Hey there!

Hi Mom and Family,
THis last week was so slow with my companion being so sick and all but i gave him a blessing so we will see what happens. I dont know his parents name and his name is Mitch. The bike riding is coming okay. We get the car this week starting wednesday so that will be really nice. This friday we get the entire day off for the 4th of july so that will be so awesome. Thats fun Hilary went to efy with shelby. Those poor mormon Boys ha ha. Did she have fun? That sounds like a really good week. Glad you guys are keeping really busy and im glad that you won in bunko. I love all the mambas i get from you guys. No one out here knows what they are so keep sending. well the bad news is that mike dropped us completely but Tiffany who is philips wife came to church with her 3 kids and they loved primary so they are coming back next sunday. And then this girl named shanelle also came to church for her first time. And she too is coming back. so yesterday was such a good day for me. There are the Coolest elders and sisters in my district. There is Elder Beck from alpine and HIs companion Elder Whiting, Elder Tapana and elder Contraras, Sister Ford and sister williams, Elder Keeler and Elder Davis and THe senior Couple Elder and Sister Jepson. We were in the mission office for only like 2 hours but it was fun.The mission home is like a mansion. Its so pretty and its really oldstyle and the Lords (current President) are amazing but they are back home now and now we have the Hutchings (new President). We will get to see them because of zone conference on Thursday but I called them to just welcome them to the neighborhood. They will do some amazing work while they are here. I hope we get a baptism next week. Pray for us and our investigators.I love you guys and hope you are being safe.
Love Elder Schwendiman

Handwritten letter home! Got it on Monday 6/30

Hey family,
Just thought I would write I have some time tonight. Today was so good for the last couple days me and my companion were really sick but today was so good. We had to drop this guy named Mike. I'm so frustrated with him. But we were teaching this black girl Chenelle and we told her we didn't want her to believe us because we were telling here to, but to pray about it and out of no where she said she believed us and she is coming to church with us on Sunday. I have faith she will be baptized so keep her in your prayers.
Last night we had the worst dinner of my life. The lady we ate with is less active, her husband is a chain smoker and her sons look like bounty hunters. Pretty crazy. They are a German family. We had this egg salad with at least 30 eggs, 1 bottle of mustard and 1 bottle of mayo and then some of the egg shells were in it. We had the bowl of cucumbers with what looked like toliet water and sour cream mixed together. So Nasty and then we had burnt bratts. The only thing safe to eat was 15 year old ice cream with ice crystals all over it. I'm scared to ever go back there. Tonights dinner was really good though. We had our own personal hens. They were outstanding. Something funny happened. Some guy tried to fight me when I knocked on his door. He said alst time "we" came over we didn't leave til his wife asked us three times. He said the F-word like 10 times. Me and my comp laughed about it forever. Tonight we needed to reach our goal of 50 contacts but we only had 20 and it was already 8:00 p.m. so we went to Wal-mart and got them there. They throw us out if we get caught so we stay away from guys in yellow jackets. AKA: The bees... it's a fun game. I get to email Monday but my P-day is Friday because of the 4th of July. We get the whole day off Friday so I'm happy about that. But I love you guys so much I thought I would just let you know what's going on. Keep in touch. Oh and Grandma sent me some cookies and mamba's. They were so good. I love you Mom, Dad & Hilary & Parker & Scout & Maxi.
Love, Elder Schwendiman

I'm picking up Spanish good too. We have Spanish elders in my district.

Wow! First week out here...

Hi Mom
I have like 2 hours on my p-day to email. so i have a lot of time. This week went by pretty slow but it was okay. Two days ago we were contacting people and we found this family and out of no where my comp was like hey will you watch a movie with us. He invited us in and we watched the restoration with him. We gave him and his family a book of mormon but his native tongue is tagalog( philipino). It was really cool. we are getting him a tagalog book of mormon today and we will go over there tomorow. Im so happy for curtis. He is such a cool kid. thats gonna be a crazy mission for him. Tell jared holly congrats for me. and tell parker and steve hey for me. I love teaching people about the gospel. it makes the day so much better when you get to share your testimony with random people and talk about joseph smith and the restoration. It builds up my testimony up everyday for sure. Give jeremy my new address and tell him to write as well as my other friends and give them my email for when they get out on their missions i can keep in contact. Hows hilary doing. Is she doing anything useful with her time or being a bum like she is supposed to be in the summer? Is she playing any volleyball soon. We are playing racquetball with a member today on the military base so thats gonna be so sweet. They have no idea whats gonna hit em. JK. i still havn't gotten a letter from her. It takes a while to get them when everything comes from the mission office and they have to forward everthing so try and send everything to my new address. My comp is great. we have a lot of fun but we get done what needs to get done thats whats so great. Tell Tanya hi for me and the whole metcalf family. I just wanna let you know with all of my heart that this church is true and that joseph smith is a true prophet and he did truly see god the father and his son and he did speak to them. I know the power of the atonement and the effect it has to change someones life. Keep me in your prayers and ill do the same. Love you and talk to you next week.

Dallin's New Address

Elder Dallin Schwendiman
880 PeachersMill Road #8
Clarksville, TN 37042

Hi Family,
Everything is going so good. I have the coolest trainer. His Name is Elder Rasmussen from Murray Utah. HE is the sweetest kid ever and we get along really good together. Elder Allen Beck from alpine is in my district. ha ha he is so funny. We share a car with him but they ran up the miles so we have been on bikes all day everyday but its so enjoyable. We rode at least 40 miles on tuesday.I love teaching here. Its SO SO HOT, but its so much fun. We are meeting with this guy phillip and his wife. He was really drunk and was smoking a Stogey but when we started talking to him about joseph smith he threw it away and didn't smoke at all while we were teaching. His wife was really interested when i was explaining the apostacy to her and how the church came back through joseph Smith. I hope you are all doing well. Monday is my p-day but they are letting me email today. President and Sister Lords are so amazing. They are so spiritual and so loving. They remind me of You mom and dad. So my new address is 880 PeachersMill Road #8 Clarksville, TN 37042. We are in an area called Clarksville. Its really ghetto and we go to trailer parks sometimes but everyone is really nice almost. We get the F word sometimes when people drive past us and there is a lot of ghetto rap musik here with a lot of F words to. I just laugh at them because i know their salvation. ha ha that was mean sorry. we get fed really good here and the members are so nice to us. We do a lot of street contacting and door contacting. We met with a guy named mike. There is not a lot going on upstairs(His head). He is not really there but he has really "high Hopes" as he puts it but he doesn't know what they are yet. He is like forty and he said he was sick of being a slave to his dad at a furniture store so he quit. He worked their for 8 years without a single paycheck. There are so many people here who are in the army. There is an army base here and everyone goes there and works their. They call it POST. A lot of them are in IRAQ right now so we can only talk to the wives on the porch. So greg is doing really good he likes it there and says he is in the ghetto of ghetto's. ha ha. I don't need anything at the moment but if i think of anything i will let you know. I love you all so much and i put my blessing upon you at all times. Keep me in your prayers and ill do the same.

Oops I fractured my finger!

So pretty much it is so hard to type with two of my fingers stuck together. My middle finger got rocked in basketball and you probably know i have a little bone chip fracture. Nothing bad but i knew it was going to happen. I have been wanting to write you all week but we can only write on P-days. Gotta keep the mission rules. ha ha So how are things going. i love everything that you are sending me. I smile whenever i get that little colored slip which means i have a package and automatically i know its you. I love you so much for that. so pretty much i fly out on monday and i get to call you guys when i get the the airport. Im way excited to talk to you guys. Its gone by really fast. Missionary work is so much fun. I love teaching but my companions struck my last nerves the last time we taught. One of my companions thought he would try and teach the whole second lesson which he pretty much did and he BUTCHERED IT!!!! He was bringing up all the wrong questions and things that should have been saved for a different lesson. Yesterday was the worst day yet. I love teaching though when i get the chance. i am learning so much.

There is the coolest elder in my hall that i live in. Grant Fawson. Me and him stayed up the other night til 2:00 am. I was so nice to just talk and to just let everything out. I love being a missionary. i love wearing the little name tag and the image that it represents. Greg and Robby are gone and i wont see them for quite some time. Im sending home my card of pictures so will you guys print all the ones of me and my friends. any that have any of my friends in it i want them. even the ones at the MTC okay. Ill email you when i get to Nashville and send you my new address. Thank you so much for everything that you have givin me.

Mom and Dad letter June 3, 2008

Hi Mom and Dad,

I love the MTC so much. I have seen 21 people I know already. Its so much fun in here. On Monday I got to teach a family of 4 about the restoration. It was so fun. We talked about the lesson for 40 minutes. That's the longest I have given a lesson yet. Monday Night we got to call people on the phones and talk to them about the church and share our testimonies with them. I bore my testimony to Paulette on the phone and she started to cry. And then she said what I was saying was what she was looking for so I sent the Missionaries to her house. I love doing real missionary work like that. My companions are driving me insane. I feel like a babysitter when I'm in class but on Fast Sunday I fasted for Heavenly Father to help me understand them and for him to help me love them and I think it's working. I love the packages you send me and the letters I get. Those donuts are amazing and the MuddyBuddies are so good. Thanks for all the little things I forgot. Well I don't have much time to write. I love you both mom and dad. You two have done so much for me and I appreciate that so much. Write back soon.
Love Elder
Schwendiman

Hilary got a letter too!

Dallin's first email letter home

Hi Mom and Family,

The Mtc is amazing. I sent a letter today to you guys so you should get it here in the next couple of days. I leave in 13 days which is so nuts. I have never felt more spiritual in my whole life. every day is packed with so much spiritual stuff. I love being a missionary. its the funnest but hardest thing i think i have ever done. Have an amazing week and ill talk to you soon.

Love Elder Schwendiman

Dallin's email address is:
dallints@myldsmail.net