Email from James - August 2, 2010

Alo mano šeima!

    Ya they call apartments Domes here. My vocabulary is going to be hillarious when I get home cause we call things as they are called here. Elder Hatch's companion is just a normal elder. Elder Porter and Elder Hatch leave after this transfer so if I end up staying in Kaunas, since I will have been in Kaunas the longest out of all the other elders, I will be made the new District Leader so technically I need the training if I end up staying here. All the district leaders and zone leaders are up in Riga this week getting training cause the first presidency came out with some new added stuff for the preach my gospel. It's funny cause elder hatch went cause he techinically is the district leader but he leaves in the end of August.  But it's crazy, we have zone conferences every transfer but president dance is changing it to meeting quaterly! That's going to be a big change. So make sure people know to send stuff to my Kaunas address not to Riga cause I won't get it for a while. Unless it's a package then send it to Riga. A side note, if you send stuff in a package, i guess you have to write on the package what is inside of it. Like you have to be specific what is inside of it. Just for future reference to know.

      Ya it gets so hot here, if we wore our jackets, we would pass out. It gets way way hot so we can wear our short sleave shirts. Some days that feels like that is too thick. lol. It's crazy how it can get so hot in the summer then get so cold in the winter. I love it here though. We have been meeting with a 23 year old guy named Vytaulus. He is so so cool. He has been really excepting the gospel. Evertime we see him, the first thing he says is, " I read again." It's so wonderful. We are going to give him a baptismal commitment this week so please pray that that will go well. 


     So oh my gosh, Rumšiškas was so so fun! All of the branches from Lithuanian meet at this cool barn that had a stage out in the country. Each branch did a skit. They were so funny. They had cool music and lots of dancing in their skits. One of the skits had a fake world cup with lithuanian vs. america. After we ate food and played some games like frisbee and soccer. The kids were having so much fun chasing me with the soccer ball. I love little kids here. Then they brouhgt out huge speakers and started playing country songs like the boot scoot boogy. Oh man, all of us missionaries were having a blast teaching them how to dance to it. Then they played Michael Jackson and they did like a branch dance cirlce and I totally busted out my M.J. moves. I promise mom I did just his normal dancing, not the riskay ones. ahha. Sister Dance videod taped me on her phone of me doing it. She kept telling me to do it and all the youth were like, " he dances just like Michael Jackson." ahahahaha. Oh that day went by way too fast. All the youth said they are crossing their firngers that I will be transfered to Klaipeda this next transfer cause they want me to serve there. lol. Algirdas, my 17 year old friend from Kaunas told them I will be in Kaunas my whole mission lol. I just really love the branch members here. There's is always a different feel around them then all the other people in Lithuanian. They have such a fire and a glow about them that I love.

        I'm very glad to hear that work is going well dad. It will be cool to see your cool oficial office. When I tell people about your job, they think it is so cool. They always say they want to see more pics of the family and of the house and everything. So take lots of pics or random things and then they will love it. 

       Today was such a beautiful day so a member from the branch, agne, and Elder porter, well he didn't feel like playing but felt like reading this book ( weird I know) lol, played tennis for 3 hours today. Oh man I can't tell you how much I love tennis every monday. My serves and top spins have been getting so so good. lol I'm glad you got a good laugh out of my tan line. We, as missionaries, love showing off our major tan lines to eachother. They are pretty bad.

       I'm loving the work and all of the crazy things that happen everyday. Stories will never end when I get home and get to tell you all about them. My language has been increasing every more and I love it. Elder Porter is impressed about how much I know and I haven't been through a whole two transfers. I love speaking to people, even though somtimes they say the don't understand. But hey, like Bro. snow and bro. wallace said, " it's better to mess up a few times then to not try at all." speaking of Bro. snow, he came and visited Kaunas this past weekend with his wife! they came to rumšiškas and to church on sunday. Oh it was so good to see him. He is someone very important to me and a person who I will never forget. It was soo good to talk with him for a while. He gave me huge hugs and told me to enjoy the work and not worry about the language. He has helped me so much in ways I can't even explain.

         But ya so I need to go cause we are helping with the youth family night tonight. I love you all and I can't wait to get your letters!

         Love,
            Vyresnysis Sanfordas