6 Months!

Hey everyone! Aloha kakahiak! I hope you all had a great week and an eventful one. How are the roads doing in Idaho? So here's the week... 

Monday we celebrated Elder Bird's birthday with a cake. We had a pretty neat experience with one of the youth in our ward. His name is Brian and last Sunday I guess he was out with his little brother doing fast offerings when they ran into Guillermo-- one of Brian's friends from school. They started talking and Brian invited Guillermo to meet with the missionaries. So we got to teach him this day and we brought Brian along with us. After, we went and visited Brian's family and they fed us Mac n Cheese with lil smokeys.

Tuesday we woke up and studied. We then got to run and help out one of my favorite families here. It was the family named the Harmons-- the ones that fed Elder Bird the really hot peppers. We shoveled wood chips for them and then we rewarded with Burger King! I love the members here so much! I also grabbed a bag of the peppers and planted them at our apartment. Had lessons in the night. Also we got a rainstorm!

Wednesday we had a bomb district meeting. We also went to this all you can eat chinese place called Autumn Moon. They didn't have any fortune cookies, dang. It felt a little sketchy walking into. Lessons with Bro Galloway at night.

Thursday was busy! We played some bball with all the elders in the morning. Then had a few errands to run in the Mesa mission. Then that night, we went to investigator basketball and I almost passed out. Then went and visited my two favorites; the Webbs. We haven't seen both of them in a while and they invited us right in. Such a great family!

Friday morning we watched President Monsons Funeral. I'm sure going to miss him. I'm so grateful for the blessing of prophets and apostles. I especially love the story Sister Dibb shared about President Monson when he was looking through an ensign and saw a picture of himself and then said: "That man really did try his best." We then weekly planned, visited a few families, and then had 3 lessons that night.

Saturday? Time for exchanges! I went with Elder Wilding into his area. We went to Pollo Piqunté. The best burritos ever. Period. No one answered their doors to us the whole day. Kinda sad. Dinner was awesome, they gave us some kind of milk and told us it would be good for our stomachs. My stomach was not happy.

Sunday was just another day. We woke up and went to church. We then had dinner at the Malolos. The coolest Polynesian family in Arizona. He gave us each a real cocoa bean and told us how to make chocolate out of it. We then had a lesson with Ron, one of our investigators we were about to drop. We actually talked about baptism and he thought about it for a bit, and then said he would be very grateful to be baptized.

And Monday. Not too much has happened so far. We just finished bowling. My head was hurting so I didn't play a game. I did enjoy watching the other elders tho. These are good boys I get to serve with. 

That should be all today. I hope you each have a superb week! I wanted to leave you all with a challenge; "if you choose to accept it." -Mission Impossible. This week Friday will be my 6th months mark and in the time I've been out I've learned how important the Book of Mormon is. We are so blessed to have it in our life's. My challenge to each of you is to take a picture of you or your family holding a Book of Mormon and post (with your testimony or a General Authority quote) on social media. Share the joy that you receive as you study the Book of Mormon and the love that you feel from our Heavenly Father as you do so. Also, you could challenge another friend or family member as well. I can't even begin to say how grateful I am for all the helps and tools our Father's given us so we can make it safely back to Him. #looktothebook #thebookofmormon #lds.org #mormon.org 

Love Elder DeGraw
6265 N 82nd St
Scottsdale, AZ 85250

Elder Clark, my ZL

Bowling

Cocoa

Elder Wilding

Working at the Harmons

Howdy

No letter from Elder DeGraw this week, he had a pretty full day, but here are a couple little snippets he sent...

"We taught a girl named Jessica yesterday. She has a great story and of everyone I've met down here, I think she's the most prepared to enter the waters of baptism. She actually came up and talked to us on the street. She has a 9 month old named Eli. She loves the church because of our feel for families and how important they are. She remembers being little and having an LDS friend that would take her to primary. That's what she wants for her little boy. She is also recovering from a few addictions and wants to find help and support so she can overcome those temptations. We would have asked her to be baptized yesterday, but just before we did; her phone rang and she had to go. She has bright purple hair and is really kind."

"I sure will miss President Monson. I was sad to hear that he passed away. I wish I would have listened to his teachings a little more closely. I did have a neat experience this week. I remember biking along and thinking about President Monson and getting an overwhelming sense of joy that he was with his sweet wife again and happy. We are so blessed to have Prophets and Apostles on the earth today. I love the examples they set and the love that they have for the members of this church. I'm excited to see how President Nelson goes about fulfilling this new calling. I know he will be an amazing prophet. I loved his last talk about the Book of Mormon so much. The tribal king story was my favorite part."

Lastly, I got this sweet email from Elder DeGraw's companion, Elder Bird...

Hello,

This is Elder Bird.  I am your son's missionary companion.  With the time I have left of P-day, I just wanted to thank you for thinking of me as you were preparing Christmas presents for Elder DeGraw.  It was very thoughtful of you and I wish to say thank you!

I also want to let you know that your son is a great man.  He is a very kind person to everyone he meets.  He is always found with a smile on his face and looks forward to helping people.  Elder DeGraw is an example of a meek, temperate, patient, faithful disciple of Jesus Christ.  He has a strong testimony of Jesus Christ and the Book of Mormon.  He talks about his family a lot and it really shows he loves all of you.  Your son has taught me a lot and I am forever grateful to be his companion.  

Elder Bird 

Elder Bird's birthday celebrations...

 Elder DeGraw picking some fresh oranges...

January 7, 2018

Sister Richardson fed the Elders tonight. She said, "Had no idea it was Elder Bird's birthday today-- until it happened to come up. I can't believe Elder DeGraw didn't tell me! Both had seconds of green salad (took pic to prove it) and thirds of meatloaf. They also didn't mind the caramel brownies and ice cream for dessert. My parents joined us for dinner-- that's my dad in one of the pics sharing his Book of Mormon presentation. The Elders were pretty excited about it and took visuals with them. Great meal and great company. Happy p day tomorrow my friend!!!"

She later talked about how she felt an instant connection with Elder DeGraw and told him she is his "mission momma". She said she hopes he never gets transferred, and cant imagine having him gone...
One thing is for sure, I love her and will forever be grateful for the way she has cared for my son as his "mission momma" when his real mother was so far away.

January 1, 2018

Text from Sister Richardson: "Happy New Year! We're having dinner & games with the Bishop's family tonight."

"It's Easier to Shovel Sunshine Than Snow." --Grandma Rhees

Hey everyone! 

Sorry I didn't get an email out last week! I hope you enjoyed the pictures-- Merry Christmas and Happy New Years! I hope you all had a wonderful month (and enjoyed the Last Jedi...grr). The Last Few weeks have been interesting and we've gotten a lot of new people to teach due to the temple Christmas lights. So here's the goods...

Sunday (Christmas Eve) was a pretty special day. We woke up and prepared for church that day. Just like most of you up there in Idaho; church was only an hour long. That night, all the missionaries in the valley came together for a mission devotional. President shared some amazing videos with us about our Savior and spoke about remembering Him not just now, but always.

Monday was Christmas Day! Feliz Navidad! Calling home was one of the greatest moments of my life! I'm sure many of you who have had missionaries know how it feels. Dinner at Jack in the Box. We didn't have time to watch It's a Wonderful Life, we moved that to next Monday (today).

Tuesday we got back to work. Shopped in the morning and then studied. We had a family invite us over for dessert. After, one of there little guys asked me to bend down... and then he kissed my cheek. Haha! Great kids. We went out with Bro Felix and visited Brother Scott. I had the idea last week to give him a topic and then he would teach us. The topic he chose was baptism. The lesson was awesome! He talked about how in his biker club, you would join and get your badges/marks (covenants/Christ's name) and then he explained Enduring to the End. 

Wednesday morning I woke up sick. I felt so weak, I had a hard time opening a water bottle. I rested and was able to make it to district meeting-- where I gave the spiritual thought. I enjoyed the trainings that were given, especially one where we talked about the doctrine of Christ. We then had dinner and I ran into one of my pops old coworkers. How crazy is that? We shared a message about baptism with them. We had a few lessons that night and one of our less active members sent us home with a crate full of meat and waffles. Hmm...

Thursday, I woke up sick again. There's been something going around down here. We went to burrito express and the papago elders pulled up in their car at the exact same time! We then went to the sketchiest place in our area, and the kids wanted us to pick lemons for them. A cop came around the corner and they all booked it-- not before they stole one of Elder Bird's bike lights however. Had an 80 minute lesson with an investigator named Stephen. Committed him to coming to church and promised him a free tie if he showed up. 

Friday I woke up sick again! It's the weirdest thing, I haven't had breakfast the last three days. The only thing that my stomach's in the mood for is chocolate. We weekly planned and visited one of our investigators. Her man was home and told us she was busy, he wouldn't stop winking at us. I think it was how he handled nervousness. A little awkward.

Saturday was exchange day! I got to go with Elder Kasparian into his area. We taught two lessons and visited a lot of people. I got to meet a really cool guy named Zach and he invited us in to share a message. I focused really hard on teaching and it was my job to share Joseph Smith's story with him. After I had explained it to him, Zach told us he's been waiting for two years for missionaries to knock on his door to hear and see the passion in our eyes as we rehearsed the First Vision to him. I will probably never see him again, but I hope he can continue to keep his heart open.

Sunday was a regular day.

And... today (Monday)! It's been a crazy day. We woke up and cleaned super quick, showered, changed, and ran to the church. There we started "It's a Wonderful Life" while we waited for our nerfing crew to show up. We had so many people there, including 9 other elders! It was a blast. Then we shopped and right now we are finishing the movie. It was a good day. 

I hope you all stay safe this next week! To end I'll share with you a scripture I came across. It's found in Doctrine and Covenants 50:40-42...

        40 Behold, ye are little children and ye cannot bear all things now; ye must grow in grace and in the knowledge of the truth.

41 Fear not, little children, for you are mine, and I have overcome the world, and you are of them that my Father hath given me;

42 And none of them that my Father hath given me shall be lost.

When I read this, it brought peace to my heart and reminded me that I am in my Savior's care. He's been given a charge over me. I've felt His love again and again since I've been out in the mission field. All the cruelty and sadness I see in a day can never last for long, because at the end of the day I always have a friend to turn to. He has walked beside me, He has picked me up and carried me on His shoulders when I fall. Stay strong each of you and always remember Him. Those are the times I've been most happy-- when I keep Him near. Let me know if I can do anything for any of you!

Love Elder DeGraw 
6265 N 82nd St
Scottsdale, AZ 85250

Burrito Express

District Meeting -- Elder Clark

Our freezer is packed

My new Jandals