Christmas Eve Gift!!!

I made a very bad decision Christmas morning, I realized that I got way out of the habit of eating my regular 3 bowls of cereal in the morning like I did back home. I had some free time while getting ready in the morning so I decided to eat 3 bowls of cereal just to throw back you know. I quickly realized after I finished the milk in my last bowl of cereal what mistake I made. Not 10 minutes later we were on our way over for breakfast at Elder and Sister W's house, and then we were almost immediately having lunch over at the Branch presidents home, and then a few hours later eating dinner at L's home, we cancelled on the last appointment where members wanted to feed us(we both agreed to do it another day).... I was ready to tapp out for the day after breakfast but it just kept going. Ever since I have not had a desire at all to eat any real food. I wake up in the morning don't want to cook eggs, lunch I only want a bagel, dinner canned soup if i could. I had so much really good, super prepared meals that I just do not have the stomach to eat any thing real at all the past few days.

Every where we go people are offering us food, cookies, candy, brownies, authentic Austrian desert, fruit. We are loaded out of our minds with junk food! After our car was filling up with all of this junk we decided we would reject any thing that people offered us and then we walked in a house taught a lesson and then a little 9 year old offered us some fruit and cookies and we just didn't have the heart to not accept it. TOO much food! Man my life is so hard. We did accept the bag of Venison bacon and sausage though. 

On the way down and back from Mt. Pleasant we listened to a Audio book called "the every day missionary" I believe I loved what I heard from it I hear all but the 4th and last disk of the book. One thing that I thought was a very interesting concept that they brought up is how every single calling in the church is a missionary calling and can be used to help less active and non members. It was awesome hearing a story about how a guy who was called to just bring the sacrament bread to church used that calling to be a missionary. You'll have to check out the book some apostle or 70 wrote it. Elder Christianson I want to say but i don't remember.

This Christmas was very interesting. I don't think I have ever had a Christmas that could be comparable to this one at all. Eating south African food, not having my family around, having snow (for a while it all melted later on), being with people who I never even knew a few months prior. I can't really describe about how I feel about the experience I had, It was very tender and humbling though. 

This could be described as probably the worst Christmas and also one of the best Christmas's I have had. What makes me say that is really only the love and the kindness that people gave me this season because they knew that it wasn't like any thing I have ever experienced. And it's those little kind acts that people did for me that really makes my heart swell with love and gratitude. Like how on Christmas eve we were door bell ditched and there was 2 presents left out for us on our door mat.(It was the branch president i believe because it was kids who did it and they have the whole primary in their family). 

What really got me was when we had Dinner at L's house and she had stockings for us that was filled with fruit and candy but there was a little metal can in the stocking as well that had an ornate snowflake ornament that was crocheted by hand for us. She, being disabled and not able to get out of a wheel chair and who has a million other health problems, spent the time to make us those and cook us dinner that day. It brings me to tears just thinking about how selfless of her that was. Being able to see a few people from my MTC district was priceless for me.

Christmas Eve wasn't fun at all for the fist half of the day, I felt sick, I couldn't even force my self to eat even though I was dying of hunger, i was nervous to sing ( I don't know why that bothered me so much, i have done crazier things in front of much more people and wasn't worried about that at all), My suit got Mud all over it when I vaulted a fence in my suit, I fell more than ankle deep into mud when I landed on the other side (it was raining) to give a guy who was on the corner holding a sign asking for food and money  my food that I bought that I couldn't eat. It all really sucked until all of those kind acts came and being able to see some people who i loved and cared about that I don't ever get to see. That night right before I went to  bed I was just overwhelmed with a tidal wave of the spirit and the song came to my head " I feel my Saviors love" I was so happy that I was given so many blessings that day, I woke up still with that happiness and smile on my face.

I have alot to be thankful for when I think about this Christmas. The Lord knew exactly what was important to me and he blessed me with those things. those acts of kindness, being able to see people, and being able to have letters from Home, Terry Tucker, Rex Zimmerman, and being able to call home meant the world to me, thanks! It was a special experience.

I gotta go, Bye, I love you, have a good day, don't get shot!

Expect a letter home soon.

- Elder Truman Rex Crockett