First Baptismal Invitation!!

 Not a lot to report. When Caleb called home this week, we mostly talked about food.

He shared a photo of something he ate that he thought was tasty, 

but I have no idea how to spell it. I'll attach a photo.

They also met with their zone, and apparently there is a rule that if you aren't quite up to standard

in certain areas, you get to do 30 push ups. The areas you need to be up to 

standard in are your haircut,

clean shoes, and clean car. So, Caleb got to do some push ups. I thought it would 

be for his hair (he needs another cut) but it wasn't that, and he said he and his companion

 won for the cleanest car,

so I guess his shoes must have been dirty. (He did say it's really dusty).  

As far as teaching goes,  he had several who canceled appointments or who just weren't home

for their appointments, but after reading his email, I think he had a pretty successful week!

Here is his email from this week along with a few pictures:

"This week went pretty good. We did a lot of driving though. On Monday we had a zone P-Day which means our Pday was spent with all of the missionaries in Eswatini, but it was 2 hours away! But it was fun, then on Friday we had Zone Conference which was again 2 hours away, it was at 9 and we had to be early so we ended up leaving at like 6:15 in the morning. And then on Sunday we had district conference which was another 2 hour drive ahead of us. So we did a lot of driving but it was so worth it. The highlight this week was that I had the opportunity to invite three young women to be baptized next sunday, I'm so excited for them and the chance they will get to make covenants with our Heavenly Father. Especially because they also have a desire to go to the temple, I love the temple and so it makes me so happy to hear that they are taking steps toward the goal of going to the temple someday! 

That's all I have to report, can't wait for the next week!

Love,

Elder Roskelley"

 

   

I'm guessing the three with the crowns are who he invited to be baptized! 

  

Caleb with his companion, Elder Kohlani 

   

 The sandwich Caleb had this week. He said it was roughly $2 in USD.

He said it was really good, but super messy to eat!  

 

 

He's in Eswatini!

 As part of Caleb's mission preparation,

he needed to obtain a notarized letter of good conduct from the local municipal court or 

local police department. For us, that meant the Davis County Sheriff's Department.

Part of Durban's mission includes the nation of Eswatini, formerly know as Swaziland.

The letter of good conduct basically served as a temporary Visa for Caleb to enter

this country. On his first p-day there, he had to see a doctor to make sure he was in good health,

took more passport type photos, and filled out paperwork to get a more permanent Visa.

After a long flight to South Africa, he did get one day of rest from travel 

before finding out he would be driving 8 hours to his area in Nhlangano, Eswatini.

It's a small country bordered by South Africa on the North, West, and South,

and on the East by Mozambique. He said he stayed awake for almost the entire ride,

but found out after taking about a 20 minute nap that he'd missed seeing some giraffes! 

He was kind of disappointed about that, but I'm sure he'll get plenty of opportunities 

to see more giraffes and other animals from Africa. 

We learned from Caleb that this nation is a monarchy, 

and each year, the king marries a new wife. The current king is up to 15 wives!

We thought that was interesting. We also found out that it's a pretty safe area,

which helps ease this mama's heart! It's also considered "the promised land" 

among missionaries because there are so many there ready to join the Church.

He also said that those serving in Eswatini are usually there for a good 

chunk of the time, so we'll see how long he stays in this nation. 

On his first p-day, he met with his zone for a bry, or in other words, a BBQ. 

We're excited to hear more about the people he meets while serving in this area. 

Here is the email he sent home this week along with some pictures of him at the bry:

"This week was BUSY. Started on the 13ths at 4 AM with a bus ride to the airport and flew to Atlanta from Atlanta to Johannesburg which is a 15 hour flight. When we got to Durban which was another hour flight from Johannesburg we met President Laguna and his wife, they're awesome and super kind. On Saturday we found out where we were all going and I was assigned to the Eswatini zone which is like way up north in the mission, it was an 8 hour drive. It was fun though, we got to talk a lot with one of our zone leaders, Elder Selman, and this is his last transfer so he had some wisdom to share with us. It was an awesome car ride with him. I met my trainer Elder Kohlani, hes from South Africa and hes super cool, he likes soccer and answers all the questions I have for him.

So far loving it here and can't wait for the next 2 years!

Love you all,

Elder Roskelley"

 

 

 

 

 

Off to South Africa!

 We didn't get to hear from Caleb the morning we flew out,

but he had told us the Friday before what the flight plan was.

We also learned that he probably had had his Visa all along, but that

the Church realized they didn't have enough space at the MTC in Johannesburg! Oh, well!

Grateful we got a little extra time with him at home.

So, we knew that he had to get up at 3am on Wednesday, August 13th so he could 

have his luggage to the travel department by 4am. All of the elders flying out 

then loaded a bus at 5am,

headed to the Front Runner, got off of Front Runner to take Trax out to the airport! Whew!

I'm tired already! They needed to be at the airport by 6am for their 10am international flight!

They flew from Salt Lake to Atlanta, Georgia where they had roughly a 6 hour layover

before flying out to Johannesburg, a nearly 16 hour flight! I'm really tired now!

They spent the night at a hotel near the airport and then got on a plane to Durban on

what would be their Friday morning. Luckily, that flight was only a little over an hour!

He spent the day in the mission office filling out paper work and doing some other things.

He spent the night in the mission home and on Saturday morning, he learned

 where his first area would be! I'll save that for the next blog post! 

He didn't get a chance to call or email home, but the mission secretary sent some pictures 

and a message letting us know Caleb had arrived  safely to his mission!

Here are those pictures along with a couple of others on the plane and at the airport: 

Last Week At MTC!

 Not a lot to share about Caleb's 2nd week in the MTC, other than he said it was 

even better than the first week.

It's been fun to do video calls with him. This is something we never got to do

with Jaden. He seems to be doing well. Here's this weeks email: 

"This week has been awesome, my had the opportunity to go to the Mount Timpanogos temple to do and Endowment Session, we had a devotional with President of the Seventy Carl B. Cook and his wife where they discussed prayer and it's profound effect on our lives. 

The food here has had its highs and lows but the chocolate milk is always the best part of Meal time. I think it's amazing the Lord has provided a way to host thousands of missionaries all in one place to help prepare them to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

This email kinda felt all over the place but I truly did have a good week, and I feel closer to Christ and his work than I did a week ago

Love you all

Elder Roskelley"

 

Pictures with Caleb and his district at the MTC and at the Orem Temple:

 

 

  

 

   

  

 

MTC Dropoff and First Week in Provo!

Caleb entered the Provo MTC on Wednesday, July 30th...almost 12 years to the day when

his older brother, Jaden, entered the MTC. (July 31, 2013).

It was the largest group of missionaries that have ever been dropped off in one day! Over 1,000

missionaries said good-bye to their families in Provo that day! 

When Jaden left, our family went to lunch at the Cheesecake Factory in Murray, so 

we decided to make it a tradition! (Can it be a tradition with just two missionaries?)

Anyway, after lunch, Caleb gave all of his siblings and nephews hugs.

Only one person really broke down, but I know Caleb will be missed by all of his siblings!

We had a little time between lunch and dropping Caleb off and all week he was saying how 

he wished he could have a Kong Cone from Macey's.

 (We miss having a Macey's close to home). 

So stopped by the Macey's in Provo. Jaden and Britta were in the van with us, so they went

in with Caleb and they all got a Baby Kong. They were still a bit full from lunch.

I know this seems silly to add, but it's a reminder of the "little things" 

we might miss while we're away.

The drop off came and Chris and I got to hug Caleb one last time for two years! 

People keep asking how I'm doing. Honestly, I don't get too emotional.

I am filled with joy and peace knowing he's where he should be at this time of his life.

Two days later, Caleb called home on his P-Day. He was enjoying the MTC much more than

training from home. He also sent a short email that day to his family and friends 

with a couple of pictures from the Payson Temple. 

  

   

   

 

 

 

    

 

Here is his first email home from the MTC with a link to a couple of pictures at the Payson Temple:

 

"What's up everyone!! This week i got to start at the Provo MTC. I loved what I learned during home MTC but it doesn't compare to being in person with my companion and my district. I've loved being able to get to know them. Although they all think I'm super old cause I'm already 20 but it's okay we're tight. Ran up some volleyball this morning, and it might not be what I'm used to but I love how hype all the people are! I'm loving the sleep schedule, going to bed at 10:30 waking up at 6:15, it's amazing.

Love you all, Talk to you next week

Elder Roskelley"

Home MTC!

 When Caleb was originally called to do his training in Johannesburg, I felt that was a huge

blessing because I knew he would not like home MTC!

He definitely struggled a bit with those times where he had long breaks,

or the times when he had long meetings!

But, overall, he ended up doing okay with it. One of the tender mercies I felt happen because

he ended up being at home during that week was the opportunity we had to go to

the temple with him. His schedule was always so busy up until he became a missionary that

our schedules didn't always align and allow us to do that. The night before Caleb

entered the Provo MTC, we were able to go and do sealings. My brother was the sealer, 

and a few of my siblings and their spouses were there. But what made it really special 

was that my parents were there and were able to be in the temple with Caleb before he left. 

My dad is 93 and my mom is 89, so the thought that they may not be here when Caleb gets

home has definitely crossed our minds. We're hoping they'll still be here, but what a special 

experience to be in the temple with them that night. 

The extra week at home also gave us the opportunity to go through and make sure Caleb

had everything he needed! We tried to do this beforehand, but it really was nice to have that

extra time. So, I definitely believe that the Lord's hand was in Caleb's MTC assignment

changing. It was wonderful to have a full-time missionary in our home for a few days!

  

 

  

 

And here is the email he sent out to everyone that week!

 When I say short and sweet, I mean short and sweet!

 

"Nearly through my first week as a missionary! It's been quite a time already, I've loved having the opportunity to meet my MTC comp and MTC district. I've felt the Spirit constantly this week, and I would like to testify that missionaries are called to the work and have a special spirit round about them. They are truly lead by the Lord to go out and spread Christ's Gospel.

Hopefully I'll have more to report on next week when I enter the provo MTC 

 but thats all for this email

Love,

Elder Roskelley"