Elder Ethan Orchard: Merry Christmas!

Hey Everybody!

First and foremost, I apologize for the lack of email last week. It was pretty crazy. Elder Campbell left and I had to get a bunch of my own stuff packed up so that I could temporarily move apartments for two weeks. Also, we had zone activity in the morning, so it was just a hectic day. A lot has happened in the last two weeks though! Of all the highlights over the last two weeks, one of the biggest ones was getting to see John Mungin sealed to his wife and kids in the Payson Temple. I got special permission to attend, and the sealing was awesome! It was such a great experience being able to see another huge milestone in John's eternal progression, especially since I got to be with him from the beginning through his baptism. Its something I'll remember for a long time.

Another big milestone in the life of one person we are teaching, named Chris, happened this last week when he and his fiance (now wife) got married. I got to attend the service, and even though it was short, it was very touching to see. We had a small dinner gathering afterwards, but it wasn't near as good as the ceremony itself. I'm looking forward to continuing working with him and seeing him get baptized here in a few weeks!

As you all know, these last two days were Christmas and Christmas Eve! We went to a total of three Christmas Eve sacrament programs on Sunday, all of which were amazing! Then from about 2:30 to the end of the night we were constantly going from members house to members house visiting and eating, then visiting some more and eating a lot more. Pretty much the same thing happened on Christmas Day, except it started at 8:00 with breakfast at a member's home. Of course we also got to open presents from our families and spend an hour video calling them as well, which was probably the highlight of the month! Except for the fact that we ran out of things to talk about after about 5 minutes. But no worries, it was an incredible experience nonetheless! I hope everyone else's Christmas was as good as mine or better, it truly is the most wonderful time of the year! I love this season and the love that everyone has for one another. I know that the only thing it can be attributed to is the light of Christ that is in them. I hope that everyone takes a chance the rest of this Christmas season to remember Jesus Christ and his sacrifice for them! Merry Christmas everyone, and a Happy New Year as well!

Elder Orchard