Hello family!
We have a really good bike shop here. I went to take my bike
in, expecting lengthy and costly repairs on my gears, but the man just took the
bike, looked at it, did some adjusting, and I was on my way with a working bike
without paying $0.01. Whew! They did the same thing when a metal piece was
skewed and caused my front brakes easily to come undone a few weeks ago.
Last Monday we went on a hike at a place called Saddle Rock.
I didn't want to, but I took one for the team. The other elders kept deciding
to take steep shortcuts, with the belief that although they were steep, they
would get flat soon, and we would get up the mountain sooner. I was surely
opposed to the shortcuts, but I could not change their minds. They did not seem
to realize the principle that mountains are very deceiving. We took the
shortcuts to save time, but they turned out to take a lot more time. The ascent
was extremely steep. We were on all fours most of the way up. It got to the
point that attempting to go down would be more dangerous than going up, and
that's the only reason we kept going the way we did. We were grabbing rocks in
the mountainside, many of which broke off as we grabbed them. We had to climb
up an absolutely gravelly slope, which was very tricky, until we got to a field
of brush. Then the root systems provided stepping places and the plants
themselves worked quite nicely as handholds. When we finally reached the top we
all agreed we'd never do it again. Hiking is not against the rules--but rock
climbing is, and that's basically what we were doing. We just hadn't planned on
it. Incidentally, we hiked up in our "pros" (proselyting clothes),
except we were wearing shoes more fit for hiking.
A quick funny story: Our ward feeds us very well, and an
insert in yesterday's program was supposed to read, "Special thanks to all
those who feed the missionaries." Instead it read "feel the
missionaries." We got a good chuckle out of it.
I often think back to the September, October and November before
my mission, and think of things I associate with that time--That Girl viewings,[1] Halloween candy,
Thanksgiving lights,[2] drives home from work,
etc. Many of it I can firmly remember, and I wonder if those specific things
will always remind me of that time. It was odd yesterday, however, because a
member picked us up for dinner in his RAV4. I didn't realize it until he
pointed out to Elder Duncan that the front seat was small for him. Then I
looked around and realized we were in a Toyota. I had always figured I would
immediately recognize anything from my pre-mission time because that was a fun
point in my life. But the ride in that vehicle did not take me back home, it
did not take me back in time, it did not make me "trunky" (not that I
get that way anyway).[3]
I am beginning to get to the point where I will soon be
caught up with letter writing, and I may be able to write you snail mail again.
But I'm done for the day.
Love,
Elder Melville
[1]
I bought the second season of That Girl
two and a half months before I left on my mission, and my mom and I would watch
one or two episodes a night.
[2]
I ordered some light-up Pilgrims the fall that I left for my last Thanksgiving at
home.
[3]
My family bought a Toyota Rav4 a few months before I left, and I had memories of
riding around in that new car that fall. I didn’t like driving it because I felt
too cramped. My 2017 model is roomier than the 2007.
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