Letter from Colin:

This week was superb. On Friday we went to the Sandbridge District for district meeting, and Elder Ashcroft, the District Leader there, is the best in the mission. During a training video we watched he brought us popcorn and watermelon to eat and in his district they say the Pledge of Allegiance each week. After the meeting I went on exchange with Elder Ashcroft, which was quite fun. The coolest part of going on exchange with him is that a year ago, when I was in Edenton, North Carolina, Elder Ashcroft was my district leader there, and now he's in my zone and I was on exchange with him again!

 

While in the Sandbridge Ward, we did a ton of service. We helped this guy, named Jim, spray insecticide under his house. When we were done helping him he gave me a brand new pair of $200 Beats headphones (this guy had a laundry basket full of headphones that he didn't use anymore), and took us out to Red Robin to eat. Not only that, but it turns out he loves WWI and WWII aviation (and so do I), and so now today he's taking us and the Sandbridge Elders to the world famous Aviation Museum here in Virginia Beach, where they fly all their aircraft off of their own big 5,000-foot grass landing strip. They have some of the rarest WWII aircraft in the world. They also have a hanger that was in Germany in WWII that they deconstructed and shipped here to reassemble. 

 

Later that night, after doing service, we went to try to find this less-active member who the Ward Council had asked them to find. We were walking down the street at about 8:40pm and we saw two door-to-door salesmen talking with some people on their porch, so we asked them if they knew where the address we were looking for was. Then one of them turns around and says, "Here, just a second Elders, and we'll show you where it's at." By the fact that he called us ‘Elders,’ we could infer that he knew very well who we were. It turns out that both of the salesmen are returned missionaries, living here in Virginia, working for the summer. So there we were, two Mormon missionaries, and two door-to-door salesmen, walking down the road together! It was hilarious and very confusing to everyone who saw us. As we were walking, this very confused hammered-drunk lady came up to us and said that she was about to say something very offensive, and after stumbling all over her words she says to Elder Ashcroft, "You are way too hot to be a Mormon!"  Then she immediately staggered off and into her house-- as if someone's physical appearance dictates the religion that they are allowed to belong to!--but she was drunk, and well, there doesn't have to be any other reason. 

   

As always, much more happened this week, but I am out of time to write any more. But the miracle about running into the two returned missionaries, who happened to be door to door salesmen, was that they turned out to be the perfect people for the investigator the Sandbridge Elders are teaching, and those two can drive him to church and to be his friends! So, all-in-all, it was a great week, and lots of good stuff happened in my own area too: We found out about 34 people who have moved out of the ward, and believe it or not, even several forwarding addresses!

 

Until next time I hope y'all have a blessed week! 

--Elder White