December 28, 2010

Hello Family,

Well I talked to you recently and I don't have too much to say Sunday and yesterday it was snowing like crazy and we were red dotted and weren't supposed to leave the house. We got like 18 inches of snow and today it is sunny and like 35 degrees so it isn't bad anymore. It is pretty fun I love the snow. Also we had dinner on Christmas night with a family from a different ward in our stake since we have like 4 people total in our wards home right now because they are all students. The family was super cool. It was some really good food and they were so nice and wonderful people. Lately we are just trying like crazy to find people that are interested in the gospel I think that is what I am going to do a lot of for the next two years haha. But I meet so many cool people that it is fun now and just natural for me to try to talk with everyone.

I am trying to listen to promptings of the spirit lately and it is hard to figure out if it is just me or the spirit. I know that if i am trying my hardest and having fun and being obedient then everything will be fine and I will be lead. Also I have realized that I judge people too much before I really know them and I am working super hard at fixing it. I didn't realize how much I did it. The mission is great and I am learning so much so fast Well I hope you have a fantastic new years with lots of fun. I love you guys and really enjoyed talking to everyone they all seem like they are doing so great.

Also I have started to wake up at 6 to work out harder I am pretty sure I want to walk on somewhere when I get home I don't know where yet though.

Also grandma sent me some chocolates and money for Christmas. I am going to write a letter to her soon but tell her that I got it and thank you if you get a chance to talk to her.

Well I love you ,

Elder Hunter

December 27, 2010

Short e-mail about the weather in Boston.


There is a blizzard outside and the library is closed so I am in the apple store just dropping a line to you and hopefully we will be able to email tomorrow there is like 17 inches of snow and it is still coming down it is crazy just tons of snow and wind it is freezing. Well love you and will tell you more tomorrow I loved talking to you guys for Christmas.

Love Elder Hunter

December 20, 2010

Christmas Card from Elder Hunter

Mom,

So this might be a little shorter than usual Iwrote emails to everyone then to you because you didn't email me. (Note from mom: On Cruise. But how was your cruise? How did Bryson do in Florida? What are your plans for Christmas? Did you get my Christmas cards? Pretty cool huh? I thought of the idea and take all the credit :) ha just playing.

This week was so great we had a baptism on Saturday his name was Anatoly he is Russian and he is so funny. I think I already wrote about him in previous emails. Now he is baptized though we are empty on people to teach :( Lately we just street contact all day and it actually is really fun. I am learning that faith is confidence. As I have confidence to talk with everyone that I see and enjoy it then it is a lot of fun and a lot of success.

Success doesn't come from amount of baptisms. Lately I have been trying to be perfectly obedient and that by doing that I see that is howI am successful. By having fun and a good attitude while I give it my all is how I have success. It doesnt' matter if I am the best missionary but that I am the best missionary that I can be. If I rely on the lord and seek him and his will before me and my will I will see success and be happy with what I have done with my time here. I feel like I need to grow more spiritually. I am trying to indulge myself more into the scriptures and serve my companions more. I realize that I make so many mistakes every single day and I have to repent.

The more that we seek the lord the more we will have happiness it is great. I am starting to find out what true happiness is. As I see people that are interested in the church and everybody is lost in some way and as we receive more we learn more and have more questions and we can receive more answers. Our testimonies grow as we share them and it is cool because isn't that how Christianity works as we give and consecrate ourselves we grow. And testimonies come in a growth so we don't recognize it all at once. It is way cool to know.

Mostly we are working hard and having fun. It is so cool to be able to serve in Boston it is the perfect place for me. Well I love you all so much and let me know how your trip and everything went. Well actually I will call around 7 oclock Boston time on Christmas day. So like 5 oclock Utah time. Also Tennison can invite Mackenzie too, so I can tell them congrats. I hope you had a great time on your cruise and I can't wait to talk to you. Love you all so much.

Elder Hunter :)

December 13, 2010

Mommy,

I'm glad that you got the letter and pictures. Sorry if the card was late we have been super super busy. And the pictures you should buy like a album book and put them all in it so I can have when I get back. :)

I got your Christmas package it was so good! Perfect. I love the PJs and all the things it is super cool and I loved it so much. We are printing christmas cards as a companionship and sending them to different people so I will send some to you to give to others if you want, like Brother Hess. I will tell you in the letter that it comes with. Also I would love a handwritten letter from the family like Bryson and Mckay and Tyla sometime when they are not busy I know how hard it is because I was terrible with Tenn so when they have time that would be great.

This week has been fun and very interesting. A lot of things are changing for the good but I need prayers that things will stay strong and we can keep getting people to teach. The Student wards will be slow for the holidays because everyone is going home but we are teaching two international students that will be here which will be good.

One is named Anatoly who is from Russia and is going to be baptized on Saturday he is super cool and a very nice guy. He is applying to grad school and I told him about BYU and he was super interested so he is going to look that up. Also it was funny so we have been super busy and working super hard lately and so yesterday at church I was just beat and I was falling asleep in sacrament meeting and Anatoly was seating next to me and he started asking me if I slept well the night before and stuff. I thought it was funny my investigator caught me falling asleep.

The other international student we are teaching is named Jiang Li he is from China and super cool. And it is sweet Elder Yim takes a hour of language study everyday so he teaches me Chinese for 30 minutes and I teach him English for 30 minutes. I am working towards sharing my testimony in Chinese. So I can share it with him. Even though Jiang Li speaks perfect English and we teach him in English.

Also it was super cool last night there was a sweet Relief Society Christmas concert where everyone brought their friends and stuff and we met a guy that has taken the lessons before and we are going to play basketball with him and some guys from the ward on Tuesday night and then teach him soon probably. He was super cool.

Then I don't know if I told you but I met a guy on the bus last week that had played against Hartnell in college he played at a Junior college in Cal and we are going to try to get him to start to come and play. Once we get these guys in the church our ward is so great that they will be invited to everything so that is what I am trying to do.

Also we have been teaching some guys that are crazy and just want a sign of the Book of Mormon being true. And I tell them that they should just read it and then they won't be able to deny it. It is so frustrating. They are MIT students and when missionaries gave them a Book of Mormon they researched the probablility of it being true and they say it is highly improbable IT is so FRUSTRATING!! Cause I can't bash with them I just am their friends.

We have been fed by members all the time and last night we went to a dinner with a guy that was a track runner on the BYU team. He is an avid BYU fan and so I asked him about Brandon and Kyle and he told me all about their seasons so far it was so good to talk sports (maybe a little apostate) . It was cool though to hear that they are doing good and working hard and that their team is good as well.

It is pretty crazy all the stuff we have going on here the transfer is going to fly by we don't have much free time and a lot of dinner and lunch appointments. It warmed up again and is like 40 degrees and raining all the time. Hopefully everything doesn't freeze or else the crazy drivers will be even more crazy and it will be a big mess. It is supposed to get way cold at the end of the week. I want it to snow soon. It is sweet the holiday spirit out here is strong with the real New Englanders and everyone else doesn't believe they just want stuff for themselves.

We are doing a cool Christmas thing with all of our members and I thought I would challenge you to do the same. We are asking them to think about the restoration and what it means to you. Then as you realize how important the message is to get a Book of Mormon write your testimony of its importance in your life then to give it to someone that needs it.

I know that by me having the restoration in my life that it has influenced nearly every decision that I have made in my life and that it is the key to coming to Christ and learning how to better use the Atonement to be a better person and one day becoming perfect. As we share the gospel we will only grow in our testimony and feel of the peace that living and sharing the gospel brings which is better than anything else in this world. Thanks mom for sharing your testimony and the gospel with me. Have a great time on your cruise you will really enjoy it and you deserve it same with dad.

Tell Bryson not to worry, just to work harder, sports are nothing. Just to have fun and make the best of what he can with his agency to choose. Elder Hiatt was at the Payson game. . he just went home a couple weeks ago and he called and talked to me and said that Provo sucked this year. He said he was going to talk to you guys but didn't know who you were. but he said he wants to come visit you sometime so I will give him your phone number . As for calling on Christmas we just call with our cell phones and I will tell you a time on next Monday we probably are going to have a baptism to attend that day so I will let you know.

Love you guys and have a great holiday season.

December 6, 2010

Happy Birthday Mom!!

So first I want to wish you a happy birthday you are the best mom ever! I hope that you have a wonderful day tomorrow. Also I have something I am sending for you today I am a slacker I made it last preparation day and am now sending it to you today. It isn't anything big though but just to let you know i was thinking about you and your birthday. (Note from mom, best birthday present ever. . pictures of Beau).

Most Legit Apartment
Elder Sorel, Elder Hunter, Elder Hiatt, Elder Koerper

Elder Stay and Daniel (Convert)

Elder Sorel and I

At the Boston Temple

That is so sweet that Bryson and Mckay are tearing it up in basketball. What are their records? They are both way awesome. Tell them to keep working hard and having fun that is what it is about.

We had transfers and I am now in a trio companionship. I am serving with Elder Yim from Hong Kong China and Elder Black from Mesa Arizona. It is so fun being in a trio companionship it is like just hanging out all the time. And when we go contact on a busy street we can talk to so many different people. It is way cool. We cover the LP1 and LP2 wards so it is sweet all the grad students pretty much in Boston. Some very smart people. Our wards are awesome they are always taking us to eat and feeding us. And now that we are in a trio companionship it will be very easy for us to do splits we will only need one member to do splits with us.

Since I last emailed you we have been super busy we have been teaching a lot of lessons and trying to get organized as to how to be most effective with both of the wards that we cover. It is really cool and a lot of fun trying to get a hang of things, but stressful at the same time. I don't know exactly or at all what I am doing. Elder Black has been out for 13 months and is a great guy but this is his first time in the city so he is still warming up to that he is kinda quiet but a very good teacher.

Right now we have 3 investigators that I have taught. First one is Anatoly from Russia he has a baptismal date for this Saturday, but we are going to have to move it back a week to better prepare him. Then we have Max who is a bum he mostly just wants to learn about deep doctrine he is a religious major about to go to grad school. We probably will drop him soon. Then we have Jiang Li who is from China and getting a Phd at BU in Physics. He is super nice and likes us a lot I think. He doesn't have any religious backround at all so we have to teach him very slow.

Last night we watched the Christmas Devotional and all the people that were in the Charles River Ward were there and they are mad that I left them. I missed them. Jim and Jessica were both there and I talked to them for a little. They both should be members but just have to develop that faith in our Savior to have the courage to commit to baptism. It is cool to see them and talk with them. I really am learning how to love people and care about people so much it is crazy. Every person that we teach it instantly builds a good friendship with them, and they learn to trust missionaries so fast.

I cannot think of any specific experiences that I have that I am anxious to share with you right now, but I do know that Heavenly Father loves us all and that he answers our prayers. I have been trying to be able to define blessings better lately and I looked it up in the dictionary and to bless is to show divine care for. That is exactly what Heavenly Father does when we are obedient to his words we are cared for and we see how he cares for us. I think that there are many people that are blessed but because they don't have the gospel they don't realize that love he has and divine care he shows for us.

One thing that was said at a fireside that I thought was very cool was about Celestial Service. First it was said that telestial service is when you serve someone but do it because you have to and then you tell people that you are serving others or brag about it. Terestial service is when you serve someone out of love and kindness and do it in secret. And Celestial Service is where you ask the lord what you can do in service and then follow the spirit in whatever thing that he asks you to do. I was thinking that it is way cool that we need to rely on the Lord even when we are doing good to do everything the best that we can according to his will for us.

Keep working hard and relying on our Savior and increase your testimony all the time. It either is growing or shrinking it never is at a standby or stays the same. Learn to apply it in everyday life and share it with others and that is where we find true happiness. I love you guys and thank you very much for everything. Hope you have the best Christmas ever through following our savior and showing love towards others.

Love Elder Hunter

November 22, 2010 and December 1, 2010

December 1, 2010

Hi Mother,

I am glad you guys made it safe to Fresno and back (Note from Mom: Sam's 100 year old grandmother passed away and we drove to Fresno for the funeral). I was worried about you guys, but dad is amazing and could stay awake for a month and has before so I wasn't too worried. And don't you just love basketball season? All the games, how did Mckay do in his games? I am glad that Bryson played and did well. He just needs to work hard. I think that Drury will spend the preseason trying to figure things out. I have no doubt that they will have a good year. That is crazy you did Thanksgiving on Wednesday, but that is cool that you made time for it still. Being busy is a good thing but recently I have been reading the conference talks and Elder Uchtdorf's talk is about slowing down when life gets crazy and focusing on the things that are really important. I know you and dad already focus on things that are most important.

Well it was transfer week so it was a long 10 day week with no p-day. The hardest week by Tuesday you can barely open your eyes. Not too much exciting things happened, but I have learned and continued to grow.

For Thanksgiving we went to Bishop Neilson's house and it was so much fun. We had Jim there and he is the funniest guy ever. He knows a lot of information about everything and is very opinionated and doesn't ever hide his real thoughts. He got along just well. Then the rest of the week went by pretty good. Elder Sorel had a sore in his mouth so he stayed home one day and then we went to Mass. General Hospital the next. The hospital is super cool. It was hard for me one day I cleaned the apartment super clean and cooked meals for our roommates because I didn't have anything to do. It was funny they kept making fun of me for it.

We taught one lesson to Jessica and another to Jim. We are trying to make the best progress that we possible can but it is hard to get them to progress it seems like we are stuck. Both come to church every week and fit in well. Jim has a little bit of drug problems and stuff but he is getting a ton better every time I meet with him. I have been searching the scriptures trying to find an answer to how I can better help them and I haven't found the right answer yet. I think by just always being there for them and making sure they are reading and praying and going to church the rest should fall into place.

We just found out about transfers and Elder Sorel is getting transferred and I am staying. I love the city. It is a challenge everyday to go out and talk to everybody, there are so many people everywhere. It is funny I am always looking around for people to talk to and if I am not talking to anyone I feel bad. I am going to come home and be so weird:) that is a good thing. So as for transfers I think that Elder Yim will be my Companion and we will be over LP1 and LP2 wards which are the wards that have the singles under 31 years old that are in Grad school or just working. It will be pretty fun because people are pretty smart and Ii can help them. That is my prediction and I will find out tomorrow for sure who my companion is and stuff so that will be fun. I think that Ii am finally getting the hang of things here. Well hopefully as soon as I say that is when I realize I don't know anything.

Also the weather here is still way good. Like the 40s which is a lot better than a bunch of snow. Having a lot of snow would be hard here in Boston. People already don't want to stop and talk with us so with snow it will make it even worse. Anyways this one is a little shorter than normal I apologize I will be sending some pictures home within the week and letters. I Love you and thank you for everything you and dad have done for me. I will email on Monday next.

Pictures of Beau and Boston in the Fall Beautiful!

Sunset by Cambridge

Love,
Elder Hunter

November 22, 2010

Dear Mother,

The weather here has been really good so far. I am surprised. The last couple of days have been freezing though like 32 it isn't the temperature that is so cold but more it is the wind. It is so ridiculously cold. Brrrr... We are focusing more on contacting on the T and buses so I don't feel bad stopping people in the streets. Up to this point though the weather has been terrific like 40s all we have to wear is a suit and not our scarf or big coat yet. That is cool that you are going to Fresno to great grandmas funeral. It will be a great experience to see all of our relatives and hear of our heritage. Make sure to travel safely.

As for Bryson and Mckay I am so excited to hear about their basketball seasons. They both will be better than I was they are such studs. Except Bryson because I never hear of him. He better email or write me soon! Mckay emails me every week he is so awesome and growing up a ton I can tell.

I can't believe that Willie is back time is going buy so fast. I have been out for 3 months and 6 is right around the corner of winter. For Thanksgiving Bishop Neilson is having us over and some other members of our ward it should be really fun. As for our work and investigators we are still working with the same people and trying to find some new ones it is really hard finding people that even have the slightest interest in religion here, and if they do have a religion or interest they just want to bash or tell us why it is all made up and fake. People here are all so prideful it is sad. There are some people that are very nice though.

This week has been hard nobody wanted to talk with us i think i had one real conversation all week while contacting on the street. It is tough especially since last week was so fun. But we keep on pushing we are trying to get the ward more involved with splits and different things but it will be hard with the holidays, i think once we get the ward more involved then they will see how hard it is and want to bring friends to church.

I learned a couple of lessons this week though that I think were very good for me and I would love to share them with you and my family. The first one was we were walking in Allston and there was this guy that was in a wheelchair balancing on the hind wheels forever with the biggest smile on his face. He had long hair and looked kinda crazy. I went up to him and started complimenting him on his ability to do a wheelie for so long in his wheelchair and he looked up at me and started telling me how he was a pro. Anyways we got to talking and he explained to me that he was hit as a pedestrian by a drunk driver 20 years ago and was paralyzed from the waist down as well as his right arm didn't work only his left. After he had told me those things he immediately told me how he is learning the piano and the guitar and how he writes songs. It was so cool to see someone that was that optimistic under those circumstances. Everything that he told me he had the biggest smile on his face and it was so awesome! It made me so grateful for everything that I have been given and that I have a body that works fine. I thought that was the coolest attitude that I had ever seen.

The second thing that I learned was about not judging people by their looks. So Ralph, who I have a picture with that I sent home he is so awesome. He grew up in the ghetto of Boston and in the streets. He has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and HIV. We are pretty sure that his parents abandoned him when he was young. Well we teach him every week and he always has something new to show us. He usually has 3 or 4 layers of clothing on and 4-5 watches on his arm. He just is so funny.

Well I always just thought that he was just crazy and what not and that he probably didn't know much about other people or care too much. this week was different. When we taught him this week he walked in he still looked the same, but he brought his little brother with him. His brother was just like any normal guy. He told us about his 5 kids and how he loved them and his wife.

Then as he was explaining to us about how he grew up he told us that Ralph always protected him and helped him many times and saved his life. As I thought about where they grew up and what their circumstances were it made sense why Ralph has a big fro and wears a bunch of layers of clothes. It is probably because people won't mess with him if he looks that way. People will stay away from him. As we talked with his brother, Ralph interupted us and politely told us "what was the lesson that you have for me and Chris today." We then taught about the Book of Mormon and Ralph told us about Joseph Smith and Angel Moroni which he usually doesn't remember anything about. We gave his brother a Book of Mormon and Ralph was so excited that his brother was going to read it.

I don't know if I have ever seen or felt so much love one brother has for the other. Ralph's brother loves Ralph and thanks him for everything. I developed a love and appreciation for the type of brother Ralph was for always protecting his brother and keeping him out of trouble.

Beau and Ralph

Well this morning we went to the food pantry and moved a bunch of turkeys and helped out for like 3 hours it was a lot of fun. They are giving out like 600 this week which is cool. Also last night there was a musical fireside put on by the missionaries for investigators and members to bring their friends it was so awesome. It helped free my mind and think of what I really need to improve on. I love hearing from everyone and how everyone is doing.

I have been blessed with so much in my life I don't think I could ever be thankful for everything or show my gratitude to you and dad. You have always done so much for me. By the way it is the last week of the transfer so I will email you Wednesday. I don't think I am being transferred but maybe a new comp. Elder Sorel has been here for 7 and a half months. It is a long time in one area but time goes by fast if you take it one day at a time and don't think about tomorrow because tomorrow always comes. It is about making the best out of the position and place you are in now.

I love you very much and I love getting letters from dad they are my favorite. I will write him back. Also I love getting letters from Grandma and Grandpa they always tell me things I need to know and grandpa sends poems that are always applicable to what I am dealing with. Tell the family I love them. and good luck on their games they are all so awesome.

Love Elder Hunter

November 15, 2010

Dear Mom,

There is so much that happened this week it was such a great week!! But first I want to talk about home and how much is going on there. As for Tennison and Mackenzie that is great if they feel right about it. I trust Tennison and his decisions and Mackenzie is an awesome girl and has a very awesome family! I am happy for both of them!!

Bryson is such a driven and dedicated person that works too hard sometimes. He works out and his back is going to always bug him unless he makes sure his core is super strong and he needs to eat right. I have been having a sore back with my missionary bed and I started eating things with less fat and sugar and working out my core twice a week super hard. I feel so much more alert all day and my back is fine now. He is such a stud and I pray for him every night that he will meet his potential.

You and dad are so amazing. I Don't know how you guys do it. You are superman and superwoman for real. All the things that are going on in life and you just are so awesome in getting everything done, and do a very good job at it. Work will be good to stay busy and a challenge' that is how we progress. I have been thinking about the Savior a lot lately and how the Atonement really works. If our goal is to one day become perfect then the Atonement is not just for our sins it is for anything that we need to increase on. Everyday we become a little more perfect then we accomplished our goal for the day. The easiest way to change ourselves is to focus on others. Which I think is why you and Dad are so amazing because you don't think about yourselves you think about others first mostly us your children. Thank you for everything that you do for me and have done for me. I know that I am the person who I am because I have had such amazing parents to show and be examples for me.

Well anyway about this week...

I don't really know where too start. I have been able to talk to so many people in such a diverse population. Everyday I meet and talk and get to know someone that has different goals and different situations. What is cool though is that no matter what peoples objectives or challenges are the Gospel of Jesus Christ can help everyone. So I think I want to just tell you the different types of people that I talked to this week and some cool experiences. We haven't had a new investigator this week but we have taught a few lessons on the street and I am becoming better at helping people realize about the truth of church that hopefully one day they will join when the time is right in their lives.

I don't remember what day I talked to all these people but it is sweet. One day Elder Sorel and I went to the ghetto. It is a 45 min -1 hr subway ride and that is my favorite place to talk to people, but nobody wanted to listen to me on the way there. So I handed out a bunch of cards to people that spoke Spanish haha. When we got to Quincy we got on a bus and were in the back talking to two white rappers that started rapping about Latterday Saints and stuff it was funny so I started talking with them and it was way fun discussing their dreams of maybe going big or making a living off of music. Then we saw a Walmart and went in for a second because we hadn't seen a Walmart yet here. It was still the same. Then we went back to the bus stop to wait for a bus to go back to the train station where i talked to a Methodist black guy and started discussing service. He was saying that we didn't do enough service and if we did that we would have more success as missionaries. We explained all the service that we have done while here and all that the missionaries do. He was surprised at how much we do. Then I started talking about his religion and then about ours and how everyone has the opportunity to help in the services and give talks he was very interested and we explained where a church was. His opinion changed way quick.

Then on the bus ride back to the train station we talked to a convict who served 6 years in prison he talked about Jesus with us and he had been shot like 3 times or something. It was crazy he was kinda scary too. But it was cool to see how Heavenly Father helped him.

On the train-ride back I sat next to this guy that had a long red beard he was a skinny wirey guy with long red hair too. I started talking with him and asking where he worked and stuff. He then started talking to me a lot about the church. He knew a lot and said that he had problems with different things. I was able to address all of his concerns which was sweet. He then pulled out his necklace with a star on it and said that he was a Satanist and explained to me what their religion believed, I listened. Then when it was close to my stop I shared my testimony with him and I felt how much Heavenly Father loved this guy. Who is his son. I will never forget the way that his face lit up and how his whole countanance changed. He then stood up and shook my hand as I walked off of the train.

Two other times I have talked with people that have came up to me telling me that there is no way that the Book of Mormon is true. Through my testimony and the spirit telling me what to say. I have changed the peoples opinions of the church although they aren't very interested in joining now it still is great to know that i am at least doing something that is good. Elder Sorel and I have had so much fun this week. we get along great and have lots of fun everyday. I learn so much everyday. And this is a quote we always quote sometimes a little mockingly but it is so true. "People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care" Lately I ask people about them and what they are doing with their life and it is great. I wish that I could share all my opportunities with you guys there are so many of them.

Well, I Love you guys all very much. I have the best family in the world. I don't need anything out here. I am all set with everything. Just remember our Heavenly Father loves all of his children no matter who they are and we need to love everyone too. Tell Tennison that Scott King was good friends with Soloman Jaar in his mission in Chile. And also CONGRATS I am very excited for him and Kenz. They will be amazing!!

Well I love you guys a ton and cannot express how grateful I am for you guys!

Elder Hunter