Joey's first two letters home

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A picture with family...

...A hug for Mom...

...and he's gone.

Last post EVER. ...until 2013.

So...I don't know if this will actually be my last post, but it probably will be. I'm turning this blog over to my parents to post my mission emails. This means that I won't be on here to bore you to death for 2 whole years. Isn't that great? Actually, you'll be able to read my emails. So...never mind. I'll still be able to bore you to death. ;)

There was this one time, when I ate a guacamole burger and then went to cross-country practice. That was a bad idea. Guacamole burgers and 4-mile runs don't really go well together. Like, at all. I had a dream last night that I was on my mission. And Elder Sowards, Elder Barry, and Elder Thomas were there. Man, wouldn't it be amazing if we had all been called to the same mission? Haha. That would be so cool! Then again, we might not get much done... Nah, we'd probably convert everyone in the entire mission. Haha.

This is the scripture that I chose to be on my missionary plaque:

Alma 29:9: "I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, and I glory in it. I do not glory of myself, but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded me; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance; and this is my joy."

So there you go. I have been waiting for this my entire life. I've been excited about it ever since I could sing "I Hope They Call Me on a Mission." Now it's actually happening! :D Wish me luck, eh? Actually, don't wish me luck. There's no such thing. Maybe...pray for me? I would appreciate it very much. :)

Well, I love you all. God bless and God speed. Choose the right, don't do drugs, stay in school. You know the drill. "Nooo, not the drill!!" ;)

Trust in the Lord.

And have a nice day, eh?

-Elder Joseph Morris Cannon

P.S. I added another page (over on the right) that has my MTC and my Bogota addresses. That's so you can all write me. Because...you're going to write me, right? hehe.

Why did the boy throw his clock out the window?

Because he was a hoser.

Who on earth would really want to see time fly? Doesn't it do that on its own? Like, without chucking things out of windows? I've been waiting to go to the MTC for 5 months, and for the most part, it's felt like it couldn't be going slower. But now that I have 9 days left, time is going way too fast! And, I'm really super-excited to go to the MTC, it just feels like there's too much time and too little to do. Strike that. Reverse it.

I haven't even bought my luggage or finished my immunizations. I still need my vehicle driving record, and a bunch of things for my "small first-aid kit" that's probably going to fill an entire suitcase. Hehe.

I have started writing in my mission journal, and that's really cool. I've never been amazing at keeping a journal, but so far I've been pretty regular with this one. The mission one, that is. Another exciting thing, is that today is my last day at the call center. Hallelujah!!!!!     ...ahem. I really don't hate the job, but...I really do. It's just not an incredibly happy place. That's all. I don't know, maybe there's someone in this world that likes people swearing at them on the phone...it's just not for me.

Well, so y'all know, I know that I have been called of the Lord to preach to the people of Colombia, because that's where He needs me most. I know that it'll be hard, but I, like so many others, will come to call these next 2 years the best of my life. I do hope that the years following will be even better, but I guess I'll just take life one amazing year at a time. Maybe I should try taking it a day at a time. That might be a little easier to manage. Anyway, I hope y'all write me. You'd better. ;) That was random. No...I'm random. Why do elephants paint their toenails red? So they can hide in a cherry tree. Have you ever seen an elephant in a cherry tree? It works pretty well, eh?

I love you all, my family and friends. I'll be praying for you, and I hope that your prayers will go with me as well. This gospel is true. Our Heavenly Father loves us. Jesus Christ did atone for our sins, and made it possible for us to return to live with Him again. The Book of Mormon is the word of God, and we will get nearer to Him by reading it and following its teachings. President Thomas S. Monson is a true prophet of God, and he leads and guides us down the path of righteousness. I love this gospel, and I testify of its truthfulness in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

-Joseph Morris Cannon

Btw...it's May now.

Just...in case you couldn't tell...it was snowing last week, see. But May has come and not a moment too soon. I just hope this warmth that May has brought will stay for a while. I'm sure it will, and then I'll be burning hot all the time and wishing for some snow. What an ungrateful life I lead. I really do like the cold and the snow...it just...never seems to stay within its boundaries. Snow should fall from late November until February. Then it should stop, and not snow again until the next November. But this is Utah we're talking about, so of course there's snow on and off from October until April. If we're lucky, there's snow on Christmas, and none on the 4th of July. Okay, I've never seen snow on the 4th of July...but my dad has. Anyway, suffice it to say, I'm glad for the warmth, and I hope it decides to stick around. At least until I go to Colombia. Then I'll be set. ;)

I gave my boss my 2 weeks notice yesterday. That was pretty much one of the most exit (that's the abbreviation for "exciting") things that's happened to me in the past few weeks. It was kind of scary, because...well, my boss just scares me.  I'm not entirely sure why. She just does. But I came out fairly unscathed, so I figure it went well. 

Right now I'm listening to the Spirit soundtrack. "Run Free" by Hans Zimmer. It always amazed me how someone who's originally from Europe could compose a song that sounds like America. This song...it is America. That might sound weird, but it's true. Wide open prairies, big blue skies, patriotism...it's just...America. It's hard to describe, really. Anyway, Hans Zimmer never ceases to amaze me. 

Don't you just love good music? I wish I had more patience/time/resources for composing. Because I love it so much. I heard a song just this morning that made me want to compose. There just aren't enough hours in a day, or days in a week. I have other "more important" things to do, like...work and eat and sleep. Honestly, I would put composing above every one of those things if I could...sigh. One of these days. 

After working 4 months at the call center, I promised myself that I would make a living doing something I actually enjoy. Because there's no way on this green earth I'm going to sit in a chair making phone calls for the rest of my life. It's just not for me. 

Well, happy May, everyone! I'll be in the MTC before it's June, and I'll turn this blog over to one of my parents to post my mission letters. That's the plan for now, anyway. I wish I could type music. That sounds ridiculous. But thoughts come into my head in the form of music, and I want to write them down for you to see...hear...and I can't. 

Wow, I'm ADD. Anyway...Have a nice day?

Love y'all.

-Moscas