October 17, 2011

Hey family,

Things are going well. Yes I'm a Zone Leader. It is only my first transfer as a ZL so I'm learning what things I need to do. The last week went pretty well. We had two tradeoffs which were good because I stayed in my area. I'm glad we have a small zone because I don’t know if I could handle too many more tradeoffs. It’s tough but a good learning experience. It is basically like running the area alone because the Elder you have with you knows nothing about what is going on and generally has the day to chill and relax. All good though. It is already week 6 so this is the last week of the transfer. Time really does just fly by it seem. I think they'll be a heap of changes in the Zone soon. There's been some drama over the last couple of weeks which will prolly prompt the Mission President to make some changes. We have a couple of missionaries that have been in their area for 6 months now so it is time for a change I reckon. My companion will be likely by leaving and I will prolly be the Senior Comp again...

Lately we have been working with a family in which the wife used to be less active but has recently started coming back. They have a less active girl living with them that is a good family friend, university aged. Another less active friend and another recent convert guy forms their main circle of friends. The recent convert guy had his Mission papers in but they all are struggling with they're testimonies and just keeping the commandments in general. They're good people it is just that they're not 100% committed. The couple, or the main family, are young (late 20's) with a couple of kids and the husband’s family lives very close to them. That family has heaps of drama in general but the husband has a brother that recently, in the last two years, came back from a mission in Sydney. He did really well down there and was doing well until 6 months ago when he literally went apostate, anti-Mormon all the way; beliefs, attitude, everything. He has the kind of personality that people seem to just love him, if you know what I mean. Anyway he works as a business partner with the husband of the main family. The brother, is strong in the Church, but over time within the circle of friends the apostate guy has just subtlety been working on all of them to get them to question their beliefs and now he is even trying to keep the recent convert from going on a Mission. The Mission President and the Stake President have talked to him now and they have straight up said that he's dangerous. The Elder have been working with them all for a while. They had come really far and even gained testimonies of the Church but now the apostate guy... has just got to them and has really just been causing a huge crap storm. It is really sad to see.

But good things are happening, I ran into a Christian that learned Hebrew and read the bible in Hebrew. That was fun. The other Elder Hatch in the Zone is from California but doesn't know his ancestry. We spend most of our P-days doing sports all day; good exercise. We had a big storm here two nights ago but we didn't get any hail just a lot of wind and heavy rain. It was a fun storm to watch; heaps of lightening. It was good. We have training in Brisbane tomorrow so we'll be riding the train in tomorrow morning. Tonight we will have 10 Elders staying at the Nambour flat so that will be quite the experience I reckon.



The Kiwi's beat the Aussie in Rugby Union which was quite exciting. We're thinking they're just going to smash France this next weekend in the final. It'll be good though. Love you. TTYL

Elder Hatch

October 10, 2011

Hey,

Another week gone by; It’s been a crazy week but all good. We had a Zone Leader council down in Brisbane this last Friday so that was a fun trip. It rained a little on Saturday before General Conference which was cool; luckily we didn't get caught in the rain. Things have been going well. It is already week 5 which means we have to submit transfer recommendations and next week well have more training down in Brisbane. It will be good fun and we're looking forward to it of course. It’s been a little weird being a Zone Leader with all the trainings, trade-offs in other areas and just other random stuff coming up. It has been difficult to get to know the area and the members too well. It’s hard but we're working on it though.


I'm glad you tried the Vegemite! No I don’t eat it all the time but if I’m feeling like a snack or something small randomly, I'll pull it out with some crackers or something which is good. I'm not a big fan of the Vegemite and toast but I guess you just have to be in the mood for it. My Comp like to eat out a lot and we don’t spend a lot of time in the area and the other Elders tend to eat whatever food you might have in the fridge. So I’m not very good motived to go out and buy real food. Alas, the life of a missionary.

I really enjoyed Conference. We watched it at the Chapel this last weekend. It was downloaded off the Internet and streamed. The Ward has a nice projector and the picture quality seems to be getting a lot better and, yeah you could see that everyone (the speakers) was getting a lot older. Guess it has been a hard 6 months. I really enjoyed the Saturday sessions the most. The speakers were all very good and it was very uplifting and motivational. Not too many people showed up on Saturday but quite a few were there Sunday. Australia played South Africa in rugby and won yesterday so that was the talk of the day mostly. The finals are next week sometime. We'll see if the Kiwis or the Aussies will come out on top. LOL I don't really have a team but I think it would be good to see the Kiwis win.

There is actually another Elder Hatch in the Zone and this last week I went on trade-off with him. It was funny going over to the member’s house for dinner. Hatch and Hatch. I don’t think they actually believed us at first. It was good fun though. He's a good guy. Definitely acts like a Hatch.

Other than that not much is going on. We’ve been hearing the world is supposed to end again this week so I'm looking forward to that as well. I’ve been looking into sign of 2nd coming and all...lol… just kidding...

No, it doesn't feel like I've almost been out a year. I still fill very, very green. IDK though. I try not to think of dates and numbers and time too much.

Thanks for the support and the good emails. I really do appreciate them. Love you and hope all is going well for you. Talk to you next week.

Elder Hatch

October 4, 2011

Hey,

Sorry again for the short email last week. The computer was a joke. It’s good to hear from you and it sound like everything is going pretty well back home. I got an email from TJ and he sounds excited to be going. Four months is a good deal of time to prepare so that’s really good. Good on him.

Things have been really crazy over the last week. We had a training to give Tuesday, a leadership meeting is Brisbane on Wednesday followed by a Stake meeting, Thursday we had trade-offs with the Nambour Elders, Ward dramas and weekly planning on Friday, trade-offs Saturday with the Assistants to President. Sunday we had church, prep for more training, and more dramas, and then Monday we had another big training followed by a trip to Gympie. It has been a flat out week honestly, just like...wow. Good but wow. Today (Tuesday) we are going to a laser tag place so I’m quite excited. I need a good P-day… hope it will be fun.

Nambour


Kawana Waters


We cover a big area here on the Sunshine Coast. Our Zone basically includes from the area of Kawana Waters up to Bundaberg. We have about 12 Elders and 2 Sisters. But that is the whole zone; it’s quite a large area to say the least. It is pretty beautiful here the beaches are very nice and the terrain is interesting. It is pretty cool, very tropical like with random mountain/hill things jutting up out of nowhere. It’s hard to explain of course. My area has Buderim Hill right in the center and the view from the top is amazing. Buderim is fairly upper class living due to the proximity to the beach but it still good. I reckon I'll be here a while but that’s that. The Rugby World Cup is on and is the talk of the nation. New Zealand, Australia and South Africa all have strong team so we're just seeing who will come out on top.

Our (General) Conference isn't until next weekend. I’m not sure if its taped or what but we very excited for it and looking forward to listening and watching it. Mormom.org is taking off over here. They’ve started the big ad campaign and it is reaching lots of people. We've run into heap of people that have seen the ads on TV; it’s a great missionary tool gives us more to talk about with people. It is running until the end of the year so we still have a lot of good that can come from it.

I’m not driving much my Comps the driver so I get to navigate around the place. It is pretty easy to get sick of driving.

Thanks for the emails. It is good to hear from you. I’m sorry I can't include more in my emails…so much going down... Love you. Talk to you next week.

Elder Hatch

September 26, 2011

I only have about 10 minutes (to write emails) so I have to be fast. It's been a good week; busy but good. The mini missionary we had with us was fun. We've also had to prepare some missionary training for the next couple of weeks so it has been interesting.

That is awesome to hear about TJ (Thomas Johanson - mission call to Costa Rica)tell him good luck and congratz.

We are doing a lot of driving (as Zone Leaders) and have taken 3 trips to Brisbane in the last couple of weeks. It is a big change and things have been crazy. It is hard to get to know people in the Wards, there are just so many and it's just difficult. We're working on it though and trying to get to know everyone. We're not having good luck with the computers (at Library) today, so yeah.

Keep working hard Colin at Uni and keep reading the BoM (Book of Mormon).

love you...

Elder Hatch

September 19, 2011

Hey,

Things are going well in Buderim. It’s good to hear from you. That’s good the wildfires weren’t too close to where we live but still I know how much you hate the heat and the dry weather. Hopefully things will start cooling off soon and you'll get a little more wet weather. The weather here has been ok, it’s getting warmer and the sun is pretty bright...it is the Sunshine Coast so that’s not really a big surprise.It has been very hazy and smoky around here lately and I'm not really sure what is going on. Most of our area covers the rich (wealthy) and touristy part of the local coast so it is a little interesting. With Zone Leader responsibilities and random trade-offs, I haven't got the chance to do a lot of missionary work here. We literally live like a 5 minute walk to the beach and we basically drive by it every day. It is cool but a little weird at the same time as a missionary. It’s a very nice a beautiful area though.
This week we have a mini-missionary with us as kind of like a third wheel. It is weird having someone else along for the ride but interesting all the same. We haven't really done much missionary work so I'm sure he's wondering all sort of things… lol. He is only 16 though and has a good deal of time before he goes. Ironically there's another Elder Hatch in the next area over from ours in the same district as us. He is from California somewhere but it is funny because he definitely has some typically "Hatch" ways about him; personality wise and looks. Good missionary though.

The flat's pretty basic and is good though. Not as flash as other flats but it meets our needs and is in a good location for quick beach getaways... The ward is good. It is big and has a wide range of ages but it is relatively normal. Upper class of course but that’s ok I guess. Fun times…

We got heaps going on though and it is a crazy time. The “I Am Mormon” program starts this week so we'll see how things go and if anything changes at all.

Good luck with the (air)plane dad that sounds like heaps of fun, hope you're enjoying it and I'm glad everything is working out well.

Thanks for the uplifting words and I loved the package. Love you. Thanks again. Talk to you next week.

Elder Hatch

September 13, 2011

Hey,

It’s Tuesday so yes I've been transferred again, surprisingly. I really wasn't expecting it so when the call came it was a change. We were thinking that Elder Arnold was going but not so, he's training in Warwick which is strange because it’s not really a training area. I was expecting to be there for the next 6 months or something. That’s alright though Elder Arnold is a good missionary and everything will work out all the same. I've been shifted up to the Sunshine Coast to a place called Buderim. I haven't seen much of the area yet but it supposed to be view touristy and on the beach; very beautiful and tropical. I'll do my best to take some pictures and let you know about everything.



Buderim is an urban centre on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. It sits on a 180-metre (590 ft) mountain which overlooks the southern Sunshine Coast communities.

http://www.buderim.com/

I'm not really a Senior Comp but a Zone Leader in training. Not really too excited about the whole thing but I'll do my best and keep moving forward. I'm sure you'll hear more about it as the weeks go by. I got your package. I haven't opened it but thank you for it I really appreciate it. My new Comp's a Kiwi (New Zealander) from Hamilton, Elder Ald. He's seems very good and on the ball. I have a lot to learn from him. I don’t know much more about the area but I'll catch on I'm sure.

The baptisms (in Warwick) didn't go through sadly. Earlier in the week we had a lesson with them and they brought their concerns forward. Both had valid concerns that we needed to work through before they can be baptized. It’s sad to see but hopefully they'll keep moving forward and be able to resolve those concerns and move on. I'm sad to leave Warwick but I know the Lord has other things for me to do. I'd grown to love the little town in the middle of nowhere. It was unique and the day to day life is very laid back not to mention the cleaner air and less people. It’s nice. I like it. I'd consider living some place like that I think. IDK though maybe that’s just me in missionary mode. I got a letter from Daniel Molina and Grandma & Grandpa. Tell you about it next week.

Glad to hear you're all doing well and that things are starting to cool a little bit. Some people have said they've been having fires in Texas but it’s hard to tell if people are just saying things without actually knowing what they're talking about. All good though. The Mission President read us an article that President Monson wrote for the Washington Post about the 9/11 attacks which was really good. Other than that not a lot going on...well a lot is going on but I’m just kind of still in the shock and awe mode of being transferred, new area new Comp, Zone Leader and so forth. Not really thinking straight, lol. As you know, I love change. Thanks for the emails everyone. I really appreciate hearing from you. Keep up the hard work. Love you and I'll talk to you next Monday sometime. I think.

Elder Hatch

September 5, 2011

Hey,

Things are going well. Here the baptisms we have set are still on track for this Saturday so we're hoping for the best. Both of the "kids" as we call them were sick yesterday for church so they didn't make it. That was a little nerve racking but that’s good all the same. They're both only 16 years old but they're quite mature for they're age. They have their families support so were happy about that. The Branch building is actually a remodeled 100 year old Queenslander style house that they recently extended and added a chapel on the back. It is ironically, located next to the Masonic temple which is cool but it doesn't have a (Baptismal) font. When I got here I didn't think we'd have to worry about that, but the way the branch does baptisms is they actually rent out the local community "pool/spa" so yeah. That is where the baptisms are going to take place…lol. Twenty years ago they actually did baptisms in the local river which is pretty crazy. It'll be an experience and at least it won’t be cold since it is indoors. I'll tell you how it goes next week. We really have a lot to do to prepare before the actual baptismal date.

Warwick Meetinghouse

Condamine River

Other than that, it has been basically the same. We were teaching a lesson Tuesday and a big storm came in and just as we were leaving, on the bikes, it just started pouring and hailing, lightning and all. Needless to say, by the time we made it home we were drenched and the power was out over half the city. It was one of those classic missionary experiences. Good times all the same. We're just not biking that much really but we get around well. We've stayed busy with lesson and other things. President Clark is on his second time round as Branch President now and he knows what he's doing for the most part. They're just a lot of "unique" people and so the Branch has named Fast and Testimony meeting Starve and Share. I have to say, it has been interesting.

We honestly have massive primary. The Branch is mostly made up of young families and they each have 3 to 5 kids. It’s a mad house during Sacrament Meeting. We prolly have about 50 to 60 people on average so it small but rowdy.

This week is transfers so Elder Arnold (Senior Companion) could be leaving since the Mission has like 18 new missionaries coming in and not enough trainers to train them all. Just so you know, my P-day might get thrown off but I'm not quite sure all the same.

Thanks for the emails sorry I have to run. Doing emails are rather expensive here. Love you and hope to talk to you next week.

Elder Hatch