Dear Family,

How is everybody doing? Things are going well here. I don't think that it will ever be easier to hold leadership positions; you just get used to it. Things are feeling a little more normal now. I hope I don't get used to it too soon, or I may end up doing something else.

I really liked the pictures of little baby Briggs. They were really cute. I can't believe that Misti is a mom now. That is really cool though. I guess if you look at the time frame, they could have a second before I even get home to see the first. Don't tell Misti that though, it may really freak her out. I hope that the baby is doing fine now, and that there aren’t any lasting health problems. I guess they’ve been experiencing what you guys did when you had to deal with my many ear infections and stomach problems when I was a baby. Not much sleep!

Moms bedding for the cradle looks really good too. You can tell that she took her time making it. It’s very professional looking. I bet Misti was very grateful for it.

I am not very worried about making a career choice at this exact moment. I know that the Lord will direct me in all of those important decisions. I just think it might be a good thing to ponder on from time to time. I think that the mission is a great tool to look at all the things I am good at, and then pick something out of that to use in a career. It is going to help things out a lot.

Thanks for the B-days. It will be good to know. Tell Annie that I am sorry for missing hers. I just spaced it out here in Indi-land.

It is great to hear that everyone is staying in good health. I hate getting the flu, and luckily, other than my little infection mishap, I have been doing OK. An upset stomach once and a while, but you know me, that is usually normal. I’ve been really blessed considering we are around so many sick people all of the time.

I know that you guys are going to take care of me, even if I am 1,500 miles away, but I still think it would be good to practice budgeting my money better. It will help me in the future. I think that I need it because I am bad at that. I will make sure I take care of myself though.

We have been having some strange weather lately. We have been getting up to the mid 40's the past week, and Elder Gasser and I have really enjoyed it.  I was even able to take the liner out of my coat for a couple of days. That was very enjoyable. I am able to stay warm by using a lot of layers, but I am not looking forward to the next couple of months. I will be very happy to have Spring roll around again.

We have had some interesting occurrences over the past week here in Connersville. Some of it has been very good, and some of it is bad. Out with the bad first, I guess. Jeremy and Amber were a set of investigators that we were teaching that had a baptismal date. They were doing pretty well, and then we talked to Jeremy on the phone on Sunday, and he said that they weren’t coming to church and that Amber was probably not going to get baptized. We went to visit them, but they wouldn't talk to us. Sadly, something has gotten to them and they let it.

On the positive side, we found a really cool new investigator named Jay Bales. We knocked on Jay's door, and he let us right in. We sat down and taught him about the Restoration, and we have been able to meet with him a couple of times since. His fiancé has even asked us for a copy of the Book of Mormon as well. They seem to be excited and are doing well.

On a side note, Jay is in a band called "7 Days Away", and they have sold somewhere between 15,000 and 20,000 albums on iTunes. They are picking up popularity, and they even have a song in a big name movie. The movie is of course rated R though, but it is called The Punisher. He gave us a free copy of some of his music, and I am sending it home with some extra stuff so that I can listen to it when my mission is up.

We are also teaching a man and his wife, Rusty and Lara Rees. It is really cool, we gave Rusty a copy of the Book of Mormon, but he lost it. So, he decided to go up to Richmond and buy a copy for himself. While he was there, he got this really cool book that a recent convert to the church wrote. The introduction is the story of the Author’s conversion. The inside of the book is really cool. On the Right side pages there are actual scriptures, Chapters and Verses, and on the Left side are easier descriptions of the scriptures. Rusty has just been plowing through this book. He even said one thing that has made Elder Gasser and I very excited. He was talking about the Vision that Lehi had of the Tree of Life, and he told us that somehow he knew that the Iron Rod was meant to represent the word of God, even before he read the interpretation that Nephi gives of the vision later on. He said that either somehow he just knew what it meant, or his understanding came from God. I think that he is beginning to recognize revelation in his studies. That is one of the greatest things I have heard so far on my mission. I just want to jump for joy.

So, I guess what “they" say is true. When one door closes, another one opens.

Thanks for the prayers. As you can tell, they are coming in handy. Let me know if you want to know anything specific, and I would love to answer your questions.

Everyone take care, and stay healthy. I love you all and pray for you all daily.

Love,

Elder Savage

      Elder Colton Savage

     1216 N. Central Ave. #7

     Connersville, IN  47331

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