Sad Times

Well everyone, the day has finally come. I am leaving Benton City. Got the call Saturday night and I am being transferred up to Chelan, WA. It’s in the foothills above Wenatchee at around 2800 feet (so I have heard) so it’s gonna be cold, with not much to show for it. I am excited though. I will be greenie busting a missionary (he just finished 2 transfers of training) and am getting doubled in (sometimes referred to as white washing; instead of 1 elder leaving and one coming in the area, both left and so 2 new ones come in). So two elders, no GPS, wandering around a lake in the mountains. Should be fun. I am looking forward to the challenge. For some reason president has faith in me so there's something to be learned here. We change Wednesday so expect lots of pictures next Monday. The one universal thing I have heard about Chelan is that it’s very pretty. So should be fun. 

Other than that, Benton City has been doing pretty good. Everything is looking up so hopefully things continue to go well. Knowing my luck, as soon as I leave, they are going to start having baptisms like crazy. Oh well, it’s all the same work. 

So for the quote this week, it’s pretty inquisitive. I still haven't figured out what it means, but I'll get back to you on it. 

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Yeup. No joke. Also, I finally got around to taking a picture of the infamous truck sign. It has a different quote from the beginning of last week but this is the truck that always has quotes on it.

Sorry the update was a little bit shorter but next week should bring lots of exciting new changes so at least there is something to look forward to!

Hasta luego!

Elder Kupferer

Why Hello There

Pretty good week this week up in the WKM. About the only thing out of the norm was we had Interviews with our mission president on Friday. It’s about as fun as it sounds. Every other transfer or so we sit down with our mission president and talk a little bit with him. It was nice being able to talk directly with the policy man and figure some stuff out. Always great talking with him. I swear I don't think he knows how to get mad. It’s crazy. 

What’s also crazy is I now have times where I start thinking in Spanish. While I don't think it will ever get to the point of totally in Spanish like my friends down in South America are getting it’s still pretty intense. I still have a little bit of trouble understanding when they start talking fast or slur words (think rednecks but Spanish speaking) but it’s come a long way. This past transfer of my comp not speaking Spanish (because he is an English-speaking missionary) made it sink or swim but so far I haven't totally drowned yet. It's come close before but overall it’s doing really well. 

I would also like to take this time to note that the Seahawks are going to the Super Bowl and come Super Bowl Sunday, I feel like all of Washington is going to shut down. It’s intense the fans up here. Almost got the Seahawks logo shaved into my hair this morning whilst getting my hair cut but we decided President wouldn't approve. Maybe next week just before the actual game.....

This week I have also had another cool experience that was a little bit more spiritual (although depending who you ask the Seahawks going to the Super Bowl is pretty spiritual). The past few weeks I have been running a little bit low on money for one reason or another and so I was a little bit worried how I would survive the rest of the month (we get our monthly allowance on the 1st). But as the week went by, I started remembering little things to save money like getting free subway for lunch or members giving us ridiculously generous amounts of money to go buy dinner. It’s great to see how the Lord takes care of us right when we need it. 

And now for the quote. This week requires a little back story. We had a meeting with our district (a group of 4 - 8 missionaries serving in a close area, or in our case, the only towns beyond the edge of civilization) and we talked about teaching simply, which reminded me of this story. I believe this was last year in Wind Ensemble when the director asked a student to stand up and explain a concept to the class for the people that were absent last time (if memory serves I think it had something to do with balance within the ensemble and those Russian dolls that stack inside of each other). The student stands up and starts explaining very long windedly and so by the time said student had finished, the director had gone to the board and written the following quote. It was hilarious. 

"If you can't explain it simply, then you don't truly understand it."

And with that, I bid thee all farewell. Until next week!

Elder Vaso (vaso translated is 'cup' so like 'cup' ferer. My dad is a comedic genius)

Another Week

And another week goes by. It’s crazy how fast the weeks go by. The days can be long but the weeks are short. I can't believe it’s almost half way through January. It feels like Christmas was yesterday. 

But it’s still winter though. We got a grand total of 1 inch of snow the other night, and I can now say I have officially driven in snow. Oh the things that Southern California kids find entertaining. 

Also entertaining: there is such a thing as Dr. Pepper Licorice now. Just thought I should make that known. It was actually kind of good... I am not sure what to think of it at the moment. I can't decide if I like it or not. It’s surprisingly true to taste. You should all go try some. 

So this week I kind of had an anti-spiritual experience. We had always been told that our study time in the morning makes or breaks our mission. I had never really thought too much of it until this past week. I had always studied and used the time relatively well, but one day I was tired, didn't feel like reading anything in Spanish, my comp had questions, the list goes on. Long story short, it wasn't the most productive study time I've ever had. Then we go out and I didn't think too much of it. But then we got to our first lesson and nothing good really happened. Yes, the lesson went alright and we have a new investigator but the Spirit wasn't there and it by no means was a terribly moving or spiritual lesson. Needless to say I did some serious repenting that night and have since redoubled my efforts in studying effectively. 

Slightly related to studying: if you think Isaiah is bad in English, try Spanish. It’s miserable. And impossible to read. It's like reading "Jesus the Christ" in another language. You need a dictionary to have half an idea of what’s happening. 

So that’s about everything new this week. Hope everyone has had a great start to 2014! 

And as (almost) always, a qoute:

"Doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith." - President Dieter F. Uchtdorf (source: http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2013/10/come-join-with-us?lang=eng )

Que les vaya muy bien!

Elder Kupferer

Happy New Year!

Well Happy New Year everyone! I can assure you that Benton City is still here despite the raging parties that went on New Year’s Eve. I know the missionaries serving here had a raging party of coming home at 6 and watching Mormon Messages for 2 hours. It was a blast. 

So here is something that you would have never thought would have happened to an American missionary serving state side. Had a traditional Korean New Year’s lunch. Yeup. We went over to Prosser (the next town over that’s part of our district) and some members there invited us to have lunch with them, and since one of the elders is from South Korea and the member served in Korea, we had a Korean lunch, complete with kimchi and dduk gook (rice cake soup). We also had squid jerky which isn't as bad as it sounds. But overall it was really good. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Oh, I can also say I have now had legit ramen. 

So this past week we put someone on date (given them a date to be baptized) and I must say that it was a really cool experience. To finally see your hard work pay off and the gospel and the Spirit work within them. After two months of little to no work, it was a nice change of pace. 

Sign update: still the same. I'll try and come up with another quote next week. 

Hope you all enjoy 2014!

Elder Kupferer

An (Almost) White Christmas

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas/Holiday Season this year! I know I did! We had an (almost) White Christmas up here in Benton City. And by white I mean there was some frost on the trees and grass. That's close enough right? 

But all in all it was a great day. Skyping home was definitely the highlight of the day but it was nice opening up presents and eating with members all day. Fun was had by all as we reveled in the Christmas spirit remembering the Savior Jesus Christ. 

This past week was also pretty nice because we got to go to the temple again. That is always a great pleasure. Always a lot to learn. 

And with that I bid you all farewell. Nothing too exciting going on. Everybody is gone for the Holidays so hopefully next week there will be a little bit more to write about. Even the truck didn't bother updating from "Carports for sale. Will trade." *sniffs*. Still so beautiful. Gets me every time. 

Until 2014! <---- Crazy!

Elder Kupferer

OK, Now It’s Really Almost Christmas! (written 12/23/13)

Welp it’s actually almost Christmas now. It’s crazy. I feel like Halloween just ended. But to usher in the wonderful Christmas season we had transfers! My new companion has been out 18 months and just came from a 7 Month stint in Pasco. So far it seems to be working out pretty well. He’s good at the things I'm not and I do fairly well where he struggles so I am excited for this transfer. He doesn't speak Spanish though...... so looks like I need to brush off that Spanish textbook again. Oh well. So far my Spanish has been doing pretty well, but I am really praying for some extra help.

Speaking of the Holiday season, I've decided that as a missionary they suck. Like really not fun. Cause everyone is out doing shopping or gone for the Holidays and always say "try back after the holidays I'm super busy right now." Well after two hours of knocking, I am definitely not busy. So for the first time in my life I can't wait for Christmas break to end. Crazy shocker right? I'm sure that'll change the second I get home. 

Also part of this wintery holiday season - I am really grateful for my shoes. They are comfortable, look nice, and so water resistant that they even resist the ice on the ground...... whoever designed dress shoes was obviously a Southern Californian where people can pay way too much for clothing and has never experienced ice. I have almost died like five or six times from slipping on ice this week alone. And by almost dying I mean slipping. But it makes it fun. Life-threatening experiences always provide a nice pick-me-up and get the adrenaline going. 

So here’s a cool story. The day of transfers we got back to Benton City and my comp unpacked and then we went to an appointment that fell through (again I hate the Holiday season right now) and so we decided to knock on some doors. First door we knock, he lets us in, and then 20 minutes later says he wants to be baptized! Like that never happens! And then we go back the next day to talk with him and give him an actual date... and he's not there. So we are like aw man that rots. I knew it was too good to be true. Turns out he just moved to Grandview so we sent the elders over there the contact and hopefully it all turns out okay. 

And now to close, the truck finally has a quote back on it! Prepare for the most inspirational quote you've ever heard. It made me cry like a little baby. 

"Carports for sale. Will Trade."

Yup. So touching. *sniff*

Until next week!

Feliz navidad, prospero anos, y felicidad!

Elder Kupferer

It’s Almost Christmas!

Christmas is almost here! So stoked. A couple of weeks ago our ward had a Christmas party to get us all into the spirit. Nothing too fancy. They had a ton of cookies and hot chocolate and then had a little Christmas program. It was the story of the Nativity and Christ's birth as told by the Book of Mormon. It was pretty well done. Had a little bit of everything. Singing, small kids acting, some last minute scrambling of roles, all the classics of a ward Christmas Party. It was a pretty enjoyable night. 

Our Mission is also getting into the Christmas Spirit as well. Last Tuesday we had our Christmas Zone Conference which was a ton of fun. We had some trainings (that focused a little bit on Christmas amazingly enough) then watched a fun slideshow of events during the past year. Our Mission President (who used to be the VP of Publishing for Deseret Book so I think that’s how this was pulled off) got us all a Christmas gift even. He gave every missionary a copy of “Believing Christ.” It was a pretty cool gift. It’s a great book. If you haven't already read it, read it. It’s short but well worth your time. 

I'd have to say though the best part of the day was we watched Monster's University!!!!!!!!!!! It’s the one time of the year where we can watch a movie and not be sent home for it so it was really nice kicking back for two hours. It was so much fun. And then the credits ended, the lights come on, and you realize you're wearing a shirt and tie in a church gym. That wasn't as fun but alas. The movie was really enjoyable. 

Even Benton City is getting into the Christmas spirit. All throughout town, there’s a ton of Christmas lights hung up and all the buildings are decorated and they have wreaths on the light posts and what not. Think the Orange Circle just a million times less busy and no Bruxie's. 

Well that’s all for this week. No good signs this week so here is a quote from one of the AP's (Assistants to the President) who in turn took it from someone else:

"Live your life in such a way that people who don't know Christ will want to come to know Him because they know you."

Hasta la proxima semana! 

Elder Kupferer