Hello everyone!!!

So it sounds like this last week has been really good! Yes Jake i am jealous that I wasnt able to go but I will hopefully see a lion or a giraffe soon. Sounds like things back at home are going really well. My experiences here are Awesome so far. We have been teaching more and more people lately and have been busy preparing them for baptism for the coming month. People here are hard to get to baptism because they dont keep commitments very well. We are working hard and are hoping that we will have baptisms soon. My old companion was transferred to a place called Thembiso. My new companion's name is Elder Foote. He got transferred here from a place called SunnySide. It is near South Africa's capital, Pretoria. He just turned 21 and He has been out for a year not to long ago. He is from Reno, Nevada. He has been an Awesome companion so far!! So I will be transferred July 10 or August 21. They dont tell us when we are leaving until the Saturday before transfer day. We then have a transfer meeting and after that they tell us where we are going. I will probably be leaving next month or in August. We will have to see.

So mom, Thank you again for your package!! I used the baking soda and the brown sugar and chocolate chips and was able to make Awesome Chocolate chip cookies!!!! Thank you so much!! So it sounds like Yellowstone was really good!! Its good to hear that everyone had fun! I hope you all enjoyed the chocolate!! Its good to hear that the package made it home!! Oh hey when you get the chance this next Sunday will you ask brother Harris and Brother Ames and ask them if they got their letters??? I dont know if they made it home or not. That is Awesome that Grandma and Grandpa went on a cruise to Alaska!! The temperature here is in the high 50's  and the low 60's. This last week it has been close to the 70's. So far it hasnt been to bad. I was told by the members that it gets a lot colder than that though so we will see.

So dad, Its good to hear that Yellowstone went well!!! That is Awesome that you guys saw some bears!!! I still havent seen any cool animals yet but I will let you know as soon as I do! So how was Fathers day?? Its good to hear that you got my card. I found that card in the store here and I thought that would be an Awesome card to send home. So how is the sprinkler situation??? is it better or is the neighbors tree tearing it apart? I hope things will get better there. So i was thinking of sending Grandpa Parks a missionary name tag saying Elder Parks. I dont know if he still has his or not. I asked Grandma if he still had his still so we will have to see.

Nate, That is AWESOME that Dwayne offered you that job!!!!!! That is a really good job! That is crazy that you are already going to college!!! Beware of Humanities!!! You have to think a lot! Unfortunately it is required for the Associates degree so work hard and you will do fine! If you want to register to Institute you need to go to the bishop and ask him how to register. He will help you with that. Work hard and everything will fall into place! That is one thing I have learned here on my mission.

Jake, I am glad that you enjoyed the chocolate!! I will do my best to send a surprise home next month for your birthday. I am going to try to send everyone something but i need to wait until everything mellows out again so I can send another package. You will have to let me know how Erica and Austin liked EFY. I can probably relate some of my EFY experiences to theirs. I hope everything is going well at home and tell the Golders hi for me.

Josh, Its good to hear that everything went well going to Yellowstone! Sounds like you all got eaten alive by mosquitoes! Thats not good. Time flies by so fast! I have been out for 4 months now! By the way my old companion went to a place called Thembiso. My new companion came from a place called Sunny Side. Work hard and have a great week!

Alex, Its good to hear that Yellowstone went well!!! I hope that the swimming lessons will go well!! I remember when I took swimming lessons! They were pretty fun! Im glad that you enjoyed the chocolate! Have a great week and Work hard!

I love you all very much and I hope you all have wonderful week! I look forward to hearing from you all next Monday! 

- Elder Parks

Hello everyone!!

Sounds like everything is going well back at home. Sounds like Nate's Graduation was great!! That is Awesome that you guys took the top and the doors off the Jeep! I am so Jealous! I miss going on Vacation so badly!! But other than that things here in South Africa are going pretty good! This last week has been really crazy! I got a new companion on Thursday. His name is Elder Foote. He is from Reno, Nevada. He is a really cool guy and I really look forward to serving with him her in Carletonville. I only have till July 10 or August 21 until I move to another area. Time is going so fast!! Thank you by the way for the recipes mom!!! I look forward to making them. Im not sure if i got your package yet because I havent been to our office yet. I hope that I will be able to go there soon! I will let you know as soon as I can when i get the package. I am going to send a package home with some goodies in it as well as a card for dad on Father's Day. I hope that you will get it next week or the week after. 

So mom thank you so much for the enchilada recipe!! I really look forward to making those!! I also look forward to making the peanut butter bars as well!! Is there any chance you can send me one more recipe?? I really want to make some banana bread but im not sure how to make it. So it sounds like Nates graduation went well until all of his friends went home with their families. Thats too bad that he ended up going home by himself. But other than that it sounds like his senior trip will be fun! I am also jealous that he gets to go to Lake Powell!! Tell him to be careful and not to hot dog around! I know that he will have fund and things will go well. 

Dad, I am sending some goods home for everyone and a card for you for Father's day! I hope the package will arrive next week or the week after! I am sending it today so hopefully it wont take to long. So how is my memorial garden going so far? I thought it was funny that me and Nate have our own gardens! I love it that we both have one! So Darrel came home last week?!? That is Awesome!! I cant believe that he is already home! Time is going so fast! I am almost done with my first area. I only have 6 to 11 weeks left of this area! I have no idea when i am going but i know that it is soon because you only stay in an area for about 4 1/2 to 6 months. I am coming up on my 4 month mark so I will have to see where and when they send me. 

Nate, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! You are now a High School Graduate!! That is Awesome!! So it sounds like graduation was good! That is way funny that a beach ball was going around when Hicks was talking. I could totally see someone doing that during graduation. I really wish i would have gone to the graduation party though! I missed it because i had to work when they hosted one for us. Its good to hear that it was fun though! So i laughed so hard when you told me about Craig and what you did to him!!! I couldnt stop laughing!! I could totally see you doing that! That is Awesome!! By the way is there any chance you can do me a favor? Can you log on to my Facebook and update it? I dont want Facebook closing my account because of inactivity. The user name is ColbyParks@msn.com and the password is parksmonster18. Please dont reply to any messages that come into the box because I have no idea what may end up in there. If you will accept all friend requests that would be awesome! let me know if there is any problems and i will do it myself if i have to. Will you also look up Stacie Lyman on my facebook and tell here that I said hi and if she asks how to write me please tell here to go to dearelder.com. Have fun at Lake Powell and be safe!!! I want to find out that my brother came home in one piece and that he had a fun time on his senior trip. Enjoy Lake Powell!!

Jake, so it sounds like you had a good week with the Golders!! Its not good that you guys rolled the side by side! Its good to hear that you all are ok and that the only injury that occurred was a black eye from sun glasses. I will be sending home some goodies but it my be a little longer before I can send some rugby stuff home. I will do the best I can.

Josh, Things here are going really well. I love South Africa! The weather here right now is cold but it is still good. That is Awesome that you got good grades!!! Great Job!!! How is Sparq? Is it good? I know when I lifted weights it was tough!! Work hard and I know that you will do well!! I would imagine that Football is going to start soon. That will be fun. I will be sending home some goodies so watch for them in the mail. I am sending them off today so you will all get them next week or the week after. Have a good week!

Alex, Work hard for mom and do your chores and you may earn a points card for the Xbox. Things here are going really well. I found a real tank sitting in a park the other day. I will take a picture of it and send it to you next monday. Have a good week!

I love you all and I hope that you all have a fantastic week!! I will email you all next monday!

- Elder Parks 

Hello everyone!

This week has been really hard! But even though it has been hard it has been worth it. The People here are getting more and more interested in what we are doing. We get stopped on the street all the time by people that are curious what we do. I have finally got used to talking to people so its not to bad when they come up to talk to us.I have really enjoyed my experience so far. By the way mom, Happy Birthday!!! ( sorry its a little late). I cant believe Nate has already graduated from Seminary!! Time is going so fast! Its even more crazy that i have been out for 3 months already! This time next year will be excited though because i will be able to hear where Nate is going for his mission! I look forward to hearing where he is going. I really look forward to hearing where Dakota will be going on his mission when he gets his call! Life is going really fast! 

So mom it sounds like you and Nate had good birthdays! That is good to hear! I hope all of you are doing well and things are good at home! I may be going to a lion park soon so if i do i will take pictures and send them to you all! I hope we end up going! So Josh, you got 92% on your CRTs?!?!?!?!  Thats Awesome!!!! Great job! I never got that good of a score on my CRTs! I wish i got that good of scores! Keep up the good work! Thank you mom for sending me the package! I look forward to getting it! I will finally get to make some really good cookies! So i never heard from Dad or Nate, How are they doing? Im sure this week has been busy for them but I hope they are doing well! I will try to send some more chocolate soon for Fathers day! I will include my favorite chocolate this time instead of the kind i sent last time. I will still include some Kit Kats! 

So Alex keep up the hard work towards your arrow of light! I know that through hard work you will get it! It is definately not easy but it is worth it! Oh and Congratulations on making the Captain rank on Halo Reach!

Jake before you know it you will be a junior in high school and then a senior and i will be coming up on the last six to seven months of my mission! Time is going really fast so when you graduate, it will be Awesome for you! Keep working hard and keep up the good work!

Nate how was Seminary Graduation?? I still remember mine and it seems like just yesterday I was graduating from High School. Keep up the good work and I know you will do well!

Josh keep up the good work in school and i know that you will get to where you want to be! 

Dad, I hope things are going well and i am going to try to send you something for Fathers day. Hopefully it wont take to long to get there. I look forward to hearing how things are going next monday when i email next. Oh by the way i met someone that is Exactly like Mike! Same religion, same everything! This guy is really nice and really funny! You will have to tell Mike Hi for me!

Mom i hope you had a great birthday and I hope that you all have a fantastic week! I look forward to getting your package in a couple of weeks. You will have to let me know when you send it so i can look out for it. Oh and can I get some soup recipes??? It is getting really cold here and im not sure how to make Beef stew or potato soup or any other of the soups.

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

- Elder Parks

Hello Everyone!

 

It was so good to speak to all of you yesterday!! I feel really bad though that i missed Grandpa Wright and Grandma and Grandpa Parks. Please express my love for them for me. I want them to know that I love them and that im sorry i missed them. I hope everything is going well back at home. It sounded like from yesterday that things are going really well. So I am in contact with Jaron through email now because he sent me an email just not to long ago and now im waiting for him to send me his address. I look forward to speaking with him again.

 

So last year grandma and grandpa got me that lugage for my graduation last year and for my birthday they got me mission stuff. I still cant get over that Nate is graduating at the end of the month. That is Awesome! I am excited for him. I will do my best to send him something for his graduation present. I may just include some chocolate for everyone else as well. So dad, how is work going? Have you guys been busy lately? I know the police here are always out and about going around with their sirens on. So mom its too bad that those people would act like that. There are people here that do the same thing. They come up to us when they are drunk and they ask us to pray for them so they can get better. Its kinda sad that they know its wrong to drink but they do it anyway. But then again not a whole lot of people know it is wrong, so im not sure if they do or not when they come up to us. 

I cant believe I am turning 20 years old this year!!! I definately dont feel 20. That is crazy! before I know it i will be hearing where Nate is going for his mission! Thats Awesome! I hope you all have a wonderful week and Dad i will send you home an audio message of me telling you happy Fathers day so i can get as close as i can to a phone call home.

I hope you all have a fantastic week and i Love you all very much!

 

- Elder Parks

• Reply ▼
   
• Delete 
• More ▼
   

Hi Everyone!!!

This week has been really good! Last thursday we went to a performance by BYU that they put on for then entire part of the southern part of the African Continent. It was Awesome!! It was great because all the missionaries were there and we were able to relax and enjoy the show and then get back to work. It was really spiritually uplifting! I enjoyed it. So it sounds like things are going really well there at home! I look forward to talking to you guys on the phone though this sunday! I bought some phone cards so i will call call the home phone. You are welcome to invite anyone in the family that wants to hear from me as well or you can keep it just with our immediate family. I dont mind. I look forward to calling you guys! I will call there at 11:00 AM (7:00 PM my time).

So its too bad the cookie dough didn't turn out very good. I'm sure it was good to eat though. I have tried making cookies here but the brown sugar here is horrible! It isn't that great here. I have learned how to make dough so i have been making home-made pizza.  I make that and spaghetti as well. I also have been making hamburgers but they are not the same as home. They are still good though. So how was the Temple trip this week? I haven't been able to go to the temple here because I am too far away from it. But hopefully I will be able to go someday. I went to the temple while I was in the MTC and it was pretty good. It is smaller than the Oquirrth Mountain Temple. It was still a good experience to go through. So Collin got a trampoline? Awesome! I bet he will love that! I cant believe he is 5 already! by the time i get home he will be turning 7. That is crazy! So it sounds like Nate's friends are getting mission calls! That is Awesome!!! Two of my friends just got their mission calls. Kevin Suckow is going to Belgium, Netherlands! Another one of my friends is going to California! Time is definitely flying by. So it sounds like Nate did pretty good in his competition! 6th Place isn't bad at all!! that is pretty good!

If i would have tried to do that i would have come 2nd to last! haha. So it sounds like Keaton liked the carnival! He won a gold fish, that is Awesome! Im sure Jason and Jen wont mind to much. As long as He feeds it, it wont be too bad. 

So Nate, you are graduating this month! That is really exciting! Man time went by fast!!! I remember when I graduated from High School. I think you will love SLCC a lot. My friends really liked it because it was close to home. Im sure you will do really good in all of your classes. I will have to go there when I get home so then I can transfer from it to the U. I have a lot of schooling to go still. So the Avengers is good? I really look forward to seeing that movie now! please save it for me or have mom and dad save it for me while you are on your mission next year. Oh by the way HAPPY BIRTHDAY NATE!!!  ( that is for tomorrow when you turn 18). Wow you are now going to be an adult starting tomorrow. That is Awesome!

So Jake it sounds like things are going really good! That is really good to hear! So did you tell the Golders I said hi? If not please tell them I said hi. Things here are going really well. The weather here has got even hotter than it usually is. It is now in the 80's during the week. Keep up the hard work for school and Football and i know you will do well! 

Josh, I havent seen any weird bugs yet but there is a bird here that when it starts flying its call sounds like it is laughing. It is the funniest bird i have ever heard. I also have seen some really colorful birds as well. They are pretty great. Keep up the hard work at Sparq and I know you will do really well. 

Alex, That is Awesome that you had a good week! Its good to hear that Keaton won a fish! Keep working hard towards your arrow of light. That is my favorite award that i got from scouting! 

Mom and Dad, Its good to hear that everything is going well! Its too bad the sprinkler situation gave you some trouble. I think its pretty funny that you ripped out the bushes with your truck. That is perfect for the job! . Im sorry that you had to rip them out though! I hope that the sprinklers arent giving you any trouble anymore. So i look forward to hearing from you guys on Sunday when I call home!!! Like i said earlier in the Email, I will call home around 11 AM your time. Feel free to invite anyone you like if you want. Or you can keep it within our family. Either way is totally fine with me.

Have a fantastic week and i will talk to you all on Sunday. I love you all!!! 

- Elder Parks

Hello Everyone!!!

This last week here has been interesting. I went knocking on doors for the first time and it was Awesome! Its really different here because you have to walk around back and knock on their back door most of the time. Things are improving here in my area. There are more and more less actives attending church and the branch is getting bigger and bigger. Before I know it it will be a ward. Both me and my companion are working hard to make it a ward before any of us leave the area. 

So I hear you got my chocolate! :) I absolutely love the chocolate here! But I really miss the Hersheys chocolate that i used to get at home. Their chocolate is way different from the chocolate at home. When I first ate the Kit Kat I thought to myself " Man this is really good!" I quickly found out after that the Kit Kats at home and the ones here are very different in taste because one is American Chocolate and the other is European Chocolate. Thats totally fine if you dont want to compare the two. I just wanted everyone to  notice the difference in the two chocolate bars. The other chocolate bar that I got you guys is the pure European chocolate that I always get. I tried using it to put in cookies to replace the chocolate chips but it didnt work to well. They dont have chocolate chips here in South Africa so i have to usually improvise. The brown sugar isnt the same either. It is so much different from the brown sugar at home. 

The Temperature here is weird. It is in the mid 70's during the day and in the low 50's at night. So it is warm during the day and cold at night. I have to wear a sweater at night and have to wear my short sleeved shirts during the day. I am ok with bedding because the church provides really nice comforters and sheets to all the missionaries when they come into the mission. The flood that happened didnt get far enough to reach our bedroom (thank goodness). But im not going to lie, that was bizarre that that happened in the first place. I definitely didnt expect it. My shampoo is working really good right now so i will be fine for a while. I gave myself another haircut the other day. It turned out really good! So Dad it sounds like the scouts had a fun time but got scared to death with the call. :) I really wish I was able to see that! :) But overall it sounds like the place you guys went to is a really good place! I look forward to going there when I get home. I really miss going to Yellowstone! I really look forward to going there when I get home as well. 

So it sounds like Dakota is getting ready for His papers! I am really happy to hear that! Please keep me updated on that, I really want to know His progress as he gets ready to receive his call. I am really happy that they got my letter. I wasn't sure when they were going to get it.

So I have been driving the mission car a lot now. It still throws me off to drive on the opposite side of the car on the other side of the road shifting with my left hand! Haha I forgot to tell you all that the car we drive is a manual and you have to use your left hand to shift the car. That has been pretty intense as well. We drive a Chevrolet Aveo as our mission car. It reminds me a little of the Geo when i drove that.

Nate, are you enjoying the showcase thing that you are doing? I absolutely loved it when I did it! I love ballroom dancing. That is the only form of dancing that you will ever see me do. :) I cant dance any other way to save my life. Practice hard and let the music guide you. Good luck on the performances! :) Your birthday card got there a little early but thats ok. 

Jake, I will not send another Kit Kat until you have had an American one! Haha JK. I will send more later on. Its good to hear things are going well with you guys. Its really good to hear that you went with the Golders on that walk. ( I am assuming it is for charity, If not I dont know what i am talking about). Please tell the Golders i said hi! Stay well and enjoy your week

Josh, I still havent heard from you i look forward to hearing from you next week. If you dont want to I am totally fine with that. Have a Great week!

Alex, I am doing really good here! the flood didnt harm any of our stuff, it just ruined the carpet in the hallway in our apartment. I look forward to hearing from you next week. Let me know how you liked the Kit Kat and the other chocolate. 

Mom and Dad, Things here are going really well. Mom,  I didnt know that your birthday card was going to get there so quickly! Thats ok though. Dad, I will be sending you a Fathers day card when it comes around so you will have to tell me if you would rather have a card or chocolate or both. Either one is totally ok with me. Mom and Dad, I hope everything goes well and have a Fantastic week! Stay safe.

Everyone, Have a great week and I will email you all next week! 

- Elder Parks

Hello Everyone!!!

It sounds like things are a little busy at home. But it sounds like all of you are doing really well. This week has been picking up. Things are going really well and we are finding more and more families that are interested in hearing the gospel. The work here is hard work but it is definitely rewarding. So it sounds like things the weather there is getting better and warmer and warmer as the months go by. Here it is getting colder and colder as the weeks go by. We are going into the cold season. Its funny how the weather here and the weather at Utah are two different climates. I cant believe how fast time is going! I will be coming up on three months next month! It definitely doesnt feel like it has been 3 months! So this week has been crazy. On thursday afternoon our apartment flooded and we had no idea until we came back later that night. The worst part was that since we are on the top floor it leaked through the floor and ruined the walls and the carpet of the neighbors below us. It was not good thats for sure. The cause of the flood was that they shut off our water without telling us so one of our faucets was left on without knowing about it and it leaked everywhere. We have had a crazy week though. 

So I have sent home a package to you guys and I sent it last week so I hope you will all get it in about 2 weeks. I promise that you will all like what is in it. It is well on its way I hope. Everyone is getting closer and closer to having school being over. That is way Awesome that Ashley Boiteux is going to the U! Who knows maybe I will see her there when I get back. It all depends how long she is there for. So far being on a mission has taught me how to study effectively and now I feel that I will be able to study better when I am in school now. It is Awesome that Barb is having the missionaries over! I am so excited for her! She says that she is catholic but I think that she will want to learn more and more when the missionaries are over.I wish I was there so I could take part in teaching her the gospel. I look forward to hearing how she does after the visits from the missionaries.

Nate, You will do well in the competition. I know that if you keep lifting weights you will be able to lift plenty of weight to do well in the competition. I Know that you will do well! I am super jealous that you are going to go see the Avengers but I know that if I wait it will be so much better! I have created a list of movies that i need to see when i get home. It is starting to increase in size. The Avengers is one of the movies on my list. The Hobbit is another. Jake, It is good to hear that you are doing well and It is also good to hear that Erika and her family is doing well. Tell them all I said Hi for me. I hope her 16th Birthday went well. The sweet 16 birthday party is usually a big one. I heard that you are driving the Xterra. Please be careful with it. I still care for it. Haha just kidding. But please drive safely and dont hurt yourself. I know that you will enjoy driving that car as much as I definitely did!  Josh, Keep up the good work at school and strive for the best grades you can possibly get! I know that if you have any troubles whatsoever with your school experience, you can turn to your Heavenly Father and He will help you with any issue that may come up. Alex, It is Awesome that you got Walking Dead on DVD! I will add that to my list of movies to see when I get home. Get the best grades that you can possible get especially when you advance in each grade. Mom and Dad, Sounds like both of you are doing great. Sounds like the youth had a good combined activity. I really look forward to hearing how the scouts react to the animal sound speaker. Please keep me updated. So I went through my package pretty fast. I am down to one box of poptarts and all the redvines are gone. I really liked the poptarts and the redvines! Thank you so much for those! The reeses were just as good! I loved them! I am still eating a lot of chicken and rice but I have finally got used to it and now that is what I eat a lot. We have a KFC next to our apartment so we go there once in a while. It is not the same as the one at home though. Speaking of food I look forward to hearing about how the pumpkin patch goes! 

By the way i will be calling home on May 13th at 11:00 AM your time. It will be 7PM here on my time. Please let me know what phone to call so I can call it. If you want to make it a big giant conference call with the entire extended family that is fine with me I will call which ever phone you want me to call that has a speaker phone setting. Please let me know by next monday so i can put it in my planner. 

Have a Fantastic week and I love you all very much! 

- Elder Parks