Snow Problem

Helloooooooo family and friends!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is cold here!!!! Let me tell you I have had a great week.  They go by soooo fast- like today seems like last Monday. It's crazy and this Saturday is Halloween.  Last Halloween, on Halloween night, I was playing in a football game and I tore my ACL- remember Mom and Dad?  That was 1 whole, complete year ago..... Wow that's insane! It feels like it was just yesterday that I was playing football.  That's how time flies!!!!!!!!!!! hahahaha  Well, before I get too ahead of myself, Mom, I will answer your questions.  Thanks for making them stick out!!! Hahaha
Alright,
1. I'm in the Jamestown District
2. My budget is doing fine
3. Yes I'm getting enough to eat
4. Yes I have enough money
5. Honestly I don't care what I get for Christmas- just being out here on a mission is good enough.

Hopefully that answers it Mom!!!! hahahahaha  Well, let me tell you this week we have been running around like chickens with our heads cut off.  We had to type all the names from our Ward list (which is like 360 people) and locate them all and visit them.  So we've done alot of number clicking and that was pretty much our week.  We did have some great experiences though. For one, President Johnson and Sister Johnson came to see us so that was sooooo much fun!!!!!!!! I love President and Sister Johnson.  They are seriously like mom and dad (I don't call them that) but they are so sweet and caring.  Mom, if Dad was called to be a Mission President and you were his companion and a teacher and "mom" to the missionaries, you would act exactly like Sister Johnson does with the missionaries.  Anyways, during our interview together President asked if there was anything I was struggling with.  I told him sometimes I still wake up some mornings and think I'm back home but... I'm not.  I told him after that I get really sad because I just want to run into
each of your rooms and personally tell you with all my heart that I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!  I look back and I notice how terrible of a son or brother I was.  I am really sorry.  Austin, Mom and Dad, please forgive me.  After that interview and District Meeting, I was pumped and excited to do more missionary work!!!!!!

Well, we had an amazing discussion with "K" last night.  Let me tell you the wonderful transformation and change he has had and he continues to change.  Well when we first met him- remember he was the one who had no pants on?  Well that was 2 months ago.  He used to struggle with some Word of Wisdom stuff and he was even attending another church.  Now he is attending the LDS church regularly and has given up some of his addictive habits!  He has really changed his life.  That's the reason we come on missions- not for the number of baptisms but to change lives.  After that lesson with "K," He just looked so happy!  It is so amazing to me that I have been able to witness that kind of transformation.  That I have been able to be with him through this process and his progress and to see him to truly begin to be happy again!  I'm so proud of him!!!!!! 

Now let me tell you that on Sunday it snowed!!!!!!! It was crazy.  It's not even December yet!  There was snow all on the ground and there were flakes falling through the air and it was a winter wonderland!!!!!! hahahaha  I wanted to start singing Christmas songs and go sledding hahaha!!! It was great!!!!!! So sorry the letter is short but I didn't have much to report on this week besides those things I told you about.  I love you all!  Mom tell Tyler and Hannah that I said hi.  Talk to you all next week!!!!!!!!! Love you!  Bye!!!!!!!!!♥️♥️♥️

Elder Cahoon the Baboon

Game Time!

Dear Family and Friends, 

What time is it? Game time! What time is it? Game time! What time is it? Game time! Aloha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hey fam!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let me just start off by saying this was a great week!!!!!!!!! Alright now I can begin.  Yes I did get the letter last week talking
about Danny.  It was so cool seeing him at the Palmyra Temple and just hearing all those names that I knew and he knew like Kurt, Darin, Cami, Amy.  It was a sweet tender mercy from the Lord because there are no coincidences!!!!!!! I know that!  Austin buddy I want to talk to you for a little bit buddy.  What's going on with your back!?!  You know mom's gonna pull you out of football for getting hurt. hahaha  But seriously mom already had to deal with me for 3 years with all my injuries and now you have back problems.  I do hope you get better.  I'll pray for you bud!  I want what's best for you!!! I know we used to compete on who is better at what but I just want you to have the best. I want the best for you 'cause I love you!

Soooooo this week was the pump up I needed to improve the work.  Now I feel better than ever on the mission. So I'll start from the beginning. First off, Elder Harper is a GREAT companion we joke around and have fun and do work. I want to emphasize that having fun and working hard in the mission and in life (in anything) is key because if you are working and not experiencing joy why work? Yea some days are harder than others but you gotta look at the positive. So that's what Elder Harper and I do!!  So we had a lesson with the Skinners who just got baptized Friday.  The lesson was on eternal marriages and family history.  I was teaching the a lot of it because Elder Harper wants to see how well I do. Anyways, we taught them about the temple and I bore my testimony on the importance of family and how much of a blessing it is to me to know that families can be together forever.  I told them how much I love each of you and want the best for you!!! See, I really do love you guys!!!!!! Hahaha but it was a really good lesson and they felt the Spirit.  Elder Harper said I did well.  I really am seeing my teaching skills grow!!!😃❤️😃 Then I went on splits with (Former Bishop) Bishop "D."  I love that man!!!!!!!!!!!  He is seriously the most charitable man you will ever meet!!!!!! I can't wait for you all to see him when we go on the tour of the mission when I get back. Anyways, I went with him and we taught a less-active about commandments and why they are there for us.  The Spirit was so strong!!! She even bore her testimony on commandments!!!!! Also this week we had zone training and me and Elder Richens went on exchanges in Warren.  That was fun.  I love spending time with Elder Richens- we have so much fun!!!!!!! We talk about MTC times and all that good stuff. So then came our zone training which was good.  They asked me to share a talk from Conference I liked.  I chose "What Lack I Yet?" by Larry R. Lawrence.  I was explaining how I would get so frustrated with myself if I didn't do something correctly or didn't teach well in a lesson.  I explained that I wanted to be like Tyler at the end of his mission.  I wanted to be as great as he was and I wanted that now. But as I listened to that talk the Spirit was saying to me it has to be at my pace and it will take time but I can become better- it just takes time.  Also I shared the quote "our direction is much more important than our speed."  It doesn't come all at once.  If it didn't I would get frustrated but the Spirit speaks to us line upon line, precept upon precept.  That's when I truly knew what "line upon line precept upon precept" meant.  After the meeting we went and we played football and volleyball at the Erie Lake (more like ocean).  When game time came around,  I was killing it out there.  I was making plays and touchdowns- even played quarterback.  I did a good job.  I threw a touchdown and I was pumped!!!!!  Me, E Richens and E. Miller, his comp, were all just throwing down and making plays.  It was sick!!!!!!

Then the next day (Friday) we had the baptism of the Skinners.  This was such a great experience.  Also funny story:  Bishop was the one who baptized them and "F" is about 6'6 and weighs around 230 lbs. and Bishop "D" is 74 years old and he was the one who was  baptized him.  Well it turns out he tried twice and he almost fell over with "F"!!!!!!! Hahahaha It was pretty funny.  But then we were trying to figure out how are we going to do this so "F" got on his knees and Bishop baptized him on his knees!!!!!!   We then baptized "K" and that was such an amazing experience!!!!! I have pictures!!!!!! Then we confirmed them on Sunday.  They were smiling from ear to ear!!!!!!!😀😀😀

Last night on Sunday, we went over to Bishop "M's" house (the new Bishop) and we discussed how we as missionaries can benefit the work in our Ward.  After that meeting and I was prompted to ask my bishop what could I do to help him.  Thatt's how I want to approach all my Bishops in all my wards.  I want to be out here to just serve my God, my Mission President and my Bishop.  I just want to serve!!!!!!!!!!! I love my mission sooooooo much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!😃😃😃😃😃😃😃😃 I hope that Austin will be just as excited.  So for you Austin, to prepare a little, get a Preach My Gospel booklet and look in chapter 10 "Teaching Skills."  That's the best chapter for how to teach better!!!!!!! You study that everyday out in the mission!!!!!!!!! That's your homework hahahahaha 

Well I love all y'all take care love you bye!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!❤️❤️❤️❤️

Elder Cahoon

Beginning With The End In Mind

 

 

Dear Family and Friends,
 

Wow Austin you are doing awesome in football this year. I'm so proud of you!!!! And you're getting bigger! Unfortunately... I'm getting smaller...😫 so I think when I get back you might actually be bigger than me if you keep up the hard work!!!!! That's key!!! Don't stop lifting bud- you can do it, I know you can!!!!!  I'm so glad you were able to watch conference.  This one was so amazing!!!!!!!!! I love conference now! It's like Christmas for me.  I was sooooo excited to hear the prophet and apostles speak! Talking about prophets, President Monson didn't look too good near the end of his talk.  He was leaning over and breathing heavily.  I hope everything is alright! My favorite talk in conference mom (and you'll be surprised by this) was a Sister!!!!!  Can you believe that?  I can't remember her name but she talked on how in their family they have a
motto and that motto is "It will all work out in the end."  She told the story of a family where the mom, dad, brother and sister had all died in a plane crash.  The other 2 sons survived because 1 was on a mission and 1 was on a school trip. Could you imagine?  Picture this: your mission president brings you into his office, sits you down, and tells you your 17 yr. old brother is alive but the rest of your family has died in a plane crash.  I wouldn't know what to do with myself or what to
think!  Imagine that- especially from my view!!!  I feel like most people (includiIng myself) would come home right then and there from their mission.  But you know what?  That young man didn't... and I want to be just like him.  He still served a mission because he knew that was what his mom would've wanted.  He knew it would all work out in the end.  With that being said, think of the other 17 yr. old brother on a school field trip.  Think of him finding out that his entire family that had been aboard the plane had died in the crash.  How sad....  Not only that, but now think if them trying to figure out who's going to take care of them.  They were probably asking, "Where do I go?  What do I do?"  Those would be questions I would ask. Not only that, but he attended the funeral of his family.  He had to speak and he saw his family member's still bodies.  However, this young man with a testimony of a giant, got up.  He knew that he would see his family again and he knew that it would all work out in the end!  This story touched my heart!  What I got from this story is that no matter what trial comes upon you or me, we have to have that positive attitude of it will all work out in the end- NO MATTER WHAT!!!!!!!! I want to have a testimony like that that those 2 extraordinary men had!!!!!!!!!!!!
 




Sister "C"-  First Baptism

Now let me tell you how crazy-spiritual this week was!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So, this past Saturday I had my first baptism- Sister "C."  It was such an amazing experience.  There were so many people there supporting her and helping her. That's when Elder Tengberg got the boot!😬  He is now a District Leader in Beaver Valley Pittsburgh North!!!!! Going. Going. Gone!!!!!!! However, before transfers (his last day here in Olean) we went to the Palmyra Temple with Brother "C" when he took out his own endowment!!!!!!!!!!! 👍 That was the coolest moment on my mission because that's the ultimate goal in the



Brother "C" and others from Olean Ward

mission.  It is not to get them to the font- the font is just the beginning- it is to get them to the temple.  The temple is where we want to get to in the end (-that's the reason for the subject line of this email "Beginning with the end in mind").  That's the purpose of life.  We begin this life and endure to the end which will eventually have us returning to our Father in Heaven.  I know that we can get there and I know he wants us to be with Him in heaven forever. Oh Yea!!!!!!!!

After the temple, when I was outside, I met a gentlemen who grew up with Kurt,Darin and Dad (he even knows you, Mom).  His name was Dan Ivie.  Do you know him, Dad? Does that name sound familiar? Did you get his text message he sent to you? Anyways, I talked to him for awhile and that was really neat!!!!!!!!!!!!  His son, Andrew, will be serving a mission soon and they were visiting the church history sites in the Palmyra area.  How cool is it that I'm 2 hours away from Palmyra and just last year we were up there as a family and we had no idea my mission and area would cover Olean, NY!!!!!??????  I truly am blessed!  Well after the temple we spent the whole day saying goodbye to those who went up with us.  That was sad.  Bishop started crying and he said, "Dang it I'm gonna kill President J for taking my missionary."   Hahahah He's so funny like that. 

New Companion Elder Harper

 

My new Companion is Elder Harper!!!!!!!!!! HEY GET THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Elder Harper was the first missionary to start teaching Brother "C" and so now he's back.  He was able to stand in the circle when we confirmed Sister "C" on Sunday!!!!!!!!! How amazing is that it?? What an amazing blessing it is to see that.  What wonderful memories and times we had in their home!  So that is the lay down of this week. 

 

Fall in beautiful NY

  See
Ya Next
Week!


Bye!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!❤️❤️❤️

Elder Cahoon the Baboon