Old People vs. Technology

Hey y'all. Another busy week out here. Still getting to know the area. Almost everyone we meet is so glad to have elders visit them. It is awesome. We have been hitting the members real hard (active and less active), especially because it's a new area. At first we were scared that the members would be disappointed that we replaced the sisters, but everyone is pure stoked hahaha. They are all way happy and try to give us food. We literally are going to have at least 10 dinners tonight, plus people randomly feeding us. Hahaha, bring the D. 

The exchanges started back up in full force again. We had 4, back to back to back to back. Just the way I like it. It's a really fun way to roll, it definitely has it's ups and downs. It's kind of a bummer when you teach an awesome lesson or meet a cool new person, and then realize you won't be there for the next time. Anywhey, here's some pictures. 

I was with Elder Tulaga (mijo!!) in Denton (yay!!) on friday to saturday. 

This is Elder Meyers. He was up in Denton, and came down to Haltom with me Thurs to fri.

Elder Myer, our District Leader. We were with him Wednesday to Thurs, in Bedford, an old area of mine. 

And this was my awesome bed. I had 3 box springs. It gave a whole new meaning to the term "jump out of bed."

All is well here in Haltom. We have a crazy couple o' weeks comin up. We have 3 exchanges this week, and President asked Elder Ray and I to train the Senior Couple missionaries about how to use iPads, so we'll have 2 of those meetings this week (Old People vs. Technology. Wish me luck!). On my b-day, we'll be in Temple, doing iPad training and whatnot. Should be a fun day. 

Love,

Cole
​

Transfers

Training

Sorry

Hey y'all.

This week was a pure blur. I don't have my camera so I can't send pictures, but we had some sweet exchanges and it was great. I got to go back to Denton (Home Sweet Home) for 2 days in a row! I popped a bike tire, but then when I got home I cleaned my bike and gave her a well needed tune-up. We had interviews like an hour ago and it was awesome. This week was good.

Love,

Cole

P.S. Yesterday was Memorial Day so I couldn't write. USA.

P.P.S. Tomorrow Elder Nelson (not THAT Elder Nelson) is coming to give us iPad training. The whole mission is going to be in the Colleyville Stake Center chapel. Sweet. 

Yo como coco pero poco coco como como poco coco compro

Herro. Haha, I have had a pretty solid week this week. I feel like every week builds up to the climax of Sunday morning, aka trying to get people to church. On Saturday night when we went to bed, we had 13 logical, committed people who were going to come to church in like 12 hours. By the time 9:30 rolled around, we had like 4 possible, and then 2 showed up. I know it isn't the measure of success because of agency and whatnot (stupid agency), but I wish these ninos would just come to church haha. It would bring peace to my soul. Anywheys, in other news, transfers are coming up soon, on the 28th. Next week, I'll know where I'll be going to spend the next few months of my mission (most likely here in Denton. Woo!).  

I think here we tract more than other missions possibly. I find that tracting is an effective use of time still, if you can find an area saturated enough with hispanic people aka trailer parks haha. Although, someone once said "the elect don't live in trailer parks." Food for thought I guess as I try to find the best way to do missionary work. 

The other thing I think about Texas Fort Worth is that here, we need to know our scriptures. Really well. People (especially spanish people) will believe the written word way over the spoken. Haha, I feel like I have learned how to teach from the scriptures, and how to back up the things I teach with the Bible and the Book of Mormon. 

Y'all sound like your doing good. Mom said Nate was acting all serious or some mischief like that, so that was concerning. Haha, I'm doing good here too. Haha, 7 1/2 months and still kickin. Anywhey, hope all the goofin and whatnot goes whell this week.

Love,

Cole

Prayers of a Righteous Mother

Happy Mother's day Mom! Haha, we just talked yesterday, so there isn't much to say to y'all. Everything is pretty much the same, next week looks like a normal week for me. I came across this quote and thought it was cool. 

“THERE ARE FEW THINGS MORE POWERFUL THAN THE PRAYERS OF A RIGHTEOUS MOTHER.” -Boyd K. Packer

So, basically, listen to Mom. Bye, Love you - Cole

The Pictures:

1. Ha ha P-Day Trio fun

2. Raising the bar w/ Mini tags

3. Golf Ball Hail from Tornado

4. The trio #1

5. The trio #2

6. Cool Sunset thingy

7. Mijo y yo (Elder Tanner & I)

8. More facebook pictures

"Love Y'all - Cole"

Shenanigans and Witchcraft

That is pretty crazy that David got married. I bet it was a fun wedding full of shenanigans and all that witchcraft though haha. Sounds like y'all had a busy week haha, that is always good though. I think everything is going good right now here. It's been fun and whatnot. 

This week all the Spanish missionaries in the mission went to Hurst and had a meeting, it was pretty cool to see all of them. I got to see all the missionaries that I know and it is always awesome to hear President Ames talk. It's good stuff. Also, he's coming up here for a Zone conference on Wednesday, so we get double blessings haha. Lots of good stuff.

So, it's starting to get pretty warm here. The car thermometer said it hit 99 yesterday, but it was probably 90ish. I am pretty morbidly excited for the Texas heat though, I can't explain why. 

Anywhey, I get to call y'all this week. On Sunday, I will probably be calling between 4:30 and 5:30 (probably closer to 4:30) here time. Another sweet thing, President Ames gave us 20 more minutes so we can talk for an hour. It'll be good but I'm kinda scared haha. Dalton's gonna sound like a man or somesing. 

All of our investigators are pretty much the same. I feel like it is almost stagnant here right now, we need to kick it up and change or something, we just haven't been able to find the elect or something, but we made some sweet plans and whatnot for this week, so we'll see where that takes us. 

Love y'all and we'll talk on Sunday,

Cole

Letter from the President

So proud of Cole that he is using his Leadership skills and gets to train a new Missionary!

A Solid District

Hey Guys

All is well here in Denton. I have been doing good here, settling in to this new transfer and duties and whatnot (hehe... I said duties). On Tuesday, I gave my first district meeting. It went well I think. It is pretty cool, this is one of the only all-Spanish districts in the mission, so I got to do the whole thing in Spanish. It went well. Elders Tanner and Hepworth are doing good. We are starting to learn how this companionship is going to work and all that good stuff. In the District it is my trio, 2 other elders, and some sister trainer leaders (it means they are way good missionaries), so we are a solid district. 

Haha, Liza sent me pictures from prom haha. She is soo tall and I always forget haha. Haha. Ol' Greg is awesome. Liza can't let down the Hansen Family Legacy now. 

All is well here, we are doing well. I got to go down to Hurst for a follow up meeting with all the District Leaders and it was super cool. This week, we get to go back again for a Spanish Conference with all the Spanish missionaries in the mission, so I am way excited for that. 

Have a good week!

Love,

Cole

Things are the same . . .

Hey guys. So on Tuesday we went to go pick up our new missionaries. At the start of the meeting, President pulled Elder Hepworth and I aside, and told us that a missionary had gone home from the MTC, and so we would be training in a trio in the same area. I am a little bummed to still be in a trio, I was really excited to be 1 on 1 with a new missionary, but it's all good. Elder Hepworth and I have tons of fun together and whatnot. Our new missionary is named Elder Tanner, he is 6 foot 6, from Utah, kinda shy, and loves basketball. Remind you of anyone? Hahaha. He isn't that much like Skyler, sadly, but he's a good kid. In the mission lingo, Hepworth and I are his "gay dads," so we've gotta train him up right. 

On Easter we didn't do anything too special. We have been in contact with my second mom a lot, and we got to teach her Sunday. She is super down to do everything we invite her to do, and is becoming more and more prepared. 

Sounds like spring break was pretty fun, it looks like y'all had a real ball haha. I remember last years spring break, and the years before haha, and it is so different now. Every holiday is pretty much the same, except mother's day and Christmas haha. It is good to be able to just focus on other people, and how to help them receive the gospel. 

My address is still the same, 

3232 N. Locust

#1521

Denton, Texas 76207

I am in the exact same area, actually haha, so pretty much everything is the same. 

Whelp, I love y'all and hope you are all doing alright! Have a good week!

Love,

Cole

#called2swerve

Hi guys. We've had a good week. We got our transfer calls this week, and I am going to be staying in Denton. I'm pretty excited to be here again, I love the area and the ward here is amazing.

President called us on Tuesday and I will be staying in Denton! I am super excited! I will be training a new missionary! It is going to be a super fun transfer! I will probably be staying in Denton for the next 3 months, so that makes the first 9 months of my mission here in Denton.

Haha, so one time we taught these guys outside and at the end of the lesson we asked them to say a prayer. He bowed his head, and started praying to us haha. It was funny, but also pretty sad to see that this 40ish year old man who had no idea how to pray, or who to pray too. I guess that is why I'm here. 

We taught this white family, they actually flagged us down and asked us who we were, so that was pretty sweet. Then, we taught them, and they actually understood the authority, and the fact of the apostasy. It was amazing. Haha, that was probably the only time in my mission that someone has understood the reality of the great apostasy, and they are an English family. 

Sounds like y'all are gonna have a good time on spring break. Haha, the picture of Liza and all her friends looks like trouble. I heard the final 4 was here in Arlington. Fort Worth Mission Represent! Haha #called2swerve

Love,

Cole

**Here are some pic's from Sister Ames Blog:

Introducing our new Trainers!  They will be training the newest arriving missionaries.  In the Instructions for Trainers it reads:

 “The responsibility to train a new missionary is a sacred trust from your mission president and from the Lord. A missionary’s first companion has a profound, lasting influence on the development of the missionary’s attitudes, habits, and ability to fulfill his or her purpose.”

Colembre De La Luz Sin Ropa Pelotas Frias - aka Cole

Conference was pretty sick. We watched it at the stake center. I think that my favorite talks were Oaks in preisthood where he laid it down on keys and whatnot, Stephenson about the Olympics, and Bednar. Also, when Holland testified it was da bomb - he was raging. It was awesome.

 So funny story, there was a tornado that hit North Denton and Krum this week. Everyone is fine, but I completed my mission goal to see one haha. It was so crazy! No missionaries got hurt and I don't think anyone died, but it was an insane storm. Softball sized hail, rivers instead of roads, and tornado winds haha, it was so cool!

That video of Leena is so freakin cute haha, I am so lucky to have the cutest little sister ever (Sorry Liza)! 

Pretty much everyone we work with is kinda the same. they are learning a ton, but nobody is really progressing. Also, there is a new mission rule that I can't send y'all any names of investigators or members, so there you are. 

With the scriptures, I think maybe hold off for a bit. Transfers are coming up in a weekish, and I have an inkling I won't be in Denton anymore. But we'll see, I could stay here and be here for 7 1/2 months. Who knows?

The pictures were awesome this week. Haha, keep em comin'. Love Y'all!

Love,

Colembre De La Luz Sin Ropa Pelotas Frias (I have finally decided on a Spanish name)

A man, a plan, a canal; Panama

Hey guys, what's up? This week was really good. We have been having a lot of fun in the trio, but also we have been working harder, and seeing some fruits. It has been an awesome transfer so far.

So we had a huge bummer this week. There were these three investigators Janet(18), Carlos(14), and Juan(15) that were scheduled to be baptized on Saturday. They were interviewed on Thursday night, and all passed and were ready to go. Then, Saturday morning, a few hours before the baptism, they called and said it was a no-go. They told us their father didn't think they were ready. We went over and talked with the father (it was the first time because he was always working), and he basically said no. We talked with Janet and Juan and Carlos a little more, and Carlos said that he didn't feel ready at this time. That was a huge bummer. They are super cool kids, haha the two guys love me because I dunked after soccer one day. It was a bummer though. 

Conference is this week and I'm pretty excited. It'll be my second conference out here. They should match up with my 6 month marks more or less, so that's a good way of keeping track haha. 

Anywhey, Dad is right, it is tough to communicate with 1 letter per week, but no big. Here are some answers-

I can't order the new scriptures. It says "processor error" or something every time. I can't figure it out haha. I'll try again this week though. 

I can't figure out the bike computer either. Again, more info next week.

Yadira's daughter had her baby this week, so we haven't seen them since Sunday. Hopefully we get to see them soon. 

I talked to SLCC, and basically the only thing they could do was give me a D in the class and give me a diploma, so I took it. I am super bummed about that, but I couldn't do anything else... Either way, be on the lookout for the diploma one of these days. 

Here are some pictures of my comps- Elder Munoz reminds me of a Mexican Easton haha, and Hepworth is just super funny, I can't even describe him. We have a ton of fun, but sometimes it's hard to be the one to say lets get back to work, especially because they've been out here for longer. Anywhey, hope all is well!

Love,

Coal

Elder Hepworth, Elder Hansen, Elder Munoz

 Love our Missionaries!

Hepworth

 Munoz

Munoz Asleep

A Good Week

Hey guys,

We had a really good week. It turns out we got the car back on tuesday instead of friday or saturday, so we have been driving for the last few days. It is really nice not to have to bike around in such a massive area.

 I called SLCC and they didn't answer this week, so I'll let y'all know about it next Monday.  That is pretty sick that Liza got into surg tech haha, puts a little pressure on dalton and leena though ha. 

The Family that I said was like my mom did end up coming to church. I finally got around to sending some pictures too- Here are some of Elder Henderson, the huge hairball we pulled out of the tub, the car, and some other things I forgot already. 

Love y'all

Cole

 Hairball - Gross!!

 15 Degrees - Cole's Photo Face

 Cole's 2nd Mom in the Mission (A family he is teaching!)

 Elder Hansen and Elder Henderson

 The Sister Missionaries Crashed the Car!

Three Bikes on One Ford Focus

Six Months!

Aunque no me escribeiron, todavia les quiero. 

Thank y'all so much for the St. Patrick's Day package! Haha, it's always nice to get some candy and celebrate. It was great because today is my 6 month mark as well, so I got to double celebrate by streaking through the Library this morning with nothing but some green bead necklaces on!

We took the car in for repairs this week, so we have been on bikes in our huge area, and it's kinda hard. I bought a magnet for the bike computer, but I can't figure it out, it wont register or anything. Maybe it's an operator error though... Anywhey, we bike like 15-20 miles a day. Good stuff. 

We've been riding around in a trio and it's been pretty fun. I got the call from the office and I'm gonna call SLCC later today. I'll let y'all know what goes down.

So I have been teaching this family for like 2-3 months now, and they are super cool. The mom's name is Yadira, and she is almost like another Mom to me (almost). They are awesome, but they have only come to church once. On Sunday morning, we rode our bikes like 5 miles to her house to wake her up, and she came to the door and said they'd be there. Then they didn't show up. I was pretty upset to say the least. 

Love Y'all and hope you're doing good and all that good stuff!

Love,

Cole

Is Jesus Here?

Ummm... Hi guys. Yes I am in a trio now with Elder Munoz and Elder Hepworth. They got here on Wednesday morning. We are still in the same apartment, and we just got an extra bed and desk from some other missionaries. Usually there aren't trios, but for some reason we're gonna have one for this whole transfer. 

I don't really like this question thing, but here goes.

1.      What is the funniest thing that happened this week?
Elder Hepworth wanted to call us the Three Nephites, but Elder Munoz said "I'm a Laminite" Hahah, it was so dumb/funny. Also one of our investigators has a 5 year old kid that was acting up and the mom told him to come over here and he said, "no, you always hit my buttcrack," and I about died of laughter. 

2.      When did you feel the Spirit the most this week?
I don't know. I probably pray like 20 times a day and walk around talking about Jesus all day. It is just a whole different lifestyle.

3.      Tell us about one door approach, or teaching moment you had.
Elder Henderson and I went to this guy named Jesus' (Spanish name- Hey Zeus) door that he had taught on an exchange. We knocked and some young girl answered. Henderson said "Se encuentra Jesus (hey-zeus) " (Is Jesus here?), and the girl was just way confused and said Jesus (in English). Elder Henderson said "Si, el esta?" (Yeah, is he here?) and she just blinked and looked confused and said "Like Jesus Christ? ... are you asking if Jesus Christ is here? ... I speak English." It was the wrong house. It was so funny.

4.      Tell us one thing (funny or serious) about your companions.
Elder Munoz is from San Antonio but originally from Mexico City. He speaks Spanish natively and so it is pretty helpful to have him around to teach me stuffs. He has been out for like 18 months. Elder Hepworth is from Price, Utah, and he has been out about a year. He is a ginger.

5.      What is one thing you learned this week (in the scriptures or lesson planning)?
I don't even remember. Everything is a blur. I can't remember if I studied 3 Nephi last week or 2 months ago. I learn a lot though. 

Love you all!
Love, Cole

Transfers

Happy Birthday Dad! Hope y'all had a good week. Haha, sounds like a quiet, laid back birthday, just like Dad would love.  Transfer week is upon us. Wednesday, Elder Henderson goes home, and my new companions are (there are 2)... Elders Munoz and Hepworth. I stay here. It is a pretty crazy transfer and I will have to draw a diagram or something to make sense of it, but I'll be in a trio for the next month and a half... 

1.       What is the funniest thing that happened this week?

We went on a member exchange with the CRAZIEST guy, it was easily one of the funniest nights of my life. He was insane, screaming in the car, and just being nuts. We thought he was hammered, but instead just a crazy guy. It was awesome. 

2.       When did you feel the Spirit the most this week?

Sometimes teaching lessons is so annoying. Sometimes I want to punch every investigator in the face. We teach this awesome lesson and get to the first vision, and say " and God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared, in person, to Joseph Smith." And the investigators ALWAYS say something like "oh yeah, that happened to me once" or something like that. It's awesome!

3.       Tell us about one door approach, or teaching moment you had.

We had a ton of miles, so we drove way out to Bridgeport Texas, and we were in the country. As we were driving, we saw a dead armadillo, so we stopped and poked it with a stick and took pictures and whatnot. Not a door approach or teaching moment, but I thought it was appropriate. 

4.       Tell us one thing (funny or serious) about your companion.

Elder Henderson is awesome. He reminds me of Nate, the same really driven attitude towards everything. He gets stuff done.

5.       What is one thing you learned this week (in the scriptures or lesson planning)?

One thing Elder Henderson and I studied a little of was the Godhead. There is a really cool "doctrinal exposition" named "The Father and The Son" on LDS.org if you want. It explains the roles of Jesus Christ and God the Father, and all that good stuff. 

Also, on Friday and Saturday it hit 85 degrees here. Then, Sunday there was a little mini ice storm and today it was 15 degrees. Texas weather sucks. 

I wrote Liza a little about Surg. Tech. and whatnot, I hope it helps. Love you all!

Love,

Cole

This is the photo Cole chose to send us - "A visual tour of my apartment" w/ description included:

1. My closet

2. Our desks (mine has nice chair/lamp)

3. My bed

4. Kitchen area

5. My (personal!) bathroom

6. The bedroom

7. My desk

8. The kitchen

9. Our bikes

Zone Conference Photos

Valentines Love

Hey family. I got your valentines package haha it was awesome. I just have one question. WHEN. THE. HECK. DID. LEENA. LEARN. TO. WRITE? She couldn't write like that when I left, and now she's writin' up a storm. But I got the letter haha, it was good to hear what some of my buddies are up to in a little moar detail. Thank you for the valentines day stuff!

That is crazy Mom and Dad have been married for 25 years haha, that is a really long time. And their still kickin it. Hey, whaddya say? That is pretty sick about the snow too. It has been like 70ish all week, so it was awesome. We even spent a whole day on our bikes because it was so warm and sunny and nice. It was great, but super weird not to have a real winter. My body doesn't get it I think, I just keep waiting for a few feet of snow, or to be cold, but it isn't coming. Haha, just the burning heat, that is coming fast. 

This week was super fast. We had Zone Training and Zone Conference Tuesday and Thursday, so the week flew by. I had to give a training in ZT, and right before the APs and the Ward Mission Leader came in, so I [was scared as a sinner in a cyclone]. Just a little bit though. But it went good. Then, we had ZC and President Ames came and taught us some stuffs, and I guess now we are going to be focusing on member work as a mission. 

On Saturday I went on an exchange with one of the Zone Leaders, Elder Woodruff. He came into my area. I was pretty excited because he doesn't speak Spanish (stupid gringo haha) so I had to translate a few times and it was pretty cool. Kinda hard, but I liked it. By the end of the night, My voice was kinda sore from talking so much haha, so that was a cool day for sure. Love y'all and hope everything is going well at home! Happy President's Day.

Love,

Cole

My Turrible Analogy

So this week, I probably made one of the worst analogies in missionary history. I was on an exchange (luckily), and we were teaching this family about the Plan of Salvation. There is this grandma like 60-70, senile as ever, a Mom around 40ish, two girls like 17 and 14 and then a little 12-13 year old kid. I was talking about agency and consequences, and the family was not really understanding, so I thought hey, just make up an analogy real quick, then they'll understand. So, I proceeded to make up this little gem: "We all have agency, for example, I could take off my shirt right now. But there are always consequences, like you would probably ask me to leave, right?" It was just dead silent, the Grandma and mom were just staring at me expectantly, one of the girls almost left the room, the mom muttered something about how it was really hot in there and she wouldn't mind, it was just bad. Hahaha, it was so bad. 

Other than that, I had a sweet week. We talked to 106 people this week. Haha, we set a goal of how many people to talk to, and we hit 106, it was way cool. We had investigators at church again, and our district was the top district in the mission for this week, we had an awesome week!

Haha, that is great that you went to Dinner with the Udy's mom and dad. I don't really know what I did to make YMAD people remember me, probably just the same Cole things as usual haha. That is way cool about Mom and Dad's anniversary too. 

That is way sad about Brandon's mom. I guess like Dad said, we are really blessed to know what goes down after this life, and that we can see our loved ones once again. It is pretty awesome to know that, and be able to teach other people about it as well.

Whelp, that's it for this week. Love you all.

Love,

Cole

Surprises and Firesides

Editor's Note:  Last week Coleman sent me a letter for my Birthday and surprised me with a BAPTISM that he and his companion had!  The baptism was the Saturday before, and was from someone he placed a Book of Mormon with the very first day of his mission.  What an awesome Birthday present!!

I never know how to start these letters and it always looks way stupid when I do. Haha, but whatever. Haha, I hope you liked the birthday present Mom. Haha, the real story is that I never really knew what Maria was up to at all, until like a week before she was baptized. More about her later. 

Anywiggle, this week was pretty weird. Haha, Elder Long went home, I got a new companion, and some other cool stuff. Haha, it was way weird to send Elder Long home, because I am about as far away from going home as it could be. I barely hit 4 months haha. My new Comp. is named Elder Henderson, he is from Lehi, Utah, he loves poetry, long walks on the beach, a nice glass of scotch, and of course his dog Baxter. He goes home after this transfer. He spent the last few transfers as an AP, so he knows what's up with all this missionary witchcraft. He is a cool guy, and I'm excited to work with him. 

That is way cool that G. Ma & G. Pa are done/going to Antarctica haha, pretty crazy. But awesome as usual haha. Hahah Mom, always talking about me/ things having to do with me. It sounds like you had a good Birthday month this year Mom! Haha, sounds like a real busy week for everyone as well.

It was way cool, last night they had a little fireside dealy-do where they asked some recent converts to talk, and Maria was one of the 3. She talked last, and she stood up and said "They didn't tell me I was gonna talk in English, so I wrote everything in Spanish." Hahaha, whoops my bad. But she stood up and told everyone her story and it was way cool haha. President Ames was there and he talked a little bit too, it was pretty cool. It was a pretty sweet week for sure haha. 

Anywhey, haha I hope you have a good week and whatnot!

Love, Cole

**Coleman and Leena's Letters to each other:

Leena says:  "Tickle me, tickle me. And I love you so much being my brother forever. Today I have dance and school. I really miss you. You miss Liza and our family?  I love you so much".

From Coleman:   "Hahah, Leena Leena Leena. Haha I am your brother forevers. Today I have shopping and dance haha jk I have basketball not dance. I do miss you too, even though you forget me a little bit. Haha love you too Leeners."

Happy Birthday Mom!!

 "My Christmas Present to myself." Love the Texas Bolo Tie - but he clearly needs to work on his "Selfie's"!!

Fun Christmas present from Aunt Michelle