Hey everyone!
This week's picture explains the frustration of mine and Elder
Barkers' Friday afternoon. We had planned an exchange that day so that
he could get a little district leader training. We spent the morning at
another district meeting to give him ideas as to how he would like to
plan and conduct his own meetings. That went very well. After lunch we
were all ready to get to work. We attached the bike rack to their car,
fixed up the bikes and everything. All we had to do was shut the garage
door and leave. Well, you have to hold the garage door button from
inside the garage to close the door, then walk through the kitchen to
leave. The kitchen door wouldn't open. We couldn't very well leave until
the kitchen door opened, so that way we could close the garage and
leave through the house. It was very much a twisted puzzle to figure
out. We spent the next hour and a half trying to get the door open. The
knob turned, but the bolt wouldn't move or anything. We tried everything
we could think of short of kicking down the door (and that's not to say
that the thought didn't cross my mind...several times). Elder Barker
and I took out the door knob and tried to wiggle out the bolt. It
wouldn't budge. By some miracle it eventually opened. We quickly took
apart the rest of the doorknob and now there's just a hole in the door
of our kitchen to the garage. It was annoying more than anything,
because we had a whole afternoon to work. I think, though, that this
experience taught me more than an afternoon of knocking doors would have
done. I took the opportunity to point out to him what that experience
taught us. I can safely say that I've added a few tallies of life
experience to my board of problem solving, diligence, teamwork,
handiwork and patience.
Saturday morning was pretty cool. It was Surprise's community day
where people come together to clean the city. We went into old town
Surprise to paint houses and clean up yards. Elder Wood and I tagged
along with surprise 2nd ward as they went to a less active gentleman who
lives in West Point ward. His house needed a bit of work, and we had
been there earlier in the week to wash the side of the house to prepare
it for painting. We didn't have a whole lot of time to work, but I
managed to help plant a tree! There was a plot of hard dirt in the
corner of the yard where a tree was to be planted. I dug some of it out
and took a pick-ax to the dirt to loosen it so some little kids could
dig it out with shovels. The bishopric came around the corner with the
tree and dropped it in. It was a lot of fun to plant that tree. I wasn't
used to that kind of work so I was a little sore the next morning.
Elder Wood ad I drove by yesterday to see the house and it looked pretty
good. Nothing like a little yard work to start off the weekend.
Eric's been really sick lately and we haven't been able to meet
with him hardly at all. Elder Wood was able to teach Tim this week, but I
was on exchanges that day so I wasn't a part of that lesson. We had an
awesome church tour on Saturday with a woman named Robin. I had actually
met her last May when I was still with Elder Angelos. When we taught
her, it was like she just wanted to learn and had no intent behind it or
anything. We've started teaching her again and a lot has changed. We
took her on a tour of the church building this Saturday after the yard
work and had two sisters from the Copper Canyon relief society with us.
She loved the building. She LOVED learning about Relief Society. Every
time we bring an investigator inside the chapel, the reaction is always
the same. I love how they always comment on the peace they feel. We had a
wonderful lesson and she had great questions. She began to piece
together what it meant if she knew that Joseph Smith was a prophet. What
was really interesting was that she asked us a question that she had
taken to her church. Robin told them that this particular question came
up while talking with us. Not only did they completely ignore the
question, but they pretty much chewed her out for talking to us. All she
told us was, "I just want my question answered!" She commented how
she's church hopping and how she feels like there's something missing in
each one. The church tour was a great experience for all of us. She
wants to come to church, but work is keeping her busy and she may not be
able to come to church for over a month. I'm sure that the church tour
had a great and lasting impression on her, and I hope to see her at
church very soon.
We've got a really busy week coming up with zone leader council and
leadership training, and I'll be sure to tell you all about it next
week. Thanks for your letters! I hope all is well back home and I look
forward to hearing from you again real soon. Take care and be good.
Much love,
Elder Eric James Turner
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