We got to go to the temple on Friday! It was pretty amazing. I love the temple so much. It's beautiful to visit every day, but it is so much better to be able to go in and help those who cannot to receive the blessings of the temple without us. Other than that things are going great. I love my companion, I love my district, my mission president is the best in the world, and I love my Savior most of all. So things are great.

My computer froze for a while so this is going to be kind of short. Sorry about that. But thank you so much for the Easter box! I loved it so much. We are completely candied out by now haha. I dropped my wallet in the trash can at Arby's this week. The lady gave me gloves to fish it out, but it was still kind of nasty to do that in a suit. And where did it drop? Of course, right into a milkshake haha. NASSSSSTY!!!!

We had an awesome Easter though. I love Jesus. I hope yall got to watch the Because of Him video at some point this week, but if not I would encourage you to watch it tonight! It is on easter.mormon.org

I love you!!!!

This week was pretty special. We got to play lacrosse last monday with one of the priests, and it was tons of fun. We had like a one on one tournament with a couple other missionaries. I think I would like it full contact! Maybe I will try it after the mission if I ever get time and before I get old and cranky about my back and ankles and stuff.

My bike went crazy this week. I went to replace my brakes and it turned into an entire bike tune up. I probably need to replace some cables and stuff. Anyways, we were biking, and I went to put on my brakes, and one of them caught on the spokes and shot off my bike. So I was brakeless for the rest of the way haha. It was pretty crazy. Then on the way back home my chain popped off too, but it was downhill the rest of the half mile or so home, so I just coasted so I wouldn't have to get off my bike and put it back on. All of this was the same day haha.

Then, this weekend we had a really once in a lifetime experience. Gladys Knight (who is a Mormon) brought an awesome gospel choir out here and put on a missionary fireside of singing and testimony of why she was baptized. It was awesome! What a way to reach out to people. We had 2 investigators who were able to go, and they both loved it. I loved it too. I tell you there is nothing like hearing someone amazing like Gladys Knight sing "I am a child of God."  She jazzed it up a little bit, and it was seriously beautiful! You should look it up. I kind of want to listen to some good southern gospel music after that. Especially from Gladys and her choir (they are called the Saints Unified Voices). Man she got her a few great grandchildren and she STILL got it. She was really funny too. She said that her first impression of the missionaries that taught her was that they dressed clean and "wear dey pants where dey s'posed to" haha.

So anyways, great week! Hopefully some good comes from this performance because there were tons of people that brought not-Mormon friends. There were probably more nonmembers than members there, and there were 4 shows of it that held over 1000 people each. It was a different experience - in a stake center, but still loud and clapping and everything. A bit different than your normal church experience.

I am really glad to get yall's emails every week and your letters. So thank you for that! Hopefully you can still feel my love for you all because it is really just growing and growing. I am excited to let you know everything I have learned when I get home, especially because I have so much more opportunity to learn in the next year and a little bit.

I love you!!!!!!!!!!!!
Elder Jefferton II

Everything is covered in pollen. It's crazy. We leave our bikes outside overnight and our seats are yellow in the morning. And apparently this is just the beginning of it. If it doesn't rain every few days then it all starts to cake on the roads and sidewalks. Haha we are in for some fun. You can just see the pollen blowing off of the trees like its flour.

Other than that, things are going well here I would say. We didn't have anyone at church this week, but there are a few investigators that are really close to overcoming their fears and doubts and really jump starting their relationship with Christ. The step that does that is going to church!

On Wednesday, we had an activity zone conference. It was really good! We got to go up to Chapel Hill, right on the UNC campus, and had our meeting in the institute building there. Then we went out and played a bunch of games. All of the elders and sisters from the northern 3 zones were there, so it was huge. We played capture the flag (I accidentally tackled somebody running at me out of habit), ultimate frisbee (I dove for them even if they weren't even close to me), soccer (it was more like bunch ball - 30 people on a tiny soccer field haha), and volleyball. It was a lot of fun. Then we sang some bluegrass gospel song that President really likes and headed on outta there!

We got to help out more with the mission washers and dryers this week, and I got to learn how to replace a motor in a dryer and how to rebuild the important parts of a washer. Now I just need to know how to program things and I could figure it out!

Well, I want to thank you for everything you do for me. You are the best people. You are definitely my bestest family. I love you so much!

Love,
Elder Clark the younger

like you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I should have taken pictures of my tie collection. I have added 10 ties to it just this week! And I have another one coming (I am trading a copy of the Jane Austen CD to a missionary for a really nice tie!!!!). I came on my mission with 10 ties roughly. I now own 35. And I have only bought one for more than $1.50 and it was because I needed more purple ties in my first transfer! We also made ties out of duck tape. Pictures to come eventually!

We also got to help tear apart and repair washers and dryers this week. I learned that washers can literally eat your socks! They get swished over the edge of the washer bowl and sucked up into the drainage pipe. And out they go. Mom, if you think that the only reason we can't match all of our socks is because we lose them, it's not! They are also being fed to crustaceans in the ocean via drainage pipes.

Our mission vision is to be teaching 20 lessons per week. Facebook lessons now count for that! This week, for the first time since my very first month in NC, we taught 20 lessons! 5 were on Facebook haha. It is an amazing and powerful tool. If you have friends that could use the messages that your missionaries share, please have them add the missionaries! Or the other way around. It works miracles. It is how we can get through to those in the far corners of the earth that cannot meet with us due to political circumstances. It is also how we are able to help those that are shy, reserved, or otherwise won't meet in person for whatever reason. The Lord can help us use these types of things for good; use our talents in different ways.

None of our investigators came to conference for the first 3 general sessions, so yesterday, between the last 2 sessions, Elder J and I decided we were going to go find somebody to come with us to see the final session. We felt prompted to visit one of our investigators, who was outside smoking, in her pajamas. She has been very hesitant to progress, not because she isn't ready, but because she is afraid, and she felt the same way about conference. But we were very persistent and lovingly fearless. She really felt God's love so powerfully that just before the session started, she changed into decent clothes and followed us to conference. It was pretty amazing.

I am certain that those who reach out to their brothers and sisters are blessed with the courage to be able to bring them home. So reach out! you never know who is willing to come if you will just persistently and lovingly invite and follow up.

I love you SOOOOOOOOOOO much!!!!! My mission is my favorite thing that I have ever done in life so far.

Love,
Elder Clark the younger

It has been a crazy week. I lost the phone on Tuesday (I didn't even notice because Elder W never let me carry the phone haha). So Elder J and I had fun being stuck without a phone for a couple of days. We found it on Thursday though!!!!!! I had dropped it in our Ward Mission Leader's car. He searched the car over and over before then and couldn't find it, but when Elder J and I prayed we both felt like it was in his car. We went there to look, and I remembered there was a box of wire sitting next to me where I may have dropped the phone. Sure enough, there was a really small opening in the box and somehow the phone fell right into it. That was pretty crazy. But I'm telling you, the Lord cares about the little things too, even the dumb mindless things I do haha.

We also have seen a lot of success teaching! Almost all of our investigators right now are pretty solid, and we are teaching almost 10 people again! What a blessing. The ward is really taking off too. I am excited for things happening here.

Elder J is from Mill Creek, UT, right by Sandy!!!! He went to Skyline high, and was a wrestler and football player. Just to give you an idea of how awesome he is, he was 180 pounds and played CENTER in football. Like the man who throws the ball between his legs for those of you who went to public school. He is such a man that they wanted him to hit fat guys and protect the quarterback. So let's just say we have gotten some pretty good workouts in this week.

One of our new investigators is a retired high school football coach, so I don't think we will have a problem relating to him haha.

I don't have much to say, only that if you vote for me all of your wildest dreams will come true. Thank you.

<3 Elder Clark the younger