The Lord invites us to change.

Dear Mom,

It does seem like a busy summer indeed! I am not looking forward to it as much as you are though... I am sad to see my mission coming to a close.

Did you know about the tornado warning they were having in your area last week? No and mom you just need to calm down, if a tornado hits here in Indy somewhere I will get video and then hide ;) bwahahahaha!! I think it would be so cool to see a tornado! Although not so much if it destroys things.

Brooklyn made MDT. She was so excited and we were so relieved. That is awesome that she made it! She will love it! So now the Paxman legacy will continue. I just had a freaky thought of Mr. Eaton thinking it would be cool to have us three in a musical number together... hahahaha no... That would not be cool, I would look like an idiot compared to those two on the stage.

Who is your new companion? Tell me about him. My new companion is Elder Labrum, he is from West Jordan, Utah. I knew of him before we were put together, but I did not know much. I think it will be a good companionship, he is very quiet and he has a good heart and I really like him. So we will see how the following weeks pan out.

How is the work? The work is going good and we have found a few new people to teach, but they are all in the beginning stages so we will see how they pan out. So we are going to keep finding as always and really work on helping people progress.  The baptisms last week went really well. We are teaching Franklin again this week so that should be good. Other than that, we are still teaching a few less active sisters, we are continuing to work with them and trying to keep the work moving forward.  We are still doing some service, we have a few things planned, but as of right now nothing too spectacular. As far as the teaching goes in general it is going really well. We are really working with Margarita Burton, she is a part member family that I have mentioned before. She is like a grandma to us. She is probably only in her 50's though. She knows the gospel is true she just has to make that jump. She is so close; I really hope to see her enter the waters of baptism before I leave my mission. So include her in your prayers. She is so close I can feel it.

Did you have flooding with the rain you have been having?  I read on the internet that there were some flood warnings in your area, because of the river.  We have not had any flooding that I know of, and we have had some rain, I wouldn't say a ton.

How are you settling into the branch?  Making good friendships and building trust with the members? I think I am making good friendships with many of the people in the branch. In fact we are going to go play some ball with some members tonight, which I am excited for.

Are the Branch President and his wife both Hispanic?  If so where are they from?  No they are both white. They are very nice people I really enjoy them, they are very nice.

You said you are getting fed dinners quite often, are you eating mostly Hispanic food or is there some American food as well? We are eating a lot of Hispanic food, but also American food. It is neither one way too heavy or the other. As far as the teaching goes in general it is going really well. Do you get together with the other missionaries from your district/zone for P-day?  Do you do fun activities? We do get together on P-day although lately we have not been going because we have been so busy doing other things. We will probably start getting together with them more often.

Do you have a washer and dryer in your apartment? We do not have a washer and dryer in the apartment itself. It is in the building, but we still have to pay for it. Which sucks!

How is your health? Are you still exercising? Only 11 weeks left to sexy. Ha ha. My health is hanging in there. Yesterday I was very sick, it stunk. I threw up and was in really bad pain all day... I really felt bad for Elder Labrum, he has been with me for less than a week and already has to deal with me being sick. So that really stunk. I feel a little bit better today, not full speed, but better and out working. I am still working out although I have also been trying to get over a really bad cold and cough which I have had for I swear two weeks now. That makes working out hard. But I am still trying, I am also trying to eat a little healthier to help with that. So now it is more like 11 weeks to not so ugly... Oh well...

The Lord does communicate with us in many different ways, sometimes we just have to be willing to listen. That is okay we drop the ball sometimes and that is okay as long as we try and improve more for the next time. Now for more of the spiritual thought. This week has been a good week; my mind has been put to thought on a topic I have thought about a lot at different times throughout my "second mission". One of the big thoughts I have been having is "why was I permitted to come back out and continue to serve...?" This question has been on my mind a lot lately. Yesterday with me being sick and all it was in the fore-front of my mind. I had a stark and very clear thought, I would say an impression. Well of course there are many reasons I feel that I was able to come back, but the one I felt so strongly about yesterday was this. I was permitted to come back, for me... The reason I was able to come back a second time was not because I didn't do a good job the first time, or because I had to come home to meet someone important, (although that could still yet to be foretold). I got the very strong impression that it was for me personally. I kept thinking well why. Several thoughts flowed into my mind. One was this, would we really be called to serve a mission for 2 years so that when the calendar hit 24 months we could just pick up where we left off. That is not only false, but a lie of the adversary, we young men and young women serve a mission to FOREVER CHANGE OUR LIVES!! And if your mission isn't doing that, or did not do that, then it is no one's fault, but your own. So the Lord invites us to change. Even missionaries I have seen come out on a mission and hate it for their time here has had their lives changed while here. So whether you serve for 5 months or 30 months the outcome is the same, lives are changed and the first is your own. Another thought that comes from that, there are still more things that I must learn while out here in the field. I have already learned so much, but it seems every day I learn more. Again, for me to remember that the mission is not just for two years, it is for life! Yes it is true the tag comes off after 24 or 18 or however many months, but the things we learn are meant to stick with us to and through the eternities! Many lives that a missionary will touch are found after the mission is done. I have struggled with the thought that my mission is coming to an end, and it is. I cannot change that no matter how hard I try, it must end. But the person whom I have become must get on and off the plane with me! If we leave what we have learned in the mission field; all the lives we have touched and all the things we have done, may be in vain, because we did not learn maybe one of the greatest lessons. The mission changes lives, and especially our own! Yes we go back and things change, and we change as well, but we must never forget whom we have become through those two years of sacrifice or however much time we serve for. The tag will go in a box and the memories will fade, but the person we become, must never be forgotten, in Elder Holland's words: "One missionary that goes less active is too many!!!..." Every member is a missionary, so every member that goes less active is too many! They are our brothers and sisters, the very sons and daughters of God! That is what we believe and teach isn't it?! So why at times do we judge those poor souls whom have left the church as being of less worth than those who sit next to us during sacrament meeting!? This should not be so. As I said last week, every soul is precious to God, and should at least have a piece of that worth to us! I learned that my second mission is supposed to have a profound impact on me. I may be the most important convert on my mission. I don't know, I just felt that this second time around is supposed to especially mean something to my own soul. Which, I felt it has had an impact and is continuing to do so every day. Now I and many others are so far from perfect, and that is okay, we are not meant to be perfect. But to try is worth more than we can imagine. I hope my mission can impact many lives, but if one person is to be impacted it better be my own soul. I am really sad to see these days go by. I am sad to see my mission ending. Although when it does, I hope to move on to the next phase of life, with a hope and dream of the future. Faith is in the future. If we don't fight today, than tomorrow we have already lost, in a way anyway. Every day is precious, everyday has a chance to change lives, and every day will count in the end. I hope we can use our days to the fullest and if we don't well that's okay, we try harder the next day, and keep going forward on the journey of life. Well I love you and I hope that this week goes well for you all back home!! :) I am excited to hear of the adventures of the next week. As I am excited to live some of my own. Well I hope you have a great week and I hope to hear from you soon!

Love, Elder Paxman

and Juan [:{D