Deep Thoughts

Dear Family:

Elder Bills?!?  That's my grandpa!!  haha He is the man!  Love that kid. (In the mission, they all feel each other is family.  So, the elders will attach "family labels" to those who they work with.  In other words, I think Elder Bills probably trained Elder Aiono, who is Elder Fischetti's "dad".  I hope I have this straight!  I mentioned to Thomas that I have been involved with a missionary mom network, and had heard from Elder Bill's mom).

Anyways man, what a sad email haha. Tell everyone to pick their heads up and enjoy life!  (This week there was some sad news we had to share with Elder Fischetti regarding the health and challenges of some family and friends.)  A lot of people dont enjoy the journey to their goals!  That's what life is about!  Enjoying every moment.  If you're not loving life, you're just wasting time.  I know I can't speak from experience, but we have the gift of agency, we choose whether to be offended or angry or sad. We have control, if you have a dream nothing stops you from achieving it...just yourself. Creativity is key.  Being able to actually think.  The world is losing the skill of thinking.  I have realized that is a strength I have because I tend to always be in deep, deep thought.  It is a skill, but a downer at the same time.  The world is teaching us to memorize and spit it out a.k.a. tests at school.  That will soon change.  Schools will no longer work the way they work. I have many ideas on how to change it and I think later in my life that is one thing I want to work for.  I have an invention journal out here and I don't ever think of it, but sometimes an idea just strikes me.  The people who think different are the ones who change the world. Think outside of the box?  That's impossible, for us there isn't even a box.  Keep your heads up, guys.  Life is full of blessings.  Exercise everyday!  That is the most important part of mental health.  Physical exercise.  Don't skip it.  As soon as you wake up...do it.  Whether for 30 mins. or an hour, just get the blood flowin' and put some strain on your body. and then work out your brain!  We need to constantly be reading, thinking, and creating.  When you are faced with a choice, try to think of as many different solutions as possible.  It fuels creativity.  Your mind will grow and you will be happier and more succesful in life in general.

(Is this my son talking?  Glad he has been listening...)

So miracles are happening!  We have 6 baptismal dates so far and a lot more to come!  Miller and I are just destroying it!  Every night we just collapse at our house!  So we spoke in sacrament meeting with Jack Church yesterday.  I spoke on missionary work.  I related it to ocean fishing and how we check our gear - fishing rods, bait, ropes and what not.  But as members of the church, we need to check for more for when the storms come, such as life jackets, flares, emergency boats, radios and what not.  We need to check our testimonies, our conversion, our desire to grow, our scripture reading, our spiritual health.  But as missionaries, we need to do much more.  I said that like the Coast Guard, when most boats are coming in, we are going out.  We are God's Coast Guard.  We need to have double and triple the gear.  We cannot leave any gear on shore by partying or fooling around, or not reading scriptures, or not caring about this gospel.  I bore testimony of friends that came home early and said..It is not worth it.  I couldn't help but cry out of love for the youth out here. I said, it is not worth it because in a few months into your mission, you will be sitting in the mission president's office because you are not worthy to serve.  Jack said I did really good.  I was totally speaking from the spirit.  It just worked.  We spoke for 15 mins each.  The spirit was so strong at that meeting.  I wish you could have heard it!  

Anyways!  Elder Miller and I set goals each week for numbers and we blow them up every time!  We surpass the standard of excellence!  We got a call from the AP's (assistants to the president - they are missionaries in high leadership positions) they congratulated us on our hard work and desire to serve.  

Man, I love my mission.  Mom, it's the best!  It really is!  Can't wait to skype on Christmas!!! We are skyping at Jack's house if I dont get transferred!!  He's the man!  He was an amazing missionary!  In his talk, he said you learn how to deal with hard companions, you can ask Elder Miller about that. haha  It was so funny, but then he said no, Elder Fischetti touched my heart and he will never know how much he means to me and he teared up!  Can you believe that?  I didn't know he cared about me that much!  I love it!  He is like an older brother to me! We have been riding bikes and it's so fun riding through puddles and off jumps and stuff haha.

But the mission is the best thing I've ever done.  I've never felt so accomplished and successful.  But at the same time, I've never felt so rejected and diminished.  But that's what makes the mission awesome!  You learn to bounce back and hit it 10x harder.  When you knock on 100 doors one day and don't get 1 answer, that doesn't mean you shouldn't get up and do it all again.  I love my mission!  It's the best!

But I love you guys!  Hope you have a better week this week!  Stay safe and stand strong!

Love,

Elder Fischetti

"Sacrifice is key. The Lord will not deal with you on any other basis. It is the key to controlling the powers of heaven."

"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain."