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| Elder Thornton, Austin & Elder Kestner at Austin's Baptism |
Phew. 5 months sure does creep on people. Man, I have 19 months to go. Better make it great.
Great week here in Tomson, GA. We had a baptism this last Thursday. His name is Austin and loves being part of the youth program and has been for the last 7 months. He is a great young man. He was confirmed yesterday in Sacrament Meeting by Bishop Mitchell. He was then ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood in the office of Priest by his friends in the Priest's quorum. It was a testament to the love of his friends and fellow priesthood holders to ordain him. Austin's parents are not members but have definitely seen a change in their son as he has been immersed in the Gospel. My hope and prayer that he will be a light and a missionary to his parents that they may see the Gospel as he does.
Yesterday, we visited with an investigator named Becky. She is such a sweet lady in her 60s. Her husband passed away 2 weeks ago. They were together for 45 years. Her outlook on the death of her husband is one of hope and faith in the Lord. She has been meeting with missionaries for a year now. She loves missionaries and stays in contact with many of them. She reminds me of my grandmothers. Her home is nostalgic in the way that it reminds me of my own Grandma Becky's home in Longview, WA. We also brought a recent convert with us, Sister Pine. She and Becky hit it off. I see that Becky has started a new chapter in her life as she looks to eventually get baptized. I love her dearly and many of the missionaries call her grandma. I have no problem with that.
Myself and Elder Thornton are really hitting it off. We have many things in common. We have a similar sense of humor and outlooks on life. He has been out for a year and loves it. I may have mentioned before that he is also a District Leader. Which means I go on a lot of exchanges with other Elders as well. I will be going to Augusta tomorrow for exchanges with the Zone Leaders. It will be busy for me for the rest of the transfer with exchanges.
So, I am still working on getting my bike to full functionality. Wal-Mart did not have the right parts for my tires, so I will be looking in Augusta for a bike shop. Even with an 1,100 allotment of miles, we are still over for the month. When my bike is fixed and we hope to save more miles for other things.
I got your package and I loved it.
I believe I have an in-grown toenail. It is sensitive and reddish. I will wait to see if I get transferred out of the area to determine where I get treatment. I will let the new Mission Nurse know soon.
Anyways, have a great week mom and hope to hear from you soon!
Your son,
Elder A. Kestner
