Scariest Person I've Ever Met + Gettin' Sick
Date
January 9, 2024
Area
Las Vegas, Nevada
Companion
Scariest Person I've Ever Met + Gettin' Sick
I ended up getting pretty sick this week pretty bad, so not too much to share. It's just a really bad lingering cold. Turns out missionaries get sick a lot because we're just interacting with as many people as we can, and often get food from strangers, so anything can happen. It happens a lot more in the winter though, I've noticed.
But, I did have some interesting experiences this week before I got sick. I went on an exchange with Elder Christensen (not the one I served in Charleston with but a different one). He's from Mapleton, so we're from the same neck of the woods kind of. He's a good dude, it was a great exchange.
We spent a lot of the time walking around streets talking to people, (I found a discarded tiny Transformer toy on the street- score!) And we started a scavenger hunt with the district that day to take a pic with a Santa, a green car, and a shopping cart.
We couldn't find a shopping cart all day, until the very end when we were at an apartment complex and we saw someone walking down below while we were on the third floor. E. Christensen yelled down to them if they wanted a picture of Jesus, they said yes, they'd be on the fourth floor, so we bolted to the stairs, and found a shopping cart at the stairwell. So, that was kinda cool.
Also on the exchange, I met the scariest person I've met ever. At least at first.
We set up a lesson with this family of 11 that day, and e. Christensen warned me that a guy named Ronnie, if he was there, might harass me a little bit. Understatement of the year.
So we walk in, there's kids everywhere, and there's also Ronnie- he's even taller than I am and way bigger, covered in tats on his arms and face. He takes e. Christensen out back for a private talk- only, were supposed to be in sight and sound of our companion, so naively I walked outside with them. This was a mistake apparently.
Ronnie then got livid- started yelling and cussing at me, he was pretty private and territorial apparently. He didn't know me so he didn't like me.
Well, after he tells at me to get lost, I linger inside for a minute before they come back out. Then Ronnie takes me outside to the front porch- alone. At this point, I'm pretty sure he's gonna kill me.
But then we have a very open and honest talk, he eventually warms to to me a bit, and by the end of the visit, to my suprise, we're laughing and joking together.
He was still terrifying, but at least we got along eventually haha!
So that was how the exchange went- and basically the only thing that happened this week- because I got really sick the next day. 🤧 But I'm starting to feel better!
BUT there was an awesome miracle! Since we're in a trio, the only healthy one of us, e. Jensen, went with our district leader and his comp to a lesson with Carlos- he's decided to get baptized!! He had some valid concerns, but from what I heard the lesson went really well, and our DL said that if he isn't ready to get baptized then he wasn't ready. So, hopefully the baptism will happen this Saturday!!
In my study of the Book of Mormon, along with a great talk called "Be 100 Percent Responsible" by Lynn G. Robbins https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/lynn-g-robbins/be-100-percent-responsible/
I've been learning more about how Nephi and Laman and Lemuel show different attitudes towards responsibility. I've also noticed how managing our responsibility can help us to be more Christlike. Nephi always took 100% responsibility, and even through unfair challenges he kept an optimistic attitude, showing gratitude towards God. Whereas Laman and Lemuel were self-pitying, and always had someone else to blame for their problems. By taking an attitude of 100 percent responsibility (seriously the talk is really good give it a listen- it says it better than i can. Ive probably mentioned it in an email before.) we begin thinking outside of ourselves more. It can actually help us have MORE control in our lives.
God Bless all ya'all! 💙
-Elder Rogers
Pics:
Views from our apartment balcony- it's the nicest place I've lived in on the mission
Exchange with Elder Christensen
But, I did have some interesting experiences this week before I got sick. I went on an exchange with Elder Christensen (not the one I served in Charleston with but a different one). He's from Mapleton, so we're from the same neck of the woods kind of. He's a good dude, it was a great exchange.
We spent a lot of the time walking around streets talking to people, (I found a discarded tiny Transformer toy on the street- score!) And we started a scavenger hunt with the district that day to take a pic with a Santa, a green car, and a shopping cart.
We couldn't find a shopping cart all day, until the very end when we were at an apartment complex and we saw someone walking down below while we were on the third floor. E. Christensen yelled down to them if they wanted a picture of Jesus, they said yes, they'd be on the fourth floor, so we bolted to the stairs, and found a shopping cart at the stairwell. So, that was kinda cool.
Also on the exchange, I met the scariest person I've met ever. At least at first.
We set up a lesson with this family of 11 that day, and e. Christensen warned me that a guy named Ronnie, if he was there, might harass me a little bit. Understatement of the year.
So we walk in, there's kids everywhere, and there's also Ronnie- he's even taller than I am and way bigger, covered in tats on his arms and face. He takes e. Christensen out back for a private talk- only, were supposed to be in sight and sound of our companion, so naively I walked outside with them. This was a mistake apparently.
Ronnie then got livid- started yelling and cussing at me, he was pretty private and territorial apparently. He didn't know me so he didn't like me.
Well, after he tells at me to get lost, I linger inside for a minute before they come back out. Then Ronnie takes me outside to the front porch- alone. At this point, I'm pretty sure he's gonna kill me.
But then we have a very open and honest talk, he eventually warms to to me a bit, and by the end of the visit, to my suprise, we're laughing and joking together.
He was still terrifying, but at least we got along eventually haha!
So that was how the exchange went- and basically the only thing that happened this week- because I got really sick the next day. 🤧 But I'm starting to feel better!
BUT there was an awesome miracle! Since we're in a trio, the only healthy one of us, e. Jensen, went with our district leader and his comp to a lesson with Carlos- he's decided to get baptized!! He had some valid concerns, but from what I heard the lesson went really well, and our DL said that if he isn't ready to get baptized then he wasn't ready. So, hopefully the baptism will happen this Saturday!!
In my study of the Book of Mormon, along with a great talk called "Be 100 Percent Responsible" by Lynn G. Robbins https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/lynn-g-robbins/be-100-percent-responsible/
I've been learning more about how Nephi and Laman and Lemuel show different attitudes towards responsibility. I've also noticed how managing our responsibility can help us to be more Christlike. Nephi always took 100% responsibility, and even through unfair challenges he kept an optimistic attitude, showing gratitude towards God. Whereas Laman and Lemuel were self-pitying, and always had someone else to blame for their problems. By taking an attitude of 100 percent responsibility (seriously the talk is really good give it a listen- it says it better than i can. Ive probably mentioned it in an email before.) we begin thinking outside of ourselves more. It can actually help us have MORE control in our lives.
God Bless all ya'all! 💙
-Elder Rogers
Pics:
Views from our apartment balcony- it's the nicest place I've lived in on the mission
Exchange with Elder Christensen
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