Elder Call Loves the "Typical" Pocatello Family; Remains Well Fed

Well, Elder Call is really getting immersed with the people of Pocatello. And he's learning more and more about the "typical" Pocatello family. I remember having similar experiences in Hong Kong nearly 30 years ago. Seemed like every family in Hong Kong

• Had a relative in America
• Had a parent or grandparent who survived the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong
• The dad worked either in "the factory" "making things" or "at the ocean" "fishing"
• Everybody, including children, was "working hard"
• Wanted to learn English
• Didn't "believe in church"
• Worshipped traditional Chinese gods
• Couldn't understand you, no matter how good your Cantonese was

Here's the latest from Elder Call:

---

10 June 2009


Dear Family:

Thanks for your letters. It sounds like everyone is having a ton of fun this summer. I'm glad you had such a good time in Utah, Mom. It is good to see family every once in a while.

On Monday night Elder Poppleton and I were coming up with traits of the standard Pocatello family. These are just a few things that we have noticed. Every family pretty much fits a few of these descriptions:

• Born or raised in or near Pocatello
• Parents or older children went to Idaho State University
• They hunt or fish and some animal head in their home
• They know Calls or Poppletons
• Usually related to the Calls
• Usually went to school with the Poppletons
• Someone in the family works or has worked at one of the following:
• Drives a truck or school bus
• Simplot or FMC
• Heinz
• Railroad
• They have a son or nephew on a mission
• The teenagers are going to ISU
  

Oh—and every time they have a teenage-to-twenty-something daughter, she is mysteriously absent from dinner (We’re missionaries—can’t they trust us?)

Most families usually fit several of these. Se,e we came up with that Monday after dinner because the family has a nephew in the ward who just left on a mission. Their teenage sons are going to go to ISU. Their 21-year-old daughter showed up right at the end. And the father drives a truck.

Then our dinner appointment on Tuesday night had a daughter who is about 19 or 20 who was going to come home for dinner (it sounded like she was going to ISU) but decided she couldn’t make it. Oh—and the mother of this family is Ruth call’s great-granddaughter. Ruth Call is an Indian girl who Anson Call adopted. So that makes this sister and me fourth cousins once removed. She and her husband went to school together (they grew up in Pocatello) and knew a guy named Gary Poppleton! We firmly believe our “Standard Pocatello Family” to be pretty true!

Well, things are going well here. I’m still in the Pocatello West Stake. We’re usually teaching about 10 lessons a week. Some weeks less, others more. Our nights get filled up pretty quick and are busy. We just wish more people would keep their appointments.

Tell me what is going on and what everyone is up to.

Love you all,
Elder Call

P.S. We just realized that we have six sirloins and six rib eyes and 15 hamburgers in our freezer! The Saurey’s give us way too much!

Elders Call and Poppleton Follow the Spirit, Become "Answer to Prayer"

3 June 2009

Hi Dad,

I got the SD cards on Monday and on Monday we found out that we are both staying here in the Pocatello West Stake! That will mean that I will be here in this area 4 1/2 months! That seems like a way long time. I really like it here and hope to see some of these people we are teaching get baptized this transfer.

This one investigator quite smoking for a week and picked it up again. So he won't be baptized this Saturday. I don't know if I told you, but his oldest son that is a RM is getting married a month from today and then 3 kids from a marriage in Texas are coming up at about that same time. He wants to be baptized while they are here. He also wants to be done smoking before then. His one daughter is a convert to the church and his son who is 11 will be living with him. He wants his son to be baptized also. So that is pretty cool.

Another investigator is inching closer and closer to baptism. This past week she told us that she is "leaning towards baptism"! And for her that pretty much means she knows she is going to be baptized and knows it is the right thing to do. We are way excited for her and so is her husband.

We have been helping a couple who are almost 90 years old . Their home teacher thinks that we can help get them to the temple. That would be really cool if that happened. We helped them weed about a week and a half ago. They have a huge garden (as in at least 20 very long rows, Elder Poppleton says maybe 1/2 an acre) that they put on for show and competitions. Then on Monday morning we decided to go over without any notice and weed. We got there and Sis. Erikson was so excited and happy we were there. She kept yelling back at her husband that the missionaries were there to weed! She starting clapping for joy. She told us, "You wouldn't believe it, but you are an answer to a prayer." She had been praying that someone would come and help her weed. She is practically blind and can only see a weed that is about 3 feet tall and has a yellow flower on the end.

I am way excited for the work that you have coming in and potentially will be doing. Maybe you could tell Nauvoo University to have a Family History Major and I might go there after BYU! That would be fun.

We had a dinner appointment with a family and the father's name was Spencer Stucki from the Bear Lake area. (Don't you have some Stucki cousins? He said there are 3 unrelated families that came from Switzerland, joined the Church and settled in Idaho. One in Bear Lake, Idaho Falls, and I can't remember the third.) Anyways, he said he knows Scott Kunz (spelling) quite well. I thought that was pretty amazing.

That is great that all those youth went to the Temple Baptisms. That is a crazy amount! Tell them all I wish them well and pray that they will continue to be strong in the faith.

Well, I'll get going. Thanks for the letters and the SD Cards.

Love,
Elder Call

Elder Call is Happy and Healthy in Idaho

27 May 2009

Dear Family,

Happy late birthday, Mom! Sorry I didn't write about it last week. We figured out that Elder Poppleton's sister, who is 38, is closer to your age than his mom, who is 59. Isn't that really weird?

Things are going well here. One of our investigators quit smoking on Saturday! We are so excited for him.

We met a man who told us that we had never studied the Bible! We thought that we pretty funny. He also told us that the Bible and Book of Mormon don't agree. We told him that he can know the Book of Mormon is true by the Spirit because John 14:26 teaches us about the role of the Holy Ghost.

He then told us we don't need the Holy Ghost to konwt he truth. We only need the Bible. We asked if we could come over and teach him. He said no, only the Bible. He said we could study teh Bible without him, thinking we wouldn't agree). Of course we said we would. He hesitated and said he had to talk to his wife about it. We said, "Okay. Can we come by Sunday to see if you have figured out a time for us to meet?" He hesitated again and said, "No. You shouldn't."

I just got all your letters this afternoon. Thanks for them. It is really good hearing from you. It sounds like everyone is doing good.

We have had a really busy day. It was a Zone Memorial Day activity. I wrote Dad an email about it. Last night we went to a ward's mutual in the Central Stake and did little trainings/workshops on different sections of Preach My Gospel. That was a lot of fun, but we only had 10 minutes. That was not enough time for the kids to really learn much. It was kind of a quick in-and-out type deal.

It is getting pretty warm and hot outside now. But it isn't very humid, which is really nice. The only thing that is bothersome is that freak thunderstorms just appear out of nowhere and then we get really wet.

Next week is transfers once again! That seems really strange. It will be 3 months in Idaho already plus the three weeks at the MTC! How crazy is that?

It sounds like Mom will have fun in Utah. That is really good that she will be able to see her sisters and parents.

The West Stake is slowly moving along. Hopefully we will have a couple of baptisms next transfer. I hope that these people we are teaching will be able to follow through with baptisms. Our area hasn't seen any baptisms for at least 4.5 months! Thre are plenty of nonmembers and poeple being prepared; they just need to be found.

Tell me how the family is doing and how the ward is. Thanks.

Love you all,

Elder Call

Photos of Elder Call Arrive

Okay, so. . .these photos arrived a couple weeks ago, and I feel awfully guilty that they aren't up until now. I'll try to do better!



To the left is Elder Burton (Elder Call's trainer and district leader), and to the right is Elder Call. They are fishing at Lava Hot Springs. Isn't missionary work tough? :-)

Elder Call, left, and Elder Burton on the way to Bannuck Creek.

Elder Call and Elder Burton monkeying around!

Elder Call, Elder Burton, and an investigator.

Even in Missionary Work there can be Nothing New

Elder Call's handwritten letter this week is pretty short. And it's even shorter on the blog because a friendly reminder was posted a few weeks ago by someone who stumbled onto the blog. He reminded me that sensitive information about investigators or members should be kept private, and he is right. So I'm more careful about editing out Elder Call's personal perceptions or his desires that specific investigators will be baptized.

But his letter is nonetheless nice to read!


20 May 2009

Dear Family,

Thanks for your letters this week. I really like reading them and hearing all about what is going in. It sounds like everyone is doing really good. Rebecca wrote me about Adam Foster's talk. . .what he said about Mom is service. Also what he said about Sister Crave. That one made me laugh: how she would have taken charge and been first in teh Valley.

Things are pretty much the same. . . . [We had a great meeting] with Mona. We talked about everything from Abraham to Joseph Smith, from revelation to families. She has a greater understanding about revelation now. She is now [hoping] to meet President Monson! I believe she will make it happen.

Sorry this letter is short, but there isn't much to write about this week.

Love you all,

Elder Call

Elder Call's Gaurdian. . .DOG?

27 May 2009

Hi Dad,

Thank you for emailing me. I can't remember if I said thanks for the stamps or not. Thanks for the stamps. (I got them a while ago.) I enjoyed reading the email.

That sounds like an awesome Memorial Day Breakfast! I wish I could have been there to see all those people. It sounds like Sister Crave and her family did a good job once again. How did they get so many people there?

Our Memorial Day was actual kind of boring because everybody was gone or were having parties and we didn't have any appointments. Nobody really seemed to want to talk to us either. Oh well.

But today, on the other hand, we had a Zone Memorial Day activity at a park just down the road from us. That was a ton of fun! It started at 11:00 and ended at 3:00. We played softball, had a barbecue (with the grill the Saureys gave us) and then played Ultimate Frisbee. I didn't really like the softball part though. I just don't like playing baseball type games.

That is really nice of Pres. Evans and Bishop Ensign to ask how I am doing. I was wondering if Pres. Ward was still around or if he is in Salt Lake or whereever?

It sounds like you travel a lot now for work. Do you like that or would you rather just do work around Rockford?

I can't remember if I told you but we had a district blitz last week. All the missionaries in our district went to work in Elder Rose and Elder Fletcher's area for a few hours. I was Elder Fletcher's companion. We had a dog follow us all over town! It was kind of scary. . .it had its mouth open with its tongue hanging out the entire time. It would walk just behind us or next to us. And we would stop to knock on a door and it would lay down while we talked and then get back up again. People even asked us if it was our dog! One time it even walked quite a ways ahead of us and we turned into a trailer court. We saw it stop and look around and then came running over to us! We then went inside a trailer and when we came out 10-15 minutes later it had disappeared. We joked that it was our guardian angel! Who knows maybe it really did protect us from something or someone.

It sounds like Mom will have a ton of fun in Utah visiting her family.

Tell everyone that I am doing good and appreciate them asking about me. Tell them all "hi."

Love,
Elder Call

New Meaning to the Phrase, "Shake off the Dust of Thy Feet"

Okay, I feel bad. Really, really, bad. Worse than not doing my home teaching. Worse than the time I got a technical foul called on me when I was 15 years old. I mean, I've really blown it this time.

I've just been so doggone busy with work that I haven't updated Elder Call's blog.

But it's a new day, and a new commitment is being made. Here's hoping for the best.


21 May 2009

Hey Dad,

It sounds like work is keeping you really busy and you are getting new clients pretty steadily.

I'm sure that Mary and John are way excited to be out of school pretty soon. With the weather warming up there it has got to be hard for them to go through each school day. It sounds like it is getting pretty green out in Illinois. It is greening up here in Idaho too, just not nearly as much as back home. It is kind of funny to see all of these yards with sprinklers. Idaho is a dusty place that's for sure.

I have two pairs of shoes. One I only wear to meetings or other nicer occasions and the other I wear when we are out working most days. The pair that I use while working I don't clean them or polish them very frequently, but yesterday morning I decided it was about time. They looked pretty nice. But by the end of the day they were dusty and gray again. You just can't keep them looking clean and nice for very long.

Fortunately we don't have to worry about tornadoes in Idaho. I am glad that they all made it home safe. Here we just have freak rainstorms that seemingly come out of nowhere and then we get drenched.

I am feeling completely better now. It is really nice not being sick. When we get sick as missionaries we feel really lazy and useless.

The work in the Pocatello West Stake is pretty much the same. We did set a baptism date with Kalob for 13 June. He is so excited to be baptized. That family is so cool. All four boys were asking us all about being a missionary. What it is like, what we do, where we wanted to go, etc. They were even saying they couldn't wait to be missionaries! The two middle boys were baptized at the same time and were talking about how they felt and other times they have felt the Spirit. They are way cool kids. They will all make great missionaries one day.

Things are going pretty good here, it is hard to believe that it is already 4 weeks into this transfer! Elder Poppleton and I both feel like he will get transfered and that I will stay. But we really have no idea. If I do stay here one more transfer, then I will have been in this stake for 4 1/2 months! That seems like a long time. We were talking to a lady in one of our wards and she served her mission in Cleveland Ohio mission. She only served in two areas (neither of them were visitor's centers or historical sites). She stayed in her second area for 10 months! That is truly a long time! That is especially long for a sister missionary who is only out for 18 months. She told us it was way hard to go home because she was in that area for so long they seemed like family. There were very few members in her area so she had dinners with some families at least once a week. She ate with a couple of families at least 40 times! That is crazy.

Well, I guess I will get going. Thanks for everything and tell me how everyone is doing. Thanks.

Love,

Elder Call