Math Is Math

Howdy,

It was a pretty good week of missionary work out here in Kentucky. We had both zone conference and general conference which were both amazing! It was a lot of sitting, but the meetings were so cool that it was worth it. This general conference was definitely worthwhile. I loved the focus on missionary work, and also the purple flower leaf things they had in the background looked very cool as well. It was very fun to be able to go to zone conference and not have to do anything with car inspections or anything of the sort. I gave assistance to Elder Speth and a couple others when they needed it, but for the most part, I was free to have a good time and focus on following the spirit rather than the managerial side of things. It was really fun to be able to see other missionaries, especially Elder Brock. I had a good time talking to him. 

As missionaries in a Spanish area, we run into a lot of minorities which has been fun. It has made me wish that I knew how to speak french because there are a lot of French speakers here as well. We usually just assume that anyone that looks like they speak Spanish does and so we approach them and start speaking in Spanish. This works well most of the time but has led to some pretty funny exchanges. Sometimes the Spanish speakers get offended that we think they look Latino and try to talk to us in English because we're white but other times the people we're trying to talk to don't speak Spanish at all. My favorite response to one of these encounters was when we walked up to someone and started speaking in Spanish and his response came: "Sup home dawg." Elder Moeller and I couldn't help but laugh.  Another good approach is to approach someone in English, and when they tell you (sometimes they lie) that they don't speak English go off with oh perfect, and continue to have a conversation with them in Spanish. It feels like Ammon teaching Lamoni and "he was caught with guile" into hearing the message and keeping commitments. Haha, we've outsmarted your little lie to avoid the missionaries. 

I loved the emphasis on missionary work in conference! As I heard the call for more missionaries to serve, I have pondered what I can do to become the kind of missionary the prophet and the Savior envisioned when they called me. I was struck by Sister Craven's comment that it's not about doing more, it's about doing what matters. It made me think that just because we work really hard on something doesn't mean that it is right. I want to take a closer look at my routines and mannerisms to see what things I should add or omit to become a true representative of the Savior and to eradicate contention within myself. 

I hope you all had a great week and enjoyed conference!

¡Seguir Luchando! 

- Elder Rogers

 Chicken and rice made with cream of mushroom soup and a side of pickled beets (I'm not sure there is a meal that has the potential to make me feel at home more than this one)

Florence Y'all Water Tower

The view of Cincinnati coming down the hill from Kentucky

Zone Conference (I am close to the very middle in a blue suit. Elder Moeller is immediately left of me, Elder Brock is 3rd to the right of me, Elder Parry is 8th to the right of me, and Elder Wilson is 1 down and 1 to the right of me)