What To Do With Two Cakes

Malo Soifua!!!

Today on the Elder Hill Show:

• We had in-person zone conference
• I realized that my Samoan actually isn't as bad as I thought, which was really nice.
• It was my birthday, wooooo
• We got two cakes
• My ward's Elder's Quorum got together to clean the church and have breakfast together, so that was fun.
• We got the covid vaccine wooo hooo (first dose anyways)

This week was pretty good, and my birthday, which happened to be this week as well, was also pretty good. 

This past Tuesday was our In-Person Zone Conference, and it was super good as usual. Pres Teuscher talked about the importance of work, and how to both work harder as well as work smarter. It was a really good lesson, and I definitely gave thought to how we work as missionaries, and how I myself can improve how I work in the service of the Lord.

On my birthday, I got to go and give service at NDS (the food bank), and it was super fun. Wendy, the owner, found out that it was my birthday that day, so she gave us a bunch of food for both lunch and dinner, and she got me a strawberry shortcake to eat as part of the celebration. We had a great picnic lunch at the church building that day as well, and we basked in the warm weather and the clear sky. (My comps had already gotten a cake from Costco, so we ended up having two that we ate this week haha).

In one of my language calls this week, I got to listen to a sister missionary finish up one of her first Samoan lessons. Listening to her learn phrases and words, I realized and fully appreciated just how much I have improved with the Samoan language. I don't often think about my progress, or compare myself to others, but it was a huge boost in support and confidence to recognize that I truly have grown and improved so much.

This past Saturday morning we had an Elder's Quorum breakfast and church cleaning time. It was a lot of fun, and we get to know some of the brethren in our ward a lot better. We had to leave a bit early to do some missionary work, and also to go and get our first dose of the COVID vaccine. As volunteer workers at the NDS food pantry, we were able to all go and get the first dose of the Moderna vaccine. I'm also scheduled for the second dose in a few weeks, so hopefully, I'll be able to get that. I also pray that this may make my chances of going to Samoa even just a little bit easier. Any prayers in that regard would be much appreciated.

Mafaufauga faaleagaga: During zone conference, we had a discussion based on a BYU devotional about overcoming comparisons. It was really cool, and there were some really good ideas shared. One I love particularly is the thought that we are not compared with others. We are only compared with our past selves. Not our potential, or our shortcomings, only in how we have grown. I love that idea, and I echo it here. It doesn't matter who you are compared to anyone else. This life isn't a race against each other. It's a race against sin. I pray that we all can see and accept that, and look to build each other up, and help each other continue to improve with time.

Alofa tele lave atu ia outou,

Elder Hill

Photos: 

• A couple of pics from our birthday picnic in the grass of the church building
• I made some more pizza this week, and it was actually really good.
• Covid vaccine!