Hey Momma!

 

Skyping was the best. You're right.  I remembered that I actually belong to a family again.  That sounds awful, but when you are on your mission, you're just a foster child for the ward you're serving.  It's nice to just be a little brother again, instead of "The Elders."  When we were talking it totally felt like I had never left.  I miss you guys a lot, and I don't realise that very often.  You don't really seem to exist in my world.  I mean I get an email every week, and I love it, but it kind of seems like I've always been on a mission and always will be.  Ask Ben if you can't figure that one out.  I'm sure he completely understands.  His letters are usually spot on.  It was so great to hear from you again though.  And it'll only be a few months before number 3 out of 4 calls happens.  How crazy is that?  I'm coming up on my year mark.  Some of me feels like I've been out forever, and some of me feels like I've only just got off the plane. 

 

This week was really good.  Wolverhampton is such a great ward.  They definitely spoiled us.  I'm going to try and get the pictures from Shepdawg, but we'll see if I get them passed on in time.  (My camera has had low batteries for a little while now.)  (I'm buying new ones today, don't worry.) Speaking of pictures though, I've made a New Year's Resolution to take at least one picture per day.  I think that'll be good, so that I'll have a bunch of pictures not only for you, but for the rest of forever when I want to remember my mission. 

 

Thanks for telling me I look good.  I'm going to keep growing my hair out.  I think I want it to be as long as it was when I was at the MTC.  I liked that length.

 

I hate my cough too.  It will never go away, because I'm just too soggy.  That's what you are in England.  Soggy.

Shepherd is his name.

 

The sun comes up about 9:30 and goes down at about 4:00. And really I'm not that bothered by the dark, I was next to nocturnal before I came on my mission, so it doesn't get to me.  It's the rain.  We wont talk about the rain. You know how I feel about it.

 

To be honest, yeah, I was definitely blessed to speak English on my mission.  I did have to learn a new language though, and you'll understand that when you come over and can't understand a word anyone says.  But I'm still pretty dang jealous of people that now know other languages.  Jake is fluent in Spanish now, and I have a bunch of friends that are fluent in a ton of other languages, even one that's fluent in Filipino sign language.  I think that's so cool.  I'm definitely going to try and learn Spanish when I get home.  We'll see though.

 

I'm going in to get your package today at the mission office, and nobody will be able to tell me what you did wrong.  Sorry.  I'm pretty sure that if you send a package that has more than $50 dollars worth of stuff in it, that's when they kill ya with tax.  I'm not sure though.  You could probably email Sister Rasmussen, she'd know a lot more than I do.

 

Mother. Stop worrying about the dang package.  We went through this on my birthday already.  I don't care when I get the package. Stop stressing about it.  Next time just send it the cheapest way you can find.  Don't spend any money you don't have to, because I really don't care when I get it.

 

You are the girliest family.  I bet Ben and Aaron were feeling that.  I did when we were skyping.  I'm going to have to come home and not shower for a few weeks and fart and burp and go fishing. 

 

I'm excited for movies.  I miss them a lot.  We weren't allowed to watch any, and that made me really sad.  I've been debating with myself for the past like six months which disney movie I was going to pick, because, up until this year, missionaries have always been allowed to watch one disney.  But this year, President decided that we weren't allowed to do that anymore.  That was hard, especially because we were at the Chaproniere's when their son skyped home and he was telling them about all the movies that he was watching that day.  Apparently their president lets them watch any animated disney movie on any p days and gave them a long list of Christmas movies that they were allowed to watch (like the Grinch and Home Alone.)  Elder C is in Manchester, and Elder Wrenger's brother is in Leeds, and the rules were the same there... Oh well.  I don't get it, but hopefully it's good for me.

 

Everyone's pregnant. (Except Ange, thank goodness.  There's a missionary out here that got written off after three months, and apparently his ex is expecting in a couple months. Ouch.)

 

Holiday boyfriend sounds nice.  I'm not quite sure why he isn't Christmas boyfriend.  Is he Jewish or something?  Can you not call it Christmas?  Haha

 

Ange is great.  I really really like her. I forgot how much. But it's a lot.

 

Boxing Day still doesn't make sense to me.  But we had a P day on it, but all the libraries and everything was closed.  Well like governmentish things were closed at least.  They have major huge boxing day sales, and everyone goes shopping.  We did too, cause no one wanted to play basketball with me.  So I was just bored all day.  But that's alright.  I think it was to train me for the years to come.  Except, I have three sisters and a mother.  Hopefully I can just pawn the after-christmas shopping off on you guys.  Be friends with whoever I marry so I can do less shopping.  You guys could all go save $209 dollars at Banana Republic together!

 

I'll take lots of pictures.  But, to be completely honest, no.  I don't love England like that.  I think I'll be somewhat happy to only come here on holidays, and stay inside when it rains.  I don't think God planned on people living here either.  I think just sheep.  Sheep like it here.  There's a reason "Our Heritage" left.

 

Go read, and let Aaron do whatever he wants.  It's going to happen either when you let him or when you're at work, so you don't have too much of a choice.

 

I love you too!

Love,

Elder Smart

 

Hey Momma, we have a second to email today.

 

I'm super excited to talk to you! It's going to be really fun, I hope everything is all set up for that.  I know it is here.

I'm sick. So that sucks. I feel like I'm going to barf, and I've had a cough for the past couple weeks.  We'll see.  I think I might have a fever, but I really don't have time for a fever.  It's definitely because of the stupid weather.  Have I ever told you how much I hate rain.

 

If not let me.

 

I hate rain. Almost as much as the devil.  Maybe they're the same thing.

 

I'm going to call Sister Rasmussen after we email, and probably go home and sleep the rest of the day.  After I walk home in the stupid rain.

 

Tell everyone in the world sorry that I wont be emailing them today. We're only supposed to be on the computers momentarily today, mostly just to confirm skyping plans.  I'm super excited to see all of you, and hopefully I wont be ralphing every couple of minutes.  I guess time will tell!

 

There's a package that I apparently received from the States that England is making me pay £40 for.  I hope you don't mind.  I think you told me that you were jipping me for Christmas.  That's okay.  But I'm going to buy myself some stuff. I haven't sent the package home either. Sorry. It'll happen sometime soon. I don't have much time to do stuff like that. 

 

I'm not very talkative today. Sorry.  It's because I feel like death. Merry Christmas.

 

I love you! I'll talk to you in a couple days!

 

Love,

Elder Smart

Hey Momma!

 

So transfers happened, and yes I did get moved.  I'm now in a place called Wolverhampton.  It's in the same stake as Tamworth, but it's pretty far away from Tamworth.  It's a pretty big city, and a very big ward.  In fact, there are two wards here.  I'm over Wolverhampton 1st Ward, but we share it with the Zone Leaders, who are pretty cool, so I don't mind.  My new companion is Elder Shepherd.  I think you remember him. You should at least.  I realized all the people I meet out here get coined as an animal, Shepdawg was the first, then Hounddog, then The Bear, and now Shepdawg again.  He's an awkward guy, but that's alright, I like him and we get along.  At least he talks.  He's got three transfers left, including this one, so he goes home in April.  This is his fourth transfer here in Wolverhampton though, so he's probably going to move areas next transfer.  We'll have to see, I guess.  In the meantime, I'm content being junior companion.  He's the district leader here, and I've got a feeling that I'm next. Again, we'll have to see.

 

The ward is great though.  We get dinner just about every night, and they're actually willing to help us, annnnnnndd they have a basketball court at the chapel.  Looks like I'll have a way to keep the holiday weight off.  I love basketball. We played on Saturday with some of the youth in the ward (Youth!! Woohoo!) and I've been pretty sore ever since.  Which is good.  I'm out of shape, but soon I'll be back up to par.  The area is good though, and really I'm so happy to be here.  I've got one of the elders I was in the MTC in my district as well.  His name is Elder Allred, and he's from Vernal.  I really really like Elder Allred.  He's a total farmboy, and I love it.  He has his own cattle ranch back home, and he has something like twelve cows that his dad is taking care of for him, and before his mission he drove semi-trucks.  I think he is about the coolest hick in all the world.  But he's also just a really good guy.  One of those quality people that you know you'll be friends with for the rest of your life.

 

Anyways, you're going to want to know about Elder Shepherd.  He's from Idaho Falls, he's the oldest of three boys, he didn't really play sports back home, but he's a pretty good singer, he's almost 21, his little brother just got his mission call and is going to the Czeck Republic (poor kid), and all-around he's just a good guy.  I like Elder Shepherd.  Especially after my last two companions.  I'm pretty happy to be back with an American.  Is that wrong to say?  There's so much more to talk about.  I like it.  Maybe I'll get another companion like Elder Okuonghae again, and I'll love it, but I'm not a huge fan of Germany.  Probably I'm generalizing a bit too much. But that's life, I guess.

 

Everything here is good, and set up for Christmas.  I'll be able to talk to you for a couple hours hopefully.  The plan is to Skype from a member's house here at about 6:00pm our time.  There is a seven hour time difference again, so that's 11:00am for you.  Double check that for me.  I'm about 99% sure I'm right, but I don't want to get that wrong.  Please call and invite Angela too.  I've already emailed her and told her that I'd like her to be there, but I think she'd feel about a million times more comfortable if you called and invited her to come over. I still have a crush on her, and don't worry, that's not against the rules.

 

Emailing isn't going to be like it was before.  I'm sorry.  We'll be doing it probably from 10:15 to about 1:00 every monday.  So, I probably wont be chatting with anyone unless you guys decide to be awake from 3:00 to 6:00 in the morning.  That was fun while we did it though.  I think I need to play basketball and be active to stay alive though.  I hope that's okay.

 

So that's where I am right now.  I think President knows how I feel about him. I told him, so I hope it's obvious. I think that's maybe why I didn't move very far away from the mission office.  I have a feeling I'll be in Wolverhampton for a long time.  I'm absolutely fine with that.  I love it here. 

 

Don't worry about what you said to me.  I know what you meant.  In fact, I think I can hear your voice in my head just about all the time telling me what I need to do.  I think you're my Mom, and even the Spirit knows that your voice will get me to me the most effectively.  Things are good though Mom.  There is a woman in the ward that has a misisonary in the Manchester Mission (and we'll be eating at her house on Christmas), she told me what to tell you to make you feel better.  In fact, I really like this lady already, and probably she'll be in contact with you sometime.  Her last name is Chapronnierre, or something like that. Sister C. She told me to tell you that I'm in a new ward, and they take care of their missionaries (they do), and that I like my companion (I do), and that Christmas is all planned (it is) and that you have nothing to worry about (you still will).

 

There are a lot of people in this ward that are related to my bishop in Tamworth.  He actually has now moved to Church Headquarters in Germany, but I now know his parents and his sister, and he sold his car to a guy in my ward here as well.  So basically it's like coming home.  The flat is pretty small.  It's just a one bedroom with a big, studio-esque main room, where we study and eat.  The water heater pilot light has to light every so often, and it sounds like some one is trying to break in.  Just one big boom, every once in a while, to keep you on your toes while you're studying the scriptures. The beds are squeaky and I sleep on the top bunk. We live right above a chippy (fish and chip shop) and so I might get fat, but I have basketball so I can still burn it all off.  Everything is good, Mom.  You can stop worrying about me.  Actually don't.  Your Mom-Prayers work pretty well.

 

Elder Wrenger got a companion from my MTC group, that I didn't know very well, but I've heard that he suits him perfectly, so I'm glad.  He'll be a good missionary, and so I think I did my job, even if I was ready to kill him a few times. 

 

This week has felt like a month.  So much has happened.  We also had our Christmas Conference, and the whole mission got to come to that, so that was really cool.  I got to see all my friends.  It was good, but.. kind of boring other than the friends part.  You know those people who try too hard to be really spiritual all the time?  That's how my President is, and how he wants all of us to be.  And how he wanted the Christmas Conference to be.  Luckily, most of the missionaries don't hate fun.  So there were some good laughs as well.

 

Alright.  I think that's my whole life right now.  I don't think I'll be emailing you next Monday.  If I do, it'll be very quick.  Since it's Christmas week, I think they're moving P Day to Boxing Day.  Hopefully things are open that day, and if not, we'll just try and email from a member's house.  So the next time I will talk to you will probably be on Christmas, but I need your name on Skype again, and the email that you use for it.  I think I know both those things, but will you send me both of them in an email like the second you read this, so if there is a time I can jump on a computer for just a second, I can write those things down, so that I can add you as a friend from whatever account I use?  Thanks Momma.

 

Oh and I got a few things from you, and others in the ward!  The letters that Sister Hood sent, as well as some cd's that Brother Pennington sent to me.  They're of his Mr. Mormon thing.  I really like them.  Ask him about it, and tell him that I said thanks! I've listened to all of them and they all offer some really good insight.  The letters were a bit bland, I'll be honest.  But I guess when your ward has one billion missionaries, they tend to be that way.  Isn't it super cool that we have one billion missionaries?  I think so.  It's also cool that all of my roommates are out, and basically all my friends.  Except my girl-friend. But that's okay.  She's not married yet.

 

Thanks for all the pictures! I love them.  I only have about an hour left, because I write so much to you, but I love you! And tell all the others sorry because I spend all my email time writing you.  I'm sure they hear enough about me from you, so that's okay.  You can always send things on to my sisters if they want stuff, even my boohoo letters.  (Laura told me.)

 

I'm doing okay.  Try not to worry about me too much.  I really am happy here, and I think I'm going to see a lot of success.  It just might be after Christmas when people open their doors again.

 

I love you! I'm super excited to talk to you next week!

 

Love, Elder Smart

So here's a few pictures I stole from Elder Tanner.

The first one is a canal boat 'town.'  People live on these boats and travel all over the country in canals.  This is one of the places that is like a meet up area.

The second one is my watch, and the sun going down. Depressing.

The third one is one of my favorites.  Me and Elder Tanner were on exchange, and we were up contacting this person in Lillington, and on the way to Lillington there's a BMX dirt course.  Elder Wrenger and Elder Houghton were always too wussy to do it with me, but Elder Tanner was down.  The only problem was that it rained the day before.  We might've done it twice cause it was so fun.  Don't worry, everything washed out.

The fourth one is of a cool hedge we saw.

Number five is a sign.

And the last one is a picture of the big church that the other elders live at.  Taken from a little town outside of the city.  Cool.  (The elders don't live at the church, just by it.)

Hey Mom!

I missed you for Thanksgiving as well.  I also missed the immense amount of food down in the "Cultural Hall."  We got a proper dinner though.  Two of the American families in the ward got together and invited us as well.  It was delicious.  And we had a good time.  There's no turkeys in England.

Actually I made that up.  I have no idea if there are any turkeys here.  There probably is.

The question about the lower case f's might be the oddest question I have ever read.  I have absolutely no idea.  Even if they did do that, I probably wouldn't notice.  Even if I did notice, I probably would attribute it to the specific person's handwriting more than the whole nation's writing style.  Just teach her proper American.

This week went by pretty fast, and I don't even know what to tell you about.  The pictures I sent to you weren't all taken this week, they were over the past three or four.  But they're good ones.  I like them a lot.  Especially the muddy ones.  Elder Tanner and I try to find all of those courses now. It's because we think we're cool.  And, pretty much, we are.

Brooke sounds like fun.  Elder Tanner and I were on exchange again this week, and I found out that he talks in his sleep as well.  He also told me that he usually falls asleep in a hoodie and sweat pants, but generally wakes up in just undies.  He says he has no recollection of undressing, it just happens.  He's really funny, and we get along really well.  He's a dork, and.. so am I.

Your own bed is a great thing.  In our "White Handbook" (the missionary rules) it says that we have to sleep in the same room, but we can't sleep in the same bed.  It makes me laugh every time.  

You can tell Spencer's kids that if they want to name their children after us, that I'm fine with it.  The more Coltons the better.  As long as they remember that I'm the alpha-Colton.  I miss all the family.  I've been a little reminiscent this week, with Thanksgiving and Christmas, and the extended family has been a part of Thanksgiving since I can remember.  I really loved going to St. George and playing with my cousins the whole week.  I wish we still did that.  But Arizona is cool enough.  We're going to have to make some traditions of our own though.  I'm still down with St. George.  Or we could do like a cabin! That'd be way cool.  We all go up to Daniel's Summit and go snowmobiling all week.  Deal. 

I've always been with you.  We're buds.  I remember flying down to Arizona with you as a kid.  Just me and you.  I never really knew why we were going, but I knew that it was fun and that I'd get to see Kevin.  Plus I got to go in a plane.  That was always a cool experience.  It still is.  Except over oceans, when you can't use electronics.  I think I'll only ever do that one more time.

Paul served here?! That's awesome!  I wonder if I know any of the members he knows.  There's not a lot of them, but I might know some of them.  He hasn't sent me anything, but I'd love to hear from him, and I'd really love to see some pictures. (Drawn, or photographed.)  I love pictures.

Did I send you the pictures that I had Elder Wrenger draw?  They're quality.  If not, tell me and I'll send them.

Painting is fun, but kind of boring after a while.  I've done a bit of that on my mission.  You wouldn't imagine all the weird skills I'm picking up out here.  By the end of my mission, I'll be able to do anything.  That glider is the biggest hassle in all the world.  I still don't know why you bought it.  I mean, it's nice, but nothing but grief has come from that.

Postcards!  Sorry, I've been holding on to them for forever, I just didn't really know what to put on them.. so I ended up just sending them the way I did.. With nothing on them.  Haha  I'm not sure that'll I'll go through the castle.  That'd be fun. But I don't really think it's worth £9.  Plus I think I'll only have one more P Day here.  I think I'm going to get transferred on the 11th.  I have no clues to back up that theory, but, I think that's what's going to happen.  And I think I'm going to Wales.  Hopefully Merthyr.  I want to go there pretty bad.  But really, I just want to go to Wales.  There are a lot of missionaries in Wales that finish their missions this transfer, so there's a lot of empty spots out there.  I think that's what's going to happen. I hope so at least.

Laura told me all about her ER experience.  That doesn't sound fun at all.  Maybe the Hospital Heroin, but not the pain.  Take care of my sister, please.

Patrick.  Well, last week I think I told you he might be baptized this week.  The member that was updating us turned out to be exaggerating a bit.  But he's still progressing.  I'm not sure he'll be baptized while I'm here, but I think it'll be soon.  Like within the next month or two.  He wants to choose a big day, and there's a few in the coming weeks.  Christmas, New Year's.. etc.  I think he'll choose to do it then.  But I don't think I'll be around to see.  We're going to see if we can't convince him just to do it this weekend.  That way we'll definitely be here.  That'd be good.

Hungary hasn't really said or done much for a while.  Hopefully she'll come back to reality when finals and stuff are over.  She is a student, so I understand, but this is still kind of her eternal salvation.. Agency, right? How annoying.

Me and my German actually are getting along a lot better this week, we're both kind of hoping to move at transfers, but we like each other.  I kind of want a change of scenery and faces, he wants to go to a flat that has a weightlifting bench.  Haha, I guess we'll see what happens.  He's from Dortmund, which is apparently a pretty big place.  He always says it's West-Center in the country.  So yeah.  I'm not really in a place where I can just ask him a million questions for you, and I'm not really sure why you want to know if he travelled a lot.  He's told me in the past that he did travel quite a bit, he said mostly to Egypt.  I'm not really sure why Egypt, but yeah.  He speaks German and English though.

Speaking of other countries though, we talked to this guy with some long black dreads, he's from Senegal, and we're going to meet up with him tomorrow.  I think he thinks that we're just going to hang out with him and go get a beer, but secretly we want to teach him the gospel.  We'll see how it goes.  His name is Vieux (Vee-uhh)  And he's in a reggae band.  Haha he looks a lot like Bob Marley.  We'll definitely get some pictures.  He's way cool.

Chatting isn't breaking rules.  Unless it's secret, unsaid rules that I don't know about.  It doesn't say anything against it in the rulebook, and I haven't been told I can't.  I don't see anything wrong with it. So.. yeah.  I'm going to continue to do it until some one tells me I can't.

I talk to Adrienne most weeks.  She does seem stressed.  I fasted for all my sisters yesterday, and Patrick, and this other Laura in my branch now, and myself, to have more energy, or to get better sleep, or something.  My sleeping sucks lately.  I think I'm a little stressed about missionary work, but I wake up about one million times in the night, and never actually feel rested.  I have no problem getting to sleep, but I don't remember the last time I stayed asleep all night.  If I was a baby, I'd keep you up all night long.  I've tried some really low strength over the counter drugs I got at Asda (Walmart) that they told me to try out, but they didn't do anything.  So.. I might ask them for some stronger stuff to see if I can knock myself out a little better.

This week was good though.  We had a lot of success, but a lot of people didn't show up to their appointments, or cancelled and told us they were happy with their lives.  They're not, I think they're just scared of the truth.  I've recognized that a lot of the time that's all my problem is.  I feel secure in the ignorance I think I have, and I'm scared to find answers.  But then I do, and then I'm accountable, and then I have to commit myself to what I figure out.  You cursed/blessed me with this mind of mine.  Good going.

Anyways, I love you Momma!  Have a great week!

Love,

Elder Smart