We were in Vlad with the WHOLE
mission and I finally got to meet everybody. It was good to see some
old companions and reminiscence about good old times. 10 volunteers gave
departing testimonies and I don't know if there was a dry eye in the
whole room. Now 3 of my companions are home; Berrios, Lyman and Crabb.
Conference was so good, Elders and Sisters shared stories of miracles,
baptisms and reactivation's. There was a good feeling in the room.
I
should start writing better letters considering multiple people told me
that before they came in, they read my blog. Apparently it is the first
one that comes up when you search for the Russian Vladivostok Mission
blogs. I didn't even know "Many Are Called But Few Are Frozen" was the
name of it, that's genius.
We were blessed to
go to the Korean temple after zone conference with about half of the
mission. I was on the flight that all the missionaries returning home
were on. I think I told them like 10 goodbyes before that just thinking
that it would be the last time I saw them, but we just kept on seeing
them.
Elder Lawrence and Sister Kapralova
just entered the team on Sakhalin and we are glad to have them! Sister
Kapralova is from somewhere in the west in Russia. I have always wanted
to have a Russian companion but since we don't have any Russian elders I
am getting the next best thing. And Elder Lawrence is incredible! He
may be the funniest person I have ever met! He has only been in the
field for 3 months and speaks like he has been out for well over a
year. It motivates me to be better.
In the Korean airport we saw this little Asian girl maybe the age of 5 or 6
just standing by herself and Sister Kapralova wanted to see if she could
talk to her. She knew a total of 4 words "I'm sorry", "Bye"
and......... "cooked meat" :). And she was yelling those at her "I'm
sorry, I'm sorry, bye bye bye, cooked meat cooked meat" haha!!! I can't
even imagine what the poor girl was thinking haha.
On
the plane back to Russia, I talked to a woman named Roma (a man's name
in Russia) who had a tattoo in Arabic but the skill color that made me
think she was from Africa. Turns out she is from the Philippines.
Anyways she spoke perfect English and married a Russian man that she met
when he was traveling in the Philippines. Really nice lady, I got her
email and gave it to the Vlad sisters, she wanted help learning
Russian.
Well, that will do it this week! It was a good one!
What a week... I was taken for the pilot of
our plane to Sakhalin when we got off. I was wearing my way nice winter
coat and had my military Russian bag on and apparently I looked legit.
We
had so many flights! When we went to Zone Conference I stayed at the
AP's apartment and had a joyful reunion with Elder Crabb if I have ever
seen one. We got new materials to keep us better organized and more
focused on our goals and Zone Conference was of the chain as usual.
While I was in Vlad I had three sharmas which still doesn't seem quite
enough. We went to Korea and got three sessions in, a trip to Ashley's,
dinner with the senior couple from Brigham City and McDonald's
breakfast. I have never been more effective in Korea in my entire
life! The flights were pretty fun.
After Korea I spent a night in the AP Elder's apartment and had some delicious
breakfast cake Elder Hess made at my request and got to know a few of
the Elders in the mission I didn't know that well. Elder Bodily goes
home this transfer and then I won't have anyone from my same city in the
mission. We got up at like 4 or 5 in the morning (I don't remember
which, it was so early) and took a flight to Sakhalin and landed at 9:35
a.m. and on the island (Sakhalin) church starts at 10. We rushed to the
church and made
it for sacrament and I gave my testimony in church. This branch is
huge! Like 60-70 people and it is three hours long which I haven't had my
whole mission. So many people here speak English. At least half the
branch. Oh man, it is beautiful here. I feel like I am in Alaska.
Especially when one of the American families who is here working for
Exxon
invited us over for dinner and we went into their gated community
which literally looks exactly like Alaska and is incredibly nice. We
had such a good dinner there and I kinda of understand now what it is
like to serve in a state's mission. Sakhalin is sick and I know it is
going to get better and better!
Hello everyone! Happy General Conference! I can't wait to watch it! General conferences out here are amazing!
With
transfers comes change. And 2 of the members of our district left.
Elders Memmott and Crabb. And to celebrate the great time we had this
past 6 weeks, we went bowling. We bought 2 lanes. And then the 4 of us
just kept on switching back from lane to lane and I think by the end we
got in something like 5 games in in a hour. After bowling we went to
dinner at the nice restaurant "Skaska". I got a pork steak. Pretty
Good. The place was fancy. We ordered off of iPads. I felt like a
state missionary for a second haha. I thought it would be cooler than
it was. I think I just prefer a regular menu. Then to end the night 3
people in our branch had birthdays all on the same day. And 2 of them
were exactly the same age. What are the chances? We had a family
night/party for them.
Russian practice has now moved to 10 am.
And it is now at our teacher's house. She got a new job and she doesn't
have that much time so we will be doing that form now on.
It
rained! Twice! It was beautiful. I hear it rains in Ussuriysk a
lot. Unfortunately one of the days Elder Roosa forgot his coat and got a
little wet because it was coming down hard. век живи век учись (Live
and Learn). That is one of my favorite Russian phrases. I think my all
time favorite though is как нельзя лучше which means "couldn't be
better". I found out that Russian Easter is on May 1. I get 2!
Me
and Elder Crabb took a bus to Vladivostok. And then slept in Elder
Lyman's apartment there. Then we woke up the next morning and there was
just something different in the air. The new elders had arrived. We
took a bus and then walked up the hill to President's house. We arrived
to
the smiling faces of President and Sister Perkinson as well as Elder
Bacon (not Kevin), Baugh, and Roosa. They all looked about a 100
percent different the picture we saw of them. We had a little
conference and Sister Perkinson made us an amazing breakfast! It was so
good. Then we talked and had a discussion from about 9:30 to 1:30.
I learned a lot even though it was for the new missionaries. Then
right after that we made our way to district meeting in Vlad. On the
way there we were contacting and I was shocked Elder Roosa knows
Russian fantastically. He speaks so much better than I did when I first
got out of the MTC. I couldn't understand anything and everyone
thought I was speaking English to them when I was speaking in Russian.
But that isn't a problem for him. I am lucky to be training such a
great Elder! He is from Parker, Colorado. Loves to ski and actually
worked at a little place called Aspen as a lift worker. I really like
him. I have been blessed with great companions my whole mission.
On Saturday
we met with Sister P. And we planned to talk about preparing
for general conference and asking questions but the spirit took it a
different way and we ended up talking about miracles and her conversion
story. She said that she was working in this little store when two boys
in white shirts and nametags came in and needed to buy something but
were
in a hurry. She was interested because you don't see that everyday so
she
told them to stop and she wanted to talk. But they were on their way
somewhere and didn't have the time so they got her number. Later they
called her and said let's meet. At that time she didn't really want to
but she did anyways. They met in a bus station and did the first
lesson. When they got to the first vision she said the elder pulled out
the photo of Joseph Smith and Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and she
was drawn to it. See didn't know why. And when he related the first
vision to her in Joseph's words she said that her heart burned so hot
inside of her. And she was scared and told them that she had to go
because she didn't understand it and thought that maybe it was
hypnotizing or some magic thing and she was scared because she had never
felt like that before. And she left. Lucky the Elders were persistent
and got to meet with her again and to make a long story short...she
was baptized. It was a very powerful lesson. I shared the miracle of
E. (He got baptized the same time as Eg). And how when me and
Elder Lyman found him he hated life and had nothing and was smoking 2
packs of cigarettes a day. But now that he has the gospel he loves
life and has a job and a phone and he told us, "Ever since I have been
meeting with you I just don't want to smoke." He met with Elders for a
week and in that time he went down from 2 packs a day to only 2 a day.
And now he has finally quit. Conversion is a miracle and watching it
in
someone's life is truly amazing!
I love it out here! Thanks for all the letters! They mean a lot! I love you!
Elder Wilding
Sister Perkinson sent us these photos and a letter (at bottom).
Training meeting with Pres. Perkinson
With Elder Roosa (new comp)
With Elder Lyman
Dear Brother and Sister Wilding,
It is always good to report on what has been going on in our mission. We
sent home seven missionaries and received three new Elders straight
from the MTC yesterday. Today we invited three Elders to come to the
Mission Home for breakfast and a few hours of training prior to sending
them out on the streets to actually start their mission.
We are grateful for their training service today!
I think they are ready to hit the streets!
Thank you for your prayers in behalf of this mission! We love your son and we feel grateful for the many hours of
at home preparation for this time in his life. The gospel is true and changes lives for good!
Warmly,
Sister Verna Rae Perkinson
Vladivostok Russia
Hello once again to everyone. The ice that lines the sidewalks is
starting to melt and the weather is quite pleasant. I remember when I
first got in the country sweating and being so hot. And then it got so
cold. But as for right now the weather is perfect!
We
got a new investigator named A. He doesn't believe in God but
says he doesn't have proof that there is no God so he is open to what we
teach. He loves fishing and loved the pictures of the salmon and
halibut in my picture book. We found him in the area book and called
him and found out he lives in the building that our church is in. The
area book is magic. It has so many good people just waiting for us to
call. I look forward to teaching him!
We meet
with Vlad again this week. He is the investigator whose parents are
super against the church but mostly just Americans. He told us he was
going to come to the conference we had on Sunday
with Elder Kacher of the 70. But then he texted us that morning and
said his mom wouldn't let him. But we will keep working with him.
BVolodia
continues to progress! It is a miracle to see his heart change.
Lessons are so much different know. They just feel different. He is
reading Book of Mormon and praying. Before he maybe got a verse and a
half of the Book of Mormon and then says that he is tired and can't read
any more and usually completely rejects the invitation to pray. But
since we haven't given up on him he is changing. As Elder Crabb says "If
we keep bringing the spirit and let him experience it, that is what is
going to make the difference", or something along those lines. And it is
true.
So this conference was pretty
interesting. All the members in this zone, that is members from Artyrom, Ussuriysk, Nahodka, came on buses to Vlad. Nahodka is about 4
hours away. Anyways the Vlad sacrament room was packed. All the
missionaries had to stand out in the hall because of all the members.
The purpose of the conference was to hear Elder Kacher of the area
presidency and the 70 speak. He doesn't speak Russian so there was a
translator. Saturday
was our conference with him. He has an amazing story. He is a convert
at the age of 19. He was born somewhere in the eastern states and when
he graduated from high school he hopped on a plane to Austria to ski.
When he was there he had a strong feeling that he should go home. He
did and then had a feeling that he should go live with his friend who
lives in Utah. When he got there he was baptized. A year after that he
served a mission in Tahiti.
He is a really
great man. He discussed many topics with us on how we need to make sure
our investigators actually repent and about how we should be using the
Book of Mormon more and many other things but the thing that the spirit
taught me was that the gospel is love. Everything that is done in the
gospel is out of love. It really hit me hard. I always knew that but
it just hit me harder this time.
The reason
Elder Kacher came to our mission is because they are going to organize a
district in the west. That is one of the necessary steps before a
mission can be organized. And they are having a big conference in Ulan
Ude. And I heard that Egor is going to get baptized down there during
the conference! That is a miracle! Right around the time I left he was
starting to progress and then Elder Lyman told me after a lesson he
asked if he could get baptized. I pray and hope that all will go well
with him. I love him so much!
This week was another learning experience. Now it is just time to apply what I learned.
Everyone have a great week!
Love
Elder Wilding
At the Zoo
Zone Conference
ZONE CONFERENCE
Dear Brother and Sister Wilding
We have been blessed this week to be edified by President and Sister
Kacher, General Authority of the church and Area Presidency of our
mission.
We have been encouraged to be urgent and use time wisely! We have been
instructed to increase our ability to be led by the Spirit! We were
reminded to teach Repentance and Baptize Converts, those truly converted
to the Gospel of Jesus Christ!
We were asked to have faith in Jesus Christ to overcome any mindsets
that we may have. We were asked to learn to seek answers to questions of
the soul thru the Book of Mormon and then teach this in our missionary
work. We were asked to teach repentance as a
blessing in our lives and that the atonement is for all people, no
matter their past. We were asked to really work with less actives and
seek to be led by the spirit.
Vladivostok Russia Mission Statement
I am a disciple
of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of Him to declare
His word among his people, that they might have everlasting life. (3
Nephi 5:13)
We are a Preach My Gospel Mission!
We live by consecration.
We sow exact obedience.
We grow mighty faith.
We harvest precious souls.
We expect and facilitate daily miracles.
We talk with everyone.
We find with faith.
We teach repentance and baptize converts.
We are happy, dignified and hard working!
We Love God and show charity for all His children.
We are the Vladivostok Russia Missionaries!
We have a desire to live the Mission Statement that we recite daily in
our studies and when we gather in District meetings and Zone
Conferences.
We love sharing the gospel with your son and we are grateful for your prayers in behalf of our Vladivostok Missionaries!
How great it is to be in this cafe
place I call the dungeon because the lighting is so bad it reminds me
of Pizza Hut. I am happy to be writing the loves I love once more while
in the service of the Lord.
This week was
great. Many miracles I have personally witnessed. It is funny, if you
pray to see God's hand in your life he will show you. It is so
simple. Just like the gospel.
So first I had
the privilege of being in a trio with Elder Hess. Great Elder from
American Fork. All the missionaries here are from Utah Valley it
seems. It was because his companion Elder Memmott was on his first
chorea trip. Both are great elders. Then I had the privilege again of
going to Vlad with Elder Crabb and going on splits with Elder Perry.
It was great to see him. He is so funny. We were in the MTC together.
We met a lady on the street who says that God answers her prayers all
the time and that she will read the Book of Mormon and see what he says
about that. It was cool!
Then we took the 2
hour bus ride back to Ussuriysk and did some area book work. We went
back to as far as we could and found potentials from 2008. I told Elder
Crabb that we were wasting our time calling people from that long ago
because most of them wouldn't remember when they talked with the
missionaries and I figured half the numbers would have been changed by
then. But he insisted so we called them. It was the strangest thing.
Almost every single one of the people picked up and remembered the
missionaries and some of them wanted to meet. I learned I need to have
more faith haha. And of those people who picked up was L. She said
she would come to the church the next day and we would meet. Well we
waited for her the next day and nothing happened. So we called her
again and scheduled again and she still didn't come. So then we told
her to come to church on Sunday
and she said she would come like she always does. I wasn't so sure.
But she did come and brought her 2 daughters. Once again I need to have
more faith. Anyways the sacrament meeting was a little strange because
one of the other elder's investigators came and he is a little loud and
when the first speaker got up to talk and said hello brothers and
sisters, he yelled hello back. And when she would ask questions, he
would answer them. And everyone would tell him to be quiet and then he
would say, "I'm sorry" like 5 times way loud. haha That happened a few
times. And then at one point he stood up while she was talking and went
on for a few minutes about some stuff. After she finished she took
him out and told him about how sacrament meeting works haha. It is funny
to see that some people just don't know because they have never been
before.
After the meeting L met with us
and we did the restoration lesson with her. It was really powerful and
she said she would read the Book of Mormon and come to church again and
come to activities and it was awesome. She said when we called her it
was a miracle because the first time she met the missionaries was in
America. She was there a long time ago. And then when she heard our
American accent she knew she had to meet with us. God prepares people!
I know that is true! The only sad thing is that she can't fund her
children, (who apparently are really good athletes) the training they
need to be Olympic athletes. She used to be really wealthy but
something happened with a fire and she only has enough money just
to get by. But that is really good that she even has that.
I have been reading like crazy! I love reading! I want to get way smart!
On
a sad note one of the babushka's (in the Branch) cat died. She called
us over to help her get to the vet and they had to put the cat down
while we were there. She was really sad. And then this Sunday
she came to church which she never does because it is hard for her to
get around but after when she was trying to leave she slipped on the ice
and broke her arm. We feel so bad for her. It seems like she
can't catch a break.
A sister here made us blini and set up a table cloth with homemade lemonade. I love this branch!
My
companion is Elder Crabb who is such a good elder! He is from Orem and
is really dedicated and good at Russian. He is really funny and I love
serving with him.
I can testify that prayer
works because this morning I looked for forever for my camera and
couldn't find it anywhere. Then I said a prayer and found it almost immediately. Prayer works!
God is protecting us
out here. We were talking to these 2 really drunk guys and this guy on a
bike stopped a little far off. After we were done talking and started
walking away we crossed the guy and started talking with him. He wasn't
interested in our message but said he stopped there just in case
anything happened. He was like a guardian angel on a bike. Oh and
just so you know mom we are 100 % safe at all times and nothing bad ever
happens.
I have been on many
buses this past week. I went with my zone leader to all the areas in
the zone. We went on splits with the elders there. We traveled to Vlad
on a 2 hour bus, then took an hour long taxi to Artyom, slept there and
woke up and went on splits with Elder Gardiner and Elder Sebach, slept
there one more night and then woke up early in the morning and took 3
hour bus to Nahodka, went on a split there with Elder King and Bates.
Slept there that night and then took a straight shot bus home to
Ussuriysk that was 4 and a half hours long. It was really really fun
seeing all the elders and seeing their beautiful cities. Especially
Nahodka. A city on a bay. I think it is the biggest port in all of
Russia. It was really pretty there but the whole time I was there It
rained a lot and I found out I had a hole in my boot. But I brought
extra shoes so it was fine.
In Ussuriysk twice a
week we have Russian practice. That's right I said Russian practice. We
get to sit down and one of the recent converts who speaks no English
teaches us Russian. IT IS SO AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!! I learn so much! This
is what I needed so much. To be taught Russian from a native Russian.
We get to ask questions and it is all coming together.
One
of the other elder's investigators lives next to us. We
communicate with him through the windows by turning on lights. He is
honestly the coolest man I have ever met. He does the Olympic ski jump
thing where the jump is way long through the sky. Also he told the elders
he had to run to Vlad to buy a suit so that he could come to church.
OK I planned bad, sorry. The highlights of this week were, I have a cake
by an awesome member with peanut butter in it. I learned a lot on the
trips! I read our heritage and feel lucky they had it so much harder
than us and we have so many more advantages than them.
Hello everyone! Currently my Panthers are playing their Superbowl in
the United States and I am sitting in a internet cafe in Ussuriysk. The
place we went to email in Angarsk was really nice but this place is
more like a dungeon. Meaning the lights are really low and it is just
weird.
This week was awesome! I got back form Korea
not too long ago and we were able to attend the temple when we were
there! Wow was that awesome. We were in such a rush to make it to the
temple and to get to the session on time and everything was hectic but
once we were in the temple me and Elder Barr were able to sit down for a
few minutes in front of the organ and just listen to the music and
relax and get in the right mindset. It was so peaceful there in that
holy house.
So as I kind of said last week I
am in an new area. It isn't Angarsk but I think it is about the same
size. But drastically different. First of all it actually reaches
the positives some times and I heard it snowed like 5 feet just like a
week before I got here. I am currently serving with Elder Butler and
Elder Crabb. Elder Butler is 2 transfer younger than me. Elder De
Sandres age and Elder Crabb is 6 months older than me. And when the
transfer actually takes place I will be serving with Elder Crabb. And he
knows Russian really good and I really like him!
The
branch here in Ussuriysk is so strong and a little bigger than Angarsk.
Yesterday we had the most spiritual testimony meeting I have ever had on
my whole mission. We also have this kinda crazy but really funny
investigator named V who calls us "who-li-gan-ee" or hooligans. He
is really funny and I like teaching him.
Here we are actually teaching a lot and when we were in Angarsk we didn't as much so it is really cool to be able to do that.
I
really love it here and it is snowing quite hard right now. It is fun
to change cities but I am going to miss the other elders and Angarsk. I
hope I will be able to serve there again maybe at the end of my
mission. We have no sisters in my area but we do have another set of
elders. Korea was fun and I met a really funny man who spoke some English
and I got a pic with him.
In Korea people would ask questions in English and I would accidentally respond in Russia haha. The language is coming!
We went to Baikal today. It is a beautiful place there. I drank the water right
out of the massive lake. The water was so clear. Baikal is so huge!
It looks just like the ocean. If only we had fishing poles. After
looking at the lake and taking pictures we went to the main reneek and I
bought a nesting doll for you mom (it's purple) and a few other
things. We also ate плов which is like fried rice and chicken and pork
and also шашлыки which is like a shish kabob. The food was good then we
hopped on a taxi back to Irkutsk and from there a bus back to Angarsk.
It was fun and I would definitely want to go again but it is in total
four hours of travel so it isn't something you want to do every p-day.
I
almost forgot, this week was New Years. HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE! The
Russians love it so much. It is their favorite holiday. it is
basically Christmas for them. They still have Christmas but it isn't
as anticipated for as New Years. When we went out on New Years the streets were basically empty, I guess
everybody partied a little too hard the night before. Seriously it was
odd how few people were on the streets, we took a tramby and we were the
only ones on it and they are usually loaded. It was still fun to be
what you could of called a ghost town. We had to go in at 5 pm. We did weekly planning in that time instead of doing it on Friday.
And then we played ping pong the rest of the time. Somebody sent Elder
Lyman a mini ping pong net and a ball and two small paddles. So
naturally we moved our kitchen table into the living room and had
tournaments of ping pong. You need to send me one of those mom! The
whole time we played we could hear fireworks outside and could see a
few. It is actually kind of funny because they celebrate for about 10
days. It starts on New Years and ends a little after Christmas (Jan 7th).
So we will be out contacting and fireworks will be going off behind you
or in front of you. It is so fun! I wish it was like this all the
time!
The struggle this week is that I have
been losing stuff like crazy. I lost my book that I have been keeping
for 19 weeks about what happens in the week so right now I am having
trouble remembering. i also lost a hacky sack Elder De Sandres mom gave
to me for Christmas and just yesterday I lost my planner. It was a good
time to lose it I guess though because we were on our last day but
this is just getting out of hand (literally!).
It
has been
getting warmer and we have been on the streets a lot so that is a
blessing. The transfer ended this week and all four of us elders are
staying here in Angarsk but the sisters are both out of here but are
staying together and going to Khabarovsk I think. I get to train Elder
De Sandre for 6 more weeks which I am excited for. Oh I just remembered
something! Last night when we were calling the sisters like we do
every night they didn't pick up and their phone was native stupen. So
me
and Elder Lyman figured that we would run over to their place to just
make sure everything was OK. We ran there and once we got there this
police car pulled up with his lights on and asked what we were doing and
Elder Lyman told him we were checking on our friends. They asked for
our documents and we gave them to them and everything worked out, they
thought it was a little strange that we were running at 10:30
at night but everything was fine. We called the sisters through the
door phone but it was just ringing and nobody was answering. Then the
sisters called us and said that somebody was outside of their door
calling their room haha. They could see us through their window but
thought that we were somebody different. We told them it was
us and they were so glad because they were so scared before they knew.
Haha that was the first time I have had a police even talk to me
my whole mission. They were really good guys though.
Well
sorry I can't really remember much else that happened but I am going to
buy another notebook so that I will next time. Tell Weston поздравляю
for me.
I spent 2 or 3 days in
Angarsk but right now I am in Vlad. This is my travels, I took a bus
from Angarsk to Irkutsk and then from there jumped on a plane and flew
to Kharbarosk. Had a long layover there and actually slept on the bench
seats in the airport. After the layover finally ended I flew
Vladivostok. Was in Vlad for a very short period of time and from there
I flew to Korea. Once I got in Korea I took a bus to the center of the
town and ran to the temple. The bus drivers in Korea wear suits.
Completely different from Angarsk. After we got off the bus we ran up
this hill and couldn't really see anything but all of a sudden the angel
Moroni pops out and it is completely stunning. Korea itself is
absolutely amazing. It is basically futuretown. Big buildings. Flashy
neon lights. I felt like I was on a different planet. Once we arrived
in the temple we just immediately did a session. We would have gone and
got McDonald's but we just had no time for it. It actually turned out
to be quite fine though because when we were just sitting in our rooms
(in the temple, it isn't in the actually temple temple but it is
connected to it) and one of the workers brings to us pound cake and
milk. Korean people are so nice. I love bowing down to everyone
because they always do it back. And Korean sounds so cool! Walking the
streets of Korea is so cool! It was so warm there. Then after all of
that we woke and took a bus to the airport again. I stood in a line in
the airport for about 2 hours, then jumped on another plane and now I'm
in Vlad. It was so much traveling in just 2 or 3 days. I was so tried
and jet lagged. But it was so fun!
I love
Vlad! I didn't know if I would like the big city feeling of it but I
do. There are always people to talk to on the street and it is not as
cold as it is in the west. I was walking the other day with one of the
AP's to go check out a hotel for the new elders that are coming in and
on our way there we saw a black guy on the street. That alone was
pretty surprising because he is the 2nd black person I have seen on my
whole mission, so of course we talked to him. He spoke no Russian. We
asked him what he was doing in Russia. He told us that he was bringing
football to Russia and he coaches a team here. He also told us he
played in the NFL. He played for a couple of teams but the only one I
can remember is the green bay packers. His name is Bobby Rome. I have
never heard of him before but I'm sure if I looked him up I would find
him. He pulled his hand out of his pocket and on his hand he had 3
rings that looked like Superbowl rings and a really expensive diamond
watch. He isn't very smart walking around in Russia with that on but he
could probably fend for himself just fine.
I met a man from North Korea in Vlad. It has been a really fun and exciting week!
Mom, you can finally relax. I bought my coat. To say it is warm would
be an understatement. It is a shark force. That is the name of it.
It is probably the best name I have ever heard! On the inside are these
words that make no sense haha. I'll send a picture. Time keeps on
flying so fast. How am I almost already done with training? I
honestly don't know. It feels like yesterday I was at home chilling
with Mr. Cat.
This week was another week of miracles. This man we met on the streets a few weeks ago is named
Yuri. He loves life! He is just a happy person who finds everything
funny and everything brings him joy even though he is very poor. He
knows English very good as well. And he loves the word "yup" haha.
Well, a few weeks ago we got his number and told him to come to English
practice but English practice came and went and Yuri wasn't there. We
called him but he was always native stupen (which means their phone is
either off or they didn't pay their bill so their phone is shut down)
like everyone else in Russia. We were sad because he was really
interested and we really wanted to meet with him. Well then at Hari
Krishna, our service project where we serve food to the poor and
homeless, he showed up! Right when he saw us he said, "It's Destiny" He
would look up to the sky every time he said it too. He said the reason
he wasn't answering his phone is because he had it on a lanyard around
his neck and his cat hit it into some water. He kept on saying it was
destiny that we met again. We invited him to English practice again and
he came this time. After the practice we taught him the first
lesson. He said, "I already believe all this". When we asked him to be
baptized he said, "When and where?". He is so solid and so prepared. We
set up another time to meet with him but he didn't come. We were bummed
again because of how golden he is. Yesterday we were contacting just
like we always do and we saw him, waiting at a bus stop! We went up
and talked to him and he apologized for not coming to our meeting. He
said he was working and couldn't make it. His job is to shovel snow
and there is a lot of it now. He has been reading the Book of Mormon
and we are going to meet with him tonight.
It
snowed a few inches this week. Everything is ice now. To get rid of
the ice they have the workers with shovels of course, but they also have
these tractors that have on the front of them these huge brushes the size
of a side walk in length that are made up of spin trim wires. They work
like a lawn edger does and just completely obliterate the ice. They
look like a lot of fun. Might want to get one of them for home haha!
I
am going to Korea this week! To renew my visa. SO excited, I get to
sleep in the grounds of the temple and do a session or 2 in the
temple! Then I will be in Vald for like 3 weeks. We are having a
mission conference (our whole mission). We don't have that many
missionaries but that is completely nuts because of how spread out we
are. So it wouldn't be very smart for me to fly to Korea, and come back
to Angarsk for only like a week or 2. So I will be serving with the
AP's for a little while which is going to be awesome!
The
mission really makes you appreciate everything you took for granted
when you were at home! Thanks for giving me a great life!
Elder Wilding
Your son in his coat
Shark Force inside and label
Russia - Angarsk
Russia - Angarsk
Chicken Alfredo
*Mom here... I added this forecast for the next couple of weeks...
I'm in Russia! Like I'm actually in Russia and it's awesome! Everyone
looks like Taylor haha! The people smile and are mostly nice! When we
street contact I say, "Hi, we are from the Church of Jesus Christ, are
you a believing person?" Most the time they say they don't understand
English even though I am speaking it in Russian haha. Sometimes they
just keep on walking but more than I expected people stop and talk to us
for a little bit! Only have seen a few drunk people, everybody wears
way short shorts even the guys and all the Russians have the same shoes
haha! The ones with the holes everywhere. All the buildings look scary
and gross from the outside but once you go inside they are pretty
nice! My apartment is really nice and we have a better shower than we
do at home haha! The branch in Angarsk (where I am serving - Siberia)
is
super strong! There is a man here named S who has read all the
standard works four times and he has been a member less than a year.
Crazy
how strong and committed members are, they sacrifice so much for the
church. We are teaching a man named R. He has a baptismal date
this Saturday but we had to push it back a week because Elder Lyman, my
companion, has to go on a Visa trip tonight
so I'll be in Urrkookts for like 2-3 days. R is amazing and when
he talks about the gospel he says our church instead of your church! He
says how when families fall away from the church the family falls apart
and he isn't even a member of the church yet! There is a ping pong
table in the chapel and the branch president says he wants to play us in
ping pong sometime! Guess it's time to school some Russians in Ping
pong haha!
The language is difficult but I know I
will learn it! So many words that I don't know but I get better
everyday! Everyone in the branch is way nice and says that I know
Russian really good! They're so nice because I don't at all! I bore my
testimony in church which was cool! I have to give a talk next week
haha! I also passed the sacrament. Church is only 2 hours here.
On
my trip from Las Vegas to Korea the airline was amazing! They gave us
fruity drinks and 2 meals and a hot towel but I was asleep so I didn't
get the hot towel :(! I slept basically the entire time of the 13 hour
flight! Everyone else stayed up like fools because our teacher told
them they would adjust to the time change better but she has never been
more wrong! We got there and it was morning so I was well rested and
everyone else was tired! President and Sister Perkinson picked us up at
the airport! They drove us to the mission office for a second and
then to the mission home. The mission home is sooooo nice! Sister
Perkinson is a really good cook!
My trainer
and companion is Elder Lyman from Highland Utah. After the mission he is
going to play baseball at BYU. I really like him and we get along
well! He is a really good cook and we made a Pizza my first day here!
He has been out just barely under a year. Apples means orange in
Russian haha! I think today we are going to go to a book store. He
said that the Count of Monte Cristo was there in Russian and while we
can't read it on the mission it would be definitely cool to have for
when I get home so maybe I could send it to you or something.
Like
I said Russia isn't what I expected at all. Landscape is a lot like
Alaska and I really like that! The branch president here served us cake
and apple juice when we went and visited with them which was delicious!
Just your average Heavenly Father's children in Russia, they aren't a
whole lot different from Americans in a lot of ways. Tracting is
pretty fun to see people shocked that two Americans are talking to them
haha! It's hot!!!!! I did not expect Siberia to be this hot! I know
it will cool down though haha! A lady here said -40.
Your sons and daughters are here in Vladivostok safely!
They are so excited to be here and to finally start to serve The Lord!
Thanks for your love, support and your prayers!
The gospel is true and changes lives for good!
AUGUST 21, 2015
Sister Wilding,
Thank you for your wonderful son! Thank you for teaching him the
gospel of Jesus Christ! We feel so blessed with this new group of
missionaries! And Elder Wilding tops the list!
Elder Wilding has been assigned to serve with Elder Lyman in a
small branch in the West Zone called Angarsk where this young branch
will love him! We were just there less than two weeks ago for District
meeting and a fun Family Night with a song, power
point presentation and pizza! I know that Elder Lyman is a wonderful
missionary who will diligently train him with the 12 week program.
Here is a couple of pictures of him just prior to his departure.
Just arrived a like an hour ago! Russia is awesome! It's really humid and hot. President Perkinson said that by December we will be about the oldest missionaries. And in just a few transfers we'll be training! It's scary but exciting! I'm safe and in Russia! I love you!
Elder Wilding
Sidenote from Mom: The photo of McKay was taken by a stranger at one of the airports. He asked McKay for my cell # and then sent it to me. :)
The other one is of the flight tracking from Vegas to Seoul. It was almost a 13 hour flight.Thank you all for your prayers for his safety. Please continue to pray for him
The MTC has flown by that crazy fast! I can't
believe that I'll soon be in Russia in less that a week. I sent
you my flight plans in the photos. So I leave the MTC at 3:00 PM which is super nice because it seems like everybody leaves at 3:00 AM. From the Salt Lake airport we fly to Las Vegas and will be there in a layover for 3 hours. I will probably call you between 3:45 and 8:00.
And maybe I will even call you when I'm in Vegas for 3 hours. But I
can only call you in the states. After Vegas we fly to Seoul Korea and
have a 6 hour layover there. I heard Korean Air is amazing! Don't know
why but everybody tells me that haha. After the layover I will fly to
Vlad and spend a day or 2 in the mission home.
Something
super cool and amazingly awesome that has never happened at the MTC
before and probably never will happen again is that we are going to
perform with the Nashville Tribute Band the day before we leave! I
didn't know who they were before I got out here but they are a country
band that makes gospel music. It's pretty surprising that the MTC would
allow them to come and let us perform with them because even though it
is church music it isn't really hymns. The songs we are singing with
them are 1st "I was born" 2nd "John's song" and 3rd "The hardest thing
I've ever loved to do"... the last one might make you want to cry mom.
We
teach everyday in Russian! Sometimes twice a day. It's fun! Me and
my companions are getting really good at teaching together! To bad we
are about to get separated haha! We were continuing teaching U-li-a
(the one I asked to get baptized) and we scheduled he baptismal date so
soon that we didn't have much time to teach her all the other things we
had to teach her. So we taught her all the commandments in 20 min. Haha
I don't even know how! It would have taken me longer than that to
teach the commandments in English. God is with us! She got baptized
(not really just in our
minds) and then we taught her the laws and ordinances lesson!
Another
one of our investigators whose name is Andrei (Brother Clark my
favorite teacher not a real investigator) is a really hard investigator or at
least we thought. He would always ask questions that would derail the
lesson and it felt like we taught him nothing but we always left him
with the commitment to read and pray. One time we even asked him to
pray in front of us and he refused. But for some reason he always kept
his commitments. We never asked him to be baptized because we were
always too intimidated. Foolish thing to do we should always ask them to
be baptized on the first lesson. Anyways we asked him this time and he
said then would! He said when he read the Book of Mormon he felt God's
love. That's the most important thing. That they read the Book of
Mormon when we're not there and that they pray when we are not there. It
is important that they do those things when we are there but much more
important if they do them when we are not there.
So
we had a sub teacher. We taught them as if we were tracting. Russia
has a weird thing where it is bad luck to shake hands in doorways. So
we knocked on the door and he opened up and my companion said we are
missionaries. I then put out my hand and shook his. I looked and saw
the confused look on his face and realized what I had done. I then
proceeded to walk into his house! What was I thinking haha! He had a
even more confused look on his face and I just got out of there as soon
as possible haha!
Other investigator. Our
teachers play people they taught on their missions. We were teaching a
woman maned Galina. She said that her son has been online and read
about the Mormon church and was reading on LDS.org. So she knew
somewhat about the church. We were talking to her about the Plan of
Salvation and how we must be baptized in order to get into the highest
kingdom. She said "dyevaye" which means Lets! Some people are
prepared!
Can't
really think of anything I need. I guess besides that track phone. Oh
and Bryce, Taylor, and Sky's Emails. I love your packages and that's
something I am going to really miss about being at the MTC. Getting
your wonderful packages full of all kinds of sweets! I got the voice
recorder just have been kind of busy but I'll use it in the field. I
lost my RVCA shirt. Not my Russian shirt. It's ok if I get 2 of them
though because I like it. I am grateful for the clothes you sent me in
the last package and for the food!
Love you all!
Don't know when I will write again because who knows when my P-day is? I look forward to talking to you!
Love,
Elder Wilding
Elder Wilding with Elder Diedrickson (Little Deeds - friends from high school) They are both serving in Russia but Elder Deeds is serving in Moscow and so he will fly out of New York while McKay flies out of Las Vegas.
With Little Deeds and companion Elder Brower
Flight plans
SIDENOTE:(from Mom)
In
case any of you are interested in the Nashville Tribute Band, here is
their amazing song The Hardest Thing I've Ever Loved to Do. McKay is
right, it does make me cry every time I hear it. The first time I heard
it was when Taylor was on his mission in Brazil. But, it's quite an
incredible song.
