Letter #3 - Oct 26, 2013

October 25, 2013

Hello Everybody!!!!!!!

This has probably been the fastest week yet here in the MTC!!! We got 2 new districts and 11 days into my mission, I was made Zone Leader!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was quite the surprise but now I am in charge of around 30 Missionaries with more to come on Wednesday!!!!  I feel so honored that President Sanchez would trust me with this leadership opportunity!  It was been tough so far but I'm getting the hang of it.  Anyways, we got 2 new investigators this week, Edgar and Ciro.  They are both great!!  The Spanish is progressing but we still get frustrated that we can't communicate 100% yet!! We taught them about the restoration and the Plan of Salvation and all is going great!! I had some difficulties this week with patience.  With all the packages I got this week there is food everywhere, and 1 Elder in the district thought it would be ok to take whatever he wanted without asking.  I was about to blow because he takes my speakers without asking as well.  I said a prayer and asked Heavenly Father to help calm my heart and help me be more patient.  I was immediately overcome by the spirit and those feelings left my heart.  I am so grateful for that experience and the lesson that I learned.  One thing I do have to request is that I not receive so much food as weird as that sounds haha.  There is no where to put it in our apartment.  And mom just so you know we dont have a microwave and I'm not sure what to do with all the popcorn haha.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE getting Letters though!! Please continue to write and send pictures!  I love bragging about you all and telling funny stories and memories I have!!  Anyways let me know about home!! How is everyone???  Mom What scripture did you put on my missionary plaque??  More Pictures por favor! :) My time is short but I want to share one special experience I had this week.  Once a week we get the opportunity to teach members in something called TRC.  Elder Duke and I sat down and began to get to know Sister Rice.  We had the lesson all planned out to teach her about Obedience with exactness.  We started talking about scriptures and Elder Duke shared Mosiah 2:41. She told us that it is her favorite scripture.  I started to tell her about my family and how much I missed you all.  I told her the hardest thing about coming on a mission was trusting that my family would be watched over.  We sat in silence for a bit and the she said, I want to share a scripture with you.  She opened up to D&C 100:1.  I got half way through the verse before I began to cry.  Elder Duke had to finish the scripture for me because I was so emotional.  We talked for 20 more minutes about family and then our time was up.  I know the Lord used Sister Rice to calm my heart.  I love you all so much and I pray for you constantly!! 

Love, Elder Easton R. Ollerton

Letter #2 - Oct 19, 2013

HOLA MI FAMILIA y MI AMIGOS!!!!

First off, HAPPY BIRTHDAY RYLEE AND SAWYER AND JUSTIN!!!!!!!!!!!! This week has been one that seemed to fly by!!!  We finished teaching our first investigator Benny on Thursday and he had been reading the Book of Mormon as well as the pamphlets we had given him. He was a Golden investigator and Elder Duke and I are very excited to start our new investigator on Monday.  We have been working hard and studying Spanish everyday.  We can truly see the Hand of the Lord in our lives everyday!  My testimony has grown so much in just 10 days here in the MTC.  I plead with Father in Heaven every night to keep you all safe and I have been blessed with a peace of mind these past few days.  We do everything her at the west campus, except go up to Main campus on Tuesday nights.  This last Tuesday night, Elder Dallin H. Oaks came and taught us. It was such a neat Experience to be in the presence of an apostle of the Lord.  He talked about the things that make our church the only true church on earth.  One thing that he said to us that i would like to share with all of you is that in the pre-existence all of us not only chose the Fathers plan, but we FOUGHT for it.  We stood side by side with some of the greatest and most righteous men and women in the history of the world, and I want all of us to live in such a way that one day people can say that in Heaven they fought alone side some of the most special people ever and they will be talking about us!  The gospel of Jesus Christ has brought me so much joy and I am so excited to live it stronger than ever these next 2 years.  

On a lighter note I have an update on the Elder Cheney situation.  So it turns out that the prank Elder Cheney pulled on us is a tradition of Zone 135.  It is called SPOF which is German for stupid.  This last week we got 2 new districts in our zone and I was chosen to be the SPOF.  It was so much fun but it sucked all at the same time.  There are 3 requirements to be the spof.  1) You cant talk 2) You have to keep a pen in your mouth the entire time 3) You have to do everything you can to creep out the newbies!  It was the longest 3 days of my life!!!  I didn’t eat a full meal, or talk for 3 days because I was busy acting super creepy and messing with the new Elders and Sisters.  I would sabotage their food by putting salt all over it, or try and feed them with my hands.  I would turn off lights or draw creepy pictures just for the sheer fun of watching their reactions.  They began to try and befriend me and draw me pictures.  By day 3 they had all become totally enveloped in the idea of a crazy guy being in their Zone.  I broke the news to them last night that i was just kidding that whole time and I got mixed reactions.  The Elders thought it was hilarious, the Sisters on the other hand were annoyed and thought I was immature HAHA!!  I had a great time but I am glad that it is over.  I now have red marks from my pen on my cheeks and I am so hungry!!  Anyways... I'm loving my mission so far but I miss all of you dearly.  My new thing I do is put on sad music and look at pictures.  I don't know why I do it because it makes me emotional but I want all of you to send me pictures!!! I hope to get letters from you all soon and pictures are loved and appreciated!! But if I have to tell Elders one more time that Rylee is not going to write them I’m going to hit them!!! I pray for you and love you all with every fiber of my being!! 

Love Elder Easton Ryan Ollerton

Letter #1 - Oct 12, 2013

Hello Friends and Familia!!!

It has been a great first couple of days here in the CCM (MTC)!! When I first arrived I was whisked through numerous check points and then I was told I would be staying in West Campus which is the Raintree and Wyview Apartments.  I love it here, but it has been tough.  The thought of two years is really starting to hit me pretty hard.  I only get to read emails once a week, but I love getting your hand written letters and dear elder letters because those come daily.  It is kind of a status thing here, we have a saying that "you live and die by mail."  So as you can tell it is muy importante!! Mi Espanol is coming along swimmingly!  I have learned more in 3 days here than I did in 3 years of high school Spanish!! With the help of great inspired teachers and the spirit I know I can conquer this language.  We have and Elder here named Elder Cheney.  He. Is. A. Whack. Job.  The older elders told us that he was home schooled his entire life so being away from family has been very hard on him!!  He never talks, and he always has a pen in him mouth.  He even eats, and drinks with the pen in his mouth!! It's pretty creepy actually!! He always bring me little gifts at meals like a bowl of chocolate milk, and empty bag of chips with a rice crispy inside, or and apple that he put on my tray and the stabbed with a fork.  It was getting weird.  He then made a Voodoo doll of mi Cumpanero Elder Duke and wrote "Matar" on the side which in Spanish means "to kill", and the stabbed it with thumb tacks.  We were both freaking out!! The entire zone came over to our apartment last night and Elder Cheney jumped up on a chair and looked up for the first time and said "I'm totally normal Elders" haha!!!  We got pranked by the entire zone!!! Elder Cheney it turns out was chosen as something called the Spof (german for weird).  This is a tradition of zone 135 and my district will carry it on next week!!!  The environment here is so unique!!  My companion Elder Duke is a High Jumper for Utah State.  He went to Brighton High School and took 2nd in state as a senior!!  He is also 6'7 and we must get asked 10 times a day how tall he is or if he plays basketball!!  It gets old fast.  Anyways we teach our first discussion in Spanish tonight so I need to go prepare!!  I love you all and I hope to hear from you soon!!!! Please no more candy haha. I would love real food Por Favor :)  

Elder Easton Ollerton

Elder Easton Ryan Ollerton - Argentina Posadas Mission