Still Kicking

June 1, 2015

Dear Family,

  Well, I finally made it to June and I can honestly say that I've been on my mission for almost 8 months. Man, Grandpa was right when he told Dad before he left for his mission that, "Each day will go a little faster than the previous one." I'm not sure if I quoted him correctly but you get the message ;) Good thing because missions really do wear you out.

Let me start off by answering the weekly housekeeping questions:

1) I haven't gotten a copy of the May Ensign yet but the mission does give them to us during zone meetings.

2) I've been using the medication and it looks like the redness has gone down a bit. However, I'll keep the mission doctor in mind if something happens.

3) I haven't gotten any letters yet, but don't stress too much about it.

4) Yes, we received the news that Elder L. Tom Perry passed away. May he rest in peace and be blessed for his service as an apostle of the Lord.

I'm really glad that Preston Egan was ordained a deacon. I'm even more happy that Aubrey's dance event was awesome and that she and Mom had a great a Memorial Day. I'm glad you guys had a fun time. This week was, to be honest, not my favorite week. My companion has only ten weeks left in the mission and he's already slowing down. The question is: How am I going to deal with this situation without getting frustrated? Well, I'll just do what I can. In the meantime, just keep me in your prayers. Luckily for me, we are good friends with this family called the Gales and talking to the south elders has also been a blessing as they gave me some advice. Thank you Heavenly Father for giving me people who can help me.

Well, I think that's everything. Take care everyone. I love you all and miss you all.

Hurrah for Israel!

Love,

Elder Michael Alley

Howdy Howdy from West Virginia!

May 26, 2015

Dear Family,

How's it going y'all? I'm sorry that this letter came in so late. Unfortunately, all the libraries were closed during Memorial Day, so I wasn't able to get access to a computer. I hope I didn't worry you guys. If I did, I greatly apologize.

Man, I'm so happy for Jessica Starr right now! I bet that she will do awesome at the North Carolina Charlotte Mission. The people there will be greatly blessed to have her. Be sure to give her my best wishes.

Now, you're all probably wondering what's been going in the last few days. Well, Elder McMullin got transferred to Salem, Virginia and Elder Varner is now my new companion. As I said in my last e-mail, the district has not changed very much. Elder Varner is from Las Vegas, Nevada (maybe Elder Max Alley will meet some Varners on his mission ;) ).

Other than that, not much to report. It was a slow week for missionary work. But we did have a fun day of church basketball with the district on P-Day. There was even a member family called the Haroldsens who invited us over for a barbecue dinner. It was fun and delicious. Well, I think that's everything. I love you all and miss you all. Take care everyone.

Hurrah for Israel!

Love,

Elder Michael Alley

P.S. Yes, I did get the package with the sunscreen. I haven't seen much of a difference yet. I'll keep using it and let you know what happens in my next e-mail. Also, I have not heard about these *"black boxes". We just keep track of the miles in these mile logs in our cars. I hope that's everything. I love you Mom. Hurrah for Israel!

* In the Spokane Mission, all the mission cars were just outfitted with "black boxes" that monitor all kinds of data: miles driven, where the car is driven, how long it's in each area, speed, erratic driving, etc. Each driver of the vehicle has their own card that they log in with before they can drive the car. All the info from the black box is constantly being sent out to Salt Lake. If there are any "irregularities" (ie safety, law or mission violations), the mission president is notified. Infractions can result in suspension of driving privileges either temporarily or permanently. I'd asked Michael if he'd heard about this and if his mission would be getting them, too. 

Here's the News from Parkersburg, WV!

May 20, 2015

Dear Family,

Well gang, transfer week is here once again and here are the results: I will be staying here in the Parkersburg North area but my new companion will be Elder Varner. This transfer is interesting because Elder Varner is already a member of our district, so the only changes to our district is that Elder McMullin is leaving for somewhere in Virginia and Elder Boar is the new district leader. Interesting, very interesting.

Well, to be honest, there really isn't much to report (I believe my definition of "not much to report" is more accurate than Mom's definition, lol ;). This week has been a really slow week. It seems like the only times that we are actually teaching is when we are invited to a member's house (whether they are active, less-active, or a recent convert) for dinner. For the most part, we are trying to visit some potential and former investigators but for some reason we just can't catch them at home. We then just walk around the neighborhood trying to talk to people on the streets and they're either not interested or they just keep walking by. I'm sorry that this report sounds a little negative but the work is moving really slow.

However, if there is anything about this entire mission experience that I like, it's developing a great love for the scriptures, the word of God. Since coming out here in the mission, my love for reading and hearing the word of God from scriptures and living prophets and apostles has increased dramatically. The Spirit of the Lord really is powerful when you're learning about God's dealing with the people in the old days and the eternal perspective of life itself. I promise that even if I can't get a single person to learn about the Gospel, I will have become more converted to the Lord than I was before coming out on my mission.

Even though there's not teaching going on, please know that my love for the Lord and for you continues to grow. I love you all and miss you all. Take care everyone.

Hurrah for Israel!

Love,

Elder Michael Alley

Hey Ya'll

At 10:45am (PST), Elder Michael Alley was our first Skype call of the day. 
He called from their ward's clerk office. A previous bishop set up Skype on the 
computer in there so missionaries could use it on Christmas and Mother's Day. 
I thought that was genius. Michael had a quiet, private space to talk and 
he didn't have to coordinate with a member family's Mother's Day schedule.

It was another missionary miracle for us because Mike ended up getting to 
talk to all three of our missionaries even though he was flying all day. He just 
"happened" to have quick layovers during the times our missionaries were 
able to call. We know that was no coincidence. That was another tender mercy 
from Heavenly Father.

May 11, 2015

Dear Family,

How's it going y'all? Thank you so much for the awesome Skype time. I'm sorry that I cried a bit. I didn't mean to get so teary-eyed, but please know that this just shows how much I love and miss you all. As much as I enjoy reading your letters and e-mails, I really miss hearing your voices and seeing your faces. To be honest, knowing that serving a mission would require me to have a limited communication with you all was the main reason why I hesitated to go serve a mission. This kind of sacrifice is neither easy or fun. However, I believe that if I didn't make this kind of sacrifice then I would never have known how much my family means to me. So if you think about it, it is a blessing disguised as a hardship.

Anyway, just wanted to send you a quick shout out that I love you all and miss you all. I also want to give you a heads up and let you know that next week is transfer week, so my next e-mail will come in on Wednesday. Take care y'all.

Hurrah for Israel!

Love,

Elder Michael Alley

Can't Wait for Mother's Day!

May 4, 2015

Dear Family,

How's it going y'all? As the title says, I can't wait for Mother's Day when I get to talk/skype everyone again! This Sunday is going to be awesome! The plan right now is that Elder McMullin, Elder Hollembeak, Elder Lane, and I (all of us serve in the Parkersburg Ward) will be skyping from the church building sometime after 1:00 p.m. (10:00 a.m. your time I believe). I did get the Skype login info along with the cookie package. Just in case that there is a change in plan, I will call you this Saturday to let you know. (My cell phone number on caller I.D. might register as West Virginia). Anyway, that's the plan right now.

Now, you're all probably wondering what's going on here in the Parkersburg North area of the West Virginia Charleston Mission. To be honest, it was slow. We got to set up an appointment with one of our potential investigators, while the rest were either not home or not interested. Still, one is better than nothing, right? ;) The one highlight of my week was that President Salisbury came and interviewed us. I love President Salisbury because he is just so kind and gives wonderful counsel. I really hope that you guys get to meet him sometime. Trust me, you will love him. I'll tell you more about it during skype.

Unfortunately, that's all I have to report. But I do want you to know that I do have a testimony that Jesus Christ is our Savior. I know that the church is true and that Book of Mormon really is another witness of Jesus Christ. I promise that no hardships are going to make me change my mind about it. I say this in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. I love you all and miss you all. I will see you this Sunday.

Hurrah for Israel!

Love,

Elder Michael Alley

Greetings from Parkersburg/Vienna!

April 20, 2015

Dear Family,

Man, this week has been awesome! I'm sorry that my last few e-mails have just given you the surface details. So here's one with more details to make up for it.

This week was awesome because we ended up finding a couple more potential investigators and teaching a new investigator about the restoration. I can't say that it was as amazing as the one that Max taught recently, but I'm grateful to be able to at least share the message with someone. As for the potential investigators, we found them when Elder Jacklin (one of the Charleston Zone Leaders) came down to the Parkersburg North area (it consists of the northern part of Parkersburg and Vienna) for an exchange. At first, I was worried about the exchange because I was still struggling to find my way around the area. However, we ended up inviting a lot of people to learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ as we walked around doing our best to find the people we had originally planned to see. As a result, we got three potential investigators and one new investigator. It was awesome! I also enjoyed my time with Elder Jacklin. I hope I get to work with him again soon.

There is also a story that I want to share with you. I meant to share this in my last email. While we were at the library studying on mormon.org, there was this one guy who was having some problems with the computer he was using. As the librarian staff tried to help him, he was just being so rude to them. I don't remember exactly what he said to them, I do remember feeling sorry for the librarians. When the man finally left, I felt prompted by the Spirit to write small thank-you notes on the #BecauseHeLives cards and give them to the staff. As I gave them the cards, I told them that my companion and I were really grateful to them for letting us use the computers to e-mail home and study on mormon.org. To be honest, I almost couldn't hold back the tears as I expressed my gratitude to them. Even if they aren't interested in learning about the gospel, I hope they always know that there are people who appreciate what they do. I'm very grateful for that opportunity because it was one of the few moments when I truly felt like I was representing our Savior Jesus Christ.

Now, you may be wondering when I'm going to send you pictures. Unfortunately, the computer is not registering my camera, so I may have to just send you the SD card through mail, along with some other stuff that I want to send back home. Don't worry, you will get pictures soon.

Well, I think that's everything. I hope things continue to go well in good ole Spokane, Washington. I'll write again. Also, I can't wait until I get to Skype home on Mother's Day. I think I still have the Skype info that I used during Christmas, but could you just send me the info again just in case? Please and thank you. I love you all and miss you all. 

Hurrah for Israel!

Love, 

Elder Michael Alley

P.S. Do you know what Morgan Curtiss's address is? She sent me a letter with a question on it but I accidentally threw away the envelope. Could you send me her address so that I can send a letter to her? Please and thank you. Take care. 

Still Alive and Kicking

April 20, 2015

Dear Family,

First of all, I just want thank you and everyone else who has taken the the time to write and/or e-mail me. You have no idea how much I appreciate your words of encouragement and updates. I can always feel the love and support from everyone back home. I definitely needed it because this was a very slow week for missionary work.

I will admit that my first official week here in the Parkersburg North area was a little rough. Don't worry, it's nothing serious. It's just that for some reason, we can't seem to reach our investigators, potential investigators or even a few former investigators. The result is either they're not home or they are not interested in learning. The other hard part is figuring out how to get around this town. Let's just say that I'm really missing those straight, wide roads from back home ;). Oh well, it is what it is. Would you all keep me in your prayers that I'll get this town figured out. Please and thank you :)

Now as for the questions:

1) Elder McMullin calls it an apartment but it looks and feels like a house to me. It's a two floor building that used to house four missionaries but now it's now just Elder McMullin and I who live there. Which is sweet because there are two separate bathrooms and showers for us to use. Awesome!

2) I can't wait to binge watch Doctor Who when I get home.

3) I did have some problems with my myldsmail account a few weeks ago but not anymore.

4) The name of the ward is the Parkersburg Ward and it is bigger than the Martin Ward.

5) While we do have families who sign up to feed us missionaries, but so far none of them are like the Bentleys where we have a close relationship. Oh well, I had feeling that would be the case when I left Martin, Kentucky.

6) I have a two-hour time limit on this computer. Back in Martin, there was no time limit.

Well, I think that's everything. I wish I could write more but, like I said, I got a two-hour time limit. I'll make sure to give you more details the next time I e-mail. Take care y'all. I love you all and miss you all. Hurrah for Israel!

Love,

Elder Michael Alley

Note From Elder Alley's Mom: I Google mapped his address and

this is where he's living. Looks like a pretty sweet set up!