Conference and a Future Roadtrip

Sarah and Lauren Graham came to Utah for Conference and spent an afternoon with us.
Our dog, Joe, who is a little challenged when it comes to people skills,
allowed Lauren to get close enough to pet him - which is a really big deal.

Sarah and Lauren Graham came to visit from Fairfield, California. They are one
of Elder Ellis's favorite families!

Hey Mom!

Wow, so where to begin... Well it's a brand new transfer and I have a new companion, Elder Corn. Like I said last week, I already know Elder Corn because he was my District Leader in Crescent City, and since the six of us were so isolated up there, we spent a lot of time with each other. So it's strange being his companion now, but we get alongreally well. He has changed a lot since we were in Crescent City. He is a lot more optimistic and cheerful than when I knew him before so it's much easier to be around him now. Not to mention I'm always having a good time with my roommates. I love my apartment, we are always laughing so hard. Elder Milne, Elder Huff, Elder Corn and I are all super compatible and often speculate what a long road trip with the four of us would be like, and we came to the conclusion that it would be ridiculously entertaining.

So something really cool happened at transfer devotional. I love that meeting solely because I'm able to see all the missionaries I've served around so far and catch up with them. Something really cool that happened there was I ran into Elder Wilson from my ward in South Jordan, Utah! Turns out that after he left on his mission to somewhere in South America (I can't remember where) he got sick and had to go home. After putting his papers in again he got called to my mission! So I was able to see him at Transfers. It was super cool seeing him again, given I only knew him for a couple of weeks before he left on his mission. I was also able to see some of my favorite missionaries: Elder Christiansen, Elder Haynie, Hermana LemMon, Elder Gasu, just to name a few. I love Missionary reunions, it's always so much fun to catch up with an old companion and share stories and reminisce!

Mom, that is so cool that you were able to meet, even a part of, one of the coolest families in Cordelia 2nd. I mean there are so many cool families in that ward, but I think I really connected with the Graham's and it's definitely on my priority list to keep in contact with them. And I can't BELIEVE that Joe let Lauren get near him! I can't even get that close to that little weirdo! That is just too funny.

So unfortunately Elder Corn and I have been having some car troubles as of late and our Corolla is incapacitated. First we needed to get one of our tires changed, so we take it to an auto shop in San Rafael and long story short, we wait there for 3 hours and leave with all the same tires that we went in with... So because of miscommunication we wasted a lot of time. That was a bit of a bummer. And then the next day the check engine light came on again after we had fixed it the first time, and we took it to the Toyota dealership to get it fixed, and we still are without car. But it's okay, because no matter how many car problems we have, the church is still true.

I wasn't able to see "Dare to Serve" between Conference sessions on Sunday. I know Elder Mallory was in it. Elder Mallory was serving in Fairfield at the same time I was, although he was in a different ward. We lived in the same apartment complex so I got to see him quite a bit. He's only a transfer ahead of me so we'll be heading to BYU-Idaho at the same time. I love that guy, we hit it off so quickly.

That is so cool that Ellen Frederickson was called to serve in Louisiana! I didn't even know she was considering a mission! When does she leave? Have fun with the gators and the mosquitos!

I loved General Conference and took so many notes on it! I got a blister from holding the pen for so long! We watched the second session at the Stricklings, though the rest of it was at the stake center. I noticed that they talked a lot about helping the poor and the needy in this Conference. I loved Elder Holland's talk on it, and how he pointed out how much the Savior loved the disadvantaged and the needy. He himself, the creator of the universe, was homeless. That was pretty powerful for me. They also gave a fair amount of attention to fortifying our testimonies to be prepared for whatever may try to shake them. This is true now more than ever. In this day and age, there seems to be so many things that may instill doubt and uncertainty about things we hold sacred. So many things try to grab our attention and sway our opinions to their favor. Media, advertisements, and people alike all may have intentions to plant a seed of disbelief and pull us away from the truth. We need to be ready to combat these inevitable situations by building up our testimonies now. I know that we can build a spiritual barricade to ward off the things that try to tear our testimonies down, just by doing simple things like praying, scripture study, and attending church. Then we can put on the whole armor of God and be given the protection he intended us to have.

Well, sorry this is so late! I had a really busy day. We had a zone barbecue on Rodeo beach and it took a lot of preparation and we had to speed though the day to get there early enough to start cooking but we had sooo much fun! You know it was a good day when you have a huge headache by dinner. Pictures to come! Love you all!

Love, Elder Hayden Ellis