My Son Got Kissed!

8/7/17 Email:

Ya'at'teh' Everyone,

So I'll just start off with this cuz it is hilarious. Well, I thought it was at least.  I'll talk about my son in a minute.  But anyway so it happened a couple of days ago, and we were out trying to see some of our investigators who are on date for baptism.  We had a little bit of extra time so we went to talk to some people we had previously met out in Smith Lake.  So we get there and then this girl who was maybe about 13 came up to us and told us that everyone was intoxicated.  So we were just like well, let's talk to some of them anyway.  So one of them, (and Elder Henderson, it was Calvin Cleveland) umm he wanted to talk to us and he was talking about golfing and bull riding, and then showed us some pictures and what not.  But I wanted to leave 2 minutes after the conversation started.  So we were trying to leave and people do crazy things when they are drunk, so Calvin was like being all friendly and wanted to do a bro hug and stuff.  But to my companion he got a little too friendly, and kissed his hand!! hahaha that was so funny! my companion was just disgusted, and I was like "haha that's your first Galani experience!"  ( I don't know if I spelled that right)

But anyway so my son (trainee), his name is Elder Cox, and he is from Missouri.  Everyone out here is like all excited cuz it is someone that isn't from Utah or Idaho.  Cuz I guess us Utahans and Idahoans aren't that great.  But it's been good. He is a really great missionary, and I feel honored to be training him (he doesn't need a whole lot of training, he is a stud).  But here he is...

Oh and another thing... Do y'all see that dashing haircut I have?  Yeah I did that! :)  I picked that up from Hudak!  Love you buddy!  But yeah that was about all the excitement for the week, but for a spiritual thought...

This comes from either Mosiah chapter 3 or 4 ( it is one of the first few chapters in Mosiah), and it is when King Benjamin is giving his address to his people.  He talks about how we are all in debt to Heavenly Father for everything he has given us and everything he has already done for us.  But he says that we will never be able to repay that debt because even when when do what Heavenly Father asks, He just gives us more.  I don't think that Heavenly Father wants us to repay the debt, because he knows we can't but he loves us so much that He is willing to give us so much more for doing what He asks us to do even when the things he asks us to do are small compared to the blessings He will give us in return, and I know that to be true, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

I hope y'all have a great week!

Love Elder Takis

​

It's a Boy!

7/31/17 Email:

Ok so last week I forgot to tell you that this it was going to be transfers this weekend.  So yeah, Saturday afternoon I got a call from President Adams and he asked me to be a trainer.  This is going to be a crazy transfer, cuz everyone is training in our zone.   Some cool facts other than that about this transfer, my MTC companion, Elder McFarland is going to be my district leader! I love that man!  And there is another elder who will be in our zone, Elder Hardman, who played baseball for American Fork, so I am excited to get to know him as well.  So those are just some interesting facts about this new transfer.I am staying here in Thoreau, by the way.

SO some exciting events that happened this week...

Monday after playing basketball in Gallup, which by the way is probably more of a workout than the rest of the week combined, we got back to our trailer and like 15 minutes later a huge storm came in... Here are some pics that I got.

 

So yeah, the rain was ridiculous, but I loved it, not to mention the thunder and lightning.  But we had to go over to Crownpoint for some baptism interviews, and when we went out to the truck, which was like 30 minutes after we got back, it was still pouring, and because our trailer is at the lowest spot on the church property there was like a lake around us.  We were pretty much on a trailerboat.  But anyway so there was a decent amount of standing water around us and we had to walk through it to get to our truck.  Well when we got back we found that our roof had a leak, so our ceiling was collapsing...

Anyway after that nothing too crazy happened. Elder Henderson got his departing interview, and we have done a lot of walking, and have gotten soaked a fair number of times from the rain.

But yesterday was an adventure...  So it started off good, went to church did that whole thing, then we went with Elder and Sister Stubbs for lunch, then our second counselor Brother Lawrence took us out again.  Well we stopped by his place to load a few things up and that's when another storm hit.  Well he had a trailer on his van, and we were trying to go visit some people up these pretty nasty dirt roads. Well with the trailer and all he couldn't make it up the hills.  So we had to take it off in the middle of a storm on a muddy hill.  We put it back on the first time, and we almost rammed it into the back of his van cuz it was hard to control on a muddy hill, but we managed it the first time with no damage.  the second time, he thought he could  take it off by himself, and told us to stay in the car.  Well long story short, he lost control and it pinned him down.  Luckily he didn't get hurt, but we ran out and helped  him, and then we all put it back on.  So that was the excitement for this week.  

Spiritual message comes from Alma 5:14 when Alme the Younger asks "Have ye received his image in your countenances?"  I really like this because it gets us to really ponder our lives and to ask ourselves, "When others look at me, do they see Jesus Christ?  Do they see someone who radiates the Light of Christ? Do they see someone who is really trying to follow the Savior?"  SO I would just encourage you all to think about that and then to make a commitment to do what is needed so that they can see that.

Love you all, and hope y'all have a great week!

Elder Takis