Week #96 - Light The Darn World

Hey Family!

Tis the season to be sickly I guess.

I was going through some really gross head cold at the beginning of the week which made me super stuffed up and achy and all that goodness. So we just rested and let that pass as quickly as possible. We finally went out on Thursday and I am feeling MUCH better now.  PS the office elders stopped by real quick Monday night to drop off a fan and one of them gave me a back massage so that was fantastic.

Stake Conference was this weekend. It was awesome! I got to see a ton of people from Spanish Town, members and missionaries! 

Today was way fun - Elder Palmer and Elder Smith came into Kingston and a few of us went to the craft market to get some last little goodies for us, our families, friends and all of you (who aren’t family or friends…?) before we (Elder Palmer and I) come home. So Christmas will come a little late from me but hopefully that won't be a problem.

Have an awesome week and go hard on the #LightthedarnWorld thing because it is awesome! Pretty sure he’s talking about the #LightTheWorld program – an easy way to show love to others and feel close to God during this holiday season…

Love,

Elder Graham 

#LightTheDarnWorld

I can't think of anything clever to say... sorry

I guess you could call these reverse photo bombs? I don't even know...
someone dared us to do it, so...

Good to see friends from Spanish Town at Stake Conference
Nice photo bomb, Elder Morris...

Week #87 - Vacation in May Pen

A week with Elder Palmer

Hey Family!

This week was awesome.

I have just spent the last week with Elder Palmer and we had a ton of fun in May Pen. His trainee came Friday morning for some reason. His name is Elder Anderton and he is from Spokanne. He is super cool. Mine doesn't come until tonight, and I'll go pick him up in Kingston tomorrow morning. But we had a blast this week. I think it was God's way of saying "I don't want you two to be companions, but since you keep badgering me about it I will allow it for a short time."

We had to go back to Junction for the weekend for church. We watched the Sunday Morning Session of Conference right after Sacrament Meeting finished and then came right back to May Pen after church was done. Thank you Elder and Sister Ridler!

Prayers go out to anyone who was hit by Hurricane Matthew. I heard it was pretty nasty. I am so grateful that it dodged us because it would have been really bad here.

Love you guys!

Elder Graham

Hurricane prep... we so would have died.

Week #86 - Weddings, Funerals and Hurricanes

Chelsea and cardboard Elder Graham :)

Friday, September 30  We were all running around, guns blazing, getting ready for Cody's sister, Chelsea's wedding - it was such a great surprise to hear from Cody on that day too!

Yo yo miss me? I know you are prepping for marriage and stuff but we got permission to get on and email today BECAUSE well there is a brute named DY Matthew that is headed our way Sunday and Monday, so yeah, haha we are prepping for that today. Hope all went well yesterday (Chelsea received her Endowment in the Portland Oregon Temple). Don't worry tho, we will be good.

Have an awesome day!

Love,

Elder Graham


Wednesday, October 5

Well the storm decided to change directions and head for Haiti and Miami so that was a huge tender mercy for us (but hearts go out to those who were affected by the hurricane). We still stayed inside in Santa Cruz with the Zone Leaders from Saturday until yesterday just in case, but no real storm hit Jamaica so that was wonderful.

Sorry to hear about Grandma. I was wondering how she was doing. It seemed like she had a ton of problems and then just radio silence for a month or so. I know where she is headed though and that is a very comforting thought that replaces any sort of sorrow with joy. Grandma Graham passed away last night, October 9, peacefully with loved ones around her.

In other news, I don't know if you heard, but transfer calls were on Saturday and Elder Trinnaman is going to Linstead.. I am staying in Junction, still Branch President and now am going to train again AND District Leader as well. So just when things can't get any crazier for me, they do haha. I am actually excited though.

So we saw Saturday Conference but we were not allowed to leave the house Sunday, Monday, or part of Tuesday. You can see General Conference talks here: https://www.lds.org/general-conference?lang=eng

Thank you for filling me in. I hope you are doing great still. I will get my trainee on Friday. Until then, I am in May Pen with... you guessed it... Elder Palmer hahaha! Things could not have worked out better. He is training too so yeah, we are having a great time and enjoying it.

Love you!

Elder Graham

The famous Lilie James

Pre-Storm view of Junction

Week #84 - Shut Up

Hey Family!

I'll keep this short and sweet, wedding plans are getting crazy I hear.  Fact.  Cody’s sister, Chelsea gets married on September 30 – crazy is in abundance.

We have been teaching this sweet old lady named Lilie. She is Sister Gayle's mother and she is awesome. Long story short she is getting baptized this weekend! When I asked her who she wanted to baptize her, she asked me to list some options, so I started listing people in the branch, then the missionaries, when I said I could do it if she wanted, she completely cut me off and said "Shut up...shut right up, right there. Stop talking. YOU will do it." Haha it was the funniest thing. She is great. 

Pictures are interesting right now, my SD card adapter rusted out so I am going to hunt for a new one this week. Wish me luck! Lucky for us, I got friends in low facebook places so photo creds to Sister Baker this week!

More news to come later on!

Love,

Elder Graham

Reunited with his good bud, Elder Palmer
Planning to room together this spring... Heaven help Rexburg.

Zone Activity in May Pen

Week #33 - New Companion, New Member and New Respect for Pork

Hey family!

This week was really hectic, but still great! I got a package from my cousin, Tami Adams which had a bunch of Canadian candy in it – it was the best. THANK YOU Tami!

Tuesday I went to a meeting for all the trainers which was good - I learned a lot. Elder Jackson left for Port Antonio on Tuesday as well so I went into a trio with the zone leaders. 

Wednesday was a lot of fun. We went to Old Harbor and surprise dropped in on Elder Palmer's district meeting. 

Elders Graham & Christensen

Transfers were Thursday. I received (…received??  What, did he come DHL?? Sorry, I just thought that expression was so strange – not sure if it’s Jamaican or Cody!) Elder Christensen, from Gilbert, AZ. He is awesome. The first day he was with me, he would just walk right up to people and talk about the gospel. He is fearless which influences me to be more fearless as well.

Saturday was interesting. While playing soccer in the morning, I planted my foot weird and kinda minorly hyper-extended my knee and twisted my ankle. Lucky for me, Elder Gardner knew a lot of places we were gonna go that day so he went with Elder Christensen for most of the day while I went in the truck with Elder Biddulph. Also that morning I took some Ibuprofen to slow the pain but I completely forgot to eat anything and so what happened next was....projectile vomit haha but I felt better after that (bless this boy’s attitude… I have never followed the words projectile vomit with “haha”).

Elder Graham, Sister Murdock, Elder Christensen

Sister Murdock got baptized Sunday morning which was awesome! She wanted me to confirm her in Sacrament meeting so I did. And then right after that, the bishop asked this other little kid named Prince who was baptized on Saturday who he wanted to confirm him and he also said, "Elder Graham." So I got to confirm two people at Sacrament meeting yesterday. Lots of fun.

The work is moving here in Spanish Town. I'm excited to see what Elder Christensen and I can do here! Talk to you more next week!

Love you guys!

Elder Graham

And uh, Mom, the picture you put up of "Ribena" is actually a picture of sorrel haha.  Well it was bound to happen sometime - and here I thought the internet was 100% accurate…

Ribena...
For real this time

Courtesy of the Zone Leaders...
Ah Jamaica.

Thanks, Tarieq, a member in Spanish Town
for sending updates on our boys!!