Hello my dear family! WOW! That's about all I can say about Sunday!! It was the best time ever! It was so incredible to see you all! I can't even describe how exciting it was to Skype and talk with you all! I am SO grateful that everything went so smooth! I couldn't have asked for a better day! Thank you so much for your incredible email! It is always so exciting to get and read your emails! I loved all of the pictures as well! I loved the picture that you took of me and Mom! I am so grateful for technology! It was so cool to think that we were 2,000 miles away from each other and yet we were having a "Face to face" chat! It was so much fun! I loved everything that we talked about! After the call, I felt so recharged!
Last P-Day was great! We woke up and put in a load of laundry and then we had a conference call from President Smith! We always look forward to his calls so much! He talked about Mother's day and how important and amazing our Mothers are! Then after the Conference call we got our laundry, folded it and put it away and then we got to email! Elder Smiley and Elder Knudsen headed to the Temple to do a session but before they left we all did our grocery shopping. So we headed over to Aldi's and did our grocery shopping then we came back to the apartment and emailed for a little while longer. It was very relaxing!
I really hope that I can remember everything that happened this week! I am pretty sure that I told you most of this stuff in our awesome video call.
I have some really exciting news! We decided to go to the Bronx Zoo today! Like you said in our video call, you never know if I will have the opportunity to do fun stuff like this in my next area! It will be so much fun! It is absolutely beautiful weather today and it is supposed to be hot, Hot, HOT! I'm sure that the zoo will be pretty packed but since it is free, we could always go next week as well! So we are all really looking forward to it! The weather feels so nice outside! Birds are chirping and the flowers and trees are blossoming like crazy! The sky is so nice and blue! So we are doing our laundry right now, then we will go shopping and then head to the zoo! I will be sure to take lots of pictures! I can even email you back and forth as well!
Thursday was such an amazing day! We had 3 lessons and they all went really well! After we did our studies, we had our weekly planning! It didn't feel like weekly planning since we had just had P-Day. It threw me off!
So we started our weekly planning session and planned out all of our investigators' lessons. We always enjoy this time to take a step back and focus on the whole week and plan it out! It is really nice! So after we scheduled in some lessons next week with our investigators, we got to a good stopping point and we were all starving! So we decided to go to a local pizza shop called "Anthony's Pizza"! So we headed over just down the street from our apartment and we ordered! They have really good prices! We had always seen this pizza place every time we passed it and said: "let's go there sometime!" So we finally did! I ordered a sausage, peppers, and cheese calzone for $3.50 and it was huge! It was a real bang for your buck! It was so good! The owner was a really nice guy and had a really cool New York accent! He sounded just like Buddie Valastro! So after we had our delicious lunch we headed back to the apartment and finished our weekly planning. We planned in some member lessons, service, and APF activities. So after we finished all of our weekly planning, it was 2:00 and so we started our split! Elder Smiley came with me and Elder Dick went with Elder Knudsen. I always enjoy splits because I get to know everyone really well! So after we broke off, we had an early dinner because we had a busy night with lots off appointments! I was so excited to have so many appointments all in 1 night! So after dinner, we headed over to Co-op City. We had 3 families that we had scheduled lessons with! First, we went to one of our investigators named Marcus Daley. He and his family are very busy and so they haven't been able to progress as fast as we would like but we are certainly working hard! So we knocked on their door and their little daughter who is 4 answered the door. Marcus gladly let us in and greeted us with a smile! He is such a great guy but is always working. He knew that he would be off that day so we scheduled this lesson just under 2 weeks ago. We sat down and talked with him and he said that he was so happy we could come over! We started talking and he said that he and his family have been doing really good just very busy. We then taught him about the sacrament and read 3 Nephi 18: 1-21 with him. It talks about Jesus Christ when he administered the sacrament to the Nephites. He really enjoyed reading these scriptures and he kept stopping us and said: "Tell me about that verse" or "let's stop there and talk about it." It was really cool to see how much he enjoyed reading those scriptures. We invited him and his family to church this Sunday and he said that he would try to make it if his work schedule would allow time for him to come. We felt the spirit so strong in that lesson. We could both tell that he felt the spirit too! So after our lesson we had 2 more lessons, both with members! We always enjoy getting to know the members better! So we went over down the street to a really nice older member's apartment. Her name is Sister Figuero. She is always so nice and loves all of the missionaries! She knew that we couldn't come inside because there is a rule that if a woman is alone, there has to be a 3rd male. So we couldn't go inside but we taught her at the doorway. She was so nice and made us some pasta bowl to go because she knew that we couldn't come in. She had 2 bowls of vegetables with pasta and pasta sauce and did then gave us a huge container of apple juice. We were so appreciative and thought it was so nice of her to do! After we got back to the apartment, we enjoyed her pasta bowls! They were really good! So we taught her about service and small acts of service we can provide to those around us. We said that she was providing an act of service to us so it was perfect! We showed her a video about Thomas S. Monson and service. She really enjoyed the video and after we left her with a prayer about then headed straight over to our next appointment! The last family that we visited with was the Danquah family! Brother Danquah is the ward mission leader and is such a great guy! So we knocked on their door and they welcomed us in! They have 2 kids. Madison who is 12 and Michael who is 10. They are very nice kids and are very polite. It was so nice to get to know them better! Brother Danquah served a mission in Ghana and was a convert at age 8. Sister Danquah was converted at age 10. We found out something interesting about Sister Danquah. She is actually Brother Ampah's Sister. Brother Ampah is the 2nd Counselor in the Bishopric. We talked with them and got to know them a little better and then we talked to them about Mother's day! We showed them a video about President Utchdorf and how his Mom accidentally left them on a train because she was finding food for them but she showed her faith by praying and she found her 4 little kids. It is a great video! We talked to them about how much Mothers do for us! After our lesson was over it was time to head back to the apartment for the evening. It was such a great day! We had a lot of fun teaching back-to-back-to-back lessons!
Friday was another great day! By this time I was even more excited to Skype you! So we woke up, got ready for the day, and did our studies and headed out the door! We were still on our split and we decided to end our split at 4:00. The weather was so nice and pretty and we enjoyed being out in it! We went over to Evans' house but he wasn't home so we went to a man named Ryan Armstrong. We knocked on his door and a really nice lady answered the door. We asked her if Ryan was home and she said that Ryan had moved a while ago. We talked with Gloria and she said that she would be interested in learning more! She told us that she lived in Co-op City and was visiting her Daughter. We were so glad to meet her! So after we knocked on a few more doors, we headed back to the apartment and had some lunch. So we had some lunch and then went to an apartment complex right by our apartment, just down the street. We knocked on a lady's door named Mona. She was very nice but she had been very sick this past week. She said that it has been hard to be so sick. We said a prayer with her and then we headed to a few more apartments. Then after we knocked on some doors we headed over to the church to unsplit with Elder Dick and Elder Knudsen. We always enjoy splits and learning from one another! So after we unsplit, we headed back to the apartment and had some dinner. After dinner, we went to go see one of our investigators named Michael McNeil. He hasn't really been interested in coming to church but he enjoys having us over. We hadn't been over to see him in a while. When we got there he was practicing his guitar! He has the exact same guitar that I have! He even has the same guitar book! We talked with him for a while and then talked about gaining a testimony of the Book of Mormon. We left him with Moroni 10 to read! It is a great chapter! So after we met with Michael we knocked on a few more doors but we were pretty sure that there was a Yankees game yesterday because not very many people were home and tons of people had lots of Yankee gear on! It was a great and productive day!
Saturday was another great but rainy day! It poured again and there were rivers flowing down the sidewalks and streets. On Saturday I couldn't wait any longer to Skype! I was so very excited to Skype you all! We had our service orientation at a local library so we can find more service opportunities when we plan in service! It will be so nice! So we headed out the door and got on a train that takes us to the library. So we took the train to the Yankee Stadium stop! It was so cool to see it again! So after the service orientation we headed back to the apartment for some lunch. Then we did companionship study and language study. Then after that it was time to get ready and head over to the church to go to Quincy's baptism! So we headed over to his baptism and it went great! Elder Dick and I actually got to be witnesses for it! Everything went smoothly then they had cupcakes afterwards which was great!
Then after the baptism we had an appointment with Osagie at 7:00 so we hopped on the train and went to visit Osagie! He has been doing great just really busy with work. He is working so hard and long hours but the pay isn't very much. He is doing really well though! So we taught him about Tithing and fast offerings and he enjoyed our lesson! He is so faithful that he says he will willingly pay his Tithing which is so awesome! After we visited with Osagie we headed back to the apartment! It was a great day and I knew it would be hard to fall asleep that night!
SUNDAY WAS AMAZING! Skyping you all was the best experience so far! It was so amazing to see and hear you all! It was so much fun! I loved talking with you all so much! I enjoyed seeing you all so much and actually being able to talk with you! It was definitely hands down the best experience so far on my mission! We woke up at 6:00 so we could all shower, eat breakfast, and get ready to be out the door by 7:45! We were all SO excited! We couldn't wait to get over to the church! I so didn't want the Skype to end but I knew it had to at some point. It was so much fun and I enjoyed every minute of it! I loved seeing you and talking to you all so much! I was so grateful that the WiFi worked perfectly and the video and audio was so clear! It was such a blessing to be able to talk to you all on such a special day! I am already looking forward to Christmas so much! It was an experience that I will never forget! I loved every second of it! So after I Skyped you we headed downstairs and waited for church to start. We enjoyed welcoming in all of the mothers and saying: "Happy Mother's Day!" So when church started we actually had the most people I have ever seen so far in this ward! We had close to 100 people! Sacrament meeting was really great! Fortunately we had everyone show up so Elder Dick and I didn't have to speak. We enjoyed talks from the 1st counselor's wife, the Elders quorum President, and a priest. All of the talks were really good and they focused so much on Mothers which was awesome! I was still so excited from our video call! I was on cloud 9! We taught all of the young men in the 2nd hour of church and it went great! We taught them about prophets and the blessings that they are in our lives! Then after church, we had a really nice Mother's day celebration! They had cake and ice cream which was so good! Then they had a tribute on mothers and some of the ward members shared memories about their mothers! In my talk that I was going to give, I said that I was so grateful for you and I was grateful that you have taught me so much! Then I gave the example of how you taught me to cook and clean! Then after the party, Elder Dick and I headed upstairs to do his Skype call! He said his family is doing great! He enjoyed seeing them so much! After his Skype call we headed back to the apartment and had some dinner and then I baked some oatmeal raisin cookies for Sister Johnson! I used Pillsbury pre-made cookie dough and they turned out really well! So we went over to see Sister Johnson and she was so grateful for the cookies! We wished her a happy Mother's Day and then gave her the sacrament. We always enjoy going over there! We had something really cool happen as we were walking back to the apartment! Then after we visited with her, we started walking back to the apartment and as we were walking, a lady stopped her car once she passed us. She got out and said: "Hey are you the Mormons?" We said yes we were and she said: "Oh, I've read a lot about you and I have a ton of respect for you and the work you do!" She had just gotten back from grocery shopping and she said she wanted to give us something. She pulled out an back and gave us a bottle of water, an organic banana, and a container of almonds! It was so nice of her and we were so appreciative! It was such an amazing day! I had the best time Skyping you all! It was the best experience I've had so far on my mission! I felt your love and prayers so much!
Monday was another incredible day! We had our weekly district meeting and it went great! We woke up, and did our personal study and then Elder Smiley asked Elder Dick and I to prepare a short role play to present at district meeting. So we headed over to the church for our weekly district meeting! We talked about how the ward was doing and we all talked about our Skype calls! Everyone had such a fun time calling their families! So after district meeting, we headed back to the apartment and had some lunch and did our language study. I have enjoyed learning a little bit (Poquito) of Spanish! So after our language study we were so excited to go over to City Island to go visit the Krieg family! They didn't know we were coming because their schedule isn't very stable so they didn't know when they would be available this week. If they weren't home, we had plans to go look up some investigators that hadn't been visited in a while. So we went over to the Kreig's house and knocked on their door and luckily they were home! We were really excited to get to know them a little better because I met them a few weeks ago but they had to hurry off so I didn't get to talk with them for very long. Charlie let us in and we started to talk. Charlie is the Dad and he and his wife, Regina live alone. Charlie isn't a member but Sister Krieg is! They have 2 sons that live out of the house and aren't members either. Sister Krieg hasn't been to Church in a few years but they are such good and kind people. City Island is TOTALLY different from all of the Bronx. The people that live there are also very different. Charlie was born in the Bronx and then lived in Puerto Rico for a few years then has lived in City Island since 1988. Then Sister Krieg came home from doing some shopping. It was so nice to sit down and talk with the both of them! We got talking and I couldn't help but notice all of their amazing antiques that they had! You know me and how much I love that kind of stuff! Everywhere you look, there were tons of amazing old bottles that all had different companies on them, so I asked them what the story was behind all of these cool bottles. Well, come to find out, Charlie is an underwater welder and find most of these bottles while he is out walking or while he is underwater! It was so amazing to see how many bottles he had! He had cupboards and cupboards full of cool bottles. He showed us some of his most amazing bottles and he found one that had a date on it of 1861! Can you believe that!?!? I loved looking at all of his cool stuff! We had a really nice chat with them and then talked about family history a little bit. Then they ordered some really good pizza from a local pizza shop! It was seriously some of the best pizza that I have ever had! It was such a classic New York style pizza! It didn't have any sauce. It just had a thick layer of mozzarella cheese and then it had ricotta cheese on top! It was so good! Then it was time for us to head out and do some more missionary work! We were so grateful for their hospitality! It was a really fun time! Then we headed over to the bus stop to head back to near our apartment. After we got off the bus though we had something crazy happen. We got off the bus and as the bus was pulling away from the curb, it sides wiped a car that was parked right in the bus lane. There was about 8 adults in the car. It really wasn't very bad. Just some surface paint chipped off but still would be pretty pricey to fix. But the bus driver didn't realize that he had it them and he had to turn around to go the other way and so the 8 guys got out of the car and started waving and yelling at the bus driver to get out. We thought for sure that we were going to see a fight because they were very angry. They shouldn't have been parked there in the first place but it still stinks. So they got the bus driver to pull over and they started yelling at him. The bus driver was very nice, calm, and collected. The guys were yelling at him and said: "You hit our car!!" He said: "Yeah because you were parked where you shouldn't be." A bus came before we could see the result of what happened but it was still pretty crazy! Then we headed back to the apartment after a great day of missionary work! We were so excited for Zone Conference the very next day! I was still on cloud 9 all day on Monday from the Skype call! I just couldn't help but think how much of a blessing it was to have everything work so smoothly! The WiFi worked perfectly, we talked about everything that we wanted to, the picture was clear, and we all had a great time together! I felt so recharged and my homesickness pretty much went away! I can definitely say that has been the best and most fun experience I have had so far! I loved hearing and seeing you all so much! We had a great Skype call! I love and miss you all so much!
Tuesday was such a great day! We didn't have much going on since it was Zone Conferences! We woke up really excited for that! We always love hearing from President and Sister Smith!! So we had to wake up really early because we got a call from the office Elders and they said that they were going to pick us up! I was so excited to see Elder Kirkham again! So we had to wake up at 5:30, be out the door by 6:15, and over to the church by 7:15. So we got all ready and headed off to the church! When we got there it was exactly 7:15 so we headed off to the Scarsdale chapel! When we got there, they had such a nice breakfast for us all! They usually have Chobani yogurt and granola which is so good but this time, Sister Smith made us some really good homemade chocolate chip cream cheese spread to go on bagels that they bought! It was so good! So while we were eating breakfast, all of the missionaries with leadership positions had a quick meeting and then zone conference got started at 9:00. We enjoyed zone conference so much! It lasted until 3:30 and so by the time we got all of the tables and chairs put away, and got home it was about 5:00. Zone Conference was so great as usual! They talked about sharing the Restoration to all the members that we set appointments with! They showed us how to teach by the Spirit and teach it in 4-6 minutes! It was really interesting! The Scarsdale Church is really pretty! It was such a pretty day! They had the doors to the gym open and the birds were chirping.......or should I say, the chirds were birping! So after we got back to the apartment, we had some dinner and then headed back out for some more missionary work! We stopped by a few investigator's houses and we saw Jose! He told us that he has been going through some trials and really wanted us to start coming back over. He is a very quiet and humble guy! So we talked with him and he just said he just really wanted peace. We assured him that this Gospel can and will bring him that peace that he is looking for to his life. Then we headed back to the apartment for the night. We are always really good at getting back right at 9:00! It was such a great day but it went by very fast since we were in zone conference for the majority of the day! I was so excited for P-Day! I couldn't wait to read your amazing email!
Well everyone! It was so much fun to email you today! I hope you all have a great day! I will be thinking about you all day! I still am just on cloud 9 about our video call! It was such a special time and an amazing experience! You are all looking so happy! It was so much fun to be able to talk to you and hear from you! It was a moment that I will never forget! I hope you all have a great and safe week with all of your activities! You are so almost done with school, and then it's summer vacation time! I hope you are planning a really fun trip for your anniversary! I hope you get to do something really fun! I can't believe that tomorrow is my 4 month mark! Time has just been flying by. I love and miss you all so much and appreciate all of the love, support, and prayers you send my way each and every day! Not a moment goes by that I'm not thinking about you and cheering you on from New York! LOVE AND MISS YOU ALL SO MUCH!
Love Always!
~Elder Lindberg
I really hope that I can remember everything that happened this week! I am pretty sure that I told you most of this stuff in our awesome video call.
I have some really exciting news! We decided to go to the Bronx Zoo today! Like you said in our video call, you never know if I will have the opportunity to do fun stuff like this in my next area! It will be so much fun! It is absolutely beautiful weather today and it is supposed to be hot, Hot, HOT! I'm sure that the zoo will be pretty packed but since it is free, we could always go next week as well! So we are all really looking forward to it! The weather feels so nice outside! Birds are chirping and the flowers and trees are blossoming like crazy! The sky is so nice and blue! So we are doing our laundry right now, then we will go shopping and then head to the zoo! I will be sure to take lots of pictures! I can even email you back and forth as well!
Thursday was such an amazing day! We had 3 lessons and they all went really well! After we did our studies, we had our weekly planning! It didn't feel like weekly planning since we had just had P-Day. It threw me off!
Saturday was another great but rainy day! It poured again and there were rivers flowing down the sidewalks and streets. On Saturday I couldn't wait any longer to Skype! I was so very excited to Skype you all! We had our service orientation at a local library so we can find more service opportunities when we plan in service! It will be so nice! So we headed out the door and got on a train that takes us to the library. So we took the train to the Yankee Stadium stop! It was so cool to see it again! So after the service orientation we headed back to the apartment for some lunch. Then we did companionship study and language study. Then after that it was time to get ready and head over to the church to go to Quincy's baptism! So we headed over to his baptism and it went great! Elder Dick and I actually got to be witnesses for it! Everything went smoothly then they had cupcakes afterwards which was great!
SUNDAY WAS AMAZING! Skyping you all was the best experience so far! It was so amazing to see and hear you all! It was so much fun! I loved talking with you all so much! I enjoyed seeing you all so much and actually being able to talk with you! It was definitely hands down the best experience so far on my mission! We woke up at 6:00 so we could all shower, eat breakfast, and get ready to be out the door by 7:45! We were all SO excited! We couldn't wait to get over to the church! I so didn't want the Skype to end but I knew it had to at some point. It was so much fun and I enjoyed every minute of it! I loved seeing you and talking to you all so much! I was so grateful that the WiFi worked perfectly and the video and audio was so clear! It was such a blessing to be able to talk to you all on such a special day! I am already looking forward to Christmas so much! It was an experience that I will never forget! I loved every second of it! So after I Skyped you we headed downstairs and waited for church to start. We enjoyed welcoming in all of the mothers and saying: "Happy Mother's Day!" So when church started we actually had the most people I have ever seen so far in this ward! We had close to 100 people! Sacrament meeting was really great! Fortunately we had everyone show up so Elder Dick and I didn't have to speak. We enjoyed talks from the 1st counselor's wife, the Elders quorum President, and a priest. All of the talks were really good and they focused so much on Mothers which was awesome! I was still so excited from our video call! I was on cloud 9! We taught all of the young men in the 2nd hour of church and it went great! We taught them about prophets and the blessings that they are in our lives! Then after church, we had a really nice Mother's day celebration! They had cake and ice cream which was so good! Then they had a tribute on mothers and some of the ward members shared memories about their mothers! In my talk that I was going to give, I said that I was so grateful for you and I was grateful that you have taught me so much! Then I gave the example of how you taught me to cook and clean! Then after the party, Elder Dick and I headed upstairs to do his Skype call! He said his family is doing great! He enjoyed seeing them so much! After his Skype call we headed back to the apartment and had some dinner and then I baked some oatmeal raisin cookies for Sister Johnson! I used Pillsbury pre-made cookie dough and they turned out really well! So we went over to see Sister Johnson and she was so grateful for the cookies! We wished her a happy Mother's Day and then gave her the sacrament. We always enjoy going over there! We had something really cool happen as we were walking back to the apartment! Then after we visited with her, we started walking back to the apartment and as we were walking, a lady stopped her car once she passed us. She got out and said: "Hey are you the Mormons?" We said yes we were and she said: "Oh, I've read a lot about you and I have a ton of respect for you and the work you do!" She had just gotten back from grocery shopping and she said she wanted to give us something. She pulled out an back and gave us a bottle of water, an organic banana, and a container of almonds! It was so nice of her and we were so appreciative! It was such an amazing day! I had the best time Skyping you all! It was the best experience I've had so far on my mission! I felt your love and prayers so much!
Monday was another incredible day! We had our weekly district meeting and it went great! We woke up, and did our personal study and then Elder Smiley asked Elder Dick and I to prepare a short role play to present at district meeting. So we headed over to the church for our weekly district meeting! We talked about how the ward was doing and we all talked about our Skype calls! Everyone had such a fun time calling their families! So after district meeting, we headed back to the apartment and had some lunch and did our language study. I have enjoyed learning a little bit (Poquito)
Tuesday was such a great day! We didn't have much going on since it was Zone Conferences! We woke up really excited for that! We always love hearing from President and Sister Smith!! So we had to wake up really early because we got a call from the office Elders and they said that they were going to pick us up! I was so excited to see Elder Kirkham again! So we had to wake up at 5:30, be out the door by 6:15, and over to the church by 7:15. So we got all ready and headed off to the church! When we got there it was exactly 7:15 so we headed off to the Scarsdale chapel! When we got there, they had such a nice breakfast for us all! They usually have Chobani yogurt and granola which is so good but this time, Sister Smith made us some really good homemade chocolate chip cream cheese spread to go on bagels that they bought! It was so good! So while we were eating breakfast, all of the missionaries with leadership positions had a quick meeting and then zone conference got started at 9:00. We enjoyed zone conference so much! It lasted until 3:30 and so by the time we got all of the tables and chairs put away, and got home it was about 5:00. Zone Conference was so great as usual! They talked about sharing the Restoration to all the members that we set appointments with! They showed us how to teach by the Spirit and teach it in 4-6 minutes! It was really interesting! The Scarsdale Church is really pretty! It was such a pretty day! They had the doors to the gym open and the birds were chirping.......or should I say, the chirds were birping!
Well everyone! It was so much fun to email you today! I hope you all have a great day! I will be thinking about you all day! I still am just on cloud 9 about our video call! It was such a special time and an amazing experience! You are all looking so happy! It was so much fun to be able to talk to you and hear from you! It was a moment that I will never forget! I hope you all have a great and safe week with all of your activities! You are so almost done with school, and then it's summer vacation time! I hope you are planning a really fun trip for your anniversary! I hope you get to do something really fun! I can't believe that tomorrow is my 4 month mark! Time has just been flying by. I love and miss you all so much and appreciate all of the love, support, and prayers you send my way each and every day! Not a moment goes by that I'm not thinking about you and cheering you on from New York! LOVE AND MISS YOU ALL SO MUCH!
Love Always!
~Elder Lindberg
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