Another CSP on the Meeting House...

Back in January, Elder Booth was able to work on a Meeting House in the other area. This, four months later, is a continuation of the work on the Meeting House. It looks like they are making progress!

Here they are starting to frame the roof:

What's next??

Hello Elder Booth!

Watch out! Elder Martanito has a saw!!

A member hammering away...

Another member hammering some nails in:



It looks like the food is starting to cook! Yum!

I guess they have to remove some plants from the area. We definitely
don't have that problem here in Nevada! We have to bring them in!

Elder Eslava and Elder Martanito resting after all of the hard work.
Good job guys!

Ward Activity Time!!

These are the videos and pictures that Elder Booth mentioned in the last letter that was in the last post. It's of a ward activity he went to. I have to admit that when I first watched these videos, I thought that having a ward party in the Philippines is a little bit different than having a ward party in America. Then I remembered some our lip sync contests and other fun activities and realized that they aren't different at all. It's just a ward getting together and having a great time fellow shipping and getting to know each other (maybe a little too well).

While I can't put all of the videos on the blog, I will try to put a few clips so you can get an idea of what a ward party in the Philippines is like. I guess there is one major difference. Unfortunately they don't have a big gymnasium for these activities. This is where they also meet on Sunday.

The first video is the women doing tug of war (notice the last minute help!) and the second video is the men:

They also did some fun "skits." The first one is the men. I called a skit because I'm not exactly sure what else to call it...

There is another "skit" that the girls did, but for some reason it will not upload. I will try to put it into a different post to see if it will work.

The last game they played was a relay. Each team had to have one person get dressed up and run across the floor and back. Then they shed the clothes and the next person on the team took their turn. As you can see from the pictures below, some enjoyed dressing up more than others... Unfortunately, the video was way too long to upload, but here are some pictures of one of the relay team members:

Elder Booth is leaving our area??!!

So somewhere along the way, Elder Booth heard that he would probably be transferred in the next transfer. So he set up some FHE's and tried to go around and visit anyone he could to say goodbye and give some last minute advice. As you will read in the letter below, things did not go as he had anticipated and he ended up having a lot more time to say his goodbyes...

These pictures are of a Family Home Evening with one of the families Elder Booth wanted to say goodbye to:




This is Elder Booth saying goodbye to the good people who used to feed him, along with his companion, almost every Sunday. I guess he'll get a few more meals with them:



These are some invetigators that Elder Booth had for a little while. He had to stop coming after their grandma told them not to come back.

Left to right: Melody, John John,Elder Booth, Gary, Dexter, Elder

This next picture is one of Elder Booth's Zone eating at "21." It is a nice restaurant that "was very tasty," according to Elder Booth:

Here is the letter explaining all of the "happenings" of the transfer that didn't happen...


Date: May 3, 2009 8:56:09 PM PDT
Subject: Amogihapon

Yea, the subject means it's all the same. Transfer meetings on Tuesday were kind of a surprise. When they called me, they asked me what I thought would be happening to me. I said with a big smile that I would probably be transferring. Then I found myself sitting right back down with the smile wiped clean after hearing that I would be staying for at least another transfer. Oh, and the other elders that I live with would be getting white washed, which means I now live with three new people. Me and my companion really did not expect that since we had been preparing for me to leave. I already had had two family home evenings where I gave my little farewell speech and final advice. I guess they had to make last minute changes because some elder got sent home before he could leave the MTC. It's a good thing that I like my area or I think I would go crazy.

I am really getting close to the members here. This is really becoming my homeward. They were pretty shocked to here that I would be staying though, since we had pretty much told everybody that I would be the one to leave. I even signed all the Book of remberances and stuff. Oh yea, that is one thing they do here in the Philippines. Everybody had a little book/yearbook type thing. When they give it to you to sign, you just take a page and do whatever you want to like draw or just put a picture of yourself. Some of them are really cool. I just wish I could draw, or even write. I am going to be known for having the crappiest ones. Oh well. I really don't like doing them anyway. I actually hope the word will spread.

Well anyway, my new companion is really nice. His name is Elder Martanito. (Don't ask me if that is how you spell it. Just be glad that I actually remembered it). He is the exact opposite of my last companion when it comes to size. He is about the height of Ulma and might be even smaller. He is cool though. (See pictures below!) I don't know how I feel about the other two elders living with me. One is named Elder Hopper who is an American from some where over there. He is training a filipino from Manilla, I think. I can't remember his name, but he is pretty nice. Elder Hopper is just kind of not my type. I don't think I would have spent all that much time with him before the mission. Oh well. Just preparing to get another crappy roommate in college, I guess. I can't complain too much. He really isn't all that bad.

The hardest thing about this whole thing is having to lead. I am acting as the senior companion right now since he really does not know the area at all and I have been here my whole mission so I can at least tell him where to go. I am a little stressed though, because we are supposed to get 6 baptisms this month and I will feel like a failure if I don't get them all. I guess I will just have to put my trust in the lord and hope I am worthy for him to work through me because I don't think I can do it on my own. They should all work out though, as long as they all come to church.

We actually got up bright and early yesterday to go and get some kids. After waiting for them to all get ready and stuff, we ended up leaving the little area with four of them tagging along. All of their parents are members; they just don't come to church. I don't know if they ever will, either. I will just have to have faith that the spirit can change anybody's mind. The kids are a blast though. They are really good at reading and are really smart with the lessons. They made church fun too. Since all we had were kids there for investigators, we just sent them to Primary and decided to just go with them. I don't know if the teacher liked me there, but I had fun. The kids all decided to spend most of the time hanging on me and throwing stuff at me. I felt bad but I will just use the excuse that I was trying to get closer to the investigators. It actually worked well though. We were all pretty good friends by the end of the block. I just hope they will all come next week on their own. They all really want to be baptized. Now they just need to realize what they need to do first.

We actually have another investigator that just turned eight. She has been coming to church for a while so we thought it would be a piece of cake. We were actually just waiting for her to turn eight. However, we actually found a road block. She is really really shy. She will barely look at us during the lessons, let alone answer us. We kind of thought that would make the baptisimal interview kind of hard. We are actually playing games to get over that. The rest of our investigators are doing alright. They just have a couple of things in the way. Usually going to church is the biggest hurdle, though.

My kind of funny story took place on Saturday. It started while we were teaching one investigator kind of way out yonder. It started to really pour as in really, really pour. So we ran out and jumped on a motor(trike thing) and headed out on the high way. We were driving through mini rivers, but I was still not too wet. Then this stupid jeep decides to be funny and get the stupid white boy. He drove up right next to us and just completely drenched me. I came pretty close to swearing, but instead just shook my fist at him a lot.

We finally arrived at the church where there was an activity. They were playing games in the church. Here the cultural hall and the chapel are the same thing. They just have all chairs and no benches. So I got to watch them put on a fashion show in the chapel. It was not a normal one though. Instead of girls, it was boys in girl's clothing acting gay. I felt bad laughing at this in the chapel, but I was sitting next to the Bishop who was laughing a lot harder than I was. They borrowed my camera for it though, so I got most of it on video so you can see some of the activities here in the Philippines. Well, that's all I have to say about that.

I love you all and can't wait to talk to you on Mother's Day. Well, actually about that. They told us that it could take place any time in the month of May. What will probably happen is I will just have you call me here at my apartment. I would use those cards but I can't figure out how to use them here. Maybe I will try and if it does not work you can just call me. So yea. Just tell me when the best time is and everything. I will get the number to mom and stuff, but hopefully I will be able to figure out that card. Thanks for the support. Keep on trucking and have fun. I guess I don't have to say that since it sounds like you had a fun week as a family.

Elder Booth

Here are some pictures of Elder Booth with his new companion and the new companionship that will be sharing the apartment with him:

From left to right: Elder Booth, Elder Martanito, Elder Hopper, Elder Eslava

These next three pictures are Elder Booth with his new companion, Elder Martanito:

Elder Booth is looking extra tall in this picture!

Elder Booth thinks this picture is funny!

This picture doesn't have them looking so different in height!

Good Luck with your new companion, Elder Booth!!

Another Baptism!!

Elder Booth was able to participate in another wonderful baptism. This time he was able to perform the baptism and had a great experience.

Here is the one getting baptized:

His name is Jonald Belanda. (He's the third one over from the right, on the back row.
The little girl in front is from the other area in the ward).

Here are some of the other members of the ward and the families.

This is the letter Elder Booth sent right after the baptism. He talks about it and explains the details of the event:

Date: April 26, 2009 8:27:10 PM PDT
Subject: Got a dunk again

Hey Everybody! I'm glad that everybody is still doing well. I am not a fan of getting bad news on P-days, so that is good. Just keep that up. Plus, I hope things like the economy are getting better, even though I doubt it. Oh well, just keep on going, I guess. There really is not anything else we can do.

Everything here is peachy. We get transfer announcements tomorrow, but my source in the mission office told me that I would be transferring. Not only transferring, but going to the smallest island in the mission. It is called Gimeras. There are only four small areas on the island, so Zone Meetings are going to be the same as District Meetings, since it the zone and the district are the same thing. I guess that is not sure though, because they change things a lot in the last second. I will know for sure tomorrow morning. I have already started doing the whole good bye thing, though. We have a ton of dinner appointments this week. Actually, we had one last night. That was cool. It is always fun to eat. My companion wanted to try and beat my last record of three dinner appointments in one night, but I told him I about died that time and beating it would just suck. I still remember the ward missionary with us saying that his worm was even telling him, no, he can't take anymore. I laughed really hard about that one. This is a really good ward and will be hard to leave. I hope I had a good enough impact where they remember me a little. It's always good to be remembered.

This was a very good week. We were able to make up for the last couple of weeks with the teachings. People actually decided to be there when they said they would be. The baptism was amazing. Well, I guess they always are, but I never get sick of them, that is for sure. The program was really good. We had two good speakers and then me, my companion, and two others gave a musical number. We were going to do it in Tagalog, but I forgot to bring my hymn book. I was bummed because I like singing in Tagalog. I miss it from the MTC. Most Filipinos are kind of tone deaf, but I think we sounded alright. Then I got to do the baptism, which is always a treat. It was really cool after the baptism. He walked into the bathroom, put his hands up, and said: "Cool. I'm a member now." He was really excited, which made me pretty darn happy. Then his testimony at the end was very strong. The next day at church was pretty crazy, though. He came like three minutes late so they decided not to do the confirmation. Then after the meeting the bishop said that he would be going to Murcia to do it. That is another area that just has some groups, but is still in our ward. They come to our church every first Sunday. So they made him go to two churches, one being pretty far away. I was pretty bummed because we were not there to watch. Oh, and plus we found out that they gave him the priesthood right after. So I don't know who made that decision, but it is kind of against the rules. Oh well. You just have to support your leaders, right? My comp was freaking out a little bit. That is never fun because he usually tries to take it out on me. It seems like I do quite a bit to not punch him in the face sometimes. I think the mission is just one big anger management class sometimes. Oh well, as long as it is for the Lord.

The rest of my investigators are well. We finally got some to come to church. I was so happy to see them. It is a part member family where the member is their uncle. One is ten and the other is twelve. The ten year old really wants to be baptized, but the 12 year old will be a little harder. They did have a good time at church, though. I love it when the investigator class is full. I am really going to miss the investigators here and I hope I will be able to check up on them and find out what happens to them all. I hope my comp will continue the work there for them all.

I did have one really funny experience. We were on our way to an investigators class when this old guy yelled good afternoon to us. So of course we went over to talk to him. He seemed really nice at first. Then my companion asked if he had talked to the missionaries before. He said that he had. Then my companion made the mistake of asking him how that went. This is when he started to freak out on us. He stood up and while looking right at me started shouting that Jesus was the son of God. That was cool and all, but he started saying how He resided in him or something. Just remember, he isn't just saying this, he is pretty much screaming it at me. I had the hardest time in the world keeping a strait face. I about lost it so many times. I'm pretty sure I at least had a smirk on my face. So we eventually just walked off and he started shouting after us that we were all friends. So ya, that is my funny experience. I don't know if that is that funny. Maybe it is one of those "you had to be there" things.

Well, that is all I have to say about that. I hope every thing stays good at home. I love you all. Keep up the hard work and remember the church is true.

Love Elder Booth

Elder Who?

In this post, we have some pictures of some of the Elders that Elder Booth is serving with. Here is a picture of Elder Lising , Elder Hamblin's companion, playing with a fake snake. He looks like he's not totally convinced that it's fake...

Here is Elder Lucas dodging the light saber:

This is one of Elder Lucas in a remote area that he and Elder Booth were in:

Here is a letter from Elder Booth:

Date: April 19, 2009 11:23:22 PM PDT
Subject: Grabe Damo kabalaka nah jokes long

Hey everybody. It sounds like everybody is still having a great time back in the US of A. It's too bad I could not have been there to see all those races in St. George. That sounded really fun. Plus, the cherry on top is Michele kicking Ryan's trash. No, just kidding. I'm sure there is a very good excuse for that.

Everything here is still really good. I'm getting kind of nervous because transfers are getting closer and closer. I am just worried something crazy will happen like going senior and getting a new language at the same time. That really is not on my list of things to experience right now. I doubt that will happen, though. I guess it will be really nice seeing new things and seeing new people instead of the same old stuff all the time. I do love this area, though. I am going to miss a lot of the members here. I will have to write them through pouch mail.

Nothing all that exciting has happened this week. It was a lot of the same thing, actually. We did have Stake Conference though, which was cool. It was a live studio broadcast. The two main speakers were Holland and Eyering. They are two of my favorites, so I was pretty excited. They had really good talks that were directed just to the Philippines. I think it hit home to a lot of them. The main subject was families, though. Man, I guess they really are important. I guess if the family truly fails in the end, then we will all fail in the end. So keep up the love and unity.

Our investigators are doing great. We did have an incident where the one that is supposed to get baptized on Saturday decided to skip town for a couple of days. I guess his actual family lives in another town. I really didn't think it was a big deal, but my comp was kind of freaking out. The second night he did not show up our nightly planning kind of just consisted of him sitting there trying to think of what could have happened, and me just sitting there playing with a rubber band. I don't know, maybe I should have worried more, but it just seemed like no biggy. He did finally come back though, which made my comp almost jump for joy. Actually, now that I think about it, he might have. So the baptism is still on as scheduled. He is a way cool guy I am really excited for him.

Oh, and we finally had one other come to church. Our investigator to be baptized brought him. I really don't know him though becuase he only knows tagalog and that is not my stong point right now. I try to teach him in it and I look like a fool. Oh well. That is just the name of the game. I just wish that I could remember all the stuff from the MTC. I think I have forgotten everthing I learnded there when it comes to language. However, if I did not learn tagalog in the MTC, then I would not have been able to learn Inlango at all. So the lord really blessed me with that one.

Oh, we did get a golden investigator that has actually worked with us a couple of times. Her friend is a ward missionary that she will come with. She was really shy at first, but we found out that she actually has quite the personality. She is really fun and will be a great addition to the church. I probably won't be here to see it through, so that is kind of sad. Oh well. That is just how it is here. Sometimes you plant, and sometimes you harvest. Either way, it is the Lord's work.

Man, I can't really think of anything too funny happening to me. We did teach at that lady's house that just starts crying sometimes. We taught a bunch of little kids. It was kind of weird when she would be introducing herself and then just bust out in tears. I felt really bad for her because the kids would just start laughing. She did, however, laugh by the end of the lesson, so that was good. I just wish she had some help from her husband to go to church.

Oh and remember Elder Hamblin? He's the elder from Arizona that I live with. I guess he got to dress a dead guy. He told me that was quite the thing to do. I dont know if I really want to experience that one or not. I'm not a huge fan of the whole "dead body" thing. I already have a hard enough time seeing them at the funerals (I think they look weird enough here), let alone go and put some clothes on them. I guess they just had to put his garments on and stuff. Sounds fun.

Oh, we had our zone activity today. We had a sports fest. It was really cool. We played some soccer, bump out, and dodge ball. I did pretty well. I was undefeated in bump out and dodge ball. I even made a goal in soccer, which is good since I am no good at it. Well, sorry this email does not have too many cool stories. I will try to experience cooler things this week. Oh, and I should be telling you about a baptism as well. Well, I love you all. Keep the faith and remember the church was true then, it is true now, and it will be true forever. (Some of my favorite words from Holland).

Love
Elder Booth

Above Ground Graveyard

This post is all of an email from Elder Booth. This time, the pictures are incorporated into Elder Booth's email...


Date: April 12, 2009 8:08:12 PM PDT
Subject: Happy!! Easter!!

Hey everybody. I hope this email finds you having a very good and Happy Easter. Sorry again for not getting a very good email last week. If it makes you feel any better, I'm pretty sure I was more angry than you. It's all good though - I will just try and make this one that much cooler.

Well, this week was pretty interesting. They kind of celebrate Easter a little differently than we do. Actually, it really isn't Easter Sunday as it is Easter week. They actually call it Holy Week. My companion was explaining some of the things and it is kind of crazy. It doesn't really start getting wierd until Good Friday. Everything is closed and they are all watching some priest guy on the TV and radio. I have no idea what he was going on about. I really didn't care, though. Well I guess they have to watch it since nothing else is on. It's kind of like when you don't have satellite and the only thing on is the presidential debate. That was always a bummer. That always meant I had to get up and actually do something. Watching was never really an option. It's pretty much the same here. All of the kids were out playing more than usual because they had nothing to watch and all of the parents were inside trying to listen. It actually hindered the work quite a bit. We kept getting punted by people who wanted to watch the other people teach. There were a lot of people curious as to why we really did not celebrate the week thing. We just told them that we try and remember the Atonement every week and not just once a year. I don't know if they liked that too much, but I guess the truth hurts. Just ask Laman and Lemuel. they will tell you all about it. So ya, that was pretty weird. Then at night it got even weirder. A bunch of people all get in this funeral procession (sorry can't spell) type thing and march down the streets while carrying big statues of saints and Christ. The most disturbing one was at the end. they had a big class coffin thing with Jesus inside. It would not have been bad, but he was all bloody and stuff. One of the elders called it the black parade. That was a new experience for me. I guess it could have been worse though, because in other places they actually crucify people in remembrance. My trainer was telling me of this guy in his old area who had permanent holes in his hands from getting crucified every year. That would be a little creepy to see.

Saturday and Sunday were still pretty normal except everybody was still gone and punted us. Oh, and I guess they say you are not supposed to do anything on Saturday because if you get cut or hurt in anyway it will never heal right or something like that. I'm good, I think. I couldn't find any cuts at the end of the day.

Well, our investigators are doing about the same. Sister Mary Ann did have the baby and her name is Jade. She is really cute, plus I like the name a lot. That's a good one for a girl. There are still a lot of problems with the marriage, so I don't know if I will be here to see how that works out. Actually, I am pretty sure I won't be. Sister Amy still has not received her answer. I am beginning to worry, but we just have to have faith and hope that she has faith as well.

Jonard is still very strong. I love teaching him because he is very spiritual and fun. It is a sure thing he will be baptized on the 29th. Our president was a little disappointed we only had one for the month of April, but I think it is alright. He cares about the numbers a little more than I do. He actually cares about them a little more than a lot of people do. Ya, all the rest are pretty much the same. We did have one the said she would not be joining our church but it was alright if we kept coming back to teach. So we will probably have drop her. I guess it just is not her time.

The other culture thing that was cool this week was a funeral. It was a fairly prominent person in the ward that died, so the funeral was a big deal. First, we went to the viewing, which was cool. My companion got volunteered to give a talk right there on the spot. I felt kind of bad for him until I found out that I would be the one dedicating the grave the next day. So I was pretty nervous the whole next day. We were very involved. We helped carry the coffin and everything. It turns out though, that right when I was expecting to hear my name being announced, they said that the previous bishop would do it. I was kind of relieved, but I will admit that it would have been kind of cool to do. The graveyards are kind of cool. They do the whole stacking thing. There are just a bunch of cement boxes. So that was cool.

(Here are a few pictures of it. Elder Booth did feel a little creepy taking them)...



We actually got to watch general conference this Saturday and Easter Sunday. I have now watched every single session, including the priesthood session without falling asleep. I even took about five pages of notes. I would recommend that, actually. You get a lot more out of it. It was an amazing conference. It was truly a spiritual experience. I did notice they talked a lot about the hard times going on right now. When they were fully justified in just saying I told you so, they actually gave words of encouragement. Be happy and everything will be alright, as long as you are on the Lord's side. I think my favorite talk was Elder Holland. He really opened my eyes on the pains of the Lord Jesus Christ. That was amazing. So I encourage all of you as well to keep an upbeat attitude. If you have faith then you will not fear. I love you all and hope you will continue in the work of the lord. Thanks for your amazing love and support.

Elder Booth

Here they are leaving the graveyard:

This is another surrounding area:

Another Bridge and some interesting wildlife...

This is another one of those posts with a hodgepodge of different pictures. The first pictures are of, in the words of Elder Booth, "the biggest caterpillar I have ever seen." That one is pretty big and chunky, and although I never saw one quite that big, it does remind me of the tomato hornworms we used to peel out of our garden and feed to the chickens. Maybe Elder Booth remembers doing that (or maybe he was way too young)...

These next pictures are of a river (or stream) somewhere in the Philippines.
Look how green it is!!

Can you see the small hut?

This is another remote bamboo bridge. Elder Booth says it is in the middle of nowhere.
I hope it is pretty kept up (or Elder Lucas is going for a swim).

A Water Buffalo?

Elder Booth sure likes the flowers in the Philippines! Here's another one!

This one is a "very cool looking spider," according to Elder Booth. He also said that
it "pretty much scared me to take the photo." I think I would be scared too!
I'm not sure how much Elder Booth zoomed in, but it looks huge!

This last picture that looks like a giant cow, is actually a caribou (or water buffalo).
It looks like it's in the middle of some garden somewhere in the city.

Well, that's it for now. I'm sure there will be some more random shots to gather together soon!

District Bowling and Elder Booth's Zone

Well, Elder Booth had District bowling again. It looks like they had a great time:

This is a picture of Elder Booth's Zone. You will recognize Elder Booth, Elder Lucas, and a few people down is Elder Lising, Elder Hamblin and Elder Potter. Those are the only ones I recognized, though.


Here's another letter from Elder Booth:


Here is a letter from Elder Booth:

Date: March 29, 2009 8:07:25 PM PDT
Subject: basita halin sa philippines

Hey how is everybody doing? Well I hope you are still good. I didn't get the weekly update so I will just assume you are all super duper. Ya, don't laugh too much. The mission just makes you use those kinds of words; it's really not my fault. It happens to the best of us, I guess.

Well things are still pretty good here in Paglaum. We currently have three investigators with a date and we are about to give one to another. The three did not go to church this week so we actually will probably have to postpone their date until a week later. Actually, they have never gone to church in our ward in Paglaum. They always go to the ward in the next area because the member that takes care of them is either trying to get or already has a job in the bishop's company. So that is kind of hard to deal with. I guess it is a pretty big problem here, though. I heard the bishop was backwards and buys his members or something like that. I don't know nor do I really care, as far as that goes. I just want him to stop giving my investigators callings in the wrong ward. Ya, other than that we are good.

Brother Jonard, the investigator that we will give a date to the next time we visit, came and loved it. He has been twice now and loves each time. I am excited for him. I just hope we can baptize him before transfers, because I will probably be leaving to my second area. Sister Maryann, the lady that is pregnant and living with her boy friend or fiance or whatever you want to call it, should have her baby on Wednesday. So they should move forward with marriage afterward. It's too bad because I probably won't be here when they finally do. I just wish they hadn't procrastinated that special day of marriage. It's a happy time and they should be excited. Oh well, as long as it happens I guess I am happy. Sister Amy, the one that we finally got to church last week, to my disappointment did not come to church this week. We had problems during the week getting people to come with us when we went there because they were all to busy. I did give a good lesson on testimony and asked her if she had one. She said that she still has not asked for the answer yet. So hopefully she will ask soon.

Well that is about it with our investigators. The rest are doing alright. They just won't come to church. Some actually are supposed to come with some members but then the members don't end up coming either. So that is a little sad and frustrating. I hope we can get that all figured out soon.

I have not had to many funny experiances this week. I did have to choke down some really bad food, though. It wasn't too bad to the taste but they just kept giving me more. I thought for sure I was going to puke. I didn't eat anything too weird either. I did, however, cook some fajitas with Elder Hamblin. His mom sent him the seasoning stuff, or whatever. I thought I was in heaven. I never thought I would miss mexican food so much. I don't think Taco Bell sounded so good until I came here. Oh well, that is just part of life. Oh, I am getting better at cooking though. Maybe I will be able to feed myself in college now.

Oh, and we had a ward activity on Saturday and played some basketball. I am happy to say that I am still undefeated in the Philippines. I will play later today too, though, and there is a new American that is supposed to be my match up, or something. So I will let you know how that goes. Well I hope you liked all the pictures on my card. I am excited to send you the next one. I am really trying to take more pictures and do cooler stuff for all of you. Well, to be honest I don't think about it a whole lot. I hope you liked them though. I Love you all. Don't be afraid to write or email. I would love to here from everybody. Stay strong and remember why you are really here. Love you all and thanks again for making this easier for me with your support.

Love Elder Booth

The place where we eat every Sunday

Elder Booth and his companion, Elder Lucas, eat at the same house every Sunday. They have a great time and the family is very nice. Here is a picture of the family with Elder Booth and his companion, along with some other elders.

Here is Elder Lucas with Angel, the daughter of the family that feeds the elders every Sunday. Yes, those are elders in the background on the computer - one of the reasons Elder Booth couldn't email for a while :(

The next pictures are Elder Booth, Elder Lucas, and one of the family members having fun with the camera...

Elder Booth

Elder Lucas

???

???

Here is a letter from Elder Booth around the same time these pictures were taken.


Date: March 23, 2009 1:17:56 AM PDT
Subject: Maayong Gabi!!

Well, hello everybody. Sorry if this one is just a little bit shorter than the other ones. Today has been a little crazy and really unorganized. I'm loving it. You know how much I love unorganized. Nothing has changed around me. Me nor my companion transferred this time. Oh, and none of the elders transferred that I am living with either, so that is all the same. We were actually the only two companionships in the zone not to change. We got a new district leader. That is about the only thing that changed and affects me. He is pretty cool. Well, he might be a little too cool. He is really fun but does not care about the rules as much as our last district leader. He is a hard worker, though, and still sees fruit from his labor.

All of my investigators have not changed a whole lot. I think the high light of the week though was at church when we had one investigator come to church. It was actually Amy. Ironically, she was the lady that took a picture of me, or maybe it was her sister. Well, I take that back. They both took a picture in the end. She ended up being awesome, though. I about jumped for joy when I saw her walking up the steps. We have been working really really hard in order to get her to come to church. She had a lot of things to overcome in order to come, but she overcame them. The best part is she really had a good time, I think. One of our ward missionaries that we bring with us to visit her every time showed her around and pretty much did not leaver her side. Plus, we found out that the second counselor in the Stake Presidency and the Bishopric are her uncles. They are a really strong family. Her grandma is amazing. So she actually ended up knowing more people than I did at church. I was very happy. I can't wait to ask her about it next time we visit.

The next cool thing that happened with our investigators is John John. This week we taught him about the word of wisdom. He was a riot. When we asked him if we should smoke, he quickly shook his head and said, "No, that will give you bad breath." Well, we couldn't argue with the kid because that is very true. People who smoke do have some pretty bad breath. Things would be so much better if nobody smoked (cough, cough Fred). Anyway, then we asked him about drinking. He said that we should not do that because we would get drunk and become wild. At this point I was thinking he really knew his stuff. I was having a hard time not laughing too hard. Then, lastly, he said we would turn crazy if we do drugs. So I think he knows that lesson pretty well. Just as long as he keeps thinking that. As long as he comes to church the next three weeks, he can be baptized. It might be postponed though, because we want him to be with his brother and sister and they still have to fix a couple of things. We will just have to see how it goes.

Sister Mary Ann, the one going to have a baby, is getting very close to having her baby. Actually, she will probably have had it by the time I write again next week. So they should get married after that, but I just don't know how that will all go. I really hope they get married before the next transfer so I can see it.

I haven't eaten anything too weird this week. I am getting a lot better at cooking, though. I don't know how much it will help me when I get back since I don't have a rice cooker. I might have to buy one of those when I get back. I just hope I can get a good recipe book before I come back (and sorry for forgetting how to spell that right).

The funniest thing to happen to me this week was when we were just walking down the street. Some kids threw me the ball to shoot it. So of course, I just threw it up there, and of course made it. No joke. This was not good enough for them, though. So they threw it again. So I put my bag down and went up for the dunk. The entire back board ended up breaking. Now one side is about a foot lower than the other. I guess I was just lucky it did not come down completely. Surprisingly, they did not get mad. They just got really excited and laughed really hard. I guess it will just take another plank of wood to fix.

Well, I better get going. I love you all. Keep strong and remember what is really important in these trying times.

Elder Booth