Thanks to Elder H's Mom

Elder H eating a chicken foot for Thanksgiving

 Tanner didn't write much today so I borrowed some pictures from Elder H's blog that his mom keeps up to date. Thank goodness for missionary moms! Tanner did say that chicken feet are not so tasty. The missionaries played soccer and football then went to member's houses for meals.

Elder H and Elder C with matching Cardigans. Aww cute

Thanksgiving Day activities

   

Gladys Can Sing!

We were not able to do a whole ton this week because we were at the Gladyss Knight SUV firesides since thursday. Basically there from 1 pm until 11 or 11:30 everyday, all weekend. We ended up getting almost 1500 refferals from the show, Which means we will be doing some english work.

 The show was incredible! Gladys Knight directs a choir and they blow everyones mind. And then she sings and blows everyones mind even more! She is set apart as a world missionary for doing this choir. The spirit literally hitss you like a wave once they start singing. But I have to say my favorite part was the jumping and clapping a yelling and praising Jesus in a whole different way. Church is going to seem so boring now!

 Elder Heimuli and I were one of 7 companionships asked to help with the show.They asked the "people persons to do it" so It felt pretty cool being picked out of almost 200 missionaries to do this and be envolved in it in this way, got to shake her and her husbands hands a couple times so that was pretty sweet! We had to walk up and down the line talking to everyone (the line was so big, over 1000 people) We gave out a pamphlet that talks about the choir and in it, it has a card for their address so we can bring a "free Gift" book of mormon, cd sample and a restoration dvd.

Elder C and Elder Heimuli at the Gladys Knight Fireside

 So for 3 days i talked to thousands of people and now I have no voice and have a super bad cold... so thats super awesome! But it was totally worth it. The purpose of the choir is to introduce people to the church, and so Gladys can make some "real music" cause lets be honest our hymns are pretty boring, beatiful, but boring. Her husband Will Mcdauhle (dont know how to spell it) tells the story of how they met and how he came to join the church then bears a very strong testimony (mostly aimed at african americans) Then at the end gladys bears hers and tells how she joined and they basically tell everyone that they now have to true knowledge and they need to do something about it and its up to them but now they know the truth so they will be held accountable for it.

 This was one of those life experiences that I will remember forever. It was so awesome!

Dad glad to hear you got an Elk, what did it score?? Can't wait for the pictures! Glad you made it out okay!

Hope everyone is doing good! Love tanner

They Finally Came!

NOT EVEN EATING AT MEMBER'S HOUSES WILL HELP THEM FILL THESE SHIRTS OUT.

Well first off i should tell you about out "Downtown drug adventure" We went downtown last week for P-day in normal clothes and well Apparently two young men walking downtown look like they want drugs, 4 people asked if we wanted to buy and 1 guy asked if we were selling! haha... not a normal experience you would think to have on a mission but then again I am in downtown Atlanta so i imagine about anything is possible.

 This week went really well. We have been focusing on using members in out work, that members are the key to things progressing in all areas of missionary work here. Elder Heimuli and I put together these "Missionary Packets" just a couple teaching folletos and videos a book of mormon and tarjetas for the members to use to share to gospel with friends and family and not having to come up with it on their own. We have been visiting each member in our area teaching them the restoration and then giving them the packet and asking for their help in finding and teaching. So far it has been going really great we have visited 4 families and they all reacted really well and though it was a great idea.

 We also need members involved in teaching our investigators and the Menos Activos in our area. The Familia F that i have been teaching and trying to get to come back to church since i first got here last transfer has been making excuses since i got here. He does have a really hurt back We understand that but he has 7 kids and a wife, they all need church. We decided that we needed a member to come with us a teach the family. Members can say things that we can't they have an influence that we don't have. The member we took served a mission, is from mexico and just a solid great guy. He helped us out so much. The next time we went over two days later the family had a completely different attitude, He said "If i am in the way to God (meaning driving to church) then i know he will take care of us and we will be okay, we need to go to church" his wife who is terrified to drive even said if his back hurts to bad to drive she will drive...But we found this super great lady E (a member from the english ward who loves to help the spanish missionaries even though she knows no spanish at all) she drove them to church, so after about two months of going over two to four times a week and teaching and helping and doing everything possible they are finally going to church! I have no doubt it is because we have started using members in all of our work. It all started by sitting down together Elder Heimuli and I at the begining of this transfer and praying for what we needed to do in this area. Well Revelation is real I can tell you that. This transfer has by far brought me the most happiness out of the whole time I have been here. Elder Heiuli and I are on the same page in all things and work hard all day and have a blast doing it. The work is a little slow right now because we are focusing mostly on the members but i know that towards the end of this transfer and the transfer after this one, this area will be so busy. Right now we are doing all the actual hard work. Mapping, Looking for potentials, Going through all the less actives in our area and seeing who still lives there and who has moved. Its a lot of work but I love being busy!

Hope everything is going great at home. Hope Dad gets that Big Bull... Can't wait for elk jerky

Love Elder Charlesworth

So glad I'm not a greenie anymore!

We got 5 new spanish elders last week at transfers. Because there was so many I lucked out and Elder Heimuli came to Chamblee with me and it has been so great....Except for me getting the flu for a couple days, that was a little less fun. But other than that it has been fantastic, We are both on the same page of what we want to do with this area and have been working hard, basically started over with the map and other things. Mapping for 3 hours is so lame but Heimuli and I always seem to make it fun! I'm just super jealous of his angelic singing voice.

 We went to a Quince which is a fancy way of saying a sweet 15 party, huge deal for hispanics. It was fun but all the dancing and really fun stuff started at 10 and we had to leave at 8:30 to get home in time. They did a Catholic Mass ( It was a part member family) they do a ceremony for the girl who is turning 15. The Priest who did it was from spain and instead of saying "sss" sound in words they say "thh" so its kind of hard to ltsten to if you are not used to it haha, its like speaking spanish with a lisp but all spanish people do it. (spanish as in from spain.)

 Glad to hear Dad got his spot, I'm excited for you I hope that you get a big one and I'll be waiting for some elk jerky!

Don't have much time today things are going great here. Have a ton of work we need to do for the rest of this transfer.

Love you all Love Tanner

Last week of the transfer

I got to go to the temple on Friday, I did a spanish session. I Understood almost everything.....almost! It was really nice to go to the temple, we can only go every six months. This week was fun. We went to the temple had a Branch fall party that no one showed up to until 2 hours after it started. But it was still fun. Then yesterday no one came to church not even the Branch President it was so odd, We started 20 minutes late, no one was there until right before it ended i dunno it was different than i'm used to. V and N some less actives that are 18 and 20 moved back to California. Vince was here to earn money to go on a mission they have been members for about 2 years. His bishop called and said that they have a bunch of families in the ward who will pay the monthly fee and to get home so he can get the process started. Gonna miss those guys they went out with us everyday They are like little brothers I guess in a way.

Sorry to hear no one shot anything(well brought anything home, Dad... can't believe you lost ANOTHER Buck what is that number 6 on the rock alone?) I'm not gonna lie I'm pretty upset at you all i wanted some nice pictures of a big ole buck! Did you guys go up to the Rock or where did you go?

 Well we get calls tonight to see who stays and goes, i am probably gonna be thrown out of the city because they are training six new spanish elders and they like to train them in the city.So I will probably get thrown into the country side where i have to actually do spanish study for a whole hour if i wanna learn anything here in the city if I miss a day its okay because I talk it all day most people don't speak English or i don't talk to them in english even if they can speak it.

 I have really liked this area. Lots of work and its a fun area being downtown!

Love and miss you all hope you get lots of candy!!!!

Love Tanner

*note from "the mom" Tanner gets to stay in Chamblee.  He was very surprised but excited.

Wedding Weekend!

Elder Charlesworth and Elder Heimuli and the happy family

This is called the Serpiente del mar (snake of the sea) you run around the gym holding hands and try to knock the bride and groom off the chairs (the women were unable to do so) so the men go crazy and they go flying super cool tradition!!!

Saturday I was able to go back to my old area(Smyrna) for the Baptism and wedding for J and E.They asked me to say the prayer at the baptismal service J has been waiting a very long time to be baptized. He has been a "dry member" for like 9 months waiting for a divorce to finalize so he can get married and be baptized. The wedding was a blast! He has been taught for so long that there were around 12 elders there, Hispanic weddings are way more fun than American weddings that's the truth! More food, dancing and fun!!

 The Transfer is almost over, just like 9 days left or something like that. Time really goes by so fast! I love it!

We getting getting referrals for addresses that don"t exist or the people don't live there its been super fun let me tell you haha. But the people we have been teaching is going really good. M came to church on Sunday and we might do the baptism next Sunday but we are debating on whether to hold it off or not because of her current living condition, the house she is in (the people in the house) are totally opposite of what a new member needs. So we are just playing it by ear and seeing what she wants to do.

we have been teaching this lady M, she is super cool and very accepting, but is the kind of person that you can't push anything on or she will back away, she cooks for us every time we go over and participates in every lesson she has tons of potential.

 At church on Sunday M's kids would not go to Primary so they got dumped on me to baby sit. (better i miss class than her) as i was watching them i was helping M (3) get off the stage and he bit my face!!! Just locked right onto my Cheek and would not let go, finally got the little pit bull off my face and set him down, then he went and punched his sister right in the mouth, HARD! gave her a bloody lip.  I don't know what it is but kids seem to keep biting me! Better than getting bit by dogs though!! Hope the hunts went well!! miss you all

Love tanner

Weekly Update!

BYU won so thats the only good news from home i need to here haha.

Its was a good. We had a Priesthood activity on Friday which was a blast! we played soccer for like 5 hours and ate ceviche which is fish cooked in lime juice, like the lime juice cooks it! It is super good!! you eat it cold with hot rice. and then we played more soccer after that. The next day after church we did a Noche de Hogar (family night) with the branch. After a short lesson we taught them how to play signs. They had never heard of it before! it was a blast hispanics get so into things we really had a good time!

Elder Montiel -Tanner's latest comp (I think)

 Last week was so far away i forgot most of it cause its just the mundane stuff that happens everyday. Wake up study, teach, find, teach, eat too much food. then start all over again. I get bored  talking about all of that haha. I bet you get tired of hearing it.