The Elder Barr Blog

Things are going great here. The week has been really good. First off, I should tell you that transfers happened. Elder Wood got assigned to be a zone leader in Kingsbridge (part of the Bronx), so I am still in Olmstead II. I love it though. I have had the feeling throughout the week that the ward still needs me, so I am glad that I get to stay another cycle.

This week has been really good. Still a lot of the same. Tracting, teaching, street contacting. As a ward, we have really been trying to get the people to do home teaching. The ward has 600 people, and probably 100 active members, which leads to about 16 functional hometeaching companionships. As would be expected, there is no way that 16 companionships can teach 600 people, so we have had a lot of meetings (correllation and PEC) where hometeaching has been the focus. We had several ideas that I think are applicable anywhere a ward has this issue. 1st - we are going to do hometeaching splits with the missionaries, essentially doubling the size of the hometeaching force. 2nd - the missionaries are going to help the Elders Quorum, and Bishop, in assigning companionships to families. Since we know the people we work with better than most other people, we can help to make sure they get a HT where there will be a functional realationship. 3rd - we are going to focus our teaching on certain key peoples (1 - recent converts, 2 - active members, 3 - people who have recently become less actives, 4 - long time less actives). I think that this will be the best, as it is much easier to keep people active than to bring them back, and the recent converts we have now are so strong and solid.

Oh, we had a really good, but simple, missionary experience this week. We walked by a woman and child and the woman had a bunch of groceries in her hands. We asked if she needed help. She said yes, so we helped her with the bags. On the way, she told us she had met with missionaries before, but she moved and lost contact. We gave her the address of the church and she says that she will be there. I hope she keeps that committment. But, the moral of the story is that from somthing simple, like helping with the groceries, came a potential investigator. So, it is a reminder to me to always keep my eyes open and not get lazy about street contacting.

We had another interesting situation that has been developing over the last few weeks. For this part, definatly censor the names completely. We had been tracting some multi-family houses. Guianan, Gambian, Dominican, etc…., then we tract this one door and it is this young woman with a roommate from Utah. He wasn’t there at the time, but she said his name was ****. Her name was ******. They also had a roommate, *****, but we had never met him. Anyway, we had been trying from time to time to find ****, but we would only find ******. One day, we knocked on the door, and a man answered who introduced himself as ***** and said that **** wasn’t there, and told us to try in the evenings. So, we tried in the evenings for a while, and only found ******. So, we decided to try an early afternoon, and we go there, and a man we have never met before comes to the door, so we say, “You must be ****!", and he says, “Come in, I’ll tell you.” It turns out that **** is from Utah, and we had met him earlier but he introduced himself as *****, because he got nervous. So, we were talking to the real *****. The real **** was asleep in the other room. **** and ***** were ex boyfriends. That was somewhat of a surprise. Anyway, ***** had an interest in church architecture, so we said we were going to come back and talk about it some more. So, this will be my first set of discussions with a man who is openly gay. But, I have heard that people like him have joined the church before, and he is a son of God and is worth every effort we can expend to let him hear the Gospel. Plus, we don’t know ****’s story yet. I’ll keep you informed on how that goes.

Anyway, things are going great. I am enjoying the work down here. It is really hot, but not bad. We are going to lunch next Wednesday, with an investigator named J***, who is going to take us to get seafood on City Island, so there is good stuff to look forward to.

Alright, take care. I love you all very much. And my address is still the same, in case you were wondering.

Love,
Elder Stephen J. Bar

HAPPY FATHER’S DAY! As I said in the email, I am so grateful for the wonderful father that you are to me. I appreciate all that you do for me and for the family.

If today is Monday, then I guess it is you and the girls for the week. That sounds like a lot of fun. Were Mom and Andy planning to spend any time in Lima or are they going straight to Cuzco? I guess they’ll have to be the group for most of the time.

It has been SO hot lately. Not only hot, but humid and sticky. I’m sure you remember it quite well. I’m going to try to candidly take some pictures of what the streets of my area are like. It is hard to explain. It is pretty dirty actually. The sidewalks are cooking of all of the stuff that has been on them all year. We were in the top floor of one building, visiting a member, and it smelled particularly bad because they suspected an animal was up on the roof. Anyway, it has been a lot of fun so far.

Well, it sounds like you have been busy. Working in Perl and then going to Java…sounds diverse. Has Perl 6 come out yet? It will be interesting trying to get back into the programming world after having taken a 2 year break. One thing that is strange is that I can feel in my brain that my non-missionary abilities are in somewhat of a hibernated state, and patterns of thought that I would have when programming feel inaccessible right now. I guess that the brain is like any other muscle, or system of muscles, in that without exercise it weakens. Not that it is a bad thing… I’m sure that I’ll be able to regain my “programming muscles” quickly, but there is a noticable change. My English isn’t as good as it used to be, but I guess that comes from picking up from my surroundings.

There are so many different dialects of English…it is incredible. For example, we work with an older man, B*****, from Guyana. English is his 1st and only language, but it is nearly impossible to understand him talk to his family. Although it is still “English,” the words are used differently and the accentuation is different than American English. Also, people from the British Caribbean can speak an English dialect, which is spoken at two or three times the speed of regular English, and certain words are omitted. It is fun meeting people from all over the world.

It is too bad to hear that Andy missed his recital. He was talking about it and practicing for it for weeks. I had asked him to record his piece and burn it onto a CD for me. I am hoping that he can still do that at some point. Maybe you can remind him to do that when he gets back.

Well, everything else has been fine here. Elder Wood has been a bit sick. There is a flu going around. I haven’t had anything similar, except for one day when I thought I would be getting sick, but it went away.

Please let me know what I can do here for you and the rest of the family. I’ll try to take and send some more pictures. The new camera sounds really cool. Please send me some pictures of the house, and of the “Seattle nature and city.” There are many people here who haven’t seen mountains, trees (not coming out of the sidewalk), or things like that. Maybe even a picture of the front of the neighborhood.

Well, I need to go. We are going to play basketball at church. Say hi to the girls for me. See you later.

Love, Your Son,

Elder Stephen Barr

How are you all doing? Thanks for the letters. I read them quickly, but since I only have 30 minutes, I print them out and will reply to them individually which you should get on Monday.

I love the Bronx. I know it has its hardships, but at the same time it is really fun being here. Also, this ward really needs missionaries right now. Most of the ward is recent converts, and sometimes they take things too far and need some doctrinal help.

So, it has been really hot this week. I have been drinking a lot of water, and I got some good sunblock, and I think I should be alright. Still, I sweat a lot and it gets pretty gross, but it is fine. Summers in the south Bronx are different than anything else in this world. The people here, even the kids, know how to open the fire hydrants and on every other street they have the fire hydrants going and the kids are playing in the water. At first, the kids themselves open them and the amount of water that comes out is overwhelming, but then the fire department comes around and puts sprinkler heads essentially on the hydrants (or pumps as they call them. hence you hear “someone popped the pump on stratford"). It is something else.

This week we had a mission conference, and Elder Hammond and his wife from the 1st Quorum of the Seventy spoke to us. We all loved his testimony of the Book of Mormon, and him telling some of his experiences and a mission president and as a general authority. He is being released as a GA soon, and he and his wife will be the President and Matron of the Washington DC temple.

So, our ward has had some troubles this week. Sister C****** usually holds family nights every other Monday, and lots of people come. She starts it with a big meal for everybody, and then after that, everyone quiets down and then the missionaries or sometimes she will give the lesson. She has been doing that for YEARS. Everyone loves it, and it has been a great help to the ward.

Anyway, another sister, sister X, also has family nights on the weeks sister C****** doesn’t have family nights. Sister C****** attends these familiy nights. Anyway, a few days ago, sister X decided to give a lesson on how to “properly” give an FHE. She said that it was wrong to invite a lot of people, and that since the FHE manual says to have light refreshments at the end of the lesson, it was WRONG to have a big meal at the beginning instead. Now, A-Sister C****** was there, and it was clear to everyone that Sister X was referencing her style of famliy nights, B-Sister X then said that she didn’t feel the Spirit at such gatherings, C-she then asked Sister C****** to say the closing prayer. Sister C****** started the prayer and broke into tears and cried and cried. It was so hard for her, because Sister X made her feel that she had been doing FHE wrong all these years. We saw sister C****** yesterday and she told us about this, and we explained to her that what she was doing was perfectly fine, that it has helped the church, and that the Spirit is abundant in her home. She knows the truth, but she was still hurt by the embarassment of the situation.

I think it is a Bronx thing to say things without being sure if they can hurt others. I know I can say those things from time to time. Another example is in testimony mtg, one sister said, “If you had seen the behavior of Brother Y’s kids a few months ago, compared to now, you would know that we truly have miracles. I mean they were outrageous, running everywhere, screaming…..". Brother Y and his family didn’t take offense, but it is so hard. Things like this make it hard for us, because when we work with less active members, they are always inactive because of offense.

So, as missionaries and in PEC and correlations, are are going to try to address this issue as best as we can. The ward is very fragile right now. The Bishop is doing as best as he can, but because it is summer and both of his counselors were medical students, they aren’t here right now. So it is just him and the ward clerk and the executive secretary that compose the bishopric. Anyway, I’m sure the ward will be fine in time. It just is really a testimony of how much the ward needs missionaries, and others who are “experienced in the ways of the church".

Alright, I need to go. I hope that you have safe travels (Mom and Andy), and a great time at home (everybody else). Also, happy Father’s Day DAD! I can’t thank you enough for all that you’ve done for me. If I’ve learned anything from the Bronx, it is that having a good father makes all the difference in the world. I love you Dad!

I love the rest of you too. Have a great week.
Love,
Elder Stephen J. Barr

Thanks you for your emails and everything. I’ll start off by answering your questions first:
1 - the milk was spoiled. Every other Saturday, we work at the bishop’s storehouse. The milk freezer had shut off and nobody knew about it for a few days, so the milk had spoiled.
2 - That sounds great about the Mustang. That price would be fine. Try to include the paint if you can, but if not just ebay it separately and take what you can get for it.

…

This week has been good so far. The Bronx is still the Bronx. It has been really hot this week. Like, 85-90, and very humid. Still, it is fun just loving and working with the people. Our area is extremely small, and within that we have a smaller “focus area", and within that, we concentrate on 1/3 of it, so basically we are on just a few streets all day. It is great because since we are there so much, every body gets to know us. All the kids wave and yell “hi Elders!". Even kids we don’t know, but who have befriended kids that we do know. It is really great. Everybody knows us here and if they don’t like us, at least they respect us.

One example, Elder Wood and I were in our focus area and we walked past a group of guys that at one point in my life I would have been hesitant to be near. They were the guys with “doo rags", baggy pants, that sort of thing. There were probably 5-7 of them. As we walked by, one of them yelled out to his friends, “yo, don’t jump those Mormons!". We turned around, smiled and waved back, and said “thanks, we appreciate it". Being on a mission has taught me how to be really patient and non-judgemental. There is good in almost everyone.

Yesterday I went on an exchange with Elder Angulo, our zone leader from Venezuela. I was able to understand 70% of the Spanish conversations around me, but I still am shy about speaking it. I was able to bear simple testimony about the truthfulness of the restoration of the Gospel and of the Book of Mormon. Still, it was fun to go with him.

So, when is D**** F****** leaving to the D.R.? Dominicans are really cool. We got to teach a few of them yesterday. This part of the Bronx is mostly Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, Africans, African-Americans, and there are a lot of Guianans and others from the Caribbean. It is fun to work with all of them. With one family, I helped them get their computer online, and the kids are using the internet for the first time. It is a pentium 200, with a 14.4 modem and AOL, but it is better than what they had before. That particular Guianan family is really cool, they are half Muslim half Christian, and they all love WWE wrestling. Who would have thought?

We are teaching another Guianan named John-Jay, who I’ll write more about.
As for now, I’m doing well. I’m going to buy some new shoes today. The “deer stags” that I took with me wore out. I’ll send a picture.

Alright, I hope you have a great week. I look forward to hearing more from you always. I love you all.
Love,
Elder Stephen J. Barr

Sorry I am late with the email. This morning we went to the Manhattan Temple, so I didn’t have time to write till now. I hope I didn’t worry you too much Mom . Things are going fine here in the Bronx. The temple trip today was awesome. Manhattan is really an impressive place. From the subway station, we walked a few blocks to the temple, and on the way we walked by the Trump Tower. It is a huge building, as most of the buildings areound here tend to be. I hope I get to serve in Manhattan soon.

This week has gone great. No complaints or anything like that. We are still working hard. It will take a lot of work to get the Olmstead II ward to the kind of ward like Redmond 2nd is. We had 5 investigators at church on Sunday, and it was SOOOO loud in the chalpel. There were baby’s crying, kids misbehaving, and Elder Wood and I were getting a little frustrated, as we wanted our investigators to have a good experience. I think what it comes down to is that quite is such an unfamiliar thing to many people. Anyway, our investigators enjoyed Sacrament meeting, and we are working on teaching them.

Oh, before I forget, could you send me a picture of the house, front yard, backyard, and that kind of stuff. Also a picture that shows how “green” Seattle is. Maybe a picture of Mt. Rainier too. And also I need the one of me eating the guinea pig in Peru. Anyway, it is amazing that people who have lived in the inner city their whole lives, who haven’t seen trees growing in a natural state, or mountains, or hiking, or things of that nature. Also, is my laptop ready for Elder Volkanov yet. He and I will probably only be roommates for another few weeks.

I hope you are able to soon read the CF card. Send it back to me if you can’t read it, and I’ll print out the pictures I want. Has David F****** left on his mission yet. What about S******? I most likely won’t be able to see them, as planned visits with friends aren’t allowed by our mission president.

Well, the work here is still progressing well. As of tomorrow, I will have been out for 4 months. That is a pretty good-sized chunck of time. 1/3 of a year. 1/6 of a mission. I know that time will pass very quickly. I am enjoying the Bronx and I love working with the people here. At the same time, I hope to work in Manhattan or a suburb, but I’ll go wherever the Lord needs me. Memorial day was strange as a missionary, in that it wasn’t any different than any other Monday. The only difference was that there were a few more people on the sidewalks than usual, and there were a few small BBQ’s going.

The white shirts are going well. The ones I like are the button down oxford. I like them because they are a little thicker, and absorb the sweat. Also the poplins are too see-through. I’ll be fine with the ones I have for a little while though. The weather has been fluctuating between 65-85.

Anyway, I need to go. I hope this email reaches you in good health and that you were able to have a great memorial day. Expect my letters as usual, and I’ll send the 16 MB CF card. Let me know if that works well or not.

Alright, I love you all very much. Say hi to everyone for me. All is well out here on the eastern front.
Love, your son or brother,
Elder Stephen J. Barr