Elder Kessler Garrity

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2010-10-18T19:28:00.000-07:00

See you on Wednesday. I'll be counseling with you on my plans for home and I might not even be in Oregon on Nov 14th.....we'll figure it out.

2010-10-04T20:10:00.000-07:00

This week has been very busy and we really haven't had a lot of time to proselyte. We drove to Farmington (5 hours) for Zone Leader council, and then 5 hours back with MTC Jorgensen to go on exchanges. We utilized the assistants vehicle to go to the further areas away in our area and we didn't have much luck seeing anyone. Its was a good exchange, I had a blast. Elder Jorgensen and I talked a lot about home (poor Elder Smith) but it was good to talk to somebody 'cuz I try not to talk to my companion about it. No missionary wants to hear about it if it's not their last transfer. So then district meeting Thursday, a busy Friday and general conference! I very much enjoyed Elder Hollands talk, I did cry quite a bit :) I appreciate all that you have done to make my mission and my life possible. Thanks for everything, mom and dad. It really does mean so much to me. $10,000 would have taken so long to put together and I would have been late in my service. Thanks for providing AS WELL AS ALL THE OTHER PEOPLE WHO HELPED . I enjoyed quite a few talks at conference I must say. My many pages of notes had very little to do with anything on the mission. It's all focused for after. I've been a little worried of course, about the future but I have made many plans to succeed and stick with it. I heard a huge focus of importance on the basics (Elder Uechtdorf, in particular) and many talks on listening to the living prophet today. Looks like I got my answer :) as long as I stick with and do the daily things but take time to serve others, it will all turn out alright. I can definitely say I'm getting trunky as much as I don't let my companion know about it. I got my flight plans(TRUNK you OUT Of yOUr MiND) and I got a wedding invitation for Brenton Potter (my trainer) he is getting married in the Portland temple on the 22nd so I'll be just in time! Times going fast and I hope it stays that way or I'll pull out my hair :) Having fun and doing well!

2010-09-27T18:39:00.000-07:00

Life has been pretty swell. Elder Smith and I are still getting along great, the last transfers moving quickly, the area is still struggling a bit but we're doing what we can. I've been in contact with a few of my old friends lately, Andy has been emailing me, Letters still continue from Blake, and I just sent an e mail to Chris Lam. It's fun talking to them a little bit again. To answer some of dads questions: Flagstaff is about 45,000 population but with LOTS of students. Northern Arizona University is here in Flagstaff and they have a successful community college, so the student population is close to 20,000 no doubt. Its the biggest city that's closest to the Grand Canyon. It's mountainous here and looks a lot like southern Colorado, not quite Pagosa Springs but pretty close. Route 66 runs through here as a major thing so there are lots of tourists. There are 15 missionaries in Flagstaff and senior sisters. So there is quite a few of us. There's a lot of wards here but it isn't nearly as successful as Farmington just because there are lots of tourists and students. Its very nice here though, not your standard Arizona. its always about 75 degrees or less and the nights are getting cold. Not too many Pregonians here, but the people are almost as weird as Portlanders :) lots of free spirits but not nearly as many homeless people, I don't think I've even seen one! Look at that eh! Looking forward to getting to know the new place. I'm a little worried about my entrapment in the home without being able to drive stick, but I'll try to overcome that as quickly as possible! Doing great though, emailing a little earlier for we're heading back to Farmington today for Zone Leader Council. 5 hour drive so that will take up some time for these next two days, then we have exchanges with an assistant and General Conference. Looking forward to this week. Time is Flying! I'd love to have dad tag along to do some shopping for clothes. love you guys miss ya!

2010-09-20T17:42:00.000-07:00

Thank you mother for informing me on the days left :) I just try not to think about it too much and just go do the missionary thing. Time is going by really fast though. Plus we have zone conference this week, zone leader council in Farmington next week, exchanges with the assistants that week and general conference that weekend. Before I know it I'll have quite a little bit of time left. My plan for getting home will be to arrive in the airport then go out to eat at Changs and just spend the day with you two. Now I imagine you both have work the next day, so I'll be on my own, let me know if that's the case, if so I may have to call granny for some driving stick lessons! All is well here, not too much to say sides for the area needs work, Elder Smith and I are getting along great, times going quickly and my mind is very distracted from missionary work. I have been thinking a lot about how things will happen when I arrive home. I heard some good news today that the former Elder Condie may have a roommate in Provo moving out in December, I have a few ideas of crash pads from previous comps and friends in that area so I'm looking a lot into that. Life is good. Enjoying myself, and looking forward to p-day today.

Transfer to Flagstaff But did he leave an address? NO

2010-09-08T16:54:00.000-07:00

Well I am getting transferred for my last transfer to Flagstaff, Arizona. It will be a good last transfer, I'll be a zone leader out there and I leave tomorrow. Other than that, there's not too much to update you about. Thanks for all the info about whats going on back home and I told Sister Helquist ( in the office) to plug in my new address. Ill double check. I was thinking that I would like to actually schedule my homecoming talk in the Bethany Ward. I know there is a lot of families there who would like to know how my mission went and see me again. I hope that can all be figured out. I know it sounds quite trunky but I'll be wanting to know some information about certain things pertaining to home. Cell Phone, Electronics and other worldly items of importance :) but I'll take care of that in a few emails later. Being an assistant has been fun but it will be nice to get back into the swing of missionary work. Its weird that it has finally come, the last transfer! Ill keep you posted on everything.

2010-08-30T12:06:00.000-07:00

This week went pretty good. We stayed incredibly busy with lots of planning for different events that were coming up. The biggest task was the general authority meeting we had. Elder Niel L Andersen from the quorum of the twelve, Elder Gonzales from the presidency of the 70 and our area authority came to speak to us. It was neat to shake Elder Andersen's hand, he is a funny guy and I really enjoy Elder Gonzales, hes really down to earth. So we had to have all the senior couples take in missionaries from the outlying zones in our mission. So between the travel news confusion and concern of the missionaries, things got pretty hectic. The other 3 assistants drove down to Gallup to pick up all the missionaries in that zone and I stayed in Farmington to guide every one who came in. 30 missionaries stayed in our house, senior couples were confused, my vehicle was borrowed by other missionaries and my companion forgot to give me the phone. Things were only slightly chaotic :) Everything worked out though and it all was organized. I helped drive down more elders to Gallup after the meeting as well. That has kept us quite busy this week. The meeting was good though, I received some spiritual insight about aspects of missionary work and it really got me excited for general conference. We have also begun to work on transfers. Its been going great but I already know my transfer news!! I cant tell you it though, so I will when the time comes (next week). I'm looking forward to it, it will be a good last transfer. All in all things are going good, today should be a lot of fun, I'm looking forward to all the activities we have planned to do together as assistants. Were going to play quite a few games! Sounds like your weekend went great, that is an awesome experience with Larry's baptism and the sealing. Also the sealing of the deal on the house. It was too bad I missed it, by what I've read, it was an incredible spiritual experience. The 95 jetta sounds fine, I don't know how to drive manual but I will learn, I need to learn anyway that will be good for me. What color? maybe send a picture? hows the gas mileage? let me know if you need anything, I got both of your letters, mom and dad, and thanks for all the support!

2010-08-23T15:48:00.000-07:00

This week was pretty neat. We started it off with lots of planning for our calender and things upcoming in the mission. After planning some travel for a big general authority meeting we went out on exchanges. I did exchanges in Flagstaff Arizona, Gallup and here in town with my MTC companion Elder Shaw and Elder Gregson. It turned out to be a pretty fun week that just zoomed by. Flagstaff is a very beautiful place. You know, I think it will be quite the shocker to be in Oregon again, it will be too green for me to even comprehend. Exchanges were great though, it was cool to get to know other missionaries in our mission a lot better and get to participate in some travel around the mission. The general authority meeting will be great. Later this week on Saturday, Neil L. Anderson is coming to our mission as well as members of the presidency and quorum of the 70. I'm looking forward to being in the presence of an apostle, it will be neat. The only trick is that we have to get all the missionaries around the entire mission to stay in Farmington on Friday night. We have it all put together now, it will just be the chaos of every one being jumbled around. I like the planning I do and the things we work together to do but I probably won't be an assistant this next transfer, we'll see what ends up happening. I'm anxious to work on tranfers this next week. I'm doing great though, I'm not really in need of anything, I'm pretty sure I can make my stuff last another transfer until it all gives up in the end. :)

2010-08-16T08:27:00.000-07:00

That's too bad that Grandad and Judi were accidentally left out of my list of whose supporting me. I know I've appreciated the letters and things I have from them as well as other support. You'll have to send me pictures of the new home, I'm sure its very pretty up there in Scappoose, the green may send me into shock. We had quite the drive yesterday from Kayenta to Farmington. That area of northern Arizona is quite beautiful in its on way, we were about 15 minutes from monument valley. It was neat though to talk to Elder Forscheler (coming from page through Kayenta) because he was Blake's (Kessler's best friend who is serving in Arizona) companion for 6 weeks, so I had already heard about him. It was nice to talk to some one who really enjoyed his companionship and hated to see him go. They really enjoyed Kayenta and I think Blake wouldn't mind going back through when the time comes. So that was probably the biggest event of the week, that road trip there. Other than that we have just been cleaning up some unused apartments, planning some stuff and this week we'll be setting up a calender. I like it though, it keeps me busy. I don't expect to be an assistant next transfer, President wants to move it down to two assistants and I would rather just be a regular missionary some where. I'm fine with whatever though. Enjoying it all, the stress levels have gone down quite a bit and we may be doing exchanges this next week and then we have a general authority meeting on that Saturday, time is flying!

2010-08-07T20:52:00.000-07:00

This week went well, sorry for the Saturday email but we have a tremendous amount of meetings on Monday. We have been learning a lot about how we teach this week. We are receiving new training from the first presidency through our mission president. He's learning too but he's much better at it than us! It's basically placing more focus by asking a lot more important questions, and really ditching the idea of a "lesson" and applying it more to teaching to needs. It's a goal we've always had and strive for but this is helping a lot! I like the adjusted teaching strategies we are learning and we've been applying them into our area already. Its always odd being very humbled by certain circumstances. I felt like a very successful teacher and that others were learning about the gospel but with these new things to learn I feel like there is a lot of growth to be had. Us 4 assistants have drawn very close to each other and have become very good buddies already. We are all on the same page and working towards helping each other. It sure helps a lot.

2010-08-02T11:52:00.000-07:00

As I have promised, I will try to make my email a little longer and more detailed this week. I may have time every once and awhile to write a letter but thank you for understanding. That's awesome to here that things have been provided for my mission, my thanks definitely goes out to those who have helped and the blessings the Lord brings. I did receive all the b-day letters and whatnot that was sent :) I've been doing great though and holding up well. Monday was a lot of fun last week. I didn't get much time for myself but spending the day and night with some old mission pals going home was a lot of fun. It was nice to just talk to them all again, see how they're feeling and say some good byes. Transfers went incredibly smooth for just us assistants putting it all together. It was a success! Other than that, a new missionary went home which was really sad. It's too bad because he was an awesome kid, I'm going to try to stay in contact with him and he plans to return. Dealing with that though involved exchanges, lots of driving and some reflection. This week I have been thinking a lot about all sorts of stuff. Life is swell though and being an assistant is a good experience. We had an awesome thunderstorm last night with tons of lightning. It was fun to watch, its funny how in Oregon it rained so much but we never seemed to have crazy lightening storms. I enjoyed the rain though and got to see some sweet lightning moments. All is well with me, I don't need anything at the moment and things seem to be going good. After some meeting planning and training I should be able to go out on exchanges and look forward to that. Miss you and love you!

love,

2010-07-26T10:33:00.000-07:00

Another crazy week as an assistant, I don't have a lot of time to email today, I'm with some departing missionaries who really don't have much to say to their families, I'm sure. I have decided that while I am an assistant I have no time to write consistent letters. I'll try to make my emails home more detailed and more full of information but you probably wont be getting letters from me while I'm AP. This last week has been crazy, we developed travel news, finished transfer news, got agenda's going for everything going on, planned what the new missionaries will do and all sorts of stuff. I'm loving it though. We also had a family of 3 get baptized this Saturday as well. Its awesome to be part of both sides of missionary work, though it is pretty dang hectic! I'm having a good time though. I'll admit, it does make me feel a little trunky when I'm messing around on a laptop for hours in the office. I do miss my computer screen time ;) Sounds like you had a great week. Ill try to keep you posted!!

2010-07-12T13:18:00.000-07:00

Some very interesting news. I received a call on Saturday afternoon and was called to be an acting assistant to President Jones. There are four of us missionaries that are assistants at the moment, two originally from the Mesa and Pheonix, Arizona mission. We have already had a meeting or two with President Jones and are working to combine the mission in unity. There are a lot of adjustments to get made and we are all working to find a common ground. I'm back in Farmington now, i have no idea how long. You'll have to mail me through the mission office address. Things are definitely mixed up. I have a new companion now, Elder Jorgensen, from the Mesa, Arizona mission. We just established that companionship today. So I guess I'm in a completely different place now. I'll have to keep you posted. My package sending to you is a little delayed, I'll get around to it eventually. Thanks for the birthday stuff and everything, I'll try to get a little more detail in about stuff next week. Keep you posted!

2010-07-08T08:09:00.000-07:00

"Fort Wingate is an alright place, dusty, brown and empty. The area will take awhile to learn so I hope it will be made know to me quickly. My place is not too shabby of a place. It is pretty old and run down though some of the cabinets are hand painted chunks of ply board (some unpainted). I like this place though, we have an air conditioner so that's good enough for me. Comfy couch, beds and a big desk. Who could ask for more? The shower nozzle is removable and such but our water pressure can lack some days. The apartment is know as "the cottage" in the mission. Elder Dahl and I are getting along great! I've know Elder Dahl since. . .. .Kirtland I think. We're having a lot of fun already. I'm glad I get to be his final companion. We've already shared a lot of laughs and we're a good zone leader combo. The zone leader thing isn't much different just extra phone calls, preparing instruction for meetings and dealing with number reports. I don't mind."

2010-06-28T11:10:00.001-07:00

I described my new place in the letter I sent off this morning, gave you the layout, an outside sketch, etc. But thanks for asking some questions. I do not need a Navajo Book of Mormon, I actually have one in my suit case but pretty much no one speaks the language any more. The language will die in probably two generations :( I wouldn't be surprised if it disappeared off the face of the earth. A zone leader just deals with instruction at meetings, number reports, extra phone calls and the like. It will be just fine for me. I'm in the new mission as of July 1st, New Mexico Farmington mission. Blake (Davis) is in the Pheonix Arizona mission as of July 1st so he is stuck down south in the city. Other than all that, I don't know if the transfer schedule will get mixed up, I think it all depends on when we are going to receive new missionaries from the MTC. Once we know that we'll set up a new transfer schedule, I'm sure. Exciting times in the mission field. Just Jalapeno chips and money is more than fine for me for my b-day, you can even save the money for later instead. As far as a quick update on my companion, his name is Elder Dahl, he's from Utah, has four siblings, 3 bros, one sister and he fals in the middle. He just turned 22 yesterday. We are having a blast and doing great! Love you guys!! you'll have a package with a piece of memorabilia and my winter coat coming soon!

2010-06-21T10:36:00.000-07:00

This week hasn't been too bad, the weekend was mainly full of good byes. I received my transfer news. I'm getting transferred to Ft.Windgate, New Mexico. I'll be a zone leader on the reservation. I know my new companion, Elder Dahl, and he's awesome. It's his last transfer so it will be my first kill! You probably won't get a letter this week, I'll try to get my address and send it away real quick. By the way the new mission office address is:

New Mexico Farmington Mission Office
400 W Apache St
Farmington, NM 87401

My new president is Elder Spencer V. Jones. He'll be here July 1st.

I know it will only be a short time but you might want to get that changed on the bulletin so I don't get all my mail sent to Albuquerque. Elder DeMille and I will miss each other, we had a really fun companionship. Hes going to be a trainer so I'm excited for him. I'll be on the lookout for some navajo stuff for you mom! Miss you guys!

2010-06-15T06:58:00.000-07:00

This week hasn't been too bad. Probably the neatest thing was that our recent convert, Kyle McGuire, received the Aaronic priesthood this Sunday. It was neat to participate in that. It brought back a lot of memories from being a priest and assisting in the ordaining of a new quorum member. The church really is a church of order and run by the priesthood. Its organization is flawless and assists so much in the progression of the church. I'm so grateful for having the opportunity to carry it. Kyle is just so excited about the church and being a part of it and the like. The weather has had some rain carried into it and more clouds (yay). I really do miss Oregon weather, I like rain and clouds and such but i
I'm glad I'm not there on a mission, I'd get sick of getting soaked. Elder DeMille and I are doing great but we're both just worried about transfers. Anything could really happen here, so we're both a little sketched out by what may be the result. There's no predicting this one! Let you know the news next week!

2010-06-07T19:34:00.000-07:00

Kessler and his companion helped slaughter a cow and skin it and cut it up.

This week went pretty well. Elder Demille and I are doing great and enjoying each others company. This transfer has gone by pretty fast, were beginning week 5 of the transfer, which means we get the last transfer news before the mission split in less than two weeks!! kinda crazy, Ive been waiting for this split and change way too long and its only a month away! We had an opportunity on Saturday to help cut up the meat from the butchered steer and eat some! It was quite an experience to see the whole process, I really haven't handled that much raw meat before! looking at some of those steaks made me pretty hungry though. We got a little bit of hamburger from the family we helped and I cooked up some burgers for Elder Demille and I. They were pretty good, Ive been cooking a lot more, too bad we don't have a grill...Life is swell, the work is alright, just getting antsy for the news.

2010-04-26T17:15:00.000-07:00

Well this week hasn't been too bad. I'm copying off my journal and sending some pictures out tomorrow for you so you can read up on all the filler info before phone calls. The week after this one is going to be very short, we have temple day, p-day and district meeting that week and phone calls the following Sunday. We had a great thunderstorm this past week, I really do love those! miss you guys lots!!

2010-04-19T18:14:00.000-07:00

This week went well. I received some mail from Grandad and Judi and Granny and Ed. I'm glad to know I'm still loved and noticed :) and I really appreciate hearing from anyone! Pagosa Springs is doing fine. To answer Dad's question we get around by truck and I'm driving still. I haven't done anything to lose my driving privileges :) We have a Chevy Colorado (our standard mission truck) and it's white. I'll have to get a picture of it, I suppose. The weather is getting pretty nice here, it's starting to heat up to the 60's and low 70's. It's getting quite green here though. It reminds me a lot of sun river. Thanks for the pictures of the twins I can't wait to be sucked into babysitting those two he he. The work is still going pretty good, we're working with this family of 3 that is soo dang close, they're picking a date right now with their extended family. Awesome! I love when people truly care and desire for the gospel in their lives, instead of us having to show them how important it can be. I emailed back sawyer, we still keep in good contact. Love you guys!

2010-04-12T12:01:00.001-07:00

We had an awesome family come to church this Sunday. They are so close to baptism, we'll probably both be here when they do get baptized. I love hopping into areas at what feels like just the right time. Its actually not too bad here as a whole. In my letter I included a map of my crib and a very skeletal map of Pagosa. When you go other places in this world there is no green like the oregon green. Yep, the missionary work should be good. I'm just glad Elder Demille is experienced enough to know what's happening and knows the area well, makes it easy for me

Tomorrow we have zone conference, always really good, and it will be a busy and long day. We live pretty far away from Durango but it will be good to stop in and get some stuff we need! We have some great investigators here and some less actives that have begun to attend church. This area has a lot to do, I'll just have to learn it quick. If Elder DeMilles leaves at the end of this transfer I better be aware of everything so I can save us miles and be smart with the work. Lovin' it up here and having a great time. Still studying general conference and getting a lot out of it all.

I've Arrived in Pagosa Springs

2010-04-05T16:38:00.000-07:00

I'm enjoying Pagosa Springs already. It's a small little vacation town (gets busier in summer when snowbirds return and people visit for summer) but there is already some individuals I look forward to serving around and being able to teach. Elder Demille will be a good comp. He's from Everett, WA and he's pretty fun. I'm grateful to have a companion that is aware of missionary work. We'll definitely appreciate this transfer, it will be fun and successful! General Conference was great, I'm looking forward to getting deeper into my notes and picking a few things to work on in this upcoming 6 months before the next one. I sent a letter off to you guys this morning. The new place is pretty good. We live in an apartment above the bishop's garage, its pretty nice. I'm glad I've always been blessed with really nice apartments and places to live in.

My address is 30 Ponderosa Dr. , Pagosa Springs, CO 81147

Transfers

2010-03-29T21:54:00.000-07:00

I'm getting transferred to Pagosa Springs Colorado! I'm waaay pumped to go, it should be a lot of fun. The area isn't too bad but my companion is going to be tight. Elder Potter just left that area six weeks ago and he said he loved it, so I've talked to him about it. General Conference,Temple day , my 18 month mark, and mothers day phone call this transfer CrAzY! I thought I'd just let you know where Im going, my comps name is Elder DeMille. I'll send a letter with my address soon and some more info!

2010-03-15T19:18:00.000-07:00

“This week hasn't been too bad, just the regular ups and downs. I think these last two weeks of the transfer are a good opportunity to really work harder with elder Lancaster. Thanks for working up a package for me, I know the stuff I want isn't cheap but that's probably why I need it . I'm saving up more and more money though for when I step off the plane, I realized I'm going to need some expensive things for school. I'm going to need a really nice camera and a mat cutter($$$) but hopefully I can just get some things going. All in all doing just fine, sending a letter out tomorrow morning :) Having a great day though and just surprised at this transfers quickness.
Life on the mission is still life on the mission, its interesting how it just became who I am and what I do so quickly. It changes so fast that you can't even tell that you're changing. I've been a real bum about pictures though, I'm going to make that a goal to take more pictures here towards the end of my mission, I need to be a lot better about it. Our wards are also having some pinewood derby races here soon and I'm going to make a car :) It should be a lot of fun. I'm glad a lot of the members appreciate us as missionaries and know that we still like to have a little fun. We helped with a primary activity on Saturday and that was fun too :)”

2010-02-22T19:42:00.001-08:00

This week hasn't been too bad. Elder Lancaster, my new greenie, seems to be doing fine. It snowed some more today but if it doesn't keep up it will be gone before we know. The college was closed so were are here at the library and we barely get 30 minutes. Thank you for forwarding Sawyers email, it's good to hear he's doing good. Comp challenges are probably the hardest issue of missionary work. It's really hard to feel the spirit and teach in unity when your comp is bugging the heck out of you. But Sawyer is right, the most important thing to do with those people who may be hard to get along with is serve them, love them but also to let them know how they affect you to a certain point. A lot of people in this world never know how much they really bother others until some one lets them know! This week for missionary work was alright. After the investigators we've dropped, we really don't teach too many lessons at the moment and our area will be knocked out soon enough. We'll see where it takes us, there's always some success around the corner :)

2010-02-21T09:33:00.000-08:00

"I am staying in Farmington 2nd Ward and training another missionary! We received a ton of information about mission boundary changes. (The church is creating a new mission called the Farmington, New Mexico Mission on July 1, 2010) Things will change quite a bit. Each new mission will have a new mission president. The Farmington mission is pretty much reservation only, give or take a few cities (Moab, Silverton, Monticello) and I don't know which ones in Arizona. Pretty big news! The work in this area has slowed down tremendously. We've dropped a lot of investigators but I know Heavenly Father will put new ones in our way. "

Six Month Area

2010-02-09T16:46:00.000-08:00

"This week hasn't been too bad. It was much faster and more busy than last week. It's always good to have weeks that at least feel more successful at the end. I can't believe it is week 5 of the transfers already. This one has gone by pretty fast. It's also strange to think that if I stay one more transfer this will be a 6 month transfer area.
As far as good spiritual stories. . .was actually a visit we had last night at a less active's home, a Navajo fella. As we were visiting he shared his conversion story with us. It sounds like the gospel really changed him, got him involved in the community and with his family. He just hasn't come to church much. Its nice to meet genuine people, it seems there is more genuine less active people than any other people I've visited on the mission. They're usually honest why they don't attend. It's nice to get a real story rather than excuses.
Keep up the letters, I do love receiving mail. It's sure nice. Mission is going great . . still learning lots, especially on a personal level."

2010-02-02T18:08:00.000-08:00

I'm driving an 08 Chevy Colorado at the moment( our mission trucks) and no chains. Its not that bad in our area. It has snowed quite a bit but the roads have been clear. It rained a few times and that's cleared most the stuff up, now its just getting incredibly muddy, just like last year in Aztec. All the dirt roads are swamped over with pools of water and mud ruts but I hope it goes away soon, that mud can be killer and a mess!! I'm getting fed great, no complaints about any dishes just the fancy stuff that people put in salad. I just like a large variety of leaves, no tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, beets, broccoli and all that related junk. It messes salads up in my opinion! Oh and don't get me started on fancy salad dressings and light salad dressings UGH!! Just put some ranch on the table for goodness sake!

2010-01-25T18:07:00.000-08:00

This week, due to the snow storm, our general authority meetings were cancelled! We didnt get to hear from Richard G Scott and there was no information about a rescheduling of the events and the stake meetings here. I was really looking forward to being spiritually enlightened by an apostle of the Lord. :( Thats okay though, its a blessing to be on the mission anyway. So this week was a little slower due to the snow and driving in Farmington can be pretty crazy because snow doesn't happen very often here. Plus, the La Plata highway in our area was covered with more snow and icy. That eliminated a few options. Since most of the snow has melted the roads are clear. However, now that the sky is clear its VERY cold and there's lots of chilling wind.
Elder Ulrich and I are doing just fine!!!

2010-01-18T14:01:00.000-08:00

". . . We still get fed tons, the members here are great and unlike Sawyer, I'm basking in luxury with a hot shower. As far as me, I feel like time is going really fast but I don't think Ill recognize its time to go when its actually too late! It's been fun training and all but I'll be happy when I'm not training for a transfer, its a little more stressful missionary work when you're trying to learn how to teach people as well as your greenie. Anyway, a big event is that Richard G Scott will be coming to our mission this weekend. I'm extremely excited to get to hear from him. We have a special missionary meeting between 2-5 on SAT. I hope we get extremely chastised and corrected, it will help us missionaries and it will really help the wards around here. All in all, life has been swell, doing great and having fun."

2010-01-11T15:26:00.000-08:00

This week has been pretty good, I sent your letter off this morning so you'll
hear a little bit more about Elder Ulrich. Thank you for all the positive
comments, its good to hear that I'm not doing too bad here in the mission :) I
don't try to be bummed very often so I'm glad my optimism carries me through a lot
of stuff.  The week hasn't been too bad, it took Elder Ulrich a little while to
figure out our area isn't terribly busy but things are still going really good.
I'm so glad I was blessed to be in a very slow area at the beginning of my
mission. Its amazing that now we are considered a slower area and yet are still
teaching quite a few investigators and have some people progressing towards
baptism. I really hope Elder Ulrich gets to see a baptism while he's here in the
area. I'm doing great though, enjoying it all and looking forward to the
transfer, they keep going really fast!

2010-01-05T20:08:00.000-08:00

"Transfer news has arrived. I am staying in Farmington 2nd ward but Elder Gregson
is leaving me. Hes going down south to a place called Los Alamos. From what I
hear it is home to some very intelligent people. It is a bomb testing type
area or something like that, should be cool, his companion is a really good one.
I am training again so I go down to ABQ tonight to pick up my "greenie" tomorrow morning.
It'll be fun to train again BUT I really hope I'll stay 3 more months in this area. I'll keep my fingers
crossed! "

December 7, 2009

2009-12-07T15:16:00.000-08:00

"After reading Sawyers lengthy update, I feel like a bum!
My emails are probably to short but at least I keep some
letters coming in. Should have some Christmas cards
coming soon enough if we get them printed today. A lot of
things adding up for the holidays! Bought Elder Gregson
some fun stuff for his stocking, he should like it! Im excited for
Christmas, it sure is a lot of fun to be in the mission during the
holidays.
My relationship with Jesus Christ, understanding the
atonement and having an attitude of
gratitude for everything Heavenly Father
has provided me with is the biggest strength to me in
the mission as well as an individual in this life. The gospel
brings true happiness, I've seen it in my life, Ive seen it in
those who discover what the gospel has done for them. Well, I'll
look way forward to Christmas packages and yes, mother, I do
 remember "To many Babas"." *
*To Many Babas is a book about how to many grandmas come
and ruin the soup - I was expressing my hope that there
wouldn't be to many grandmas in Utah for Christmas!

November 30, 2009

2009-11-30T17:08:00.000-08:00

"Thanksgiving wasn't too bad, I didn't realize how much I miss the
turkey trot! (Our family tradition of running/walking a mile at the track
before dinner).  We had dinner at a family's and packed down
 dessert and got back in time to go eat
dessert at another members house, so yes mother,
I had more than an extra slice of pie for you. After eating
we played a game of settlers of Catan (its a fun board game about
getting resources and expanding to get the most points). I took
the victory, then we had had to go and get some rest, we were beat!
I heard something pretty interesting today.  I was
talking to a member from Kirtland at their store and they
mentioned that one ofthe recent converts spoke in sacrament
 meeting and talked a lot about my influence on their family
as a missionary. I was surprised to hear it,
but it really makes me recognize how wonderful this work is,
to carry the spirit to people and have them feel of it, it really is a
blessing of happiness."

Elder Garrity

Interesting Dream

2009-11-17T19:12:00.000-08:00

Note from Mom:
I had an interesting dream in which the mission president gave permission
for Kessler to come home and get engaged and
then returnto the mission field.  He had
bleached his hair blond and was very tan.

"Life is pretty good. Elder Gregson and I are getting along very
well and we can't believe this is the last week of this transfer. It seems
strange that time just keeps going faster and faster. That is a pretty darn
funny dream. I dont know if I'll come back blondy-top and dark tan but I'll see
what I can do to accomplish becoming more handsome haha. Maybe it
was a vision, I'll ask my mission president about engagement
 on the mission ;) hehe."

Sick

2009-11-10T07:04:00.000-08:00

Elder Garrity spent the week getting to know his companion well because he was sick (Elder Garrity). They seem to get along well. The new area in Farmington is not as "ripe" as Kirtland where they enjoyed baptisms almost every other Saturday.

Transferred to Farmington

2009-11-08T12:49:00.000-08:00

Elder Garrity has a new address.

Elder Garrity
201 Taylor Dr.
Farmington, NM 87401

It's A Miracle

2009-03-12T11:30:00.000-07:00

Rick's friend Mark Dayka who moved to New Mexico about a year ago happened to have a job in Aztec two blocks away from where Elder Garrity and Elder Condee's apartment is. He stopped by to see him and took some pictures. I tried to leave a message with the mission home to get a referral to Elder Garrity with Mark's phone number. I didn't have much faith in the system because the kind sister who answered the phone told me he wasn't living in Aztec but in Bloomdale. I told her I was pretty sure he was in Aztec as that was where we were sending the letters. I'm not quite sure she understood any of the message I was trying to give her but the referral ended up with Elder Garrity and the bottom line is he and Mark hooked up. Several years ago Mark took a Book of Mormon and was reading it but fell in love with a born again christian who he is now divorced from. It was interesting Mark titled the e-mail "It's a miracle" but we all know it wasn't and I have a sneaky suspicion that is one of the reasons why Kessler is in New Mexico.

2009-02-22T07:59:00.000-08:00

Kessler has a new companion named Elder Condie, hey, same first name as Kess. Turns out they all have the same name. He says they've set some new goals and are praying for contacts and praying that the members will have new contacts. They continue to work with a few investigators. Write him at the same adress in Aztec as below!!!!!