E-mail day

A short part of Elder Lyman's e-mail today:  "On Tuesdays we have big devotionals and the speaker this week was Elder Ballard.  That was really cool.  You don't know who it's going to be until its close to starting.  Tuesday I think everybody knew it would be one of the 12.  There were a few security guys standing around and rumors were going around about who it would be.  Like I said, it was Elder Ballard.  It's really cool because everybody stands up when he walks in, so in the middle of a hymn, 2000 missionaries stand up immediately.  He gave a really awesome talk. He mostly talked about missionaries having a positive attitude and how that is the most important thing."

If it's Friday it must be e-mail day!!

Here's a small portion of Elder Lyman's e-mail that we received today:

"We've been teaching the first lesson so far, now we're switching to the second lesson for 2 weeks, then we teach the 1st in French for 2 weeks and then the 2nd in French.  I am not a fan of teaching, I'm not comfortable doing it.  I'm liking the French part. I'm excited to get it down good, hopefully that happens within the next five or six months.  All the older missionaries, or I guess not older but ones who have been here longer, leave on Monday.  I'm kinda bummed about that cuz I really like them and that will make our zone much smaller and so I'll be more likely to have to do stuff in Sacrament mtg. etc.  We have to write a short talk in French each week for Sacrament mtg. and when we get there and the branch president starts the meeting we find out who has to speak.

Sometimes I'm really overwhelmed and just can't imagine being a missionary and other times I get kind of excited................"

Love you all

To San Francisco and back in one day.

The trip to San Francisco did happen.  A few of Elder Lyman's words about the experience:

  "Yesterday was really crazy.  I flew to San Francisco and back. I had to wake up at 4 so the whole day is kind of a blur.  We got up, went to the travel office at 5, then drove to the airport, flew out at 8:30, flew to SF and took a shuttle to the French Consulate.  We went in and just kinda sat for a long time, then got called up one by one and gave them our visa applications and then we had to sit for quite a bit longer before they called us up to get our visas. After we got them we called our driver again who took us back to SF airport.  At the airport we ran into an elder on his way home from the Philippines, 2 elders and a sister also from the Philippines and then one Elder who was on his way home form Thailand to get surgery on his shoulder, after serving just 7 months. It was pretty cool to be a missionary out in the real world, not that I did any missionarying."

Elder Lyman is flying to San Francisco today!!!

Josh/Elder Lyman will be flying to San Francisco today, Thursday, Feb. 5th, to go to the French Consulate to get his visa.  Crazy!!!!!!!  I guess the good thing is that his visa has come through so fast!!!  

Josh begins his missionary service

Josh began his mission on Wednesday, Jan. 28th as he entered the MTC in Provo. He will be there for almost 9 weeks before he leaves for France.  We look forward to pictures, letters, etc. as he serves his mission.

The best two years

This blog was created to keep track of Josh Lyman as he serves for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day-saints in the Paris France mission. Check back for updates on Elder Lyman, pictures (hopefully) and if we're lucky a letter or two from him.