Well, where do I start...I've enjoyed the package that I received! :) All very nice things. Thanks for the CTR ring, now I can finally start choosing the right! Hahaha, just kidding. I already have been. The ring is a good fit though. And thanks for the salt water taffy, it was a nice American touch. All of us in the piso are also enjoying the new Northridge Choir Album.
Some of the big highlights this last week: the 4th of July! Yeah! INDEPENDENCE Day! We made pancakes and eggs for lunch and were even able to secure some maple syrup (a rare commodity here). We topped off our maple syrupy pancakes with the red, white and blue sprinkles that I got in the package. Yes, I admit that sprinkles on pancakes is a rather "original" idea, but it did make them seem much more patriotic. A NOTE TO MY CANADIAN MOTHER AND RELATIVES: The maple syrup claimed to be 100% Canadian, so in my own special way, we kind of celebrated Canada Day as well. The brand name on the syrup was "Vertmont," a glaring misspelling of the state name Vermont, but it was still more Canadian than American. Other things we had for our celebratory meal: popcorn, Oreo cookies and patriotic music playing in the background. An all around good experience. :) Oh, and that night, there were fireworks!!! We don't know exactly why, but we're not complaining. We had fireworks on the 4th of July!
We're fighting to keep our current baptismal dates and find more. Jose has some big doubts about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon, and we're trying to help him understand that the only way to know for sure that it is all true is to get a witness from the Holy Ghost. He is a very intelligent and analytical man and likes to study and see evidence, so asking him to think in this new way is quite a stretch for him. He wants to get baptized because he likes the Church and its teachings and the organization, but without a testimony of the fundamental doctrines of our faith, he won't be established on a "firm foundation" and little things in the future will cause him to fall. This is by far the most difficult situation I have dealt with thus far in my mission. Jose is a great man and my companion and I are always thinking of ways we can help him. His baptismal date is set for the 17th and we'll do everything we can to prepare him for that date.The change of the mission boundaries hasn't affected us much: the work goes on as usual. The only thing that will make things really different will be to get transferred to one of the new areas, in which case just about everything will change. But, for now, for me, things continue the same.
There's not much more to report this time around...I really love you all and am very, very grateful for your continued correspondence, love and prayers. There is so much to do and so little time to do it all, but I trust that if we follow the Lord's commandments and trust in him, he will make things work out. Thanks for everything!
-Elder Knorr
