it was crazy. Imagine like Elsa from frozen going crazy mode on Texas, every tree was frozen sideways from the freezing rain and snow oh my goodness Elsa hit us hard. It was if Olaf’s snow flurry was in our barn it was always cold and it was terrible UGH! So like I think a total of 3-4 weeks were ALLLLLL quarantine!!!!!! ABSOLUTELY TERRIBLE OH MY GOODNESS, it drained me, it was so hard to even feel like a missionary. In all honesty at that point, I was so sad all the time cause all we did was SIT in the barn day after day after day! Let me say this though, I got pretty good at guitar!

 

 

It hasn’t been easy. I feel like I’ve never gotten a break from anything not crazy and even more crazy. I had 6 companions in 4 months!!??!?!?!? That is unheard of everywhere in the mission!! I’m now at 6 months and have had 7 companions.

 

 

Since we’re all pretty tight on this email list I’ll be honest with you and myself, this was probably the worst transfer/5 weeks, but the best at the same time. I really needed to feel what it felt like to just sit around all day and be disobedient at times, truly I did. I've been walking around so far in my mission feeling VERY motivated but because of this past transfer, I now know what I DON'T WANT. That was my first time being lazy and disobedient and such so NOW I am clear.

 

 

I also went through a lot of thinking about my purpose as a missionary. Why is “elder mortensen” here on this mission…for 3-4 weeks let’s just say I had A LOT of time to think. What was my purpose – just to try to help companions? My first time training was a real trial for me. My greenie companion ended up going home. It was really tough for me. That experience hasn't left my head one single day in the mission. It’s satan’s biggest tool now against me always telling me I wasn't good enough to be a  trainer and I could have kept him out here if it wasn't for xyz etc. I told President I couldn’t train again. Then, I had a change…

 

 

I called President later when I kinda had this revelation in a way. I said president I know I told you I never want to train again…but uh I think it’s time to train again. He took long pause and said his classic line… “*cackle cackle* ohhhh bless you elder!”. I laughed of course with it cause it is SOOOO funny how he says it. Well, 5 days later, I was told I was training again… and welp… here I am now 4 days into this new area with a new greenie:)

 

 

My area alone covers 1/10 of the mission which is crazy! My companions name is Elder Gummow. He is a 1 transfer greenie which means I’m finishing his training. This kid has been THROUGH it, with his original trainer. The trainer has been there for 6 months and I guess wasn't motivated a day in this area. There has been 0 success here in this area for QUITE some time. I’m literally white wash training this area holy cow hahaha my cute lil companion bless his heart, doesn't know anything whatsoever, with the ward, with area, streets, area book, nothing!

 

 

There are about 2 member meals on average for every transfer which is 6 weeks. Big difference from Clear Creek. The members “do NOT like us” is what I've been told. I’m honestly excited to see all the progress. Like almost building up from ash…speaking of ash, good job to my sister and the Nixelle team for taking 1st in region and 2nd in state in drill!! Go phoenix ahah “Rising up from the ashes”! That’s my whole goal with this area ahha rising up from the ashes and hopefully take it to state aka being the best area in the mission… wow my fingers are tired from typing this is the longest email ever I swear haha! ANYWAYS love you Anna and all of you of course haha!

 

 

Ok now actually back to it. I didn't know anything about this town until calling with my Dad this past Monday. He was like “Yo bebe (something my dad calls me), you know there’s a campus there right?” I’m like what?!?!?! Like 22,000 is the population of Stephenville and 15,000ish is college students. I was so excited because I worked in a YSA for a few weeks. I found out later that the closest YSA ward is in Weatherford - an hour and 15 min away! No kid down here is going to drive ALL the way up there. I was like if we teach a YSA kid we can’t refer them to the YSA elders cause they can’t teach all the way down here. I talked all day long to Gummow about the YSA and campus. I’m like if our whole town is just students then let it be let’s go make our own YSA ward down here!

 

 

So we called up the bishop to tell him we were coming over tonight. Lo and behold we get to the bishops, talk to him and summed up version - there used to be a YSA ward down here but there were so little showing up that they had to discontinue it. The bishop has said they've been waiting for missionaries to want to make this branch again. My little heart was fluttering haha! He told us we will be the ones to start this back up and he will be our foundation for this rise up! Pretty much we made a game plan with him and we were ALL for it. He’s been wanting the YSA ward back so bad because it’s hard to have some YSA people in the family ward… just doesn't fit right! Anyways the focus was now making a YSA branch! This is a very special opportunity… we could truly build up this YSA branch… wow yay so exciting!

 

 

We decided the night before (Friday) we were going to do EVERYTHING on campus!! SOOOO SCARED BUT EXCITED! We got there at 9am and WOW students passing left and right. Very first person we talked to… couldn't have asked for a better experience to introduce us to the college campus. Her name was Abby we asked where a good place to study was and she told us library, student center, engineering building! She of course asked if we were new and that led into our purpose to then giving her a Book of Mormon, talking about the church and restoration, and 25 min later we said goodbye with a phone number a return date and a filled heart!

 

 

 This was real and it was going to happen!! Wow so exciting first person and boom almost like a confirmation that this was where we were supposed to be! We walked into the library everyone was staring hahahaha so funny we tried finding an open table and eventually went upstairs found a sealed off room for study groups and went in there and put the sign saying occupied hahahaha It was literally like we were students! We looked out the window and just saw so many students walking around imagining all of them baptized hahaha! So much fun! We finished personal studies and walked outside.. It’s time and we started talking to EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!! We found 15 new people that day… like wow what a start DAY 1 and getting 15 without even trying AHHHH so exciting!

 

 

These past 4 days have been STRAIGHT planning and vision coming up with activities and things we could invite people too. We have a facebook group now that we created posting activities, holding bible studies, and fun things to do with many college students! We are making QR codes that we can handout to advertise our bible studies and activities to do with college students! We are working with the bishop on creating this day by day and I couldn't be more grateful and excited!

 

 

Wow my fingers are tired haha… but wow… what a journey my mission has been so far. If we are successful on creating this branch I might be here for a very long time leading it out! BUT I NEED HELP, from y’all. I am a boy and I don't know good things to promote for activities or whatever! If y’all could send me some emails or texts or pictures of ideas to promote to start this YSA branch up that would be amazing! This is very new obviously to me and definitely my companion haha

 

 

He says all the time “whatever happens I’m along for the ride” I think this might be a little stressful for him but he is so dang good at putting himself in awkward situations hahahaha Oh my goodness I’m laughing thinking of him. “it makes my momma heart happy” (something my mom always said to me haha) but it’s so fun to watch him running around trying to talk to every single person and just loving every second watching him try and try again! So proud of him in such a short time and can’t wait to continue to train him! He has a special pose that I’ve named the Gummow pose. It’s pretty much his hands are on his hips, chest out, legs wide. I like to say it looks like superman ahaha but he does it everywhere walking, talking, sitting - like it’s just my fav. Love him love the area and WOW can’t wait to light this place up!

 

 

Please send ideas or helpful hints to anything I’ve talked about today that would be awesome! I love y’all so much and couldn't be more grateful for my mission. I can truly see my purpose unfold more and more each and every day! I wouldn't want to be anywhere but here, with who I’m with and where I am! I can truly see how much I’ve grown in such a short amount of time.

 

 

Greenie fire baby always and forever;)

 

 

So hey…I’m still here and chin up still pushing against the cart with full heart so that’s good haha!

 

 

Till next week, Elder Mortensen outa here!

P.S. I really have loved the ward, the people, and the area of Clear Creek (my first area). When we did finally get out, I told myself that the last week of here in Clear Creek would have to be a BANG, and, I happily get to say it was. I left the area with us finding 25 new people for the next missionary coming in to replace me!!