Elder Dola : February 24

Good to hear that you had a good and enjoyable week! And don't worry I hear all about the Canada Hockey Team from almost everyone we saw here, and made sure that my USA companion heard it a few times too haha.

This week was not too great. I was sick with a cold all week, lost/ someone stole my camera with almost 1000 pictures on it. Our most solid investigators told us they don't want to be taught anymore, just want to be friends, and J was in Jasper and Battleford all week so we couldn't meet with him either and he leaves on Wednesday to go back to Korea, and some of our other investigators are mad at us because a member from our branch called to invite them to church...

Monday we had P-day and taught a lady (who we know from volunteering with the old people at hill top manor) She is Presbyterian and her friend was also there who is Lutheran. The lesson was all right but they don't really want to change their ways. After that they gave us pie and ice cream which was good. We also were able to take one of the 19 year boys that recently moved to Weyburn, who is waiting for his mission call, with us to the lesson so that was good at least.

Tuesday almost everything fell through and everyone we met/ stopped by were not interested. We helped the old people play their card bingo game. We had basketball, where only 4 other people came so there was only 6 in total. A good thing was afterwards we were able to teach one the guys there, a16 year old boy. Taught him the restoration and committed him to read and pray.

Wednesday we went down to Estevan and had our District meeting there because the Estevan vehicle was in the shop getting bodywork done on it. That was good; we came back and had lunch at the A's, and got to know them pretty well. We found out that brother A used to work in the Lakeside Packing plant in Brooks for a few years so he knows Medicine Hat pretty well. We weren't able to share with them the message we wanted to because their friends came and we had to leave so we went and volunteered at another special care home and played cards with one of the residents there. He really enjoyed our company. We then met G at McDonalds with brother R and had a good talk with him. He got the job we had all been praying for and some other problems we had with him earlier on in the week got sorted out. Then we went to the "Church of Christ" Bible study which was really just this one guy getting mad at the people for not living the Gospel as they should be. We didn't even read from the actual Bible the whole time, but it was good to get our presence out there. Lots of people like us there.

Thursday we had a good meeting with D, then we went to the Welsh Kitchen (Owned by Sister J, who lets us eat there for free) but she wasn't there that day. She was at home with her granddaughter so we had to pay!!!! It was awful!!! We are super poor!! So later that night all I could afford to eat was a chunk of Broccoli. But any-ways, while we were there we saw and talked with a few people that we know and met these very interesting ladies, who have never been married and are volunteer missionaries (don't get paid) and will be for their whole life (both have been going at it for over 30 years and apparently there are missionaries like them in the same ministry are all over the place!) But they are from no denomination, they are just Disciples of Christ and they share and teach people "Gospel Conversations" and hold services on Sunday wherever they can get places for free or have someone else pay for it. They invited us to their service and we invited them to ours. We then stopped by and visited the Mayor for a bit and she didn't really have any other referrals for us to do. Then we were able to talk to J for a bit on Facebook. We stopped by the J's and had a good discussion with them.

Friday I lost my camera and went to the mental institution and coloured some colouring pages with some of the residents there. We had an interview with a lady from one of the newspapers here in Weyburn. Got some information from the other newspaper place (for some reason Weyburn a town of like 10000 people has more than one newspaper...) Then we had lunch and the Langston's (Senior Missionary couple) came to access the situation at our trailer and not too much they can do right now. There is going to be some new flooring and other repairs done but they have to wait until the snow all melts. They got us a new furnace filter because they didn't like how ours looked. Then they left and we found that we had caught a giant rat (there are rats in Saskatchewan because it is not Alberta) in one of our traps around our house. So now I am super paranoid whenever I put anything down on a surface that a rat may have walked over it and spread their disease everywhere. We later met with G, and after shaking his hand, he told us he thinks he might have pink eye so he probably gave it to us. But he was doing better and gave us a chocolate pudding cup so that was good.

Saturday we did our dishes at the church because we ran out of dishes and our water is still poison, and then we got back and some other Elders showed up at our apartment because Elder R (the one who baptized a man who recently lost his infant baby to unknown causes) had special permission to come down form Regina and visit him. So we went to KFC all you can eat buffet (only one in all of Canada apparently) and caught a glimpse of the Olympics on the T.V. right as the men's Canadian bob-sled team decided to do a flip and smash their heads on the ice. Later, we stopped by a few others. Everyone was sick or not home or were super busy. Even later, we taught D again and gave him a church tour. We taught the S's later that day, where they informed us they love us and want us to still be great friends and come by still but they don't want us teaching them any more. Then we had dinner and later on the Estevan Elders came to stay the night for church the next day and we made cookies for the pot-luck dinner.

Sunday we shoveled the snow at the church and it was like -45 with wind chill. We had branch correlation and a good sacrament meeting. J and G came as per usual and we had a good gospel principles class with them followed by a really good pot-luck dinner. Later we went to the "Gospel discussions" meeting which was super interesting; nothing not true was said, it was just all taught from the bible. Afterwards the people were super friendly and super welcoming, good quality people. Potential Kingdom builders for sure but if only we could proselyte there and talk more about the restored Church I am sure we would have found a ton of people. But that was good. We met an old man who used to live in Dryden and met with missionaries in Weyburn before. Overall it was pretty good. Super weird though, one of their Hymns went to the Tune of "Israel Israel God is Calling" but was completely different lyrics. It was something like "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus." But later, we went out to McTaggart and had no luck there. Everyone was busy not home or not interested, so after slipping and smashing my knee and shoulder on the ice,we came home, and I found my camera in the depths of the couch. We planned and that was our week.

Was kind of a depressing week, have lost a bit of hope and patience lately.

But love you take care!

-Love Elder Shane Dola