June 17, 2012
Well....this is the office for ya! E-Mails that will come to you....when I can find time! I have never been so busy in my entire life!!! I thought senior year when I was working, and playing soccer I was busy....that was nothing compared to the office of the mission! Well, I'll start off with the highlights. I'm not a teenager anymore. Weird. I'm old. And now in the office, I'm kinda nervous my hair isn't going to see 21! Ha ha. It is kinda stressful here. But....my birthday was a weird but very cool experience! We started off the day with a meeting with Presidente, Hermana Rodriguez, and the senior couples in the mission. They started off by singing happy birthday--in English and Spanish! That was kinda fun to have Presidente sing happy birthday, and in English!! Ha ha ha. Hermana Ford made an upside down pineapple cake, and it was delicious! I'm sorry, but I haven't had time to make the cake you sent me yet...but thank you very much for the package...and the Texas Roadhouse gift card Dad.. I was hoping it was a scratch and sniff or something, so at least I could smell ribs and mashed potatoes, ha ha ha. But, it was a good birthday!! Grandma and Grandpa Thomson sent me Brownies...and wow!!! They were amazing!! Thank you! Also, Grandma Reeder sent me some great candies!! Thanks to everyone.
This week has been a learning experience--in a different way than the rest of my mission. Now, I am learning to love the missionaries. We are basically in charge of the temporal well being of the missionaries, and with 200 missionaries, there are quite a few things that come up! Our phone is always ringing off the hook. But, it really is a great experience to get to know lots of missionaries, and try to help them out in whatever way that I can.
This letter is going to be a little bit different than almost all my others, I'm just going to tell you a few crazy things that happened this week!
#1- We were in the office, trying to figure out a problem with a contract for a house, when the intercom rang. I picked up the phone and the guy told me, hey we have the mattresses you ordered. I asked, how many are there? 40. The next thing we knew, about 12 guys dropped 40 mattresses in the driveway of the mission home. I just kind of sat there and thought....uh....what now? Well, about 1 hour and a half and 1 liter of sweat later, we now have a house full of mattresses! But the plus, I have a nice comfy new mattress. Down side....it's a lot harder to get out of bed at 6:30.
#2- I saw a Lexus LFA. Dad will be the only one who understands this one. We took our Hilux to get the oil changed, and I glanced over and BOOM! Lexus LFA. I couldn't believe my eyes! I left my companion in the dust as I went to check it out. Wow. Okay, I still love cars.
#3- Saturday night, some Sister Missionaries called us and told us that they didn't have any water. Not even one drop to bathe themselves or do dishes....so it was office elders and assistants to the rescue! We got about 200 gallons of water in tanks in the back of our trucks and headed to their house. Well, as we were driving, an aguacero came! (Basically a flood.) Well, we then spent the next hour and pico hauling up 5 gallon buckets of water to the 4th floor, while it was raining! :) Service is great.
#4- Saturday morning on P-Day, we played basketball at President's house with him. He is dang good! He dominated us in the paint! He was throwing up no-looker hook shots, reverse layups, you name it--he did it. We got schooled by our mission president at basketball. Embarrassing? I think we just have an awesome President! Hermana Rodriguez then cooked us pancakes for breakfast. mmmmmmm
#5- I went bowling!!! Yes, that is a big deal! I didn't think that there was a bowling alley in the D.R., but there is...and we went!
#6- I have survived over a week of driving in the D.R.
#7- On Friday, to celebrate my year mark....we went to Johnny Rockets!!! Yes....bacon cheeseburger with BBQ sauce. (It was super expensive, can you look at my card to make sure it charged right?) (Also, today I had to buy some medicine for a sister missionary because it was an emergency, and we didn't have the mission credit card....)
Well family, thanks for everything! Your letters really keep me going when the weeks are long. Please let the Anderson family know that they are in my prayers. I just want you to know how grateful I am for the opportunity to share the gospel here in the Dominican Republic. I am so grateful for the things I have learned, and the changes I have seen in my life. I know that Jesus lives. He is our Savior, Redeemer, and our best friend. I know that The Book of Mormon is the word of God. I have received comfort from the words of the Book of Mormon countless times in the mission. I know that God has a plan for each and every one of us. I know that if we are faithful to our covenants, we will be able to live as an eternal family!
I love you all so much!
Elder Reeder
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