Lost in the Woods

August 22, 2022

Hello everyone! It has been a crazy week. So much has happened.

The goods:

- My companion is amazing. 

- Our Apartment is so nice and big. 

- The members are so nice.

- I found a Ukulele in the Apartment that was up for grabs haha. 

- The work here is amazing. 

The bads:

- Not even kidding it feels like I'm still in St. George haha. 

- Car sickness is awful. 

- The Canadians here have no accents, but I sound like I'm from Utah? Haha. 

- The first times teaching were SUPER scary and nerve-racking.

After 5 hours of flights and 3 hours of customs/ immigration, I made it into Canada!!!🇨🇦 Crazy to think I'm here already. 

So once I arrived in Vancouver, I stayed the first night at the Mission home, with President and Sister Gill. They are such awesome and amazing people. The next morning, I went on a morning walk with all the new Sisters and Elders where we found our who our first companions are and where our first area is! My first Area is Kamloops, in the Vernon Zone.

So after another 2 hours of traveling I arrived in Kelowna, where I met my companion Elder Achal! I seriously can't explain how amazing and spiritual he is. He is from Calgary, Alberta, and has been out for almost 6 Months. He is also waiting to get his Visa cause he actually got called to South Africa. 

So after my companion picked me up in Kelowna, we still had another roughly 2 hours from Kamloops.

However, my companion and the other set of companion with us, (Elder Webb and Elder Canals) decided to take the more scenic route to Kamloops, through the forest and mountains, called the Chase-Falkland road.  Soon we lost service, it grew dark, and we got lost. It was 9 PM when we found a home where a sweet family gave us directions back to a main road. We eventually made it to our apartment through the windy woods, after nearly throwing up cause I was so car sick. We didn't get to our apartment till around 10:15.

The next day I realized I should have gotten a few more short sleeve dress shirts. Kamloops is quite literally the St. George of Canada. It doesn't rain, there's no humidity, not a whole lot of green(but WAYY more than St. George), and it literally is 100 degrees or more every day. Guess it's my destiny to live in deserts haha.

But it is seriously so beautiful here. There are 2 rivers flowing right through downtown Kamloops. 

The missionary lifestyle here in the loops(what we call Kamloops) is so nice. Our apartment is in a basement of a house, and it is HUGE. I seriously got spoiled for my first transfer. The work here in Kamloops is mostly through either the members or Facebook, with a little bit of street contacting. 

Me and Elder Achal have already had 2 member meals, one lesson with an amazing guy named Hitesh, and we have done lots of sports nights. Every Tuesday is Basketball, every Friday is Volleyball, and every Saturday is board games. So overall the mission has been busy, but also super fun.

I have already taught 2 member lessons, and me and Elder Achal have taught the youth in our ward, and Hitesh. Strangely I found the member lessons to be more nerve-racking, and teaching Hitesh SO much easier.

Can't wait for what comes next. I'm loving it here in the loops. This week we have Zone conference in Kelowna, so we are spending tonight with the Zone leaders. It's gonna be fun! 

-Elder Biesinger

Pictures!!

- A picture of me and Elder Achal taken on one of those Polaroid things haha.

- The next three are just pictures of Kamloops. 

- Me and Elder Achal

 

 

The Dorito District

August 16, 2022

Ok yall, so another week has passed, and lots of stuff happened. So here's the goods and bads.

Goods:
The Cornflake Analogy.
The finale of the Dorito War.
Elder Salmon finally got his missing bag!!
Heading to Vancouver tomorrow!!
Teaching appointments have gone well.
Elder Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve spoke to us on Tuesday.

Bads:
I'm starting to get tired of the food.
It's hard to say goodbye to my teachers, companions, and district.
It's only me and Elder Salmon left in our district.

But before I get into the stories and the fun times, I just wanted to talk about how I've changed and what I have learned.

The MTC has been incredible. Having the spirit constantly each and every day has been so powerful and amazing. As someone who hasn't ever really been good at praying or relying on our Heavenly Father, I have loved being able to rely on him. My prayers have become meaningful to me and I have been able to change how I view prayer.

Especially since I'm leaving tomorrow, I have been praying a lot more. I have been excited, and scared to get out into the field. But I know this is what I need to do in my life. I'm scared of the hard times, but I know this is what I need.

Also, something Elder Gong said to us last Tuesday stuck with me. He said that "No evil person could have written the Book of Mormon, and no good person would have written it to deceive". It further helped me to increase my testimony of the Book of Mormon, and the truths in it.

I can't wait to begin my work in British Columbia, and to meet the people there.

Now the stories...

The cornflake analogy: So my comp Elder Salmon, has this analogy about cornflakes. Cornflakes are a decent cereal, but you would rather have like cinnamon toast crunch or reeses puffs. Right? But when all you have is cornflakes, they are still good. Elder Salmon used this analogy for the Sisters here in the MTC cause he has a crush on one of them haha. They aren't bad, but you would rather have something better... haha.

The finale of the Dorito war: The last day of class, we bought almost 20$ worth of Nacho Cheese Doritos to give to Brother Seaman, and hid them all over the classroom, like in a tissue box, on top of a TV and even on top of the lights. His reaction was spotless, and we took a district photo after class with us all holding nacho cheese doritos. But I still have to say that Cool Ranch Doritos are better...

I rate my MTC experience a 11/10. It was so helpful, fun and spiritual. My district was so kind and fun and they have such amazing testimonies. My teachers Brother Seaman and Sister Lamb, are such incredible people and did such an amazing job helping me not only learn about missionary work, but helping me grow my testimony. My comps Elder Salmon and Elder Bullock are totally amazing! They were patient, funny, kind, and just overall incredible people. They will be amazing missionaries in Vancouver and Melbourne, Australia.

I'm totally stoked for Vancouver tomorrow it's gonna be lit and amazing. I can't wait to meet my mission president, my trainer, and to see where I'll be stuck for the next 6 weeks!

-Elder Biesinger

Pictures!!

1. Us eating some oreos while playing uno.

2. My district with Sister Lamb on our last day of classes.

3. My district pointing where we are going on the map with Brother Seaman on our last day of classes.

4. My comps and I with Katarina, a person we taught who is AMAZING. She is so nice and we are super sad we can't teach her again. She also speaks Danish which is super cool.

5 and 6. Places we hid the doritos in the classroom for Brother Seaman.

7. Me and some of the Elders just Vining.

8. Me and my companions with President Porter, the MTC President.

 

Community Shower Karaoke

August 8, 2022

Hello everyone! Crazy to think I've been here in Provo for almost a week now. It's been a crazy week though, but it's been an amazing experience. Because so much has happened, I'm gonna do what my friend Sister Hench does and list off the good things and bad things that have happened:

Good Things:

- My companions, district, and teachers are seriously amazing. 

- The food here actually isn't that bad. Who knew haha. 

- They have POG juice(passionfruit, orange and guava), which I think is better than the chocolate milk...

- The Doritos War(will explain).

- Community Shower Karaoke(will explain).

- The Comfy Chairs(will explain).

- Basketball.

- The nightly chaotic game of Uno with 9 Elders.

- The Spirit which is so strong here.

- We have a "Senior General Authority" addressing us today so we will have to see who it is.

- Choir.

Bad things:

- Nearly broke an elevator...

- I lack snacks...

- I lack sleep...

- I miss listening to Metallica while driving to work every day haha. 

Now, because I think this is funny... 

I introduce (drum roll): The 15 commandments of MTC:

Thou shalt not jump in the elevators, or fit twenty and five people in them.

Thou shalt lock thy heart, accept whilst hearing about ecclesiastical leaders' high school sweethearts, then lock thy heart.

Thou shalt hug President Porter while in the MTC, or he will kick you. 

Thou shalt not lose thy luggage in Calgary. 

Thou shalt have at least 2 ice cream or 2 donuts with every meal.

Thou shalt not teach Kylie.

Thou shall sit in the comfy chairs for they are precious above everything.

Thou shalt Yankee Yankee whenever anyone is at Uno.

Thou shall make fun of your district leader. 

Thou shall taketh many naps, for it is expedient that ye be rested.

Thou shall drinketh the BYU chocolate milk, for it giveth protection from the Sisters. 

Thou shalt not wakest up 15 minutes before church services on Sunday. 

Thou shalt dispense Root Beer from the broken Coke fountain.

Thou shall bear witness that the Lord thy God speaks Danish.

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God.

Now, some explanations:

The Comfy Chairs:

There is a perfect spot around the corner of our classroom with the most comfy chairs(I must've taken at least 3 naps in them) that plays soft church music in the background, with a beautiful view of the circle of flags. 

The Dorito War....

It all began in home MTC, when our district all agreed to Brother Seaman's dismay, that Cool Ranch Doritos are the superior Doritos, specifically the flaming hot ones. Elder Wall, a brilliant minded young Missionary, decided it was his time to shine.... 

Before he entered the MTC, he emptied out a bag of Nacho Cheese Doritos, and replaced it with the holy Cool Ranch Doritos. He resealed the bag using a curling Iron to remove the evidence.... 

The first day of class, Elder Wall gave the bag of "Nacho Cheese Doritos" to Brother Seaman, who gratefully took it. 

That night however....

When Brother Seaman opened it at home....

(The picture of his response will be at the bottom)

And so the war began....

Community Shower Karaoke:

Just imagine for a moment, that you are in a public shower, just getting yourself clean, when you hear Gru from Despicable Me singing at the top of his lungs: Let it Go!! LET IT GO!!! Can't hold it back anymore!!!!

President Porter, the MTC President said that there was to be no music in the dorms, but he said he can't stop the "Yodeling in the shower", so we decided to make Community Shower Karaoke every night. 

We fill the dorms with the angelic yodeling of disney songs, anthems, and anything else borderline appropriate for missionaries to sing. The only problem, is your voice is dead the next morning...

Ok, but seriously, the spirit here is so strong. I have felt the spirit more this week than probably in the last month. It's constant, and it's amazing. I'm getting better and more comfortable with teaching, and my testimony is growing every day. Provo MTC is amazing and I'm even more excited to get to Vancouver. 

What I have learned that is super important is that you need to teach with the spirit. Yesterday we had a Helping Others appointment, where we teach a random volunteer who is either a nonmember, or acting as a nonmember. In this appointment, it was our first one here in Provo, my companions and I learned to recognize the spirit, and we delivered a message that wasn't what we prepared, but what the person needed to hear. The spirit was so strong and it was an incredible experience. I know this email was about all the fun I'm having here, but the most important thing is the spirit, its constant companionship is incredible.

In the words of Elder Knight: Yankee!!! Yankee!!!

- Elder Biesinger

Pictures!!!

1- My and my sick companions.

2- The beautiful Provo MTC, with some Elders taking a good nap in the bottom left corner.

3- Me and my companions eating some good food.

4- Brother Seamans response to the Doritos haha. Elder Wall responded with "interesting how that happened..... COOL RANCH ALL THE WAY" hahaha.

5- The comfy chairs.

 

 

Home MTC

August 8, 2022

Hello everyone! I can't believe it's already been a week. I guess I'll just get right into it.

I got another companion! It is now me, Elder Salmon, and Elder Bullock. Elder Bullock's companion lives in Hawaii, and was having to get up at 3 AM to get on our Zoom calls, so he switched districts so it would work better for him. So for the rest of the MTC it's gonna be the 3 of us as companions, the Three Musketeer Missionaries. My teacher Sister Van Hoff (now Sister Lamb), had to fly out to Colorado to see some family, so we have a substitute until she comes back. Our substitute teacher is Sister Yarrington and she is amazing. 

Throughout the week we had workshops with all the new missionaries that covered topics such as teaching, emotional self-reliance, and more. They were all super helpful for adjusting to the missionary lifestyle. 

My teacher Brother Seaman told me a little bit more about my mission, since he also served there. He kinda geeked out about it, which was kinda funny, but it was also super cool. He showed me pictures of the Vancouver, Victoria, and Vernon areas. They are all so beautiful and different from Southern Utah haha. 

Each day was full of very spiritual and fun lessons, but I am ready to start having these lessons in person. It's hard to stare at a screen for over 6 hours every day. But I thoroughly enjoyed Home MTC, It really helped me to get to know my companions and my district, and helped me to get a glimpse into how it will be in Provo and in Vancouver.  

This week was also full of goodbyes. Everyone has been so nice and so supportive of me going on a mission, but it is hard to let everyone go. My wonderful family, friends, and ward. And I will miss Southern Utah, I may be wishing for 115 degree heat if it gets too cold in the winters haha. I will miss everyone but I know that a mission is what I need to be doing. 

Tomorrow I get dropped off at Provo! I am so excited to meet my companions, district, and teachers, but it will be hard to say goodbye to my wonderful family. They truly have been the biggest support of me going on a mission. 

Thank you all for everything you have done!

- Elder Biesinger

Now Pictures! 

1- We were all asked to grab the first tool we could find, and the first one back would win some candy. The first person to come back brought a drill haha. Elder Wall brought an axe. Elder Salmon got a toothbrush. This is just one example of how funny and amazing my district is, I can't wait to meet them in Provo. 

2- My home fort. This is where I spent a week staring at a computer haha. You can see all my snacks too haha.

 

So It Begins

July 26, 2022

Hello everyone! This is Elder Biesinger with my first letter! I am so excited to begin my mission and even though I've only had one day in the MTC, I know it's going to be amazing. 

Monday was kinda crazy cause I didn't really know what to expect of home MTC. But the day went pretty fast and I had a great time. 

So Monday was basically just an introduction into the MTC and meeting your companion, district, and teachers. My teachers are Sister Van Hoff and Brother Seaman, who are both awesome and amazing people. Brother Seaman actually served in the Vancouver Canada mission which is awesome. They really made the first day interesting and fun. 

My companion is Elder Salmon. He is from Strathmore Alberta, which is right outside Calgary. He is incredible and surprisingly, he didn't seem to have an accent. He is big into football and is playing it in college as an offensive lineman. He has lived in Canada his whole life and absolutely loves it there. I was also surprised to find out that in British Columbia and Alberta, American Football and Soccer are just as popular as hockey. So I guess I don't really have to know much about hockey haha. 

Elder Salmon also told me that Strathmore is a town completely full of cowboys and hicks. Which I thought was funny because that's kinda how it is here in southern Utah. 

My district is very diverse. Me and Elder Salmon are the only ones in our district going to Canada, everyone else is either going to LA, New York City, Washington, Kansas, or Australia. But everyone is amazing and so nice. Below will be a picture of my district with a little info about everyone.

Day one was also full of lots of laughs and competition. During our second meeting we were talking about which doritos were the best, and Elder Salmon said he liked the spicy cool ranch doritos, and was temporarily kicked out of our zoom call. Good thing I didn't say that I liked them too haha. 

Well anyways, I know this isn't much, but I have only had one day in the MTC before my first P day so this is all I have haha. Staring at a screen all day is hard, but It just makes me that much more excited for Provo and Vancouver. And I did feel the spirit strongly yesterday even though we did have some fun. 

- Elder Biesinger

Alright so here's my district:

Top row:

Sister Van Hoff,:she's one of the teachers and she served in the Bismarck North Dakota mission. 

Then there's me haha.

Elder Knight: You actually couldn't see his face, the lighting was bad in his room, and he's from Bear River City, Utah and going to LA.

Sister Turpin: She's from Clearfield, Utah and is going to Wichita, Kansas. 

Sister Hurst: She's from Blackfoot, Idaho and is going to New York City. 

Elder Thompson: He's from Hawaii, and is going to Melbourne, Australia. 

Elder Salmon: He's my companion, and is from Strathmore, Alberta. 

Sister Bowen: She's from Tooele, Utah and is going to Wichita, Kansas. 

Elder Roberts: He's from Loving, Texas and is going to LA.

Elder Moon: He's from St. George, Utah and is going to Vancouver, Washington.

Elder Tanner: He's from Vernal, Utah and is also going to Vancouver, Washington. 

Elder Wall: He's from Washington, Utah. We actually went to the same high school and both ran cross country. He is also going to the Vancouver, Washington mission.

Elder Brown: He's from Lehi, Utah and is also going to Vancouver, Washington. 

Sister Boyer: She's from Central, Arizona and is going to New York City. 

Elder Bullock: He's from Pleasant View, Utah and is going to Melbourne, Australia.