In the Rough - The Blog of Joel McDonald Jr.

HAPPY DAY AFTER SPRING!
4 MONTHS LEFT!

I hope you are doing well. The last week has been pretty good for me. My new companion, Elder Larsen, and I have been able to be a part of a couple of uplifting experiences.

On Saturday we attended the Denver Temple with Ron Buchner. Ron was the first person that I sat down and taught and the first person that I literally baptized. His baptism was one of the most spiritual I have ever attended. He recieved his temple endowments on Saturday and it was so wonderful to be able to be there with him. It was also nice to have some time to just sit in the Temple and enjoy it. Most of the time it seems like, as a missionary, you rush to get things done and leave. This time, because we had to wait a while, I enjoyed just sitting and meditating. I definantly had a good experience and I’m glad Ron did as well.

Sunday we went out to Calhan and attend a baptism of a gentleman that Elder Larsen had taught while he was there. It was a nice baptism.

Yesterday Elder Housley, my first companion in the mission field, called me. He’s been home a little over a year now. It was good to hear from him. He mentioned that his the company his wife (yeah…he’s married already) works for is looking to redesign their web site and he thought I should look into it when I get home. It’s a large company in Utah and they paid about $50,000 for the current site they have. I’d have to learn a few more things, but those things were already on my list to do. I’ll most likely look into it when I get home.

I took a wrong turn on the way home on Sunday and ended up at the airport! I couldn’t turn around, as it was a one way road, my companion and I laughed the whole way around the airport, especially at the fact that we were in the “departures” lane almost the entire way. He even took pictures. It was strangely very exciting to be there.

I want to badly to e-mail pictures but, alas, I am using a library public computer that won’t let me do it. It’s frustrating.

I hope you are doing well. Feel free to write out e-mail me. I’d love to hear from you. Have a wonderful Spring!

Greetings from Frozen Colorado,

Yeah. It’s cold. There isn’t any snow on the ground, but it did snow yesterday. We got to see more snow than usual as we had a meeting up north and drove through snow that only allowed for about 25 - 50 yards of visability at times. Fun. There was snow on the ground up there.

We visited the Tank Simulator Center on Fort Carson last Tuesday. We took someone we are teaching. He helped in the production of the M1 Tank when we was in the military. It was neat to see the system that they have to train the tank crews. Essentially it’s one huge video game. Got a few pictures for ya.

We had a baptism a couple Saturdays back. Wasn’t able to send a picture last week, so I’m sending one now.

Transfers are coming up this week. I don’t know what’s going to happen. Might be a big change.

For those checking out these updates on my Live Journal, after March 16th, the pictures will no longer be available. I’m not renewing my paid subscription. In fact, I’m looking into switching to Google’s Blogger soon.

On the path of life there are sometimes twists and turns that we can’t predict. It’s impossible to be fully prepared for them, but when they come you have to deal with them. There are just points where you’re stuck and the only thing you can do is to step back and work it out some other way. Some people may see it as running from the problem. This I understand. I beg of their forgiveness. It’s interesting how sometimes we don’t even have all the facts for our lives. How can we expect to look upon someones elses situation thinking that we do? Man…life isn’t always cordial.

I wish everyone well. We’ll see what the coming week brings.

God Bless,
- Elder Joel A. McDonald Jr.
Colorado Colorado Springs Mission

Not too much to write about for the past week. We’ve had some fun tracting and talking to people. The Church came out with nifty study guide booklets that help a lot when we talk to people.

We had a baptism this past Saturday of two kids whose mom doesn’t attending Church, but decided that he children should be baptized. It was fun to teach them and prepare them for baptism, even though they later said that they were bored because they already knew everything. I wish I could send a picture but we are using the library’s computers and I’m not able to use my jump drive.

It’s beautiful out right now. At least 70, but we are expecting snow tonight. That’s Colorado for you.

The other morning I got a call verfifying the airport that I will be flying into in July. I was tempted to say Honalulu, but then I thought better and said Norfolk. It was a strange phone call. It’s bad enough that I serve right under the flight path for the Colorado Springs Airport.

We are planning a “day of faith” for this Next Saturday where the Zone Plans to tract all day. I remember doing something simular when I was a newbie. We tracted for six hours and taught no lessons. That was blackforest though. Houses here are much closer together so by sheer numbers we should have better success.

Anywho…I hope everyone is well and healthly. There are some mean bugs running around here. I’ve been lucky not to have fallen prey to them. I hope none come after you either.

Until next time…

God Bless,
- Elder Joel A. McDonald Jr.
Colorado Colorado Springs Mission