Livingston, Part 7 - August 27

Sister Tanner's been there for quite some time, huh? I remember seeing her in the directory a while ago too. That's cool. This weekend was moves call. Elder Skelton has moved to Airdire, leading he Airdrie district. Yes, the namesake for Airdire, Alberta. I, on the other hand, move not. I am to be in Livingston with some new blood. I'm gonna meet him tomorrow, so for today I get to just chill in Edinburgh at the mission home. They have real, true to life, good food here! This past week was the bummest, basically just cooked oats mixed with discount lemon curd for every meal (besides a few dinners; bless Livingston ward). I usually go highschool style and just don't bother with breakfast. Anyways, our funds should be replenished by tomorrow. I hope my trainee is money savvy, because that's something I just won't be able to teach. 

Ah man, I remember some other time, I think it was when fires were going off in the north of Alberta or something, when there was just a thick smoky miasma for a few days/weeks. So that's weird, huh? I hope things start to...cool down, in regards to that. Situation. Sorry. 

I guess that is pretty soon, huh? the start of school? Shewt. I'm probably gonna die in just a few minutes by the way. But no bother. I have cookies. School starting is kinda good for us, because we get to see all the stressed college students who have been humbled and need help! I also have popcorn. It's gonna be a flompin' party in Edinburgh! 

Everyone who I went to the MTC with is either in Mission leadership now, or they've gone home. Or they're me. Or they're sisters. It's true, one of those applies to everyone in my MTC group!. 

You gonna canoe!?!? That's awesome. Just on a lake, yeah? Or down a river? It'd be so nice and peaceful to be on a lake, ya know? calm waters. Just hakuna and matata. 

We have a couple of families who we could potentially teach. One of them is a referral (we haven't met them yet) and the other is a young Hungarian family we found chapping. The couple's name is Adam and Eniko (or Enzi for short), and their wee son is Samuel. They were protestants in Hungary, but haven't had a church since being in Scotland. They miss it. 

Well, I hope everything is going well. I hope you are not being too stressed, and I pray that you are healthy and happy. 

Love you.

Livingston, Part 6

It has been as productive as we can make it. We have been working hard to find somebody to teach, but so far it has been troubled or less active members we've been teaching. There are actually plenty of non-members that come to church, but they don't want us to teach them. Sad day. 

Chapping is a Scottish term. I don't know why, it's just what Scots say, so it's a mission-wide term. And when I say GQ, that was a term President Donaldson started for street contacting. It means Golden Questions. 

So I've still just been reading through the Book of Mormon, cover to cover, looking especially for things pertaining to selflessness and charity and humility. I've also been looking at the step 3 topic ''Trust in God,'' and thinking about that. It seems to involve specifically trusting in God instead of the arm of flesh, a la Nephi. 

We helped an inactive member do some of those 4 picture quizzes. I aced the movie character one. We got into a water balloon fight with the primary kids. We are being pretty low on funds, so the members have been feeding us very well. 

It's pretty funny, because we often hang out in the main part of Bathgate to GQ. There is a cinema that looks like an old church right by us, and an external screen plays movie previews, so now I've seen stuff about a new Predator movie, and Ant Man and Wasp. 

well, that's about it for now. Love y'all!

Livingston, Part 5

I had a good week. Well, except for wednesday. I didn't like wednesday. But the rest of it was sound. We went to Edinburgh for a day, and there is a big festival going on throughout all of august called ''the Fringe.'' The population of Edinburgh more than doubles this time of year. There was lots of posters and flyers being handed out for various shows and acts that would be going on. It's been quite hot for the last while, but recently it's started to become very misty and cool. This morning me and Elder Skelton ran to the church. He wants to start running in the morning now. Other than the DAs we get every now and again (which is usually fish and chips) I've pretty much been living off diet coke and plain tortilla wraps. So I want to try and make myself better food this week. We've been chapping doors less and less, and moving toward GQing (street contacting). That's usually what happens when we burn out chapping in an area. Today, I believe we will be going with an inactive brother to go get some poutine and icecream. Yum yum. 

So, I suppose everybody is getting ready for the new school year. Is everyone excited? Who's going into what grade? What schools will be attended? How is Amanda's driving going? How about Laura? I saw some videos of Justin last week and it freaked me out. Here he is with this sexy, l'oreal commercial wavy hair, and some deep deacon voice, and taller than the Belfast zone leaders. I can no longer in good conscience or good sense call him ''boy''! Also, Jenna's just gonna pump out another one, huh? Freaks. Love you!

Last monday, me and Elder Skelton blew about £26 on some takeout food. As you know, Scottish takeout food has two distinctive features: 1 - it comes in a pizza box, and 2 - it's disgusting. They just throw a bunch of vaguely indian whatever into a pizza box, throw in a can of irn bru, and charge £13 for the whole caboodle, it's called a muchie box. And we got one each, which was a huge mistake. I could only eat half before I was critically ill. Skelly boy somehow managed to eat the whole thing. I could almost hear the voice saying ''FATALITY!''

Livingston, Part 4

That's terrific news. I'm very glad to hear that, and I'm also very happy for you and everyone that was praying that you weren't going to have to move. I guess you have a bit of rest on that subject now, huh? No need to worry about that, at least for a while. Right? 

It has been a progressive week. I'll give you that. Personally, that is. What does that mean? What am I even talking about? I don't know. I want to feel like something happened. We might do mini golf today. 

I had some stuff to send, but I don't think it'll work. This is the worst computer ever. 

We are no longer in a hotel. The hot water got ''fixed'', so we can use the bath now. Which is a lie, it did not get fixed, hence the quotation marks. So bathing sucks. 

I...honestly have no idea what else to say. Sorry. What would you like to know? 

Going back and reading some of my first journal entries is weird. I think I was a lot more prideful back then. I thought I was the beez kneez. I thought I was so cool. I have been brought very low since then. 

Know that you are always in my prayers, and I love you!

Livingston, Part 3

Yeah, it's been a tough week for us too. I mean, besides the fact that we set up no appointments for the hundreds of houses we chapped. The shower in our flat is broken, so we've been staying at a hotel. It would be fine, except we're constantly having to go between this place and that place, our hotel and our flat, this town and that town, running to catch buses, and we're constantly in a rush for something. I'm so like my mother, in that I hate rushing in any capacity for anything. 

Elder Travis Skelton from Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Parents are Holly and Todd. 

There isn't much in the way of mosquito-like pesties. There has been a bunch of flying ants, but they don't bite. Some people talk about the midgies, but they've never bothered me. Sometimes I wake up with new spider bites. I certainly don't miss the mosquitoes. 

How's work going, Dad? Have you been enjoying your job? How are all of my little sibling doing? Getting into trouble out of school? 

It surely has been stressful. I will not add any stress, I will but pray for my lovely family. I miss you all dearly.