Week 96

Hi Mom!!!! :)

We had a great week! We've been blessed to start teaching several people, which I've really enjoyed! One of the people we were teaching ended up moving this last week, which was too bad, but I'm glad we got a little bit of time to hopefully make a little difference for him. I had the wonderful opportunity and privilege to speak in sacrament meeting yesterday.... I thought by the end of my mission I wouldn't still be that nervous to speak.... guess not :) We had interviews with President and Sister Palmer as well, which was amazing as always! Today I got on my email and I had received one from Salt Lake, reminding me to start My Plan next week - that's the program for the last 6 weeks that helps us prepare for coming home. So.... :)

I'm glad you got safely to Flagstaff! Is the city Eagar anywhere near Flagstaff? It's really small, but I'm sure it would be on gps - that's where Elder Eagar is from :) I hope you really enjoy the week!! You'll be a huge influence for those youth! I'm still planning on Spin classes :) I'm not so sure if I'll attend Pilates... but if you ask really nice I might come ;) That would be so fun to have a class with Makaeli!! We can be each other's wing man/woman. I don't know if she'd want me in that position though... :) Is there any chance of us having other classes together, or is that the only possibility? I'm glad everyone's staying nice and busy this summer! Tell Ethan good luck in his games for me!!

So I figured I'd just send a couple thoughts from my talk yesterday; it was on the topic of faith applied to missionary work. I focused on the importance of action as a result of faith, basing it from the sentence in Preach My Gospel that says, "Your faith to find people to teach is demonstrated through your actions". I'm sure there are many others, but I talked about 4 ways we can act in faith in order to accomplish missionary work. 1) Personally live the gospel of Christ. As we faithfully live it, we will see its blessings in our lives and will be able to bear more sincere and powerful testimony through our strengthened faith. 2) Pray in faith. Prayer is the way we secure for ourselves blessings that God is willing to grant, but that He makes conditional on our asking for them (BD - Prayer). If we have faith that He loves us, that He answers prayers, and that He wants us to share the gospel, we can pray in faith that He will provide opportunities for us to share the gospel. 3) Follow the promptings of the Spirit. Just like Elder Rasband taught, we should respond to the first prompting. On my mission, responding to spiritual promptings hasn't always brought obvious results, but I've seen enough miracles from doing so that it's worth it to respond to every prompting. 4) As we've lived the gospel, prayed for opportunities, and followed the Spirit, we will have opportunities where we need to faithfully open our mouth and trust the Lord to give us the words to say and trust the Spirit to bear witness of our testimony (D&C 100:5-8). We can have faith that even if we don't see immediate results of our faithful missionary work, God is preparing His children to receive the gospel through us. As Preach My Gospel says, "No effort is wasted". We shouldn't "dispute not because (we) see not", because faith is "things which are hoped for and not seen" (Ether 12:6). Unfortunately, I don't think I got the points across very well in my talk, but it was another good opportunity to practice speaking in front of people :)

I love you so so much! Thank you SO much for everything you do for me! I can't wait to see you :) Thank you for your constant love! And thank you for always being so good about emailing me! I realized this week that a lot of missionaries' moms don't email them the way you do me - so thank you :) I love every single one! I love you!!!

Love,
Elder Connor Hopkin :)

​1) "Elder Hacking and Elder Hong after exchanges."

2) "Elder Liddell, who I went on exchanges with (he says hi)."

3) "FINALLY!!!!" :)

Hi Dad!!!!

I hope things go well for EFY! Good luck! :)

For the religion class, the Book of Mormon and the Restoration classes stand out. Do you think one would be a good precursor for the next? I've been super interested in Church history on my mission but haven't had much chance to learn about it; but it would be cool to have a specific Book of Mormon class, to learn more about it, right after the mission.... I probably lean towards the Book of Mormon one. But either way!

Yah, next week starts the last transfer! AH! :) It's pretty crazy it's so close. I was praying the other night and got so sad realizing I'm going to have to leave the mission... but then there are other times where I just can't wait to be home. It's so mixed! I am pretty amazed at how God's power and help have gotten me through the last 22 months. I don't feel that I've seen any big trials, but it definitely strengthens my faith that He'll see me through hard times if/when they come.

Quick question I had! What do you know about any difference in ordinance administration that are in the scriptures? For example, Adam being baptized by the Spirit (who doesn't have a body), Alma baptizing himself with someone, Oliver Cowdrey baptizing Joseph before he himself had been baptized? I mean, God can authorize anything He wants, so I'm not too worried - He knows what He's doing :) But, He could have had physical angels do the baptizing, or something along those lines, right? Just curious :)

So yesterday in Elder's Quorum we had a lesson on fathers. The teacher gave all these different statistics on children with poor or no relationships with their fathers, and how it affects crime rate and dropping out of high school and drug use, etc. It was pretty crazy. So, we talked about how fathers should be, and read a talk about their roles and why it's so important. Now to my point: for everything we talked about that a father should be, I had memories of you doing and being :) We talked about how fathers should spend quality time with their children; how fathers should preside in decision making and gospel teaching, but be loving and not dictatorial; how fathers should show a good example to their children of loving their wife; how they should be worthy to give father's blessings; etc. It reminded me once again how blessed I am to have you as a father. I seriously feel like I'm bragging whenever I talk about you, and I have to make myself hold back sometimes :) You and Mom are my best friends. So, THANK YOU! I hope you have an amazing Father's Day this Sunday! I love you tons!

Love,
Elder Connor Hopkin :)

Week 95--22 Months Served, 2 Months Left!

Hi Mom!!! :)

We had a great week!! We found a few new investigators, and had some other cool little successes! It feels good to not be getting all 0's - not that it matters that much, but it's still nice to have some stuff going! :) We're getting better acquainted with the ward. You've already seen how good some of them have been to us, and the rest are just as amazing :) There's a couple that got married a few days before we came into the area, and we've gotten to be pretty good friends with them! I've really enjoyed being with the missionaries here to - lots of good friends! My district leader, Elder Hacking, has been such a blessing, along with the other missionaries around!

I am excited for that book! It seems really cool! DANG you're trip sounds crazy! I'm glad the van and Makaeli are still alive! I would have cried if one of them had been seriously hurt - you guess which one :) Makaeli looks good in hospital clothes... hopefully the next time she gets to be that stylish is when she's having a kid :)

Good luck with your classes! I didn't know you're doing Pilates too.... what is pilates? :) I'm sure you'll do an amazing job, and I'll be sure to pray for you! I hope EFY goes well - ah I miss those weeks! Thanks for always helping me get into that - they were such blessings for me.

I LOVE that hymn!! I have it memorized actually, but haven't thought about it for a while. Those 3rd and 4th verses especially... so good :)

So, I've been thinking a little bit about a sentence in Preach My Gospel, which says, "Becoming clean from sin is being healed spiritually". I've expressed this before, but I loved Elder Uchtdorf's talk a couple years ago, where he explained that obedience isn't conforming our souls to something that they're not - it's helping them be what they truly are. When we sin, it harms us spiritually; it goes against everything that we are inside, since we are truly sons and daughters of God, a Being of perfect truth and goodness. So, through the Atonement of Christ, those wounds can be completely healed, and we can be restored to the spiritual health and goodness that we always have been. It usually requires that we put on a bandage, or take some medicine, or go through some "spiritual" therapy, but as we put in our effort, Christ promises He will forgive and heal us. I hope that made sense. I'm so grateful for His sacrifice that can heal us and take away the guilt that burdens us - just like your hymn says :)

Quick question - duffel bags would be considered a carry-on on an airplane, right? My two suitcases are going to be way too heavy, so I thought I'd buy myself a carry-on to help out, instead of ship a ton of stuff home. I hope it's not too early to think about that ;)

I love you so so much! Thank you for everything you do and are! You're so amazing :) Until next week!

Love,
Elder Connor Hopkin :)

1) "My stash from Sister Michael on my birthday - she seriously loaded us up!!"

2) "We inherited a sister apartment... and had to cut all the hair out of the vacuum brush.... It was actually pretty satisfying :) Plus Elder Hong's tie!" 

3) "We should have proselyted like this!"





















Hi Dad!!!

Sounds perfect about the bike! Thank you so much for working on that. That's super nice of him to be so helpful, and that's nice to be able to think more about it later. I did think it was a better deal than that though, so it's good to know!

I'm excited about the temple! :) Speaking of, Elder Watkins of the Seventy came to stake conference yesterday, and mentioned a talk by Elder Bednar, where he said that we actually don't take Christ's name upon us during our baptism - we covenant to, and it actually happens in the temple. I thought that was cool, and I had had a similar thought about a week before, so it was fun to have that confirmed :)

I'm really excited about that book! Thank you for that! And I never mind your musings and "ramblings". I'm constantly looking back at previous emails, trying to remember stuff :) I really liked those thoughts today!!

Elder Watkins also taught something else that connected with me. I sent some thoughts on it to Kevin, our recent convert from YSA, and I'm running out of time, so I'll just copy it here if that's ok! "I don't know about you, but I personally will sometimes find things in the scriptures that I feel contradict something else in the scriptures, or contradict something I've learned from the Church. That used to bother me a lot, until I would find or be told the answer, and then I'd be fine again! I've started noticing the pattern, though, and realized that there is ALWAYS an answer to the questions - it just isn't readily apparent always. So instead of being concerned when I come across a "discrepancy", I try to have faith in what I already know and believe, and wait patiently until the answer comes. I'm not perfect at it, but I'm learning how to do that. The Seventy that came yesterday (his name is Elder Watkins) said that even in science, there are apparent discrepancies and paradoxes between quantum mechanics and the general theory of relativity. Does that mean that the scientists abandon the theories? No - they wait and research and study, knowing that both are true and will eventually come together. We can do the same in our religious searches. We know this Church is the true and restored Church of Jesus Christ. When seeming paradoxes present themselves, we should never abandon what we already know - we can just wait patiently and research and study and ask God until the puzzle pieces fit." I thought it gave some cool perspective, and it was well-timed for me because I had found some "paradoxes" recently :)

Anyways, I love you so much! Thank you for being such an amazing father and friend! Good luck at EFY! You were definitely my favorite session director out of all 4 years :)

Love,
Elder Connor Hopkin

​

Week 94--And He's T.W.E.N.T.Y!!

This last week Connor turned 20. It sounds like he had a great birthday. And, I am so glad! I am also glad that next year I will not miss being with him on his birthday, like I have the last two years. :)


Hi Mom!!!!!! :)

I think I probably had the best missionary birthday ever possible :) I got my birthday package on Monday, and may or may not have opened it on Monday... but I waited until Friday to look at the card and the present! Thank you so much!!! There are about a million Panda Express's around, so that will be perfect! I'm excited about that book too. And I've eaten a TON of spicy chips! Thank you!!! :) So, on Thursday after district meeting, we had a little party with Elder Liddell's cake that he got (he turned 20 on the 26th too) and Sister Palmer was there. On Friday I woke up, opened my present, and we played tennis for exercises. Then, about half-way through the day we got a call from the assistants, telling us that we were getting a car! :) It only has a tiny amount of miles for emergencies and we only got it cause they don't want it sitting at the mission office... but still :) Then we had a great dinner, and Sister Michael randomly asked if she could come over... and then stocked our fridge for us! :) Thank you for texting her - it made my day! So, all went well! The only thing missing was my family - but that was expected!

The zone conference went great! Our musical number went well. Elder Clayton was really great, really nice, really funny, and a great teacher! His wife was pretty incredible too. They had the Manteca stake president come speak as well, and he told us all thanks for the good that we do that we don't even recognize. He even mentioned a man in his stake that after many visits from many missionaries has finally come back to church, and I realized I used to visit him with Elder Jones and Elder Ashcraft!

Thanks for the pictures!!! That's so much fun! It seems like that was me just a few months ago. I'm glad it all went well! Makaeli looks good in all blue :) GOOD LUCK with the upcoming summer! And have fun at Disneyland... oh well :) A few people here have been so surprised when they found out I'm from Utah and have never been to Disneyland. Not that it comes up that much... but sometimes :)

Thank you for that quote on kindness! I don't agree with you though... you're pretty dang kind! I think one of the biggest things I've learned from you is your quote, "You don't have to be friends with everyone, but ALWAYS be kind to everyone." I feel that's something huge you've always made sure to teach me, through your words and your example!


The work here is slowly picking up! We keep finding people with pretty good potential, but none have worked out yet. We've found 2 or 3 less active members, though, that aren't on the ward list, so that's been pretty cool! 2 seem to be pretty into get back to church! It was pretty funny - we biked up to one of them and introduced ourselves, and he said, "You know guys, I'm gonna be honest with you...... I'm a convert. I was baptized in Tracy forever ago" :)

This week I memorized "I Believe in Christ", and I've been trying to sing it and other hymns more while I'm biking around. I've come to appreciate the hymns so much more on my mission - they're really a huge blessing and bring the Spirit so fast!

I feel like there's tons more to say, but I can't remember :) So! I hope you have an amazing week! When is EFY for you? Does Dad get back from Colorado this week? How's your spin class looking? I love you SO much, and I hope you always remember how much you mean to me and everyone else around you. You're incredible! :)

Love,
Elder Connor Hopkin :)

Here is the picture of Elder Liddell's birthday cake that Connor wrote about. Sister Palmer sent the picture to me.

District Meeting--Stockton, CA

May 26, 2017

There is this awesome member in Connor's new area who helped make his birthday special. I had texted her asking what restaurants were in his area so that I could send him a gift card for a birthday dinner. She gave me a long list and then said that she would make sure he got a cake on his birthday. And, she came through--with the cake and so much more. Here is one of the best pics yet:

 Elder Hopkin and Elder Hong

   May 26, 2017

                        

Week 93

So, this week I worked on getting Connor's 20th b-day package sent off. Yep, that's right--T.W.E.N.T.Y! He will no longer be a teenager. Those twenty years went by pretty darn fast! When I asked him what he wanted for his birthday, the only thing he could come up with was "spicy chips". So, we went with that--and a couple other things. Here's a picture of his package. It just might be the last one I send--unless I get crazy and do something red, white and blue for the 4th of July. In any case, it seems weird to be sending the last, or second to last, package to him. I've always been glad he is in a place where I can send something and it doesn't cost a month's salary and it gets to him in 3 days instead of 3 months. It's been fun.

20th Birthday Package

May 2017

Here is Connor's letter for the week:

Hi Mom!!! :)

I had a pretty great week! Our area is very slowly building up a little bit; we've talked to a few people that seem quite interested! Our ward is so helpful and kind, so that always makes things a lot better! :) I went on exchanges with my district leader, Elder Hacking, and had a great time. I'm playing for a musical number at zone conference today, so we had a fun practice in Tracy (so good to be back!) and the member that drove us took us to Texas Roadhouse for lunch :) I think.... that's all for this week!

We have Elder Weatherford Clayton coming for a mission tour, and we have a zone conference with him today, so I have to be kinda quick with my email time. Thank you SO much for your email! I love hearing hearing your thoughts and words and insights :)

For the dermatologist appointment, all is well. He said that none of them look concerning. I told him that I didn't think that we have any history of skin cancer in the family...is that right? He said especially with that consideration, I should be totally fine. They did take pictures so they could compare with a follow up visit, which they wanted to do in 6 months. I told the secretary I won't be here for that, and she said something about not really keeping records on file... so I hope they kept something that they could sent to Dr. Bradshaw.

I'm sorry Dad is going to be gone again!! That's fun you get to do a couple EFY's together though! Where are you doing them? That was always a good week for me, and it definitely contributed to the testimony I have now. I'm glad the spin practices went well. You'll do an amazing job :)

Thanks for your thoughts on my thoughts :) I really appreciated those. I've wondered that sometimes about my patriarchal blessing. There are some talents it says I have, that I wish would just kinda manifest themselves without me having to work too hard on them :)

Thanks for the pictures!! That's sad for Makaeli's last game! I don't remember what mine was... was it the city league, or intramurals? So long ago :) I didn't receive the attachment with Ethan's singing, but that's fun he did such a good job!

Thank you for sending the birthday package!!! I'm so excited :) It's weird telling people now that I'm "almost 20"... and then I'll be saying "20" pretty soon. Pretty crazy!!! :)

So... testimonies are Soup-er important. They warm your soul like a can-dle. ;) I'll come up with real ones next week :)

I love you so much!! Thank you for everything you do for me. Thank you for giving birth to me almost 20 years ago! I'm glad you get the cake - you deserve it more, right? :)

Love,
Elder Connor Hopkin :)

"This is Elder Hacking, on our exchange. He's making fun of my Asian eyes, so I'm just blaming it on your family :) And my allergies."

Week 92--Mother's Day Skype 2017

It was so good talking to Connor on Mother's Day. He looked and sounded so old and mature. He is doing well and seems really happy in his new area and with his new companion. It made me really "trunky" to talk to him. Maybe it's because he is so close to coming home. But, it sure made me excited to see him here in a couple of months! Shon was on a work trip in Israel so we three-way Skyped with him as well. It really couldn't have been better! Best Mother's Day gift ever! Here are pictures from our Skype:

Mother's Day 3-Way Skype

Sunday, May 14, 2017

Elder Hopkin in Stockton, CA

Shon in Jerusalem, Israel

The rest of us in Orem, UT

Sometimes it's a little weird emailing the day after you talk to them. Hard to have something else to say. But, Connor's email this week was as good as ever--it follows.

Hi Mom!!! :)

Haha I hope I'm at least a little more old and mature than I used to be. I still feel at least 18. And my voice was cracking as if I was 12 :) It was so good to see you too! You looked so pretty, and it was so good to hear your voice too! It just brings back good feelings, you know? I'm so excited about your Spin class - keep me updated on that! I didn't feel too weird after Skyping - better than my last 3 for sure. It was just kind of like walking out of a movie theater - you're back in a different reality, but you adjust back pretty quick :) And it did help that I was only saying goodbye for a couple quick months.

Elder Hong said it was good to meet you. I agree about that blessing Dad gave me! I've kept it in the back of my mind with every companion. If nothing else, I think it has added a little extra motivation to work at getting along - I don't want to lose a friend that I was meant to have.

I had a quick question: for my appointment today, do you have access to the info? I'm pretty sure I signed something at a doctor's office before I came out - was that it? I'll be sure to fill out the form to get info to Dr. Bradshaw.

Those pictures of the boys are so crazy/great! Thanks for sending them! Ashley has emailed me a few times in the last several months, and I've been really impressed with her testimony and strength as well. She's a good aunt. And so are the rest of them - Alisha, Angie, Melissa, Aimee, etc. I've been so blessed with such an amazing family, immediate and extended!

So.... I would love some spicy chips, if you can spare the room :) I always want to get them at the store but can't bring myself to sacrifice money and health. But now it'll just be health, so it's worth it :) If it works for you! I can't really think of anything else that I really need right now! You're always good at figuring out the right things to get me anyways :) Thank you so much! I'm really excited!

Today before email we got a super fun basketball game going! There's an elder here that played at Lone Peak and is signed to play at Weber when he gets home.... he's kinda good :) And lots of other elders that are about my level, including Elder Hong. So it was lots of fun! And, I got so close to dunking it! Maybe I'll get it before my mission's over :)

I've been gaining a stronger testimony lately of the Book of Mormon, and had a quick thought. We had a great zone training a couple weeks ago that helped us remember the importance of that Book and gaining a testimony of it. It was really interesting to me that the majority of the missionaries that shared their testimony haven't had one huge, miraculous manifestation - it's been a slow, quiet, but powerful process that now leads up to them knowing that the Book of Mormon is true. God promised that He will manifest the truth of it to us through the Holy Ghost - but that's really the only limitation He put on it :) I remember Bishop Pectol teaching me about how testimonies are a lot like walls - they're built one small brick at a time. For the Book of Mormon and the Church, I'm blessed to have some larger, more foundational bricks in my wall, but it's been a lot of small moments that have truly built my testimony. I consider it a huge blessing that God has allowed me to feel of the truth. I noticed at the zone training that, yet again, there was no huge experience that made us all know immediately that the Book of Mormon is still true. But I felt a quiet power reminding me that it is God's word. The Spirit doesn't come in earthquakes or fires or winds, but as a very still, very small, very quietly powerful voice.

Thanks again for all of your help and sacrifice and love!!! I love you so much! I'm looking forward to your email next week! Oh, by the way, we don't have specifically set times in this zone, so I'll hopefully be emailing 11 or after, but could do it as early as 9. I love you!!! :)

Love,
Elder Connor Hopkin

Also got this picture from Facebook today from the member's home where he had Mother's Day lunch and where he Skyped from. As a missionary Mom I appreciate these members so much! They are so good to the missionaries and make them feel welcome and at home. I know they receive blessings for their service.

"I love seeing the faces of our missionaries when they are skyping with their families. Such joy! Here is Elder Hopkin with his family from Utah and his dad working in Jerusalem."

.

Elder Hopkin

Sunday, May 14, 2017

Stockton, California

Week 91--Transferred and Travel Plans (It's getting real....!)

This week I got a prized possession in my email box--Connor's return flight itinerary. Needless to say that was a good day! It sure does make this whole coming home thing seem even more real. Now I am not sure that I can keep myself from counting down every day until then. But, I will try.


Hi Mom!!!!! :)

So! The church wifi is down so I'm at the library with an hour long time limit that might unexpectedly end early :) So I'm gonna be quick this week if that's ok!

That's so exciting about dad's CFS!!!! Yay!!! The longer I'm out on my mission, the more and more I recognize and appreciate you and Dad and how perfect of parents you have been and are for me. You two are one of my biggest blessings.

SO....... I'm getting transferred! To Stockton! I'll be with Elder Hong; he's been out about 7 months. There were Sisters in that area previously, so we'll both be new there (the 5th time that's happened to me out of 6 transfers :) ). AH I love Modesto 6th ward so much!!! I'm so sad to leave! But, I have always wanted to go to Stockton. And the only Chick-Fil-A in our mission will be in my area. So I'm happy :) I won't be a district leader anymore, which I'm also going to really miss. Relieving, but sad. So, that's that!

Because of the transfer, I have no idea when church is. I'll try to still call around 5 or 6 though - that should work. Sister Hupp (one of the sisters we've been serving with in 6th ward) was in my new area before she came here, so she's given me a couple hints, and she said the Bishop should be able to let us Skype at his place. I'll probably have them call you beforehand to figure things out... unless you can email me in the next 20 minutes with your Skype username. Also, what's the plan with Dad? I'll probably just find out when we Skype, huh? :) Anyways, I'm so excited to talk to you!!!!!!!! :)

Something else fun: Elder Tiatia's new companion is Elder Jones, my second companion!! They're going to have a blast together!

Good luck with your Spinning certification! I'll definitely keep that in my prayers! Thank you for the thoughts from President Monson! To be honest, I felt that a little last night after getting this transfer call (it shocked me!); I was feeling a little lost for a few minutes, and just felt comfort knowing that God is perfectly in control, and the Savior knew exactly how I was feeling.

Well, I'll try to send a tiny bit more if I end up with extra time, but there's the most important stuff! I love you so so so much! Happy Mother's Day, in advance! I'm looking forward to talking to you so much! :)

Love,
Elder Connor Hopkin :)

Here is a copy of his itinerary.

Also, this week, he was transferred to Stockton. I am assuming this will be his last area. I found this picture of him and his new companion, Elder Hong, on the Facebook page for his mission. Thanks to the member who posted it!!

Elder Hong and Elder Hopkin

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Stockton, California

Week 90

This week I have been helping Connor set up a Dermatologist appointment, so his letter refers to that a bit. While doing so, I was in correspondence with Sister Palmer, the Mission President's Wife. I wanted to add what she wrote about Connor on here, I think he'll appreciate having that. So, first his letter, then a short blurb from her. We are at 90 weeks--that sounds like a lot, right?!

Hi Mom!!!!! :)

Wow, lots of fun stuff going on! :) The whole insurance thing made sense. I found the UHC numbers - they're on the right side, but I'm pretty sure we're talking about the same thing! :) And I printed out the email, so I'll make sure to fill out a consent form. Thank you so much for working that all out for me! The day and time will be perfect. You'll have to teach me life skills like that when I get home - I'm so dumb with that stuff :) As far as the bike goes, that's good to know about the new bike possibility. There's actually a less active member in this area that has a really nice bike that he's selling for $150 at most; I think I can ship a bike home from here for about $50; so I might pick that one up. I was talking to the member who's been helping me out with all this, and he can get it fixed up for me if need be, and he even suggested I could sell it - it's a pretty new bike so I could maybe even make some money on it :) My only concern is getting it stolen in the next few months - it is kinda shiny... :) I'll let you know if I decide to get the CTR bike. Thanks for checking in on that too!!

That's so cool about the Israel trip! I don't remember hearing that you're going next year! Haha when I first saw that, I thought you meant you're leaving this August and I freaked out for a second :) That'll be so much fun! And I'm totally ok if I get to visit during the holidays :) That's so exciting!!! That's fun you had a little reunion with the Texas clan; I wish I could have been there!

I'm glad you made it up to Idaho Falls! I'd love to visit that one sometime - see the beginnings of my creation :) I totally agree about how much of a blessing it is to have temples on the earth. I think I told you, but when I went to Oakland, I walked into the lobby and felt immediate peace and quiet. I also received some impressions and answers that really helped me out.

I'm so excited to Skype in a couple weeks!!!! :) I'm hoping that after doing it 3 times, it will actually feel kinda normal for my last one - we'll see though! Transfers are next week, and I think it's about a 50/50 chance that I get transferred - hopefully I can just do it at the Frazes', but we'll see what happens. I'll do my best to get it around 5 or 6 your time!

So, a couple fun things to report this week! First, we did a musical number in church yesterday. A ward missionary, Brother Hoff, put it together (he sent you a recording I think - did you get it?). He and Elder Tiatia and our first counselor, Brother Cox, sang; I was on the piano; and Brother Capps was on the violin. It was so much fun! :) Also, we found an AWESOME family this week! There's a less active woman that moved here about a month ago, and her children aren't members yet. So we're teaching them, and they're hopefully getting baptized reasonably soon! Ah they're such cool kids!! They all pay attention pretty well, and I think they like us, and they ask the coolest questions (it's hard though, answering deep questions for kids. One of the kids asked, "How did Satan tempt Eve to eat the fruit, if it wasn't even bad that she ate the fruit?"). :) So that's kinda been the biggest thing this week! Yesterday, we had a pretty busy evening, and we were biking against the wind, and I hit my heel pretty hard on my pedal, and I got really frustrated; but, I had the thought to say a prayer of gratitude to counteract my bad attitude; and about 2 minutes later, I was happy again! That was a good learning experience for me!

Well, I think that's all this week! Thank you again for all of your help! Good luck with the upcoming busy month!! Thank you for taking so much time out of your day to help with all of my problems :) You're such a good Mom!!! I love you so so much!

Love,
Elder Connor Hopkin :)

"We will miss him greatly when he goes home. He has been an exemplary elder; always dependable, Christ-like, and respectful. We love him very much."
                                                                                    Sister Palmer