Dear Family,
Well, I just want to start this by saying that I'm really sorry about last week! I am very frustrated that you didn't receive my email! I sent one just like normal and the country wasn't shut down, I had just tried to send some pictures with the email and it didn't send and I didn't even know about it! So I sent last weeks without the pictures so I'll have to send my memory card or something. Anyway I hope that no one was worried or anything! I feel really bad... But I guess you get two emails this week huh? I'm glad that everyone had a good week this past week! We've never been down to Goblin Valley before and that sounds fun! It sounds like you guys had a great spring break! Oh and that's great that Jake got his mission call! Washington D.C. Huh? That will be a crazy mission! not as crazy as mine I think, but that will be cool! Make sure to congratulate him for me ok?
About my week, it has been a bit more eventful than normal. Easter was good, but they didn't really do anything very different here. Everyone just gets drunk and parties! Haha great isn't it? Our Investigators are doing well and making progress. We met with the couple I mentioned in my last letter on Thursday and the lesson was really good. We taught them about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But we did find out that they are not married so I hope they will be able to make the right steps to be able to be baptized. We did start Conference this week which was great! We watched the first sesson on friday and watched three of the other sessions at the chuch in lithuanian because we had investigatores there. I didn't understand much so I just did grammar stuff and wrote in my journal. But this morning we watched the second session, and WOW! Elder Holland Just threw down about lust! We were all blown away at how blunt he was but I thought it was a great talk and the other talks that I've heard were great. I can't wait to hear the rest of the sessions this week. They have been focasing so much on families! Other things about last week that would be of interest are that I got in my first bible bash with some idiot from america... My companion and I tried not to argue with him, but he wouldn't let us go! We contaced him down on Gedimino and the instint we said hi, he went off on how he thinks that Joseph Smith was a moron and told us that we are spreading lies! He was totally bashing on our church and our "Holy Underwear" and kept telling us that we didn't read the bible and I would tell him that we did and so he would ask us what a scripture said in the bible and I don't know my scriptures as well as I would like to so I didn't know and he would say again and agian that we don't read the bible! So I would tell him that we don't have to memorize scriptures to read and know the bible but of course he wouldn't listen! I got so frustrated and I was so close to popping that guy a new one but I know I had to act as a missionary would but it was so so so hard to keep my cool with him because he was saying all of this stuff that wasn't true and was totally being disrespectful to my companion and I and pretty much treating us like scum and all of you that know me, I can't stand that because I try my hardest to respect everyone no matter what their views are! Anyways, that was frustrating and I just pray that the Lord will help me with patience, but I think we handled it pretty well dispite that being my first time. Other than that, Nothing really new happened this week. Just missionary work that intails contacting and knocking doors! Trying to learn the language and studying the gospel! Oh and also working out! :) This morning my companion and I and the Russian Elders ran up to The Hill of the Three Crosses! I almost died because it was about a three mile thing but half of it was running up stairs! I didn't make it running all of the way lets just say, None of us did! Look up the story of that hill on the internet actually. It's a weird story of the first christian missionaries in Lithuania. The Hill looks out over Vilnius and has a way good view. We, I need to go cause everyone here doesn't really write much to their families and they get mad when I take long. Ugh... I miss you guys and love you so much. Thank you mom and dad for all of the advice. I know that the language isn't going to come for a while, so I've pretty much just accepted that but it's still hard cause my companion is really hard on me and doesn't go easy on with the language at all. He pretty much forces me to talk and not always in the nicest way. But I guess I have to learn somehow no matter how I do it. I'm doing well though. Things are hard of course and it's very hard work being a missionary. I thought that I was tired from working and stuff before my mission but man... I have never been as tired as I am right now and everyday! So I know that this is where I need to be and I'm grateful to serve my Heavenly Father. It's a great opportunity and I know that I'm going to grow so much in these next two years. I've already seen a lot of growth actually! Anyways, I'm doing good but with the expected hard times. I love you all so much and can't wait to talk to you on mothers day mom! It's really not that far off. I'll write again next week! Thanks again for all of the love and support and I'm sorry again that my email from last week didn't send. I fell bad about that! But I love you!
Love, Elder Leishman
91 days down, 639 days to go!!!
