What's Up Doc?

Hey Family,

                  This week has been great! On Monday we played lots of games and the Lakeland Elders came down and hung out with us. After we went to the Crickmores for dinner and the Teeter's after that. then on Tuesday we all went to zone meeting in Frayser. It was all focused on how to overcome people's problem and concerns. We did a lot of role plays and had lots of fun. After zone meeting we came back to WM (West Memphis) and went to go see some people in this shady neighborhood. We have lots of investigators all in this neighborhood. None of them were home but we met this guy named Arsenio. He seems really cool and we are going to start teaching him. Then we went to dinner and then drove to Little Rock. We stayed with the Pinnacle Mountain Elders. The next morning we got up and went to my doctors appointment. It was very boring. We sat around, I got some blood work and an echo then the doctor looked at me and said I was still doing good. We then drove back to West Memphis. By the time we got back it was about dinner time so we went to the Teeter's for dinner. We watched the movie Joseph the Prophet of the Restoration with them. It is still a good movie. On Thursday we had the apartment specialist come and check our apartment. We passed with flying colors.....Probably because there is nothing in our apartment. We then went to the other Elders' house for lunch. After lunch we went on exchanges. I stayed down in WM with Elder North. It was lots of fun and we found some new people for them to teach and set a date with one of their investigators. Meanwhile up in Marion, Elder Oveson and Elder Anderson found some new people, contacted some referrals and set a date with a lady named Joanne. She is really cool and loves leaning the gospel. Friday we exchanged back and Elder Oveson and I went to that neighborhood I was telling you about and talked to lots of our investigators there and had some good lessons outside with lots of people. On Saturday President Peterson came down and did interviews for the four of us. He told me I am probably staying here this next transfer but I love it here so I was OK with that. That night we had an appointment with Joanne. She wasn't home but we went to go see a different investigator that lives right around the corner and she seems solid and wants us to teach her next week when her husband comes back from a work trip. On Sunday we had stake conference. We went with the Teeters to save us some miles. It was very good and most of the speakers talked about how members need to be more involved in missionary work and how the members and the missionaries need to work together. It was a great stake conference and the new temple president and his wife spoke. They are Bro and Sis Griffin from Hot Springs. It was cool to see them again. 

                 That is about it for my week. It has been good and productive. It sounds like y'all had a fairly good week and I hope y'all have a great week this week.

Love Elder Talbert

A Great Missionary Picture

Halloween costume (Secret Service)

Monster Mash (November 4)

Hey Family,

                    This week has been good. On Tuesday we had district meeting in Bartlett. We talked a lot about how to find new investigators and what works best as finding methods. It was a really good meeting. I learned that I need to be better at getting people's names. I seem to forget to ask for people's names when I talk to them on the street. After district meeting we went to Lakeland and helped the sisters find in their area for an hour. We found a couple of new people they could go back and see. When we were done finding in Lakeland we went back to West Memphis and went finding in our own area. We found this guy named Jeff Wilson. He had a lot of questions for us and we answered them the best we could. At the end of the discussion he said he wanted us to come over and talk to him some more. So we are going over there hopefully this week to talk to him. We also got a car on Tuesday and the WM Elders went on bike week. On Wednesday night we went to the branch's Halloween party. We all dressed up. I was a secret service agent, Elder Oveson was a thug, Elder Anderson tried being a ninja but then changed to the President, and Elder North wrote the word book on his face and went as facebook. It was a fun party. Thursday was Halloween. We were down in West Memphis all day helping out the other Elders and doing a lot of finding. That evening we went to a Halloween Party one of the members was throwing. It was fun but we left when they went out trick or treating. Here in Arkansas trick or treating is a little different then in Utah. Instead of the parents going with their children from door to door, the parents sit in their car and watch their children go from door to door. The parents stay in their car the whole time and slowly inch forward as their child moves along the street. It was kinda funny to see just a line of cars on both sides of the street slowly inch forward as kids are running everywhere. After we got home, we played Betrayal at a house on a hill. It is a fun game but every time we play I am always the traitor. On Friday we did more finding and we met these two guys named Roman and Ladarius. They are both cool and seem interested in the gospel. We taught them the first lesson when we met them. We also had to drive the WM Elders to Midtown so they could go on exchanges.On Sunday was fast and testimony. It was very good. Then in Sunday School class we learned about a talk by Bruce R McConkie about the atonement. It was very good talk and all about how we would be hopeless without the atonement. Then in Elder's quorum we talked about home teaching. We read part of Thomas S Monson's talk about home teaching from this past general conference. It was about how we need to be the home teachers that go and care about the family and really get to know them. Often we go home teaching because we are asked and we want to tell the Elder's quorum president we did it. I think the same thing applies to visiting teaching. We need to go because we care for the person. After church we had a great lesson with a lady named Joanne. She seemed interested and we are going to teach her again on Thursday this week. 

 

                       That is about all for my week. I hope you are all doing good and having a fun time with school and work. I love and pray for y'all.

                      

                       Love

                               Elder Talbert   

It was the Monster Mash

Joseph's letter from October 28th

Hey Family,

                  This week has been slow and tiring. To answer your question, I keep up just fine on bike week. Our area is flat for the most part. Although we didn't bike at all this week. We walked everywhere because we live next to a major highway and in order to go anywhere in the town from our place you have to go down the highway. We thought it would be a lot more safer to walk and neither of us died so I think we were fairly safe.

 

                  Well on Tuesday we had district meeting. We went and all learned about how to get our investigators to pray with faith and realize that they can increase their faith by reading and going to church and by praying. It was a very good meeting. After the meeting we gave our car to the Lakeland Elders and we went back with the West Memphis (WM) Elders. We walked to Chris's and talked with him for a little. We learned that he is going to Jonesboro for the month so we won't be seeing him around but we are still going to try and teach the rest of the family. For the most part we walked around and talked to everyone we saw and handed out a lot of cards. On Wednesday morning we went with the WM Elders to a teaching appointment then we walked around WM and contacted a referral. Then WM Elders took us back to Marion and we went around to see some people with them. That evening we went to the church and they were having a Halloween Party for YM and YW. It was fun and we dressed up as missionaries. I was Elder Anderson. On Thursday we walked around a sketchy trailer park for most of the day trying to contact people but no one was home. On Saturday the WM Elders called us and told us they were going to come pick us up. We went with them to a birthday party for a kid named Joe. He is really cool and he is a member. The birthday party was at his grandmas house and she is a non-member. We celebrated his birthday ( he turned 9) then we went to Proctor. We went to another Halloween Party one of the members was throwing. There were a lot of nonmembers there too. It was a good day. Sunday we went to church and Elder Oveson and Elder North gave talks. It was very good and all about missionary work and we all need to not procrastinate and do missionary work. It was very good and the rest of church was also great.

 

                  That is about it for my week. Not to bad but fairly boring. We got a lot of help from the WM Elders so that was nice. I think it is awesome that Mike is the new bishop. I know he will do great. I hope y'all have a great week and a Happy Halloween.

                                                                                                  Love Elder Talbert