This week was super busy! Tuesday we had new missionary training and that was super cool because I got to see everyone I came out with from the MTC! The mission home is a 2 hour drive from Winchester and we had to go off course to pick up other elders, which happened to be my MTC companion Elder Page! It was super fun to hangout with him the rest of the day at the training!
Wednesday we had district council like always and got to hangout in Maysville. It was a lot of fun. The bridges over into Kentucky are super cool, long and skinny. Definitely the coolest bridge I've ever seen haha. After district council we went to a restaurant called Pasquallies or something like that, it was super good and pretty cheap. They specialize in calzones that are bigger than your face lol, it's super funny.
Thursday we had a lot of appointments set up to go and teach, which was cool and I was super excited because they were new people to teach. We got to West Union, the town where we had all the appointments scheduled for the day and started walking around. I saw someone and really really felt like we needed to talk to him. So we walked over and met this guy. He was super cool and nice. He accepted the BOM even though he said he isn't going change. He said he will still read because he is curious, this actually happens all the time haha. But then he said, thanks for talking with me today, it was super sweet of y'all. He then told us he was a truck driver and that we would probably never see him again. He said we were super lucky to even get to talk to him then and there. Apparently he is never home, so that was pretty sweet.
We then started walking towards our first appointment. We knocked on their door, and no answer, they were gone. So we walked around for a bit and then it was time for our next scheduled appointment. We walked to this guys house and as we did he ran out of his house and into his car and drove off lol. He could have just told us he didn't want to meet, haha, it was super awkward, funny and weird at the same time. Well, anyway, all of our appointments got canceled that day, yep all 7 and they were people we were even texting and had set specific times to meet in their homes. It was super weird they all canceled. It opened more time to find in the day though. It just happened to be super hot that day too.
We got to end the night eating dinner at the Arnold's though! They are one of my favorite people here. Brother Arnold competes in derbys! He invited us to his next one in October and we also now eat dinner at their house every Thursday! I absolutely love them!
Friday and Saturday we had a lot of finding time! We met some really cool people, one of the guys we met was shooting his bow in his yard! We talked for sooo long about bows and 3D shoots and hunting and such, he is such a cool guy, he is sponsored to shoot his bow, he is super competitive in the 3D shoots which is super cool because I did a few of those shoots with my aunt and uncle and they were super fun. He has his own little bow shop and everything where he makes his arrows and such. Anyway, I think we will be able to go back and talk/teach him a bit more. He thinks I'm absolutely insane for not touching a bow for 2 years haha. He said he needs a team for his next 3D shoot and was joking around that I could shoot with him haha.
We also met a guy named Jonathan that was super super nice, and then Saturday we met the Queens. This lady was weeding her yard and so we asked if we could help and she said she was good. I then insisted that I was good at it because my mom made me do it all the time at my house lol. Anyway, we talked with her and her husband out on the porch and we talked for like 3 hours, it was crazy. By the time we left we were all like best friends. Apparently she works at the hospital ALOT and is rarely home because her husband is a "Million Dollar Man" as he says. This guy has like 5 different little machines that monitor him. He had 3 heart attacks in 3 weeks and a total of like 8 or 9 heart attacks, a few seizures and other stuff. He even told me that one time while he was going through a heart surgery he actually died. It was one of the craziest stories ever! He said when he died he felt no pain at all. And that it smelt like flowers. He also said he saw a pillar of light and he heard a voice that said, Scott it's not your time yet. And then he woke up in the hospital. He said while he was dead he saw his body on the table and saw all the surgeons working on him on the table with something holding his chest cavity open. It was crazy! Anyway, we get to go back over there on Tuesday to do some service! And by the time we were done talking we had a pile of food they gave us, they were super nice! Then we had to bike home with all this food it was pretty hilarious.
Sunday was pretty crazy too. We heard that Bro Farhay was in the hospital earlier that week so we went up to him at church and asked if everything was okay. He said yeah and that he has to have a surgery to have his gall batter removed. We then found out later that day that while he was in the hospital, his teenage daughter, Areil, called and said she got in a car wreck and totaled their car so now they only have one car. Then apparently on the way home from the hospital they pulled into their driveway and somehow by accident ran over their dog... I can't believe all this happened in just a day or 2. So crazy. We took them some "Grandma Jensen" brownies and their Mom had to hide them so they were limited to one a day and so she could get some lol, I thought that was pretty funny. He actually has his surgery today so keep him and his fam in your thoughts and prayers.
And last thing, last night we ate dinner at a members house and they had 11 dogs yep 11 in their house and like 10 cats and a few other animals it was insane!
Well, I hope y'all are doing great! Everything is good over here in Winchester! We hardly got yelled at this week and somehow met a ton of really nice people all in a few short days!
Don't forget to realize how blessed you are! And know anything can happen at any time!
Look for ways to serve others. Try to get to know someone new this week! And look for ways you can support and talk to them! Or maybe invite them to something!
I love you all! And thank you for your love and support!
Sincerely,
Elder Lawrence