Fall Happenings at the Dahl Apartment in DC...Written 11-17-2014

Written 11-17-2014 

I hope things are going well for you. It's been fun seeing some of your photos on Facebook from your trip to Tahoe and hanging out with the family this last week. I'm glad to hear that everyone is having lots of fun. It was fun seeing some of the photos that you guys had on Facebook. Brother #2, I saw a few pictures of choir tour and it certainly looked like you had a lot of fun. I'm glad to hear you are doing well and keep up all the good things that you are doing.

Today is pretty rainy and still pretty cold. My companion and I walked around Georgetown in the rain and saw the Old Stone House which is the oldest standing building in DC. We also walked and enjoyed the view and saw some cool shops and a very old cemetery. Afterwards, we headed over to the Botanic Gardens. They has some natural carved models of some of the building, museums, and monuments around the National Mall. It was fun going through there again because it's been a while. My companion enjoyed the cacti the most inside the giant greenhouse. I enjoyed seeing all the weird fruits and flowers from some of the plants inside. Plus it was great to go into a greenhouse with desert and jungle ecosystems when it's 40 degrees outside and rainy.

Elder Larry S Kacher

A lot of trees have lost most of their leaves here but still many trees have their leaves in their fall colors. The weather out here is getting colder. Our highs are in the 40s now with lows in the 20s. No snow here yet but they keep sawing it will snow any day now. I'll have to wait and see but it's not too bad right now. I have had to dawn a bit of my winter gear while riding around in DC but so far so good.

Wednesday Elder Larry S Kacher (Second Quorum of the Seventy) came and visited our Mission. We had something similar to a Zone Conference with him almost all day. He spoke to us for the majority of the meeting and it went very well. Those who spoke gave some great talks and it was a wonderful day. In the evening my companion and I went over to the 11-year old's home and visited with him for a bit. He is doing great right now and excited that he was baptized.

Thursday as well we had a meeting with Elder Kacher and all the Branch, Ward, and Stake Councils in our mission. It was another great meeting and it really helped all of us get a better idea of how each council is supposed to function at its maximum.

Friday we had a surprise exchange with the Assistants to the President (APs) and one of them came out with my companion and I. We went and did a lot of GQs [General Questions] at Columbia Heights. Afterwards, we went and had 2 lessons with 2 of our less-active members and we invited them to church. They APs had to leave in the early afternoon but my companion and I continued to visit some of the people in our area.

Saturday one of our roommates was with us for the majority of the day. We all went to the Visitors' Center so I could have a short practice of "Nearer My God to Thee" that we would be performing on Sunday at the Visitors' Center for "Why I Believe" as the special musical number. We had an English class with one of our investigators and it went really well and we invited him to come to church this Sunday.

Sunday was the recently baptized 11 year old's confirmation. I confirmed him in Sacrament Meeting and he is now a member of the Church. He was super excited and it was so great to see him so happy. Two of the other Elders in our branch had a baptism yesterday as well and we stayed for the baptismal service. In the evening, we went to "Why I Believe" where the had Dennis Pitta, one of the football players for the Baltimore Ravens come and speak to us. He gave an excellent talk and the theater was overflowing. It was a great and very spiritual night. I was part of the special musical number and we sang "Nearer My God to Thee" again.

Dennis and Mataya Pitta. Dennis, played football for Brigham Young University and took two years off to serve a mission in the Dominican Republic. He currently plays for the Baltimore Ravens.
He and his wife, Mataya, a dancer, were married in 2008.

Nearer My God to Thee - Performed 11-9-20104 & 11-16-2014 at the 

Washington D.C. Visitors' Center

I hope that you have a great week and that all continues to go well. Have a lot of fun and I love you tons.

Dear Youngest Brother, It sounds like you had a really fun week. You're so lucky to be doing so many fun things. I'm glad to hear Nathaniel, that you likes garlic fries. My favorite fries out here are from Z-Burger. Their seasoned fries then dipped in Z-Sauce (fry sauce and seasoning) are super good. Mom would die though from the burger I get there. I like sautéed mushrooms, lettuce, grilled onions, green peppers, A-1 Sauce, and sometimes pickles on the burger. I've changed a little bit in my tastes now.

I hope you have a fun time with the cousins, grandma, and grandpa. Have a great week.

[Mom wrote him right back...Grandma W says, "He never even ate a burger at home!....Let alone all that stuff on it! I can't believe that kid! I hope he doesn't change when he gets home..." I say "ditto!" As far as changing when you get home, she means that you actually eat all these foods still. ;) Love, Mom]

[Braden's response:] If you think that's a big deal you missed me a ton of turkey this week with stuffing. Also the Ham and Cheese sandwiches with mayo, mustard, pickles, ketchup, tomatoes, pickles; Or the Chicken Salad Sandwiches I have every week. Let alone the pastas. Fried yuca with mild sauce and a little bit of the spicy is SUPER good.

Haha, he's [youngest brother] probably dying. I eat a lot out of things out here now.

Love, Elder Braden Dahl