1-30-09

Dear Family and Friends,                                                               

 The mission is going well. It seems to get better every week. We had transfers last week and it couldn’t have gone any better. A lot was going to happen there: a new Assistant to the President was gonna go up. I would get a new missionary to train, and I would also get another companion. I would also have a lot of changes to the zone so there was a lot in the air. My companion, Elder Zirker, turned out to be the new Assistant which wasn’t too surprising. My new missionary I’m training is Elder Dunn from Rancho Bernardo/Poway, CA. He’s a good one, and I got hooked up again with Elder Larsen as my co-ZL/trainer. He’s from Brenster, Nebraska and is a full-on cowboy. He’s been out for 14 months and almost went as the new Assistant, so he’s a really solid missionary. So now there’s three of us. It’s great.

 We had a really good meeting with the President and were excited to get our zone to be the highest performing in the mission. That’s our rough goal. We have one of the best zones so it’s doable. We’re working on giving the vision to everybody and getting them motivated. I’m pretty sure it will be the best transfer so far. Elder Larsen is one of the best missionaries I’ve ever seen and like Elder Zirker, he’s taught me a lot already. Training helps too. I’ve learned a lot from Elder Dunn.

 Things are good. The days are getting longer. No more sundowns at 4:15, so that’s good. I’m busier than ever and more driven than ever, so I haven’t got a whole lot of time to write this. The power of the Atonement is real and powerful. Tony and Jesse who were baptized last Saturday have been described as “totally different people” by their friends, and I have seen big changes in them even hours after the baptism. It’s amazing.

 My favorite, besides of course baptizing people, is throwing out the commitment to them. It’s interesting. Even if they don’t accept it, they appreciate the offer. One guy I had to work with for about 10 minutes just to get the pamphlet in his hand and he didn’t accept the challenge, but before we left, he said “thank you” to us. You never know whether or not they will do it. They feel something and appreciate it most of the time. I’m trying to throw the commitment out to at least one person everyday for the rest of my mission. It feels great.

 Thanks for the letters. It sounds like the babies are doing well in Utah.

 Hopefully you’re not working too hard Dad.

 Hopefully you’ve ridden since I left, cough, cough, Jeff.  It’s safe to say leaving a dirtbike in a garage for months without riding it is an unpardonable sin. There’s a riding area across the valley from where I live so I see guys hauling bikes out there all the time and, surprisingly, I don’t miss it as much as I thought I would. I’m sure the calling has something to do with that.

 By the way, that letter was great, Derek.

 You’re almost a full-on mom, Camille. Jeff, you’re gonna be a dad. That’s nuts. Awesome!

 Thanks for the care packages everyone.

 I didn’t get any flooding in my neck of the woods. Snohomish got it bad, but Mt. Vernon and Marysville were safe.

 Thanks again for the letters and everything else.

 Love,

 Elder Nathan Packer

WA Everett Mission

16124-35^th Ave. SE

PO Box 13390

Mill Creek, WA  98082-1390