CRAZYYYYY RIGHT?!!

Dearest Family,

I’m sorry my time is very limited today... so I will have to quickly tell you all about the crazy madness that happened this week. First off…CRAZYYYYYY RIGHT?! The New Zealand Hamilton Mission!!! We learned at transfer meeting this week that there would be a new mission here, but we have no idea how they are going to go about splitting the mission.  Also, we had to make the 8 hour drive up from Gisborne to Auckland because… big news…I GOT TRANSFERRED!!!! I was surprised when I got there because with the 40 new missionaries I thought were arriving I expected the chapel would be absolutely packed, but I figured out that with the MTC change they are now out of sync with our mission. So, we will be having the massive transfer happening in three weeks time, but the coolest part is I was actually called to be a Zone Leader in Tauranga! My companion is Elder Florence and he is from Canada. We currently also have a third companion, Elder Wright, who is from Australia and was also in my zone in Gisborne. I also got to see my “son” (trainee) at transfers, Elder Loffhagen. We had a warm embrace and talked for a bit, and he was so proud to tell me that he is now a District Leader!!!! That was a happy day for me!

So, yes, I am in Tauranga and I literally live about 200 feet from the beach. We live in a pretty nice apartment complex and I was surprised to see how wealthy this part of the country really is, especially when I just came from one of the poorest parts of the country. We visited our Elder’s quorum president who actually has the beach as his backyard…that was cool. Anyway, I apologize, I’m using this keyboard and all the keys are shifted weird and my pinky is starting to really hurt. So sorry if I’m misspelling words and stuff because this delete button is tiny.

One of my first nights here, we went to go give a priesthood blessing to someone who had been in a serious car accident. I also got to do a baptism interview for the coolest little girl who is just a year younger than Aubrey. She reminded me a lot of her and her baptism was awesome! She was even brave enough to bear her testimony after.

I’m sorry I don’t have much to report on or much to write. My mind is pretty blank and much of the past week was basically heaps of driving.  But, I do have one more thing cool that happened. On our way up to Auckland, we ran into Nana Paul who is just about the sweetest 70 year lady you could ever meet. She had a bad day cuz one of the missionaries that she was most attached to was leaving to go home and she travelled 8 hours just to go see him off, but the missionary, Elder Gubler, left a little early. She was bummed out and crying because she just missed him and now, Elder Wasden, another one of her favorite missionaries, was leaving as well. We met her in Whakatane (fa-ka-tawn-ee) and she said her last goodbyes to us at least. We had all ran into her on trade offs or at church and she gave all of us a hug and a nice little necklace. She gave me a necklace called the eternity loop. It's pretty cool.

Anyways, I love you fam! Aubrey thanks for writing me. I will send you something next week. Be good, and Collin hope you can survive your last season of volleyball. If I can give any advice, I would say enjoy it while you can, because once its gone you will never go back. Whether it’s school or a mission, just enjoy it while you have it. I think that’s enough from me though. Let me know about any funny coach Vee stories...

Anyway family, read the scriptures! Mom is right…do it with meaning and you won't regret it! Those scriptures are unfailing and always point us in the right direction, but it's up to us to be able to understand where they are pointing us to and then how to get there. I love the scriptures and trying to understand and apply them in my life. The more you read, the more converted to the gospel you will be. Check out Alma 37: 5-9… I think. Also consider John 17:7. Read the doctrine, live it, then gain a personal testimony of it or KNOW it.

Love you heaps whanua,

Elder Ward