Moundbuilders

You're in luck! You DO get an email from me! Sorry about that. We actually had an appointment on our P-day, and we were running late. But I still forgot my camera cord to send you pictures - not that I've really had time to take any cool ones of Marietta. But it is the oldest settlement in Ohio and a lot of revolutionary war veterans settled here for some reason. It's got brick streets and all sorts of neat houses. Also this used to be an ancient Native American village and there's these mounds everywhere left by them. I guess they were called the Hopewell and were known as the Moundbuilders. The library is built on one, there is a cone shaped one in the cemetery, there's another one in a little city park. I've gotten really curious about them and I have no way of researching it, so if you could see if you could find anything on these Moundbuilders, I'd be interested :)

So I had to take over an Elder's area and apartment, and let me tell you, it wasn't pretty. We did some major rearranging and cleaning. And Sister-fying. I feel much more at ease now. I think I inherited a bit of your having-to-make-order-out-of-chaos gene. I just don't understand some people's sense of organization - you just don't put couches randomly in the middle of the living room. But it's just been really crazy and busy trying to figure out a new area without any real help. And I need a Urim and Thummim to read any records left by the Elders....that is IF they left them..... Record keeping is so important! I find I'm a lot more like mom than I want to admit sometimes :) I've had to systemize things and organize things in notebooks and map things out, etc. :) But it's been fun.

I had to speak my first Sunday here, too. The second counselor in the bishopric called us Wednesday night when we got here, and I don't think he had any idea that the Elders were getting switched out with Sisters and he was quite surprised by a female voice on the missionaries phone :) So the Elders got out of speaking in the nick of time... but it went good. I prayed really hard that I would be given the gift of tongues so our Russian referral that came to church would understand, but I still don't think she did. Oh, and we're also teaching a girl from China. I don't what it is with me teaching people that don't really speak English all that well.....

We're volunteering at the Hospital here and the Red Cross so it's been very educational. But again, I'm getting kicked off the computer, so ta-ta for now. Love you!

~Melissa