Some News From Elder Scadden

One of Blake's companions when he was in the office was Elder Scadden (kind of small world b/c he pseudo-dated one of my best friends in Jr. High, had a huge crush on my other friend when they worked at the Farmington Pool together, and lives in my other best friend's ward. He like told Blake all of this when he saw some pictures I had sent with my friends in some). Anyways, he got home a few weeks ago and yesterday I went to a YSA ice skating activity with my friend who is in his same ward. He was there and I got to talk to him for a little bit about Blake. I wish we could have talked longer but he said that Elder Porter was one of his most favorite companions, he was very genuine about this fact. He also said that he went through a lot of trouble to get Blake a bunch of magic cards lol and that all the elders there loved the wax seals we use on our letters. It made Blake feel so much closer to home to talk with one of his companions. Just thought y'all would like to hear about it. :)

The Form letter - December 10, 2008

LOL! Lame letter huh, we found like 100 of these in the apt. Tell Sarah thanks so much for the letter and pics she sent. Tell David to stop growing til I come back, he's getting so old! LOL. So I haven't been in a threesome in a couple of months. Ever since I left the office I have been in a normal companionship. I thought we might be in a threesome tho, but we weren't.

I miss my nieces and nephews a lot. They're gonna be all different when I get back :(. I liked Dad's Noah quote.LOL Golden Kimball said about the South that we need to just burn it all and do baptisms for the dead. ha,ha! I can see why.

Well everything is going good here. I gotta go TTYL.

Love Elder Blake Theo Porter

"Christmas Story Boy" December 1, 2008

Hi Family!

So I still have the same companion Elder Cravin, the one from Tremonton (actually Thatcher), we whitewashed into 4th Ward together. Thanks for the coat, it's keeping me warm. I really wish it was a small though, I look like an Eskimo and Elder Cravin mentioned the boy in "Christmas Story". . . . a las LOL it works.

Thanksgiving was super fun tho, we got to play football and I had like three interceptions cause I pun noobs. :) I gave a talk 2 days ago in Zone Conference, about how Love is the motive. It went ok, I'm glad that's over with. Our area is slowly getting more people, like we had 0, a week and a half later tho we are getting some, just slowly. We did have a guy come to church last week (yesterday) so that's cool.

Chris is going to get baptized. He was a guy we found and taught in our last area and Frank still looks like he's going good, just needs to stop smoking. The other Elders said Pei Ming went back to China for a month, his family is still here so I'm sure they'll get to teach them again. Chris still needs to live the WOW and he got offended reading Moroni 8 (he's Lutheran), but just the day before he called us and said he was gonna get baptized and that he wanted us there cause we started teaching him, so hopefully he'll get over those obstacles.

Last night we taught a way cool family. Gilbert and Joanne. Gilbert started a church on the North side of town and is the Pastor. Sounds like a non-dom conservative church. It's hard to teach the Great Apostasy when the person you teach is doing exactly what occurred in that time. Like he has a nice truck and way nice house and he's just teaching about the bible. Way weird how people can like just live on people's donations. They are really nice tho and love us.

O ya, I also got a food package, thanks! Elder Cravin especially liked the cracker Jacks. I wish I could hang out with the kids. I miss them a lot. Like Thanksgiving was fun, but it really just felt like a normal day. I really hope I get to stay in this area for a little bit, cause we can really get work done if we can stay in one spot long enough to see results. I think I told you how Marybell will get baptized, they had to delay it, but ya, like right when I leave areas the people I teach seem to decide thy want t o get baptized. LOL. We''ll, I love y'all hope everything is going good. I'm feeling great.

Love Elder Blake Theo Porter

Yay! He's alive!

Ha ha, ok, so it was only two weeks since I'd heard from Blake (and I shouldn't be complaining because I hadn't sent anything for a month- I know! I'm terrible! But I have made a resolution to return to my letter-a-week status) So, anyways, the main letter he sent me is kind of mushy and personal - my favorite kind :-P - so I won't post that but he also sent me this silly letter that is like a form that has check boxes. Ha ha, that was a horrible sentence. Basically, it's a pre-created letter that the missionary fills out by checking boxes and filling in blanks. I will recreate it as best I can here for you.

A few notes: I hate how the check boxes are diff sizes but idk how to fix it so we'll just have to deal. Blake wrote in a few things which I put in quotation marks. I also put some of my thoughts in parenthesis. Happy reading.

x Dear Ali ,

☐ To whom it may concern,

The weather here is ☐ hot ☐ humid ☐ snowy x cold ☐ .

My companion's name is Elder Craven . He is from Thatcher .

We get along x like peas in a pod ☐ most of the time ☐ not at all.

Today I ☐ rode my bike ☐ had a baptism x did laundry ☐ crashed on my bike.

All in all, things are going x great ☐ fine ☐ well ☐ fair ☐ poorly ☐ .

We are teaching ☐ 20 people per day x 5 people per day ☐ not teaching anyone yet.

My favorite family we are working with is the Artega family.

Their family has x Father x Mother x 2 children ☐ really cute girls.

The members here love to feed the missionaries. Last night we had x Spaghetti "+ chicken ☺" ☐ Spaghetti ☐ Spaghetti.

The funniest thing that happened last week was ☐ my companion blew pop out his nose ☐ I plugged the toilet ☐ I tripped in the gutter on Main St. x ...I wish something funny would happen.

So far, my best experience has been teaching noobs .

I am most excited for x a baptism ☐ Spaghetti for dinner ☐ P-Day ☐ Zone Conference ☐ mail.

I never knew that a mission was this much x fun x work ☐ ☐ all of the above.

My favorite scripture this week is found in Ether chapter 12 verse(s) 6 . I like it so much because it shows how God blesses us after we demonstrate faith.

I really miss ☐ all my friends x you (he underlined it three times he he ☺) ☐ Fry Sauce ☐ what's her name ☐ my family. (ha ha! I win! lol jk, I'm sure he misses you guys too - just not as much as me :-P)

Today while tracting "It's P-day LOL" I ☐ found ten dollars ☐ gave out three copies of the Book of Mormon ☐ bit a dog on the leg.

My mailbox has been bursting with ☐ letters ☐ flies x dust (oh! I'm sad, it's my fault!) ☐ do I have a mailbox?

At the end of the day I smell like a ☐ sweaty wart hog ☐ a hairy sweaty wart hog ☐ not able to describe in any way how I smell. "x Excellent as always ;)"

I've spent too much time writing this letter. I need to hurry off and x play basketball "or volleyball" ☐ take a nap ☐ teach a discussion ☐ I don't really have anywhere to go.

I look forward to hearing from you x soon ☐ monthly ☐ every now and then ☐ at least before I come home.

☐ Sincerely ☐ Yours Truly x Love

Elder Blake Theo Porter

P.S.

☐ Happy Birthday ☐ Have a nice Thanksgiving x Merry Christmas ☐ Happy Anniversary ☐ My sympathy for your recent loss ☐ Happy Arbor Day ☐ Send Recipes ☐ Send me the address of that girl in your ward.

"LOL lame to funny huh, there's weird stuff like this everywhere in our apartment"