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