"If I stepped in a mud pie, how deep would my boot sink?"

It was kinda of bittersweet to get to talk to y’all this Christmas. I guess it hit me that this is my last time Skyping as a missionary and my last Christmas as a missionary so that was kinda surreal for me. Next Christmas, we will be talking to Jake on his mission! Missions are the best! I loved getting to see all the kids. Ready for my week? Let's go!

Our Pday was super weird due to Christmas. Since we were basically having another Pday on Tuesday with Christmas Eve, we were to have a half Pday on Monday. They even had us have district meeting that morning too. It didn’t even feel like it was a true Monday! I felt so bad emailing because I felt like I was breaking the rules haha. We got that done and some laundry done then it was off to start proselyting at 3:30. We had an early dinner with the C**** and the P**** families so that was super fun! They both are super awesome families. We then went and saw Cale to see how he was doing. It was a short lesson with him because they were still trying to get things ready for Christmas but we left him with a Restoration DVD and followed up on his smoking. He's still off of it! Hopefully we can keep him going. We got our OYMs and then we called it a night.

I was super stoked for the Christmas party because of us doing the Haka with all the Samoan's and Tongan's in the mission. Elders Ete and Kava did it and so they invited me to do it. It was super good to see everyone again! I will try and send the video so we will see what I can do. The party took all day and so we got back to the house around 3ish. It was super bittersweet because that was the last time I am going to see a lot of my mission friends on their missions. We came home and crashed because I had no energy left because I'm still fighting that stupid sinus infection.  We then went to the U*** family for dinner. They are a Mexican family and so we had tamales for dinner! It reminded me of being back in Texas :). Plus they had UFC on and so that made me kinda trunkee but it was good to get to spend time with them. Their son Gio is a super good kid! We talked a lot about missions and how much they help so hopefully we made an impact on him for the better :)

Our Christmas morning was awesome! We slept up until 8am then hung around the house until 10ish then we went to P***’s for breakfast. We played with the kids and had fun outside with them. We then ran to the C***'s to spend some time with them. We  ended up watching one of their sons play Battlefield 4 so it turned into a bust.  We were supposed to have a fun activity but it never happened. Then we ran home to change into a shirt and tie to Skype the family! After that, I got into an intense chess game with Cameron, their 8 year old. I won, but by the skin of my teeth! He put up a good fight for sure haha it was a good time. We then played another super fun board game! Dinner was good and then we ran straight off to play basketball with some Elders and Gio. It was so much fun! I am terrible at basketball but I was doin' work that night! I even dribbled through Gio's legs and laid it up haha. He didn't like that too much haha but it was a good time. Elder Ete and I were so funny, I love my Poly! It was a good Christmas for sure :)

Thursday was back to the usual and so we got our weekly planning somewhat done and then we went and taught John again. It actually went okay this time. We had to kinda yell at him but we made it work. We taught him through the pamphlet and we testified like CRAZY to him so that he could feel the Spirit. We challenged him to be baptized but he didn’t accept it just yet. We're gonna keep on trying with him. Then we went to Cale's and got some crushing news... He relapsed and smoked two packs in two days so we didn't have a baptism this weekend. It was crushing but it opened us up to his real concerns. He still has a lot of doctrinal questions that we are going to address so that was okay. It still was super crushing... But we got some work to do now with him so it'll all work out.

We went on exchanges on Friday and I went with Elder Johansen! I love that Elder so much! I really loved this exchange. We talked to a member about his Jeep, had Little Caesar’s pizza and gave a freaking awesome blessing on a family and then taught the mother! We went to visit a former member and we ended up talking to her neighbor. Her name is Tammy and she runs a traveling petting zoo so we got to see all the animals! It was awesome haha. We left a blessing on the kids and her and it was crazy spiritual! She then dismissed the kids and she talked to us about doctrinal things. She agreed to have us come back so that was good! Dinner ran long then we went to get fries in honor of a missionary we are both close to :). Then we were gonna head home but another Elder needed a blessing so we went to give it and I gave the blessing. It was super profound because I said some things that only God would tell me to say. I guess I'm just fulfilling what my patriarchal blessing says about me being a spiritual healer. We exchanged back and got ready for Saturday :)

We had apartment checks that morning then went out to see our people. Our noon appointment had three cops in the front yard when we rolled up so that appointment, needless to say, fell through and then our next one wasn't there so we just rode around and explored while we talked to people. We had our bash appointment that afternoon, which really didn't happen but we did get to talk to him and set something up. Hopefully we can make headway with him. We then finished weekly planning and went to the P****’s for dinner. We had a correlation meeting and then went to the hospital to make some visits. We ended up meeting some sweet old ladies in the hospital and gave them blessings as well. It was a tender moment for both Elder Anderson and me. It’s amazing how much love you can have for random people you meet and come into their lives. I love it! We then rode home, knowing we did something great that night.

Sunday was a good day. It was a good sacrament meeting and then we got to teach Melissa and put her on date for baptism! Yeah buddy! We then rode home and Elder Anderson tanked it HARD in his suit. Poor guy! We then had lunch and studied then went out to make visits and OYMs. Dinner was okay, but the highlight was going back to the hospital. The man in the ICU is getting better and one of our sweet old ladies went home! The other one was waiting for us and she is getting better :). It was awesome! I loved it so much. The Lord really does know what He is doing :).

I love y’all and hope everything is going well! I will send pictures next week, I promise! Keep working hard and open y’all’s mouths this week! Be the full-time missionaries and share the gospel :). I love y’all and pray that I don’t get too trunkee!

- Elder Tonini

email: October 29, 2012

I love hearing that things are going well for y'all back home. Everyone seems to be staying busy and continuing to grow and progress. Good things happen when we stay busy. How is the family on the East Coast doing? I have heard that Sandy is starting to pound the coast. They will be in my thoughts and prayers this week. How did Grandma Tonini do this week? I did my best to not feel depressed about losing Grandpa and I can only imagine what she has gone through. I loved his example and those last few precious memories that I had with him. He is in a better place now so it is all worth it. Death isn't the end, it is only the beginning.

My week started out rough. We had the funniest DDM (District Development Meeting). After that, my companion and I got into a fight on Tuesday. He said a few things and I said a few things back to him which made him snap. Johnson is a BIG dude and I was totally expecting to take a punch in the jaw. We have cleared the air though. I feel like he judges me all the time and he feels like I judge him all the time. He says very sarcastic things that really irritate me and I feel like he attacks me a lot. However, we cleared things up and things have gotten a lot better since then.

We taught a BOMB lesson to Corinna again and boy did she feel the Spirit. We taught about the Plan of Salvation and when we were in the lesson she got a call that one of her close friends is going to die soon. She felt the Spirit so strongly when we took the opportunity to teach about where we are going after we die. She is really solid and is still progressing. we might have to push her baptism back but it will still happen. It is awesome to have Victor there to help us teach. He really helps to invite the Spirit into our lessons.

On Wednesday, I went on exchanges with Elder Locklear and it was one of the most spiritual days ever. I went into Yuciapa and worked with him there. He is only two weeks old in the field so it was a great teaching opportunity to help him. His way of contacting was to only give people cards and to not talk to them. I helped him get over that and make the changes to become a better missionary. Our companionship study was him teaching me more things about the gospel. I learned things that I had always had questions to and my knowledge of the gospel exploded. I am so hungry to learn more and to get more out of the scriptures. There is so much to learn that I cannot wait to learn about it. I also found out that he cannot eat meat, his body won't allow him to. He is a Lumbee Indian and so he had a lot of cool stories to tell. We taught really good lessons and Elder Locklear even had his first bike wreck! He fell REALLY hard down a good size hill. He messed up his knuckles bad, ripped his shirt and cut his wrist. He got so lucky that he isn't separate his shoulder. I honestly think it was because he was wearing his garments that he didn't get hurt much worse! It was so much fun being in a new area and seeing different people. I love Oak Valley but I am ready for a change.

Thursday we went and ate at Tacos & Beer with Austin again. It was so good! We then went and taught a lesson to Janie, one of our new investigators. We went in planning to teach the Plan of Salvation but we ended up teaching the Gospel of Christ. Janie felt the Spirit so strongly that she started to cry. She wants a new life, to feel the power of baptism so we invited her to it and she accepted. It was one of the most spiritual lessons that I have had on my mission. It is amazing to see how our Savior can make the difference in peoples lives. She is really looking for a change and she knows where she wants to find it. It is awesome and I love seeing the gospel and the truth that it has bring people happiness!

Then something crazy happened. I talked to this guy outside his house and he told us that he wanted to learn more. As soon as we rode off, an undercover cop car pulled up and started to pat him down. Next thing we know, he his cuffed and sitting in the back of the car while another one rolled up. It was Gang Taskforce so who knows that happened! Just another day in Beaumont.

We went and saw Mike on Friday morning with Brother Bailey. Mike has had some good anti-questions that we have had trouble answering scriptural things to him. We brought Brother Bailey to help us because he is so intelligent in the gospel and teaching people. It was awesome seeing Mike understand things and to come closer to understanding. We talked about the Trinity, the Spirit World, becoming like God and some other things. I learned so much and I was supposed to be teaching! I learned how to better teach and help people to understand things better.

That night was our Halloween party and we were the judges for the best chili. Janie and her grand daughter came to the party! I seriously ate SO MUCH. We then had to judge the best costume as well. It was so much fun, I love my ward even if I have been here forever!

Our ward mission leader came over and we correlated for the upcoming week on Saturday. His son, J.T., tried to lift weights while we were talking and it was so funny to watch. It is so awesome to have a good Ward Mission Leader that is very proactive with us. I then had to catch up on some paperwork that took me three hours to finish! Lesson learned: DO NOT PROCRASTINATE. We then went out and contacted people until we went over to Brother Day's house to help him with a few things. He cooked us steak and we got to play with his remote control car. That little car will get up to 40MPH! It was so much fun. We then went out and talked to people until we got a call from Chris, wanting to talk with us. Chris has become less-active because of some things that have happened in the ward. However, we had a good talk and set up a plan to get him back on the right path. Hopefully we can help him feel the spirit and get over things that have happened.

Sunday was awesome, Janie and her grand daughter came to church! Janie loved church and really felt the spirit there. We also learned something that is sensitive information. I don't know if the stake there has told y'all about this but I thought I should y'all the heads up. Someone videoed the WHOLE temple session including the stuff at the veil. Not good... And the video has gone viral. So just a heads up, just in case people start to ask about the video. We have been instructed to refer non-members directly to SLC and for members to talk to the stake president. Hopefully this won't be a stumbling block for the church. It will be interesting to see how this will affect us. Other than that, my Sunday was awesome and we talked to a lot of people.

Well, that is about my week. Things are starting to slowly look up, a day at a time. I love y'all and miss everyone dearly. I am so grateful for my Savior and the comfort He gives to me. I have learned a lot about relying on Him and having Him help me get over my trials. I love Him with all my heart and I feel honored to be a servant for Him. Always remember that Christ paid the ultimate price for us and knows exactly what we need, He is the way back home. Hope y'all have a wonderful week and know that I love you!

Elder Tonini