"I would not change what I am doing for anything"

Hey hey hey!

I mean hey! How are you all doing? I hope that you are all doing well

and that life is treating you all great! Because life here in New York

is incredible!

This week has been such an incredible week. Probably one of the most

memorable and fun weeks on my mission. It has been so full of

blessings and miracles. I really don't even know where to start.

First off, I want to tell you about our investigator “R”! Holy moly!

This guy is a miracle! He had been taught by the missionaries in

Mexico before and he was pretty interested and we found him last week

at our miracle building! WOW! He is such a great guy. So humble and

full of love. After our first lesson with him he shook our hands and

just gave Elder Rogers and I a big hug. I was really surprised to be

honest, but hey! We had a sweet lesson with one of the members of our

bishopric and “R” together on last Monday and it was great! “R”

loved it and he was just so happy to be here and to have met us. We

love him so much and he just really wants to change his life! He came

to church on Sunday and he loved it as well! It was so cool! There is

a brother who is offering a painting class and “R” asked me if he

could come and then the Elders Quorum President told him "Of

Course!" It was awesome :) He is such a good guy and he is so fun

to be with.

On Monday night went out and were talking to some people and 

we met a guy from India who wanted us to come to his cafe and buy coffee from him. Obviously we didn't, but he was a super cool guy and he told us that he knew how to speak Spanish 

(he really didn't which was pretty funny haha). Anyway so we 

kept walking and we heard someone shout "Hey guys!!" So we turn around and see a young guy point his fingers at us and motion for us to come to him. We were kind of

surprised and then went to go and talk to him. His name is “L” and he

is from Colombia and has lived here for 6 months. He is so cool!

He told us how he wants to consecrate his life to God and to change

and become better and how we knew what we taught was true! What in the

world? Come to find out, later he said that he had seen us talking to

people on the train and knew that we were servants of God. So cool! :)

We taught him on Friday, Saturday and Sunday! It was so cool! He

loves learning! He is really smart and he knows the bible really well.

He is such a fun guy to be around! We had a ward activity on 

Saturday and we taught him beforehand and then he came to the activity with us 

and he loved it! :) He was introducing himself to everyone and they loved him! It was so so so funny. He would say hi to people and they would ask him where he was from and he

would always say, "Soy Colombiano!" "Hasta las medias" and they would

just all die! :) In Spanish it is hilarious, but in English not as much

haha. In English it means that he is “Colombian until his socks”. Pretty

great. Let me just tell you all.  We were talking to him the first time we

met him and he said "Are we going to talk about Doctrine or what?" and

we said of course! :) He is loving learning about the church and

loves the Book of Mormon! When he read that HE could pray to know that

the Book of Mormon was true (Read Moroni 10: 3-5) he just smiled and said “Amen”! Then when we told him that Jesus Christ came to America and his face was just awesome!

He was so shocked and then so happy! :) Needless to say he is amazing!

I love New York and all the crazy awesome things about it! Even if it means running after a bus for about 10 minutes not catching it, then having to walk home for over a half an hour in the rain with my companion. I wouldn't change what I am doing for anything. I love my life. I love God. He is our Father. He hears our prayers and answers them in HIS time. Miracles are real and we just have to have the faith and show Him that we really truly do desire the best for others around us.  Love

and Charity go a long way. You can never go poor by giving away love

and I know that is true!

New York is my home and I love it here!

Much love!

Elder Waidmann

#ShareGoodness

"The teaching that is going on here is really great!"

Hello all! 

 This is going to be a shorter email this week because today was a
pretty crazy day! We had our regular once a transfer zone activity
which was pretty fun! We traveled to Rego Park, which is an area in
the mission, and we went to a place called Juniper Park and played
some kick ball and ultimate frisbee! It was pretty fun! I also got to
play a little but of tennis with one of the sisters who was in my
district in Bushwick because she is serving in Rego now and we had a
combined zone activity with their zone. So it was sweet! Also I got to
play some catch with another Elder who had a glove and a baseball! Man
I haven't done that in a pretty long time and it was a lot of fun! 

This week was a lot of fun! I learned some more Bengali and some Greek
as well! It was really cool! Last night I actually talked to a lady
from Greece in Greek! I mean it was a very tiny conversation but it
was still pretty fun! I told her that she was beautiful and that I
loved her haha! :) She was pretty happy! Don't worry she was about 80
so I wasn't flirting if that is what you all are thinking haha! 

 So some cool things that happened this week! We met a really cool guy
from Mexico! We met a guy outside a building by our house and we talked to him and set up a time to go and visit him on Friday! He has only been here in the US for 2 months and he is
so humble. He has been taught by the missionaries in Mexico already a
little bit and he is just such a loving guy. So on
Friday we talked to him and taught him about the importance of Baptism in the
church and how it really is a gift from God that he has given to us to
be able to come closer to Him and how we really desired that for him. He was so happy and just saying thank you. He feels that he wants to come closer to God. We invited
him to be baptized and he was really accepting and is excited. We are
going to teach him tonight with a member of the Bishopric and we are
amped! He is so great! Ordale! 

 We also taught our investigator from English class this week and he is  such a loving guy. We are excited to keep teaching him! We had some really good lessons this week! The
teaching that is going on here is really great and Elder Rogers and I are having a lot of fun.

We had a sweet experience this week! Our investigator couple from
English class invited us over to come and eat Paella! It is a typical
Spanish dish from Spain! It is pure seafood. And if you know me,
well me and seafood, we aren't the best of friends but let me tell you
it was so good! Maybe I got the gift of tongues in the sense of to
have stuff taste good that I don't usually like haha but I am not even
kidding it was great! It was full and I mean FULL of shrimp, mussels,
clams, tentacles, and all this other stuff with rice and it was great!
I had a lot of fun there. They are such great people. Right now, the husband
is just really set on not being religious and we will just take it one
step at a time. 

 Saturday I got to go on an exchange with Elder Rees who is from
Tennessee and maybe Evan and him know each other! We had a
lot of fun and had to eat a lot of food. I literally almost lost all
the food in my stomach at one point at a members house and it was
scary. But I survived! We had a great day together and had a lot of
fun. 

Exchanges are just always full of miracles and it is so cool. We
went and taught a former investigator of theirs! First cool thing he
loves tennis! Connection there! He has the tennis channel on when we
were in the house and I was so distracted at first....I haven't seen
that channel in an eternity and so it was like a tender mercy from The
Lord... slash a temptation haha :) But we had a great lesson with him! He
already has a testimony of the church and he wants to join the church
holla! :) It was such a cool experience! It was a really fun day.

We also had a really uplifting zone meeting this week and it was so
great to be taught and uplifted by the spirit there. Elder Rogers and
I taught a workshop on the doctrine of Christ and I learned a lot
through studying and teaching it. It was great. The Spirit really does
truly teach you as you teach others. It is such a cool principle of
the Gospel. This week has been such a blessing. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is wonderful! I love it! 

Love you all! 

Elder Waidmann

The Lord Throws You A Bone!

Hey there all!

Wow! What a sweet week that this has been! Man the time flys by so quickly!

This week was quite an adventure! We had our transfer meeting on Tuesday and those meetings are always incredible! The spirit is always so present there and it is a very uplifting and edifying experience. I love it. So we had some changes in the zone and there is just energy for days here! We have so many new missionaries here and it is so cool! In the English district there are four missionaries that are being trained so they bring great positive energy here to the zone and it is just so cool to be able to be a part of. At the transfer meeting our mission president talked about the principle of obedience and why it is so truly important to us. I know that being obedient really does bring us blessings. I have seen this here in my mission and I know that as we are obedient in life we are truly happy. When we are disobedient we receive happiness for a very temporary time and then we regret our actions. It is only when we are truly obedient that the happiness springs forth from within us and it is everlasting.

That night we went and visited a Bolivian less active family and it was really cool! We had a traditional dish called Silpancho and it was he bomb! Man! I love spanish food so much!!!! If I come home and I disappear randomly it will probably because I moved to another country because I like their food so much. Sorry America.

On Wednesday we had a finding activity as a zone and it went really well! We went out and we gave out copies of the Book of Mormon and Restoration pamphlets. It was a lot of fun! Elder Rogers and I were walking down Woodside Ave. and we walked by this church called the Winfield Reformed Church and there was a Chinese lady outside and I started talking to her in Chinese and surpridingly enough she understood me! Usually when I do it the people usually say hi back to me and laugh haha. BUT! This time was different! She started talking back and then I I just thought "Oh no!" So I just kept walking and then I realized that I love talking to Chinese people so Elder Rogers and I turned around and we went back and then I started talking to her again and then I told her in Chinese that I didn't speak Chinese. haha Pretty ironic I know right. But then she wasnt really understanding my English and then I forgot that when I speak English with a Chinese accent then they understand me perfectly! So I did that and it was so much fun! It just brought me back to Dyker Heights!! Elder Rogers was just laughing so so so so hard when I was talking to her because I sounded so weird. Haha so the lady and I had a great convo and we said bye! Elder Rogers then said that to him I sounded like a foreigner from a Chinese country. He was wondering why I wasn't a Chinese elder haha! :)

Later that day we were out trying to find people and we were trying to be really diligent and we didn't have too much success in the sense of finding the people that we were looking for. Then on our way back we said hi to this lady and straight miracle!!! She is from Colombia and is from Medellin! It was a tender mercy! Elder Rogers and I love the people from there because they are so nice and their accent is so cool! ;) In the words of another missionary when you do your best the lord throws you a bone haha :) We also taught English class that night
and it was a lot of fun! We always say so much spanglish in there and it is so much fun! :)

This week was 7-11! Did you all go??? I hope so! free slurpies! It was the bomb! :) That morning we were out trying to find some less active guys and then I said hi to an old lady and tried talking to her! I thought that she would be super cool and nice! But nope! When we were standing and waiting to cross a street she turned around and asked me this: "Why do you go around picking on old people??!?" And I was really confused because I was nice to her haha....so yeah that was funny haha :) Also that night we found a brand new family!!!! They were former investigators and they are so awesome! They have two adorable little kids and we are so excited to be able to teach them.

On Thursday we had our monthly MLC meeting and our mission president really wants us to focus on PMG more! That is what Elder Neilson, who came and visited the mission, received inspiration on what we should improve on. This week Elder Rogers and I have been studying the guts out of that book and there are so many incredible promises and all we have to do as missionaries and as members of the church is just to have the faith to act upon them and they truly will happen.

One of the reasons why Elder Rogers and I have had such a good week this last week is because some of our mission heroes went home this last week. Elder Jensen and Elder Carlson, who I served with in Little Neck, and Elder Briles who trained Elder Rogers and was the assistant for the last 8 months went home. Wow. That was a tender day. We were just so motivated to carry on this work because those missionaries gave everything they had and it was so hard to see them. We love those missionaries and we learned so much from them. We have been seeking ways that we can improve ourselves and our efforts and we have just been so guided this week. It has been incredible.

So this is my scripture of the week! :) It is found in D&C 123:13 "Therefore, that we should waste and wear out our lives in bringing to light all the hidden things of darkness, wherein we know them; and they are truly manifest from heaven--"

I want to continue to waste and wear out my life in this service! We can never serve God enough :) I am so happy to be here! I love you all so much! :)

Much love from the Goodside!
Love,
Elder Waidmann

Flushing!

Exchanges

Elder park and I went to flushing! Frushing!!! :) haha (that is how the Chinese people say it here which is pretty funny)

So we joined their compliment street sweep! They just had a bunch of posters saying good things about people and telling them to be happy and smile and that they were loved and such and it was pretty cool! And this was in Flushing which is like 70% Chinese so that was pretty great! I got to use my limited Chinese again with people and that was pretty cool! So all of the missionaries were just saying hi to everyone and complimenting them on things about them and making them feel happy and loved! And to make them smile of course!  Holy cow that was so much fun! I love the city! I really do! It is so much fun to go back in there and just be able to have people all around you. It is something that I love! Especially as a missionary!  It was great to see elders that I have been around and served with in the past! Lots of fun! Flushing is a great place! It is one of the few times that I have been in that area and I love it!

 And Josef! or Jose! Our new suuuuuuuper borracho (drunk) friend who loves to curse at everyone! The guy was a little off his rocker that day let me tell you! Seriously though. I have never seen someone that drunk before and that diligent to talk to us at the same time. He hugged Elder Izaat like 10 times! And very awkwardly as well. So Jose told me that I am from England and that he is from America even though he totally hails from Honduras! He has been to England 3 times! More English than me haha! He was speaking in Spanish when he said this to me "Look we live in America right?" and I said yeah of course! And he said "Where are your parents from?" and I said America of course. And then he said..."No they aren't! They are from England!" So apparently my parents are from England now. Fun fact of the day!

So let us go to the beginning of the story...how we met Jose. Our new beloved friend. He started talking to us by cursing at a Sister and an Elder as he walked by them using some not so nice language. Which is sometimes pretty normal as a missionary here in New York to hear from people. Most of the time we hear it and it just rolls right off because we don't let it bother us. But, with our new friend he stayed and kept talking and that just started off bad. Then at that point I kinda knew what the situation was starting to turn into. Then is when he began talking to us and saying the same thing over and over every couple minutes. In total it lasted about an hour which was pretty great!

 So as he continued walking after saying some words to the Elder and Sister missionaries that he talked to at first he made his way over to me and another Elder and Sister and came right up in front of us. He was in our faces pretty good. This is when I realized he was seriously under the influence of some alcohol. You could smell it emanating off of him. He kept trying to say things to us which didn't make too much sense because he was slurring his words and what he was trying to say just wasn't coming out right I guess. He started to harass the sister missionary that was with us.

  Sister Elder izaat called him to repentance and told him to go home and stop drinking and to take care of his family.

And that is when this great love just formed between Jose and him. He called Elder Izaat "his boy"
after he told him to stop being drunk and that is where the constant hugging began. We also told him to stop wasting his money on that stuff.

He then proceeded to talk to me in spanish about elder izaat for about 10 minutes and then just like he did to elder izaat he hugged me. Like 5 times oh my goodness it was ridiculous. He smelt of alcohol sooooo
bad! and told me to pray for izaat because he is dangerous and could kill me and 5 people and could break our bones....yeah.. and to pray for izaat and to pray for him. I told him to stop drinking and to stop cursing. Haha and to top it off earlier in the conversation he totally blew his nose right in front of us and then tried to wipe it on sister dean...for real...yeah ridiculous. This guy. He is a child of our Heavenly Father. I was super annoyed at first and at then end a little frustrated but now that I think back on that, I would have NEVER
talked to that guy if I wasn't a missionary. NEVER. It just goes to show how much love The Lord can pump through you when you need it and I really was able to be patient with him even though he was super drunk and completely crazy. It is situations like this that make me grateful for the lords protection and his care over us as His missionaries. It was super sketchy at first and he was trying to get all up in sister deans grill and I was not having that at all. I was trying to stand in front of her and get her out of the way but little sister energy filled dean is just so nice and loving and wanted to talk to him still haha. It was a very interesting experience
nonetheless and crazy to say I am so grateful for it. I know that I will never forget it as long as I live. Oh man. Jose. If that is even his name. Thanks be to God for his love because I really hope that Jose can find it. Because he needs some mercy in his life! ;)

The Lords hand is so gentle that he puts these little attributes such as patience in you to help you deal with, or talk with people like this and somehow develop love for them and not punch them no matter how much the natural man inside of you wants to haha. Josef. Really liked to curse. Drink, that's for sure. Is from America? NO, Honduras let's be real here. Speaks english and spanish. Loves touching Elder Izaat's head and hugging him for no reason and calling him "His Boy". Hates me at first but loves me at the end. Quoted Nacho Libre
PERFECTLY when he said "Take it easy!" and put his arm up to block me from talking to him and told me to be quiet. Even though I am pretty sure he has never even seen the movie at all. Loves to leave his backpack on the ground when talking to you and when you try to give it back to him he says "it doesn't matter" even when you try to convince him that someone is trying to steal it....love to hug you. Very touchy
dude. Loves to tell me how I need to pray for Elder Izaat because he could kill me, 5 other people, break my bones, he is effing strong, no, just strong after a clean up of language, and loses his balance a little when he talks to you. He also wreaks of wonderful alcohol breath and loves his Michigan Wolverines, I think, his jacket said so at least. He loves to talk to sister dean and cuss out sister lee and elder woodward. He also thought that I was going to hook him up with my sisters...yeah I told him that "Ellas ya son casadas" (they are
already married) so he was pretty sad about that one haha. That is when I am proud to have older sisters. He asked if I had a little one and he wanted me to "presentar" (introduce) him to them. Yeah right bro....let's be honest here. No hispanic drunk dude who looks like he has a mini beard from the shang hi dynasty, and who spits before he leaves and he is done talking to me is going to meet any of my family let alone my sisters...I was already uncomfortable enough when you were trying to get in Sister Deans face. Nope! You are wrong my friend. Go and be sober brotha! Yeah that is Josef for you....we go way back...like for about 45 minutes worth and almost the same conversation on repeat ever 10 minutes. I hope he doesn't drink anymore and gets the Gospel in his life, because lord knows that he needs it!

Anyway after that we tried to visit some Korean members in flushing! Park bong ye! And that was dec! And I realized that I lost my wallet! Oh snap! But after searching at the church and having the feeling that
it was in my Brooklyn industries bag the whole time....it was. The spirit never lies haha. And The Lord answers and hears all prayers!
G.O.E.! :) I love that!

Potentials...

Meeting someone and telling them that a BOOK of all things is going to help them feel closer to God and then telling them that it can help them in their everyday life sounds really weird right? Yeah I know it might! Well, me as a missionary I tell this to people all the time about the Book of Mormon! So forgive me for my weirdness. I just want people to be happy like me! And that is just what the Book of Mormon brings...TRUE HAPPINESS!

I love the Book of Mormon so much! Why you might ask? Well to be completely honest it has changed my life. It has brought me closer to my Father in Heaven and especially to my Savior Jesus Christ, whom this book testifies of so many times. I know that this may sound cheesy or like so many other people talking about the Book of Mormon, but I can promise you that it is true. The Prophet Joseph Smith said: the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book." Of this I can completely agree!


 I know that this promise is true. I know it because I have read it cover to cover and the stories and doctrine inside have come alive to me. I have become a better person because of it and I truly treasure this book of scripture. I invite you all to read it! :) I promise, you won't regret it!

Now let me tell you about some of these sweet experiences that I have had talking with New Yorkers about this wonderful Book! On March 21st in the wonderful city of Great Neck we got together as a group of missionaries that are in our area and we went to a Long Island Rail Road Station. Our goal was to invite people to come unto Christ and to have happiness and joy in their lives by reading the Book of Mormon. We were there for a while and I had gotten the chance to talk to a few people but most of which were not interested in the slightest! Which is sometimes not so surprising as a missionary here in New York haha. But I came across a man who seemed like he needed a little brightening in his day, so I decided to talk to him and try to bring a smile across his face. Well it didn't work haha. I began talking to the man and he said that he didn't want anything to do with me or the Book of Mormon, and when I continued on about how it would help him be happy he turned and faced me. He was about 6'3 or 6'4 and huge! And he was very upset with me. And then he said "When I say no, it means no!" And I apologized and told him to have a great day with a smile :) He then shouted very angrily as he walked away "I don't believe that anyone can be that nice!" It was an interesting experience and while I was talking to him the whole time there was another man who was above us watching this whole thing play out on a flight of stairs up to the train station. He was relaxing and eating a Kit Kat bar! Oh yeah! He was really shocked that the other man was so upset with me and he was shaking his head and saying wow. I went up to talk to him and he made a comment about the whole situation that happened and asked what we were doing out here. I then started to talk to him about the Book of Mormon and he was really interested and I was able to share my testimony with him about it which was great! He gladly took a copy and then bounced down the stairs to catch his train! The worst part was though that I totally forgot to use a sweet pun that was in my head! I was totally going to say "man that guy wouldn't give me a break" and I totally forgot! Haha get it "break"? Maybe not so funny but I totally realized afterward that I forgot so my funniness didn't work so well I guess!

Throughout that time though I got to talk to some people who were really cool! I gave out another copy to a Spanish lady who was really excited to read it and that was great! I love when people actually listen to you and trust you that this will help them grow closer to God. It is so cool to see them accept the challenge and then take your word for it and to want to try it! I was also able to talk to a Jewish guy for about 5 minutes and that was really cool too! I also met a guy who grew up in California and said that some of his friend gorwing up were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints as well which was really cool!  I love being able to have conversations with people about our faith where both of us are mutually respectful and are there to learn and love one another. I love how that common respect can still exist between people. It is definitely a comforting feeling! But on the New York roadways...I am not sure how much that exists haha just kidding...but really though :)

So now fast forward a little to March 28th! In Bayside Queens at another train station! We got there and I said to myself well it is time to go spread some of the word of God to help others! The first guy that I saw I went up to him and started talking to him about the Book of Mormon and he was really interested! He was from Turkey and he also had a lot of friends, he told me, that were members of our church as well! So that was cool! I gave him a Book of Mormon and he said that he would read it and he put it right in his bag and was really excited to have it! Which was so cool! :)

Then a few minutes later there weren't many people on the street so I figured I should walk down the sidewalk a little and I came across a guy by the name of Brandon! Hey fancy that! Coincidence?? I think not! So then I started to talk to him and I gave him a Book of Mormon and I got to tell him how it could help him in his life and he looked at me and said "Thank you, I know that this was for a reason" and then his ride came and he had to leave. But that was such a great experience to have! He was so happy! I know that this message brings great happiness and joy to all! I promise! I invite you to read the Book of Mormon and find out for yourself how it can make you happy! I know that it is true! Life in New York is great!

Much love!
street sweep on fri in bayside train station

gave bofm to first guy I talked to from turkey! so cool! he was so down! put it right in his bag and said that he wanted to read it! :) knew mormon people already in woodside queens

gave bofm to brandon! such a great guy he said that this was for a reason and he was so interested as well, it was amazing

vincent jerry garcia tie while smoking was super excited and then sper upset once we started talking about religion and when I testified to him but I could feel the love that HF had for him as I talked to him I was trying so had to see him as god saw him. good experience hard street sweep at first but way good!











cooking more and experimenting, for my comp

what we have been trying to do to find people
----------------handball, oh man!, ping pong on mutual

jeffrey the experience, feel the love of God pulsing through me to get to him,


the love of god is all around us! we just have to look for it!

feel the hand of the lord when we look for it


as we look for ways to serve others they do come


zone conference, faith to find, go and make it so! the spyglass, look forward with faith and hope,

the daily things! dont forget the details,

On the Streets of New York!

Meeting someone and telling them that a BOOK of all things is going to help them feel closer to God and then telling them that it can help them in their everyday life sounds really weird right? Yeah I know it might! Well, me as a missionary I tell this to people all the time about the Book of Mormon! So forgive me for my weirdness. I just want people to be happy like me! And that is just what the Book of Mormon brings...TRUE HAPPINESS!

I love the Book of Mormon so much! Why you might ask? Well to be completely honest it has changed my life. It has brought me closer to my Father in Heaven and especially to my Savior Jesus Christ, whom this book testifies of so many times. I know that this may sound cheesy or like so many other people talking about the Book of Mormon, but I can promise you that it is true. The Prophet Joseph Smith said: the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book." Of this I can completely agree!


 I know that this promise is true. I know it because I have read it cover to cover and the stories and doctrine inside have come alive to me. I have become a better person because of it and I truly treasure this book of scripture. I invite you all to read it! :) I promise, you won't regret it!

Now let me tell you about some of these sweet experiences that I have had talking with New Yorkers about this wonderful Book! On March 21st in the wonderful city of Great Neck we got together as a group of missionaries that are in our area and we went to a Long Island Rail Road Station. Our goal was to invite people to come unto Christ and to have happiness and joy in their lives by reading the Book of Mormon. We were there for a while and I had gotten the chance to talk to a few people but most of which were not interested in the slightest! Which is sometimes not so surprising as a missionary here in New York haha. But I came across a man who seemed like he needed a little brightening in his day, so I decided to talk to him and try to bring a smile across his face. Well it didn't work haha. I began talking to the man and he said that he didn't want anything to do with me or the Book of Mormon, and when I continued on about how it would help him be happy he turned and faced me. He was about 6'3 or 6'4 and huge! And he was very upset with me. And then he said "When I say no, it means no!" And I apologized and told him to have a great day with a smile :) He then shouted very angrily as he walked away "I don't believe that anyone can be that nice!" It was an interesting experience and while I was talking to him the whole time there was another man who was above us watching this whole thing play out on a flight of stairs up to the train station. He was relaxing and eating a Kit Kat bar! Oh yeah! He was really shocked that the other man was so upset with me and he was shaking his head and saying wow. I went up to talk to him and he made a comment about the whole situation that happened and asked what we were doing out here. I then started to talk to him about the Book of Mormon and he was really interested and I was able to share my testimony with him about it which was great! He gladly took a copy and then bounced down the stairs to catch his train! The worst part was though that I totally forgot to use a sweet pun that was in my head! I was totally going to say "man that guy wouldn't give me a break" and I totally forgot! Haha get it "break"? Maybe not so funny but I totally realized afterward that I forgot so my funniness didn't work so well I guess!

Throughout that time though I got to talk to some people who were really cool! I gave out another copy to a Spanish lady who was really excited to read it and that was great! I love when people actually listen to you and trust you that this will help them grow closer to God. It is so cool to see them accept the challenge and then take your word for it and to want to try it! I was also able to talk to a Jewish guy for about 5 minutes and that was really cool too! I also met a guy who grew up in California and said that some of his friend gorwing up were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints as well which was really cool!  I love being able to have conversations with people about our faith where both of us are mutually respectful and are there to learn and love one another. I love how that common respect can still exist between people. It is definitely a comforting feeling! But on the New York roadways...I am not sure how much that exists haha just kidding...but really though :)

So now fast forward a little to March 28th! In Bayside Queens at another train station! We got there and I said to myself well it is time to go spread some of the word of God to help others! The first guy that I saw I went up to him and started talking to him about the Book of Mormon and he was really interested! He was from Turkey and he also had a lot of friends, he told me, that were members of our church as well! So that was cool! I gave him a Book of Mormon and he said that he would read it and he put it right in his bag and was really excited to have it! Which was so cool! :)

Then a few minutes later there weren't many people on the street so I figured I should walk down the sidewalk a little and I came across a guy by the name of Brandon! Hey fancy that! Coincidence?? I think not! So then I started to talk to him and I gave him a Book of Mormon and I got to tell him how it could help him in his life and he looked at me and said "Thank you, I know that this was for a reason" and then his ride came and he had to leave. But that was such a great experience to have! He was so happy! I know that this message brings great happiness and joy to all! I promise! I invite you to read the Book of Mormon and find out for yourself how it can make you happy! I know that it is true! Life in New York is great!

Much love!

Winter has ended but the Blog has not!

Hey I am alive!!!

After going MIA randomly I am back to the blog! Yes I know it has been forever since I have been on here and it has been a little weird being out of the updates on what is going on here in the amazing place of New York!!

So it has been since late January that I have made any updates and a lot has happened since then! But to some it up quick...lots of snow, snow shoveling, driving in the snow and cold cold cold! The good news is that it has been so much fun this winter season being able to serve my fellow New York neighbors!

I have had so many opportunities to be able to get to know people by helping them get their car out of the ice wall that was made by the snow plow going right by their car and making it almost impossible to get out! I have been able to push and shove and use a pick ax on some serious ice helping people get unstuck from the snow as well and let me tell you it is quite the endeavor but way fun!

I love being able to do service! It really is the best thing ever. I am so grateful to be a missionary where that is what I am here to do everyday. It is pretty awesome I must say! :)

Let me share one story with you...

So Elder Hooper and I get a call one day from a member of the church in Rego Park asking if we could help her friend to clean her car off form the snow. It had snowed a couple of days earlier and it hadn't snowed too much and so we figured it would be a five minute max project. So we thought okay sweet! Easy we will get this done super quick! I mean we were becoming quite skilled at this I must say :) So we headed over to where this lady lived and she told us on the phone that she was not home from work yet and that she was in traffic, so we figured, okay we just need to know what car it is and we will get it taken care of right? Wrong!! So she told us what car it was and the license plate number and after an epic search we finally found it! We assumed that it would just be parked in her driveway, yeah well it wasn't. It was one of those cars that got stuck from the snow plow and it wasn't going anywhere any time soon. The problem was is that a few days before the most recent snow it snowed soooo much! But soooo much like a little over a foot but not too bad haha! So we got out of our car and went to work! Bad news was is that the snow after like a day or two turns to straight ice because at night in the city it was getting down below 10 degrees so everything was frozen solid in the morning! Yay! Fun! So we went at it and finished in about 30 to 45 minutes! So not too bad really which was great! The best part was that it was so much fun doing it! I have no idea why but I really love shoveling snow haha. Everyone else from Utah thinks that I am crazy...maybe I am. Or maybe I just haven't had to shovel snow my whole life as well so that could be a reason too! :)  But nonetheless I love it!

So after we had taken down that project we called the lady to tell her that we were done and that we were leaving to go, she said to me on the phone, "No! You do not leave! I am coming here in five minute! I be there in five minute! Stay and wait for me!" I began to tell her that we had to leave becaus we had to be at the church for a meeting and we were already late and she just said "No! I be there soon! Stay!" So I figured okay five minutes then haha. Then in the mean time there was a guy who had one of those vans that are like the size of a bus that was suuuuuuuuuuuuuper stuck in the snow, well more like deep ice at this point and he had been going at it trying to get his van out for the whole time that we were there getting our new friends car unstuck. So I said to Elder Hooper " We gotta go and help him, there is no way he is getting out of there." so we went! And man oh man was he stuck, and the worst part was that out shovels were nice but they were just hard plastic and when we went to try to shovel him out using our shovels it was basically like trying to shovel a brick wall....yeah not happening! So by this point the sun is almost down and I can't feel my hands! Sweet! :) And then this guy had a pick ax! Now that is what I am talking about!!! I was so pumped! So I took that and went to town on that ice! Still it was quite the struggle because if you know me I am the scrawniest weakest kid you know and my muscles can't do much, but I was trying! :) So after a good long struggle our friend arrived and went and looked at her car and came back to watch us help this guy with his can. After the van finally was free of the ice trap, which took a lot more effort than I realized, we were pretty tired! :) But it was a good feeling though! And our friend....lets call her Bagda, she said to us "Okay you coming with me now to my house so I make you food and so you can get snow off my driveway" and we told her uhhhh we gotta leave! Then again she said, (she was really persistent haha) "No you coming with me here inside my house so I give you food! [Oh and also she has this accent that I still have no idea where she was from...imagine a mix of Hindu, Russian, and King Julian from Madagascar, and that does it a little justice :)] So then we said okay we will look at your driveway. So we follow her to her house, and I am not even kidding okay maybe a little but she basically had an Olympic size ice rink on her street/driveway/sidewalk and it was like a foot thick! NO JOKE! Haha and the first thing I thought was, there is nooooo way we are going to be able to get this out of here! I began to tell her how our shovels were plastic and would break and there is no way the ice was coming up and then she sadly agreed that it was quite the project. Then for a last persistence she said "Okay now I going with you to Key Food and I buy you chicken! And I go with you in your car." And I was thinking...what?? Where did that come from???? Haha it was soooo funny though! Then we told her that we really had to go and we couldn't stay which made her kinda sad but in the end she was really grateful that we helped her out :)

Experiences like these have helped me to realize that I am so grateful to be on a mission. I get to have the craziest and the funnest things happen in my life and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I am grateful that Heavenly Father can trust Elder Waidmann to run some service errands for Him. I wouldn't have it any other way. I know that as we love and serve others we truly do find ourselves. We create lasting memories and we as the people serving, are so much more blessed than those that we assist and help. I know that this is so true! I am grateful for the Savior! Jesus Christ is the best example of service to us all. He gave His life for each of us. This is true. I know that He loves us so much. He wants us to be happy! Sometimes we need to just relax, take a step back and breathe and look at all we have. We are so blessed just to be living. Life is a gift that is why we live in the present! Keep it real out there everyone and serve it up! :)

The car before!

The car after! :)