Last full week in the Mission!!! One more Baptism this week! 9 Days and counting

October 12, 2015

Dear Family

So this is my last week. weird. What are some cool things that have happened. We had another sleepover. Everyone drank my dr. pepper. We also spent a few hours chopping wood for an investigator. I like chopping wood. nothing makes you want to grunt like a barbarian like splitting a log in one go. This week for church was pretty stressful. First of all elder pumford decided that we were in the choir so we gave a musical presentation, We cover two branches and we spent this sunday at one branch but all morning calling the other to set things up with our investigators there, and the zone leaders were forty five minutes late for a baptismal interview. Dealing with stuff.

but she passed so we will have a baptism my last week. that is super cool.  And that was my week. any more questions and you can ask me in person next week.😎 P.S. if you planned on mailing me anything. don't.

  

Dear Nick

   Happy birthday bud! What are you going to be for halloween. A pirate? you should be a pirate. I'm so proud of your spitting ability. would say that you are the SPITTING image of your father? Love you buddy.

Dear Dawson

  You are killing it in football. thats awesome. i don't know what to say either so I'll see you in a week

   

Dear Dad

   I hope I have a pattern  when i get back. I'm thinking I'll just focus on getting a job though. And school. And church...i got a lot to focus on don't I? It will be fun though. See you next week

Dear Mom

   I already have a speaking assignment? thats pretty nifty. So0 many people waiting for me is good. i hope i live up to expectations. Either the mission was just a really gradual process or I'm exactly the same as I was. Probably the former. I look forward to seeing you all again. next week.

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

Nathan helped teach this young man for a long time in his last area - He got baptized right after Nathan left

October 5th, 2015


Hello family. 

   Does it surprise you that this my second to last email you get from Toronto? Wierd right? This week has been great. As usual, conference was super inspirational and uplifting. my favorite was Elder Lawrence's "what lack I yet" talk. Do you ever wonder why we call them talks instead of speeches or sermons? We also have been having a lot of sleepovers lately. The kingston district is so spread out that to save time and daily mileage we have been going over to a few central apartments for a night with other missionaries when ever we have meetings. Fun times but leaves you more tired in the morning. We gave a really unique presentation during zone council. Elder Pumford and myself acted out the part of the book of mormon where ammon confronts king lamoni. That was really fun. And that was my week.

Dear Dawson

   Conference was indeed awesome. I am glad you made your team, but we all knew you would. You want to know a secret? I hated spanish too. But its cool that you are doing great. i love you buddy.

Dear Nick

  I thought your lego plane was cool. How are you doing buddy? Which tooth did you loose? a back one? I hear you are the best player on your team. That's awesome. Keep practicing and I'm sure you will lead your team to victory. Love ya champ.

Dear Dad

    He got my car impounded. That's very unsettling. Did he not come to conference? I think it will take me a few days to settle in before we can really start partying when I get back anyway. But i'm sure we'll do something fun when Shelby is here. love you dad

Dear Mom

   I'm not dead yet. I still gots tons of time. Ryan wanting to cut his own hair is pretty nifty. I am coming home in a few weeks so I really don't know what else to say. love you mom.

I love and miss you all. Elder Erasmus

Last Transfer, Another Baptism and 22 days left!!!


Sept 28, 2015

Dear Family

This week we have had a baptism. that was fun. The biggest thing though is that I have been on three exchanges the last week so that I'm hardly ever with my companion. It has been really weird. The work of course has been really good. twenty three days is still a tonne of time. We also had a zone conference. Which means every elder in the zone slept over at our apartment and ate all our food. This zone actually does a lot of sleep overs. Weird Other than that this has been a good week. love you guys.

Dear Nick

   I hear you are a dance master. that's awesome. i can't wait to see you in a few weeks buddy. I love you, even though you didn't write me...how is school going? I bet you are making lots of friends, am i right. Love you buddy.

Dear dawson

  I'm sure you'll make the team. you are an amazing athelete. The game I played was shining force. Its pretty good. i have heard about the new star wars. whenever we buy groceries we take a glance at the magazine covers and i noticed a picture of this guy with a weird light saber. i'm looking forward to seeing it with you guys. love you buddy.

dear Dad

   lots of politics in the business world I see. I hope that goes well. I Recently got email from the ysa stake. that was a little weird. One thing that all the missionaries in my zone have been trying to do is guess who the new 12 will be. any guesses? love you dad

Dear Mom

     Twenty three days is sooo much time. i don't see why you're so excited. I have heaps of time left. My companion has been out for just about a year. he's pretty cool. You could just cut ryan's hair when he's sleeping. I'm surer he wouldn't mind. Have fun at school. I bet you graduate before i do... love you mom

I love you all. see you soon ;) Elder Erasmus

 

Sept 22, 2015

Dear Family

   This week we actually went to the trenthills branch for sacrament meeting. we cover two areas, I don't know if I mentioned that. there were only about 25 people there but Elder Pumford says that that was actually the most he's seen there. Makes you really grateful to go to church where they have to put seats in the gym. we also had an investigator to pass he baptismal interview. That was fun. went on exchange with prince lowry again. That was interesting.

dear Mom

   I decided to write you first this week. What do you need from school again? an associates or a bachelors? am i the last in my group to be out on my mission? i hear of a lot of people coming home already. Elder pumford is from michigan. Sometimes he complains that the mission boundries are only an hour away from his house. i laugh at him for that. keep up the good work in school. love you mom

dear Nick

   mozzarella sticks are delicious. Foe your birthday, you should ask for a puppy. you like dogs right? Puppies will teach you responsibility and stuff. Thats what you should ask for. love you buddy

Dear dawson

   You are a champ at football. I'm sure you will be equally champ like at lax. When comes to helping gain a testimony after they read and prayed, if they still don't have one its usually because they aren't keeping a commandment which distancing themselves from god. so we invite them to repent. The things you learn right? Love you bud

dear dad

   Did ryan take my car to school? I don't remember agreeing to that. The week seems to be good then. I guess the rain is a really good thing. people have been telling me that lately america has been on fire. Long hair isn't against the honor code. at least its not as long as it doesn't touch your shirt collar. you also can't have a beard but you can have a mustache. Love you dad

I love and miss you all. Elder Erasmus

Sept 13th 2015

Hello family
   Trenton is awesome. It is a really tiny town that is also part military base and has a river that goes through it. The awesome part is that there are so many prepared people here who want to hear the gospel. We have about three people who are preparing to be baptized this transfer. thats awesome. Elder Pumford Is a really cool gut. he sings pretty well. he apparently was some famous big shot singer in his school. He makes fun of my singing. That is the low down for this week.

 Dear Nick  37 is a lot of days nick. I have loads of time left. i'm glad you have a lot of respect. that will do you good in life. What is the first thing we are going to do together when I get home? love you buddy ;

dear dawson    You're tutoring? Thats pretty cool Do people pay or do you just volunteer for extra credit or something? Anyway, great job on being awesome.. love you buddy.

dear Dad   I try to give as much details as i an, there just isn't a lot to talk about. The biggest challenge/difference between areas is there are either to many people to talk to or not enough. but such is the life of a missionary. you can read all about it in volume three of my mission journals:) i jest. is astronomy a required? I'll talk to you soon love ya dad

dear mom
  yaya ryan is in school! I got to go getting kicked off love you
 I love and miss you all
 Elder Erasmus


 Sept 8th, 2015
 Sorry i didn't email last week. The district leader showed up right as we started and took us downtown to eat legendary pizza from this place called albion's(it has shwarma pizza). They promised that we would have enough time to email when we got back. we didn't. I got transferred to trenton. Its a branch. I have never served in a branch before. should be fun. my new companion is elder pumford. he's from detroit. Trenton itself is a pretty small town. should be fun

 Dear dawson
   Dude that is like the longest email you have ever wrote me. the first thing i want to do is probably watch frozen. i know you don't like it but it is seriously everywhere up here and i hate being the only person who doesn't know what its about. don't worry, i'll teach you how to drive when i get back.

 dear nick
You get to run the ball? thats pretty cool. What is your favorite movie to come out since I've been out? Is it guardians of the galaxy? we'll watch it together in six weeks. love ya!

Dear dad
  Vacation must have been fun. I swear though, every other week someone goes to bear lake since i have been out. I didn't know you can watch highschool football online. My companion is rushing me so I have to go. Love ya

 Dear mom
     Hi mom sorry about your foot. Brock has a job at bear lake? thats weird. I really have to get going now sorry. i'll talk to you soon though. love you guys bye.

UPDATE - wow so behind

August 24th

Dear Family.

  This week has been a tough one. We have had a hard time finding anyone to teach. This sunday was especially eventful. We had to go early to help the other elders set up the font for the baptism. It overflowed and water was all over the meeting house. i didn't know fonts could overflow. Also this crazy recent convert from the don mills ward showed up. She has a bad habit of picking a missionary in the zone and stalking them. So I had to spend a good chunk of the meetings dealing with that. She tried to pass the sacrament with me. Finally after church these two people came to the church ant told us they had a bit of a family emergency and needed help moving. There wasn't enough room in their cab so got to ride in the back of the truck. That made us miss the baptism. Fun Day. We also went bowling...

Dear Nick

   What was your favorite retro disney movie so far? Does corner canyon have a little league football or do you play for alta? What grade are you in by the way. Fourth? I don't remember. What color is your crayon robot? is it blue? Love you body

Dear dawson

   How is football going? I hear you're taking a tonne of honors courses. Thats awesome. I remember that i took a ton in my freshman year but when I went alta I was a little overwhelmed. Make sure you stay on top of your homework. Love you bro.

Dear Ryan

   College is fun. Do you have a roommate? Do I have to email you at a different email now that you live somewhere else? Are we still going to hang out? I guess we'll just have to see. You haven't told me what you want to be when you grow up. How about a fireman? love you champ.

Dear dad.

   I'll probably be here the rest of my mission. I only have about a transfer more. Is dawson on the varsity team? Dawson's a big kid but he's not that big. i couldn't play on the line in highschool because I weighed under 190. I don't know. I'll definately eat mom's cooking but i don't really like cheese cake. Love you dad

Dear Mom

   Exactly at what time do I have to apply for school? I assume I have to do it before december if I want to go in january. The thing with missionaries is that we do very weird things to predict transfers. For example, any picture with nick in it probably meant they would baptize a 9 year old. Weird things like that. By the way, DON'T RESPOND TO ASHLEY! SHE'S CRAZY! love you mom

Elder Erasmus. Love ya

August 17, 2015

Dear Family

    You guys want to hear a funny story? So in our mission we have a lot of areas that don't have cars so to help missionaries get around they have something called a transfer van. I've never got to ride in the transfer van before but I have heard cool stories about it. One of them is there's these weird pictures in the back seat which have been cut out. You pick one of them and that helps you predict your transfer. This week we had a zone meeting and since only about four areas in our zone have cars, we got to borrow the transfer van. Naturally i was curious about these strange pictures in the back seat. So i sat in the back to look through them. They were the christmas ornaments you guys sent me my first transfer. I'm officially old enough that I accidentally created a legend in the mission. Yay. Also there was a baptism this week.

dear Nick

  You got to be the very best, like no one ever was. keep being a champ bro. Sand castles are also fun. i also am a slow typer. Which is why I don't write very much. it takes too long. Love you bud

Dear Dawson

  Yeah, typing is the worst. But at least you have super fun things to type about. I hear you went off the line this year. How is that going? Do you get the to run with the ball? Why is johnny black? Love you dude.

Dear Ryan

 There was a mountain lion that came to bridle point a few years ago. I remember that they made a big deal out of the footprints. What courses are you taking in school? what are you majoring in? Will you still be dating highschool girls? Thats creepy. Love you buddy.

Dear dad

    How are things? I have two months left I have less weeks than my companion has transfers. It feels weird. But what are we going to do when we get home? love you dada

Dear mom

    Sergio is doing fine. How often do you guys go to bear lake? it seems like every other email i get says you've gone. i think what I'm going to do when i get home is just find a job and work till january. then go to school. I might just go to slcc because its cheap but who knows. I know i won't have any friends BECAUSE THEY'RE ALL MARRIED!!! Love you mom

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

ps. sorry its short. shelby rushed me.

   

    

August 10, 2015

Dear family

    I have had a rather stressful week. You would think that the wrd would be excited to have a baptism, but sine it was on a Friday morning... I guess to many people just have jobs and things. we ended up having to do it all. i was also called to give a talk on thursday. Between the baptism, our zone meeting, and our other missionary meetings I had no time to prepare anything. I guess the gift of gab is a spiritual gift, because i was able to give a pretty good talk for about twenty five minutes. The week all in all has just been tough. but at least now its over!

Dear Nick

   WHY IS JOHNNY BLACK!?!? Sorry but there are a lot of Fantastic four posters over here and I never understood that. I'm not a racist. i don't mind having a black super hero, but his sister is white. What the heck. what position of football do you play? I bet you're going to be great. love you bud.

Dear Dawson

   i get it, you're busy. I'll just assume that football has been really tough. just remember that you are tougher. you can reach your dreams man YOU CAN REACH YOUR DREAMS! Have fun at football practice.

Dear Ryan

    You guys play smash bros at the office? Thats cool that you are the best. that's only going to make me feel better when I beat you. Also You may have a head start on school but I have direction. What do you want to be when you grow up anyway? Love you buddy.

Dear dad

  I don't have travel plans yet... Thats weird. Is nick better than me at football? Second counselor huh. What does the sunday school presidency actually do? I've been to several wrd councils in several wards and I'm still not entirely sure. Love you dad

Dear Mom

   We are actually told specifically NOT to do any ordinance ourselves if we can get a member to to it. That being said the we were in the circle while bishop rae was confirming. When am I coming home by the way? Wait don't tell me. it will be a surprise. tell Dawson and nick I'll be rooting for them. Love you mom.

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

August 4, 2015

Dear Family

    Well sergio is getting baptized this weekend. Thats super fun. This week we have been having quite a few rain storms. I'm all about the water this week. We've been soaked. A little bit about my new companion. He's from idaho, youngest of five. First missionary in his family....Thats it. This week has been lacking in the diversity the mission usually provides.

Dear nick

   YaY! Scouts is fun. Why did you get a whip a t star wars camp? They didn't give out lightsabers or blasters? Here is a bit of star wars trivia for you. Which member of the jedi council can breathe under water? Love you bro.

Dear Dawson

   I'm really excited to be back...but thats still a few months away. Did you go to the tetons camp or some new one this year? Camp is always fun. But how does lighting a forrest on fire make it look better? More exciting maybe, but better? Love you dude.

Dear Ryan

    My heaps and heaps of natural talent will surely make me the best smasher almost instantly. Being friends with a leader is always fun, but remember not to get too close. Remember when brothe shane tried to "fix" your hat. Good luck finding a car. Love you bro

Dear dad

   I thought Nick was your favorite? Do you know who josh got married to? You know with shelpby ryan and myself going off to school, the house will be a lot more quiet. I'm sure you'll have a lot more free time. Love you dad.

Dear mom

   Have you tried using the pearl of great price for your lesson? Thats where most of the temple stuff is. Its easier to believe she has been married that long when you have the mindset of "shelby got married, then I went on a mission, and now I'm almost done. ARRGGGHHHHH!" But yeah. Every one I know is old and married now, I get that. Who am I suppose to hang out with when I get back? Love you mom

July 27, 2015

Dear Family.

    Transfers happened. I'm staying and Elder Munoz is going to kitchner. I don't like this whole stating places longer business. I feel like it is sucking some excitement out of transfers and the area. My new companion is elder ray. I don't know anything about the guy. Sorry this letter is so short.

Dear Nick.

    Bear lake sounds really fun. Sunburns suck though. It seems like you go to bear lake alot since I started my mission. I look forward to spending some time with you guys there when I get back. love you buddy.

Dear Dawson.

   Tubing is always the best. I'm super glad you had fun. Give nick a little bit of a break. Things hurt alot more when you're ten. What are some of the coolest movies/video games that i need to experience when I get back? keep being awesome bro. You're a stud!

 Dear Ryan

   Montana sounds fun. Are you doing rock climbing and horse back riding and other adventurous things. Don't spend too much money on your new car. You want to look good but as long as it gets you from point a to b you should be fine. love ya.

Dear Dad
     Makenna is a hero. Now if only I could be at bear lake and get some memories. So your the fun uncle in the family. Thats cool. My mission is doing awesome. I don't like staying in areas too long but I guess Scarborough is as good a place to stat as any. Love you dad.

Dear Mom

  I did indeed buy shoes last week. I'm pretty sure they're nice because they are rather pinchy. I emailed papa joe, grand mother, ouma, and oupa but then I ran out of time last week. Temple prep was a good class. Too bad i went after I went to the temple...oops. Love you mom

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus 

July 20, 2015

Dear family

   

    This week has been... kinda uneventful. We only got to teach a handful of lessons and didn't get any crazy tracting stories or anything. We did teach our progressing investigator sergio. That was really spiritual. Transfers are coming up. elder munoz has been here awhile but Sergio speaks mostly spanish, so if he gets transferred i better get another spanish speaker. my shoes exploded again. I can literally see through my heel. It kind of hurts to walk in them. We had the steak. We marinaded it in dr. pepper and those flavor packets that come from instant raman. it was delicous, but i think we might have under cooked it. Exactly how much blood are you supposed to leave in them?

Dear Nick.

   I have sent all the pictures i have taken. i'm just not that photo happy. I play this game on my mission where we look at movie posters on the sides of busses and stuff and try to gues the plot of the movie. I thought the dinosaurs would accept one of the humans as one of their own. did that happen? Also the new fantastic four poster looks silly. I'm glad you are one of the big boys now. Love you bro.

Dear Dawson

    Foot ball boot camp is always fun. I remember my sophomore year everyone just fell asleep on the football field right as the whistle blew because they were too tired to move. how powerful is your laser? can you see it on the moon? Keep being a champ bro?

Dear Ryan

   You are going to school before me...Thats weird. so is your plan to do one year then go on a mission or you just going to graduate first? is the new starfox more like starfox adventure or starfox assault? If its like assault, AWESOME. If its like adventure meh. Love you bro. Thanks for taking care of my car.

Dear mom

     I still only get thirty minutes to email. Writing you guys takes almost the entire time. mostly because I keep getting distracted but still. so far i haven't had any baptisms. they are the Lord's, not mine. but I have helped five people be baptized so far. I plan on getting that up to at least six before i leave though. Also i forgot you went back to school. It's weird not being in school but that will come. Love you mom

Dear Dad

   I don't speck car. It has been really hot lately. Like, 46 degrees. And its super humid. How does nick do at sports. better than the dandylion picker? How are things going with work and stuff? can't wait to hang out when i get back. Love you Dad

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

July 13, 2015

Dear Family

   This week I learned an important lesson on cleanliness. A member was gong to be kicked out of her apartment for lack of maintenance. She wanted our help cleaning it. It took three days. It is important to be tidy. I also got to give an instruction in one of our zone training s. How to receive answers to prayers. That was fun. I used the story of the two disciples on the road to emmaus who didn't recognize Jesus even though their hearts "burned within" them. The spanish investigator is doing well. He speaks pretty good english so I can communicate with him but the lessons we teach in spanish. Also this week elder Munoz lost his bus pass so we had to walk everywhere. Not so fun but it was an adventure.

Dear Nick

  I sent pictures last week. How many do you want? I'll make you a deal, give me a fe months and you can see my face whenever you want :) Your new game sounds fun. I'm sorry you had cavaties. I actually chipped a tooth this week(don't tell mom). We were playing kickball on p-day and this elder who used to be in the military ran into me. Luckily its one of my back ones so no one noticed. love you buddy

Dear Dawson

  YAAAY lacrosse. GO FIGHT WIN. I bey you had a good time. love you champ.

Dear Ryan.

     I was actually planning on buying a motorcycle when i got back because I thought Dad would make you give the car to dawson. But i'm totally ok with keeping it. What do you do for work again? You don't work at that grocery store do you? Keep being a champ. love you dude.

Dear Dad

    I'm still working hard don't worry. It is getting kind of weird looking at the missionaries in the district and thinking "Wow, I have less weeks than you have months." but mostly I'm good. Dawson should keep the scar. Scars make people look cool. love you dad.

Dear Mom

    Too many people are getting married. Its weird. I still feel like i just graduated high school.

July 6, 2015

Dear Family

       I didn't go to Africa, but i did go to the zoo which is almost as good. I'm not very good at taking pictures. I looked through my camera and all I had was pictures of monkeys and that. oops. Cool stories from this week. We talked to this one less active member about repentance. He told us a story that about ten years ago he was living with the hopi in Arizona and they took him to one of their sacred messas. When no one was looking he snatched a tonne of broken pottery with pictures of temples on them. He belives that the hopi are descendants of the anti nephi lehites because of the weird traditions they have. As part of the repentance he gave us his box of pieces and now we are working with the byu archeology department to date them and get them back to the hopi. That is cool...right? Other things that happened, During fast and testimony meeting this visitor from mexico asked Elder Munoz to translate her testimony for her. In it she exclaimed that her brother wanted to be baptized and that was why they were visiting the ward. Little miracle for us right there.

Dear Mom

   I am confused how much detail you want. our days are pretty much exactly the same so if I told you everything it would be the same letter ovoer and over again. Do you remember those little poppers that you told me not to take with me when I left on the mission. I took them. We celebrated the fourth of july by throwing them at eachother. I don't know what viviant is but I like the idea of having a job lined up. As for school, I have no idea what to do there but i think I'll have time to think about that since I come home in october...Which is three months away. Yikes. Love you mom

Dear Dawson

    how much do those three plates weigh? How much can you bench? I know you do a tonne of sports lately. What do you do when you are not doing sports? Do you still hang out with brady? Just keep being a little champ. Love you bud.

Dear Nick

   Is splatoon the game where you throw squid looking things at people? I saw that at a frozen yogurt stand. Sounds like you had tonnes of fun in Affrica. It was probably nicer that you raced the kid for your hat. It allows him to keep his pride. Don't get so excited about the cavaties thing. I never feel like I have them but I always do. Which sucks cause I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who actually flosses in the family. keep being a super star though. love you dude.

Dear Dad

   Fire works in the pool. Yikes. I understand what you mean with people not taking time to enjoy life. As a missionary it seems like everybody you talk to is in a hurry even if they are just chilling at home. I look forward to just spending time with you guys... NOT THAT I'M TRUNKY!! LOve you dad.

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

June 29, 2015

Dear Family

  This week has been an interesting one. We had a zone conference in sudburry. That is about six hours north of toronto. It was fun. We had an instruction on family history work the importance of keeping the Sabbath holy, and flossing. Apparently too many missionaries come home with less teeth than they came out with. We  also have been doing alot of service with yard work and helping people move. The problem was that people aren't really ready for us when we get there so we ended up cleaning their entire house. Yay. Also it has been non stop raining all week so our finding hasn't been too effective. We don't really celebrate too many patriotic holidays in this mission(4th, canada day0 but I hear the ward might do a barbecue so that should be good.

love you guys

Elder Erasmus 

June 22, 2015

Dear Family,

Well I'm glad affrica was fun. I didn't hear from you guys so I was scared. Not everyone can be in nice cushy countries like canada. 

    This week has been an adventure. I lost my companion and it took two hours to find him. He didn't get off the bus with me and then he got on the wrong one trying to get back. I also went on exchanges into mandarin work. I do not speak mandarin. But i figured out that if you give a pass along card with two hands they think its some sort of present. And that was pretty much my week. Love you guys.

On Sun, Jun 21, 2015 at 2:46 PM, Mary Erasmus <erasmusmary@comcast.net> wrote:

Dear Nathan

Hello from Africa!   Sitting at the airport waiting for our night plane!  We have had a wonderful time!  You would love it here, we have seen so much and done some fun things!  We will send you pictures as soon as we get home!, I only have 5 min of wifi, so just know I love you tons - so proud of you, you are the best!

Love,

Mom

June 15, 2015

Dear Family

   How is Africa? See any rhinos? So transfers were this week. I am still in scarborough. Not too sure how I feel about that. I feel like i am falling into a pattern of staying in places for too long. I don't like it. I'm also still with Elder Munos. I just realize i have two transfers after this one then i'm done. Kinda trunky but I'll work through it. I look forward to reading how your trip went. love you guys

June 7, 2015

Dear Family.

  We went to the zoo as a p- day activity. It is apparently the biggest zoo in Canada. It was ok. The main attraction was these two panda bears. I'm still not entirely convinced that they weren't just two guys in panda suits. Maybe Panda's just have very human like movements. I would send you a tonne of pictures, but I don't have time this week. Sorry. Shelby tells me you guys are in Zimbabwe. How many elephants have you seen? Our week was pretty good. One of our investigators had to be rushed from the sacrament meeting because she  had some severe stomach pain. Crazt stuff. But all is well now. love you guys.

Elder Erasmus

June 1, 2015

Dear Family

   I swear I get less time every week. The area only has one library card(we are in the process of getting another one. These things take a lot more effort as a missionary) so It's Elder Munoz's turn to use it. That means I have a whopping five minutes to type. Yay. This week it has been really rainy and really warm. That is a terrible combination. We have these two really awesom investigators named mikka and kevin that are doing well. I went on exchanges into cantonese work. Had no idea what was going on since my companion didn't speak english.And we planted like four big ol pine trees. That was my week. now I have to write to the mission president. Love you guys.

Elder Erasmus

May 24, 2015

Dear Family 

   We're at a different library this week so we have even less time. Yay. We fasted this week. It wasn't fast sunday but we felt like it. I have never fasted before my mission but now I feel Like I understand it better. That was my spiritual experience. This week we did a tonne of service and yard work for non members. that was fun. the only problem is that sometimes we stayed out till 9;45. our curfew is 9:00. OOPS! 

Dear Nick

    I'm glad you had an OK time this weekend. But hey weddings are fun. I saw an advertisement for tomorrowland on the side of a bus. At first I was like WAAAAAA but then I got really curious. How does it end? Love you bro

Dear Dawson

    Sorry your sick bro. I hope you get better. Remember that you are not a senior that doesn't have to worry about school next year. Keep up the good work.

Dear Ryan

   Love you bro. Happy summer

Dear Dad

   I'm not sure if peter was just following the plan. In the garden he had loads of adrenaline going on that gave him courage but at the trial it was a much calmer situation. Its just like when he walked on water. Right after the storm and seeing the LORD he had no problems leaving the boat. Once he took some time to think about it he started to sink. Just my two cents though. Love you dad

Dear Mom

   First rule of school. Do the minimal work nesicary to get a good grade, otherwise you go insane. Weddings are fun though. I still can't believe people I went to school with are married. Thats so weird. I hope you have a fun time at africa love you say hi to Grandmother and papa joe for me. I'm getting kicked off.

I love and miss you all. Elder erasmus

May 19, 2015

Dear Family.

   Being in a bus are is hard to get around. It's not so much confusing as it is bothersome to wait for twenty minutes just standing there. But i have a good attitude...I promise. I'm back to having language study with Elder munoz. To help him learn english, I've taught him the basics of constructing jokes and then grading the ones he says through out the day. We are meeting with some pretty cool people. One of them is named xiomara and is from Jamaica. She's awesome. I can't wright for too long today. I'm back to using library computers so i only have a limited time.

Dear Ryan

   Senioritis, am i right? Hunting would be fun but given the history of our family and the nature of your visit, they'll probably won't let you anywhere near a gun. But yeah, elephant rides and stuff. Love you bud.

Dear Dawson

    FOOTBALL!!!! You gonna be a running back? Or a line backer. You look like a linebacker. Big but fast. Have fun in africa. When do you leave again? love you champ.

Dear Nick

    Wow. your coach seems rich. Are you excited for africa? I bet you a thousand dollars its cooler than canada....At least not counting your super cool brother. Love you bro

Dear Dad

   A projector from japan you say? Is that where you guys watch arrow and the rest of those shows. Dawson tells me that is now in like its third season and i vaguely remember you talking to me about watching it near the beggining of my mission. Father son camping trips are always fun i have always found the actual "camping" to be unenjoyable. sleeping on rocks and all that. But it sounds like a good time. love you dad

dear Mom

   i'm sorry about your arm. Double shifts are hard too. But hey, Africa. not many people can say they have been there. has Shelby really been studying for that long? It seems like yesterday she went to byu for the first time. Brock is now married. Thats so weird. have fun in africa. Love you mom

i love and miss you all  Elder Erasmus


5/11/2015

Dear Family

   Happy mother's day by the way. I always forget that part. So we talked yesterday....Love you bye.

May 4, 2015

Dear Family.

    So transfers are this week and I finally got the call. Did you know that one third of the entire Canadian population lives in Toronto and that Scarborough is the most ghetto section of that city. Guess wher I'm going. SCARBOROUGH!!! Sorry i can't have to long of an email today. Packing and stuff. My new companion is a native to panama named nephi munoz. Thats about all I know about him and the area. Should be fun. Love you guys.

Elder Erasmus 

April 27, 2015

Dear Family

    Well it snowed. So much for spring. But other than the week has been really good. Right after our district meeting we ran into a member who needed service. We helped him out and he bought the entire deistrict lunch. thats pretty swanky. We actually Didn't have a normal sunday service this week. The church did a broadcast for the entire north east north america region. It was really good. We also went waterfall hunting today so pictures pending.

Dear Nick

  There is a second Paul blart ? Thats weird. I'm also pleased to hear sports are going well. I also went on a hike but i didn't get a penalty...Or watch disney movies. I'll see you soon bud

Dear Dawson

   You kick jackson's butt, you hear. Also have fun watching avengers. I always like your emails. They're so packed with detail its riveting. love you buddy

Dear Ryan

    Happy B-Day bro. You are going to be an official adult. That is so cool! You get to vote, and pay taxes, and be charged as an adult instead of a minor, and have to be responsible. Being an adult is the best! I'll cath you on the flippity flop bro.

Dear Mom

   Car crash oh no. Mother's day is on the tenth this year, yeah? That will be next transfer so I have no idea where I will be. Maybe I'll still be here. Its good to hear nick is now being introduced to some of the classics of disney. Thanks for the prayers. Kris is really coming along well. Love you mom

Dear dad

   YAY No more sickies. being sick is gross. Man, I haven't had steak in so long. I kinda want some. Would that be weird to mail me steak? This week for me has been great. Thanks for being aawesome. Love you Dad.

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

April 20, 2015

Dear Family.

  We went bowling today. I forgot to bring my camera but another elder said he would email me pictures. Patience is a virtue. This week has been up and down with the weather. Good news, its up to 20 degrees. Bad news, it won't stop raining.  We did find out that chris's mom is actually a less active member and that Chris doesn't actually live with his grandfather. The plot thickens. We did find a few new investigators. That was also fun.

Dear Nick

   Wow. Another math wiz. Yay our family is smart...Kinda. I'm glad you had fun this week. just got the picture.

Alright keep writing. Its pretty cool that you got to compete and stuff. I also can't believe it snowed there more than here. Thats crazy. Love you bro.

Dear Dawson

   I think in canadian...Its not that weird. So How are you doing? what's new with your life. Avengers sounds fun. We'll totes watch it when I come home.

Dear Ryan

  Prom! according to every disney channel movie that is the most important event in your teenage life. But thats just disney. Who you gonna take? try to find somewhere fun to work at like seven peaks or a movie theater so you can get discounts during the summer for friends and family. Love you dude.

Dear Dad & Mom

  pretty cool how you got out of a speeding ticket. You might have to teach me how to do that someday. I can also concur that most European food is gross. Lots of European people live in Canada. So many cool movies members try to talk to me about that I have no idea. Even my companions have seen a tonne of movies I haven't. I miss it a bit. Love you 

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

April 13, 2015

Dear Family
 I had to buy new pants this week. I've been wearing the same pair of pants my entire mission, but this week I spilled soup and ruined them. Oh well. On the plus side of life, The weather has been really nice. That only means in a few weeks, I will be more sweaty and miserable than you can possibly imagine. YAY CANADA!!!!! Not alot happened this week but i have been having a good time.

Dear Nick

    I'm sorry to hear you got sick bud. That sucks. How was joseph's home coming? I Bet bu the time I come home you will be the best bowler in the family though. I love you bud.

Dear dawson. 

    I'm sorry your week was uneventful. Maybe this week will be better though. You could go and have an adventure. Adventures are fun. Love you dude.

Dear Ryan

   I'm glad that you had a swell time at St, george. Did you know that even though canada has 711 they don't have slurpees? Thats ridiculous. Did you have help finishing off the whole thing or did somebody help you? Love you bro.

Dear dad

   Being sick is never fun. I hope you feel better this week. I'll definitely be praying for you. How warm is it in utah right now? I bet the sun is really shining. I'm sure soaking up some vitamin d will get you back on your feet in no time. Love you Dad

Dear Mom

   yay Joseph is home. I feel like I haven't talked to him in over two years. I hope You are feeling better. being sick sucks. Thanks for all you do mom. Your the best. Love ya

I love and miss you all.

Elder Erasmus

April 6, 2015

Dear Family

   I LOVE CONFERENCE! It was so spiritual. The only problem was that all the saturday talks were about parenthood and stuff and now i really want to get married. I have to wait six months for that though. Bummer. The rest of the week was ok too. We got to meet with our mission president on friday. We had a zone council with skills and interviews. Some guy just moseyed on in and thought it was an easter meeting. Missionaries, easter. pretty much the same thing. We did have some issues. We still have trouble finding new investigators or even meeting with the ones we have. While we were watching conference the satelite signal died on us so we missed about three talks. but its cool. Someone had an ipad we could crowd around. So yeah. Fun week.

Dear Nick

   What do you want to know about missionary work? i pretty much just walk around and talk to everybody I see about the gospel. Its not like everytime is this huge experience where I have to overcome my own self consciousness. i just talk to everyone. How's bear lake? Did you go swimming or is it still too cold for that. Keep me posted on your week. Love you bud.

Dear Dawson

   I don't really see how bowling is supposed to help your lacrosse game, but it sounds like you had a good time. How many more games to you have this season? is it a year round thing? Also, THERE'S THREE SEASONS OF ARROW!?!? I guess thats what happens when you are gone for two years but I didn't think I would get that far behind. Also, Also Ras al ghul is a batman villian, What is he doing there. Love you champ

dear Ryan

    How was st george? Do anything fun? Did you at least watch conference? Email me about your week when you get back. Love you

Dear dad
 real jack rabbits you say. That sounds exciting. Was Uncle noel and his family there the entire time? that wasn't really clear. I'm sorry about your cough. Maybe teaching Dawson about driving is just what you need. Love you Dad

Dear Mom

   I really like president uchtdorf's talk on grace and commandments. It really put everything we do in perspective. According to Nick and dad, you seem to be a pretty extreme sportswoman. The family seems to be doing ok. I'm sure ryan will make the right choices in his life. he's a good kid. Love you mom

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

March 30, 2015

Dear Family

   My new companion is Elder Smith from tremonton Utah. I don't know where that is but he says its close to Logan. he seems like a pretty cool guy.He's new. he has only been out six months and he spent all of that in downtown Toronto. This may come as a bit of a surprise, but Niagara is all farm land. i don't know exactly how well he will adjust. This week has been really good. we are in a bit of a rebuilding phase right now and we were able to find an awesome new investigator. We were dropping by some less active members and they said they would love to come back to church and have their grandson baptized. Little miracles and stuff. 

Dear Nick

   Hey bud. Sorry I you felt tired. How are you doing? I heard you did good at your lacrosse game. Is football still big in the family? I know its winter but i still feel like it has not been talked about that much. But at least you are still having fun. Love you dude.

Dear Dawson

     How goes it my brother? Turning fifteen this week, wow. You are gonna be able to drive soon.  How pumped are you? Just remember to check your mirrors. And put up the barking brake when you are on a hill. that one always gets me. Love you buddy.

Dear Ryan

   You guys don't have spring break till April. We already had it here...it was snowing...Yay. Welcome to Canada. Thats what people say here. So you plan on going to St george? Very cool. You going rock climbing and stuff or just hanging out with friends? Does that count as senior trip? We're going to have to have a hobbit marathon when I get back. How many movies are there now? Anyway, Love you champ.

Dear Dad

   I have no idea who lanny is but good for her. Also, AI LOVE ANGEL FOOD CAKE!!! That stuff is delicious. How is work going? I imagine with the sunny arizonaesque summer you've having there haven't been too many car accidents to get you patients. Do you and applegate split the money fifty fifty or is there a commission thing going on? I hope its all going well. Also it seems like india is becoming the new affrica when it comes to movies. Especially when all the people here in canada talking about the staring children... in india. weird. anyway , love you dad

Dear Mom

   That was indeed the first time I went on my mission. Pretty cool, eh? We always watch conference at the church. Its kind of a missionary party. Sometimes members show up too. The majority of your children will be graduates by the end of the year. man, how time flies.love you mom.

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

    

Walking from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario in Freezing Cold Weather. . . My Karate Skills are still AWESOME! . . . Sick again :(

;

March 9, 2015

No letter this week. Sick. Just came to st. cats to get a blessing. gonna go puke now. love you

March 2, 2015

Dear Family
  This week has been full of excitement. We got to go to sports again last week for p-day. There was a member of the downtown ward who taught self defense. I didn't worry to much about that and just did the normal sports stuff(kill ball, chair soccer and other such things) with the rest of the zone. After word I made a joke about being stabbed because I didn't take the class to one of the missionaries who did.  I wasn't being negative or anything just said with my luck I would be the one who gets jumped. The instructor than handed me a rubber knife and asked me to attack him. I did. He could stop me for awhile but I ended up throwing him to the ground and stabbing him several times in the back...I don't know how I'm supposed to feel about that. On one hand I just beat a professional martial artist at his own game, but I think I might have hurt his pride while doing it. I thanked him very much for the instruction and said that I wished I went to that instead, but I don't know if that helped.  Just one of those things that happen. If you can find the moral to that story, more power to you. This week we also went on exchanges with a missionary in the zone. He's only five years old...kinda. He got amnesia when he was seventeen. He didn't even know how to feel emotions or anything. So that was fun as well, as fun as it could be. Lots of fun. We also had a few investigators at church and either one or two are getting baptized next week.

Dear Nick
     Your week sounds fun as well. The funeral might have been sad but that's only because a lot of people are going to miss him. How is Hyrule warriors? It sounds like a fun game. I remember Ryan emailing me about it way back when I was in Brampton. He said something about link using a scarf. Is it some kind of whip weapon or something? Love you champ.

Dear Dawson  
Your week sounds more fun than mine. Vegas is always an adventure. Are you going to keep in touch with that Canadian girl? I think this is the most of you ever wrote to me on my mission. Seriously, your letter is huge. I hope you keep it up slugger. Do you like lax more than football now? or are you just that all around amazing athelete. Love you bud

 Dear Ryan  
Come on dude, Camp Alma is a blast. That's where we got our spirit animals remember? Anyway, where did you go shopping? Did you go to that mall that has that river thingy in it, or just south town? Is Alicia your new girl or is she just a friend? I have a hard time remembering you have gone on a date with. Anyway, love you bro

Dear Mom
  One of the zone leaders investigators was getting baptized so someone else had to do the interview. Also, I'm pretty sure there is a rule against interpreting other peoples' patriarchal blessings. Anyway, that was a lot of funerals in a short time span. I guess they both went well. I only ever went to two funerals on my mission so far but i don't think they went as well. I guess having the gospel more abundantly in your life really helps with that. Love you mom

Dear Dad    Thanks dad. I hope your knee is doing better. I've been praying for you. I really miss going to movies with you and talking about them after. That was always fun. Well, I guess I'll see you soon. love you pops ;

 I love and miss you all
 Elder Erasmus


February 23, 2015

Dear Family
     Well we got the car back on Thursday, so no more trekking through the frozen tundra on foot. We also went on exchanges with the zone leaders. We hardly did any missionary work during that time. So I went to the ZLs area with elder Vang, who can't drive. While we were there we got a call from some sister missionaries in the Oakville area. In our mission the zone leaders have some cash stored away so if there is any medical expenses they can be paid. She had to get some blood work done...in a middle of a blizzard...two hours away. YAY! After driving that distance we found out that the sisters didn't check the schedule for the clinic. It was closed. So we got to drive another two hour back...in a blizzard. YAY! Then we got to do a baptismal interview which took awhile. And lastly we had an appointment with the branch leader in Thorold. That is my area but they are in the ysa so they cover that. Takes about an hour to get there in good weather, but we all know that doesn't exist in Canada. So another two hours both ways. Pretty much nine hours of driving all day. Elder Vang didn't plan the exchange the best he could have. We didn't get back in time so we had to stay the night with the zone leaders who only had two beds and no carpets...I'M NOT BITTER! but yeah, my week was fun. We also had two new investigators and one who came to church, so that is good.

 Dear Nick
   Sounds like you had fun at boondocks. I really don't know what you are talking about with the whole xd thing but it sounds nice. Shooting robots always is. Do you know what kinda dog they got? Is it a tiny dog or is it just small because its a puppy? love you bro

Dear Dawson   Hows lacrosse going? I hear you are a little champ. Thats good. 

;I just want to inform you that the wifi cut off so now I'm in a completely different city using a completely different computer. Don't you feel special. Anyways, It sounds like you had an amazing week of food fun and lacrosse. I appreciate your emails. love you champ.

 Dear Ryan ; 
 I'm glad you had an amazing date. I bet you had fun. Send me pictures next time, eh. I just typed 'eh'. That is the weirdest thing but I have started to use that. What do you know about this zelda tv series? I assume it will be live action if it is like game of thrones. Do they have a cast list yet or has it just been announced? I love you dude. Keep me updated. Are you going to become an elder as soon as you turn eighteen or are you gonna wait a little bit? You are the best. 

Dear Dad,
   My boots and coat work fine. Especially since I ware several layers under that. That is the secret, layers. I didn't know you spoke shona. Is that like affricaanse or different? How many languages do you know

 Dear Mom
 I do not remember uncle Alma. But it does sound like the funeral was very interesting and enjoyable. 97 is a good age. I'm doing really good, but between the pictures of Zack and Shelby bragging about the heat does make me feel slightly green. I'll get over that though. Love you mom.

February 17, 2015

Dear Family

   So crazy stuff this week. Way back in November Elder Lowry crashed the car before I got here so we have been driving around with a huge gash across the grill. No big deal,  It's just aesthetics right? Well we finally got permission from the insurance to get it fixed. No big deal. only a day or two. EXCEPT NOT! We have been walking all week because the crash messed with the spark plugs or something so we won't have the car fixed until much later. So we have been walking. You know those two investigators I told you about? Well one lives in Fort Erie(next to lake erie) and the other one lives in Niagara on the lake(next to lake ontario). So we have been walking literally from one side of our area to the other. Kinda makes me feel like one of the first missionaries who had to walk to the east coast to proselyte. It's been fun. Especially since it hasn't stopped snowing since last Tuesday. I'm not even sure where the edges of the road are anymore. We did get to celebrate St. Valentines day with the ward though. They through a valentines day dance and dinner with a dessert competition. Only about seventy people showed up because of the weather. For dessert I made a pizza thing. Since we don't have the time or resources that other members have I had to be creative. First I made a big cookie with the dough tubes you buy at walmart. Then I added a layer of jam and another layer of vanilla pudding. I topped it with strawberries cut the long way to look like pepperonis. It totally looked like a pizza and it only took thirty minutes. I didn't win. The week has been pretty fun in general.

 Dear Nick
  Wow you're cool. I don't send pictures because I don't take pictures. I've been in the same area for almost five months. I like your dream. Are you going to try to get a pet lizard now or are you too scared the cat will eat it? I would get one just for fun. I don't know if you know this, but when we lived on the mountain, me and Ryan would go out and catch lizards in the park and stuff. I bet its warm enough for you to catch them too if you look really hard. love you bud.

 Dear Dawson  
 WHY ARE YOU YELLING?!? Sorry but that's just how I feel when you type to me in all caps. So you have another lax tournament coming up. How many of those do you think you have a year? I don't know how long my hair will be. Mom said she wouldn't bug me about it after my mission, but I don't want it to be unmanageable. I'll let you know when I get back. Love you champ

 Dear Ryan
   I didn't date much. That's my history. There's always the classic paintball, laser tag, mini golf thing. Those are pretty much all the dates I've been on. How much do you get paid in your new job? Is it just minimum wage or do you get commission or something? I don't know how to get mom and dad off your back. Try reading your scriptures in the family room or go an entire week without saying a mean thing to anyone. I don't know. Just keep hanging in there. Love you bro.

 Dear Dad
  I'm in a district leader area but Elder Warner does most of the follow up calls. I think he's technically the district leader but the we do the same things and I go to all the leadership meetings and stuff. Besides zone leaders and assistants, we don't really have a set leadership in our mission. Sounds like you are having a blast with the weather though. If you don't feel like you have enough cold, you can borrow some of mine. Temple prep sounds fun. I didn't start going until after I was endowed but it was fun. I'm sure you'll do fine. Just remember to tell them that you have to clean the goat before you bring it. Jokes. I'll just pray that you will get patients and hope that is vague enough for Heavenly Father to work with. Love you dad.

Dear Mom  
KYLIE"S GETTING MARRIED!?!? Why does nobody tell me anything. Not having a third with us has some set backs. We can't just go anywhere we want because there this rule that if there is a single woman you need a third male. On the bright side our apartment has never looked cleaner. School will be fun. Just like high school except no sports and everyone is a mature person. Yay.
Love you mom.


I love and miss you all.
 Elder Erasmus

Catching up...Christmas in Canada...Party of 3...Still in Niagara Falls...Snow and more Snow

Feb 9, 2015

Dear Family

   Well, I'm still in Niagara. I guess six months in one area isn't TOO long...but it feels like it sometimes. I'm no longer in a tripanionship. Our Filipino has left us. He's going to London. That is the second companion that I have had here is going to London. Weird. We had another investigator come to church who wants to get baptized. We don't know when that will be, because he has a son that is a Mormon who might fly up from Utah to do it. We finally got invited to do something in the zone this week. Normally the st Davids area is so far away we can't come to anything that the zone does, but today we can. That means we have like an hour of driving. YAY!! We're kinda in a hurry today because of that. I'm still with Elder Warner and the work here is still good. The snow keeps falling and I still shiver. The church is still true and I still love all of you. Take care


Elder Erasmus



Feb 2, 2015

Dear Family

It is snowing today. It's been snowing a lot lately. Some of the members even told us that it will keep snowing all week because we're in the middle of some"perfect storm" or something. But what you gonna do? One super cool thing that happened, During church one of our investigators came up to us and asked if he could get baptized on March 8. We said yes. People don't usually ask if they can get baptized.That was fun. That's pretty much the week.

 Dear Nick
   How did you become so cool? I wish I could be as cool as you. How was dad being a goof? Did he come and lay on your bed when you are trying to sleep? He does that, you just have to get used to it. What is hyrule warriors? Is it fun? can you be a zora? I bet you're a zora. Love you bro.

 Dear Dawson
   How are things? Is drawing fun? how is high school? Have you made any friends? Is your nose straight? I hope your nose is straight. My week went splendidly. You should tell me how your week is next time. Love you bud

Dear Ryan   
Working hard or hardly working, am I right? How has your week been?Have you done anything exciting since school started up again? I bet you have had so many crazy adventures that you just don't have room enough to tell me. Yup, just not enough space. I hope you keep having a killer senior year. Love you dude

 Dear Dad    Are the tree houses ok? Those were really fun...I hope the family is ok too. Sounds like the super bowl truly was super. Who was the half time show and which commercial was the funniest? Details are always appreciated. I didn't even realize it was super bowl Sunday this year. Last year all the members were talking to me about it and we saw newspapaers about it everywhere. This year, nothing. Or maybe my mission veil has just got a bit too thick. Oh well. Love you dad and I'm always praying for you.

 Dear Mom
   So my grades weren't the best, but they weren't thaaaaat bad. I'm not sure what I want to do when I get home. I'll worry about that later. How long will it take for you to get a bachelors? Will you go in to managing? Does it pay more? I bet college will be really fun to go through twice.  I love you mom.

 I love and miss you all
Elder Erasmus

Jan 26, 2015

Dear Familia

    This week was a pretty average week as far as missionary work is concerned. One interesting thing that happened was the opportunity to go on exchanges with the zone leaders. Out of seven missionaries, guess how many can drive? Two. That messed with our original plans but we eventually sorted things out. Elder Canlas and I stayed in Niagara with Elder De paula while Elder Warner went to Hamilton. We planned on meeting a recent convert. She brought a friend so we actually had a new investigator.  In the mission biz, we call that a wolf  lesson. That is pretty much my week...Oh and we had a couple of investigators come to church. You have no idea how hard it is to have that happen

 Dear Nick
    Sounds like your basket ball team is doing ok. Keep up the good work. Judges has the best stories out of the entire old testament. How is school going? I bet you are an absolute champ there huh? Any ways, love you bro(I sent like ten pictures last time, give me a break.)

 Dear Dawson ;
  Wow. Rough week. Sorry to hear that. Eight hours of running? You are a beast.  Once when I was in scouts, we had to a 20 mile jog for a couple of hours. I was exhausted but had football practice that day. Think that might have been my second year but I'm not sure. I like to draw, so you'll probably have fun. Love you champ

Dear Ryan
    "Working like a mexican" That's racist. Hilarious, but racist. So how well does the job pay? Majora's mask sounds awesome you should totally do that. By the way, MORMONY?!? I'm a missionary. Mormony is literally the job description. Jeez bro. Still love you though

 Dear Dad
    Politics and stuff. That's why I didn't play much in high school.....That's my story and i'm sticking to it. How are things going for you? Is the leg ok? Hows work? I like to think I have matured at least a little in the past year. Thanks for all the support dad. Love ya

Dear Mom
    I don't know if he'll do well in Summit. The teachers there really care how you're doing. In high school, not so much. Keeping him in a bigger school will help him prepare for that. So how is school? Have you started that yet or are you waiting for the next semester or something? We might be in school around the same time. How weird would that be? Anyway love you mom

I love and miss you all Elder Erasmus



Jan 19, 2015

Dear Family

   Well we got to see an apostle this week. We were originally suppose to meet him at ten in the morning at Brampton. We went to Brampton and found out his plane got delayed till one fifteen. Not a lot you can do at Brampton as a missionaries. We managed not to get into too much trouble. Elder Oaks gave a really brief testimony to us because he was so late, but we got to sit in when he addressed the recent converts in the area. He told us that every member needed to develop some holy habits and righteous routines. Holy habits are things that every member needs to be spiritually healthy such as family prayer and scripture study while righteous routines are more personal such as staying away from areas where you will face temptations that are your vices. good stuff. You know when you can tell that you are an old missionary? ALL OF YOUR COMPANIONS ARE DEAD! At the conference I saw all of my companions that are still in the mission. Two of them. Every one else went home. And I am coming up on my sister mark. Yikes. ;

 Dear Nick
   Yay basketball. Getting rebounds was always the thing I was good at too. I think it just might be that I was taller than everyone else but I still did ok...I still like Niagara falls but I am getting kinda sick of the area. It's a good area but I need a change of scenery. Did you know James, John the revelator's brother, was also killed by decapitation. But my favorite story is about eglon and ehud. Eglon was evil so ehud cut the poop out of him. The more you know. Love you bro

 Dear Dawson
    English was always my favorite subject. You got a grade for reading! I'm sure something exciting happened this week. If nothing happened, make sure you make something happen. The adventures depend on you bro. Love you champ. Good luck with the try outs.

 Dear Ryan
    YOU GOT A JOB! Well you beat my record. Good job...Did you get the pun? Anyway. Sucks to be grounded. You know what I would do if I was grounded? Read The Book of Mormon. For two reasons. One, I'm a missionary and that is what missionaries do, and Two; brownie points. Hang in there dude and just remember to be awesome. Love ya

 Dear Dad
   I miss going in the hot tub soooo much. It's one of those little things you don't miss until it is gone. So are you going to Vegas? That sounds like fun. So was your knee totally replaced or did they just add more hardware to keep it in check? I love you dad and I have been praying for you.

Dear Mom
  We are working with a few people. Part- member families mostly. There is this fourteen year old named scooter who was denied baptism as a eight year old and now the only reason she doesn't want it is because of a vendetta she has against that bishop. Other than that its just your run of the mill investigators. School is fun. Do you just have to retake a nursing course or is there chance that my mom will be a doctor? I don't know if this helps but Joesph Smith taught that the best way to reprove some one was to be strong when needed but then to show an increase of love. I hope that helps. Love you mom.

 I love and miss you all
 Elder Erasmus 

Jan 12, 2015


Dear Family

    You may have been wondering how it is to work in a trio of missionaries. I tell you. Not a whole lot different than normal missionary work. The only real problem is that elder Warner and I end up in conversations about video games and stuff and Elder Canlas has no idea what we are talking about. It's not that he's Filipino or anything he just doesn't like the same things we like. When we try to include him he just ignores us. It is also a little awkward when we knock on doors. Three guys in suits usually doesn't go over well. Other than that, business as usual. We get to meet with Dallin h. Oaks this week. My own personal general conference...that I have to share with a couple hundred missionaries. Yay.

Dear Nick

     Tell them to stop touching your stuff. If that doesn't work, then just smile and lay on top of them until they smile too. Remember to smile. that's the important part. Sounds like you had a blast at California. trikes are fun. What is your main character in smash bros? What is an amiboo anyway? Love you champ

Dear Dawson

   Did you kick the butt in lacrosse? The Canadian schooling system is weird up here, so you could find seventeen year olds and fifteen year olds in the same grade. Weird right? Which teacher won't give you an A? The Games sound fun but don't get to excited. Because I am going to kick your butt in them when I get home. Love you buddy.

Dear Ryan

    Don't troll the doggy. I didn't even know Nintendo owned duck hunt. I would also definitely try out for the tennis team for two reasons. One, I've picked up a bit of tennis on my mission and it was a lot of fun, and two, According to my high school experience, The girls' tennis team is hott. Do it bro. I also can relate to you feeling alone. I've had a few companions I didn't really mesh well with and they are literally the only person you can talk to all day everyday. It sucks. But hang in there champ. Things always get better. Love you dude.

Dear Dad

   It sounds like the knee surgery was painful. A member here also had knee surgery a few months ago and she said it sucks. Has your tumor shrunk enough that they can cut it out yet? Disease and sickness suck. How has work been going? Have there been any new patients since the winter season? I'm praying for you dad love ya.

Dear Mom

   Really want to write a really long email to you but my companions are trying to herd me out like a sheep. We're going to Niagara falls has a district so you might get some pictures next week. A picture is worth a thousand words so technically my email last week was one of my longest. I love you mom but i have to go. Love ya mom

I love and miss you all

Elder Erasmus

Jan 5, 2015



December 29, 2014


Dear Family

 Well transfers were this Sunday. I'm still in Niagara falls. I'm still with Elder Canlas. But there is a twist. Elder Warner is going to be here too. That's right. Three missionaries for the price of two. I don't really get it either but president Clayton is inspired so no complaints. This week has been up and down. Up because we got to celebrate christmas. Down because other people got to celebrate Christmas. The holidays give people a good procrastination date so we didn't really get to meet with anyone besides a few members. Other than that not much happened this week. I did get to give a talk in sacrament meeting where I compared Oupa's, dad's , and my conversion to that of the sons of mosiah. It went over ok but I got a lot of the classic "There are white people in Africa?" response. Being different is fun

 Dear nick
   Are the bullets smart because they are made of form or did they go to grad school or something? I don't know what to talk to you about that hasn't been brought up since Thursday. Who is the main guy you play

Dear Dawson
   Have you gone to California yet? You were really excited about that when we talked. How many out of state tournaments do you get to go to on this team? Do you have to fight teams from every state and eventually the world until you stand unchallenged of lacrosse champions of the universe? Because that would be pretty cool. Love you dude.

Dear Ryan
    Hey bro. So how has the few weeks off been treating you? How is high school treating you? You are half way done with your senior year and four months away from adulthood. Scared? I just want you to know I have a lot of respect for you. You were always fun to be around. Even when we didn't see eye to eye....THIS LETTER IS WAY TOO MUSHY! How is smash bros? Did nick kick your butt? love you champ

 Dear Dad
  So how are the drugs treating you? You should watch gnomeo and juliet. I watched it on drugs and it was amazing. What inspired you to blow dry the snow anyway? I'm sure that the idea payed off in the end. Mission life has been going well. I'm praying for you dad. Love you.

 Dear Mom
    Christmas parties are fun. Are you also going to do a new years party this year, or does the lack of cousins mean it's just going to be a family event. It was great talking to you on Thursday. Not much happened between now and then so i guess this letter will be short too. Love you mom

 I love and miss you all
 Elder Erasmus


December 22, 2014

Dear Family

   

    This week has been quite the experience. We've been helping at a local soup kitchen. It has been fun working with all the people but you wold think that people would have more gratitude for free food, but it's still nice to help people. We were invited by one of the families to come and watch a Christmas cantata at another chapel. We were reluctant at first but then they told us there would be a tonne of their friends there that we could teach. There wasn't. Though we were disappointed we still enjoyed the presentation. They made it up to us by inviting us over to their house on christmas. We will be skyping at around twelve on Christmas. That's around 9 right? Not much else to say. If you have any questions, please save them for Thursday.

lots of love.

Elder Erasmus

Dec 15th, 2014

 
Dear Family

   Happy Christmas and stuff. This week has been fun. We had a zone conference on Thursday. We had to sleep at the district leader's apartment and head out early to miss a huge snow storm. We missed it going there, but the roads were so covered it took three times as long to get back. Oh Canada. We also had the ward Christmas party. You would think that they would have us out and about socializing and getting to know the non-member friends everyone brought. Nope. Working the kitchen. We did have a really cool experience though. Near the end we only had one piece of meat left and about thirteen people came in. Everyone was a little panicked so I started tearing the meat with the tongs trying to make as many tiny pieces as possible. We ended up putting a pretty decent sized piece on each plate. I don't know if It was a bread and fishes type miracle or I just found extra meat under the gravy. Either way it was pretty cool. Christmas is fun
.
 dear Nick   Vegas. Sounds exciting. Did you have fun watching Dawson's games? I bet they were in one of those big stadiums, uh? Did you find anything in the mall that you know Santa would like to get you? Not a big fan of malls. Mostly because whenever I go I see things I would love to use if I wasn't a missionary. The thing about the Christmas season, Everyone feels the spirit and totally wants to meet with you...after the new year. It pretty much just gives them a reason to delay our message. I enjoy it though. I love you buddy

Dear Dawson :  Undefeated, very nice. Did you get a sweet trophy? Did you take part in any of the fabulous food related fiascos, or were you merely a spectator? It sounds like you and your team get along well. Make any new best friends? Keep being awesome bro. Maybe we'll wrestle when I get back. that would be fun. Love ya dude.

Dear Ryan
    I have a mission for you. You need to secure me those games so that I can play them when I get back. I want you know that I love you and have the utmost respect for you, but you sound like a girl. You go shopping for clothes and complain about the cold weather in Vegas. I hope you don't go to Canada on your mission or your "allergy" would really give you a problem. Sounds like your social life is really pumping though. Make the most of your high school experience. you only have three years. Love ya dawg ;

 Dear Dad  
Why was the hotel so bad? Did the team pick it out or something? I'm sorry that the other boys aren't the peace maker I was. I guess I'm just special. When you say total knee surgery, do you mean you are going to get a robot knee? Because that would be really cool. I'll be praying for you regardless. What is wrong with your knee? are the screws shifting or something? I hope it's nothing too serious. I love you dad.

Dear Mom
    My favorite memory with Grandmother and papa Joe is that one time we went and celebrated both Christmas and new years a t their place. We had silly string and tattoos and all sorts of fun. I remember throwing a blanket over the loft and the four oldest grandchildren stayed up all night making fun of slipper and the rose. Shelby likes it though. Good times. I miss temple square. Like four families from the ward here have gone this year to see the lights and the other families always ask me about stuff back home because I'm the Utahan Mormon. Always at least one. But ti guess the spirit makes the lights just seem prettier. I'll try to get the gift as soon as i can. I love you mom. you know I'm always praying for my family.

 I love and miss you all.
 Elder Erasmus