Holidays and Skype Fun

This week has been great, we had a great time and we've really been able to help Hugh get ready for Baptism.  He is still getting ready for the 3rd, which is this Saturday. This week he has his interview, and I'm going to go through the questions with him, in English so he has a chance to say and kind of practice his English with it.  So that is pretty exciting. 

This week Elder Liu and I were really excited to Skype.  And then we found out on Wednesday that Elder Liu had made a miscalculation on the time zone differences for when he would Skype home.  So there was a period of time we spent stressing about a few different skype tasks.  1. Getting Elder Liu onto skype.  He had forgot something about the account and couldn't get into it. 2. Telling his parents about the new plan.  3. Getting his new Skype account connected to his parents.  So it was a lot of fun that night, as I sat trying to help Elder Liu create his new account and calling members to try and help us find a way to get a hold of his parents.

But it all worked out really well.  We had Christmas Eve dinner with the Oviatts, who have been super great about feeding us, and Sister Oviatt had already planned on Elder Liu needing to skype, so he was able to get that done, and overall it all just kind of fell into place.  The tender mercies of the Lord.

Christmas and Christmas Eve were so great.  I was amazed at how much love was shown by all the people we saw that day.  We spent Christmas Eve with the Oviatts, who had a great tradition of make your own sub for dinner.  It was delicious.  And then we had a Christmas program, and they sent us away with a stocking of goodies.  Christmas morning the Doreys had us over for breakfast and games, and they were so nice.  All of their kids were there, and it was really fun.  That evening we went to dinner with the Stewarts, where I was able to skype, and where we had a Turkey dinner and talked with Brother and Sister Stewart, who were so awesome, and so very nice to us.  It was just a great day to see how nice people could be. 

The rest of the week has felt slow.  A lot of the people we were talking to have gone home to China for Christmas, so we are feeling a little pressed for appointments.  Lots of finding, but even then, most people were gone, or at home with family.  But we keep on trying.  We also went caroling, and we caroled to Hugh, Helen, Christine, and the lady that doesn't speak English.  We sang an English song, but she still seemed really grateful.  So that was pretty great.

This week I also finished reading the Book of Mormon.  It was actually Christmas Eve that I finished, in the morning.  So that was actually pretty great for me, this time, as I finished, it was more than just a feeling of "Oh great, I am glad that's over with," and more of a feeling of peace, and being ready to start reading it again.  So that's something that has really been new for me.  I would invite anyone who hasn't read, or read earnestly and prayerfully, to do so, and to really seek for help from that book, and to see it for what it is, Another Testament of Jesus Christ.

I'll See you all next week!  and hopefully I can attach pictures....  Anyway, Happy New Year!  And Merry Christmas!

Elder Ethington

PS  Also, thank you so much to those who sent me Christmas packages.  I loved having things from home and they have made it much more comfortable and warm in the Northern Tundra.  Thank you so much!