Inception.

Brothers and Sisters, Aloha! 

*cough* I mean... Hola!

Time is surreal. There is only right now and one week ago. It is a genuine feat to try to rack my brain for the events in between.

Good thing I've been taking notes.

Halloween was awesome! The day prior was a ward party, which was combined with the English ward. Getting to know more people was great, especially because we usually don't have any interactions with the English ward. Also, I'm a sucker for food, so I ate quite a few bowls of chili. 

Later that night, we had to be inside by 6:00 so the trick-or-treaters could run their course. So, naturally, we were playing Monopoly. My blessed mother ordered us some pizza for the night, so we were cruising. Elder Macmillan's mom also did the same. We ended up with 11 pizzas, and full stomachs. We also had a devotional that night, too. A great halloween treat.

As for the rest of the food situation, we were blessed with a lot of food this week! among a ward chili cookoff, a potluck, member meals (Bless the members), and some cake, we're very blessed.

We talked with the nicest guy on his porch. I asked him how he gained his current beliefs, and then he told us about his conversion from dealing drugs to completely quitting and finding strength in Jesus. People out here keep blowing my expectations out of the water. Everyone's individually at the center of their world though, so they naturally have lots to tell, and their stories are never what I'd guess. (Like going from wielding a gun to turning out to be a baker??) He also offered us each a soda!

Exchanges! I've been on two now, and I quiet enjoy them. The two elders I've gone with have both taught me quite a bit. It's always handy to get a different point of view on the work, and seeing how they do things slightly differently helps me to see what kinds of things I can improve in the regular work we're doing.

Rain has been nowhere to be seen for a while, but these past few days, it's been coming down. Luckily only at night though. I'd be cooked if I were in seattle. It would be a true test of my wardrobe to be confronted with freezing temperatures and consistent precipitation. I'll probably head to goodwill (DI) next week and see what upgrades I can find.

Something this week that really struck me was the concept of 'small and simple things'

Alma 37:6 "but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise."

Inception has the connection I made during a member meal in which we shared this thought.

In Christopher Nolan's film 'Inception', a topic that is touched on, is that in order to convince somebody of something very large, you have to find the key idea, or image at the very deep of their conciousness that could develop into this larger idea.

The point I learned was that in order to convey a complex idea, like the gospel principles, we need something very simple and pure: the holy ghost. The holy ghost brings in a simple idea that says "It's true" or something similar.

Thus, in order to accomplish God's grand work, we need to do the little things. Smile every day. Give someone a genuine smile. I leave it to you to imagine where these little acts could lead. In every act of kindness, the gospel can be shared, because that is part of the core principle that Jesus Christ set the example for. If we can show people just a little piece of the joy of the gospel of Jesus Christ, they will have that much more experience with it.

And maybe your "hello" is just what that person needed to know that God did hear their prayers.

Ciao,

Elder Duncan

Ward Party!

Pizza monopoly

Gnarly Tree

Post-Exchange

P-day Bowling!