Hello everybody!
I hope everybody had a great 4th of July. In the morning we went to our wards pancake breakfast and I ate a ton. We went tracting for a bit then we went to a barbecue. I got to grill the ribs that we had and they were delicious. Later we went to the park and played around with a Frisbee until the fireworks started. We got permission to stay out and watch the fireworks. it was great fun. Other than that not much interesting has happened since last time. Next week is transfers and I will probably get transferred, but it is still up in the air. My trainer goes home next week. He is close enough that he can come down on p-day. So i will be able to see him before he leaves. In our e-mail this week, we were told that in the next six months, half our mission is going home. That means that most of the missionaries out here are really old and about to go home, including me. Most everybody that i know is going home too. It's weird to be here with all younger guys. I'm the oldest missionary in my district. Last week we had a dinner appointments and they had homemade bread. They said that it was really easy to make and it takes about two hours. I can do that in the mornings and bake it for lunch. So today I went and bought a bread stone to bake on. Now all i have to do is get their recipe and I'll be eating a lot of bread. If i was a super hero my weakness would be bread, its just too delicious. Well all I love ya and hope you have a great day!
Elder Tayrien

Hello everybody
Well its currently very summery outside, and hot, very, very hot. Other than that life is good. Brittany Buchwald came to church and now she can be baptized on the 25th. Now we just have to get her less active husband to get to church now too. On the 30th we have an open house at the church and we are supposed to have a bunch of potentials/investigators there. Hopefully they will feel the spirit and will want to continue to be taught. Nothing really exciting is going on, transfers are in 3 weeks and i will probably leave. It's quite possible that I will only have two areas left on my mission. Hopefully they are good. Zone conference was last Friday and was great. We learned about recognizing the spirit in our work. I had been studying that section for the last 8 weeks and a lot more understanding came from zone conference. People are truly inspired when it comes to missionary work. Well, not much going on besides that. I hope you all have a great day. Till next week.
Elder Tayrien

Hello everybody!
I’m back in Ames again. This time in the other ward. It’s like I’m starting all over again! So my companion is Elder Aledo, from California. He is crazy. Saturday we got a referral from a less active member who he brought with him to a lesson we had at his house. We went over and visited him and met Jenny Millhouse. We were there for 3 hours just answering question and promising blessings. We gave her a book of Mormon and she came to church the next day. After church we were out tracting and we got a phone call to come over to see her because all we could tell on the phone was that she was crying and that she lost something. So we waited for some members to come with us and as soon as we walk in the door we see Jenny balling her eyes out. She got a call from somebody telling her that her sponsor for over two years (the person who helps you stop smoking and drinking and stuff, the sponsor) had died in her sleep that night. So we talk with her and calm her down and we tell her about the comforter and she wants to be baptized on May 9th now. So in two days we found a child of God who was prepared and ready to receive the fullness of the blessing of being baptized and the gospel of Jesus Christ. We have not taught her a thing but answered her questions and promised blessing and she herself as to be baptized as soon as possible because she sees what is going on in her life and what the gospel can do for her and she wants it. The Lord has used us as an instrument to find and baptize these people the lord has prepared people to put in your path and as soon as you prepare yourself for these situations the Lord WILL put them in your way. We have been fasting and praying to find somebody to teach and baptize and it happened. You also must prepare yourself to help God's children. These people need you and they need God in their lives and the only person they can get it through is you. All the Lord asks is that you be ready and willing. They are prepared are you? Are you ready to give up just a little more, of your time, of your person? when you are ready the lord will bless you, I know because its happened to me and it will happen to you as long as you are ready and willing. Without James we would never have met Jenny because she was very scared of missionaries, she would turn them away every time they knocked on her door. Members are the key to missionary work, we can only do so much missionary work but as soon as you start helping we can do the lords work. Prophets have taught that every member is a missionary it’s time to step up and do it. Talk to your friends, love them enough to share with them the blessings they need and want. Don't ever stop being a missionary because as soon as you do, you stop being a Christian. You stop loving the Lord and you stop loving your eternal family. Nothing in this world can stop you from sharing the gospel except yourself. I love you all and I hope you are doing whats right because it’s right. Smile and remember that you are worth everything in the sight of God.
Elder Tayrien

Well hello,
So it's transfer preparation day again. I'm getting transferred,but don't know where or with who. This last week has been pretty crazy. I gave service at a dairy farm for two days. I got to milk cows, scrape poo, lay bedding, climb a silo, feed baby cows, jump on a dead bloated cow to make it fart, pull barbed wire fence, drive multiple times through a creek and get sprayed by mud, lots of fun. Other than that we did a ton of tracting. We also went to a wedding for a member who married a non member, and when we went to the reception alcohol was being served so we got to laugh at the best man getting drunk. Today we are going over to the members house who got married. They are sisters and one brother, two of them are less active and we help their parents at their farm doing remodeling. If you ever want to lay the real porcelain tile I know how. We also went over to their house for Easter and we taught them how to play a game called mow, so they invited us over to play it again tonight. Hopefully we can get either one or both of the less active siblings back to church. Tomorrow I have to be at the transfer point at 2:00 to hop on and drive someplace. Sorry for the quick e-mail and it will have to be next week again before I can ship that package off, sorry about it all but transfers and leaving my camera in a different area are big set backs. Well, love you all and hope you have a great day!
Elder Tayrien

I'm up in Waukon today, yesterday we came up after church to have church so we can have people come that think its too far a drive to go to Fayette. We got permission to spend the night so we can work up here where we don't normally get to. The computer I'm using to e-mail is smaller lengthwise than one hand and width wise if you cut off my thumb it would fit. So my fat fingers are getting in my way, this is the smallest computer I've ever seen! My left wrist is cramping up already. Last week we didn't do a whole lot besides tracting. Saturday we went to do service at the Drapers farm, we started the grout work on the tile that we laid. It was fun But I'm still sore. I'm not used to being on my knees all the time and stretching and bending in those weird positions. This next week our schedule is packed the whole week. Tuesday we go out with sister Fuhrman, Wednesday is exchanges in Manchester, Thursday is district meeting and Friday is planning and dinner with the Devores, Saturday is service all day again, so thats what we have planned this upcoming week. Well a little bit about my comp. He loves me, a lot. He requested to serve with me and he got it. We get along but he is one of those 'Texans', the self proclaimed fat heads of the the world. Not that I have anything against Texas its just those type of people. But we get along alright, I'm just acting as a babysitter again, actually more like a Mother than anything. But I can kick his butt if he starts getting lazy on me. Well, tell everybody I said hello and that I love them all. Thank you for all the prayers, you have no idea how they help.
Well, bye, and we'll talk next week.
Love, Elder Tayrien

Well I just wrote you a whole long letter and I went to copy and paste it and my stupid finger slipped and I erased the whole darn thing. Angry! So here is a shorter version. Transfers where fine, my comp is fine, I got your package and thank you a lot for it. it's always makes me happy to see a box outside our door. Saturday we gave service at a members house and ended up starting a bonfire and burning stuff, which was fun. Tuesday is zone conference which I hate having at the beginning of the transfer because its always the end of the transfer when your motivation level drops and a kick in the butt by the spirit helps. Well, since I wasted all my time writing you a long letter then letting my stupid fingers delete it I'm out of time. I love you tons and sorry for last week. I wrote and e-mailed but I guess something went wrong. These small town libraries have a TON of technical problems because they are all run by old ladies that are still trying to figure out a microwave.
Elder Tayrien

Hello everybody,
Well its transfers again, I'm staying here while my comp gets transferred. They are doing it in the dark again where they don't tell you anything besides that you are getting transferred. So I don't know who I'm getting or where my comp is going, lots of fun. So I'm anxious to see what kind of missionary I'm getting. This week so far not much has happened. Monday we got back to our apartment from being gone for 3 days while we where up in Waukon working. We are allowed to spend the night at the Branch Presidents house to save miles and be able to work the surrounding area. They also have the sacrament there on Sunday, so all the people that think its too far to drive to Fayette can just drive to Waukon. On Sunday, we had a rain/ice/snow storm so we were not able to go out to tract like we planned or wanted too. Instead we played Skip-Bo for most of the day hoping the storm would calm down enough so we could at least drive to see some less actives, but it didn't. Yesterday the weather was nice, it got up to 50 degrees with a slight breeze then it started to get really windy and cold real fast later in the day. We had a wind advisory all night long and its cold again today. Tomorrow I have to be down by Waterloo at the transfer point at 2:00 p.m., I'm just glad its not earlier in the day. Well, I've got to go, so I'll talk to you all later.
Elder Tayrien