Update!

Well, what a week. We had some good times, and some frustrating ones. All will be included. First and foremost, congratulations to the marathoners! Wow, what a task. I think I would have died at the first aid station. You should know, you are my desktop background. 

Okey-doke, the week. Monday wasn't a super exciting day, did a lot of office work to get ready for conference, and also had to go with Elder De Angelis to get visa renewals for a missionary, so we did a lot of that kind of stuff. Between that and having to change some more tires, and office meeting, we didn't really do anything that day. We did have an investigator, a young kid named Michal, at Family Home Evening, so that was cool. He's a good kid, just doesn't make much time for us. But anyway. That was really Monday. Whoo.

Tuesday was another frustrating day, but also great. After we did a bunch of work in the office, we had three lessons in a row on plan. The first one was with the flakiest flake of an investigator I've ever met, another guy named Michal. Sidenote, he has the biggest mustache this side of Moscow. Outrageous. So no, he didn't show up. Then, we had one with Victor, the one who loves Bill Gates. He has never missed a lesson before. Until Tuesday. He just didn't show up. We're afraid we're losing him. We have such good ideas with him, we just need to get him to meet! But, all that is fine, because right after that, we had a lesson with Kamila. SHe is the most golden of all golden investigators, bar none. WE finished teaching the plan of salvation, and it was great. She just understand, loves, and wants to live everything. It's great! We come into a lesson with her, and we just leave smiling. Unbelievable.

Sunday night, Jitka called us to tell us that her mother passed away. She was very sad of course, but she still was willing to meet with us on Wednesday. We decided to just review the most important parts of the Plan of Salvation, and read some scriptures about the Atonement and so forth. It was a really good meeting. Her and the the member we taught with, Zoltan, did go on for a little while about ghosts, but we quickly got it back to where it needed to be. The most interesting part of Wednesday was the small finding exchange we had in the middle of the day. With the SISTERS. Apparently, the district leader has to go on a finding exchange with the sisters once a transfer. As his companion, I obviously have to participate as well. I'll admit, and I hope this doesn't offend any former or possible future sister missionaries, that I was not looking forward to this in the least. It turned out okay though. We had a fun time, found some good potentials, learned some things. I don't know if I could handle any more than once a transfer though. Tuesday night we contacted for about 20 minutes while waiting for Kamila, and we found this suuuuper cool guy named Ondra and set up an appointment with him Wednesday at 8. And he didn't show. He didn't have a working phone, so we couldn't confirm, so he is lost. When he didn't show, we went straight back to the park where we found him and looked for him, but he wasn't there.

Thursday we had district finding, and it was great. We found a bunch of cool people, set up a few appointments and so forth. It is one of my favorite events of the week. Right after that we headed to teach an awesome referral we received, a lady named Jana, at her work. She sounds so interested, wants to meet, sounds just great. When we got there, the lady at the front said we couldn't go in because she didn't have us scheduled. We asked her to call Jana, and she did, then said she spoke with Jana's receptionist who also didn't have us scheduled, so she didn't let us go up. We don't have Jana's number, so we have to wait until she responds back to our email so we can set up again. Satan is a tricky guy. That night we had another good lesson with Jitka and Zoltan. We're secretly hoping they get married. We talked about prophets and the 10 commandments, and prophets is one of my favorite things to talk about. It was good.

Friday was a great day. We had a conference, which is always good, and this one was one of the best ever. President's training, and really the APs too, was just great. I have many notes which I must incorporate into my life and work. As I read today from my Gen conference notes, to know is one thing, to do is another, and to become is something else altogether. That's the trick. Learning, than acting on it, then doing so consistently so as to make it truly a part of you. Right after that, we were going to change the last set of tires we needed to. When we realized all of our scrubby clothes were in the van. Which Elder Bohne was currently using to take a missionary, Elder Greener actually, to the doctor. So we didn't really know what to do. We decided to do it today, Saturday, because those elders would be back in Prague for a baptism, and we could get our clothes back. Right after we decided that, I felt that maybe we should do it now. I wasn't sure if it was the Spirit or not, but I decided if it was, I better act on it. If it wasn't, well, it wouldn't hurt to do it anyway. WE did so, even though we weren't really dressed for it at all. More on that later. Then we had to hurry and do some work in the office so we could get it ready for Elder Richards of the Seventy, and of our Area Presidency, to come see President. I never met him, I was in the bathroom when he and President came in, so I missed him. I did meet his wife though. Then we hurried to correlation, then went to wait for Michal. He of the absurdly hairy upper lip. He actually confirmed this lesson, then didn't show up again! For like the twelfth time. That is not an exaggeration. But, all is well, because we had another lesson with Kamila. Gosh dang, she is so great. I honestly can't remember the details of that lesson, but it was amazing.

Today we had a baptism of someone Elder Clyde taught in a city called Jicin. It had to be there because the pool they rented in Jicin broke a few weeks ago, and still isn't fixed. It was a very good baptismal service. I've heard quite a bit about her from Elder Clyde, and she is a fantastic person, very prepared. The Relief Society President from Jicin talked a lot about how it isn't going to be a lot different now that she's baptized because she's been an active member of the branch for weeks already. Her name is Julia, and she truly is a great person. Also, Kamila was there, but I'll talk more about that in the recording. Then, because it was snowing like crazy here today, we went around Old Prague and took some sweet pictures. You may observe them attached. 

That's about all there is folks. It was a great week. The Lord finds those people who are prepared for us. We just have to be willing to be where He has placed them. This is the Lord's work. To quote President Kimball, "Do it."

Love you all,

Starsi Knapp 

Last week in Prague...

MOnday was a bit of a tough day. I did get a haircut for lunch, which was nice and necessary, and now I look better. Elder De Angelis, my companion who is from ITALY, was at the foreign police for a few hours doing visa work for a couple missionaries. . While he was there I taught a couple of way cool kids, Beniamin and his brother Ludek, with one of the APs, Elder Mullen. His companion was getting his visa renewed, so we were on a little exchange. They are way cool, and way interested. The day was a little tough because all three of our lessons fell through. We rescheduled, but it was a bit of a bummer. The worst thing about today was receiving the news that Elder McClellan is indeed going home. He told us he would be back by Christmas, and we all hope it's so. He is a way cool kid. he needs more treatment than is available here, so he is back in America to get everything taken care of.

Tuesday we had office meeting, and afterwards said goodbye to Elder McClellan. Sad. We also had district meeting, which was good. We always practice teaching as a part of it with the senior missionaries, and it is crazy. They are so funny. We were with Sis Bohne, and it was nutso. She's hilarious. We had a lesson set up with a cool kid we met from Georgia, the country, but he was a no-show. We didn't have his number so we couldn't confirm or anything. but we did teach a reeeally good lesson with a girl named Monika with Daniel Askari. We've taught her before, but his lesson she just seemed different, more open, it was better. Then we taught Verka again, and she's doing well. 

Wednesday I went on my second exchange of the week, first full one, while Elder De Angelis was at a new district leader conference in Brno. I was with an Elder Neumann. he's a bunch of fun. We had a really good time. We contacted for a few hours, got a couple numbers, one from a suuper cool 16 yr old kid named Vasek. We are definitely going to meet with him. He only studies in Prague, and is only here monday through wednesday, so we have to work around that, but no worries. WE also talked to a lot of really crazy people. Which is also fun. After the exchange we taught Verka and Jitka, one right after the other, and it went really well. Jitka's baptism is in just a few weeks!

Thursday was district finding, one of my favorite activities. Except today's was really hard. As a companionship we had a goal of three appts and numbers, or A#'s. We got one number. in two hours of work. Rough. One missionary, Elder Rhees, contacted the entire time and got nothing. It was a tough day for us, but overall we did well as a district. We taught Verka again, the Word of Wisdom and it went really well. She only has a smoking problem, and she promised to stop. After that we started the craziest exchange of my mission. Right now there is a threesome due to Elder McClellan's absence, and I exchanged into it. It was nuts

Friday, we taught a really smart, cool young guy named Martin, incredibly intelligent. It was a good lesson. We talked about hte restoration and the other two missionaries, Elder Tenney and Rhees, said there was a huge difference in his attitude from the first lesson to the second. Then, we went back home so they could weekly plan. It was awful. There is no such thing as focus when there are three missionaries, technically from three different areas, Vysehrad, Andel, and the office, trying ot weekly plan for two areas that are going ot be all shook up with 24 hours. It was wild. After all that, we taught a lady named Jana who is really nice and has an insane three yr old daughter. We recruited one of the ysa here to babysit, and she did so well thta when the lesson was over  the little girl absolutely freaked because she didn't wan't to go. In front of about 30 ysa from all over the mission. There is a huge activity here this weekend, and it is killing our member lessons. All of our best teachers are ysa, except for a few, who all decided to go on vacation this week. So yeah, numbers are down a little.

All in all, a good week. Some crazy things, some great lessons, good news and bad. Oh! Some good I forgot ot mention, Elder clyde is coming back to Prague! He is coming here and Elder Egger, and Austrian, is taking his place in Jicin. Elder Egger is a Czech missionary, but he was in a threesome of zone leaders in Slovakia this transfer. They're bringing him back here to be in Jicin. It'll be good to have Elder Clyde back. I'm happy about it.

I love you all, keep up the work. Get excited for general conference, and don't tell me too many details. I get it a week later, so don't tell me everything in your next emails. I think that is my favorite time of the year. Living prophets are one of the greatest testaments of this work.