Email Catorce: TRANSFER. MY SISTER IS HOME?

November 21, 2016

Howdy folks! This week ... in a word ... odd. I will explain later. 

Monday. Pday. Emailing. Shopping, using up the rest of my monthly budget  (sorry folks sometimes I can't control my appetite or desire to not be skinny anymore). Next: Basketball. This last transfer, our District was by far the largest in the Mission. So our basketball is pretty serious on Pdays. Also, apparently we are allowed to play full court in our mission...still not so sure about that...probably should look into that more....Anyways, being by far the tallest missionary, I take no mercy on these poor missionaries. Pretty sure I had a quadruple double last Monday: scored somewhere between 50-100 points, 20-30 assists, 20000 rebounds and at least ten nasty blocks, including an absolutely cruel volleyball spike on a sister missionary's shot, a little uncalled for?...personally I feel it's an excellent analogy for missionary work: DONT BRING THAT WEAK STUFF! Our pickup game also featured a fast break dunk from me, so it's nice to know I can still get up there. 

Tuesday. We had an awesome member present lesson with H and D, our two English speaking progressing investigators. We taught them the steps of Faith, Repentance, Baptism, the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Endure to the End, and we committed them to be baptized New Year's Eve! Now we just gotta get em married...anyone got tips for teaching the Law of Chastity to two people living together and not making it awkward...that'll be fun haha. Monday night we had prayed as to which area to visit. The word "cloud" randomly popped into my head so we searched cloud on Google Maps. We found Cloud Lane, 12 minutes away, so we decided to visit it at 3 pm on Tuesday. When we got there, this place was OUT IN THE STICKS. We would never have thought to go there. But we knocked on a door, and a Hispanic Lady who told us she had almost been baptized a Mormon in Las Vegas years ago, we are planning on paying a few more visits. This truly is the Lord's work. 

Wednesday. Zone Conference. We had a member drive us down to Conway. Zone Conference was fun, people made it sound way more exciting than it actually was but it's all good. When President Wakolo spoke I bawled the whole time. Mom, I'll tell you why in two years️. Our District also won the Zone competition for best District! That was pretty sweet we won a pumpkin full of candy. Then that night we went to the Missionary Correlation meeting for the English Ward for the first time because we are teaching English people now. 

Thursday we taught a family, the parents are named S and F. They are super awesome but we weren't able to get all the way through the lesson because their kids were so disruptive. But we will be back! 

Friday night we had Branch Correlation meeting and it was super intense because The conversation turned to how our ward mission leader hasn't worked with us very much, to which he spoke up and said he didn't owe us anything because we hadn't done our job as missionaries in keeping him involved. He has a point. Anyways we had no idea he was that upset about it, then he didn't come to church yesterday so we definitely have to try to mend that burned bridge...we were gonna bring him cookies but then we found out he's diabetic... 

Saturday was the day...we found out...transfers.... *gasp* Elder Sotomarino and I will be sticking around here in Russellville, and Elder Anaya is going to Jonesboro Arkansas to join another trio! I learned a lot from him, and he made me laugh my head off countless times this transfer. Fare thee well🏼. THIS MEANS IM DESIGNATED DRIVER NOW BECAUSE SOTO AINT GOT NO LICENSE! Elder Smalley's gonna be back at it behind the wheel people! 

Saturday we has also had a ward Thanksgiving luncheon and it was here that I realized I had forgotten something very important. I started talking with Hermana Gallardo and she was telling me how she has a daughter who will get home soon from her mission in Kansas, and started telling her about my sister on a mission in Spain...until I realized she wasn't in Spain anymore... HERMANA SMALLEY IS HOME WHAT THE HECK WHAT THE HECK She had gotten home two days earlier and I forgot lol! Have fun big sis, don't get married! I forbid it! That was definitely strange to think about, seeing photos and stuff almost made me a bit trunqy if I'm honest. But I'm so happy she's made it back safe :) and she totally killed it too. She's a total champ and I miss her, but I have a pretty good hug waiting for her at the airport in 21 months. The picture of her and Joel hugging...what the heck Mom do you want me to cry?! I feel bad because I told her I would wait for her to get home before I left but obviously I did not keep that promise. In the photos I saw there is snow in Utah. WARNING WHAT I AM ABOUT TO SAY DOES NOT EXPRESS TRUNQINESS OR A DESIRE TO GO HOME...but I really miss Utah winters. There. I said it. The temperature FINALLY dropped here in Arkansas, we get below freezing in the night now. Though there are still plenty of trees that are bright green. The seasons are weird here...  Yesterday was not a good day missionary work wise because Elder Anaya had to pack and say goodbye to people all day, but H and D came to church!  

I can't remember if I said anything about the Election last email, but I truly was astonished when I heard who won. I can't even comment on this. All I can say is may God forgive us and have mercy. Enough of that, best of luck America! Stay together for me!  I am seriously so pumped to be here with Elder Sotomarino this next transfer! He is the coolest. His teaching skills are incredible and he's a great example. I've been helping him with English and he's been helping me with Spanish. Peruvian Spanish is sooooo much easier to understand than Mexican Spanish. I think at this point the language isn't a concern anymore, so thanks to the Big Guy up there for that. I love being able to have conversations with Native Speakers! People are so surprised that the tall skinny blonde white guy can speak Spanish lol! 

Anyways seriously Elder Sotomarino es lo máximo. Can't wait to go to work with him here and build this little Ramita aquí en Russellville. Lo siento Madre, yo sé que me dijiste que no debo escribir en Español pero Erinn puede ayudarte ahora. We are gonna work hard. Nuff said.  

Church is true. Book is Blue. See y'all in less than two. Erinn don't get married because I have to approve.