NOV_26_18_MOM_TOW_From your mother who loves you
Hey Mother!
Yeah, I had heard about the BYU-Utah game from my new Ward Mission Leader. He picked us up to go to church on Sunday and I asked him how he was doing. He told me, "I'd be doing a heck of a lot better if BYU had won last night." That was kinda a bummer. Then he told me that we had been leading 20-0 at one point. Gosh, that really stings. These games are always so close, but Utah always comes out on top
EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. Yet another fairly disappointing season. I've missed the two most disappointing seasons in recent BYU football history. I'm not too bummed about that.
When I got your email, I looked up the places that you described. Rutland is quite a bit closer to me than Bloomsburg. Rutland is at least in my district, in the Mansfield Sisters' area. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I am District Leader AGAIN. I neglected to mention it because I'm really not all that excited about it. I don't particularly like all of the extra responsibility that comes from being District Leader. At least I had a break for two transfers while I was training Elder Toomer. I don't really have any big vision for this district, but the Zone Leaders want me to report on one this next week, so I guess I'd better start thinking of one! I think I'm cursed to be District Leader for the rest of my mission.
The Mobile home really isn't all that bad. It's definitely a lot better than I envisioned when I heard 'mobile home'. It's pretty big, at least compared to my last apartment. There's two bedrooms and two bathrooms, which is pretty great. The kitchen is pretty spacious. The interior aesthetic definitely makes me think of a home or cabin out in the country. I feel like I've essentially gone back in time. I went from being in the center of a bustling city to out in the middle of nowhere, sometime in the 1950's.
Towanda as a whole is just... strange. Like I said, I feel like I've gone back in time. It was a pretty stark contrast, a rough transition. While everybody in Pittsburgh is black, everyone here is a white redneck. While there were dozens of people to talk to every 10 feet in Pittsburgh, here there's nobody outside to talk to for MILES. I rode the bus in Pittsburgh on paved roads, in Towanda I'm driving a truck on gravel, dirt, and snow. This place is just weird. Maybe it's just because I came straight from Pittsburgh to here. Who knows?
The ward is okay, although it hardly deserves to be called a ward. Only about 40 people on average come to Sacrament Meeting, and yesterday there was even less than that. Most of the members in the area are old and have been living here for generations. However, I have met two member families who I like quite a bit, the English's and the Harding's. The Harding's remind me a bit of the Stanley family back in Greensburg, although I think I still like the Stanley's a bit more. As it turns out, missionaries in this area almost always spend P-Days at the Harding's house, playing board games with two of their kids, Madi and Ben, and their significant others, Kris and Lindsey. They're all our age, so it's kinda cool to spend time with them. It's kinda like hanging out with friends. It's a little bit of a bizarre feeling after being without any real friends my age to hang out with for nearly a year and a half. So yeah. We'll be going over to the Harding's house this afternoon to spend time with them. I'm excited to see what it's like!
Elder Foster is an interesting fellow. He sort of reminds me of a mixture between Elder Marcum, Elder Payne, and Elder Jones. I had difficulty getting along with each of them, especially Elder Payne, so I'm a little bit concerned. But Elder Foster seems like a good kid. We're similar in some aspects, but very different in others. That's to be expected, right? He's pretty quiet most of the time. He is not an evening person at all, and tends to go to sleep as soon as we get home. No pillow talk for us :( Which kinda sucks because I feel like that's how your relationship with your companion grows. But we have a good relationship with each other, and haven't really had any arguments yet, which is a good sign.
I spent Thanksgiving with a family called the Jicha's and the Harding's. It was pretty good, but I didn't really know the families too well so it was a little bit awkward! It's all good though, they were very hospitable and I enjoyed it.
The work here in Towanda is pretty dead. President hyped it up quite a bit in my interview with him, and told me that I was going to be working with a family of 8 as soon as I got there, and that they were super promising. Welp, I still have yet to meet that family, as they keep dodging us. In fact, I haven't met hardly any of the investigators were working with, as they all seem to have fallen off of the face of the earth. But I'm hoping at least one of them gets back to us and I'm able to start teaching them! Until then, back to what I know best: finding.
I'm a little nervous because President has a tendency to put Elders in this area for FOREVER. At least 4 transfers. And I only have 5 transfers. So I may be in this area for the rest of my mission, which is a little concerning. It's not that Towanda is terrible, I just don't want to be here for the rest of my mission. Then again, i don't know where I want to go.Somewhere like Greensburg, although even that area had its challenges.
Regarding my tablet, I haven't been able to go anywhere to find out how much it would cost to get it fixed. We don't have a Best Buy in our area, and I don't know where else to take it, really. I agree, though. It's not worth getting a brand new one. I hear repairing screens is pretty expensive, though. So I'm a little bit concerned about that as well.
Anyways, I'm glad to hear that you and the family had a good Thanksgiving! I loved seeing all of the pictures that you took! You all look so happy! And I hope your birthday was fantastic! I missed singing happy birthday to you! But I'll be there for your birthday next year!
Love you Mom! And Dad!
Elder Gonzales
Yeah, I had heard about the BYU-Utah game from my new Ward Mission Leader. He picked us up to go to church on Sunday and I asked him how he was doing. He told me, "I'd be doing a heck of a lot better if BYU had won last night." That was kinda a bummer. Then he told me that we had been leading 20-0 at one point. Gosh, that really stings. These games are always so close, but Utah always comes out on top
When I got your email, I looked up the places that you described. Rutland is quite a bit closer to me than Bloomsburg. Rutland is at least in my district, in the Mansfield Sisters' area. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I am District Leader AGAIN. I neglected to mention it because I'm really not all that excited about it. I don't particularly like all of the extra responsibility that comes from being District Leader. At least I had a break for two transfers while I was training Elder Toomer. I don't really have any big vision for this district, but the Zone Leaders want me to report on one this next week, so I guess I'd better start thinking of one! I think I'm cursed to be District Leader for the rest of my mission.
The Mobile home really isn't all that bad. It's definitely a lot better than I envisioned when I heard 'mobile home'. It's pretty big, at least compared to my last apartment. There's two bedrooms and two bathrooms, which is pretty great. The kitchen is pretty spacious. The interior aesthetic definitely makes me think of a home or cabin out in the country. I feel like I've essentially gone back in time. I went from being in the center of a bustling city to out in the middle of nowhere, sometime in the 1950's.
Towanda as a whole is just... strange. Like I said, I feel like I've gone back in time. It was a pretty stark contrast, a rough transition. While everybody in Pittsburgh is black, everyone here is a white redneck. While there were dozens of people to talk to every 10 feet in Pittsburgh, here there's nobody outside to talk to for MILES. I rode the bus in Pittsburgh on paved roads, in Towanda I'm driving a truck on gravel, dirt, and snow. This place is just weird. Maybe it's just because I came straight from Pittsburgh to here. Who knows?
The ward is okay, although it hardly deserves to be called a ward. Only about 40 people on average come to Sacrament Meeting, and yesterday there was even less than that. Most of the members in the area are old and have been living here for generations. However, I have met two member families who I like quite a bit, the English's and the Harding's. The Harding's remind me a bit of the Stanley family back in Greensburg, although I think I still like the Stanley's a bit more. As it turns out, missionaries in this area almost always spend P-Days at the Harding's house, playing board games with two of their kids, Madi and Ben, and their significant others, Kris and Lindsey. They're all our age, so it's kinda cool to spend time with them. It's kinda like hanging out with friends. It's a little bit of a bizarre feeling after being without any real friends my age to hang out with for nearly a year and a half. So yeah. We'll be going over to the Harding's house this afternoon to spend time with them. I'm excited to see what it's like!
Elder Foster is an interesting fellow. He sort of reminds me of a mixture between Elder Marcum, Elder Payne, and Elder Jones. I had difficulty getting along with each of them, especially Elder Payne, so I'm a little bit concerned. But Elder Foster seems like a good kid. We're similar in some aspects, but very different in others. That's to be expected, right? He's pretty quiet most of the time. He is not an evening person at all, and tends to go to sleep as soon as we get home. No pillow talk for us :( Which kinda sucks because I feel like that's how your relationship with your companion grows. But we have a good relationship with each other, and haven't really had any arguments yet, which is a good sign.
I spent Thanksgiving with a family called the Jicha's and the Harding's. It was pretty good, but I didn't really know the families too well so it was a little bit awkward! It's all good though, they were very hospitable and I enjoyed it.
The work here in Towanda is pretty dead. President hyped it up quite a bit in my interview with him, and told me that I was going to be working with a family of 8 as soon as I got there, and that they were super promising. Welp, I still have yet to meet that family, as they keep dodging us. In fact, I haven't met hardly any of the investigators were working with, as they all seem to have fallen off of the face of the earth. But I'm hoping at least one of them gets back to us and I'm able to start teaching them! Until then, back to what I know best: finding.
I'm a little nervous because President has a tendency to put Elders in this area for FOREVER. At least 4 transfers. And I only have 5 transfers. So I may be in this area for the rest of my mission, which is a little concerning. It's not that Towanda is terrible, I just don't want to be here for the rest of my mission. Then again, i don't know where I want to go.Somewhere like Greensburg, although even that area had its challenges.
Regarding my tablet, I haven't been able to go anywhere to find out how much it would cost to get it fixed. We don't have a Best Buy in our area, and I don't know where else to take it, really. I agree, though. It's not worth getting a brand new one. I hear repairing screens is pretty expensive, though. So I'm a little bit concerned about that as well.
Anyways, I'm glad to hear that you and the family had a good Thanksgiving! I loved seeing all of the pictures that you took! You all look so happy! And I hope your birthday was fantastic! I missed singing happy birthday to you! But I'll be there for your birthday next year!
Love you Mom! And Dad!
Elder Gonzales
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