Letter #20 from Russia

Hello Everyone! I love you all!

So Kevin didn't get baptized this week!!! He said he wanted nothing to do with us!!... Just kidding. He didn't get baptized, but it was just because we hadn't finished teaching him everything in time... haha! He's such a stud! I love him! I forget sometimes that he's 21. He's like a little kid, and looks a lot younger than he is. But He's humble like a kid to and so willing to listen to the subtle promptings of the Lord. He knows this Gospel is true and it is so cool that we got to watch The Lord make this incredible change within one of our investigators! You can totally see the light in his eyes now!

It. Is. So. Cold. Here. This past week my companion and I were walking around all day in minus 35 Celsius trying to get people to listen to us... We still manage to get one new investigator everyday. That is the promise the Lord has given us and we know that if we don't find excuses because of the cold we will be able to see the fruits of that promise. Just like it says in proverbs 20: 4.

The other day, we dropped into this store to warm up and talk to the employees that work there about the gospel and the lady thought that I was my companion's Russian translator. Haha! He's way better at Russian than me, but his accent is so bad they couldn't tell what he was saying, so I was translating for him... haha! It's so strange, sometimes people here tell you you speak without an accent at all, they think you're a Russki chelovek (russian person) and are so surprised when you say you're from America, but then other times people can't even understand what you're saying when you are just saying hi. I really don't understand it sometimes. I Love the Russians!

So I'm way curious to know who Heather Christensen (second cousin) married! Seriously! Rachel! Figure it out! Get on facebook and ask her! I want to know if I know who he is! Also! Christy doesn't answer my emails when I send them to her! I could just be presumptuous thinking that I deserve a response... but I totally deserve a response! I think I just have the wrong email address or something...

I'm loving everything about my area. I'm loving my mission! I'm loving everything I'm doing! And I've realized that I'm not even close to what I could be as a missionary! haha! You try so hard to forget yourself, but you realize that you never really do. Well, I don't at least. I feel like it is the commandment for us all to be perfect. We all try to do it, but we always fall so embarrassingly short. I am doing what I can every day to become better, but Dear Elder, it's frustrating. I love not being perfect though, if that's not weird. I think if I were perfect, living here would just be boring. I think that's why Jesus died when he was so young. I wouldn't want to have to live here in a state of perfection for 80 years either!

Mother, I noticed we have a Central Perk (cafe/restaurant where FRIENDS all hang out) here in my area that I pass on the way to church... and since I used to call my companion Gunther before I knew him, I suddenly felt like I was in the TV show. I thought you would think that's funny.

I love you all! I'm out of time!

Love Elder Svortz!