A letter from "baby face" - June 16th, 2009
Every letter I get from Elder Kenning leaves me a little teary eyed. It is like I can hear his voice in his letters. I miss him so much. I am also very thankful for him. He is such a wonderful son. Of course, what else would expect a mother to say, right? :)
Dear Family,
This past week has flown by. I only have 2 more weeks here at the mtc. Isn't that exciting? It's not like I am counting down the days until the real fun begins, well kind of but I have been learning so much and I want to put all of my knowledge to good use.
So where should I start off? Well I guess the beginning is good so let's start there. On Tuesday I got to hear from President Diedier. He was awesome. He is of the Quorum of the 70, and he has a crazy combover. It was weird listening to him because both him and his wife are from Bulgaria so they have a weird accent.
On Saturday I had another fun experience with TRC (where they record your presentation). My companion and I did much better, we had to answer some pretty tricky questions like "If you say I can receive personal revelation formyself, than why do I need a prophet?" And of course it is all in Portugeuse so it makes things that much more tricky.
This week I got letters from the Bryants and the Abaroas. That was really exciting. The Bryants even sent pictures, so I got to see some of the crazy mini golf holes that you set up.
Here at the MTC they have made a lot of changes. It seems like the church is preparing for something. They have cut our budget by 20% TO ELIMINATE EXCESS EXPENDITURES. mOST OF IT ISN'T BAD, BUT INTERESTING. aLSO JUST YESTERDAY THEY ANNOUNCED TO ALL THE LEADERS TO NOT ALLOW HANDSHAKING, HIGH FIVES, ETC... IN THE mtc anymore. They Say they are doing this to stop sickness being spread around so much. They recommend 'elbow bumping' instead. But our district thinks we should just give each other 'good games'. My district has nicknamed me 'baby face'. They say I look so young and that I never grow any facial hair. I don't mind because I don't have to shave every morning like they do.
Well on Sunday night my mission president came and spoke to us. He is a really funny guy, he reminds me a lot of Dad so I think we will get along great. He has 12 kids, but only 4 are living with him now. Afterwards I got to talk to him and his wife and they said to me at least 5 times, "I hope you're ready for lots of work" Apparently a lot of Elders have left for home and there is a lot of work being done. Which is good, I don't want to waste any time.
How is Grandma and Grandpa doing? I think it is really funny that Grandpa is being a social butterfly and making lots of friends. From the sounds of it this place is perfect for him. So what is going to happen to their house?
During gym time I have been trying to play basketball with the other elders. Needless to say, I have been getting my butt kicked! I knew I was bad at basketball but not that bad. I always end up on the floor, whoofing shots, and not having any idea what I should do with the ball. It is pretty hilarious. But I have been trying and hopefully by the end of my mission, I will be some what good.
How is the ward doing? Is it really weird to have no families left? It must feel totally empty, but I guess it is less people to worry about. I haven't received any packages yet, but I am sure they are on their way. Hopefully they will make it before I leave the mtc.
This friday, I get to do another round of proselyting. Only this time we are going to the downtown part of the city and just set us free. I am wicked excited. You will hear all about it in my next letter.
How is Will doing? Is he adjusting to the Kenning lifestyle yet? Did you know that you can attach pictures through missionties and they will have them developed for you? I know mom wanted to send some pictures, and that might be an easier way. So what's going on in the world? Anything crazy happen? It's nice not to have to worry about those things, but I wish I could keep up on some current events.
Well I need to get going. I really miss you all a lot and love you as well. I pray for you everyday. Have a great week!
Love, Elder Harry Kenning
ps Dad, thank you so much for your letter. I too miss hanging out together, but we will hang out when I get back all the time. I also thought it would be cool to send each other spiritual thoughts. So mine is about prayer:
"Prayer is a form of work, and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God, but obtain blessings that God is willing to grant, but that are made conditional on our asking for them. That is why it is important to be specific with our prayers!"
Dear Family,
This past week has flown by. I only have 2 more weeks here at the mtc. Isn't that exciting? It's not like I am counting down the days until the real fun begins, well kind of but I have been learning so much and I want to put all of my knowledge to good use.
So where should I start off? Well I guess the beginning is good so let's start there. On Tuesday I got to hear from President Diedier. He was awesome. He is of the Quorum of the 70, and he has a crazy combover. It was weird listening to him because both him and his wife are from Bulgaria so they have a weird accent.
On Saturday I had another fun experience with TRC (where they record your presentation). My companion and I did much better, we had to answer some pretty tricky questions like "If you say I can receive personal revelation formyself, than why do I need a prophet?" And of course it is all in Portugeuse so it makes things that much more tricky.
This week I got letters from the Bryants and the Abaroas. That was really exciting. The Bryants even sent pictures, so I got to see some of the crazy mini golf holes that you set up.
Here at the MTC they have made a lot of changes. It seems like the church is preparing for something. They have cut our budget by 20% TO ELIMINATE EXCESS EXPENDITURES. mOST OF IT ISN'T BAD, BUT INTERESTING. aLSO JUST YESTERDAY THEY ANNOUNCED TO ALL THE LEADERS TO NOT ALLOW HANDSHAKING, HIGH FIVES, ETC... IN THE mtc anymore. They Say they are doing this to stop sickness being spread around so much. They recommend 'elbow bumping' instead. But our district thinks we should just give each other 'good games'. My district has nicknamed me 'baby face'. They say I look so young and that I never grow any facial hair. I don't mind because I don't have to shave every morning like they do.
Well on Sunday night my mission president came and spoke to us. He is a really funny guy, he reminds me a lot of Dad so I think we will get along great. He has 12 kids, but only 4 are living with him now. Afterwards I got to talk to him and his wife and they said to me at least 5 times, "I hope you're ready for lots of work" Apparently a lot of Elders have left for home and there is a lot of work being done. Which is good, I don't want to waste any time.
How is Grandma and Grandpa doing? I think it is really funny that Grandpa is being a social butterfly and making lots of friends. From the sounds of it this place is perfect for him. So what is going to happen to their house?
During gym time I have been trying to play basketball with the other elders. Needless to say, I have been getting my butt kicked! I knew I was bad at basketball but not that bad. I always end up on the floor, whoofing shots, and not having any idea what I should do with the ball. It is pretty hilarious. But I have been trying and hopefully by the end of my mission, I will be some what good.
How is the ward doing? Is it really weird to have no families left? It must feel totally empty, but I guess it is less people to worry about. I haven't received any packages yet, but I am sure they are on their way. Hopefully they will make it before I leave the mtc.
This friday, I get to do another round of proselyting. Only this time we are going to the downtown part of the city and just set us free. I am wicked excited. You will hear all about it in my next letter.
How is Will doing? Is he adjusting to the Kenning lifestyle yet? Did you know that you can attach pictures through missionties and they will have them developed for you? I know mom wanted to send some pictures, and that might be an easier way. So what's going on in the world? Anything crazy happen? It's nice not to have to worry about those things, but I wish I could keep up on some current events.
Well I need to get going. I really miss you all a lot and love you as well. I pray for you everyday. Have a great week!
Love, Elder Harry Kenning
ps Dad, thank you so much for your letter. I too miss hanging out together, but we will hang out when I get back all the time. I also thought it would be cool to send each other spiritual thoughts. So mine is about prayer:
"Prayer is a form of work, and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God, but obtain blessings that God is willing to grant, but that are made conditional on our asking for them. That is why it is important to be specific with our prayers!"
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