Splashing in Water

 Hudson called Wednesday night at 8:30, as his new usual has been.  We talked about the Nashville temple and the Logan temple opening for proxy ordinances within the next two months.  He is hoping to take a 16 year old girl, the sisters have on date, and Connie to do baptisms for the dead next month.

He was excited that they went back to the winding stairs National Park and this time completed the loop.  He had a bit of fun splashing around in the water.  Maybe a bit too much fun when he tried to waterboard one of the other elders.  

He said Ryan has found a girlfriend!  I asked if she was Mormon and Hudson gave me the eyeroll and said "mom, you can't say that, it's LDS".  He then told me no she was not a member of the church, but she was coming to church with him.  She is a 25 year old chef.  She has several vegetable tattoos on her body, so her and Ryan have some things in common.  If you remember, he is an ex-tattoo artist.

Hudson said while driving from Lafayette, TN to the stake center in Paduka, KY there is a road that is covered with graffiti for miles.  He didn't get any pictures as he was driving.  But, it made him wonder who did it and how do they keep the paint on the road with traffic and rain?

Drive Along Spray Paint Road, A Work Of Art In The Middle Of A Cornfield In Kentucky

Every small town in Kentucky has something like this. Perhaps it’s an abandoned building or an old school diner where everyone just hangs out, but there is always a spot that any local could share a story or two about the memories made there. In the lovely little town of Franklin, Kentucky, that place is Spray Paint Road. Call it a work of art, graffiti, or a combination of both, but this colorful road in the middle of a cornfield is definitely unexpected. Drive along Spray Paint Road and experience one of the most unusual places in Kentucky.  Franklin, Kentucky is a charming small town located near the Tennessee border, south of Bowling Green. 

Spray Paint Road is located, quite literally, in the middle of nowhere, between cornfields and other farmland.  While you won't find "Spray Paint Road" on the map on your phone, you will find Kummer Road, which is its official name. A large portion of this rather unremarkable stretch of road has been made remarkable over the years with layers and layers of tagging and graffiti.  Spray Paint Road is legendary in this area of Kentucky and is known well by locals. As one of the many unusual places in Kentucky, it also makes for a great roadside (or really just road) attraction in the Bluegrass State.

Elder Aidukaitus (Hudson Email Week 36)

We had zone conference this friday, well it was actually a missiom tour, it was elder aidukaitus of the 70, he has a few conference talks. It was such a learning experience and I learned so much about leadership and communicating/teaching people. We had the entire thing dedicated to just teaching, elder norton made a comment about listening and he was like that's a really good point, we should roleplay that later. He held up to his word and me and Elder Norton got called up in front of everyone to roleplay with a 70. It was to just use silence and to listen, (basically have a stareoff while waiting for the person to respond) we "asked him to be baptized" the way he sad no was just so absolute and resolute, I got scared. Then he just starts staring into our souls just waiting who would break first, well we broke😂😂. He then showed us how to properly do it and invited Norton to be baptized, he said no and then he just squared up and stared him down, instead of talking he would just gesture for him to continue and give the reasons. Anyways long story short I role played with a general authority in front of everyone and it was terrifying. I learned so much from him in just every aspect of life though it was an amazing experience.

Pres gilday is moving in 2 weeks so that's been a super sad experience helping him prepare too move, we had our last after church supper with him, connie was rolling so hard the whole time she couldn't stop laughing, speaking of connie yesterday we almost completed her fence, I'm pretty proud of my/our skills to build, when we finish it next week I'll take a picture. Also I dont remember if I told y'all but we found sister Mcelroy's hidden laptop, idk if it works but we found it. 

 

We also went on a killer hike today it was so good

Hudson's Birthday

Another difficult milestone down, Hudson's Birthday.  I was hoping he could sneak in a call long enough for us to sing him happy birthday.  Unfortunately he did not, so we sent him a video.  On the second line I was out of tune and Ellie looks over at me.  It was all I could do not to burst out crying.  Making the video hit me hard.  Hudson had a day chuck full of things to do.  That is great he was so busy.  He ate breakfast before opening his presents which had a box of Krave inside.  If you remember the pie size cookie close grandma made for him...  It was already a crumbly mess.  He put it in a bowl, poured milk on top and voila a delicious breakfast.  Fit for a birthday boy!  Kaylynn Knapp was kind to think of him and send him a Papa Jay's Jerky bouquet.

One of the days busy activities was Connie's baptism.  Just after she was baptized she screamed.  I later asked Hudson and he said, "don't you remember me telling you she randomly screams?  You got to experience it first hand."  Just before the baptism Hudson takes off running.  Apparently, they forgot to bring her a towel and were trying to find one.  He felt the confirmation went very well.  I asked if he included more than one line in the blessing and he smiled saying yeah.

For his birthday Hudson treated himself by purchasing a used keyboard.  They went to Gallatin for P-Day and to check out the mall.  Along the way they stopped at a women's house and picked it up for $90.  It has as many keys as a piano and more buttons then he will ever know what to do with it.  He really needs an instruction manual.  He felt bad while they were out for P-Day .  An elderly man in the ward finally got up and left his house and invited them to lunch.  He would have loved to have given him some company.  Hopefully, he will be able to eat with him next time.  

Hudson assured me the possum petting pictures from his email were legit.  Elder Engum was on a split at his apartment and showed me the video of him calming the possum in the field and then petting it.  I told him I thought he was supposed to kick it?  He said he did, then he petted it.  I'm not sure if he was joking.  Once he yelled at the possum (much like they say you should at a bear in the woods) it did freeze in place.  Its mouth was open like it was going to bite him, but it didn't move towards him after that.  

Hudson told me that filming Amazing Grace for the Bonfire did not go as smoothly as it looked.  It started with borrowing extension cords from President Gilday.  They took the keyboard from the nursery and set it up out back of the church.  Hudson said the wind stopped two of the takes when it blew his music right off the keyboard stand.  Multiple other takes were stopped when he messed up what he was playing.  He said Elder Engum was a good sport and kept singing over and over.  Just as they finished Elder Scott, the building coordinator showed up.  He does not like the missionaries using the church?  All four elders were so afraid of what he was going to say.  They hid the keyboard behind the shed and meandered around until he left.  I'm not sure he will volunteer to do that again.  Glad he did it once, however.

 

What a week (Hudson Email Week 35)

This week has been intense! To start the week off we had a temporary gas shortage😳 but that was VERY temporary. After that me and Elder Engum had a song for the bonfire, which took so many tries, I'm not at all used to playing in front of people or to have someone singing along so all of that completely threw me off. I guess I have something to work on. It turned out alright though. We hauled a keyboard out of the church and played in front of the trees, it was very scenic. 

After that it was this big guys birthday and Connie's baptism, it was an amazing experience and such a good birthday gift! Connie played at her own service in only her extravagant way and we were all left to try and keep up, it was sooo messy but it was very Connie. She also had a testimony she wrote up and wanted to share with everyone that got the while group crying, I'll attach that with the email. It was an amazing service and very connie-esque. Norton baptized her but I confirmed her Sunday at branch conference, in front of the stake presidency, hopefully that gets me some brownie points. After that I went on exchange with the zone leaders it was a good time, I got put in charge of conducting out bi-zone zoom call. I called on one Elder for the closing and opening prayer, his experience during the week, and just about every other activity in the call it was a good time, I abused the little conducting power I had

Connie's Testimony

From: Connie Young <connieyoung32@yahoo.com>

Today is a day to celebrate.
This is my day to celebrate – I’m getting baptized.
This is God’s day to celebrate – this is the day I choose to be closer to my God and to receive the Holy Spirit into my life.
And this is the missionaries’ day to celebrate – this is the day they see the results of their dedication, their patience, their insights, their hard work, their devotion to their beliefs, their constant visibility and availability. Here I am. The proof is the baptism and my willingness to make changes in my life.
So, I’d like to thank all the elders and sisters who have used their time and energies towards me, making my life more happy and more meaningful.
I’m not sure why they are called “elders” when I am certainly more “elder” or older than they are.
Let’s start with Elder Ballard who fixed my turkey up. Each week he came and cleaned and dressed the wounds and amazingly she healed along with his fierce devotion to his faith.  Then elder Strand with his dry sense of humor who took wheel barrows full of dirt out of my unclean barn, then helped replace broken ceiling wire over one of the rooms in the barn. Elder Smuthz came along first with Elder Ballard, and later with Elders Norton and Nelson with his loving and gentle way, cleared vines off my fence. Elder Ballard, Elder Norton and Elder Nelson fixed my tractor. I had put gas in the tractor instead of diesel. I didn’t know what to do! They drained the gas, replaced a filter, and made it run again. Elder           who came over to my house twice, has a talent for using T-squares, measuring angles, and transferring this talent to wood. Elder      , a bit overexuberant, but very willing to help, washed the walls and ceiling on my porch and helped Elder Nelson in the field with weed control.
Let’s not forget the Sisters who I enjoyed meeting – Sister Dixon, Sister Nickerson, and Sister Flatbush, each an individual in their own way with their own insights and contributions, but united in their purpose and their faith.
 
But two guys named Elder Norton and Elder Nelson have showed up week after week with their smiling faces, their anchoring presence, and their unwavering faith. They have helped me so much from putting in posts, pulling wire horse fence, changing lights bulbs, fixing furniture, weed control in my horse field, unloading big rolls of hay, and more. Then they have spent their time with me in person and on Zoom, with lessons about their faith and their beliefs where we have had many discussions. 
 
Each Elder and each Sister has brought his or her special talents to me and shared them with me.
 
Then I liked to give a special thanks to President Gilday and his wife, Jayne. They have opened up their home to me where we have had enlightening conversations over lunches.
 
I’d like to talk about a couple of other things, probably because I like to talk as the Elders know.
 
There comes a time in your life where perhaps you have to examine the choices you have made, and do they need to be updated or changed. It is very comfortable to remain static and not to have to open yourself up to new possibilities or to even begin to consider new possibilities.
 
I mention this because this could be a big stumbling block for the missionaries - it’s not so much about the message and whether it is true or not, relevant or irrelevant for people’s lives, but the first problem may be simply it’s comfortable to remain where one is. It takes effort and willingness to first, envision a different way, and then to embrace it. This is resistance to change, resistance to open-mindedness, and resistance to consider other possibilities for one’s life no matter how clear the message may be.  
 
Then I’d like to talk about other attributes that I have found attractive and winning in the missionaries. Many of us like to think that we are free spirits and can do whatever we please, but at the same time appreciate qualities in others which are the opposite of the free spirit, like dependability, punctuality, basically someone that is there for you, that you can count on. These qualities make us feel loved, and secure. Well, it may be small, but when the missionaries said they would arrive at 11:00, that’s exactly when they arrived. I could count on them to be dependable. When they scheduled a Zoom meeting, there they were, on time.
 
Then I have a friend who always used to say, go towards the people who are coming towards you. Well, the missionaries made every effort to come towards me, so I started to go towards them.
 
Then they said you have to stop drinking, both beer and coffee. Oh my! What should I do? I did a lot of research about drinking because I had had a beer every night for at least 10 years. I listened to Youtube about people in sobriety, about how some doctors said drinking in small amounts may help prevent heart attacks and Alzheimer’s disease, I asked my doctors, and found opinions both for and against drinking that “one” beer. But the deciding factor was I wanted what you have, so I stopped.
 
So, in conclusion, at last!  – here I am.

Mother's Day

 Hudson did make a quick call on Mother's Day so we could take our traditional Mother's Day photo.  The mission didn't really say if it was allowed, but it used to be one of the two times a year they could call, so he went for it.  Mitch was running the camera, which was even more difficult then me doing it.  Hudson said the primary kids sang and they had a nice program in the branch.

Hudson said Connie is excited about her baptism on Saturday.  She had a chicken that was getting picked on by the other chickens, so in Connie land she decided to lock it up by itself.  The Elders talked her in to letting it out.  When she went to lock up the chickens that night the newly released prisoner was no where to be found.  She called the missionaries in a panic.  The missionaries prayed with her.  They asked God, if it be his will, the chicken will return home.  The chicken came back!  A following day, Connie went through a car wash.  The car wash ripped the grill off her Prius.  She went back to get it after closing time about 8:30.  Upon arrival she noticed she did not have any oil left in her car.  The young girl waiting for her, after hours at the car wash, had a boyfriend who worked at a nearby Toyota dealership.  He fixed her up.  She feels God is giving her blessings.  He also said Ryan got a new job at a lumber store.  While driving home he saw some cows on the road.  He herded them back up to their pasture.  Once there he met the owner and his wife.  Turns out it is the man who owns the Lumber Yard he just started working for.  He made a Good Impression on the new Boss.

                                                                                                                                                                   Grandma Nelson sent Hudson some peanut butter chocolate chip cookies for his birthday.  The downside was her recipe ended up a bit drier then the first time she made them.  She made one the size of a pie pan.  Upon delivery, this is what Hudson found.  Hudson felt it truly was the thought that counts.                                                                                                                                                                                         I had a surreal moment on Tuesday.  McKinley came in the back door watching a video on her tablet of Hudson and Chevy telling each other knock knock jokes.  My heart skipped a beat listening to them talk to each other.  I finally realized it was just a recording.  General conversation around the house is something I miss                      very much.

Hudson has been killing time with building Legos.  Not such a bad use of time.  Elder Norton built a Hummer and it looked it awesome.  It even had suspension.  Hudson also got two decks of playing cards in the discount bin at Walmart.  They had retro printing on them.  He seemed very pleased with his purchase.

Gas Shortage (Hudson Email Week 34)

So kind of a bummer day, idk if y'all in the west have heard but there is a gas shortage in the south... stations literally don't have gas, I didn't know that was possible, so we've been instructed until further notice, we can't drive at all, well it put a damper on our Pday plans, us and the sisters walked all the way into Lafayette (about 3 miles) and are just walking around, my back kind of hurts

 Good news is connie is solid for Saturday and we are really excited for that. Also Macon county has a grand yard sale this weekend. Everyone sets up booths along highway 52, I've been told multiple times that I can find anything I would ever want there, so that's happening this weekend as well, hopefully we can do a bit of street contacting

 So they just re opened the ability to drive at the end of the Day hahah 

there's also some squirrel gravy and biscuits

Round Three

Hudson is excited to be staying 1 more transfer.  He hopes to be able to tie up some loose ends and feel accomplished in this area like he did Lawrenceburg,  He thought that they would zoom the baptism for Gallatin.   They spent some time with Connie and also want to be part of her big day.  I told him I would love the link and be able to watch as well.  Hudson's birthday is fast approaching.  I ordered most of it after his message this morning that he would be staying.  The orders I placed from Amazon, Walmart, & Collar, Florsheim and Church Distribution will be shipped directly to him.  I had 6 small things at the house I wrapped and sent through the USPS.  Pending anything crazy it should arrive in Lafayette by next Saturday.

Hudson's wart on his arm is being stubborn.  He has used over the counter wart freeze and wore duct tape on it for 4 days.  It has black on top of it.  I told him it was working, just keep at it.  He wants to find a Dr. to burn it off.  I suggested asking around the mission if there is a Dr. member.  If not, he should call the mission nurse and see what she can do.  He says the mission nurse he knew about went home.  ????

Hudson shared a four minute video of a missionary in the woods talking about how import the Doctrine and Covenants is.  Encouraging all new members to get the triple combination to progress their study.  I couldn't tell if it was a joke for the missionaries, or an actual video they sent to members.  It was a bit strange.  At the end it went to this screen...
 

Tornadoes (Hudson email week 33)

Hey this was the end of my 2nd transfer in Lafayette, good news is I'll be staying a 3rd with Elder Norton. I was pretty worried about it, Connie's baptism is on may 15th😳 she's progressing so well and I was worried about missing it. When we told her she couldn't drink coffee anymore she was a lot more accepting then when we first told her about alcohol, she hasn't drank in a week and a half and she talks to everyone about it, it's a beautiful thing! Speaking of connie I set 4 box traps out by her barn yesterday so tomorrow we will have to help her haul off 4 raccoons/possums 

 

There's not much more news though, we had a good lesson with buck last night, we were able to get him to the church! Hopefully he'll come in person sunday. I was in gallatin Monday night to Tuesday morning, apparently 3 tornadoes touched down and then 1 touched down here in Lafayette when I got back. I unfortunately didn't see any of them, but I learned how to order at Starbucks 🤷‍♂️

 

That's about it, I'm super excited to be staying in Lafayette at least another transfer hopefully everything goes well