December 15, 2015

Dear Family and Friends,

I am writing this email in my notes in the car on the way to the mission office to have a Christmas devotional with an apostle I think! So I will let you know next week who it was! 

So here's the update, I am still in Grantsville as you know, and my companion is Elder Woolf from Spokane Washington. He's got a lot of family from Canada so he really appreciates what we good folk have to offer through our candy and chips of all kinds and flavours. We got the advent calendars the other day and hung them up. It's crazy how close Christmas is! So yes we have a giant area and have been promised a car but never have gotten one. We ride bikes all day in the snow from home to home. It just snowed today actually again and my companion and I had a snowball fight outside. We still gather at church buildings as well for our meetings. There is one on every block. Out here in Grantsville we cover a stake. There are two stakes in Grantsville which is about 10,000 people, close to Wetaskiwin. We cover ten wards here and a lot of space.  We are having a baptism this Saturday for a 15 year old boy named Tayton Young. He is super solid. We are going to temple square with him on Tuesday for our last real lesson before he is baptized. 

Oh so yeah we had been working with this guy who was baptized like a month ago and his wife to find names in their family that they could take to the temple, we got a good chunk for both of them to do. We also have been working with a family where the dad, brother Moore, just got the Melchezedik Priesthood and a temple recommend. We organized with both of those families, as well as one of our Ward Mission leaders and his family, to all go with us and do baptisms for the dead at Salt Lake Temple. At was the first time we both got to be in the baptistery. I cried watching the faces of these wonderful people I love doing such great things in e temple. When Brother Moore went into the water, the Spirit was so strong in that room! At was the first time he and his wife had been in the temple together.

Anyways, I can't think of much else that has happened this week I love my Savior so much and have really gotten to know him throughout this experience. I am grateful to be a part of our family. I love you so much and appreciate each weekly email! :) have a great week! 

Love Elder Patterson 

Everybody out here has guns... It's kinda awesome!