6 months in an area is a long time

Hey family!

Hope all is well! This week has been a crazy one. Transfers... Other stuff! Teaching and whatnot.

6 months in an area is a long time

So I will be nice and tell you right off the bat where I am and who I am with. So, this past Monday, we went to Mortdale chapel to play some basketball. President Back came out for a while and played with us to take a break from transfer stuff. So we talked to him and he was dropping hints all over the place! By the time that we went home, I was convinced that I was getting transferred. 6 months in an area is a loooong time.  Saturday rolled around, so Elder Bartholomew and I went to the computers to retrieve details. This is what it said:

PACKING:
Elder Bartholomew, Tito, Fiu, Abquina
Sisters Holyoak, Chan, Ketts, Elliot, Finau, Lee

What?? We were so confused! I was supposed to be the one packing! What the heck?

So long story short, Elder Bartholomew is going to be a trainer! He is still here with myself and my new companion, until we drop him off today at 6 pm at the mission office. And guess where he will be serving? He is being shotgunned with his trainee to Woden Ward (Jarrad's first area)!!!! MAN! I was so happy for him when I found out! I am giving him a long list of people he needs to go visit and whatnot. Crazyyy! He should be down there tomorrow arvo (afternoon).

Oh, by the way, did I send the pic of the Camel burger last week?

There is a burger place that had camel burgers.

Delicious!!!

My new companion is Elder Wu, from Hong Kong

And my new companion is an Elder named Elder Wu. He is also from Hong Kong. And he is the man! He is so funny! He finishes his mission in April, and will probably finish up in this area. He is really good at talking to people, especially Chinese people, because he is fluent in English, Cantonese and Mandarin. The man! This is his first transfer as a Zone Leader. And we are going to have heaps of fun with our zone! :)

Combining Zones

But even more than this, Bankstown Zone and Mortdale Zone are combining to become Mortdale Zone. So we are not Bankstown Zone Leaders any more [but the Mortdale Zone Leaders]. Now our zone is literally twice as big. There are 15 companionships in our zone. And you will have noticed that Elder Tito was transferred. He is now currently serving as one of our Assistants to the President. The man! Hahahaha that was the last thing he wanted to do. It was funny, because the night before he got the call, I talked to him, and he was super keen to finish his mission in the Samoan ward. Hahaha!

Big change here! Big change. So, to answer your question, what was the last thing I thought of last night and the first thing in the morning? Definitely the changes in the zone. Particularly, I was thinking of all of the things that we need to do to get our district leaders on board with the stuff we have planned for the Zone. None of the 3 DL's (district leaders) were in Bankstown zone last transfer, so we have a lot to do to get to know the companionships that we have not met within the zone. That's been weighing on my mind. But I am excited for the changes. It will make this transfer interesting and exciting for sure.

5 things that made me smile this week:

5 things that made me smile this week:

1. Elder Bartholomew and I singing Christmas Carols. Throughout the whole week, randomly we would break out into singing, and we even made plans to carol for proselyting purposes:). He is a great singer, and beautiful music was made!
2. Transfer details. That was pretty funny, yet shocking. 
3. Our visit with the old cook islander lady that I have told you about in previous letters. Haha she is awesome! It was Elder Wu's and Elder Bartholomew's first time, as she was in the cook islands for ages. 
4. A Jack-O-Lantern carved out of a watermelon. :)
5. Seeing my old comp Elder Wulf yesterday, just before he goes home. He and Elder Fiu along with 3 of the sisters from our zone are leaving. Man, those two Elders impacted my mission quite a bit. They are both powerful teachers, and fun guys to be around. I won't forget what they have done for me.

The package did arrive, but the Mission Office is holding it hostage (bad timing for that joke...). I am doing good, I have a 4GB card to send home, I bought another 16GB one. So I will send it home soon.

Elders Larsen and Wulf.

Elders Fiu and Larsen.

If I had not chosen to serve a mission...

If I had not chosen to serve a mission, I would have missed so much out of my mission!! The thing that I would miss most.... Probably my personal testimony and all that has helped me to grow physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. A close second would be all of the people that I have met that are dear to me. 3rd the food, 4th the country and my surroundings. Ahhh.. there would be so much that I would miss out on not being here.

A recent tender mercy from the Lord.... 

A recent tender mercy from the Lord.... Probably one would be how the Lord led us to find the fellowship that can help our Investigator Zh*ng with a job. We called up a member from NZ named Brother On*kawa, who is working as a university recruiter. He offered a job to Zh*ng to find Chinese students that wish to attend the school that Bro On*kawa works at. That was a huge tender mercy, because Zh*ng has always been really distracted with his financial situation. Hopefully we have more news next week on Zh*ng. I am super excited for him, because my comp speaks fluent Mandarin. That will be soooo helpful! Another tender mercy!

The future is bright here in Bankstown 1st, Mortdale Stake of Zion. There is lots to do. I know that the Lord is here to help out. Thank you for all of your prayers on my behalf. I feel their power as I go about my day.

Love you all heaps!
042
Elder Larsen

Bulldogs vs. Rabbito's Rugby League game.