Hello everyone,
First off, right here from the beginning, I need to clarify that this is not Ryan speaking. This is his mother. Ryan had somewhat of a crazy week and a different P day so he was unable to get a group email out to everyone. Since I just had the opportunity to talk to him on Mother's Day, I told him that I could send out a quick update for him. And since he doesn't like to type all that much I'm sure he didn't mind that at all.
You may be wondering why his P-day was changed this past week. Well many of his fellow missionaries had the opportunity to go to a Minnesota Twins baseball game. Since the game was on Wednesday, the Mission President changed his P-day. I don't think Ryan has mentioned in the past that he took a special driving course and has become the designated driver of the mission 12 passenger Van. So when they have big meetings or places they need to be Ryan is the lucky one to haul everyone around. So he picked up a bunch of missionaries and they went to the game. He feels very lucky to be in a mission where he has lots of contact with many missionaries. And it was a nice break for them to go to this activity. He enjoyed typical baseball fair fair of hot dogs and nachos, the 70 degree weather which he feels is too hot after their cold winter, and the Twins won the game 8 to 7 which is always a plus. They ended the day eating at a Korean restaurant enjoying the camaraderie of all the missionaries.
According to Ryan, the missionary work is starting to pick up. It was a long and cold winter without much visible success. Ryan spends most of his days tracting and that is difficult missionary work. But with the weather turning warmer more people are out and more friendly over all. He said that he has the most interesting experiences tracting. They are planting a lot of seeds. Boy are they planting a lot. It's hard to keep going when you don't see immediate results but he gets up every day and he does it which makes me proud.
A little while back they came across a lady while they were tracting who was very distraught. After having a conversation with her on the porch she invited them in. She was having a lot of difficulty in her life and was quite upset. So the Elders offered to say a prayer with her which she accepted. It was a sweet experience and an opportunity for them to share Heavenly Father's love for her. She was touched and felt the spirit. I don't know what will come of this experience but I am sure that this is where Heavenly Father needed them to be at this time.
One thing that Ryan and his companion do every week is volunteer at a food pantry like place. People in the community that have temporal needs come here for help. Not only with food but other things as well. Since many of them are Hispanic, Ryan translates and works directly with the people. He shared a neat experience where he had a prayer answered with one particular individual. She really needed a job and asked him to pray for her to find ope. He promised that he would and he did pray for her. The following week she showed up and let everyone know that she found a job thanks to the Elder's prayer. Ryan said that it was really cool to see a direct answer to his prayer that helped change somebody's life.
Ryan is also keeping busy serving in the branch. I asked him if he ever has to fill in or help out and on that particular Sunday he told me that he said the opening prayer, lead the music, and helped with the sacrament. I think that is so neat that he has so many opportunities to serve and do things that might be a little bit out of his comfort zone. I'm particularly thinking of him leading the music for Sacrament Meeting which is something that I never imagined him doing. It's awesome that he can grow in many different ways.
When I was face-timing him on Mother's Day he was busy making brownies. {In case he hasn't let any one know he has become quite the chef on his mission. He has his own Chef's knife thanks to his Grammy and he has perfected many recipes.) I asked him what he was doing and he said they were making treats for a new family that was moving in the next day. They were going to help them move in and hopefully build some relationships with them. It's a part member family and the son has been learning the discussions and hopes to be baptized. Ryan is cautiously optimistic that there will be an opportunity to do some teaching with this family (father and son) in the future.
Ryan was also excited to talk about a family he worked with back in Minneapolis. He grew to love this family but they were not able to get baptized because of their marital situation. Or should I say lack of marriage. Anyway, they worked with them for quite a while and really grew to love this family and encouraged them to keep working towards their goal of entering the waters of baptism. Well Ryan received word that things were finally happening and at the end of this month they will be getting married and baptized on the same day. Ryan will have the opportunity to go back to Minneapolis to be there for this great event. He is so joyful knowing that this family is ready to take the next step and that he gets to play a small part in that process.
Other than that, Ryan is just plugging on every day. He often expresses to us how difficult and challenging it is to be a missionary. But at the same time you can see that he is happy and growing, and finding new ways to serve and become a better person. He has learned and accomplished so much so far and still has time to have many more experiences.
Thank you all for the support and prayers you offer him. I know he feels it and he appreciates every one of you.
Take care and a you can look forward to another riveting email next week from Elder Pickering himself. 
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