Hello everybody!
This has been an interesting week. Several lessons fell through so we had a lower lesson count again. That was disappointing. But the lessons we had were good. A member took us to a store that sells Aggie Ice Cream and that was awesome. For Zone Meeting on Friday, the entire Delta-Manti Zone went to Cove Fort as a reward for having something like 23 baptisms in May (the zone goal was 18) and finding somewhere around 120 new investigators (the goal was 100). Zone Meeting was so cool! Cove Fort is a really cool place and in addition to our actual meeting, we got to have a tour. To make it even cooler, President and Sister Center were there.
Saturday brought several bombshells. First of all, transfers were coming up so everyone has been a bit anxious. Then we found out that there is a massive reconfiguration of the mission boundaries in Utah. In fact, President said that it is the biggest reconfiguration in church history. Nephi and Delta, as well as the entire Price Zone are being eaten by the Provo Mission. Not only are the areas being
absorbed by Provo, but the missionaries serving there are as well. This boundary change happens on June 30th. On that day, the St. George Mission will lose 20 missionaries to the Provo Mission. One of them is Elder Miller, who was with me in the MTC. There are also just not enough missionaries getting called to St. George, so that doesn't help. Between this Tuesday and July 21st, with people leaving and entering the mission this transfer, the boundary change on the 30th, and people leaving/entering the mission on the July 21st transfer, the mission will have a net loss of about 33 missionaries. We only have about 140 right now. Those are some scary numbers.
The other bombshell was dropped Saturday evening. President called Elder Vidinha and I and let us know that the Mt. Pleasant Area will be splitting, Elder Vidinha is the new District Leader, and I am getting transferred to Enoch (near Cedar City). That last one devastated me. I love my area. I love the people I'm teaching and my converts. I love the friends I've made here. I love the geography of this area. I love the missionaries that I've served near, especially the Elders in Moroni. I don't want to leave all of that. There is so much more I feel like I could do here. So much more I want to do, that I planned to do. Heck, I just got Elder Vidinha as a companion six weeks ago. I thought I'd be with him for at least three months. But I guess President feels that I am needed in Enoch. My new companion will be Elder Spencer, who I actually already know because he was in my district just six weeks ago. So that is cool. And I heard Enoch is a nice area. But still, Mt. Pleasant is my first area, and I love it. I
don't want to go.
So that has been my week. I'm extremely sad to leave Mt. Pleasant, but if the Lord wants me in Enoch, then who am I to argue. I was thinking to myself last night, "I wish I had more time here" and then I remembered what Gandalf told Frodo in the Fellowship of the the Ring: "But that is not for us to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us." I found great comfort in that simple quote. And I think that quote is applicable to everybody. We never really know how long we have before change happens. Though there are some things we can control, and we can certainly hope for things, we cannot always control what happens. We cannot always give ourselves
more time. Change happens no matter what we do. The one thing we can always control is what we do with our time. In whatever part of our life we may be in, we should make the best of it. Because when change happens, we can't just decide against that. But we can look back on the fond memories of time well spent, and look to the future determined to make the best of whatever comes our way. And if we allow Him, the Lord will be with us all along the way.
I miss you all. Have a great week!
-Elder Oswald
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| Cove Fort |
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