Transfer 4 Week 1 - Findlay

hey everyone! well i had a huge letter typed up and somehow it dissapeared. probly my fault. so ill try and remember everything i said and sum it all up. im in findlay now! i like it here alot. im with e williams. hes from clearfield utah. we go to the same ward and live next to e ritchie (my trainer) and e smith (my former zone leader) the zone leaders here. its fun to be around them again. i like the ward here alot. its bigger than wooster and the people are all really nice. gospel principles class this sunday was amazing. i like the teacher alot. the area is awesome too. the people are way nicer here. im in a walking area too. i like to wave at the cars as they go by and most people wave back. so thats fun. still have alot of crazy people that try to yell stuff at you as they go speeding by that you can never understand. all you can hear is them yell something bout satan usually haha. never knew my legs could be so tired. at least its starting to get warmer i hope. walking through the winter would be hard.

on the way to transfers me and e mckay (my mtc companion) were following another car and we made the wrong turn and were lost haha. we saw them drive on another freeway underneath us and we just started laughing. we were almost late but luckily got there just in time for it to start.

it rained alot the past couple days. everything around here flooded. the rivers overflowed and closed streets and flooded everythign. the sidewalks all had an inch of water as you walked on them. it was fun. theres been a tornado warning here too so thats kinda weird. but dont worry mom, there wont be one. just high winds. but its always windy here. its extremely flat so the wind just rips across the ground. its alot different than wooster but its kinda nice for a change. back in a decently sized city. on the way here we drove by lake erie. it was still frozen over. its so crazy to see that much water frozen and its all wavy ice on the top.

we actually have a couple investigators here too which is nice. we taught this ten year old girl and her mom the plan of salvation this week. we havent been able to see any other investigators yet but ill let you know when i do.

way to go lex! you sound like quite the swimmer. first place with water in your nose and eyes closed haha. thats awesome. youll have to send me some pictures.

well its hard to believe ive been out five months. ill hit six months this transfer too! so thats exciting. you all have a good week and ill talk to you soon. love you!

elder berry

Transfer 3 Week 6 - Wooster

hello its me again!
well, i just found out today that i only have a couple more days here in wooster. im getting transfered this wednesday. dont know where im going till then or who ill be with. so thats pretty scary and im a little nervous but itll be good. im ready to go somewhere else. itll be nice for a change of scenery. ill miss some people around here though. its supposed to be consistently getting warmer from here on out too. so im excited for spring. might take a while though cuz today its supposed to be negative eleven with the wind and everything. and its snowing. pretty cold. but were supposed to hit forties for a couple days this week. so thats nice. makes tracting alot better. but ill let you all know where im at next week. hopefully its warm there too.

this week the only person weve been teaching is gary. we dont have anyone else to teach anymore. so that stinks. but were excited about gary. this week we set a baptismal date with him so hes gonna be rebaptized on march twenty first. i wont be able to see it but oh well. he hasnt smoked in a month now and is reading the scriptures every day and doing really well. hes a fun guy to teach.

other than that we mostly just tracted. we helped a lady from the ward move this week and volunteered at the soup kitchen on friday like always. we had some funny stuff happen tracting this week. at this one house there was a huge dog. like a german shepard or something that would just charge at the door and bout two feet in front of it he would jump and just smash headfirst into the door. it shook the whole house and we thought he was gonna break the door down haha. then at another door they had a wreath up and i guess some birds had a nest in it cuz when i knocked on the door two birds burst out of the wreath and were going crazy. they attacked us pretty much and were flying into us. one hit my chest and the other hit my face before i knew what was happening. so that was funny. not too good of luck with nature this week.

also this week i finished reading the book of mormon. starting in january we read it looking for every time it mentions Christ and every time he speaks and every time it talks about his doctrine and marked each one in a different color. its amazing how much Christ is talked about. the whole thing really is about him. ive never realized how much He is in there before.

congradulations lex bout the swim! thats insane! theres no way i could swim that fast. thats exciting. youre gonna kick some trash at the swim meets. youll give garrett a run for his money at the tri too haha.

blake my man. i dont know what happened last week with the emails. i love you though buddy. how are the fish doin?

anyways ill let you all know where i end up next week. today ive gotta get a haircut then pack all my stuff up. shouldnt be too bad theres not much to pack haha. i love you guys. talk to you soon. oh and dont send letters to my address here in wooster please. cuz i wont get them. thanks. love you!

elder berry

Transfer 3 Week 5 - Wooster

hey guys! this transfer is goin by pretty fast. this last week has been pretty good though. on monday i made elder cornelison a hershey bar cake for his eighteen month mark. it looked really good too. till he dropped it on the floor lol. he was holding it up for a picture and dropped it so we had cake and frosting everywhere lol. that was pretty funny. ill send pictures of that sometime.

its been snowy and cold this last week like usual. its supposed to hit forty for a day or two this week so im looking forward to that. we went on exchanges with the zone leaders this week too. i was with elder slemboski. it was fun. kinda weird though cuz hes just bout done. he goes home in a week. hes really excited needless to say lol. that was kinda weird though cuz i cant imagine going home. probly wont seem real at the end either. still got a while before then though.

this week weve taught ******** a couple times. our lessons with him always go well and he asks good questions and stuff. the bishop is excited that hes doing well. he was in this ward before he had his name removed and i guess was having alot of problems. he was into drugs and stuff. but now hes got it all under control and quit drugs and hasnt smoked since we started teaching him and just really turned his life around. its cool. we have taught him the first couple lessons now. we were teaching the plan of salvation the other day and he said something about march first and e cornelison thought he said that was when the bishop said he was gonna be baptised, so after we finished the plan of salvation he just kept going into commandments and all this other stuff that ive never taught before so i kinda got thrown into it headfirst without practice or anything. it went well though. he wanted to finish it all before march first cuz he thought thats what he said so thats why he jumped into the rest of it. so that caught me off guard.

we also got to see the mcnealys again this week. its been a while cuz they were out of town then sick. so it was good to see them again. theyre fun to teach. we always do some kinda little activity with them to teach so they dont jsut get bored. so thats always fun. like if we talk bout the holy ghost we'll all draw how it makes us feel or somethin like that.

but thats bout all thats been going on this week. still just trying to find more people to teach. but ill talk to you all next week.

love you
elder berry

Transfer 3 Week 4 - Wooster

hey everyone! this week went by pretty quick. earlier in the week it was above fifty for a couple days which was awesome. its cooled back down now but not too bad. still in low thirties which is nice. hopefully its getting warmer.

happy late valentines to you guys. thanks for the candies and stuff. i liked the card from hank alot too lol. im glad you got my letter just in time for the party. that worked out well. and thanks for passin out hugs g. this week we also had zone conference up in canton. it was a ways away but it was really good. i like hearing from the assistants and especially president. they always give really good workshops. presidents was on how to teach with the spirit and was really good. they have a new rule with the cars though that if you go over miles they take away your car. so that stinks. especially since we had to make four trips up there this month and that shoots alot of miles really fast. and our area is huge. so hopefully we can stay under cuz without a car wed spend like 3 hours at a time just walking to the closest to places to tract. wouldnt be able to get alot done that way.

i think i told you bout gary last time. he had his name removed and now wants to rejoin. hes quit smoking now for a week and met with the bishop and were teaching him the lessons now. we taught the first one last night. so were excited bout that. hes excited to be learning it all again and reads the book of mormon like 2 hours every day. the bishop said after the lessons he'll interview him again then he can be baptized. so hopefully he continues to do well. seems like he will but ill keep you updated. we finally got to teach the older lady dorothy that weve seen a couple times. she had some tests done and it made her sick but we brought her a book of mormon and shes excited to read it. were going back over this week and her daughter will be there also to hear the lesson. well see if that works out. hopefully it will.

we had a funny dinner this week. we ate at this ladys house and as soon as we walked in she has a huge tie die wall. it was funny. but shes totally like a hippie and was tellin us bout when she used to smoke dope all the time and stuff. then she brought out dinner and it was all vegetarian lol. shoulda known. guess shes vegan. which is like extreme vegetarian i think. so we had lintell soup which is like a green paste and some rice. for desert we had fennel which is like this root that tastes like black licorice. the soup stuff wasnt that bad. tasted like weird beans. i was tryin not to laugh though cuz i could tell e cornelison didnt like it at all cuz he took a bite then immediately mixed it up with his rice so he couldnt taste it as much lol. the whole time they were trying to convert us to veganism though and throwin scriptures at us and it was weird cuz we didnt wanna like bash with members bout it so we just kinda like sat there while they tried to convert us to it. it was funny. they are nice people though.

thats bout all thats been goin on this week though. oh...the new mission president for this mission is gonna be announced in the church news soon so when you find out if you could let me know thatd be sweet. anyways i love you all and ill talk to you again soon.

elder berry

Transfer 3 Week 2 - Wooster

hey everyone. this week went by quick. we werent able to work this wed cuz we got bout a foot of snow. it was crazy. you couldnt see very far and it was really windy. so we had to stay in. i finally drove in the snow though. e cornelison was a little scared but i did fine. well , were alive at least lol.

our investigator rob was supposed to be at church this sunday but when the member showed up to pick him up he wasnt going. so were gonna challenge him this week and if things dont change were droppin him. dorothy is still doin good and progressing. she'll probly be at church next week so were excited for that.

i like my new companion alot. were gettin along well and havin fun. freak weather came through yesterday and it was forty four degrees! felt like summer. it was so nice. but its gettin cold again. spring is gonna be nice.

anyways i love you all and thank you so much for your letters. i always look forward to hearing from you

elder berry

Transfer 3 Week 1 - Wooster

hey everybody! well, im on to transfer number three. i got a new companion this last week. his name is elder cornelison. hes from idaho and has been out 17 months now. hes a cool guy and we get along really well so im glad i got him and not someone else lol. elder ritchie got transfered to findlay and hes a zone leader there. but e cornelison actually trained e coleman. he came out when i did. then they both got moved down here and theyre in the same district now which is kinda crazy.

this last week has been pretty boring. not too much has been happening. weve just tracted alot. nothin new. i think this week has been the best as far as being rejected goes. this one guy slammed the door on us twice lol. that was kinda funny. this sunday at church was the first sunday since ive been here that there hasnt been any false doctrine preached. so thats a start. hopefully theyll keep it up haha. church out here seems so different from back home.

its been weird being on the other end of things this last week. cuz when i came e ritchie was showin me around and introducing me to people and lately thats been my job. i feel like good talking and making up conversation skills have been forced upon me. well, not skills cuz im still no good but i try lol.

its been pretty cold out this week. it will snow a little then its so cold the snow will freeze so you can walk right on top of it without sinking in. its kinda cool. you can walk right accross the top of like two feet of snow. sometimes you fall through which stinks but its pretty cool.

we had an appointment with rob this week but he wasnt there again so we dont know if were gonna teach him anymore. so that stinks cuz he seemed like he was progressing and doing well. we also saw dorothy this week but she has a friend that used to go to our church alot thats always at her house thats holding her back. shes nice and all but always asks deep stuff bout baptisms for the dead and the temple and things like that. and shes talked to dorothy bout em so we have to try to help em understand that stuff cuz it kinda weirds her out. so thats not good cuz you have to start with the small stuff then build on that and her friend is kinda messing that up. well see how it goes.

i can believe the twins have already had their birthday. thats so crazy. and theyre starting to walk and stuff, thats cool. doesnt seem like theyre old enough to be doin that stuff yet. its gonna be a shock to see how old they are when i get back.

i dont know if ive mentioned our neighbors upstairs yet. theyre pretty crazy. every weekend they have a big party. this last one musta been huge. it kept us up alot of the night. theyll have music blasting and just stompin around and sometimes stuff breaking lol. or theyll have movies goin or somethin every weekend.

mothers day is comin up here pretty quick. im excited to be able to talk to you all again. i promise ill do more talking this time lol. so thatll be comin up quick and by then ill have been out six months already. thats pretty cool.

were going on exchanges with the zone leaders tomorrow. ill probly be going with e boatright. he trained e ritchie so hes my "grandpa". i hate how missionaries do those stupid relative things though. it bugs me.

but anyways. we still see the mcnealys and teach them bout once or twice a week. they were afraid once they got baptized the missionaries would quit coming and theyd lose friends so we go teach em the new member lessons and stuff. its alot of fun. i like them alot.

thats bout all thats been goin on. i miss you all and love hearing from you. take care and ill talk to you soon. love you!

elder berry

Transfer 2 Week 6 - Wooster

hey everyone! last week of this transfer. we just found out this morning that elder ritchie is being transfered. im staying here in wooster so ill be getting a new companion this wed. ill have to tell you who it is when i find out. till then its just a mystery. but elder ritchie is off to be a zone leader somewhere so maybe ill run into him again sometime soon. im looking forward to a new companion. a little nervous but i know itll be okay.

this past week has been pretty crazy. it was sooo cold. i know i probly say that alot, but this was the coldest yet. it was easily below zero the whole week. friday was the worst. it was neg thirty. so tracting was fun. thank you all for the hand warmers and stuff. i definitely put them to good use. but its warming up a little now. yesterday was in the twenties and it felt so warm. its crazy how your body adjusts so that twenty degrees feels like you should wear shorts and a t shirt lol. we were talking to a guy in the ward and hes a college professor, he said bein out in the weather last week for only 10 min you would start getting the beginning stages of frostbite. and we were out for a couple hours at a time. so were blessed to not be half dead right now lol. although elder ritchie thinks he got some on his face and a couple of my toes got a little bit. not bad at all though. theyre getting better. so hopefully it wont be that cold again. im tired of wearing so many clothes haha.

the mcnealy kids, george and mickellena, were finally baptized this past weekend. we were happy the weather worked out this time. it was really cool to see them finally baptized and how it seems to have helped the dad out alot. he came to church this week on his own and everything which is a big improvement. he helped us out alot to get them baptized.

i got to baptize the little boy george. elder ritchie baptized mickellena. i think ill be able to send pictures home soon. it was funny, all of our wet clothes we had to take home froxe in the car on the way back.

other than that not alot has happened this week. weve taught a few lessons but people mostly said it was too cold. we did alot of work with members and starting their family mission plans trying to stay out of the cold as much as possible. our investigator rob ditched out on both of his appointments this week so we didnt get to see him and the other lady dorothy was sick all week. so we didnt really get the opportunity to teach very much.

it was good to hear from you garrett. sounds like youre wrestling good. thats awesome you teched a kid. you still likin it or is the season getting long yet? hows school and stuff goin? when is prom? are you gonna take anyone? you got a valentine this year? lemme know. it was good to get you email. i miss you man.

i miss you too blake. i really liked talking to you last week. i hope youre feelin better. sorry i had to take off but i really had fun talking to you. enjoy the good weather you have there. and im totally excited to get back and hang out with you. i cant wait its gonna be awesome.

but thats about all i can remember thats happened this week. i cant wait till the summer. its gonna be great. i miss you all and love you guys. thanks for all your letters and emails. i love hearing from you. talk to you soon

elder berry