Dog whisperer

Well hello again family and friends!

I had the opportunity to go to a baptism in Camp Verde. This is in the
northern part of the mission. Unfortunately it wasn't snowy... But the
baptism was amazing. It was for 2 teenagers that Elder Richards taught
up there. They were so humble and ready for the gospel. It was
incredible to see the amount of support they had by their ward. The
Spirit was very strong throughout the whole process. I loved every
minute of it. Definitely worth the 4 hours in the car to get there and
back.

This week I had the opportunity to go on exchanges with the Agua Fria
Elders. This is the Spanish ward. I got to spend the day with Elder
Tamayo. We had such a fun day! I used the very limited Spanish
knowledge I have to my fullest ability. I had a couple people actually
convinced that I know Spanish!

So I have been named the dog whisperer in our zone. Multiple times
this week I have encountered dogs and subdued them. There was a
pitbull barking like crazy in front of a house we were going to visit.
My companion at that time suggested we move on to the next house. I
told him we should just go any way. We went and I had the dog calmed
in minutes. The owner came out in utter shock that the dog stopped
barking and was letting me pet him. Another time this week we had a
member who has a very easily frightened dog. This dog hates strangers
and is even afraid of the owners from time to time. The first time we
were in their home, I had this dog sitting on my feet and being
completely calm. The owners were in awe. I just love dogs  and they
know it I suppose. Its a good time!

This week we got black boxes. These are little boxes that go in our
cars that tell us how we're driving. At the end of each week we get
graded based upon our speed, acceleration, braking, and turning. If
you make a mistake in any of these categories it has a voice that
informs you of such. Its pretty funny to hear how much other
missionaries complain about it. Hopefully it improves our driving as a
mission and there will be less accidents.

We got a new investigator this week. We went and knocked on the door of a women
who hasn't wanted contact with the church for the past 5 years. She
answered the door initially irritated, but we got her to change her
mood quick. We ended up having a 20 minute conversation with her and
got her laughing a lot. It turns out that she has a 17 year old
daughter who hasn't been baptized. We talked her mom in to letting her
daughter take the lessons. Her daughter is so ready for the gospel.
One lesson in and she wants to be baptized! Sadly her mom currently
doesn't want her to get baptized right now. We're going to continue to
work with both of them. When we tell people who it is in the ward all
are in awe and are very excited. So many people want to help. It's
incredible!!

I love you all and hope you have a delightful week!

-Elder Toph Tribe