HE DROPPED US!!! (Season 10 Episode 3) - 9/11/19

Greetings and salutations!

Monday was a chill day. We spent the bulk of the day in my companion's first area with the Elders in that area and some members. We played board games and ate some food. It was a nice time even though I'm not the biggest board game fan. I'm just along for the ride. The night was good also. We got some good member visits lined up along with a member dinner at McDonald's. He's not from our ward but he likes going and visiting missionaries so today he wanted to visit us. After that, we just planned some good old English class. This weeks topic is planets!!

Tuesday was a good day. I got out for my first run in a bit and it felt pretty nice. We also had our first District Council of the transfer and we had it here in 三峽. It was pretty nice not having to bike all the way to the Chapel and we had more time to be in our area. At night we had a lesson with our most progressing investigator and he finished the commandments lesson and is excited to get baptized! We shared tithing with him and we honestly thought it might pose a problem but he accepted it!! What a miracle. He still has some other small hurdles to get over but he's definitely going to make it!!

Wednesday was lit. We had an interesting day with nothing super special going down. We did go to a new 7/11 today which was kind of cool. I guess only missionaries would think going to a different convenience store would be cool. It was and we got to call some formers. Aside from that, we had English Class, which was actually fun! We taught them the planets and it was pretty cool. Turns out they don't learn about that stuff as young as we do so we got to teach them the English and the Chinese words for it all. It was a nice, rainy day.

Thursday was a pleasant, drizzly day. The rain was pretty much off and on all day which made biking even more pleasant than it already is. We also had a lesson with our new referral who is set for a baptismal goal! All he needs is to come to church and he should be ready. On top of that, we played basketball with our friend Sam and his brother one last time before Sam leaves for school. He sadly didn't have an interest in continuing to learn the gospel but he's a good kid so I am sure he will have the interest again someday. That was pretty much the day though. Pretty exciting to bike all around and enjoy the weather.

Friday was a hard day. Did studies and weekly planning along with a doctor's visit. Nothing super special, but we did get a text from our most progressing investigator and he is the most awesome older fellow ever and he told us to not prepare for his baptism because he doesn't want to go forward with it anymore. Talk about heartbreak.

Saturday was wild. We had a great day because we were able to go to 台北 and participate in some cool meetings and stuff. The first one was a performance of Lamb of God! It was so well done! I felt the Spirit so strong and it was just such a great performance. There were some other missionaries that performed in it and President Peterson was in it too! It was a great time then we went and got dinner with a member afterward because we had a Stake Conference session tonight. We were originally gonna practice teaching with members and that's why we went but after 2 and a quarter hours of sitting through the meeting, we didn't even get to do anything. It was way disappointing but nothing is ever a waste of time. We were still able to learn some things.

Pretty busy Sunday. We still had to get out the door early because we had to get to the Stake Center early for our weekly Coordination Meeting. After that meeting we had some lunch and then buckled up for round two of Stake Conference, once again going over the 2-hour mark and it was pretty ok. Before all the meetings I got to see Sister Born again and we had a nice conversation and she's way hype. Not much has changed since the good old Gilbert days. At night I conducted a baptismal interview for the Sisters in my District and they are going to be having another baptism this week! Good for them!

Monday was another working day. We had a normal day though, studies and we went out knocking. Knocking was fun and we got to talk to lots of people. At night we had a member visit too and got to share about family history. I am excited to go to the temple and do some of my own family names!

Tuesday was pretty interesting. We had District Council and it was really nice and fun. After Council we went to 板橋 which is a city close to the Chapel and we visited the Elders that serve there at their apartment to grab some stuff and then we went to the hospital. This hospital is a bit bigger and a little better and still told Elder Settles the same stuff. He isn't happy and thinks he's getting fooled but I withhold my opinion. I'm not the one with a medical degree but those doctors have one... anyways after that, we ate a quick dinner and then walked around a big mall in that city. That whole area was Elder Settles' first area so he took great pride in being able to show me around and I just let him do his thing and we had a good time. Then we made our way home from the long day. I am very excited for the temple tomorrow!

Elder Heber Chase Ciminski

謝希伯長老

life's a trip (Season 10 Episode 2) - 9/2/19

Greetings and salutations!

Monday was an adventurous day!! We didn't have any plans, and then one of our investigators offered to take us sightseeing and so we went with him and went on quite the adventure. We drove all over the northern part of the island and had a great lunch and even went to 淡水 for a little bit so Elder Settles could see what it was like. It was such a cool time. Riding in a car and seeing sights made for a very nice preparation day. We also got ready for our apartment inspection tomorrow. Hopefully it's up to snuff but I guess we will see.

Tuesday was another day in the land. We had a fun morning getting our apartment inspected from a senior missionary couple and afterwards we went out with them to lunch and they were so nice and bought our food for us! We got to talk with them about their previous missions to Hong Kong and Vietnam and hear some cool stories! It was a cool time and they said we had a very nice looking apartment . Afterwards we went to the mission office to pick up Elder Settles' bike and now we should be clicking on full cylinders and can get back to some normalcy. Elder Settles is a great guy and we are having a "lit" time together! One of our favorite sayings is "life is lit", and it really is!

Wednesday was a fun day. We didn't have anything going on so Elder Settles took a look at the map of our area and picked an area that we wanted to check out. It was in a cool place by the mountains and there was a road conveniently located in that area that led to 土城 and we could go that way since we had to teach English class. We definitely weren't prepared for the next 2 and a half hours on the bike complete with an hour and a half of climbing a mountain. It was so crazy but going down after was worth it all. There was such an amazing view of Taipei city and it was so pretty. I also clocked myself going 33 miles per hour down the mountain (all the while pumping my brakes for safety ). Then we had English class and it was the hardest one yet. We had one girl show up and she got really mad when we wouldn't let her play with toys until we finished learning the words and so she didn't talk for the whole class so we ended super early because we weren't getting anything done. Teaching children is hard.

Thursday felt like an Arizona day! The temperature peaked at 103.2 degrees. The work still goes on and we had a fun day that started with playing basketball with another one of our friends! It was loads of fun and we had a good time. After we finished playing we got showered and then headed over to the chapel for our Zone Council. It was a normal meeting with some good trainings and some good laughs. After Zone Council, we did our studies and had dinner at our Ward Mission Leaders house. It was loads of fun eating and talking about missions (our Ward Mission Leader served in New York City). They also gave us Koolaid mix, oh yeah!

Friday was a fun day. We went to the hospital again to get Elder Settles checked up again. The doctors weren't the best but we are getting it all taken care of. Hopefully answers will come soon! Other than that, we did studies and our weekly planning session as well. Afterwards, we went and visited an investigator and it turned out to be a drop lesson (a lesson where we stop teaching them). Teaching him has always been a little interesting but he told us he didn't want to be baptized and has been less than willing to do invitations we extend. It's always unfortunate dropping people, but it's a necessary part of the process. We were able to end the night having dinner with two members and we had a good hot pot! The first one I have liked in a long time.

Nothing special happened Saturday. The day was a little more mellow after I got some bad news from a friend. Things are well for me though, just lots of pondering. We also taught a lesson and it went well. Our friend set to get baptized this month is still progressing very well!

Sunday was a normal Fast Sunday. After church we had a lesson and had our Coordination Meeting. When we got home we just did our studies and ate some food before going to the recent convert fireside at the Stake Center. While the day wasn't super unique I did have an interesting impression come to me during the fireside. It was just the phrase, "we are all on our own trip". I sometimes spend too much time worrying about others and what others think of me. I just gotta stay in my lane and focus on how I am doing and making sure I am doing good and doing the right things.

Elder Heber Chase Ciminski 

謝希伯長老

HE LEFT ME!!! (Season 10 Episode 1) - 8/26/19

Greetings and salutations!

Monday was a fun day. We had a good preparation day and a super fun part of it was playing badminton for a couple hours. I actually have grown to love badminton.  It's so fun to play! I'm not the best ever, but who cares. We also had the traditional Costco lunch and went to Decathlon also. So pretty much like every other preparation day, but it was still a good time. Spending time with friends and especially Elder Yang since I won't see him for a good bit. The night went by quick with 2 member visits and then English class planning. This week is gonna go by quick so I'm strapping in for the wild ride.

Tuesday was a special day! In the morning we learned that Sister Joy D. Jones is coming to the mission this week and she will be giving a special mission devotional for all the missionaries this Saturday! That should be a really nice time. We also had a cool companionship study with Chief Captain Peterson. He came for our exchange but our time was shorter than expected so we just did a study. It was cool to also have him attend our District Council. That was a big chunk of the day. The beginning was exciting and then the end was pretty slow. Elder Yang is pretty sad to leave and today he was a little reminiscent. I keep telling him he is blessed to get to go there but he doesn't have the vision yet. I can't wait to hear his miracle stories there. Overall it was a pretty good day!

Wednesday was pretty sad. It was Elder Yang's last day here with me in 三峽. He got all of his stuff all packed up and he's as ready as he can be. We splurged and went to an expensive burger place for dinner and it was probably the most american-like place I have been to yet. They even had protein style burgers. I'm sure when I bring Mom and Dad here someday Mom will enjoy that. We had English class and it was pretty good. Nothing crazy to report from it. It's been a day of reminiscing. Tomorrow will be a big day though.

Thursday was a big day! It was moving day for Elder Yang. He wanted me to help him get to the train station and so I accompanied him all the way to his platform. It was very sad to see him go but he's going to do great things in his new area. Once I dropped him off I spent a good second walking around the biggest train/MRT station trying to find my new companion. We eventually got united and got back to our area!! Elder Settles took some time and got settled in and we taught a lesson and did studies and had a member visit as well. It was a very tiring day! We had a big day and tomorrow should be more normal. Elder Settles is awesome and we are going to have a fun time for sure.

Friday was pretty good. We had a good day with a hospital visit, studies and some weekly planning and contacting! Elder Settles has been feeling a little uncomfortable for the last 2 months and so we finally got it checked out. Seems like his lymph nodes are swollen and a few other little things. We got some meds and next week we will go back and see what happens. Elder Settles is getting adjusted very well and he was able to hear more about our friends so it was a great time. Tonight I also bought some bike brakes and before we ship out Elder Yang's bike tomorrow I swapped the brakes on his bike. He doesn't know and won't know but he changed my mission and I wish I could do more for him but I'll do what I can.

Saturday was a wild day. We headed out and had a cool lesson with our friend Sam and he committed to come to church tomorrow! That was awesome and after the lesson we biked to the MRT and took Elder Yang's bike to the mission office to get it shipped down to him. As well we had a special mission devotional with Sister Joy D. Jones, primary general president. There were lots of cool things said and it was a sweet little meeting. We did go over on time sadly and we had to spend lots of time at the mission office getting miscellaneous things sorted out, but the sisters had a baptism tonight so by the time we got back to 土城 it was time for that baptism. Very great service and then we got dinner bought for us from a member friend! That ended out the day and it was super wild and fast. I also saw Leslie Born from Gilbert! She was at the chapel we had our devotional at and we walked out of the elevator and she was right there and just yelled out, "Heber!!!!!" Totally caught me off guard but it was so so good to see her! Today was also the 淡水 Ward Temple Day and I saw so many members from my first area! They remembered me and we took some pictures. What a great day.

Sunday was another wild day. Had a super great church meeting and Elder Settles got to meet the ward! And today I had an affirmation that the world is very small in the church. I met a returned missionary today from a ward that shares our chapel and after a little bit of talking I learned that she trained one of the sister missionaries in my MTC district! We took a picture and she sent it to that sister, small world! Today we also got Elder Settles a bike until his comes later this week and we did our studies and other things of that sort. Quite the day which also included getting hit by a scooter on my bike (no need to worry she was watching the light instead of the road and I didn't clear the road in time so it was only a slight tap and it is ok.) All is well!

Elder Heber Chase Ciminski 

謝希伯長老

*insert clickbait title here* (Season 9 Episode 6) - 8/19/19

Monday was a fun preparation day. Had a very nice morning and got all the weekly preparation out of the way. We went and got Elder Yang all his hairs cut and then headed out to 中和 to grab some food and pick up some goods. Those plans went short and so Elder Yang decided we were going to go to the South Zone Activity. We got a half invite and took it so it was us (belonging to West Zone) and then all of South Zone. It was fun though I have a lot of good friends in that zone so we were welcomed right in. We played some games and had a good time! We got back to our area and rested up and then headed out for the night and did studies and contacting. We tried to find a new place to go to but it turned into us accidentally leaving our area. We will have to be more careful next time 😬.

Tuesday was pretty full. We had a good day though which included District Council as well as a lesson! District Council was good, we talked about being Christlike and time wasn't on my side but I know that the Spirit impressed my district members with what they needed. Next week should be a fun council since President Peterson will be there and the Zone Leaders as well. Our lesson today was with a less active member's child who isn't baptized yet. We taught her the first lesson and Elder Yang is such an amazing teacher for little kids! I have no idea what I'm doing but he has all these little activites and stuff that help the kids so much. It was a great lesson on all accounts! Taiwan is a great place with lots of great things going on.

Wednesday was a good day. We had an amazing lunch at our Stake Presidents house! His family is way awesome and the food was delicious as always. Aside from that, we did our studies and then biked a different part of our area we haven't seen before. It was the winding road that started heading up into the mountain and I love climbing on a bike but we decided to turn back early because Elder Yang wasn't quite feeling his best. So we got rewarded and flew back down everything we climbed and then went to the chapel to prepare for English class. Today we didn't have any 三峽 people and I think we are to blame a little. As we were biking home, I thought (since biking is the best pondering time) if we had done everything we could to get people there. While we did some things and tried we didn't do everything we needed outside of class to have the results in class. So we will repent and do better for next week.

Thursday was a good day. Started off by taking Elder Yang on a run around 三峽! Mornings are so pleasant so running in one was nice. We also had 2 lessons. One with our golden boy Danny! He's such an awesome kid and he started reading the Book of Mormon on his own, what a legend! Our other lesson was super good too. Then at night we didn't have anything else going on so we decided to try a new finding tactic. We wrote some cards for formers in the college area and we went to their apartment complexes and dropped the cards off! It was fun and a unique way to hopefully find new people!

Good day Friday. We had our weekly planning session along with a visit with a less active member. Not a super special day so not much to write about. It was one of those super typical missionary days that all feel the same.

Saturday was pretty sweet. Had a little bit of a backwards day because when we left the house we went straight to an appointment and right after that one ended we went straight to Bishop's house for lunch and then did a study. We also switched it up and played basketball with one of our investigators! It was way fun and we had a good mid-day exercise. Upon returning home we got cleaned up and had dinner than went and met with a less-active and then did language study and that was the day! It flew by pretty quick, but it was a good day nonetheless.

Sunday was a chill day. We had church and a lesson. Aside from that we had our weekly Correlation Meeting and enjoyed a nice bike ride to church and back! Elder Yang ate a bad meal last night and so all day he was feeling the side effects of it. He kept on saying he feels like he needs to puke but he has yet to do it. So we definitely took it easy for him. What a trooper!

Elder Heber Chase Ciminski 

謝希伯長老

THE SECOND COMING!! (Season 9 Episode 5) - 8/12/19

Greetings and salutations!

Monday was spectacular. Preparation days are always a fun day to relax and have a good time. When I was grocery shopping I was blessed that despite having to pick up a few more items than normal (toothpaste and shaving cream, both can be kinda expensive), I was still able to stay within my budget more than I thought and my goal of spending 1,000 dollars a week is still very attainable. We were also blessed with 2 member meals! One was an all you can eat barbecue which was very good. The other member meal was right after we ended Preparation Day but it was AMAZING. The members love to cook food and today they made Mexican food and we had fajitas. They had it all, Jalapenos, sweet pork, pico de gallo and so much more and it was such an amazing trip for my taste buds. I was filled with absolute pure joy with every bite. I made sure I ate as much as I could, and then some since I don't know when that opportunity will come again! Definitely the best member meal I've had. That was all the exciting parts of the day, another great day in the books!

Tuesday was a great day of work! We hit our magic number once again and it was great! We were also able to have District Council and we had a great discussion about consecration and focus. It was a good time and this transfer I definitely feel that I have improved in my capacity as a District Leader. In the end, it's about the service for the other missionaries and I was able to provide a service by conducting a baptismal interview for the Sister's investigator! Their friend was so ready and I was glad to play the smallest of parts in that baptismal process! I am constantly grateful for Heavenly Father and the inspiration he gives me. I was inspired with a solution to a problem I had been encountering with my missionary tracts and now it's all solved thanks to Him! His hand is always in our lives and He cares about all our little worries and concerns. All we have to do is reach out and ask for His help. He is ready and willing to give.

Wednesday was a fun day! The rain came down and the way big, deep puddles came up! There is supposedly a typhoon hitting us tomorrow so that'll be fun to see. As for the day, we did our normal studies and contacted people and tried to find new people to teach. We were very blessed when an English class student of mine set up a time to meet out of the blue after I told her Jesus Christ could help her with her studies (which is definitely true). So we are grateful to have added her into our teaching pool. Due to the upcoming storm and rain, not a lot of people came to English class but it was still fun because we taught the little kids the Hello Song from primary! I was able to play the right hand (or just the top note) of it and anyone who knows my piano skills knows what a miracle that was. We weren't able to talk to as many people but we had some great things happen in other aspects of the work!

Thursday was busy! We had 4 appointments set up for the afternoon. Only two ended up actually happening (2 of them were member visits and surprisingly those 2 were the ones that didn't work out), but as a result of our efforts, we were able to add 2 more people to our teaching pool! Heavenly Father is blessing us so much. I am so grateful! The weather was also very interesting. Before all that at 5:30 in the morning Elder Yang and I were awakened from our peaceful slumber by another 6.0 magnitude earthquake! It was whack because I was half asleep and I just said out loud "地震", which means earthquake and Elder Yang grunted in agreement and then we both went back to sleep. It definitely did shake though. Tomorrow a strong typhoon should hit us also so if this is what the Second Coming will be like I'm just glad I'm living life the right way.

Friday was a pretty underwhelming day. The big typhoon that was supposed to come didn't really make it and we just saw a bit of rain and a bit of wind. Just like any other day. So it wasn't bad at all and we had a good day doing studies and also our weekly planning session! 三峽 was a ghost town though so we weren't really able to contact a lot of people. We did talk to a man from Thailand and he told us about how he lives here for work and he has a wife and 2 kids back in Thailand. It made me think of Dad and how we have had to be separated sometimes for work reasons. I'm grateful that we can all be together now! We also saw a big blessing that came in the form of a mother setting up for next Monday to meet with us! She has 3 kids and her husband as well. I am excited to introduce them to the Gospel and help them!

Saturday felt like another small Tour de Taiwan stage. Lots of biking around. We went to a place we went about a week or so ago to try and visit a potential and they live on top of the biggest and steepest hill I have ever climbed. Give me a jersey or something because I fly up that thing. We found out he wasn't home so we just did some language study and then biked to the chapel for a farewell party for Elder Yang! Right when the party was about to start we got a call from our Ward Mission Leader and he had been involved in a motorcycle wreck so we went to make sure he was all good and then flew back to the chapel super fast. The party itself was chill but we left a few minutes later than we hoped so we had to sprint home to make it on time. My legs are really feeling it but the work of the Lord never ceases. Sleep will fix that problem.

Sunday was another good Sabbath. We had a nice church meeting and was able to be filled spiritually heading into this next week. After church, we had our ward council meeting. After all the meetings we biked home and it was pretty tough because we had a way big headwind. Of course, because a day can't be perfect, the part of my bike that shifts the gears (on the handlebars) broke and so my chain dropped into 8 and I couldn't get it into any other gear. So I had to grind all the rest of the way home and it was pretty grueling. I got it fixed and got a new system so it's all good now thankfully! We also had a lesson and did studies and planning for English class. Overall a very good day!

Elder Heber Chase Ciminski 

謝希伯長老

I ALMOST GOT SUED FOR FRAUD AND HARRASSMENT!!! (Season 9 Episode 4) - 8/5/19

Greetings and salutations!

Monday was a fun preparation day! We had a good lunch at Costco and headed over to a big tourist place with lots of shops and stuff in a different area of 台北. We had 10 missionaries with us and it was a great time hanging out and seeing some cool stuff! We had to head back and start the week off though which we just did studies and saw a different part of our area as well. We are working on finding right now and hopefully, we can see something good this week so the Zone Leaders won't mention multiple times how rough we are doing during our calls. However, I trust in the promise that dad gave me. If I do my part and am doing what I'm supposed to do then the Lord won't hang me out to dry and He won't forget about me. Things will get better no matter how it may seem in the moment.

Tuesday was a big day! We woke up and got out the door super early to bike 13 kilometers to our Zone Conference in 桃園! It was a great ride with some good climbs, descents, and lots of flat roads too. The scenery was pretty cool too and it definitely made up for no morning exercise. The meeting itself was very good. We talked a lot about goal setting and vision. We have a lot to focus on in the mission, but it's nice to have a single vision to work on and strive for. We got some good training as always and it was funny when in front of 3 different zones, my Zone Leader asked me about something from our Zone Council a few weeks back (the one we were late to) and I just fired back that I was so late I had no idea. That got a lot of laughs from everyone else lol. I love Zone Conference. It's a fun time to see good friends and be fed by the spirit.

Wednesday was an awesome day!! Elder Yang and I hit our 20 gospel conversations again! I am so proud of the work we did. We did every finding technique we have. We knocked some doors, called formers, and had English class, and street contacted, and bike contacted at stoplights. It was amazing. We worked hard and saw some awesome stuff! We did have English class and it was awesome! Elder Yang and I are the new little kid's class teachers and I honestly felt like I was in Daddy Day Care. I had no idea what I was doing but we still taught a fun lesson and the kids liked it! We had some 三峽 people come and we even had a new person come from our area! It was great to see our own people there and that was just another one of the many tender mercies and miracles we saw. It was one of those days you just stand on the end of the dock and yell "HURRAH FOR ISRAEL!" Incredible.

Thursday was another packed day of awesomeness! Elder Yang and I were blessed to hit our goal of 20 conversations once again! We also had a lesson and a member visit as well. Truly a full day of work. We also biked lots and went knocking on some doors (though knocking in this area means standing at the bottom of an apartment complex and buzzing every door to see who picks up). It was great though! We met some awesome people and got some contact information. The lesson we had was with a sweet potential and he brought his two sons also! We shared the Plan of Salvation with them and they seemed to really like it. I have great hope and faith that I will see this family be baptized. Overall it was a busy and totally amazing day! This area is improving slowly but surely.

Friday was a more administrative type of day. We had our weekly planning session and stuff like that. This week we set a goal for every step within Preach my Gospel and it was a great time. I definitely feel motivated and ready to hit these goals next week! We also had 2 member visits but neither of them worked out. So we just contacted people and we weren't able to hit our 20 conversations but every day can't be perfect. We are definitely talking to more people though and that's what matters. We were able to have a quick sit down with an investigator and challenged him to read the Book of Mormon and come to church, both of which he agreed too. So that's a great thing!

Saturday was another awesome day in the Three Gorges. We got the hat trick of days with 20 gospel conversations! We are so proud of the work we've done this week and we were blessed with a set up from a street contact! So so blessed. We also had a visit with a less active and aside from that it was all finding! I used to try and get out of finding time, but now I really enjoy it. For that, I am glad because that's one thing a missionary really needs. The faith and motivation to find. So I am glad to have found that recently and also help my companion see miracles and share experiences together.

Sunday was a truly up and down day. We had a great church meeting and afterward we had our weekly correlation meeting. We were blessed to be able to teach a new friend today! She was awesome and she said some great things and I felt the Spirit so strong as we taught her about Jesus Christ and how He can help her. It made me forget all the less than desirable things and remember why I am here. And lastly, we ended off the night going to the recent convert fireside where I saw another 淡水 member who remembered me! She also said I am much different now than I was 10 months ago. She said I'm a lot more mature. That was pretty cool.  Even though I've physically matured some we all know I haven't mentally matured past the 8th grade ;)

Elder Heber Chase Ciminski 

謝希伯長老

MY FIRST GRAFFITI!! (Season 9 Episode 3) - 7/29/19

Greetings and salutations!

Monday was such a fun preparation day! We had a good morning, did some shopping and whatnot and then we went out to IKEA! I had been looking forward to this for a solid week or so and it did not disappoint! There were about 9 elders and friends just walking around IKEA and hanging out and it was such a fun time. I definitely spent some money on food. Anything that reminds me of America is something I am down for. It was such a fun time I laughed so much and it was so happy! We had a chill night and just walked around town, talked to people, and did studies. At night I tried a simple fix on my bike (or so it seemed) and before you knew it it was 12:30 in the morning and your boy probably did more damage than good. Looks like I got a trip to the bike shop tomorrow. I wanna become my own bike mechanic, so I wanna learn all this and trial and error is a part of that process.

Tuesday was chill. We had the first District Council of the transfer and it was lit! We had a great talk about visions and goal setting and I'm so excited for this district to fly high and become better missionaries this transfer! We, of course, had a big rain coming home but thanks to my new cycling cap I bought recently the rain had nothing on me! I got some laughs from other missionaries but I stand by my cap and the powers it holds. As for my bike, after spending 200 kuai (6 bucks US) I replaced my shifting cable and we are back to normal! I ought to find a book or something about bikes and read that first. We had a nice McDonald's dinner with a friend of ours from another city and then did our studies at the end of the night. A super awesome highlight of the day was buying Dr. Pepper at a store! The nectar of the God's has been found. I'm not quite sure how giving up caffeine will go this transfer.

Wednesday was awesome!! Elder Yang and I enjoyed a day of finding. We were able to invite 20 people to develop faith in Christ! That is the President's goal for us, having 20 invites a day and I can proudly say now that I have done it, this is the first time I have ever hit 20!! It was awesome. Despite 20+ rejections I felt so happy! We did have English Class today as well and I was really proud of my spiritual share. We were talking about cooking and for the spiritual share I had all my students download Gospel Library and we read some scriptures together and talked about the recipe to finding out the Book of Mormon is true. I invited them all to start reading and since they all have it on their phones now they hopefully will!

Thursday was a special day. We started the only exchange we will go on this transfer! We grabbed lunch with the Zone Leaders and the Sisters in the area and then we switched and I left with Elder Fei'eiki to go to his area. We had a good day talking with people and studies. We also had a lesson where the investigator dropped us. The man reminded me of people in 鳳林. A great man but just confused and isn't able to recognize the truth. We also had a scripture reading class that the missionaries put on. We read and talked about some chapters in first Nephi and it was fun! It was a busy day and very warm also. The heat is getting pretty crazy. I'm baking like a toasted cheeser!!!!

Friday was a good day. We woke up and did our planning and personal study and then went and worked out. I had a great run on the track nearby. I did a 5k like normal and I was just trying to make it through since it was super hot and I forgot water (not my best move). I looked at my watch after the first mile and was blown away because I felt like I was taking it easy, and that first mile was 6:35. My second mile was 6:45 and the third and change was about 7 something. The last bit was hard because the heat started getting to me. I'm very proud though, my fitness has improved so much and I've been blessed immensely. As for missionary work today we switched back companions and then did studies, weekly planning, and then contacting and it took up the whole day. Days like these go by very quick. 

Saturday was a good day! Quite an interesting weather day too. We woke up to clear and sunny skies and by the time we left the apartment after lunch the clouds were looking very ominous. We still pressed forward and after about 10 minutes of riding, I pulled off and told Elder Yang I had a feeling to go back home. At about this time we started hearing some thunder and as we were biking back home it started raining very heavy and the lightning and thunder were right on us. The thunder was so loud I felt it shake my whole body. It was actually a little frightening but thankfully we got home quickly and were able to do our study inside and out of the elements. I'm grateful for the spirit and the direction it gives. I sometimes wonder what would happen if I hadn't heeded a specific prompting and now I know that I actually don't want to know what would happen. I'm just grateful for the guidance we receive on a daily basis to keep us out of bad situations.

Sunday was pretty chill. We had 2 investigators come to church and also had 2 lessons as well! Very grateful for those blessings and hopefully this week we can see more. Other than that, the day was pretty much filled with studies and getting other things done. It's crazy but I never thought a mission would have so many days where it's just studies and other things. I had always thought it was out street contacting and knocking all day every day but it's definitely different. I also painted parts of my bike yellow. With the Tour de France going on right now it's only fitting to do it yellow. I may never wear the yellow jersey but I can have a sweet yellow bike!

Elder Heber Chase Ciminski 

謝希伯長老