Hi everybody!

Hi everybody!
Dad and Evan, sorry Lake Powell wasn’t prime weather, but I hope you still had a good time. Sounds like a fun, crazy trip. So thanks for the email, and for everything you do. I loved the tape in the package you sent with the Ivorys. I loved hearing Jason Stephen’s farewell talk, and then the Barcelona elder’s homecoming talk. I couldn’t put a face with his name though. Thanks for the foot stuff, and the anti-perspirant. I ran out yesterday, and so it came just in time. Mom and Evan, it was great to hear from you guys. Dad I just loved hearing your talk on Easter, and thanks a ton for the journal entries. It was awesome to hear. I just loved it. It was just great to hear all is well and to hear your voices. I sure do love you guys. Mom, thanks for going to Elder Van Dyke’s homecoming. That’s just awesome you got to meet him. I will miss him.
The Romanian meal we had at Christina’s was great; I actually had another on Monday night too. She is a great cook. The first meal was like boiled or baked cabbage wraps with beef and a bunch of spices and onions and garlic in them. They were way good, and then you put sour cream type stuff on top. I took over the cookies I made, and they went over really well. They loved them, and want the recipe. The second meal with Christina was a green bean and milk based soup that was way good. The big theme in Romanian cooking, from what I have seen is garlic and onions, but more so garlic. Then we thought that was it, until she brought out the main course of 2 steaks about 3 inches by 2 inches, topped with garlic, and then rice with veggies. The rice was super different and tasted more like mashed potatoes than rice. It was all great though, like not even kidding it was awesome tasty food. Then also with that she brought out these cordero or lamb meatballs that I think had little veggie pieces in them including onion, carrot, and you guessed, it garlic. They were awesome and served cold, kind of weird concept, but just as delicious as all the other Romanian food. Then there was dessert that we couldn’t eat because we had to run home to be on time. She is saving the dessert for tonight in the freezer. It looked like a mix between flan and ice cream, and then also looked like a frozen root beer float, so we will see what it really is and tastes like tonight.
Oh, I forgot to tell you that on the second meal at Christina’s, I was on exchanges with Elder Weinert. He is the new Assistant to the President to replace Elder Manning who goes home in like 4 weeks. We had a way fun time. It was his first exchange as an assistant. We had two lessons go sour when we got stood up by them that day, but we were able to contact some awesome people instead. Also, he taught me a lot, and it was a really fun time. His parents are converts and he has lived in 4 states: California, Illinois, Ohio, and Tennessee, if I remember right. His parents are in Tennessee now. He also lived in Utah before he came on his mission. He did computer programming, and graduated from ITT Technical Institute. He is way awesome. We were able to teach Christina a way awesome Sabbath day lesson, and to commit here very firmly to come to church this Sunday. She has been to Noche de Hogar (family night), the Charla Foganera (the Fireside), and the Joseph Smith movie. She loved them all, but was nervous for the first two. They all went really well though, and she just loved the Joseph Smith movie, what an amazing, amazing spirit.
Elder Sewell and I get on real good. I just realized I said “get on”. That’s what Elder Sewell says when someone gets along with someone else well. I love this whole English companion thing. The other day, I accidentally said, “si somos Americanos”, which would be true if I was with about 95 percent of the missionaries in our mission.
Interviews were yesterday, and they went really well. Mission Council went really well also. We had quiche, cinnamon muffins, yogurt and juice for breakfast, and then Mexican Volcanoes for lunch with all of the fixins you can think of. After two big meals, I went and weighed myself and was 208 with a full stomach and all my clothes and shoes on. Also, I measured myself the other day to be 5 foot 11 and ¾ - just an update.
So anyway, interviews were great. The Assistants to the President talked about the raising of the bar with our mission goals in equilibrio. Elder L. Tom Perry has asked us to raise the standard and norms of missionary work to 20 lessons a week instead of 15, and also as a mission we now desire and strive to get 2 baptismal challenges weekly instead of 1. Also, we have 15 minutes during companionship study to do practicas of lessons, contacts, and teaching in general. That’s what Elder Sewell and I talked about, is the 15 minute practicas with the 3 districts. It went really well, and we did a 10 minute intro with the scriptures and “Preach My Gospel”, and then a 15 minute demonstration, then 5 minutes critiques and comments. It went well.
I love you guys.

Love,

Elder Miller