17 September, 2012 - Almost done with Week 16!

[I have to apologize for the typos and spellings in this post. My eyes are doing wonky things and it's making it difficult for me to see clearly, so I am leaving this post much as Calvin typed it. I have taken out names and edited a few other things, but this is pretty much as he typed it.]

Hey Momm!

I want to tell you that I love you. I love reading your letters. I love the way you  write, and how you make it all sorts of fun to read! You also write really long letters, too, and you have NO IDEA how much that means to me! I love you LOTS!

Now, onwards to business. 

[ONE OF CALVIN'S FRIENDS] GOT HIS MISSION CALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That's soooooooooooooooooooooo AWESOME!!!!!! Wow! He is going to be a great missionary. 

Tell Grandpa and Grandma that I am really sorry they lost their friend. I feel super bad. Really, I do! I wish I could be there to help and comfort them. Every time I went to the temple at the MTC, I thought of them every single time! I love them LOTS! [One of our local music directors died this weekend. He was a longtime friend of the family and will be greatly missed.]

Wow, I just realised how much you put in this letter! Thank you for giving me so many updates! It's almost like I'm there. I should probably do the same for you. 

So, what happened this week

On Tuesday, we got [two investigators] a watermelon and double stuff oreos, because [he] works 80 hour weeks. Oh, gosh I said their names, but they love us anyways, they wont mind. [That's okay Calvin, I took the names out *grin*] They are the BEST investigators EVER!. They are SO golden, it's ridiculous. [She] (she texts us every day) texted us yesterday, and told us that they had their first ever real family prayer yesterday. They both have had SUPER amazing experiences. 

Anyways, so when they are having a bad day we sometimes bring them treats. So that was great, and we talked with [her] for a little bit. After that, [my companion] said he had a prompting to go and visit [some other people]. So, we went over there, and it turns out that the wife had been crying, and telling God "show me you love me" and just as she thought that, we knocked on the door. So we talked with her for a while, and made both their days. They are an amazing family. The husband is a PHENOMINAL singer. I am not kidding when I say this,. He is a MASTER. His stuff is insane. We listened to it yesterday, when we stopped by there again to give the wife her music for this musical fireside we are putting on, but more about that later. Anyways, so another cool expirience was when we stopped by a less active family, and talked to the husband. He reminds me a little of [a friend]. He is SUPER nice. so we talked with him about the temple, and their family goal is to get to the temple to be sealed, so we are going to help them get there. I recount all these expiriences, because I have felt so much love, or the spirit at these experiences. We are teaching this guy who is super cool. He is 18, and is in army cadets (a youth group in Canada). He is pretty awesome, and is getting baptised on the 29th of Sept. so we are going to see him EVERY DAY to get him ready for that. umm... Oh then we ate dinner at a family's home. They are AWESOME! The husband is from Canada, not sure where, and the wife is from the Phillipines. the husband also served his mission there. They are a great family! They have one girl who is 4 years old and is super energetic, and way outgoing. She was dragging us both around, showing us EVERYTHING in the house. Then, we had dinner, which was SUPER GOOD!! The husband told us "now you know why I love doing the dishes, she cooks, and I do the dishes." The dinner was SOO good. Oh, and I told them about dad being maputepanoi, and they laughed at that, and thought it was cool. Oh, she marinated the meat we ate in 7up, and I told her about our adobo chicken, and she was like 7up? in adobo? We made it with just soy sauce, bayleaves, and stuff like that, not 7up. So it was fun. 

Oh, the musical fireside, Well, my companion is an opera singer, and we wanted something to invite investigators to, (there are like NO activities here) so the missionary dept. decided to put on two activities. One is a Ask a Mormon night, and the other is an evening of Broadway. My compnion and a sister in the ward are heading that up. Basically, members of the ward are getting up there and singing Broadway songs. So it's helped us get to know the ward members better, and we have something to invite our investigators out to. 

Oh, so the ward out here is PHENOMINAL. All the people are awesome, and everyone is taken care of. It's just really cool to watch. 

I am in love with this area. The people are great, my companion is awesome, and I have learned so much. I think my biggest fear is not learning, and not progressing. I want to get better. My companion is District leader, so this Thursday he gave a training, and he said in the training "at the end of your mission, you should look at yourself, and say I don't recognise myself any more." I want to do that. I keep seeing how much I have already changed, but I want to keep going. Anyways, things are going awesome out here with me. 

I love you guys, and I miss all of you!
I hope you all are doing well!
Good luck!

Love you

Calvin

10 September, 2012

Dear Mommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm,

I'm glad to hear that Grandma is doing well, Eye surgery, that's pretty scary, but I'm glad to hear she is doing well. Tell her that i am praying for her, and that I loved her last letter to me, it was very creative, and it made my day!

I'm sorry things were going all weird and wonky this week. Things were kind of like that this week too. I had a lot of stress put on me, and I learned MANY lessons this week. i hope that I can remember them for the rest of my mission. I wrote dad one of them, (sorry, I wrote my steam off on his email. You can read it if you want!) 

OH. MY. GOSH. (caps lock on)  [MY FRIENDS GOT MARRIED]???????? ALREADY?!?!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!??!?!?!  THat is ssssssssssssooooooooooooooooo weird. Honestly, I am not that surprised that they got married, but it's just SO WEIRD!!!!!! [He must be weirded out because they just graduated from high school a year ago]

No car accidents, though I did drive this week. Tons of stressful things, but I'm relatively ok now (knock on wood). Yes I am getting fed well. SUPER well. Like, missionaries are telling me that this area is the best one for food, and members who come to lessons with you, and things like that. I am sleeping well, it's just that I don't get enough of it. None of us do. But, if missions were easy everyone would do them. (oh wait, everyone does.) Lol just kidding. 

Mom, I love you , and I hope you know that. I hope my sisters know that I love them too, and I hope when I come back I will be nicer to them. I love all of you, I miss you all, and I hope the Lord blesses  you with everything you need!

Love

Calvin

[A little later. I wrote him a response to his email - and to the email he had written to his dad.]

Dear mommmmmmmmmmmmm

Thank you so much for your concern and love! I LOVE YOU SOO MUCH!!!!!!!! I will be very careful! I will try to mail some Pics, but I don't know when I will be able to buy stamps. I love you so much!
Calvin

[Another email a little later.]

OH! i almost forgot! [a young man who is from our stake here in New York who was called to the same mission] may be coming in this week! I'm so excited!

calvin

[Yet another email a little later]

I love you!

[aaaaand a final email, but I'm really not sure which of the last 3 emails came in which order]

I am in the Prince of Wales chapel, I was playing a card game called munchkins, and yes, it is monday. I have 1 and a half hours left in P day. How are you?

Calvin

September - Sorry!

I could have sworn that I posted at least ONE of his letters from September, but looking at this the last post was from August? Can't be! Um, we are adjusting to a few new schedules around here. Todd has a second job working 2nd shift at Raymond Corporation in Greene - which he started the last week in August. Chantal and Miranda are now back in school, and very active with their field hockey schedule, so things here in Harpursville are very busy. Still, that's no excuse for not keeping up with Calvin's mission blog! ACK! I promise I will be better. I promise!

I was counting on the calendar today and realized that Calvin has almost finished 16 weeks of his mission, and will have finished 4 months at the end of September! Time is flying by! Just for fun I google mapped where he was and figured he's less than 5 hours away. Both Todd and my driver's licenses are up for renewal this year. Perhaps we'll spend the extra money, bring in the extra identification, brave the lines at the DMV and get the enhanced licenses and ID cards so that when Calvin finishes his mission we can go back to Canada with him and visit the people and places he is writing about.

Now, on to Calvin's letters! This week's letter was more of an answer to the one I sent to him, so I will leave my letter to him in and his responses.

Monday 3 September, 2012

 I keep on my toes, trying to adjust and get better. 

Yesterday Dad and I went up to take pictures at some campgrounds. It was nice to spend the day with Dad but he wore me out!!!
  Chantal and Miranda go back to school this week. I'm going to miss them! I really hate it when my children go back to school. And this is going to be Chantal's last year of high school. I don't
know how I feel about this "my children are growing up" thing. I didn't like it that you left high school and graduated and it's not any easier that Chantal is in her last year of high school either! I
don't like it! I just don't like it! (("No no no no no no no no" *she says as she grabs the key and holds on tight and closes her eyes as the other mice try to grab the key from her and tell her to let
go, that the big black cat Lucifer is gone now, and it's safe to let go* "No! My little girl cannot grow up and go away to college next year, she just can't."))

Dont worry we will come see you again and again after we've gone. Don't worry. Oh, by the way, Speaking of I That, oh great creative writer mother of mine, I liked your blog post you sent me. It sounds like your book is doing well, if a website did a reading of it. How is your book doing? Are you writing another one? I hope all goes well with that. 

  Sophie did okay last week with Dad going to work. Though it was a little tough on Monday morning when she woke up to take the girls to practice and we got back and she asked where Dad
was and I said "Daddy's at work" and she went and looked in the office and then came back and looked at me and said "No, Daddy's not at work, where's Daddy?" as if to say "what are you,
high? I looked 'at work' in the office and Daddy is most certainly NOT 'at work' in the office, WHAT did you do with him? produce him now!" So she cried for about 15 minutes and I turned on a
tv show and she got involved in that and everything was okay. Then she fell asleep in the afternoon and woke up after Dad got home from work and it was time for dinner. Tuesday it went a
little better and Wednesday Dad started working second shift so she saw him leave for work and it was okay

Sophie is so funny! I hope you guys get to see dad often, I hope it's not too hard on the girls. 

.
  It's not too bad having Dad working second shift, except Wednesday night when I forgot that Dad wasn't there with keys to close the building, and the other people who had keys to close the building left, so one of the young women who drives had to drive over and get the keys from one of the people who had already left. Oh well, all part of the adjustments!

Oh, adjustments. Adjustments suck on missions. I will have plenty of opportunities to get better at that. 

 

  It's odd not to have [a young woman who left for college] in Young Women's. OH! So today our lesson was on evaluating media, and making good media choices. I have a book that I like to
read by my favorite author, but I won't let the girls read because it's, well, it's got parts in it that I don't want them reading. So I did an object lesson. There was a quote in the beginning of the lesson about how the
skull and crossbones is a universal sign of danger. There was also a quote about how just because an author has one good book doesn't mean all their books are good or worthy of reading. So I
found a skull and crossbones in free clipart. I brought in all my books by that author and I put the skull and crossbones on the book by that author that I wouldn't let the girls read. I talked about how this author is my favorite author,
and I asked what they saw about the books. Of course they pointed out the skull and crossbones. So I pulled that book out of the lineup and I said, "I really like this book. But I won't let my girls
read it because, well, I'm embarrassed to say that there are parts of this book that are not good to read," and I started to rip the book up (Miranda's jaw dropped to the FLOOR and she started to
cry, ((LOL))!!!!!!! Chantal's jaw dropped, [another young woman] looked like she was about to cry, [another young woman] wasn't sure what was going on, ((HAH)) and Sophie looked at me like "Mom, why are you ripping the book?"), then I
continued, "So, if this book isn't good for my daughters to read, why am I reading it? Why should I have a different standard than I have for my daughters, right?" and I put the book in a plastic
garbage bag and tied it up. I think it was a pretty good object lesson, especially since Chantal and Miranda know that I really liked that book and they saw me reading it last week.

HAH! sounds just like the cake one! I love object lessons! Where is [the young woman at college]?  

  Okay so I'll close this letter. The dead whatever smell in Dad's office is starting to seep through the closed, sliding glass door and it smells really bad. I think I could smell it from outside too.
Dad's office is filled with flies. UGH! YUK!!! He's going to have to clean whatever is dead in there tomorrow. Ick.
  Sophie and [a child in nursery class] made some things for their "brothers on missions" today in nursery. I'll have to mail them out on Tuesday.  [That reminds me, I still haven't mailed Sophie's to Calvin! AGH!]

I love you!
Pray fervently!
Study your scriptures and Preach My Gospel!
Love your companion! Tell him we say hi.

He says hi back

 

Study the language!
Watch out for blood-sucking, vile, west-nile-virus-carrying mosquitos!
Love,
MoMM

Momm, I'm glad you are doing well! I hope all goes well for all of you guys! Not much new news from us out here in the field. The work presses forwards. Oh, and do you think you guys could send me some pictures of my artwork? 

I love you guys, I think about you often, and if I am making you all proud!

Watch out for TIE fighters!
Love you lots!
Calvin

Week 4 - Part 2

I wrote this to Calvin in another message this week:
  Dad came in the living room yesterday morning laughing. Sophie had come into the living room and sat
down briefly, then went in to see Dad in his office. So Dad says: "Sophie closed the sliding door, then opened it and said, 'Come to dinner,' then she closed the door. Then she opened it and said, 'THAT'S NOT A REQUEST,' and closed the door." I had to laugh. Has this kid been watching "Beauty and the Beast" a little lately? Hmmmm?

Calvin wrote this as a reply:
That is so cute. She is pretty cheeky. Great, she is going to be a HANDFUL! I miss Sophie, and keep thinking how much time I hope to spend with her.
[Then he goes on to comment on some more of the email.]
Are the girls at school? Or is this Pre-season? Who won the scrimmage? Tell all the girls that I miss them, and I have letters for both of them, but I haven't found the time to buy stamps to send the letters off to them. So, living in a surrealist painting, eh? Please record your hallucinations! I would love to hear about them. What did you say to embarrass Chantal? I have noticed I have been saying things that don't make sense lately, as well. My companion probably thinks I have a developmental handicap. Maybe I do. I don't know. The investigators are doing pretty well.
[Now he refers back to Midnight's email]
Sorry I only wrote you 1 letter and I wrote dad 2. I'm sorry, I will repent in sackcloth and ashes. I'm sorry oh mother who bare me for 48 hours of Labor, oh she who sacrificed so much for me, and I would go on, but for fear of blasphemy, and having Sean Connery slap me in the face for it, I will stop. I love you Mom! Oh, so differences between Canada, and the US. Milk is in bags here. Oh, the mission apartment has a bench press in it. Also, our car does not have a speed restrictor on it like the missionaries at home do, but we have to report our klicks in at the end of the month (we're only allowed to drive 1900 klicks in a month, it's not fun if we go over), as well as the gas receipts. We have a special credit card that pays for the gas. We drive a lot, so we don't get to talk to many people, like on the street. Well, it's weird being 5 hours from home. [I think it's slightly more than 5 hours.] It's weird being surrounded by all these familiar trees and vegitation, when we drive out into the country, it's like I'm home. If home were flat. 

I love you all lots!

Calvin

For Midnight

Just a little insight into how big of a heart Calvin has (and that he's still a very imaginative child). This was in response to the email I sent him from Midnight.

Dear Midnight,

Sorry, bud. Sorry I can't be there to feed you more regularly. I hope that when I get back you'll still remember me, and even be live when I get back, because if you aren't I'll be SUPER sad. I see all sorts of cats here, and am making many new cat friends, but I think about you every time I see a cat. Unfortunately, many humans here leave cats just out to die, or just don't care much about them. I feel really bad when I see or hear about it. Humans, go fig. Sometimes I wish I was half cat. A were-cat. That would be awesome. All the pride of the world condensed into one being. Hahaha. Anyways, I mourn your lot in life, I miss you and hope you think of me often.

Your friend ( I know better than to say your master) 

Calvin

Week 4 Explanation

I have to include this email that I wrote to Calvin so that some of the emails that he wrote back will make sense. Occasionally I'll write an email to Calvin from the animals. He likes those.

Dear Calvin,
I wish they allowed you to have cats on your mission. I'd have Mom and Dad send me to you. You wouldn't believe the abuse I put up with here. Sheesh.
Sophie mauls me all the time and Mom and Dad just sit there and watch! I have to put up with her laying on me and grabbing me, and practically strangling me. Then - and this is the horrible
part, I mean absolutely horrible! you might have to look away it's so horrible - yesterday the girls got back from field hockey practice and Miranda was filling the tub with freezing cold water and
she THREW me in the tub! I still shudder when I think about it. THE HORROR! Of course the dog tried to follow me upstairs, feigning a worried look on his face, but I'm sure he wanted to gloat or
something. And if that wasn't bad enough, Mom didn't see the whole thing, so she made Miranda drag me out from under her bed upstairs and pretend to cuddle me and comfort me all the way
downstairs so she could THROW ME IN THE TUB AGAIN!! Then they laughed at me! Oh, the indignity!
Mom has tried to be a cat lately but no one lets her. She tried to be a cat yesterday but everyone kept getting her out of bed. She was really frustrated because she kept feeling like she was going
to pass out. She's back on the fun medicine again - the stuff that makes her think deep thoughts and understand abstract art. But she's having really weird dreams, and she doesn't feel safe
driving. This should be really interesting when Dad starts his new job next week. I have a feeling Chantal is going to have to drive more often - which is going to make Miranda really scared.
Mom made granola and her 12 grain rolls yesterday, so the house smelled good.
Sophie's been watching "Beauty and the Beast" all day today. She always cries when the beast turns into the prince. I can understand, I'd cry if I had to turn into a human too. I like being a cat.
Mom really likes to get your emails. She got really mad the other day when Dad got two emails from you and everyone else only got one. She said something about giving birth to you and carrying
you for 9 months, and sacrificing her body for her children and writing all those letters every day to you in the MTC and you write 2 letters to Dad and draw him pictures and what about her.
Sheesh, you'd think that you don't write anything to her the way she went on.
Ugh. Sophie is demanding to watch Mickey Mouse on the computer so I have to get off. I never get to do anything around here. I'm just the cat. Maul me. Throw me in a tub filled with cold water.
Tease me. Make me clean myself for hours. Chase me around the house. Throw my mice outside. Fssssssst!!!
Love,
Midnight

To boldly go where no one has gone before

This is Calvin's letter from last week. The week just slipped away from me and I never got it posted. I'm sorry. So you'll get lots of news this week! - Jessica

Live long and prosper! I'm glad to hear that all is going....... well it's going! I pray every day for you, and I hope things get better, or at least stay the same. Goodness, how time flies by, but is also SUPER slow. I can't believe that it's already preparation day! The weeks are going by faster, which is both comforting and scary. I have been learning a lot out here! I think I know now why people say that they travel to "discover" themselves, because I have learned a lot about who I am, and what I want to be.  I love how you talked about how the modem is doing things that guy has never seen modems do before! I thought to myself "Ok, so what Millennium Falcon modifications did Dad make to the modem?" I thought that was cool, but I hope the internet comes back up so you can get this email!  [Our modem was doing odd things last week also, so our internet was up and then down every 5 minutes or so for the entire weekend. It was very aggravating. The repairman came on Monday in time for us to get Calvin's mail - hooray! But he did say that the modem was doing things he had never seen a modem do before. Leave it to our modem to teach him new things. *grin*] I'm sad to hear Grandpa Homer died. [He's in fact Calvin's Great Grandpa Homer.] I'm actually surprised more than sad, because I thought he would live until the Second Coming! I'm not really beat up about it, and I hope that he knows how much I do love him. He was a great man! I hope that Grandma [Hargrave] is taking it well. I hope you all have been taking it well. I wouldn't mind a sweater from Grandpa Homer.  I'm sad to hear that the Huffs are moving. They are a great family, and they are just super awesome!   OH! So you are looking on google earth the Ottawa area, right, well I am in a little town called Gloucester, and our meeting house is in a place named Orleans, another town right next to Gloucester. Actually, we live in the apartments on Arrowsmith drive in the south eastern part of Gloucester. In the buildings shaped like Ys. (the church's link to Google earth is pretty handy.) Anyways, That's where I live if you're interested. We also cover out to Rockland. Oh, we live in the the north apartment complex, the two apartments that face each other, with a turn-around in between them. (again, google earth.)  Mom, keep the Book of Mormons, and put one in each common room of the house! That way you always have some scriptures nearby. [I told Calvin I would send him my hard cover copies of the Book of Mormon in French so he could hand them out instead of his nice, bonded leather copy, since he gave out what was supposed to be MY nice bonded leather copy his first DAY!] So, this week was fun, because we almost got into an accident this week! We almost collided with a car who was crossing our street without looking, but luckily, the Lord saved us that heartache, and our brakes worked perfectly, and we were able to swerve out of the way! Out here, there are hundreds of small miracles every day. Every day, something happens just perfectly, or at the perfect time, or something works out perfectly or something miraculous happens. Every day. It's insane! I cannot believe how much the Lord is involved in each one of our lives.   I love all of you VERY much, and I have missed you all dearly in this time away from home. I have, however, been having TONS of fun, and I wouldn't trade this opportunity for the world. Girls, That means you, Chantal and Miranda, love Sophie. Take her outside as much as you can! Spend as much time as you can with her, because I can't! I love you all Lots, and I will be sending some letters soon. I don't have much time to do that now.  I love you all, and hope that all goes well! Calvin