E-mail dated 12/14/09

This past week we had our Christmas Zone Conference held in Freetown. Not really a "meeting" but rather two days of fun for everyone. Our "vacation" (as we in Bo called it) started on Thursday morning when we all arose early (around 4am) and started walking to the Bus Station. That's right, all 14 members of the Bo Zone traveled on the government bus to Freetown. Once we arrived we went straight to the national stadium and met up with the Freetown Zone (which contains 22 missionaries) and we played Basketball and Volleyball. For the occasion we (the Bo zone) had some zone t-shirts made just for these sporting activities. Those green shirts served as our team jerseys. After the basketball and volleyball (not much volleyballing for me) we played football against the freetown zone. It was all good fun. We ended the day by caroling with the apartment we were staying in.

The next day we had a replay of the Christmas conference last year. We went to the Chimpanzee resort again in the morning and had an all day zone conference at the mission home. Each district prepared some skits and performed them to the rest of the mission and we concluded by watching the movie "Cars". That movie has some great lessons for us to learn. Lightning McQueen went through a similar experience that I'm going through. His mission was to "radiator springs" and although he came out with the same physical appearance, inside he was a different person. I

don't know if you have ever read the story of the three trees, but I really enjoyed it as it was read to us and I'm going to do my best to express it from memory. The story starts with three trees being planted and they are asked what do they want to be when they grown up. The first responded that he wanted to be a treasure chest, to hold the greatest treasures of the earth. The second wanted to be a sailing ship to transport the kings of the earth on. The third wanted to be the tallest tree in the forest so when others looked at him he would be so tall that it would force others to look in the sky and remember God. When the trees grew big three lumberjacks came to them and cut them down. The were place in a pile of wood, all but lost and forgotten, their dreams never to be realized. One day a carpenter took the wood from the first tree and made it into an animal feeder, not quite the gold and silver he thought he would be holding. The second was made, not into a big sailing ship, but rather a small fishing boat. Instead of transporting the kings of the earth he was carrying dead fish. The third was left in the shop waiting to be used. The time came that the first tree was needed not for animal feeding but this time a baby was placed in it. The baby Jesus was laying in it. The tree was now holding the greatest treasure of the earth, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The second tree was caught in a big storm while fishing when a man held his hand out and said "Peace be still". The Savior was calming the storm and the second tree realized that he was transporting the King of the Earth. One day the timber from the third tree was needed because the people wanted to nail a man to it. They took the man down and three days later he rose and the third tree realized that every time people looked at him he made people remember God.

Cool little story, of how God sometimes answers our prayers and dreams in ways different than we think. I will let you know the time of the christmas call next week. I know that I have an hour to talk, but this time I'm saying good bye around the 50 minute mark. I don't know how much it will cost me for me to call you, but it will probably be cheaper that you calling me. Let me know what you want in the next email. I received the package but I'm holding alot of self control to wait until Christmas. Thank you very much.

I hope you all have a good week.

Elder Degen
Rice is Life