Morgan's Thirteenth Letter with Photos

Family & Friends,

This was a crazy week, it flew by like none other!

 

 

 

On Friday we had a baptism at 6 pm, of Rosa Norris. There was only 4 people from the ward, we didnt have very much support from the ward :( The 1st counselor was 35 minutes late, so we had to wait to do the baptism til we got there. We had no Piano player. But that stuff isnt really important. The spirit was there, the talks were great, and really focused on Rosa. She was able to be baptized and Receive the Holy Ghost. Which is what is important. Rosa was really nervous, especially when we got into the water. I said the Ordinance and then submersed her in the water. She receive the Holy Ghost and was Confirmed a member of the Church on Sunday during sacrament meeting, by the Bishop.

 

(This is a picture of Jaslynn, the person i gave a talk at her baptism, and Elder Garr, and the Makaha Elders, Elder Boyle and Elder Willyerd )

 

Saturday was a crazy day. At 10:30 AM i gave a talk at Makaha Elders Baptism. The baptism was for Jaslynn and i met her at a dinner party thing, and she wanted me to give a talk. So i gave a talk on Baptism. The baptism went great. It was over at 11:30.

 

From 11:30 til 2 we were getting everything ready for the Next Baptism, Including the final touches to the program, getting the cloths, and setting up the reception dinner, and decorating. We had a really huge problem come up, but with much struggle and energy we resolved it. At 2 The Wedding/ Baptism of Jordan and Eleanor Started. They were married by the Bishop, did their vows, and kissed each other. Then we proceeded to the Baptism part. A member gave a great talk on Baptism. Then we went to the water font. Brother Davis, a friend of Jordan and Eleanor, Baptized them both. Then we went back to the Relief Society room for the talk on the Holy Ghost, and Closing remarks. After that we had the Wedding Reception dinner thing. We had Spaghetti, Salad, and Bread, and Juice, and Cake.

 

Then at 5 pm the Trunk or Treat started. It was for 4 different wards, Waianae, Nanakuli, Makaha, and Tongan ward. We had some of our Investigators come, so we talked to them, and ate with them. It was really fun, i ate lots of candy, played some games, and talked to lots of people.

 

Then at 7pm, 5 cop cars pull into the parking lot. There was a fight between 2 different families in the ward, that was getting out of control. The 2 families have something personal between them, i dont really know what it is. But the fight was out getting out of hand, and the cops were called, and they had to report what happen. Then about 10 minutes later, We get news of a Tsunami Warning, and that we all have to leave and go home. The Tsunami was a 7.7 ( i think) off the coast of Canada and Alaska, and it would hit us at about 10:30 that night. We went to our house, and then tried calling the Zone Leaders. But the phones would not work at all. Probably because everyone was trying to call each other, it was like overloaded. We finally got a call into them, and asked what we need to do. They didnt know, and they would call us back with information. Then the Cities Sirens went off. At 9 pm we find out that we have to go to the stake center in Makakilo. The Stake Center was in a high part on the  mountain. Which is like a 25 minute drive, like 15 miles. But the traffic was crazy, and the Highway runs along the ocean all the way from Waianae ( where we live) to Makakilo. so it wouldnt be very smart to get stuck in traffic right next to the ocean. So we tried to see if we could drive up to a high part of Waianae. But we couldnt, The Zone Leaders said we had to go to the Stake center. We had to pick up the Makaha Elders, and then Drive there in the stop and go traffic. We made it to the Stake Center at like 10:20, 10 minutes before the Wave was supposed to hit. THe Stake Center was PACKED full of people. People from all over came to the Stake Center. We were there until midnight, when they let us go to the Zone Leaders House and sleep there. They live really close to the Stake Center. So there was like 12 of us elders sleeping in the House all over the place. We finally got to bed around 1 am.

 

Sunday we woke up, drove home. and got ready for church. I confirmed Jordan and Eleanor in sacrament meeting at church. and gave them blessings. It was a really cool experience. Eleanor has a really long hawaiian middle name i had to learn. and then Rosa was confirmed by the Bishop.

 

This week i performed my 1st baptism, and my 1st confirmation. It was a really Great, and Spiritual week.

 

We had Zone Conference, and Mission President Dalton and the Assistants taught us something called the Prayer Approach. The simple version is that when we go knocking on doors, tracting, we have a prayer with them, and then invite them to be baptized within the first 5 minutes of knowing them. Its really cool, im excited to use it this coming week. So that we can find the people prepared by the Lord, and the Elect people. It sounds pretty crazy but its inspired.

 

I hope everything is going awesome back home. Im doing great out here. I love each and every one of you. thanks for reading my emails. Love ya

 

Elder Durocher

 

PS. 

thanks for all the information on the MRI stuff. ill print off this email. Im still not sure what i should do. My back and Leg are feeling about the same as last week. Its still somewhat painful, but i can deal with it. its not as bad as it used to be. I think ill have to pray about it this week to see what i should do. Thanks for all the info though, so i can have options. Ill try to keep you updated the most i can. I love you Mom and thanks for all your help. Thanks for keeping me updated on the Family. Love Elder Durocher

Morgans 12th Letter - Photos

Dear Family

I have had another great week out her in Waianae! Heres an experience i had with an Investigator.

So last week we visited with an Investigator named Trisha. She lives in a Group home, and has a few disabilities. She has been struggling with quitting smoking for the last few weeks. We taught her a lesson, and then at the end of the lesson, Trisha said she wanted to give her Cigarettes to us, so that we could dispose of them. and That she was done with smoking. and she was really excited to be done. We took the Cigarettes, and then had a closing prayer. We told her we would buy her some stuff that helps get rid of cravings. So we go to the store and buy some supplies, like travel Toothpaste/ toothbrush, Gum, Grapefruit juice, Vitamin C, Mouth Wash, Mints, and a few other things.

 By the time we get back to her house, she was crying, and depressed. She told us she wanted us to stop coming to teach her, and she didnt want to join the church, or be baptized. and then she told us to leave. We tried talking to her a  little bit, but she was non respondant, then we  asked if we could say a prayer, and read a chapter out of the book of mormon. We started reading the Book of Mormon, and we didnt know if she was paying attention, cuz her hands were over her face. But by the End we could tell she was getting better, and feeling better. Then we taught her a little bit more.

Then i told her about Joseph Smiths first prayer, and when the Adversary over powered him. and that the Devil was trying to stop him. and That the Devil is trying to stop her from making one of the best choices of her life. We then Read Joseph Smith History. and I began to talk to her more. The Spirit was there so strong, and it was using me as a mouth peice. We were both "Edified." The Book of Mormon brings such a strong spirit. The Book of Mormon combined with the Spirit is the best way to teach. She re committed to quitting smoking. and by the end she was in a happy, cheerful mood again. The difference from the beginning to the end was so clear. It was an Amazing Missionary Experience.

We had a similar thing happen to an Investigator named Rosa, Where we read the Book of Mormon to answer her concerns and the Spirit was so strong. and Testifying to all of us the message was true. She's planning on being baptized October 26th. She talked to her Jehovah Witness friend, and her friend convinced her not to be baptized. So Rosa told us she didnt want us to teach her anymore, and that she didnt want to be baptized. We read 2Nephi 31 with her and the spirit was so strong. and she recommitted to baptism, and shes planning on being baptized this weekend.

We have 2 Investigators Jordan and Lani being baptized and married on the 27th of this month. It has been crazy trying to plan out a wedding plus a baptism. But now weve gotten everything figured out as of today. Please pray for them, that they will be protected from the adversary, or anything concerns or anything else. And that they will be baptized. Rosa is also being baptized this weekend on the 26th, so please pray for her too.

Today for P-Day activity, we played airsoft at a professional arena. We had professional guns and everything. It was super painful when they hit you, especially on the skin. in the 2 places the pellets hit me in the skin, it broke through the skin and started bleeding. It was super fun though, ill try to send a picture. Everyone in our zone except 2 missionaries came to play Airsoft. We played for like 3 hours today for P-Day.

Sounds like everything at home is going well. Sounds like ethan sure had a fun week, with everything he had going on. And cool the family got to get together. and hopefully Annie stays safe on her Trip.

Love you all thanks for the support.

Aloha Elder Durocher

Morgans 11th Letter - Photos

Hawaiis roads are really funky, and messed up. I took a picture of the 2 signs, that dont go together. Because its a One Way road, and then theres a stop sign facing the way your not allowed to go. I thought it was really funny.

It is customary to remove shoes at each home visited.  While Morgan was inside a dog ate his shoe and this is what he found!

Morgan and the district of Elders did a service project on the USS Missouri at Pearl Harbor, HI.  Swab the deck Maties!

Dear Family

This has been a good week. It has gone by super fast. My back is doing okay, not better or worse. I think im gonna get an MRI this week and just see whats up inside there. Its super annoying.

 

Weve got 3 investigators that are going to get baptized this month. the first one is named Rosa, she is about 60 years old, and weve been working with her for a couple months now. She feels like she is ready now. The other two are Jordan and Elanor. They are in their late 20's, or early 30's. They have 3 kids, and have the cutest little family. Weve been teaching them, on and off for about 2 months. They are not married, so that needs to happen first. We told Jordan that the Bishop could perform the baptism for No Charge, and he wants to get married, so he was excited about that. But he needs to talk to his wife. So he wants to be Married and then Be baptized, with his wife. His three Kids are all under 6 years old. We took Jordan and Elanor to the Tongan Wards baptism on Friday. Before the baptism we gave them a tour of the church, which went amazing, they love it. Then we went and sat down in the Relief Society room to wait for the baptism to start. They came in, and everyone sat down, the room was packed full of people. We didnt know this before, but it was a wedding, and a baptism. So the Bishop married them together. and then proceeded to the baptism part. Since it was the Tongan ward, a lot of the stuff was in Tongan. So we couldnt understand, Jordan and Elanor dont know Tongan Either. They got to see the Ordinance, and kind of see how everything went. About half of it was in English, and Half in Tongan. At the end of it they sang the closing song. It was Love At Home, and they sang it in Tongan. It was so Beautiful, and i felt the Spirit so Strongly while they were singing the song. I really loved it, that was my favorite part.

 

So last week one of our Members had a Heart Attack. His name is Brother Davis. We were at our Pad eating dinner. So it was about 7pm. We got a phone call and Elder Pincock answered the phone. Bro Davis said we needed to get over there ASAP, and give him a blessing because he was going into cardiac arrest. We race over there, which was a couple minutes away. We pull into the drive way, and hes just laying there on his back, in the middle of the driveway. We jump out of the car, and he says hurry hurry, give me a blessing. He tells me to annoint, and Elder Pincock to Seal and Bless. I fumble with the Oil container trying to open it, and Bro Davis tells me to hurry up. I Annoint him with the oil. and as soon as i finish, he hands me his phone and tells me to call 911. Elder Pincock Sealed and Blessed him while i was calling 911. 911 transfered me to the ambulance dispatchers. I tell her to send an ambulance cuz a man is having a Heart Attack. The Dispatcher Lady asks me why i think hes having a heart attack. I explain the situation. Then she starts asking me a bunch of other questions. In the meantime bro Davis is rolling around in pain, and moaning. She asks if im related to the man, and if he has a history of health problems, and about his breathing, and if his skin is clammy. Im asking Bro Davis questions about his health history and pain, Then Bro Davis says give me the phone. He snatches it out of my Hands and says something along these lines, " I have a history of Health Problems, it runs in my family, i have small valves, and something else, i have been having chest pain all day long, I passed out, i can barely breath, and my vision is Blurry, send me a Dang Ambulance before I die! he says this yelling at her. Then he throws the phone acrossed the drive way. He told us that he was watering his Lawn and Next thing he knows hes laying on the ground, with extreme chest pain. He had passed out, and fallen on the driveway and hit his head. The Phone Starts ringing, so i go pick it up and answer. Its the Ambulance Dispatch lady, she says please do not hang up again. the ambulance is on its way, and i need to know some things before the ambulance gets there. She starts asking me more questions, and then Brother Davis Starts rolling around side to side, moaning, and grabbing his chest. Then his eyes close, hes stops moving and talking, and he's out again. We start calling his name, and moving his hands trying to get a reaction. But Nothing. I cant tell if he's breathing, his chest is not moving, and theres no breath coming out of his mouth. I tell the Dispatch Lady that he went unconscious, and hes lifeless. She asks if hes Breathing, and i say no. She says to check his pulse. I was by his feet, so i tell Elder Pincock to check his Pulse. Elder Pincock froze up and didnt know what to do, i tell him again. Then i say put your finger on his neck and check his pulse, Still Elder Pincock was frozen and useless. I run up to his head, and try to check for his pulse. Brother Davis is still not Responding, moving, or breathing. I was scared. I tell the Dispatch Lady to Hurry and Get here, cuz shes still on the phone. Hes been out for 3-4 minutes by now. Brother Davis all of a sudden takes a breath. it sounded painful and scratchy. He is Struggling to Breath, his Breathing is Irregular. I am kneeling next to him now. He grabs my pants and squeezes super hard. I feel like hes going to rip my pants off. He's Moaning and in pain. He is all sweaty, and i can see from his body language how much pain he was in. I tell the Dispatch Lady that he came to, and is back. Brother Davis Tells me to call his Wife, and tell her to send Kimo to get home ASAP. Kimo is bro Davis's Brother, and Bro Davis's Wifes name is Sheenah. Sheenah was at work, and Kimo left to go bring Sheenah her dinner at work. So i call Sheenah and tell her that her Husband Bro Davis is having a heart attack, and Kimo needs to get home ASAP. I hear her tell Kimo to run home. Then i tell her what happen. She tells us to Elevate this head, so we do. She tells us that shes stuck at work, and cant get off.  By this point in time, Bro Davis went unconcious again. This time not as long, and after like 30 seconds he was back again. I give Brother Davis my hand to squeeze, which ended up being a bad idea, cuz he was sqeezing really hard. after a few more Minutes we hear Sirens. Then 2 firetrucks pull up. 5 or 6 firemen run over to us laying on the ground. They start asking us questions about what happen, if anyone was with him when he fell, and who we were. They ask Brother Davis about his history of heart problems, and where the pain was located at. Then they check his blood pressure, and his pulse electronically. Then We get Brother Davis's Wallet, ID, and Phone. THen after a few more minutes. and Ambulance shows up, they get the stretcher. The Doctor guy comes over and asks more questions. They Put Him on the stretcher. and we give them his Phone and Wallet and ID. They were about to leave and Bro Davis yells for me to come over. I come over and he grabs my hand and thanks me for being there. and Says, "your in charge of my house, and my 4 daughters okay, dont let Me down." They wheel him over to the Ambulance, load him up. and Drive away. Then Kimo shows up, we relate what happen. Then we go inside to check on his 4 daughters. They are all freaking out, and in shock. They are Crying. They were watching the whole thing through the front door, They saw their daddy pass out, and get wheeled off on a stretcher. We give Kimo a Blessing of comfort to know what to do. Then in a little while we left. Cuz we had a meeting we had to get to, and couldnt miss it. We get a voicemail from brother Davis at 1 AM that night, saying that he is okay, and that he is in the hospital, and if we had not shown up to help him at that time, the Doctors say he would have died. He thanked us, and told us we handled it perfectly. Doctors said they are expecting a full recovery.

 

Wow sorry That Story is so long, maybe i went into too much detail. That moment is in-grained into my memory, so thats how i guess i explained it. Heres the short version: Bro Davis a member from the ward, had a heart attack, and went unconscious, we helped him out until the Ambulance could get there, and Now hes okay. :)

 

Yeah so on a lighter note. We got a free washing machine today. and we got 3 free AC's this week, we put 2 of the AC's on the windows of our bedroom, and the other one got stolen from our pad cuz we left it outside. Things have been getting stolen from our pad recently. We had some dumbells for working out, that got stolen, along with a bar and some weights. then this last week, our AC got stolen from our pad, along with a Box Fan of ours. I hope nothing else gets stolen :/

 

Well i Love you Family, THanks for Enduring this extremely lonnnngggggg letter. Thats great to hear about ethans football games. and about David, and Annie.

I love you all so much.

 

Elder Morgan James Durocher

Morgan's Tenth Letter

Dear Family,

Wow what a crazy last 2 weeks back home in Utah, i dont even know where to begin. Yeah i am able to print stuff if i want to, its 15 cents a page, so not too bad. For the last 3 weeks i have been emailing at the Public Library because its less than a mile away from our house. And the computers at the Library dont let you send pictures home, so thats too bad. Next time I email at the Stake Center i will be sure to send all the pictures i have been trying to send the last few weeks. The Stake Center is a 30 minute drive, so its kinda annoying to have to drive all the way up there and back.

 

Crazy all the news i have received from home, seems like everything has been the same at home since i left 10 weeks ago, until the last 2 weeks. thats a lot of news. i was blown away reading it.

 

First off im super glad that there were no complications with Hayden being born, or No health problems that i know of. Crazy to think that both Cambree and Hayden will both be talking and walking when i get home off my mission. Im glad to hear that David is doing well. It makes me happy to hear hes returning to his happy, bubbly personality i remember him having when he was in highschool. I hope for the best for them. Thats fun you learned that Mom and Dave got to learn how to country swing dance together that sounds really fun.

I cant believe Aunt Debbie died. That was really quick, i was expecting her to live for a few more months. I Felt the Spirit so Strong reading that part about Debbie and Larry being together right now. And also know for a fact that the Plan of Salvation is true. That we have a chance to accept the gospel after this life, and that Families can be together forever. I love Teaching the Plan of Salvation, everything about it is perfect, and amazing, and flawless, everything about it just seems right and makes sense. 

 

General Conference was so amazing, i enjoyed this Conference more than i ever have before. I loved and enjoyed listening to every single talk. We watched General Conference at the Church, so there was a special spirit from being in the church, plus the spirit felt by the Apostles, it was an amazing experience. Since Hawaii is 4 hours time difference, our morning session was at 6 AM, so we woke up at 5, got ready, picked up the other missionaries in the next city, and went to the church. I was suprisingly not tired or sleepy at all, which was great, i was able to focus. We invited lots of our investigators to watch General Conference at the church, or at there homes. So im excited to talk to all of them and see what they think about it. None of our Investigators came to the church to watch, so hopefully they all watched it at home. This years General Conference was really focused on missionary work. Maybe i only think that because im a missionary though haha. but There were lots of talks focused on Less Active Members, and Investigators. It was really great. Im am super excited for the Ensign to come out, so i can re-read all the Talks. I am really excited about the Age change for missionaries. I was talking to a member, and she thinks that the age change will double the amount of missionaries serving.  more sisters will serve because they can go at age 19 instead of 21. So sisters will have more desire, will be less Involved or Engaged into school or their career. and they wont yet be married. Then for guys since they can leave sooner, even right out of highschool, they wont have that year they have to wait, where they can be temped by the Adversary. There will be less opportunity or chance for them to get into trouble, cuz i  think a lot of guys get in trouble in that year they have to wait. I really love the change, and i know it was inspired. I bet facebook was "lit up" with comments about the age change. i was betting that its all over facebook, all the young men and women talking about it.

 

Well bad news im getting sick again :( i think its a cold coming on. Hopefully it will pass over soon, since i had a cold in the MTC, so hopefully my body already has some immunity to it, so it doesnt get worse. My back is feeling better this week. I have noticed improvement over last week. My leg and back both have not hurt as much, and have in general felt better. I am still taking Ibuprofen every day to help. Im thinking maybe ill wait 1 more week before going to the doctor, to see if it continues to improve or not.

 

Thanks everyone for all the Prayers, and for fasting for me. I know they are helping me out, even if its not making me better physically, its for sure helping me emotionally to be able to cope with it. I KNOW that Heavenly Father can heal me if that is part of his plan, but i also know he might have another plan for me, which involves other things. And knowing that brings so so much comfort and peace to me. I know he will do whats best for me, and what i need to help me grow.

 

I love and miss you all, thanks for everything.

 

Elder Morgan James Durocher

Morgan's Nineth Letter

Aloha Family

 

So i got a call from a Doctor Chamberland on Friday Night. He is a Doctor from California, and i think he is on a Senior Mission with His Wife. But he is a doctor that is over the missionary department, i think he specialized on backs, because he know a lot about it. I gave him the whole story on my back, dating all the way back from when i innitially hurt it last december. He was really detailed he wanted to know everything. He is a really nice guy. Then he prescribed me with another medicine, i forget what its called, but its the one i took when i had the spasm 1 1/2 months after my surgery. So i started taking that on saturday. I think its feeling better now, i guess ill just have to see how i feel this week. Thanks everyone for Fasting for me on Sunday, the power of Fasting is amazing. And Also thanks everyone for keeping me in your prayers.

 

We met a lady named Tianne on Saturday. She was a Media referal that we recieved through text message, one of her friends got on LDS.org and referred her to us. She is a single mother of 5 kids, ages 14 and down. and shes also taking care of 2 of her sisters kids. We stopped by her house on Saturday, and shared a message about Prophets and The Book of Mormon. She was really excited to see us, and really wants to start taking lessons again and going to church. She used to talk to the Missionaries a long time ago, but she hasnt for a while. She wants to start coming to church with her family. She was really nice, and im excited to teach her again this week.

 

So on Wednesday Morning we drove out to Pearl Harbor to do service. We got to Pearl Harbor at about 9 am. Then they had a Bus drive us acrossed the bridge to an island thing. Then we got there, and met with the boss guy, named Kevin. The boat was the USS MISSOURI, its a battleship from World War 2, and i think it was also in the Korean War, or some other war. It was decommissioned in 90's. and now its a Museum. It had tons and tons of Turrets, and Cannons, and guns on it. A lot of them were taken off though. Our Job was to sweep the Wooden top Deck of the Whole Ship. We had 14 Elders there, and a 800 foot long ship. It took a couple hours to do, we got done around 11, and then the Kevin took us on a little Tour. We got to see one of the big 16 inch cannons, there was a big room thing you go inside, probley 8 people who would work inside. It was cool to see. Then we Left home. I got some cool pictures, ill try to include them.

 

Today for P-Day were having a Zone Barbeque at a NanaKuli Beach Park. This week is Transfers week, specifically on wednesday is transfer Day. Me and Elder Pincock are staying together, and staying here, because i am still training. So i have nothing to worry about. I have 3 months of total training, so 6 weeks left until im done training.

 

I have been out for 2 months today. I have had an amazing experience so far, and im excited for everything to come. My Testimony has grown so much, and my understanding as well. I know My Savior Lives and i know He has a plan for each and everyone one of us. I know that everything we go through, all of our struggles, and trials, and tribulations, are to make us stronger, and make us grow closer to him, and become more like him. I like this scripture from 2 Nephi 2:24 "But Behold, All Things have been done in the Wisdom of Him who Knoweth all things." This has helped me so much going through my Back Struggles, I know theres a purpose and a reason behind all things. And my back problems have strengthened both my Faith, and Humility sooo so much. I hope and pray my back will get better.

 

Love Elder Durocher

 

Im gonna send pictures in another email. Cuz im at the Library, normally im at the stake center to email.  and i think thats what messed it up was sending the pictures and email in the same message.