Thursday, August 19, 2010

8/16 email NEW YORK BOUND!!


I am so pumped to be here and i love my life.
Alright my first week, it was pretty dang sweet let me tell you. I arrive in the mission home which is beautiful, it was huge too. We had dinner then talked just about mission rules and stuff for a bit, then we all had interviews with the President. He is amazing i love him already, and he is going to take good care of me so don't worry. Then on Tuesday morning we went the the Joseph smith farm and the Sacred Grove. Talk about amazing! I mean i was literally in the same place where Joseph grew up and where the angel Moroni appeared. And then even better i was in the same Grove of Trees that Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father appeared in. Wow. Those places are special let me tell you, you can just feel the spirit there so strong, and it was such a testimony builder. Then after that i got my companion. He is way cool, and a chill person. His name is Elder Westley, he is from Virginia, and is a little bit of a chubby guy, but there is nothing wrong with that right? My first area i am in is called Geneva, right by the huge long Fingers lake, and we meet at the Fayette building right next door to where the church was organized so that is cool! Oh yes let me tell you, it is as pretty as everyone says. Holy cow mom there are so many pretty yellow houses here i could see you living in, you would love it. The people here are so nice too, and they may not really let us in or are not very interest but they talk with us.
It is awesome mom, here we already have a guardian angel who is taking care of us. It is this 69 year old catholic man named Frank. He is amazing, holy cow i have never met a more Christ like person than him. He is always taking us out to dinner, he went out and bought us groceries and is way interested in the church. He is a single old man and he works up at some mansion for a bunch of nuns. He is way cool. He calls us every day, sees us everyday, and just likes to talk and figure things out. SO don't worry mom i got someone here who is really looking out for me. We are also teaching some big buff black body builder, haha wow he looks like matt but black, and his name is Greg Jackson. Way cool and he likes us. He is one of those holyrollers though so he is very interesting to talk to. Haha and yesterday while contacting on the street, i met a lady who had a beard, and her mom had a hardcore mustache, talk about attractive right? Haha i love Geneva. I love it. Its weird though, i am pretty much on an english speaking mission, the spanish is only used every once in awhile so i am kinda bummed. I have taught a few puerto ricans in spanish but not too much.
Humidity may be the worst thing ever. First day all we did was tracting and contacting and i sweat more than i have ever before in my life, i think i literally lost 10 lbs of water weight. Holy crap, that is going take some getting used to. My apartment is not bad, way old but thats ok, i'll take a ton of pictures and send them home ok. Love you all and everything here is going great. I love being a missionary, and i love finally being able to talk with real people not jsut others in the mtc. Talk to you soon, my pdays are mondays so thats way nice, we are going to go play some ultimate frisbee today, and i am going to rock.
Love you all so much, keep trucking through school
Elder Ingram

Monday, August 2, 2010

8/2 email

Hey Momma!
Yeah i got your package and thanks so much, haha it was amazing i was sooo pumped. Thanks for remembering all the other stuff i needed too it was perfect. Haha yes i love my new winnie the pooh its pretty dang amazing to have it. And jess thanks for the madd hatter back. And mom the shoes fit perfectly! Thank you so much they fit so much better than the other 2 pairs i had did. They are the perfect size for my feet, thanks.

haha i'm not getting that buff, but there is quite a bit of difference when i am working out everyday you know? haha i kinda love it hard. Haha really you think i am no longer looking like baby bobo and now i'm a man?! I remember thinking the same thing when i saw pictures of joel from his missions,it made me sad but don't worry, i'm still the same haha. I am just being blessed with the spirit which is changing me in only better ways.

Yeah i have made some really amazing friends here mom i love it. Especially Elder grandy, simmons, smith, and sheperd. They are amazing and i know i'll be in contact with them for the rest of my life. Haha holy cow we have so much fun here with those elders it is a blast. i'm done with the mtc in a week! How cool is that? Wow i have no idea where the time went, it feels like i just got here a week ago. I am so dang ready to get going to New York!!!! I'm still the only spanish speaking elder going there, there are 4 other english speakers that are going there the same time as me, but i'll never be with them during my mission so i haven't really tried to get to close with those elders, and they are kinda different... haha.

Alrighty for my travel plans and my new address. My address for my entire mission will be the New York Rochest Mission home address in my mission call packet so look for that in there, i don't remember it. My mission presidetn is Jack R. Christianson. So this monday at 710 am i fly out of salt lake, to the chicago airport. And i have a 3 hour layover there so i will have plenty of time to call!! It says i get there at 11 10 but i'm not sure what time that is in arizona, so just expect a call and please answer your phone! And then i fly to rochester from chicago, and i am going to be in New York at 5! Pretty sweet right?, i am so dang pumped.

Tell Megan too about my layover, because i'll get a chance to call her too, so let her know today so she is pumped! Nope i don't need anything else before i head out but thanks for asking, i am going to be sending home though a big box of letters i want to keep, but weigh too much so i can't take them with me.

thanks mom so much for this awesome letter, i'm glad you will still have a job and a class next year that is a huge blessing. Ok so about this week, i got a new companion so now i am in a threesome. His name is Elder Wall and he is really cool, he is from texas, and he is with us because he has some thyroid problems and can't got out in to the mission field till those are fixed. So when does school start for all you noobs out there, how is peanut? i love him hahah and you guys too of course. I'm so pumped to get going the mtc food here is terrible! I have lost about 5-7 pounds i am in the 180s now and i love it. Soccer still rocks, oh and tell joel gene r cook was here last week he would have loved it. I'm really excited and ready to go but for sure i am going to be missing some of the life long friends i have made here. I am still talking spanish like crazy every day, i am to the point now where i can teach about every lesson, and most other principles too. Its awesome, i'm not saying i know all spanish, but i have really been blessed with this language. It is so much fun to speak, and make fun of the new elders with who have now idea what we are saying haha its great. Wait till drew and i are doing this all the time at home. Alright everyone i lover you so much sorry i don't have any amazing stories this week, it was just another great week at the mtc and i am getting ready and pumped to enter the missionfield. Keep me in your prayers, i am pumped and have faith it'll be awesome, but i won't mind the extra help. For fhe go over the story of abinadi in mosiah 12-17 he was an amazing missionary and i want to be just like him when i get in the field. I love you guys so much, and my new favorite spanish word is panqueque, (pancake!).

Love,
Elder Ingram

Sunday, August 1, 2010