Flight Plans!

Hey family! Sorry I'm writing this so late but I decided to hold out to see if i would get my plans and I DID!!!! It's so freaking awesome! I'll tell you where i'm flying to In a second. Firstly the side note is this week they brought us into the travel office and had us sign some papers straight from Colombia. We still aren't completely sure if we have our visas yet but I asked the lady and she said she wouldn't worry so i'm praying I'll get it. Okay i'm like shaking i'm so excited that we got our plans. Here they are. Aug 22 at 8:30 AM we have a flight to Atlanta, GA and we get there at 2:20 PM. Then at 4:45 PM we take off from there and fly to Bogota baby! We'll land at 8:44 PM and then here's the killer. We Have A 10 Hour Layover in Bogota(hopefully nothing sketchy happens.. haha) and at 6:00 AM the next day we fly out to CALI and get there at 7:05 AM just in time for a great first day! I'm so excited. I really do hope our visas come through. The rest of our district is leaving this monday so we'll be alone for a week and then we leave. The six of us (there are two in a begginer district) going to Colombia are all flying together. So we're allowed to make calls in the airport. I'll try to call probably in Atlanta or even Bogota if that's possible. Let me know what times will be best. I'll try to get a calling card so I can do that. I can't wait to talk to you all.

Anyways this week has really been a learning experience. I've been here for a long time and everyday I just have to remind myself that I only have 2 years and that I need to use my time the best that I can. We've been really busy and I didn't even get any time to write down a brief outline about what I was going to say so I'll try my best. Firstly I just wanted to thank the family today for their support. I recieved a letter from almost every one of you and they were Literally the most perfect letters for me at the time. Everything you all said was something I desperately needed to hear when I heard it. I could go through each of you and tell you about something i've learned but i'll just say something quick. Shar. Your letters are the bomb because I love how you tell me what you've learned and I've drawn such a similarity in what you take out of the scriptures and what I do. It really helps me to hear your thoughts and to here how you are doing. I love you and your family so much! Sarah, Thank you so much for writing me what you do. I am so happy to get your letters and read all about what's going on with your kids and your family. You really help me try to improve. Btw i'll look for that Elder when i get down there! Glenn, You're so awesome right now. I was SO happy when i saw that i got a letter from you and I'm glad to here how you're doing. I hope you stick with your reading because I know it'll help you become everything you want to be. I'm glad that I could help you out! Jordan, there's nobody like my little brother in this world. I hope you're having a fun time in California with garret. I love when you tell me how you are. I think about all we've done together and how much we've been through. I love you bro. Hope you're using my stuff good. Hah. Dad. There's something about your letters that I can connect to and just hit my problems right on the money. I love to hear from you and the way you express yourself really just inspires me. Thanks for everything. Mom. You're so strong in this gospel and I love so much how you're always improving and challenging me to do the same. You've never doubted that i could do something and that's really something I take out of what you have to tell me is to improve myself and how much you love me. and Grant. You're amazing! I know you're very busy in your schooling and work but i'm so happy that you can take some time out every once and a while and send me a little something inspirational. I have you hymn book here with me and whenever I sing out of it I just try to imagine what it went through with you. You inspire me.

I truly love and appreciate all of you and hope that you're being blessed for my service. I pray for you all and love being out here.

Well I still have a few minutes and was talking with my friends again last night just about different people and how we use our time and such and it got me thinking about an interesting subject. We were talking about how people use their time and how some people that we've noticed are wasting their time and such and I starting thinking about something I wrote down a few months ago that came into my head but never thought too much about. It said something to the effect of, "Only those who are truly honest will give themselves the opportunity to repent ." or change. Well I was thinking about this because if we're really honest with ourselves about what we're doing, what we want, and everything we think. We'd realize that we need to follow the Lord and that we need to become better. But for a lot of the time before I came out here (and I still probably have this problem) it was very hard to do that. I think it's one of the biggest problems with us as humans. We can practically trick ourselves into thinking anything even though deep down inside we know that it's not true. Whether it's wasting time, sinning, finding the right thing you need to do in your life, or solving conflict. I think if everyone could just learn to be completely honest with themselves, and just realize what it is for what it is, we'd all give ourselves the chance to improve using the atonement. But like that thing I thought of quite a while ago, if we can't do that, we're never going to give ourselves the opportunity to utilize the atonement in our lives, and that's basically what we're here to share. The atonement and how we can use it to become closer to Christ. I know this is probably really random but it's something I'm going to work on and I just wanted to share with all of you. I hope you can think about it and figure out how it can help you too.

I don't have much time but one other thought I had this week was about baptism (and also the sacrament since that's the renewing of baptism) and is found in Romans 6:4 (and 6) it talks about how when we were baptised our "old man" or our old sinful self was buried with Christ and how after we were able to walk in "newness of life". I think this is an amazing concept because through the atonement, baptism, and the sacrament. Each time we sin and really just want to change, we can prepare to take the sacrament worthily and when we do we can walk in "newness of life". In another place it says we can become a new creature in christ and i know There's a lot to this when I really think about it but i love the concept of becoming a new person when you repent.

I love you all.

Your brother,

Elder Stucki

Okay well I still haven't gotten my suitcase so lets hope that comes before the 22nd or I'll literally be dragging it around. The wheel basically got owned the first day and doesn't roll.. haha.

Thanks for the package I love getting things from home and please tell Nana thanks for the "HLJ" ring. I love it.