Smelling like mothballs is not kosher....

 Picture of Mission Conference taken from Indiana, Indianapolis mission Facebook page

Elder Paxman is the fourth from the Right.

A picture of the apartment he is living in via my google search.

Dear Mom,

I am doing pretty great mommy!

We have had a ton of Rain. How has our weather been? Has it started to get cold yet?  Or is it still quite hot and humid? Lucky, we haven’t had rain for what feels like weeks and it has been high 80's all week!!

I'll bet you’re excited for Spanish training this next week.  Will you get to see President Coffin when you go to Indy? The training will actually not be in Indy, it is in Kokomo Indiana, so about a 3 hour drive or longer for us. Although we got a wonderful surprise Saturday! President Coffin got a hold of us and we all went out to dinner! It was great to see them again! Natalia face timed them too while we were with them so I got to see her too. It was nice to spend some time with them, and get fed, because that never happens in this area hahaha. I was going to get a picture with them, but we ended up being a little rushed at the end, so I wasn't able to get one... But hopefully I will see them again before the end of my mission, although we will see what happens with time.

Due to the question of if your address gets delivered mail we sent your package to President Nehring. Ok cool sounds good to me with the Package.... Although I thought of a few more things I need... hehehe. First laminate sleeves that have three whole punches in them so I can put my Preach My Gospel in them so I can write on them and later erase it for the things that I am studying that week, and for protection against rain and other things.  It almost got really wet the first week I was out. Also some Cologne, however you spell it, the smelly stuff you spray on to smell good and be awesome. I didn't bring any and my suits sometimes smell like moth balls... This is not kosher... (I don’t understand this because we had them all dry cleaned before he left.)So either get me a new bottle of Black to send out or one called Bleu de Channel I believe it is a little more expensive but it is a lot nicer, and will last longer.

Did you get daddy’s letter in the mail?  And is the picture I sent you of your apartment correct.  I googled searched… I have mad searching skills. I did get the letter and the picture, so the mail is working.  The picture you shared indeed looks like our apartments when they were new, hahaha is my guess anyway. I have no way to download pictures so I can't send them to you... Sorry. I am taking a few though, although sometimes the camera takes really bad pictures, so you will have to take a look at some of them and see what you think and if you don't like them or something maybe get a new camera, dad and I talked about this before I left.

I shared with him a story about Bailee and Kyle hiking.  While they were hiking a rear view picture of Bailee bending over picking leaves may have been taken and posted to Instagram.  I sent him a screen shot of fit. BAHAHAHAHAHAHA so funny thing about the picture... I looked at it first before I read the description, but only for a brief second and wasn't really paying attention. So I thought to myself.... "Man... Kyle has gotten some freaking lady hips since I have been gone!!!!" BAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! I than realized it was Bailee after I read the email and it made me laugh really really hard, almost hysterics. I then indeed laughed at what Kyle had written, he is already getting corrupted by our awesomness bwahahaha. Anyway so that was really funny, my eyes are still kind of watery from laughing so hard...

Oh yea so about the Aux cord I cannot find it anywhere.... although those are really easy to get mom, those are the ones you just plug into the speaker and IPod so you can listen to it, it’s like the one you have in the van. I thought I packed it and the charger, but I have not been able to find either so if you could look again that would be great! Otherwise I have found some temporary solutions. As far as my personal funds go, I sadly have been using a lot because of the lack of member meals.  Although now I think I got everything sorted, so that won't happen as much anymore. Also I finally got an MSF Card so that should help too.

As for the bike, I should be able to wait 3 weeks and that would be fine with me to buy his bike, it is a really good bike. I remember seeing the back of it a lot in Cumberland haha. My bike will hopefully not break until then.  Mom, that is crazy about the Tomatoes and canning, it seems like some very painstaking work.

I told him about the experience the girls and I had at the women’s conference. Yeah it will never be as awesome as when Dad and I go out to the Priesthood session and dinner.  One reason is because I always get a very attractive hostesses or waitresses number and second, because it will not have Dad or I there. ;P  Olive Garden!!!! Freak we always go to Chili's because Olive Garden is expensive, so maybe that means when I get home we can upgrade to Ruby River or something tehehehe. I really like what President Uchtdorf said  that is really cool, I like that a lot. Thanks for sharing.

Do you guys have plans for General Conference next weekend?  Where will you be watching it? We will probably be watching it in a church building in North Vernon, which is about a 20 minute drive from here.

How are things with your investigator Betin?  Was he someone you and Elder Gooledge found or was he an investigator that Elder Rowberry had found and is now yours?  How is he progressing?  How often do you meet with him?  Do you have any other people you are meeting with or teaching?  Elder Rowberry had found him and taught him I think 2 times, and then we stepped in. He is doing well, we have a hard time getting him to church because he doesn't have a car and we are having a hard time putting him on a baptismal date for several reasons. One of which, is the fact that he feels that his family feels like he is slowly separating himself from them with the step towards baptism in a different faith. So we are hoping to get his families address in Guatemala and send some missionaries there!!! I think that is pretty cool. I also felt inspired to extend a promise to him. And that was. "If you make this covenant of Baptism and strive to live worthy to it all your life, I can promise you as a servant of God that your family will follow in your footsteps; I don't know when or how, but they will. So that was really cool, to feel that prompting to say that. We meet with him and most of our investigators twice a week that is the goal anyway, sometimes we can only do once, and sometimes we get lucky and get three in. We found 5 new investigators this week, and I know that by Obedience to the Lord's command we will continue to find more as we improve and strive to be obedient. So we now have quite a few, there are two more which I feel have some promise. They are Carlos and Freddie and they are both really cool and have potential, I will probably include more about them in the future, but for time’s sake, I will not today. Although Carlos has a fiancée that is white and hardly speaks Spanish and he is Hispanic and hardly speaks English and he thinks he might have an evil demonic spirit that resides in him.... 8/ Other than that he is doing well. Freddie is a really cool guy we have only taught like three times, his wife and child live in Kentucky and he drives back and forth a lot. I think both of them have a lot of potential so we will see here in the near future how it all pans out with them.

You received a Facebook friend request from a sister named Pany Ourai Davis who lives in Monticello.  Do you know her and should I accept the request? YES!!! Accept the friend request from Monticello!!! I served there while in Logansport!! I told you about the Davis family they are way awesome! So yes please do that. Remember to accept that friend request from her, we call her Gabby or sister Davis but she is awesome!

How often do you interact with the sisters in your area?  Do they live near you?  Do you like them are they nice?  How often do you interact with the Elders from Columbus?  Are there only the one set Elder Rowberry and his companion or are there others in Columbus?  What did you do for P-day last week?  What are your plans for this week?  We interact with the sisters pretty frequently so it is nice, they are very friendly and one kind of reminds me of Brooklyn, at least in the way she acts, which makes me laugh sometimes. We interact with the Elders in Columbus about 2 to 4 times a week and I love both of them dearly, especially Elder Rowberry. He is under a lot of stress right now, I think just with training, being a district leader and also having to deal with the fact of going home in not that long at all.  I feel bad for him and help him as much as I can. There are like 5 sets of Elders in Columbus and a set of sisters, although they are all English speaking. Last week we went up to Columbus and had P-day and this week we will do the same which I really enjoy doing.

I know I asked before but are you driving or is Elder Golledge?  If he is the driver is he good or does he scare you? Ha ha!  Are you still getting a long and do you feel like you have things in common? Elder Golledge is driving and is a maniac!! haha kidding. We are getting along really well, and I think it will only get better.

How is your cooking going?  Making anything good to eat?  Have you eaten with any members this past week? I eat a ton of eggs and Froot Loops, these are really the main staples in my diet hahaha... We got fed Tacos last week that were amazing with a great spicy salsa. YUM!!!! I loved it.

I really like the Branch here, it is really small though. I use my Spanish frequently, everyone says my Spanish is the best out of many of the Elders, but I don't know how true that is. I am still learning and trying to get better, because it is very rough sometimes. Anyway stories, mainly only one. So this week we had Elder Perkins of the quorum of the seventy come to the mission and give a big training. He was really cool and so was his wife. At lunch time we ended up sitting with them! So myself and a few others got to pick their brains for a good hour or more, and hear a ton of amazing stories. He associates a lot with the First Presidency and the 12 so he had lots of stories about them. One cool thing he told us is that Conference is never themed or given certain topics. Speakers are only given how much time they have to speak and that is pretty much it!! So it is all straight revelation from Heaven!!!!! So I thought that was pretty amazing. Other than that he gave a really good tid bit on Faith. Which, I have always been very key on due to my Patriarchal Blessing. So it was amazing to hear all that he had to say, and also see some of the Elders and sisters that I hadn't seen yet. Like Sister Warner.  I also got to see Elder Pendleton again which was awesome. He and I will definitely be spending time together after the mission. Also I have been getting emails from Drew which it has been awesome to hear from him!!

So my Spiritual thought of the week is actually about Faith. See there are to me anyway, different degrees of Faith. Namely like first, Belief, then knowledge, testimony, wisdom, and then Faith unto Power. Now I believe this is the Faith that allows us to move Mountains as stated in the scriptures like the Brother of Jared and Enoch. (Which by the way are probably two of my all-time favorite people in the scriptures.)  Also do we doubt or fear even the slightest, because we know that Doubt and Fear are opposite to faith. So I have really been studying Faith over the last week and will probably continue to study if for a good amount of time. I usually pick one Christ like Attribute from Chapter 6 in Preach my Gospel to focus on in a transfer. I believe I am doing Faith for this one. Well I know that by Faith miracles are brought to pass, and that yes not many of us have that Faith unto the mustard seed without a fragment of doubt, but we can all strive for it, strive to put our doubts aside, until the day it is obtained. I am grateful for all those who have supported me in my times of trial and lent me there Faith, so that I could make it through the dark times. I only hope now that I am doing the same for someone else, whether and investigator, a member, or a stranger who reads this blog, I hope I can help someone in any way I can. Especially for me, there is a reason I am back out on the mission, for all intents and purposes they probably would not have let me come back, unless it was a direct cause of revelation. So I hope to continually seek and find what that reason is, even if there are many. I have always felt a tie to the missionaries out here so maybe that is it, or to an investigator or recent convert. Although not knowing is half the fun, it makes things more interesting and makes you work as hard as you can in every way to find what your purpose is. I think that is the same in life, if we were to know what was to happen tomorrow we would go about mindlessly waiting for it to come. Since we do not know, it makes every day an adventure to be had and a story for the future! Well I love you all very much and I hope everything is going really well for you at home! I hope to hear from you soon and my prayers are always with you!

Love, Elder Paxman  

Be a LIGHT unto those who need it!

I captured this image from the Indianapolis, Indiana mission

Touch All the Lines facebook page. 

It was taken the day Elder Paxman arrived, 

and all the other newly arrived missionaries from that day.

Dear Mom,

My week has been pretty good!  I will get to that probably throughout the letter.

Did you have the car this past week or were you on your bike?  By the way how did you get your bike back?  What about your helmet?  How does the sharing of the car work?  Which day do you trade on?  If you’re on your bike how do you go to the grocery store on P-day?  How are you holding up riding the bike?  Do you feel like you are getting stronger physically?  Okay so we actually share the car split week, because we are a 40 min. drive from church we have it usually Saturday to Tuesday, and they have it the other times. Elder Rowberry had found my bike and brought it to Columbus when he found out I was coming. Helmet no, I had to buy a new one. So we trade the car on Saturdays and Tuesdays usually, but that sometimes changes upon convenience. We always have the car on P-days which is super nice.

 Do you spend p-day with the missionaries from Columbus or is it just you and your companion?  It depends on the P-day and what is going on whether we drive up to Columbus for them or not. It is a lot of miles to be going back and forth several times a week, so last week we stayed down, and this week we will be going up to play sports and such.

 How are you holding up riding the bike?  Do you feel like you are getting stronger physically?  I am holding up alright on the bike, although it is a serious piece of very bad words!!!! I hate the thing!! If I knew that for sure at the end of my mission you guys were coming to pick me up I would buy a new one, and a nicer one. So kick that Idea around between you and dad. If not, to ship it back home isn't worth it. I will probably try and ride this bike into the ground which honestly has mostly already happened.  It makes terrible noises as I ride it and is bound to break any day now. Stronger physically... Probably a little, I am tired a lot still which stinks, and not like fatigue tired, but like low energy. I feel like I am getting stronger, but not very fast, so really about the same as far as that goes. My stomach has been a little off set lately I am not sure if it is because of the Iron pills or what, so I have had to be really careful with how much I eat, and what I eat.

So tell me about your new area.  How many square miles does it cover?  Square miles I have no freaking clue mom.... A lot, we cover several towns, it is just us and the other Spanish Elders for an entire stake, so we probably cover at least 80 square miles. Something about my new area is this, I have been using a lot of personal funds, because we don’t get fed by members, because we have no members here close to us, so if we are lucky we get fed on Sundays. So kind of how opening a new area works is you move in first. Then after that, you go by and visit all the members in the area (we have none) then after that, you go by any investigators that were recent, and then you just start pounding pavement. We have tracted a butt ton load lately. We usually do create a map and start gridding things out. So we are still working on that. We have found 4 new investigators over the last week and a half so an alright amount, but we still need to find a ton more. There are a lot of corn fields here and I would love to go sprinting through the corn, but we would probably get shot by the farmer or something. There is another plant they grow a ton of here, but I have no idea what it is...

Are there English Elders/Sisters in Seymour?  Or is it just you and your companion?   Have you eaten at any more members houses?  Were they English or Spanish? There are English sisters here in Seymour and that is it. I got to eat at the Nehrings, and we had snacks at the Hammonds. Both are English.  The Hammonds are interesting. They have 7 kids and are pretty much like a white picket fence Mormon family. We spent some time with them yesterday and they are really cool, they have their own pond, and a very nice house. SOOOO I am going to try and become really good friends with them so I can have a place to chill when we come back and visit ;) hahaha teasing.

How are things going with your companion?  Are you getting along well?  Things are going well with the companion we get along well.

I understand that you had specialized training for the Spanish Elders this past week.  Did you get to see Elder Hj. or any other Elders you know?  What did you think of the training, helpful?  Did you guys have to drive to Indy for that?

Specialized training got moved to October 1^st.  We do have a mission conference from an area 70 tomorrow, but it is just my zone and I think one other, they broke it up into different days for convenience. So I haven't seen anyone since transfers. Sorry if there are a lot of errors with this email I am trying to type fast because I do not have a lot of time

I do feel like I am getting back into the swing of things. Also I am quite a bit less homesick, so it just took a little adapting, and will probably get even better as the time goes on. Sounds like fun with all the weddings and everything. We did not get to see the Temple dedication; in fact I do not think it was even broadcast here. I know that feeling of missing the temple seeing as while I have been out here I was only able to go once.  Church was good we had an investigator come, which is a miracle in itself because of the distance we have to drive to get there. His name is Bertin he is new here from Guatemala about 6 months, he speaks 5 languages and the 5th is Spanish.  He is young, 21 years old, and I really like him a lot. I believe he will be baptized if all keeps going well, we will see here in the coming weeks. I hope to hear from Alex soon, I didn't this week, but maybe next.  Bai told me about the surprise party for Grandma, it seemed like it was a lot of fun. In my package with my coat could you include some snacks, and my other set of scriptures and those two little books I need that I told you about last week, and some mechanical pencils, good ones. Thanks for fixing my coat.

Ok so this will have to be quick, I am almost out of time. So a spiritual thought. So this week with getting sick for a day, I was quite terrified that I would get really sick again while out on the mission, and then they would send me home again, which I don't know if I could handle. Anyway throughout the week things had been normal, but in my quiet moments by myself I would often ponder various things. One was why am I back? Another was How have I changed through all of this? And many many more, but one thought that I will share a little bit on today, is that of patience in afflictions, which I feel I have been blessed with throughout my life. Well whilst being afraid and worrying of being sent home again and all of that stuff. I realized that once again, I have been blessed with an amazing amount of patience and aid when it has come to my sickness. While at a members they commented on how I have done a lot with my life in the short time frame I have had, and while being so sick. I paused for a second, and said: "I want to prove people wrong" He was curious by that so I continued. "People think just because one is sick frequently or has trials of their own whatever they may be, that they are broken or able to do less. I know this because I feel it and have felt it many times. But I have set out to prove that I can do everything the guy next to me can, and I can do it just as good. I wanted to be an example of those who aren't always healthy in whatever way, whether physical, emotional, spiritual, or mental. I wanted people to be able to hear my life story see some of the things I have done, and say there is someone with the heart and will to do hard things. With the ability to stand out, and do what needs to be done, someone who knows that yea, I am broken, but that doesn't mean hopeless. Life is meant to be hoped for and lived for. Even in those moments of darkness. I am terrible at expressing my words, but I feel if I could sit down with people who are just going through Hell right now, and tell them some stories and share some knowledge that I believe I have gained and am still gaining. I could help them be just a little happier or better off in some way. I honestly don't know why I am back, and I may never know, all that I do know is that I am, and I am going to do my best to be a light unto those who need it. I am truly no different than anyone else, experience has made me learn and grow as it does or should everyone. Yes I am broken, but weak or (broken) things are to become strong. I know that God lives and loves each and every one of us, yes even the broken ones. I actually think everyone is a little broken in some way. We all could use a little fixing, I myself could use a lot, but that is what this gospel is about right? Being better, improving, realizing our potential, becoming what we were meant to be. I wish I was better with words so I could tell people this in a more poetic or beautiful way, but my simple words are gonna have to work.  This Gospel is amazing, and I am honored to be a part of spreading it once again, even if that is only for another week, or however long, it is another week in the service of my God and King.

So overall a great week, as is every week, even if it takes hindsight to realize that. Well Mom I need to wrap up, I love you so much and I hope this didn't sound preachy... Was not intended to be that way. Anywho I love you so much, I hope everything is going well back home. Remember the Bike discussion because this piece I am riding is a pain hahaha. Anyway love you all and can't wait to hear from you soon.

Love, Elder Paxman  

Each Missionary and Person is designed for Greatness!!

Elder Paxman and his new companion Elder Golledge.

Dear Mom,

Okay, so my stomach is feeling alright.  I have started the Iron, and I might jump to once a day depending on how I feel.  It has been hard for me too, not crying hard, but harder than I thought it would be. I need you to send me the 12 weeks book and another one you might have to find called Adjusting to Missionary Life, they are in my room somewhere.  Okay now to answer all of your questions first.

How was your flight and did you fly with other missionaries?  Was your cousin Miranda on your flight?  When you got to the gate were there other missionaries for you to hang out with?  Did you get to talk to other missionaries going to Indy that are Spanish?  Was it a smooth flight or bumpy? My first flight I did fly with other missionaries, but none going to Indiana. When I got to Atlanta I met 3 more Spanish speaking Elders going to Indy so that was good. Cousin Miranda was not on the flight, I did not find her. There were missionaries waiting at the gate. It was a smooth flight for the most part, and I did get to talk to quite a few of the Spanish Elders. They asked me so many questions and they seem like a good bunch of kids, I am excited to see their progress.

How was it seeing the mission President?  Did he say anything noteworthy to you? 

It was nice to see the President again and his wife, when I first walked up they had a huge grin same with the assistants, and Sister Cleveland was just like AHH!! I want to hug you so bad!  I laughed and President Cleveland was his usual stalwart self, but he gave me a hug which was really unexpected haha.

How about Transfer meeting?  Did you see any Elders who are friends?  Were people excited to see you?  Who have you seen that I would know?

At transfers as Elder Golledge stood up and President said I have some amazing special news, his companion will be one of our favorites who has returned to us to serve again.  It is our amazing pleasure to have him again, Elder Paxman. So that was really cool. At transfers there were a lot of Elders that were really excited to see me. Namely Elder Rowberry (who is now my district leader) Elder Pendleton, Elder Larson, Elder Given, Elder Wolverton, Elder Twitchell, Elder Hansen and quite a few more. I didn't get to see Elder Hjelm, or Elder VanHaren, but I am sure I will before long. Tons of people were excited to see me, even one really cute sister who I don't know too well, I remember she came in the transfer I left. Sister Hunt I think was her name.

What did you do the first day there when you were at the mission home?  What did they feed you for dinner and did you have your appetite back? I didn't really have my appetite back and still don't. They fed us Cafe rio style salads and rice, so I ate rice haha. The first day they actually peeled me away from the new missionaries and put me with Elder Syrett's companion for the day! (Because Elder Syrett went home that same day.)So we hung out and did some stuff than got food from the mission home and I spent the night at his apartment. Also Elder Syrett called when he got home so I got to talk to him which was really nice.

What is your address?  What is your apartment like?  Make sure you are taking pictures! :) Are you in a car?  IF so what kind? MY address is 811 East 4th street Rd. Seymour Indiana. I don't know the zip code, you can probably look it up though. My apartment is really nice, probably the nicest one I have been in, although we have to pay out the mouth for laundry. We share a car and it’s a corolla.  So I am back on my piece of junk donkey steed for a bit.... I hate this bike with a fiery passion.

Did you buy a pillow and blanket?  Groceries?  What are you eating?   Have you been fed by any members yet? Oh before I forget I had to use personal funds the other day because my MSF hadn't been all worked out yet, although now I should be good. I bought a pillow, but no blanket yet, the sheets keep me plenty warm. Groceries: Grape juice for vitamin C and because I like it, Chocolate milk for weight gain, string cheese, frozen pizza, chips, sour cream, chip dip stuff, yogurt, milk, fruit loops, eggs 2 dozen, frozen meals 4 of them, blocked cheese, butter, bread, and laundry detergent. That's about it. We have been fed twice, the problem is we have no members in our area and the nearest ones are about 25 min. away!! Church is 45 min away so it is going to be a bugger to get people to come to church...

How do you feel about your new companion? So far I like Elder Golledge. He is from California and he loves Disney things. I did know him before.

Tell me about your area?  Is it Columbus?  Are you opening up a new area?  If so what is it like?  Ghetto or nice?  Details.  We actually opened a new area called Seymour, it is not a bad town, some areas are kind of ghetto, but not too bad.  I really like it, lots of farms all around. Lots of Hoosiers though, so we will see how things go, not too big so biking shouldn't be too brutal.

HOW IS YOUR SPANISH?!?!  Do you feel like you lost any or are you communicating just fine?  My Spanish is doing alright; I don't really feel like I have lost much of it, so that is nice. I can communicate pretty well, although at times I will forget how to say something.

Did you forget anything at home that you need me to send you? Just send me those books and an Aux cord for the speaker. Other than that I think I will be okay. I will let you know if that changes.

I told him that some of the people he had converted were so excited to hear he was coming back. That is so good that she was excited, the mission had actually changed regulations on calling converts so I got to call her the other night and talk to her which was amazing! They are planning on going through the temple on the 2nd of December!! They want me to go with! I will be so excited if I can go! Elder Cozzins my trainer, love that guy, it’s good to hear from him.

I really have no idea how long I will be in this area I am hoping I will be here for at least a few transfers. This next one will kind of let us know I think. It is possible I will kill off Elder Golledge in December, but I really have no idea. I already told you mostly about Elder Rowberry he is my district leader and is training a new missionary, and he is about a 40 min. drive from us. My week has been pretty good, really crazy we weren't able to move into our apartment until Saturday so we weren't really able to get any work done till then. Once we moved in, we have found two new people and taught three lessons. We have two investigators progressing as of right now, and we have a total of I think 5... So not very many at all, but that should change here soon. Church was awesome! I really like the branch, it is really tiny, and most of them speak English, but they are very loving and great people. The weather has gotten cold fast, Saturday it was in the 40's for a chunk of the day and then rose to the low 50s so it is going to be a cold winter I feel.

Honestly being back in the mission is much harder than the first time. I am more homesick, I tire more easy, and it is just really hard, but it is so worth it and I would not change a thing, even though at times I struggle, I have never really let that stop me in the past. The transition is still coming so hopefully it will get better.   I am hoping here in a few weeks I will be running at full speed again.  Being out here has made me realize that I am still not all the way healthy yet...

My first spiritual story, well I will share two, the first happened in a Zone meeting on Friday. We were having a discussion as a Zone and it was all on making our time worth it out here and being unified as a zone. For most of the meeting I had been relatively quite as usual, but I got the impression to share some thoughts, when they started talking about how we have this time in our lives to serve.  I said something like this. "You know... This is coming from personal experience, but you never know how much that tag on your chest is worth to you until it is taken away, and I am afraid none of you will know what that feels like till it is taken from you.  But I can tell you right now, that little black tag and your calling as a missionary will mean more to you than you can possibly imagine, so please make every day count, because like me, you may never know if you wake up tomorrow and are sent home." The room was deathly quiet until one of the Zone Leaders spoke up and said the spirit was so abundantly strong when I testified of that, and that he was grateful for me saying those words. I never realized and probably won't fully how many people have looked up to me with this decision to come back. Honestly, I don't know why they even do, I am just an ordinary kid... I struggle just like the rest, I suffer, I cry, I work, I do everything I can just as many others.  I am no different than those who will be reading this. We all have amazing potential and are capable of doing those things that are inspiring to others, because we all come from Heavenly Heights. So that was one story the other, was a personal one. I was pondering one day on the feelings of being a missionary, and I can distinctly feel the difference between being a missionary and not being one.  The mantel that is placed on us is so heavy but so rewarding. If I could impact anyone on my mission I would hope it would be those I serve with, if not everyone, because each missionary and person is designed for greatness. I realized the strength of the spirit we feel and experience as missionaries. So yep that was my week really.

Well I have written a really long email it feels like, so I will wrap up. I love you all so much and hope everything is going well at home.  I miss you all dearly and love you all with all my heart, and wish the very greatest and dearest of Heavenly Fathers blessings upon you no matter how small or insignificant they may seem. I hope to hear from you soon.

Love, tu misionero, Elder Paxman

Returning to the Mission

After almost 4 months of medical treatment Elder Paxman has returned to his service as a full time missionary.

Early in  August Ben received a call from his mission medical doctor stating that if it was his desire to return to the mission he would now approve a reinstatement to mission service.  This was not a guarantee Ben would be able to return.  His doctor had to sign a letter and a letter had to be written by the Stake President as well as a letter from Ben.  On August 19th Ben turned in a letter to the Stake President stating his desire to return to missionary service. It along with a letter from Ben's doctor and the Stake President all had to be reviewed by a variety of different people including the missionary department and then final approval by a member of the Quorum of the 12.

On the afternoon of August 21st Ben received a call from our Stake President informing him that he would return to the Indianapolis, Indiana mission on September 9th.  On August 27 a letter was issued from the office of the First Presidency officially reinstating Ben as a full time missionary signed by President Thomas S. Monson.  On September 8th Elder Paxman was again set apart as a full time missionary and on September 9th we again sent him on his way.

Many prayers were answered and many miracles have happened to allow Ben to return to his mission.  He is excited to return to Indiana and share the gospel with the Hispanic people there.  

Our family after he was set apart.

 At the airport just prior to leaving.

Indiana here I come!

And off he goes.

One last look back and a wave.

Arriving in Indiana and in the hands of the Mission President and his wife.

D&C 42:6 And ye shall go forth in the power of my Spirit, preaching my gospel, two by two, in my name, lifting up your voices as with the sound of a trump, declaring my word like unto angels of God.