March 23rd

Hey,

   Things in redding are still moving along. Transfers were last
Tuesday so I got my new companion and his name is Elder Willis and he
is a good guy. I've had to take over the area which means that I
decide where we go and who we visit which I don't think I like too
much but I'll probably be transferred out of redding in 4 weeks since
this is a short transfer so I won't be in charge for too long. Also I
tried activating the card that you sent me and I couldn't activate it
which is incredibly weird. It keep telling me that the security code
was invalid so I don't know what is going on there. How is everybody
doing? I still haven't gotten my Christmas present from Brooke. Still
upset about it. For breakfast, I've started eating toaster strudels
and I started making art with the icing, mostly faces. I must say I'm
getting pretty good at it.

March 9th

Things are going good here. It's gotten pretty warm with the 90 degree
weather today. Missionary life is honestly really slow right now there
isn't a lot to talk about except for the fact that I will probably get
a new companion next transfer which next week. Hannah hasn't enjoyed
soccer before so why would she enjoy it now? I've been meaning to ask
is there a warranty on my bike? It's still rideable but the gears are
stuck, so that would be nice to fix. That pretty much it around here.
You might get this email on a different day because the wifi is being
buggy.

Letter to Dad

Dad,
Things are going great here, the work keeps moving along and people are stubborn as always. I feel like the hardest struggle while working out in this area is that people don't want to change their lives. It's easier for them to believe that if they just acknowledge Christ then they are "saved". So even when I teach people it's hard to get them to keep commitments. We have a couple of internigators(meaning instead of investigating,they know all they need to and have a testimony of it but for whatever reason aren't baptized). We also have a lot of drug use in this area. The other day we were eating at Panda Express and some crazy guy was yelling at an imaginary person and yelled out "We're in the Pacific Ocean!" And my companion, Elder Kokkola said jokingly(or at least I hope) "I mean he has a point, we are in the Pacific Ocean". I don't know if that guy was tweaking or just mental but either way it was weird. So redding can be an interesting place. Talk to ya later

Elder Tomlinson

Letter to Mom

Things are still going pretty well here in redding. The more I been out on my mission the more glad I am that I made the decision to come out here. Guess what my companion's favorite place to eat at is? Taco Bell. I don't remember if I told you that or not, all the days sort of start to blur together. Also I did the math and if Taylor leaves on June 10th then we will get home on the same day. Because a mission isn't really 2 years or 18 months. It's that amount minus 4 days. Except for me because I came into the field on a transfer that was a week longer than usual. So mine is 2 years plus 3 days. So we will both come home December 6th, 2016. Funny coincidence. Tell everyone back home I said hi and tell Brook I'm still waiting on my Christmas present. It got a little cold here too which was weird but in the summer it will hit triple digits which will be just great. I know you can't detect sarcasm in an email but I hope you at least got that. Not much else to talk about but hope you have a good day and maybe see this email early and message me back.

February 16th Letter

Things are going well here. I had a baptism on Saturday and I'll send
you a picture. The big guy did the baptizing and the smaller one was
the one baptized. His name if Jeff Kobbe. And you can also tell that I
gained a little weight in the picture.

Letter to Jake

The mission is going good. The coolest thing I think has happen is
that I met an investigator through a member who at the time is home
less so I tell you his story real quick. The man's name is Jeff Kobe
but his sign from his time in the army is Yeti. Jeff was riding on a
motorcycle when the driver lost control and he went face first into a
pole. While in the hospital he went almost completely blind and the
doctors discovered that he had intestinal cancer. Unable to get a job
because all forms of ID were destroyed, he was forced into the
streets. He then heard a voice telling him that he needed to find the
people that would show him the truth. After much prayer and study, it
was later confirmed that we were those people he was told to find. A
member who we used to fellowship Jeff is now buying him a cabin to be
place next to his house to give him a place to stay and they have
worked tirelessly so Jeff could get 2 forms of ID so he could get a
job. While we were teaching him one day he looked at me and said "I
am so happy I found the gospel, if I hadn't I would have been just
another dead hobo that no one cared about". It was so amazing. The
food's alright some good some bad been able to go to in n out a lot.

Elder Tomlinson

January 26th Letter

Hey I told Dad and I'll tell you I sent Jake a awesome story that's
happened to me so ask him to tell you because I don't feel like typing
it again. Here are some photos after we ate a a place called Los
Gordos and when we went to play laser tag last P-day.