Mount Royal/Mandarin South- Week 18

So big news... First is, I am going back to Dows Lake Ottawa tomorrow. I was disappointed when I found out, I feel like things are going really well in the area and that we have many progressing people. I also just really like Montreal and Mohammed's baptism is coming up and it means I probably won't get to go in person. Second, we picked up Elder Wu ten days ago, he was flying over from Halifax. As you might remember, all the missionaries in the Atlantic provinces are being moved over to Montreal. Elder Wu was lucky to be able to fly, 12 other elders are driving in caravan for 2 days to bring all the cars over. I would have liked to be in the office at this time to see all the details of an operation like this. Anyways, I was so happy to see Elder Wu again. He and I went to do service at Canada's largest food bank and afterward got Krispy Kreme. Elder Wu will be in Montreal for the next week until he goes home to Taiwan, he just needs to get a covid test to be able to enter the country. Elder Wang is getting transferred to the Montreal ward and is going to be teaching Mohammed. And Elder Rigby is going to stay in the mandarin branch. My new companion is a younger missionary Elder Chin. He is originally from Singapore and he speaks Cantonese not Mandarin. He is crazy good at golf and played for BYU before the mission. He also joined the church when at BYU. I also know that he loves Star Wars and quotes a movie in nearly every other sentence. Although I wasn't too excited to leave Montreal, having Elder Chin as a companion will be the silver lining. 

The other thing is I will be in Ottawa for the tulip festival so thats nice. 

All the members and friends we have teaching have been saying goodbye and saying all the good things I have done so its been a tender past few days.

President told me that I will be in Dows Lake for the rest of my mission which makes sense. He also said that I need to choose which transfer to go home. I am not completely sure why I need to choose but from what I gathered it was something like this: I entered the MTC July 3rd which was on the proper cycle for the old Montreal mission, but with the mission merge it ended up putting me the July 3rd date in the middle the transfer cycle. So he said I need to pick between going home June 4th or July 16th soon. I guess the first thought I had was July 3rd is closer to July 16th than June 4th so I ought to do the two years and then an extra two weeks. After I told President about Ryan's wedding, he expressed that maybe it would be better to go home sooner. (Which actually made me feel a little sad like he was trying to get rid of me) But that doesn't make any sense because he is going home too that month haha. That raises the other matter of if I wait to July 16th, it will be a different mission president doing my last interview, and you know I really admire and love President Low so I do want him to do my last interview. The other thing is that Elder Rigby who I came out with goes home June 4th and all the french missionaries I came out with go home July 16th. 

After thinking about it, I now think June 4th is the one I ought to pick. Of course you will remember when my enter date changed from July 17th to July 3 or to August and I felt I should do July 3rd. I know Heavenly Father knew that that decision would put me in the place to make this one and feel like June 4th is what I ought to do.

Here are the answers to some questions that my mom sent me:

1. What is something that stuck out to you from your personal scripture study this week?

I read about the Nephites right before Christ came and also read Moses leading the Israelites around and noted a lot of similarities in the Nephites and Israelites in being prideful and quick to forget God. 

2.  What is something that made you laugh this week?

Too hard, there's been too many. I do remember I saw these really talented flash performers. These two guys came out into the intersection at a red and one got on the others shoulders and then they both started juggling. It didn't make me laugh but I so impressed I forgot to get a picture and I was also driving and the person behind me honked so it probably won't have been safe. I wanted to circle the block park somewhere and go chat with them but we were late to something so no chance.

3. What is something you are grateful for?

I have been writing one thing I am grateful for each day ever since my Dad asked us to. The most recent one I wrote I was grateful to spend the day with Elder Wu before he goes home. I will get to see him in just a few months at BYU of course but still. He made me pinky promise I would go to Taiwan before I die and gave me a whole bunch of Taiwan stickers to decorate my phone. 

Elder Pinkney