Mission Mice

August 08, 2022

Good Morning!

Elder Stucki wants to work! We've done just about everything possible to be the most productive, effective missionaries we can this past week. Guess how many people we began teaching!

Zero. But we caught a mouse!

Salina, Redmond, and Aurora are the three towns in the Salina Stake, and the members here are wonderful. There's just a minor problem. The vast majority of people here are members, whether they come to church or not doesn't matter. The rest are Hispanic, and refuse to speak in English when talking to missionaries. We've given the local Spanish Sisters so many referrals it's insane.

Now, I do speak better Spanish than Elder Stucki, for whatever reason. But my limited knowledge doesn't get me very far in the conversation, but at least they're super nice! Even if they're not interested, they're very polite. It's much appreciated.

With this background knowledge, perhaps you'll understand what I've come to discover. Salina is amazing, but it's very different from my other areas. The way I have to work is much more directly through the members, as there aren't a ton of move-ins, so most people here have already met with missionaries and decided they're not interested. We keep fasting and praying for miracles, they'll come! But what I've seen is that this week wasn't the time for us to find investigators. We found a lot of potentials, but half of them, as stated above, don't talk to me in English.

I have tried to learn something new about myself from every companion I'm with. I have a high turnover rate, so I'm never around very long, but that means I need to discover what I can from Elder Stucki's life as fully as I can. We have a wonderful companionship, and have had a lot of good discussions outside proselyting hours, for which I'm appreciative.

Being the wonderful individual I am, I proposed a question to my companion; "What does Elder Williams have to learn from Elder Stucki?" He said "I don't know," which I should have seen coming. I'm really good at phrasing my questions poorly!

My answer hasn't come yet. It's working on it, I'll figure it out in a few weeks, but that will be an answer I get to look forward to, rather than accept. During Stake Conference, Elder R. Pepper Murray asked the congregation 'What is more important; the journey, or the answer?"

While there were some differing ideas, the general consensus was that the journey generally matters most. So I will focus on that journey, of learning to work in Salina according to the needs of the people. I've got plenty to learn from God, not just from Elder Stucki, and most of all I need to learn about myself. But Elder Stucki's first piece of wisdom is that 'we, as missionaries, learn more about ourselves when we stop trying to do so, and instead focus on the work at hand.'

Give me some time, I'll figure it out! I love the area, certain parts of it remind me of Mt. Pleasant, it's quite enjoyable. We caught my first mission mouse, it was a busy little critter trying to eat our food, so we sent him to a place where he'll be happy. I'm sure his family won't mind. He's just serving his own mission, in a sense.

Keep focused on your spiritual development, read your scriptures (no seriously) and remember who you are. Those three things have been emphasized in this past week, and you could use them too.

Next week we'll find a new friend!

- Elder Williams

P.S. No, I didn't take a photo of the mouse. Yes, I should have. We'll find another one, don't worry!

Mailing Address:

P.O. Box 360

85 N 150 E

Redmond, UT 84652

Pictures:

1. Here's the Missionary Commission. I had to send the email on time last week, or it would have been included last week.

2. My first sunset photo in Salina.

3. And Salina has clouds. They're so fluffy!

4. Myself with a chicken at the Moody's home. You might get a lot more of these!