Time is Flying in Croatia

Elder Dixon reported this week that he is amazed at how quickly time is going by in Croatia.

The following photo is a sunrise over Pula, where Ryan is now stationed.

Some excerpts from Ryan's last email:

Subject: I said a boom chick a boom!!!

Fam!

Haha, Elder Nelson randomly started chanting the "I said a boom chick a boom" today and it made me laugh. I forget where he learned it, but it made me think of Shawn McKay at the classic Lyn Rae ward party! Such good times in the Lyn Rae hahaha...

Welp, it seems like this week didn't happen. I can't believe it's monday again and that transfers happen again in 3 weeks. I've almost been in Pula for six weeks. Croatia for 6 months... ish... Laterrrrr! is all I have to say about that! We had Zone Conference this week. It felt so low key for some reason. I think it's because five missionaries left last transfer from Croatia and we haven't got any back yet. We were a small group. It was an amazing conference though. President is called of God. K? K. He's truly directed to direct us. Inspired to inspire us. I love him.

I also really loved the workshop the Assistants to the President gave us. One of the assistants compared missionary work to sports. He said his coach in high school said to practice with your hands, but play with your heart and your mind. He talked about how in Volley ball, you would practice passing, hitting, and returning (and stuff) from every possible position on the court. That way, during a game, those actions were just muscle memory. He could think about and put his heart into the game, because everything else was simply automatic. He didn't have to worry about the mechanics. It's the same thing in missionary work slash life in general, I think. The scriptures teach us to treasure up knowledge. As missionaries, we practice teaching and speaking in our language. That way, our limitations are... limited, and the Spirit has more room to guide, teach, and befriend the taught. It's such a sweet principle that's so applicable to missionary work.

Last night, we taught our most active members slash couple about temple work. That's a sweet branch of missionary work... Preparing members to enter the temple. I love the temple. I would advise anybody preparing to go on a mission to go to the temple every possible day after he/she gets his/her call... I treasure my times in the Mesa, AZ temple. It's helped me to better understand why I'm here and the goal for the investigators we teach. But, we showed them my pedigree chart, and explained that I was sealed to all those people and more. We explained that when they go to Frankfurt, they can do those ordinances for their parents and beyond. They were touched by that. Isn't that so sweet?? They can literally invite their parents to live in the presence of God and with them forever. I also randomly remembered that Brother Boren had ancestors in Slovenia and went there to do family history work. Nataia is a Slovene, so I told her that. It was cool. Haha, small world.

Welp Ive got to go! Thank you for everything. I'm really happy out here. Thanks for the mail. Take care!!

Love

Elder Dixon

On the Internet in Pula

Ryan's face was front and center in an internet article published on the Regional Express website in Croatia. As Ryan reported in his last email, "This guy stopped us while we were passing out English fliers the other day. He was some journalist and he busted out his telescope camera and asked a bunch of questions and told us we'd be on the internet. And we are!"

We can't understand the text of the article because it was all written in Croatian, but I hope it helps the elders get noticed so they can find more people to teach.

We continue to be inspired by Ryan's emails. Here are a few excerpts from his last email:

First of all, we passed out a little shy of 5000 fliers for English class. Guess how many showed up to sign up... Yes, 120 people! Pretty crazy huh? We passed out twice as many fliers in Osijek where there is probably double the people, and got about the same number. So pretty much, Elder Nelson and I just signed up to be full time English teachers! haha. Its sweet, but we were aiming more in the 20-50 range. Haha laterrrrrr, we'll see how that goes!

Our first baptismal candidate is doing good. She is showing she understands what we are teaching and that she has a testimony. She's quit coffey and is committed to pay tithing. She pulled a fast one on us this week, though. She told us her family was muslim. That kind of caused some problems, because I guess if you are teaching a muslim (at least in this mission), President needs to interview them and make sure their family wont physically hurt them for being involved with the church. I guess there were some problems in slovenia once. So, we got her interviewed by way of Elder Pettersson, and I think she'll be fine. We've taught her with her family around anyway and they didn't seem to have any problems. But shes doing good. Pray for her.

Welp, Zone conference is coming up. I can't wait! I could use a solid hand shake from President Hill and some inspiring words from the leaders of the mission. How did I get through life without Zone Conference every six weeks back at home?? Idk man.

I've thought about the atonement alot lately. I love that it's real. We teach people so often that Jesus overcame sin, sorrow, pain, and death so that we could be happy in this life and return to Heavenly Father. I'm so thankful that that's true. I don't think I could ever deny that. I'm so thankful for the evidence of that truth in my life. The Savior really does forgive sin, comfort us through the Holy Ghost, and strengthen us through that same medium. He lives today and leads the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which provides the way to take full advantage of that infinate atoning sacrifice. I'm thankful for the scriptures and a Prophet that instruct us how to live according to that gospel. I know it's true!

I found out this week that Elder Nelson was part of the green barret's (barays?? idk) in the army. I guess that's one of the most elite groups in the army. Seek and destroy style... He's a stud. I'm lucky to serve with him.

Welp peeps, I should go!! Keep it real! I love you so much. Take care.

Love,

Elder Dixon

The Greatest Week ...

Elder Dixon's emails continue to be very inspiring. They are the highlight of each week. This week was no exception, as Ryan proclaimed, "it has been pretty much the greatest week of my mission." We are so gratified to hear that he is working hard, teaching good people and growing stronger and stronger in the power of God.

The following photo is a Roman arch in Pula. What deep history is there! For us in Arizona, where something that has lasted over 100 years is "old", the historical richness Ryan is experiences must be breathtaking.

An excerpt from his email:

Hey Fam!

How are we?? Btw, sorry I'm late but happy b-day to Rachel and Ty! You guys are tight. In 2011, let's have a sweet group b-day party... K? K. It was nice to hear from my bro's Todd and Spencer in the past weeks. Such studs. Thanks for the e-mails. God speed as Miamaids pres Holly. Scarlet Pimpernel style. haha.

Welp, it has been pretty much the greatest week of my mission. That seems to be happening alot. First off, I'd like to bare a brief witness too that missions are so dang fun. Besides all of the other miraculous, good, testimony fortifying, peaceful, joyful, spiritual, etc. things, missions are such a blast and so tight. So many random, funny things have happened this week. From investigators falling asleep in lessons narcolepcia style (is that the right word?) to drunks dancing while playing a Brother Wach type flute to 70 year old grandmas screaming at us about mafia conspiracy theories, it's all happened in this past week. Though the funness of a mission isn't the most important thing, missions are such a blast.

Along with all that stuff, came alot of success this week, including 2 baptismal dates. Elder Nelson was reviewing our numbers this week before calling them in to the Zone leaders and said, "We've got a lot to be thankful for". That's the troof. The Lord has blessed us with wonderful opportunities, experiences, and blessings with what seems like little effort on our part.

We got another awesome investigator this week. He got an english class flier from us in the past week or two and saw the name of our Church on the bottom. He called our number from the flier and told us he wanted to meet with us. It turns our hes lived all over the world and been a part of all kinds of religions, and since he moved back to Pula he hasnt had anyone to really talk to about God and spiritual things. He really missed that, and was praying for something along those lines and got our flier. We met with him. He speaks really good english and is very intelligent. He LOVES to meet with us. It was crazy how excited he was to talk to somebody about the gospel. His hands were shaking he was so excited. We gave him a Book of Mormon. We talked and he was full of questions. We met another day and he read us all the things he enjoyed out of the Book of Mormon. He read all over. He was like "Alma was a very interesting man" haha. He loves the Book of Mormon. He came to church on sunday. We are going to talk to him more about baptism this week.

So, if I had to sum up our experiences this week, Id have to refer to Doctrine and Covenants 64:34... "Behold, the Lord requireth the heart and a willing mind; and the willing and obedient shall eat the good of the land of Zion in these last days." The Lord has really blessed Elder Nelson and I this week. It seems like all we did was try. We simply tried to have "the heart and a willing mind" --and I think we even fell short of that-- and the Lord put people in our path and worked on the people of Pula. I love him and am so thankful for his kindness. It's a miracle that we can repent. I can't comprehend the goodness of that gift, nor the debt I owe to the Savior.

Welp, I better roll out. But I love you. Thanks for the love and support. I hope Angie and Heidi are doing good with their respective babes. Keep it real.

With Love

Elder Dixon

Pula

Sorry about the delay between updates. Ryan continues to have great experiences in Croatia. He was recently transferred to Pula, located on the Adriatic Sea east of Italy. While Osijek was almost as far east as you can go in Croatia, Pula is at the far western end.

Ryan says this about his companion, Elder Nelson:

Elder Nelson is the man. It's so sweet to work with somebody who has a spirit of urgency about him and is excited about the work to be done. Elder Nelson served in the army in Iraq and other places and graduated from BYU in law. He's older, but an h-core stud. I love working with him. Truly the man.

We thought you would enjoy the following photo we received from Ryan this week. The photo of Ryan and his alter-ego was taken in Osijek.




Here are excerpts from our last two emails from Ryan:

Monday, February 9th

Subject: Werd up!

Family Dixon,

What ep!! How is my kin??... Haha. Man, such a quality week in Pula. Real quick, here is my address, Mom-hop.

Elder Ryan James Dixon
Bartolomeo Dei Vitrei 12
52100, Pula
Croatia

Guys, I love Pula. I love Elder Nelson. I should just send you the letter I just sent to President just to show you how happy I am to be here. I could I guess, but I would feel like I was jipping you guys out of an origional or something... But, jtlyk, i dig Pula. And Elder Nelson is the man. It's so sweet to work with somebody who has a spirit of urgency about him and is excited about the work to be done. Elder Nelson possesses those qualities. Our goal is to make this place a branch by the end of the transfer. That means we will be making contact with a male somebody in the next couple weeks or so, so we can teach him, baptize him, and help him on the active path of endurance to the end. Or we will get Deni (Denee), an inactive member, active again. One of the two or both. Please pray for a priesthood holder in Pula.

So this past week, we had a program about Joseph Smith for which we passed out 5000 fliers. Guess how many people came... Yes, four. Do you know what's tight about that?? That's four more than I have ever heard of coming to an activity like this. We started out, introduced ourselves, stated our purpose word for word, explained we were Christians, introduced the story of Joseph Smith and watched the Joseph Smith movie. Afterwards, we bore our testimonies and invited them to learn more. We told them how they could know it was true - through the Book of Mormon. We even said that we teach four lessons and invite people to be baptized. There were two people in there that seemed to be really touched. Unfortunately they werent touched enough to give us their information... But! They took alot of information about the church, including a copy the Book of Mormon, a pamphlet about the Plan of Salvation, the March issue of the Ensign, and other quality stuff. The Book of Mormons have our number in them so we are hoping they will be in touch.

All in all, I know that none of our effort was wasted. It wasn't perfect, but we did all we could. We gave these people a clear oportunity to hear the gospel. However, while I was watching the movie with only four people who weren't members, I was feeling a little disappointed. I wondered what I could have done better and thought about my short comings associated with this presentation. While I was thinking about that, my mind caught hold upon a thought, like Alma did after seeing the Angel. I thought about the compensating power of the Atonement and also its power to remit our sins and mistakes. I felt as if Elder Nelson and I had done all that we could do, but we still fell short and made mistakes along the way. I felt the quiet confirmation that the Lord was pleased with our effort and accepted our sacrifice. I felt his love for me. I felt like Alma. "And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more. And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!" Isn't the atonement wonderful? I know it's real, because I've felt the peace that comes from it's application in my life. I've felt the same way that Oliver Cowdrey felt at one point in his life. The Lord said to him, "Cast your mind upon the night that you cried unto me in your heart, that you might know concerning the truth of these things. Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter? What greater witness can you have than from God?"




Monday, February 16th

Subject: Welp, I love Pula!!

Obitelj Dixon kako ide??!! Pozdravi from the coast!

Jtlyk, I got Angie's package! President came down for interviews and hooked me up with some Dunn love. Thanks dawg. American candy for life...

So, it's been a sweet week. The were 3 people at church this week that weren't members. So sweet... Elder and Sister Pettersson were in Slovenia this weekend, so Elder Nelson and I were in charge of Sacrament Meeting.

Welp this week, I gave a talk about the Holy Ghost at church. That was a good review for me. The gift of the Holy Ghost is such a priceless gift. I'm so thankful for the comforter, guide, messenger, and helper that the Savior and our Heavenly Father left for us while we are physically apart. It teaches how to live so that we can get back to them. Not only that, but how to have peace, happiness, and success in this life. I'm thankful it teaches us in our minds and feelings and in our hearts rather than in some other way!

So for my b-day, Elder Nelson and I hit up the only legit Mexican Food Restaurant in Croatia, convenieniently located in Pula. It was pretty quality! It doesn't even approach Rosa's or something like that, but it satisfied my Mexican cravings and we will be going there oft.

Welp, I better go. I love you all. Take care in the USA. Peace in da
middle east!

Love,

Elder Dixon

Celebrity Ryan

We had a wonderful surprise this month by seeing Ryan as a featured attraction in the January Ensign magazine, page 7. He and another Elder were teaching some Ukranian people. Photographers from the Ensign took their picture. These are real investigators, with real missionaries. What a thrill!



It is wintertime in Croatia, but as far as we can tell, it is similar to Utah or Idaho. For example, the temperature in Osijek is 36 degrees Fahrenheit at 11:00 PM Sunday, one degree warmer than Salt Lake City, Utah, at 3:00 PM Sunday. Cold, but not too bad!

Some excerpts from Ryan's last emails:

January 5th:

Subject: dearest family and friends...

WHAT EP??

Hey fam, how are we? I hope your good! So, there's not much time... Ill try to say all I want to say!!!

But let me give you a little peek into one of the greatest hours slash one of my favorite hours of my life... Elder Giberson and I were tracting, and I had the feeling slash idea slash prompting by the Holy Ghost (so I learned) that I should share with somebody that they were a child of God. So I asked a couple questions to Elder Giberson to figure out how to say what I wanted to say. We rang a doorbell, and when a lady came out she was walking to the gate through her mini yard, I decided to say it to her. Since it was kind of a new approach and I'm a flaming genius, I tripped over my words, but eventually got it all out. She let us in, (whether out of pure sympathy or because of the Spirit, Im not sure. Probably slash hopefully the latter.) and we got to know her. Her name is Ružica (Roo-ž-eetsa) - that ž is like j in jaque. She has a husband and one daught and one son. We got to teach her a full lesson about Christs gospel on the earth today and share simple, sincere testimony. Her husband was there for half of the lesson. Such nice people... We gave them a list of the questions of the soul that can be answered by the Book of Mormon, invited them to pick their favorite, read the verse or chapter related to it -- they were written on the paper, and pray about it -- to pray to know whether or not it was true. She said she wants us to come back in 2 weeks so that she could read the whole book. I hope her husband, Ivan, (eevahn aka john) will read and pray too. Pretty much, I walked out of that house feeling pure joy. I took a picture of my planner, because we accomplished our goals that day for new investigators. In the future, that wont be uncommon, but this week, it was! I cant wait to meet them again! Pray for Ružica and Ivan... Ivan looks like a short version of the dad on Boy Meets World. And their kids name are cory and tapanga. jk... :)

So, transfer rumors are already beginning. The thought crossed my mind of leaving Osijek. I realized then, that over time, I have grown to love this city, and more than that, I love the people. President told me in Ljubljana when he extended this call here that he had to tear people away from their areas -- that they didn't want to leave. Im not going to lie, after my first week or two in Osijek, Im not sure I believed that. It's not the most beautiful place in Croatia, and the branch is mini. But, this place has become a part of me. It feels like home. I love the members of our branch so much. I love the people in Osijek. I may cry a tear or two if I have to bounce. I let president know I would never ask him to keep me in an area, but I would welcome with open arms a call to stay in Osijek. Is that bad?? I wish you could all meet these wonderful people...

So, president taught me something in our interview the other day. He was talking about how missionary work really is the most enjoyable when we want to be like the Savior. When we do that, we wake up happy every day, knowing that we will be doing the Lord's work... because that's what we want to do. I can honestly testify that the happiest times in life are when our wills are aligned with the Lord's, and we follow his commandments and guidance with courage.

Welp, it's cold up in here. I rock a scarf and dugi ivans (long johns... heh!) every day pretty much. It snowed like crazy on New Years day. It was a winter wonderland. When it snows again, were going to make the sweetest croat snowman.

Im going to the Ljub this week to get my work visa finalized. So ill be up there on wednesday and thursday.

Welp, fzam, you guys are the bomb digity. Thanks for all you do for me. Your examples make me want to be better. Jtlyk, I am happier than hades. I pray that you are too.

Cuvajte Se!

Love,

Elder Dixon

---

January 12th:

Subject: Dobar Dan, Dobar Dan!

Hey, what ep?

So, sometimes, I use phrases like what ep, bfe, and puh inadvertantly, and people dont get it. So, its nice when I read my emails and my fam uses them too and I can prove to my district that I don't just make this stuff up and Its used by at least a few other peeps. Haha, I just showed Elder Jensen mom's email w/ bfe and I was like "see??" haha

Osijek is the bomb.com. We are starting english classes again this next week. We had a sign up day on thurs and 50 more people signed up, so we will get to meet some more sweet people tomorrow! Last wk and part of this one we got out 8000 fliers, mostly in mail boxes, so its nice to see some pay off :)

So, on wed night we went to Zagreb to sleep for a night before i went to Slovenia on thurs to pick up my volunteer visa (ive been a tourist here until jan 3rdish). Elder Giberson and I are genious and missed our train to the 'Greb and so we picked up a bus later that left at 9 and arrived in Zagreb @ about 1 oclock a.m. style. Want to here the cool part? There was a stop at a city called Slovonski Brod (Slow-voan-skee Brode) and 3 people came on - 2 men and 1 woman. The woman sat next to me after the 2 men had sat down behind me. I was hesitant to talk to her, because my croatian still isn't quite to that flawless level yet and it was going to be a lengthy bus ride. But I decided to open my mouth and hoped that the Lord would back me up. We actually talked for a long time! THe conversation was in and out about the church, and I got to give her a Book of Mormon. I explained it to her - who wrote it, how we use it, and that it testifies of Christ. I shared a small testimony. When the two men who were with her saw I had given her a BoM, they asked if they could have one. I was like, sure! I only had one other copy, but I gave it to them shared a little about it and invited them to read it. I showed them all the questions of the soul. It was sweet! I hope a planted a seed for them and for Slovonski Brod where there aren't missionionaries right now. I know that if we are promted to talk to somebody and we open our mouths, God will fill them with what needs to be said. He will always help us accomplish his work!

Hey, so have you guys seen me in the January Ensign??!!! There's a picture of me teaching in the first presidency message.... Elder Jensen and I were on exchanges on a day that the Ensign people were scheduled to come to Croatia, and they took pictures of us teaching these Ukranian people! It was sweet!!! Pretty dope, huh???

So, Ive got to bzounce, but I love you!!

Peace out,

Love,

Elder Dixon

Christmas Memories in Osijek

It seems like a long time since we talked with Ryan on Christmas Day, but we still feel the great spirit he exuded as we spoke with him. As a new year dawns in Croatia, we are so delighted with the work he is doing and the good experience he is having.  Ryan's description of the first baptism service he attended in Croatia brought tears to our eyes and warmth to our hearts.

The following photo shows Ryan with Dario, a "friend of the church" who has been attending meetings in Osijek for several years.  We are sure that Ryan and his companion will continue to add to the positive relationship Dario and others like him have with the Church.

Excerpts from Ryan's last email:


Hey fam!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!! 2009... crazy... Man, it was so nice to hear your voices.

So, Christmas was dope here in Osijek. Christmas eve, we went to the house of one of the other elders investigators. His name is Ivan (eevahn). We sang christmas Carols, talked, and Elder Jensen played some hymns on the piano. Elder Jenson talked a little with them about the Restoration. They are such awesome, nice people. It was Ivan, his wife, and their two kids who are in their 20s. It was a legit missionary Christmas. Along with that came my first nasty missionary food experience. They had this potatoe salad that was sliced potatoes and this dried fish with some kind of dressing. It wasnt terrible, but definately not great. The bad thing was she kept loading up our plates. I would ration my soda, so I could take a sip after every few bites. We would finish a plate and then she would be all "Eat! If its good eat!" Then, she would proceed to dish it up for us. This happened 3 times or so, and then the bowl was gone. We thought we were good then, but then she brought out another full bowl, and we all had another serving. I thought I was going to die. It took some serious mental strength. But Im alive! And the cool night with them made up for it.

It was a sweet Christmas. We went and visited some members. We went to visit Nikola (the one who gave us fruit that i told you about on the phoner). Hes the guy who gave me an F+ on my first talk out here. That was my favorite Christmas visit, maybe. He has a kind of abrupt personality, and teases people alot and stuff. Hes hilarious and we love him, but you usually dont see his soft / happy side. But you could tell his was grateful we came on Christmas to say hi. He doesnt have any fam here in Osijek, and when we came he had been watching this american movie from the 70s with subtitles on tv. Probably the loneliest Christmas ive ever seen. But he smiled and was happy to see us. We just talked for a while, and I think we did some real good in those few minutes.

Last saturday, we had a baptism here in Osijek!!! It was for a guy named Bernard Vildman. It was such a sweet meeting. It was way low key style. There was probably 12 people there including the 6 missionaries, but it's cool to think that that quite event that not very many people knew about was sealed in the records in heaven... God was aware of Bernard and his willingness to follow Christ by entering into that covenant through baptism by the correct authority - Christ's authority. And the next day, he was given the Gift of the Holy Ghost by that authority and now has the opportunity to have its constant companionship on his journey back home... It's truely amazing. During the prelude music, I looked over at Gordana, - his wife who is already a member - sitting next to him dressed in white, and she was crying. Im sure the throught crossed her mind that someday she and her husband could be married for time AND eternity and be a forever family. Those were some amazing moments that I hope I always remember... I also had the chance to give the talk about baptism. I hope it was ok!

So, Elder Jensen told me that Gordana said something about me... She said she was sure that I had Indian ancestry. I laughed and was all, "why?" Then, he said she could tell I was indian for sure, because of my nose! Haha, pretty random eh? The Dixon nose never ceases to amaze...

Welp, I love you. I hope everything is going great. I pray for you every day!!

Love,

Elder Dixon

Christmas Call from Croatia

We had a big Christmas treat today when we got a call from Ryan in Croatia. No, he didn't call from this big phone, but our hearts were that big as we spoke with him. He sounds great. He said, "I am happier than I have ever been in my life!" Selfless service to the Lord does that to a person.

We endured a bit of technical difficulty with Skype to start out with, but that soon passed. Heidi and her family were patched in from Colorado; Dave and Angie brought their families to our house for the call. We all had a wonderful time.

Elder and Sister Manley, the couple missionaries serving with Ryan in Osijek, allowed the missionaries to come into their home and use their computers to call home. We really appreciate their generosity and all the good they do for Ryan and his companion. When I sent a message to Sister Manley thanking them for their help, she responded, "Elder Dixon was beaming when he finished his call."

Excerpts from Ryan's last email:

Subject: Merry Christmas 2008!

Hey fam!

Whats crackin?????? We are keeping it real in Osijek. Christmas is sweet up here. Croats = catholics mostly = also celebrate Christmas pretty hard core, so it's sweet.

BTW, I got that package. Idk if I told you or not. That was huge.... So we are on day 8 tonight! Haha, I have been digging the gifts... weve got a tree, and tons of gifts under it... we are loved. Weve also gotten presents from like 5 english students. Were pretty much pampered over here :]

This week i got a package from ang and my (thanks!... we are waiting til the 25th, as it were.) and letters from both grandparents and mike baser! Man, I feel so loved. Thanks everyone!!!

Welp, this week was fresh. We had a Christmas party for members slash english students slash investigators that a ton of people came to. Maja was there, pretty much the whole branch, and tons of other english students! It was fun. We played the signs game, and Croats love that...

Elder Giberson and I have been tracting in two areas lately that weve chosen and have felt good about. We havent seen much success, but yesterday we met this rad guy. We showed him a Book of Mormon, shared a bit about it. THen he started to flip through it and basically examine it. He said he had heard some bad talk about this book, but he'd have to read it for himself. We said that we knew for ourselves that this was a good book, and that it was of God. We talked about how he could know for himself through the Holy Ghost. It was such a pleasant conversation. We gave it to him, and we are going to meet with him again. I know God's guidance is in this work. Actually, this work is saturated with God's guidance, as long as we are willing to keep his commandments and submit our will to his. It really is His work and His glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

Well, I know for sure that Maja has been prepared to recieve the gospel. We are going to do all we can do to help her enter into the covenant of baptism with a burning testimony of the Savior and his work. Please keep praying for her.

Hey, so today, Elder Giberson woke up and couldn't hear very well at all out of his left ear... So, we hit up some q tips when we went shopping today, and came home, he cleaned his ears, and now he's good. Moral of the story??... We need some ear candles. It's no emergency, but in your next package, some ear candles would be greatly appreciated :] ...

This week, we went to an Adventist chruch Christmas program. It was so sweet slash erie how similar it was to a Mormon ward. They had like a primary aged group sing and give little memorized comments. They had a solid choir. There were old people, young people, and all in between. Afterwards, we all got friendshipped by like 3 people. It was a sweet program. It was a huge reminder to me that we are all the same, we're all children of God, bro's and sisters. Croats are different from Americans, but we have 50 times more in common than we do differences.

Well folks, i better go, but know that i know this gospel is God's on earth. If it wasn't, I wouldn't be as happy as I am. The gospel brings real peace, joy, comfort, strength, and guidance. Thanks for everything, especially christmas style everything. I love you so much!! I'm so excited to talk to the fam!!

Love,

Elder Dixon