Elder John Miller, Anchorage, Alaska Mission, August 2015-2017: Week 4 in Homer, Alaska

Howdy,

I say howdy all the time when I greet people now. I'm turning into an
Alaskan red neck. That's different than your average red neck. They're
more crazy. And they live in dry cabins and sometimes walk around in
nothing but chest waders. Don't ask me why. I don't ask.

This week has mainly been filled with rain. Which is good because I
like the rain. But it makes everyone else all cranky. So luckily the
sun came out for a few days and we were able to talk to a ton of
people. The second run of the red salmon hit this week and dip netting
is starting so everyone is fishing right now. And we eat a lot of
fish. It's so good. This one guy who fed us halibut took the halibut,
cleaned it, filleted it, deboned it, then chopped it up, breaded it,
and dropped it in a frier. It doesn't get much fresher than that. The
whole time I was thinking "Man, if there's bacteria in this I might
get diarrhea for a week, but I don't care, it tastes too good." I did
not get diarrhea for a week, thankfully.

We also went on exchanges this week so I was up in Sterling with my
zone leader Elder Bailey. We did a service project while we were there
for this man at his home which was seriously rundown and he's trying
to renovate it. He's a former drug addiction, his wife is in failing
health, and their house is falling apart. And he has two kids, a son
who's like a little mechanic, and a daughter who's like an Olympic
level gymnast. And even in this rough situation this guy is one of the
best dad's I've ever seen. He supports his kids in every way and
provides for them when he can barely provide for himself. It was
really impressive. Oh, and that girl did a round off into a triple
back hand spring into a back flip and landed it off the trampoline
with a perfect finish. Next year they're trying to find an Olympic
coach for her. It was nuts. Random people you meet in Sterling Alaska.

Also, last Saturday, Jackson, the guy I taught in the YSA, got
baptized! And Elder Call was the one who baptized him! It made me so
happy. I was so overjoyed at the whole situation. I wish I had been
able to be there, but just knowing that I got the privilege to help
him out feels good to me. Now we just have to get the rest of them.

That's the highlights over here. Hopefully y'all (dang it) are having
a good time as well. Enjoy the travesty of not being in Alaska.

Love
Elder John Miller