P-day, what is that?

Me, hanging from a tree, over a stream

Who has ever heard of P-day?  Okay, now who knows what P-day is?  For those who don't know, it is an exciting day in missionary life haha.  As missionaries, as you know, it is a full-time thing, for 2 full years.  We get to go about teaching others about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, no pay checks, no vacations/brakes, R&R or anything, but completely devoting 2 years to serving the Lord. Yet with spending all of our time, talents, and energy to doing the Lord's work, how do we get anything else done?  And that is where P-day comes in =)  P-day, stands as to shorten preparation day, when we have set apart to do laundry, shopping, and all the good stuff that we need to get done for the upcoming week.  For me, p-day is on Wednesday, and we spend half of the day teaching, and then the rest in p-day activities.  And p-day yesterday was way fun, we actually went and hiked up into the Wasatch Mountains through Rock Canyon, and were there for most of the day, and hiked back a few miles.  It was way fun, it was beautiful up there, we climbed up random rocks, ran down mountains, climbed into caves, jumped streams, and just got...

Elder Thompson, McMullin, Baird, then LeeMaster and Me up top

to be out.  Being from Washington, I am used to nice cool weather, plant life everywhere, running water, trees, vegetation, and rain, LOTS and LOTS of rain (and yes, I actually do like the rain).  

And in being here in Utah for my mission, the weather in Provo is about the opposite of that.  Freezing cold winters, way hot summers, its all brown, and more of, in my opinion, a desert.  But as we hiked up miles into the mountains, it was transformed more into that which I am used to, and what I grew up in.  Some of the places were absolutely stellar, and beautiful.  Like in the picture of me hanging from the tree, the stream there was amazing looking.  And not only that, it wasn't way hot when we went.  Upon leaving, it was drizeling off and on, not too much or nothing.  And throughout the day, the wind and rain up the canyon made the going great.  And then after being gone a few hours, the thunder storms hit.  It was AWESOME!  If you think you have heard loud thunder, you haven't been in a canyon during a thunder storm.  The sounds were so loud, with the wind whistling through the canyon and the thunder reverberating off the rock faces all around us. 

Elder Thompson, Baird, and Me

 Then the rain was coming down like cats & dogs, literally we were completely soaked, but it was fun, and brought me back to some of what I miss from home in Washington.  And so p-day, we get to get things done that we need to, and also just get out and do things (that are still appropriate).  It is a huge blessing to be here as a missionary and to get to be teaching about those things that I know to be true, and we re blessed for the beauty of the world around us that God has given.  Even in Utah, which is the opposite of where I grew up, you can find places that will captivate you.