No Better Gig

Dear Family and Friends,

This week has been action-packed for sure! And luckily I've survived it all unscathed. It's funny because I'm actually starting to recognize some of the cops in our area now. If only there was someway to talk to them because I'm sure they'd make great Mormons.

Last P-Day we went to the Federal Reserve thinking that it would be interesting/fun/exciting, but it ended up being a waste of time/boring/uneventful. I got a 15 minute background check to see a bunch of old coins and fake money. I wouldn't recommend using your P-Day to go there.

Brodi Elwood (my old companion for those who skim) and Melissa Villanueva came on Saturday to treat us to some Oklahoma Joe's BBQ as they toured the mission. Kansas City barbeque is almost as life changing as the gospel. It was such a trip and delight to hang out with some besties and catch up seeing how it's been three long weeks since Brodi left. My friends are just the best.

I went on two exchanges this week. One with Elder "Silent" Myers and Elder Taylor. Elder Myers is notorious for being a quiet guy, but I couldn't get him to stop gabbing on our exchange. He goes home with me and is heading to the U. How nice it is to find another Ute amongst this sea of missionary Cougars. Elder Taylor is a stallion of righteousness, like his trainer and one of my former companions, Elder Sjoblom. 

It's been a great week and the work is progressing. Noami is getting closer to her baptism. We've started working with some other Part Member Families and hopefully we can help them as they come closer to Christ. The mission is seriously a dream. I can't think of a better gig than that of dedicating myself to helping others.

--Elder Beau Hart

Mini Missionary Michael‏

Mini Missionary Michael: July 13th

Dear Family and Friends,

Not much to report on this week seeing how I just emailed ya'll last Thursday.

Friday we received a "mini missionary" named Michael and he chilled with us until Sunday night. It was a party for sure. A part of me thinks that he might have been shocked a little about the mission (especially our area), but he was fun to have around for a while to keep Elder Fullmer and I from becoming one person. We get along too well.

Highlights include, but are not limited to:

Another Marshallese Party. This one was to finish some New Member Lessons for some recent converts. How great is that? We brought McDonalds to Brother Dinteru as a joke because he always wants to take us out on Sunday to get some. It's not a sin if it's drive-through, right?

Service in Independence painting a school. Cool, huh?

Yesterday's drama-fest at church. Sacrament was a musical testimony meeting where everyone would bear their testimony and include a hymn and then we would sing two verses of it. It was awesome. That and it drowned out the sounds of crying babies. Win win!

We also found a Hello Kitty Story in Independence. Hahahahahahh Satan is everywhere! Guess, we have to keep up the fight.

Well, love ya'll. Make it a great week. 

MUCHO AMOR,

Elder Beau Hart

(Very poorly lighted with the Dinteru's. #ILOVEIT and Satan's Store in Independence)

Culture Reviews‏

Culture Reviews‏: July 9th, 2015

Dear Family and Friends,

This week...wow....

Last Monday we went to the Community of Christ temple and had an interesting tour and they said pictures were allowed, including selfies (nice), and we ended by receiving origami Peace Doves that
now decorate our car and keep me from raging at our lovely future wife impersonating Tiwi when it says, "check your speed", when I go 5 over the limit. (That's a rough, run-on sentence, huh?)

The Fourth of July was a bummer. All we ended up doing was ushering for a concert and then tucking ourselves into bed while Canadian smoke blocked any view of fireworks in the distance from our apartment window.

Today we went to the Nelson Atkin's Art Museum with Ivan (recent convert) and Areos (recent move in/future missionary) here in KC. My summary: I didn't know that any time I'm naked in the shower that I'm considered Greek and Roman art. Too much genitalia. Also, if logic flows, Hooters is just a renovation of ancient statues techniques. Finally, modern art is so bad that I thought the stairs leading to the exit of the museum were part of the exhibit. 

I've gained a testimony of how the Lord provides whenever we ask. I'm not going to lie or try to sugarcoat it, but this past Monday I was kind of bummed that we weren't "P-Day-ing" and was not in the mood to
tract after our appointments fell through. I was just begging the Lord for something to do.

So He sent a tornado our way.

Elder Fullmer and I, keeping our cool of course, scrambled for a place to hide. We asked for a safe place. We got the Wong/Huesca's house. We were hungry. Sister Huesca's gave us more Mexican cheesy cauliflower than we could handle. We wanted to help out. We got to help prevent flooding in the basement. We didn't ask for it, but somehow we got a laugh out of their "rescued" baby raccoons. So there I found myself sweeping water to a drain bit by bit, my stomach super happy and full of food, listening to the screams of baby raccoons and Brother Wong chattering in Spanish with his cholos across town, super grateful for the adventure and memories of the mission which my giving Heavenly Father has given me. And glad I didn't die in the tornado also.

The temple was great this morning. Elder Fullmer and I get along almost dangerously well. We have the exact same interests so we oft get carried in the spirit of talking about non-mission related tangent. 

Mucho amor,

Elder Beau Hart

(Us judging art and Us at the museum)

Temple Week‏

Temple Week‏: July 6th, 2015

Dear Family and Friends, 

This week we are attending the Kansas City Temple, so our P-Day has been moved to Thursday. Talk to you then! :) Have a great week! 

Mucho amor,

Elder Beau Hart

(Happy Fourth of July, I got to spend some time with my favorite family Los Huesca/WONG)

The Bible Belt‏

The Bible Belt‏: June 29th, 2015

Dear Family and Friends,

What an exhausting week...

First off, Thursday was goodbye to my friend, Elder Elwood, who's currently resting from all cares and worries in the Undying Lands of the West and hello to Elder Fullmer--my 30 Rock best friend. We've served around each other for a good chunk of the mission so it was an easy transition.

I've also heard from some very old and very insane people here in the city that the White House has turned "rainbow" and that our mission calls have to reassigned to the "United States of Sodom and Gomorrah" this week. People are the funniest when they are so upset about politics. The Bible Belt is full of some interesting people indeed.

Wednesday, Brian was baptized and his family and baseball team came to it! What a fantastic service full of members being late, Brother Wong, crazy testimonies, President Cato, the fount being over filled. Wouldn't have expected any different here in the great Riverview branch. Brian was also confirmed on Sunday and ordained to the office of a Priest. I couldn't ask for any better. 

Thursday night was also the storm of the century for Kansas City apparently and Elder Fullmer and I slept right through all of it's tree snapping and telephone line ripping fury. We woke up to find KC in absolute chaos and everyone asking us if we from the Power & Electric Company. Everything was shut down in the city, except for Church's Chicken, of course. God forbid if the chicken went out of commission. 

So, here we go on the final transfer here in the great land of Kansas City. I'm loving every minute of it.

MUCHO AMOR,

Elder Beau Hart

(Brian's baptism and Elder Fullmer and I with our favorite Senior "Swagster")

Casting out Demons‏

Casting out Demons‏: June 22nd, 2015

Dear Family and Friends,

Things are warming up out here. Missouri--all the benefits of ocean humidity and storms, minus the ocean.

Elder Elwood and I ate some sketchy Asian food from an investigator the other day and he has has been plugged up ever since. We've been sending him into the bathroom with a prayer every time that he goes in
hopes of casting out the tiny Burmese demon that's been plaguing him.

Brian is progressing towards baptism this Wednesday! We are scrambling about to get all of the arrangements in order. If everything works out correctly we are going to have Brian's baseball team attending also. Because they have a game right afterwards, we are totally going to have oranges and Gatorade as refreshments.

I went on exchanges with Elder Bingham this week, my grandson (My trainee trained him). What a blast showing my little country son around the "big city". (Kansas City is just an overgrown backwater village, honestly.) I also took him to eat my our Indian family, the Shethi's, and found out that curry about kills him, but the champ wolfed it down and we had a good ol' time for the rest of the night.

Our branch mission leader, Brother Alcocer, took us to eat Saturday at an Ethiopian restaurant, the Blue Nile. It was a no-utensils joint, so that was an adventure figuring out how to even eat the meal. We've
been all over the world, meals-wise that is, this week with dinners. LuLu's Thai Noodle Shop, the Blue Nile, Long Boards Wraps (Hawaii), and good ol' McDonalds. I love eating. Don't be surprised if I come home fat.

I'm going to be killing Elder Elwood this Thursday, that is unless the fried noodle demon doesn't beat me to it. It'll be sad to see him go, but the ladies in Arizona have been lonely for so long that it's time for him to return. After that, on to my last companion.

Mucho amor,

Elder Beau Hart

(Pictures: Elder Elwood after being crowned King of the Kwe's with our Marshalese members of the branch. And Elder Elwood is poisoning/fattening up the Sister missionaries in the zone)

KC Love‏

KC Love‏: June 15th, 2015

Dear Family and Friends,

Another week down here in the books...

I'm in love...with Kansas City. I grew up in the Valley, but there is something about the city life that makes me feel like I'm walking on sunshine despite the unseasonal rain lately. We've spent quite a bit
of time walking around downtown this week trying to find some people to invite unto Christ. Hopefully, we will see some fruits of the labor soon. It's interesting to see all of the people from all over the world and find out how they made there way to the middle of the U.S.

Mid-week we had the blessing of eating with our dear Indian family, the Shethi's, who have been back to the Branch for medical visits. Just like last go-around they tried to murder us with curry and love.
I love how close I've become with people on my mission. The thing that floors me about our branch is that it's the poorest in the entire mission, but I've never had so many meals with members. They sacrifice so much for us, I just hope that we are paying them back with our service.

This week was Stake Conference and man, what a blast it was. Our stake president, President Cato, is a fireball! What a stallion of righteousness and motivation! The Independence area is going to blow up now with work. He just nailed the entire stake about the Gospel and now everyone is stoked to go out and preach.

Our investigators on baptismal date weren't able to make it to Stake Conference due to car problems and vacations, which was disappointing, but hopefully they will be here this upcoming week.

Mucho amor,

Elder Beau Hart

(Perfectly describes what Riverview is like. And we tried to take a quick selfie while walking around on the new fancy toy the church is letting me borrow.)