The King of Queens

November 24, 2019

HOLA EVERYONE! I hope everything is going well back at home! Besides it being very windy, rainy, and cold, things are going great here, and I am starting to figure out the area and learn a lot more about the people. Elder Stanford told me one day that it was my job to do all the navigating, so I had to lead us onto the buses, subways, and through the streets. It was a little confusing but I am getting more and more comfortable with how New York works. I am loving it!

Here are some cool things I learned this week. The first one is, there is a movie called The Other Side of Heaven. Its about a guy that gets called as a missionary in Fiji. Well, in the 2nd movie, that same guy gets called as the mission president in the same mission, and he brings his whole family to live there. It turns out, my mission presidents wife is one of the daughters of that guy! So shes like, famous. Super cool! Also, I have met 2 other missionaries here that are from Tucson, Arizona. Elder Holmes and Elder Sullivan! I met elder Holmes in the Tucson temple because we worked together. But Elder Sullivan went to Marana High School, and I hadnt met him before now. But we have a lot of mutual friends. Small world! Also, I have been here for 2 weeks and I havnt met ANY Americans. Not a single one! I teach people from all over. Pakistan, India, Africa, Peru, France, Ecuador, El Salvador, you name it. Its really cool, and I am trying lots of new foods I dont even know how to pronounce.

This week was the ward Thanksgiving party! We had 3 people we were teaching show up, and the food was AMAZING. Latinos really know how to cook! They also played a lot of music, so I heard a lot of the music I used to listen to at home. It was weird. I didnt really like it that much haha. But overrall, the party was great. And Christmas is coming up soon, which means LIGHT THE WORLD! There is a Giving Machine in New York, and some missionaries are going to be assigned to work at the machine and help people use it. For those who dont know what a giving machine is, its basically a vending machine full of useful items, and whatever you buy goes to a person who needs it. Its really cool! We were given Light The World beanies as a conversation starter to tell people about it, and I cant wait for it to be Christmas time so I can actually wear it.

Elder Stanford and I had plans to meet with a nonmember family to teach them. But, they werent home (thats very normal here, New Yorkers never do what they say they will). We were discouraged a little, and stood on the sidewalk in front of their house while we thought of what we can do instead. While we were waiting and brainstorming, a guy came up to us. His name is Angel, and we have been teaching him the last few weeks. What a coincidence we ran into each other! We stood there on the sidewalk and taught Angel instead, and we learned that he had a friend that passed away THAT DAY. He asked where his friend went after he died, so we taught the plan of salvation. We made an emphasis on how baptism is necessary in order to live in the presence of God after this life, and we asked him if that is something he wants. He said yes, and we invited him to be baptized! He shared how he didnt think it was a coincidence that we ran into each other on the street, and that Heavenly Father wants him to be baptized because He put us in Angels path. We set his baptismal date on February 1st. We also invited a guy named Julian to be baptized as well, literally an hour after our experience with Angel. He said yes too, and is also planning on February 1st. We really hope both of these people keep their commitments. But honestly, from what I have learned, and have been told, New York isnt great at keeping commitments, so we will see what happens!

Update on Vidiana, from last week: She decided to go into a rehab facility to get professional help with her addiction to alcohol. She said she wouldnt have done that without our help. We thought she entered the 6 month program last wednesday, but yesterday we found out THAT SHE DIDNT GO. She was scared or something and didnt have the will power. So our new goal with her is to get her into rehab, and have the missionaries who are in this area teach her in 6 months.

I see so many miracles every day! I wish I could explain all of them in more detail but I don't want to be one of those people that writes obnoxiously long emails that no one wants to read haha. But my companion is phenomenal, my area is fantastic, and the weather is... bad. But I love it. Talk to you all more next week!

Elder Webster

PS. This is the 2nd week in a row I have seen human poop on the sidewalk.