Week 93: Braken is doing Well...

Dear Mom and Dad,

It's not that we don't lock our doors, we just forgot on the one day it mattered! Haha I think President was just as surprised as we were. We just explained what happened and he was like well just make sure you lock your doors from now on.... then he laughed and was like it's never a dull moment. Wendy is due to be back in town this week so we are crossing our fingers that she is still on board. Many many prayers have been had in her behalf so I really appreciate the extra ones you are sending. Me and Elder Walker are doing really well, he is just green enough to keep my trunky butt moving ;) You did WHAT?????!! You know how much I was looking forward to coming home and going to the lake!?!?!?!? ..... I feel betrayed.... Whatever I guess I'll just have to talk him into buying another one ;) That's sweet about Garret wanting to get a job there. Tell him if he gets on there to put in a good word for me haha. Sounds like you guys are having a pretty fun summer. This week went pretty well we had lots of service opportunities. That keeps us busy and productive which is super nice. Other than that, that's kind of it. Love you all and thanks for sending me the LifeEz! I'll talk to you more next week!

Love, Elder Braken Park

Week 92: "A Stranger Among Us!"

Dear Mom and Dad,

First off... HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!! LOVE YOU!!!! :) This week has been a strange one.... Oh first off before I do anything else I need more LifeEz! If you could just send another 4 pack I would really appreciate that I'm on my last bottle and that'll only last another week thanks! That should last me pretty much till I go home. Ok so I have quite the story to tell about this week! So one morning alarm goes off, me and Elder Walker wake up. He heads to the bathroom and I start saying my prayers. When I'm done I stand up and Elder Walker is standing there with a look like he is trying to figure a puzzle out. He then tells me how there is a man passed out on our couch. I look at him like he's crazy and am like no there's no way there's a guy on our couch! I then go out into the living room, and there is a guy, still completely dressed, lying on our couch..... I then look at Elder Walker and we proceed to try and wake the guy up. No luck. So we start calling people. President, our Zone Leaders, our Ward Mission Leader, no one answers. So finally our WML texts us back and we let him know what's going on. He comes over and helps us wake the guy up. Luckily our WML speaks spanish because he didn't speak English, He gets up, looks around the house really confused looking, and then walks out. Our WML comes back with the cops like a half hour later, they get our info make sure we don't want to press charges and then take off. So then like another 15 minutes later President calls and makes my quote book,"Elder Park, What the heck is going on?" He then proceeded to council us to make sure our doors are locked from now on. Haha the cops said he probably just came home drunk, and since all the apartments in the complex look the same, he accidentally walked into ours. So that's the interesting story for the week! So tell Peyton we didn't get broken into we just had an unexpected visitor. But other than that it's been a pretty uneventful week. Lot's of cancellations this week. But we were able to do a lot of service, so that made up for the lack of teaching. Me and Elder Walker are doing really well we get along pretty well. I'm kinda hoping I'll get to finish with him.  Tell Christy I've been using a Chromeapp called Hope Chest and I've been doing all descendancy work with it. I've still got 30 names sitting in there waiting for their ordinances to be requested. It's a simple program but massively effective. My thoughts on High Adventure.... I would say that I look back on those times kinda like I view my time with Elder Bruckman. I grew a lot and we had some fun, but it was definitely one of the hardest things I've done. I probably wouldn't choose to do it again, but I am glad I got to do it. Other than that I can't think of much else to say. I love you all! Have an Awesome week!

Love, Elder Braken Park

Week 91: Flashbacks of Elder Sneddon! :)

Dear Mom and Dad, 

#1? I'm your only missionary! Haha but anyway this week has been actually really good! We finally heard back from Wendy, she is currently working in Michigan, and will not be back to church until June 22 (a week before transfers...), but she is staying strong and is still on fire! We actually were able to meet her daughters this week when we stopped by. Starting at the oldest their names are London, Sawyer, and Alex I already told you about. They were actually quite excited to see us which means that Wendy has been talking about it a lot! Keep them in your prayers! (also that I don't get transferred so I get to be here to teach her!). Me and Elder Walker have been doing really great! He actually reminds me a lot of Elder Sneddon, and you know all about that bromance hahaha :) We are doing pretty well, his greenness still shows just a little but I guess that's what the Follow-up trainer is for haha. He's a good kid and a solid missionary. I really think we will enjoy this transfer! Haha I kinda miss normal sabbath activities. For us sunday is just another day, nothing different except that we go to church. I look forward to that aspect of being home haha. It sounds like you have come up with a pretty good sunday regime! I look forward to participating in it with you. Ugh I'm getting so trunky... It's not that I don't love it, it's just that this area is so hard to feel productive in it's really starting to wear on me. This is really a terrible place to finish my mission.... I love the ward and everything, but man people are soo prideful here. but anyway that was my 2 sentances of my teardrops hahaha. Thanks for all you guys do to support me! Love you!

Love, Elder Braken Park

Week 90: New Companion, But Staying in Fishers.

Dear Mom and Dad,

Transfers went really well! Elder Williams is actually training a new missionary (making me a mission grandpa) the picture of our posterity is on drive. I have a new companion, Elder Walker. He actually reminds me a little of Elder Steab. He's super fresh though I'm actually his 2nd companion. I'm thinking he might be my last one but I'm not entirely sure. He's from Texas, but has lived all over due to his dad being in the Air Force. He and I have pretty similar interests, so I'm pretty happy right now he is a welcome changed from He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. I just don't even want to think about last transfer at all haha. As far as the week goes it went super well until sunday when wendy missed church, and has stopped answering our texts. We found out from the member that referred her that her daughters have been really struggling. We are currently sending out a mass call for prayers both from missionaries and members alike. PLEASE! keep her in your prayers. She needs them really bad right now. She is getting slammed by the adversary soo hard right now. But other than that I can't believe it actually happened! I didn't think that kid was ever gonna grow up! and certainly not when I was on my mission! I feel so old and out of touch right now.... Good on him though! Sounds like a pretty good date to me! We'll have to do some doubles when I get home! Yea don't worry tell Emily I'll be up there a year after I get home. I already have a roommate picked out! Haha me and Sneddon talk about it all the time. I'm pretty excited for that! Well I think that's about everything, love you guys!

Love, Elder Braken Park

Week 89: Transfer Time . . . . Should I Be So Happy?

Dear Mom and Dad, 

This week was pretty awesome we saw so many miracles this week! Wendy actually just showed up to church and she absolutely loved it! She is super excited to have her kids all come and see it next week! So that was awesome! Also Bruckman is out this transfer and all I can say is nah nah nah nah, nah nah nah nah, hey hey hey goodbye! I shouldn't be so happy about that... But I don't care anymore haha. Yes I got your package thanks so much! I very much enjoyed the salsa. I celebrated by making nachos that night haha. We went out to this restaraunt but other than that nothing really just the same old same old. Getting more trunky by the minute haha if that's anything to talk about. I'm really hoping my next companion is someone I can just finish strong with. But I don't know, I don't think I will get that. But anyway that's really all I can think of kinda stressed out today. I have to take another missionary's companion which by the looks of it means I get to babysit 2 missionaries until transfers. So there's that. Thanks for all your support I love you!

Love, Elder Braken Park

Week 88: Happy Mother's Day!

We were able to skype with Braken yesterday for Mother's Day.  That's the best present ever!  Anyway, I had asked Braken about how big Fishers was and this was his reply.....

Um Fishers is a lot like PG in the fact that its kind of a tumor off of Indianapolis like PG is to Provo. There's no real separation between the two just somewhere Indy ends and Fishers begins. Thanks for the support I really appreciate it! I loved talking to you guys too. The only problem is now I'm super trunky!! Thanks also for praying for Wendy! It's Wendy Osmun definitely keep her in your prayers! Love you guys talk to you next week!

Love, Elder Park

(Wendy is one of his newest investigators.  She has 3 daughters too.)

Week 87: ..."and The Holy Ghost will tell you all things that ye should do..."

Dear Mom and Dad,

Things are doing much better. Well nothing's really changed except that I gave a training in District meeting on becoming more fully converted (with some visual aid from Elder Bednar) and how we can, like the people of ammon, give up the "weapons of our rebellion" and "fight no more against our God." So I had everyone write on pieces of paper what their "weapons of rebellion" were. Mine was my crappy attitude about my companion. So I buried it in the earth, AKA the Fishers trash service. Since then I have been really praying hard for the gift of charity, and in "Act in Doctrine" Elder Bednar talks about praying to see things as they really are. It's not something to be casual about at all, because the Holy Ghost will tell you exactly how it is. It will rebuke you for things you aren't doing right, but it will also praise you for what you are doing right. I decided to undertake that with my fast this sunday, and it was a much needed experience. I felt immense peace about how I was doing with the work, and parts of how I was dealing with my companion. I also got rebuked about a couple things I need to work on. So it was a very painful experience and also a very wonderful one. So that could be something to consider. Other than that it's been a slow week here in fishers. Lots of walking around. Me and Elder Bruckman got pretty sunburned saturday. We took one of our lunch breaks and went fishing in the pond behind our apartment and caught some pretty nice fish, (see pics on drive). Us and the other fishers Elders are trying our hardest to find as much service as possible so we can stay busy because our finding isn't working. So that's lot's of fun. So my 20th birthday... My thoughts are honestly I'd almost prefer to wait for that because I'll be home in 3 months and I'll want a phone.... I honestly can't think of anything I really want right now just because it'll be more stuff to carry around or have to pack home. I'm already putting together a package of clothes and miscellaneous crap I don't really need out here. So that's my thoughts, but we do get to skype on Sunday so we can talk in more detail then. Dad is making me trunky for the dunes.... I miss Hal!!!! But it's ok I'll see him in 3 months :) Um that's really all I can think of so I guess I'll talk to you next week! Love you guys!

Love, Elder Braken Park