A Ministry in Mexico: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Well.... This is my last email from the MTC... Wow. That time flew by much faster than I expected (said just about every missionary ever...). This will be my last email from the U.S. And I can hardly wait!!

I leave at four-thirty in the morning on Monday, meaning I only have one full day left in the MTC, that being Sunday. I'm pretty stoked.

A few good language gaffes occurred this week. :) I don't have long with this email because there is MUCH I have to do today (being my last day I can really pack and get ready to head out!), but here is a little list:

1. Remember the city of Boracho, from The Great Race? Its name is very fitting, as I just discovered that, in Spanish, Boracho means drunk.

2. Elder Lofgreen discovered that the word for "to worship" is unfortunately close to the word for "to pee"... Yup. You know exactly where that went.

3. Elder Demars made up a new word in a lesson without meaning to. "Felizipaz" is when you are in a time of peace and happiness, but are too lazy to use three words to describe it.

Music has played a huge role in this week as well, as I've been discovering that some of my old favorite choir pieces are mission appropriate, so this missionary has been a very happy camper whenever it comes to studying on the computer. :) Additionally, I got put in charge of a second special music number for our zone, and I am particularly excited for this one. We are doing a little arrangement that I worked on of Be Still My Soul. The catch for the number was that it had to include our entire district, and some of the elders in my district do not like to sing high, so rather than avoid an argument by either letting them out of it or forcing them to sing uncomfortably high (neither of which would EVER go well...) I did the logical thing and transposed the whole thing an octave and a half down. :) ... I am thoroughly enjoying the bass line. Ashton Wiersdorf would be proud of me.

I met a lot of people this week too that I knew from "the real world." I found Graham Carmen (he just shipped out to field this Tuesday), talked several times with Jace Thompsen (who says "hello Mr. K, how are you doing?"), saw and visited a bit with Tyson Gunther (who is doing well and I was happy to see), and almost tackled Ashton Wiersdorf (I was so excited I could hardly stand it...). It's incredible seeing the difference in these young men already. They were powerful forces for good before their missions, but even just a few days into the MTC the difference is night and day. I could see them coming from a mile away, they shine so brightly.

As I have been studying and listening this week I feel like there has consistently led me back to the whole idea of "remembrance." As I've been thinking about this, I've realized just how much I have to remember as a missionary and someone who is now responsible for their own care and life. Everything from remembering to make my bed every morning (which I never once did before my mission, EVER) to remembering that my mission call comes all the way from God. It's a *little* bit to keep track of. But it is all worth it. I have seen so many blessings already come from living a pensive life of this nature. When tempted, all I must do is remember my true identity as a missionary and son of the divine God. When being beaten down by the lies of the adversary (and myself when I occasionally believe them, I must admit) all I must do is remember that it isn't even about me. That all of this is about the people I am going to meet and edify/strengthen/uplift. "Turning out", as Elder Bednar once called it. There is power in a memory that can change a life at the present. I guess that is why we are encouraged to make good, strong, and happy memories that are full of light and faith. Because a memory is eternal, and if we have the right ones we can rely on them to help us through anything life throws our way.

I'm out of time for this email, but I just wanted to bear my testimony that I know God is real. That He is our Heavenly Father. That He loves us more than anything. He has created worlds without end, galaxies, universes, and all for us. There is nothing that He hasn't given us. And He continues to bless us. We owe Him everything, absolutely everything, yet all He asks in return is that we love Him back. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Thank you all so much for your continued love, prayers, and support. It all means the world to me. Truly. I love you so very much, think of you often, and pray for you always.

Adios!!

Elder Kennington

The class pet: Santiago. He likes wasps, flies, and anything that wiggles in a web. :3 He's adorable.

Zone meeting! And after we certainly didn't line up all the trash cans in the room to see which district was the best at shooting balled up paper in them. And of course my district didn't COMPLETELY DESTROY EVERYONE MWAAHAHAHAHAAAAA!!!! Nope. None of that. :)