Letter #85

Ryan has not had great access to the internet to write a long letter until today... He wrote small emails to the family for the last two weeks...

He will return home on August 16th for sure!!! We are excited! :) Ryan will have an opportunity to see his high school friend, Matt Passmore on his last day in the NY NYN mission when Matt arrives to begin his mission!!! What an amazing opportunity! - L, Darci

Hello Hello!

So this was another great week! I can't remember if I told you in my e-mail yet, but president smith will be going home in two cycles. I had my last interview with him this week and it was so sad. I love that guy so much! I never really realized how much work he does to run the mission until just recently. I was on a split with the A.P.'s up in Scarsdale and we went into the mission office to grab the packages for the south Manhattan zone. My mission president was sitting behind his desk with a mountain of papers stacked on the desk before him. He told me that he has to study and sign off every single expense in our mission. He then let me look at the "transfer board" pretty legendary throughout my mission. This board was gigantic! Each missionary had a picture and some background info about them placed in their assigned area! This really helped me realize how much time he puts in and how much he really cares about each of us. I really love president smith, I am going to miss him so much. I am kinda bummed I am going to have a new mission president for my last cycle, but it’s ok.

Sister Lin, her son Henry, and Brother Ye were baptized this week! That was awesome... I have never had the privilege of teaching and baptizing someone young before. That was really cool. I must confess I shed a few tears. I am sure I am going to cry like a baby again when I see him pass the sacrament in a few weeks. We are also going to talk with the stake young men’s leader about getting him involved in some camp outs and other young men’s activities. Brother Ye was just as ready as ever. He overcame so much to get were he is and I am so proud of him. He asked me if he could go on a mission after he was baptized. He told me that he really believes that the gospel can bless other people. Unfortunately, he is a little too old right now, but we told he could be a very effective missionary by sharing the gospel with his friends, and others that he surrounds himself with. This made him so happy. It was a great baptismal service.

I had a really cool experience serving in the sign language program yesterday! It was so much fun! My companion was hard of hearing, but his speaking was still really good. For the most part of the day though I was trying my best to sign with him! It is amazing how much of my ASL has been eaten alive by Chinese. But still I tried my best. I really like the sign language program! They are all such studs! I was so amazed! They have a very hard program. They spend much of their time getting rejected, searching desperately for deaf people. I really look up to those guys. When I came back to china town last night and started to speak Chinese again, my head hurt sooooooooooo bad! The switch from my second language to my other second language really did not feel good.

Me and Elder Huang found a few new investigators this last week. We have been so blessed. I am learning so much from Elder Huang, he is a great missionary. It is pretty incredible how much he cares about every person that he comes in contact with. My testimony continues to grow each and every day. I am so amazed with heavenly fathers ability to plan, and organize the way and timing that his children will hear the gospel. I love my mission!

Elder Barton

Ryan, Elder Huang and President Smith 

Letter #84

Hello Hello!

 

So this week was just fantastic! Me and elder huang are working so hard! I think I told you last week that we basically started last cycle with nothing. We found a ton of new investigators this week! All of them were such huge blessings! I feel like we go out side and do our best to contact, then at random times heavenly father will just blesses us for our efforts. Some of the people that we found this week were so incredible and have awesome stories. I always love the first time that we meet with an investigator. It is so great just to listen to them talk about their life, and realize how heavenly father has really been preparing them their whole life just for that one moment. 

One of the investigators that we found this week as been a science professor for his whole entire life. We asked him if being a scientist effects his christian beliefs. His response reminded me of the talk that elder nelson gave to us this last conference. He went on and on about science actually proves that god exists. We introduced the book of mormon to him at the end of the lesson, and it really peaked his interest. We also met others that have been experiencing some very hard trials in their lives right now. As we testified of jesus christ and his atonement they were very comforted, and felt like what we had to teach them could really help them.

I am so excited to start this next week! We have so many great follow up lessons. I am sorry I dont have alot of time again today. I have not been getting very lucky with the computer selection. I hope that next week I can get my full time!

Elder barton

ps That is very nice of you to send another package you really dont have to do stuff like that! It was so great to hear your voice ON sunday!

LOve you guys!

Letter #83 Just To Family

Letter #82

Hello Hello my dear friends!

Conference was amazing! I feel so spiritually charged and ready to go for the next six months until we get the awesome opportunity to watch it again! For some reason conference has taken a whole new meaning on my mission. I think it all started with that awesome experience I had at the beginning on my mission to go and watch it in salt lake. Seeing the prophet and other church leaders first hand really sparked an interest. There were so many questions that I had that were answered! By the end of the first Saturday session, me and both of my companions had tear filled eyes. Such a great experience! There were also many talks that answered questions that our investigators had! Unfortunately none of them except one were able to come and watch conference. But we are looking foreword to sharing those talks with them the next time that we meet up. The one that came was Brother Ye! He is such a stud! He continues to amaze me every single week! This week he went from smoking a pack of cigarettes every day to only smoking 2 per day! It is his goal this week to completely quit smoking! What a great example of obedience. This week he also came in and said, "what’s up man!" In English! I laughed so hard! I just was not expecting that to come out of him I guess. It was also funny because he had his Ipod in, so he said it super loud! He told me that he over heard this phrase said while he was at work and remembered it so that he could say it to us! He is so funny!

This week we were able to help our blind investigator, brother Lin go run a few errands in china town. I had the privilege of holding on to his arm and guiding him through the busy china town streets. As I was doing this, I could not help but think about the relationship between members of the church and our friends. Without guidance from the Gospel and modern day prophets we are blind and alone on the streets of some where like china town. We will hear noises but be forced to use our own judgment to say what they are, how far way they are, and if they are on our right side or our left. It is our purpose as missionaries or as members, to find these people that are lost and confused and help them to where they need to go! I noticed as I led brother lin, he followed me very closely and listened intently to every word that I said to him. When we finished his errands and returned him home he gave me a big hug, and thanked me for my service. I know that those souls that we lead to the Gospel will have the exact same reaction.

The rest of our investigators are doing so good! I am so proud of them! It has been so amazing to see these people applying the things that we are teaching them! Even though a lot of them are leaving for china soon, I know that they will remember! It’s all about the baby steps!

Well I got to get going! We are going to the Bronx Zoo today and I am pretty stoked! It has been a while since I have been face to face with a polar bear so I am pretty excited! 

Elder Barton 

Letter #81 Hair Cut Experience

Dear Family and Friends,

This week was extraordinary! I have to say I am really running out of adjectives to describe each week that I have on my mission. They are all so great!

To start off I want to tell you about a hair cut experience that I had last week. So as you know missionaries do not have a lot of money. So, for my whole entire mission I have cut my own hair. But, elder near left at the end of the last cycle, and so did his hair clippers. So, I was forced to go find a pace in china town to get a hair cut. As I thought about where I should go, I had one place come to my mind. It only costs 4 dollars for a hair cut so I figured that it was with in my budget. When I walked down the steep and jagged stairs into this basement that they call a hair salon. I was quickly greeted, and some one surrounded by approximately 4 men yelling in Cantonese. I was called to speak Mandarin, so I cannot understand much Cantonese at all. I called Elder Mok to come and help me translate, but he just started laughing. Next thing I knew, I was shoved into a chair, a paper towel encircled my neck, followed by a large purple plastic sheet, and then I heard the flick of a switch... The clippers were ready to do their job. He did not ask me what I wanted, my name, or how I was feeling! He just started to go! This whole time I was calling desperately to my companion for help, but he just continued to laugh and even photograph the things that were taking place. I have a picture that I will include with this email. Luckily the hair cut did not turn out too bad. It is really short and tight on the sides, and the top is still pretty long. I kind of look like a missionary from the 80's.

I also have another story from this week in which I was brutally attacked. We taught a lesson at Columbia University this week. It was really a great experience! The campus is beautiful! You don't even feel like you are in New York City! It takes on the look of spirit paradise mixed with some sort of a Roman empire. There were even white doves flying around! I almost feel like they were released there or something. I have never seen white doves in New York. But anyways, my attack. So we sat down with our investigator on the grassy pastures of the Columbia University campus and began to dive into the doctrine of prayer. The lesson was going great, the spirit was strong, and he was really asking some great questions. But, right as we prepared to do the opening prayer, a huge gust of wind came and flung a piece of paper faster then the speed of light right at my face. Now I am sure a lot of you reading this are saying, "Oh, no problem Elder Barton has the speed of a Gazelle! I am sure he dodged it no problem!" I am very reluctant to tell you that you are wrong. I was caught off guard and the paper nailed me right in the face. And to make this whole situation even worse, the paper was a pamphlet from the Catholic Church.

This week was truly one to remember! Despite those two minor set backs, everything else was great! We had one investigator come back from china! Two of our other investigators are leaving for china, so this definitely made up for it. We taught our 13-year-old investigator about the priesthood and he was very excited! Missions are so great! I can honestly say the time in the mission field just get better as you go on.

Well I got to get going. We have conference cleaning today, so I am off to battle with our wonderful china town pad. Please wish me luck!

 ELDER BARTON

Letter #80 Another Fantastic Week

Hello Hello my dear friends!

This was another fantastic week! I really don't think that I will have another reason to complain for the rest of my life with all of the great blessings that I have been receiving recently. It is such a blessing just to be the Lord’s instrument. It does not matter what the purpose of the instrument is, just the fact that you are in the Lord’s hands is so amazing. A “saw” and a “screw driver” have two very different jobs. I am sure that the job of the screwdriver seems a lot more fun at times. But, there is no way that the screw driver would ever be able to do the job of the saw, and there is no way that the saw could ever do the job of the screw driver. Both tools have been prepared and made to accomplish their own individual purposes. Both purposes are special! Depending on the situation that we are in, we will use different tools. Some tools are used more then others but that does not make them any more important. Regardless of the job that our heavenly father has prepared us to do, or is preparing us to do, we should always just be grateful for the opportunity to be in his hands. We should also keep ourselves sharp and ready so that when he does call on us, we will be ready to go!

We had some great things happen this week. Brother Lin (our blind investigator) came to church! We picked him up from his house and dropped him off after church. He had such a great time at church. It is amazing how much he remembers. On Monday, we picked him up again to take him to an eye appointment. The whole time that we were in the car, he asked us question after question about the doctrines that were touched on in our church meeting. I was very impressed. We could tell that he had really been thinking about the things that he had learned at church and had his questions ready for us. The doctor appointment was one of the hardest things that I have ever had to sit through in my whole entire life. Brother Lin has very high hopes that he will be able to find a cure for his eyes. And his reasoning for going to this doctor was just that! The doctor was a very mean and impatient person. She treated him like he was seeing, giving him no guidance, and even caused him to smack his chin really hard on one of the machines. Then showed no sense of care or concern when she delivered the bad news that he would most likely never be able to see again. We were translating all of this, so we tried to make it sound a little better and put more feeling into it than how she told him the news. The news shattered Brother Lin and as soon as the sentence entered into his ears, his body literally looked like a puppet that had all of the strings clipped from the top. When the doctor saw his body fall in this way, she began almost yell, "He looks confused! Why is he so confused? Are you translating everything right?" She was making me so mad! I have never been so tempted to yell at someone throughout the whole course of my mission. He was sad for a while but then as we dropped him off at his house, he said, "It’s ok, I will go to China and see if there is a cure!" His countenance changed back to the same happy Brother Lin and he walked into his house. That poor guy! Working with him has been so humbling. Despite his hard circumstances, he has such a great attitude! It makes me feel like such a loser for all of the small things that I have complained about.

Sister Lin and her son Henry are still doing great! It is so cool to think that the Canal Street Branch might actually have a deacon! A 13-year-old Deacon! They have come to church many weeks in a row and continue to get closer and closer to baptism. It has been so great to see their progression in the gospel. Our other investigators made some great progression this week as well. Sister Chen went with us to go see the temple! Because of her 1 and a half-year-old daughter she had never used the subway before! We helped carry the stroller on and off of the subway, so that she was able to come. On the church side of the Manhattan Temple we were able to share with her the plan of salvation! Can you think of a better place to share with some one the plan of salvation? The spirit was so strong! She is getting ready to back to China as well, but I am not too worried. I know that she will remember the things that we have shared with her. When people feel the spirit that strong, it is very hard to forget. Brother Zhang (our baptism two weeks ago) received the Aaronic Priesthood last Sunday! It was a very special feeling to stand in the circle and hear his name ordained into the office of a priest! We are hoping that he can baptize a few of our upcoming baptisms. Brother Zhen (the guy with the bad back) gave us his medical records, and we were able to give them to one of the most well known spinal surgeons in the whole world, who just so happens to be member of our stake. He reviewed the records and requested to meet with Brother Zhen immediately free of charge. He also offered to perform a surgery for free! I thought it was amazing how generous this doctor was. But, I was not amazed with our investigator! He is contemplating whether or not he should go through with the surgery! He feels like it is not a good choice! I would have taken that in a heartbeat! But I guess it is his personal decision, it is not my back! It was so great though to see how heavenly father really did answer the prayers!

Well I love you guys! Thanks for all of the great support!

Elder Barton

Letter # 79 We had a Baptism!!

Hello Hello!

Well the weeks just continue to get better and better. Despite a few minor set backs, the major operation still continues to roll foreword. Elder Huang and Elder Mok are so funny! It has been so good to work with them! They are also great missionaries, so organized and on top of things! I have learned so much from them!

We had a baptism this last weekend! I have to say it was awesome! It has been a while for me! His name was Zhang. He just randomly walked into the chapel one day and asked us how he could join the church. It was such a miracle and I am very grateful for it. It is such an amazing feeling when you realize the change that a person has had because of the gospel. I especially noticed this feeling when I looked at Zhang this last Sunday. I had a flash back of the first day that he came into meet with us. He seemed to not have a lot of energy or enthusiasm. As time went on, he fell in love with the scriptures! He loved all of the principles that the book of Mormon lays out so clearly. I think his real turning point was when he learned the plan of salvation. When he was a child his father passed away and he had always wondered where his father was. He was also very concerned because his father was a butcher, and he had heard that if we kill animals we can't go to heaven. We were able to clear up both of these questions for him. These are the reasons I am so happy that I came on a mission. It does not matter how many lives we change, the feeling of simply changing one person’s life is incredible.

Yesterday we had three investigators stand us up. One of them will not be able to meet with us for three months because she is going back to china for a while. So we were pretty disappointed. As we were getting ready to leave the chapel, the elevator doors opened and brother weng came walking out. He was my very first baptism! So it was so great to see him! His wife has been pregnant, so he has been very busy and not been able to come to church for the last few months. He looked very tired. He works every day of the week and whenever he does have a little time he goes to the hospital to see his wife. Let me just tell you his schedule! He wakes up at 5 30 every morning and makes fish and other healthy food so that he can get on a subway for about an hour to go to the NY down town hospital and give it to his wife. He says that the food at the hospital does not have enough nutrition. Then he gets back on the train for about an hour so he can go back home and get ready for work. What a great dad! When we saw him he only had a little bit of time, but he came to pay his tithing. After he paid his tithing he was off to start his hard work in the restaurant again. He has such a good attitude! Every time I see him he is always smiling. It is people like that, that make me feel like I never any reason to complain! 

I think I told you guys last week about our blind investigator. If not now you know! We had an opportunity to take him to a doctor’s appointment this week! It was so cool! We took a Chinese taxi! It is not as special as it sounds, just a mini van with a lot of various mystical creatures posted all around the interior. They also had these really comfortable backrests. It was cool though; I have never done that before! We spend all of our time underground in the subway. Brother Lin, (our Chinese investigator) is such an amazing guy! It is so humbling to be around him! He is a lot like Brother Weng in the since that he has a fantastic attitude. I have been so blessed to meet some great people recently.

Well I am grateful for this opportunity to chat! I hope that you all have a great day! 

Elder Barton