June 28, 1997 - Saturday

Wow - this week went pretty fast.  We had a pretty wacked D with Николай и Татьяна [Nickolai and Tatyana] on Friday.  We had it without Володия [Volodiya] and she [Татьяна] mentioned this book again called "The Gospel of Peace from Essen."  It's way false doctrine.  In there they pray to God in the name of Heavenly Father and then they pray to Mother Earth.  Also it says that you have [should] not eat meat, eggs and fish.  Well they [Николай и Татьяна] believe it is scripture.  So obviously they have a concern there.  So we will probably put off there [their] baptism for a little longer.

Well to catch you up on the rest of the week.  We played a North vs. South Gatorball match on P-Day.  The South lost in overtime.  I whined too much.  Then we came home and made lunch for Сты. Reegan and Nelson.  It was spagetti and fries.  It was pretty dang good. 

Then they left and Ст. Schwartz wanted [to go to] Арбат [Arbat] street to see it for the last time.  Well we had quite a metro ride.  We were on the metro and this hot girl got on showing off long legs and breasts in a low-cut shirt.  Well she wasn't anything compared to what we saw next.  This other hot girl got on and she sat across from us.  Well she had on a short pink dress.  So short that I would have to say that white is a good color for panties.  I was stunned, it was my first flash, well almost.  Ст. Schwartz covered his face and studied his words and I looked away.  When we looked up next time, just to see if uh, uh - what the next station was, she had covered up her indecency with her purse.  I looked her in the eye for a while.  I don't know if she did it intentionally or not.

Thursday we went and played with the kids [service at the orphanage] and then tried to find tinfoil after we got jaked by Евгения [Evgeniya].  We didn't get there in time so we went back to the reenik, on Пролетарская [Proletarskaya],  Friday - after service and in between o[u]r D with them [Николай и Татьяна].  After the D we ate and then made a whole lot of calls, mostly talking with the District Leader, Ст. Reegan.  He gave us some good ideas - have a D with the Spirit so we can tell them straight up without upsetting them, get them to pray about the existence of only one true church - ours.

Okay, so what did we do today.  We got up so freaking early and went to Речной Вокзал [River Train Station] we met up with Ваге [Vageh - by the way - I think this is the dude who kicked me in the leg while playing gatorball - when I was companions with Ст. Gammon] - if that's how you say his name and bought potatoes and onions and met up with everybody else in the metro and then got on a bus to Зелененград [Zelenongrad].  There we met our match - the rain and so many freaking mosquitoes.  We started a fire - a чудеса [miracles] in itself and cooked boyscout foil dinners.  Yep it tasted just [like] I remember - when you['re] that hungry anythings good.  Then we did a little play about the Restoration of the Priesthood and came home.  All in all it was a fun time.  After the fire started and the rain stopped it was definately better.  Not something I really want to repeat.  I whined a lot before the fire started, but then I went to work and made the dinners.  Man that new Strawberry Zuko is good.  Well night.  I'm so freaking tired.

June 1997 - The Conversion Chronicle & McDonalds

Well I thought that I would add in the June 1997 edition of the Conversion Chronicle - that is the mission newspaper that comes out monthly.  Unfortunately I don't have every single one - that would be awesome!! 

So I thought that I would show you one.  Usually different people are chosen to write (I too will have my chance later), missionaries that have been out maybe a year, or more - so they will just be hitting their stride in both the language, and in the skills as missionaries. 

Plus and here is the best part.  Any child of God can expect revelation pertaining to his or her sphere of influence...as missionaries we could expect revelation for ourselves, and for those Russians that we taught.  If we were discrict or zone leaders, or assistants to the presidents, then our sphere of repsonsibility increased, as well as the amount or degree of revelation to help those in our sphere.  As well as when we were called upon to talk in conference or write in the mission newspaper. 

Thus these talks are the missionaries' form of the Ensign, or a General Conference talk.  I know that when I prepared my article, I prayed and pondered on what the Lord would want me to say, and then went to work!!  Even rereading now, while not a missionary any longer, I feel the spirit. 

There are also a few actual bits of news - who was getting baptized, who was leaving and arriving the mission, and sometimes articles like Dr. Huish's in this one on how to avoid summer sicknesses.

Sometimes in my letters home, I would do a pictorial tour of my mission.  Here is one picture that I started such a letter with...yes I am actually in this picture - you can see the back & left side of my head.  I'm almost in the foreground - in a white shirt, with green lettering, and I have a black strap going over my left shoulder.  Here's what I wrote on the back of the picture...

Dear Mom & Dad,  

              Here's you're start of the guide to Moscow.  McDonald's - mmhm.  Such good food.  And like you can see, there are so many people there.  It is always like that.

Unfortunately at this time I couldn't find other pictures in this pictorial tour-letter, so this will have to do.  But all through my mission I went and ate at McDonald's.  It is weird, and you may not believe me, but McDonald's chicken nuggets tasted better in russia - and the biggest reason was the sweet & sour dipping sauce.  That is because the franchises in Russia come from Canada, not America and they have different sauces.  I am not lying - but they are better than at home!  and I'm out!

April 16, 1997 - Wednesday

Well I am tired today.  It was P-Day and I felt like crap when I wrote home.  But oh well.  I probably dumped a little on my family, but I feel better.  We ate this olive-green pepper pasta mix and I feel sick now.

February 26, 1997 - Wednesday

Today was P-Day.  I wrote 5 people:  mom, Vernae, Mike, Kat[r]ina [evidently I forgot how to spell my sister's name] & Mary Repp.  She is Ст. King's girlfriend at home.  Then we went up to Охотный Ряд [Ahotni Riyad - I don't remember what it means] and tried to get money out of the bank and we mailed some letters. 

Coming out of the metro we ran into a group of Elders who had just gone to see the Kremlin.  Ст. Starley works in the office and is really good friends with Ст. Woolverton.  He knows of the changes coming up in March.  It seems that Ст. Woolverton will move up to Филиовский Приход [Filiovsky Branch].  I don't know who I'll be with next, but I don't have to move again. 

Then we went to Спортивный Вечер [Sport's Night].  We played volleyball and then a little Амереканский Футбол [American Football].  It's like ultimate Frisbee except with a football.  There was also a Sister there who served a mission in St. Petersburg.  I asked her if she knows Annanich [a missionary who served in Boise from St. Pete's].  She said yes and she is going to get his address for me so I can write him.  That is so cool.  Plus I can get on the Internet at a business here in Russia.  It costs about $3.60 for a half an hour.  It sounds really expensive though.  I don't know if I should do it.

February 19, 1997 - Wednesday

We have a pretty full day even if it was a P-Day.  We went to a Polio factory [I really have know idea what I'm talking about here?? lol] and then went and got our mail at the office.  I got 2 e-mails and 3 letters.  Or maybe just one.  The Family and then one from Doug Sterr.  So that one or two was cool.

January 23, 1997 - Thursday

[Pre-Journal Chat - Small things added together build up to big things sometimes.  Looking back on this journal entry, I can't believe the big things that were going on, but you can see the small things in the previous posts.  But - I hope that you'll realize that I improved on my mission starting with my next companion.]

Today was P-Day.  Ст. Woolverton went and played Gatorball.  He left at 9:30am or so, and I went back to sleep until 1pm.  Woke up and did the dishes, then wrote a lot of letters.  [Ст. Woolverton] got home at 2pm and we didn't do any[thing] tonight.  We watched a show called "Primal Fear."  It was pretty good.  Pretty suspenseful and good.  I wrote a lot of letters today.  It was pretty good.  Well I'll talk to you later - night.

October 18, 1996 - Friday

Today was P-Day.  I led the discussion today in Russian for the evening class.  Then Bro. Woolsey told us tons of stories of...How the Mafia likes the missionaries and just tons of stories about Russia.  I have a headache and will try to get to bed early.  Goodnight.

October 3, 1996 - Thursday

Well when I got home from class this evening.  I wrote on fifteen envelopes so that I would have a goal.  Today went really well.  But now I am going to bed.  Tomorrow is Preparation Day.  Отлична [excellent].

September 19, 1996 - Thursday

Today sucks.  I have a cold and no energy.  It seems like we talk everything to death.  It's just because I am tired.  I'll write you tomorrow when we have more time on our P-Day.  I need a pick-me-up, so I am going to read my BOM.  night

September 14, 1996 - Saturday

Well today was kind of long.  We sat through all the classes.  I didn't have very bad gas, but I did a little in the evening.  My Phazyme is running out.  I have to write my parents and have them send me more.  I learned that you are not suppose to write home on any day but our P-Day.  Our teacher said we could write this Sunday so I am going to. 

Tomorrow we start SYLing [Speak Your Language].  We have to speak in our language all the time whatever we know.  Then we have to ask persmission to speak in English as a last resort. 

Tonight I am going to pray and ask Heavenly Father if Joseph Smith is a true prophet.  I have before, but not really spiritually.  I've always believed he was, but I need to know so that I can share that knowledge with other people.  I love him for the Book of Mormon and his words in the "Teachings of Jospeh Smith" are so powerful and inspiring.  So I need to have my testimony of Joseph Smith strengthened tonight.  I'll tell you how it went.  walt