I'm finally in Louisiana! It is so great! I'm in a town called Natchitoches. How do you say it? haha. Good question:) I had that same question. It goes (nac-i-desh). I don't exactly know why, but that's how it's pronounced. My apartment is nice. The lake is literally my back yard, but it looks more like a river. It's actually called Cane River Lake. haha. The people here are so nice. They are true to who they are. This last week was quite eventful, but a great growing experience. I experienced the humidity coming out of the airport. I met my mission president and his wife there at the airport. They are so great and caring. We had dinner at the mission home and slept there overnight. We had a testimony meeting as well. The next day was the transfer meeting. My new companion is Elder Lehr! He is a funny missionary. He works hard, but has a fun time doing it. I think he's been really good for me. We drove 3 hours from Baton Rouge to Natchitoches, then got settled into the apartment. The first full day, we went out to try and meet one of the progressive investigators, but he wasn't there. So we just tracted around in the trailor park and actually found 2 new potentials. Reggie was a nice guy, but wondered why God would allow bad things to happen in this world. We made a return appointment, but we haven't been able to get a hold of him yet. The other was a family. They invited us in to hear a message. They were Baptist and Christian. They invited us back, but we're going to let the sisters in our town teach them because there usually isn't another man there at their house. The sisters missionaries in our town are Sister Carpenter and Sister Neilson. They are both really hard working and nice. And by the way, we're on bikes!!! It's crazy, fun, and even more crazy. The temperature index has put the temperature at 107. It's really 98 or so, but with the humidity it feels like 107. It's really easy to get dehydrated because you sweat all the water you drink. Haha. Honestly, it's not too bad. I thought it would kill me, but it feels nice to ride our bikes. That is if the bike works. Haha. I had two flats over the past two days. They were both neat experiences. The first day, I got a flat, but Elder Lehr didn't notice and he kept riding away until he couldn't see me. He called President and the Sisters in our town, but he found me when I called him using a phone from inside a mexican food restaurant. We had to go to Walmart to get some goo stuff to fix it, but while we were walking over there, a member from Idaho pulled over to help us, and he drove us over to Walmart and even paid for our stuff. What a great man! I was trying to fix my tire, but it just wasn't working!! I got to the point where it was all or nothing. It would either work, or not work. I finally humbled myself to say a pray in my heart, pleading for God's help. I don't know why I didn't pray earlier, but God helped me instantly. My tire started to inflate again and the problem was fixed! I know God gave me that trial so I could learn humility and so that I could gain a stronger testimony of His presence in my life. The next day, the same tire went flat in about the same place as the day before. luckily we made it to a member's house, Brother Donaho. He cheered me up a bit and helped us out a lot. We had to go to the Wood's house, which is an older couple in the ward. I think the flat tire was the means of some missionary work. It allowed others to have an opportunity to serve, it taught me a lot of lessons, we found referrals and was able to get it all fixed. One of the investigators we met was an older man who served in the Vietnam War. His name is Bob. He reminds me of my own Grandpa Hatch. Bob committed to go to church, which was miracle because he wouldn't commit for a long time. It's so exciting! He's coming next Sunday. This last Sunday was great. The ward is so nice and inviting. But I admit, they aren't the best singers. Haha. They make up for it in how nice they all are. They all feed us pretty well. We've already had a couple meals and dinner appointments. At church, during the gospel principles class, a man walk in and sat right by me. He was in a white t-shirt and jeans. I was guessing this was his first time here. His name is Bruce, and he came because a friend gave him a pamphlet with the church address on it. He is a humble, quiet, and caring guy. He even offered to help with a service project that was announced in Priesthood. How amazing is that!!! Seriously, God must be looking out for him. I really hope we can help him grow closer to Christ. He is such a nice man. I hope all y'all are having an amazing week. I love you all!
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Elder Chandler Lee Allen
