Summer Time

Summer is here and that means more school, but also a bit more time to get out and enjoy time with other people, especially family. This week I played soccer and softball and it was just great to get out and play sports again. It had been a while since I had done that. I enjoyed the time my family and I had together as we drove up to Provo. I got a new district of Missionaries on Wednesday and boy, I tell you what, they are awesome. Last night (Saturday) each of them went around and just bore testimony and wow, even in German, a language which some of them first began studying on Wednesday the spirit could be felt. It was great. Hillary, Ellen, Jacob, and I were able to spend some time together this weekend, both at Aunt Melissa's house and at Uncle Tom's birthday party today. It was fun to see family again and just kind of talk about life, death and everything in between. I love our family. I love that the Gospel makes it possible for us to be together forever. I love having Jacob and Hillary here. I was a little unsure about what to expect when I knew we were all going to be here, but I am very grateful we are here together. I am learning that we are all very different and well, that is okay. Jacob is having a ton of great experiences in his first week. He had such a good personality and really loves people and is very sincere about things that he does. Hillary has such a good heart and love for the Gospel. She wants to continue to learn more and share the Gospel with others. I am excited that she is going to be able to serve a mission. She is going to do great. I am still trying to figure the whole chemistry thing out. It is going better the second time around and so that is good. Life is not easy, but it is going forward. I sometimes have doubts concerning myself and abilities but I guess that is the best time to turn things over to Heavenly Father, right? We may not be strong enough, but He is. Well, I think that is all I will write for now. I love my family and yeah, remember it's a wonderful thing to be alive!

Another week gone by!

Well, we only have about 1 and 1/2 weeks until it is time for finals. Boy, these spring and summer terms really go by fast. I experienced some discouragement this week, but also a lot of joy. I was especially grateful to have gone Home Teaching this week. That just means Richard, (my Home Teaching companion) and I were able to go and visit Megan, Liz, and Camilla of the Spanish house and speak with them about how they are doing. We shared a brief message about "letting your light shine" and not hiding our talents. It was really a great meeting. Those girls are really great and I am glad we were able to talk about the importance of being grateful for you are; of being grateful for the talents the Lord has blessed us with. What a blessing they are. We are all different in how we think, act, believe, etc, and the Lord has blessed us with so many different talents. It is up to us to use those talents in a manner pleasing unto Him. We just have to do the best we can. I just have to be the best Russell I can be. I do not have to be the best Jo Schmo. That holds true for us all. The importance of the temple was also addressed today and it became apparent to me that I need to keep seeking opportunities to go the the temple; to go there to be guided by the Lord and to be a blessing to people who did not have the chance to accept the gospel while on this earth. I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father and for His son Jesus Christ. Again, I am not trying to sound preachy, these are just things, that I really feel very blessed to have in my life. Anyways, a few more highlights from this week involve missionaries, both returned and newly called ones. Hillary received a mission call to the Lisbon, Portugal Mission which is very exciting news. I am happy for her and know she will go amazing things there. The other involves a recently returned missionary. Cherie Gulliver has returned home honorably from the Belgium Netherlands Mission (the name changed while she served there). I spoke with her for about an hour on Thursday and it appears to me that she had a very successful mission. It was good to talk to an old friend. Alright, I think that about does it for me tonight. I love you all, especially my family. They are just great. I am very grateful for their love and support. Remember to keep looking for the good in the world. As you do so, it is easy to see how wonderful things really are in life. Hard? Yes, but absolutely wonderful.