Thanks to Everybody

Dear Mom and everyone else,

First I would like to thank eveybody for all their encouragement these past few weeks. I have loved reading mission stories from all my aunts and cousins that have had similar experiences. Last week when I was feeling down, I tried making a list of all the people that have helped make me who I am today. All the people that given the opportunity, I would call great. After writing names for a good long while I looked at how many names that I had and realized that I hadn´t even come close to finishing. I can´t remember the number that did have a the time, but I added on and as the number grew I grew more and more amazed at the wonderful people that I have been blessed to have around me.

At the beginning of the mission, I remember when thinking about "Awesome" people that I knew, I had the list slimmed down to immediate family, the youth leaders in the ward, the preists quorum, and a couple of friends from school. As I go on, I have looked at different things I do and think, "Hey I learned that one from... or from...." I realize now that it wasn´t just a few people that changed my life in big ways. It was the people that changed the small things that gave me the strength to change the big things. Every day it seems like I think of someone new that helped me a long time ago, or even some random guy at the movie theatre telling me to keep smiling.

I look back and realize that it wasn´t just chance that I got put in Brother Smith´s seminary class, or it wasn´t just chance that I brothers with David Archuleta on trek, and it wasn´t just chance that I got called to this mission, and it wasn´t just chance that I was put with Elder Ellett as my MTC companion. You guys don´t know him or the other elders from the MTC, but I tell you that they are some of my closest friends and Elder Ellett is just someone you´ll have to meet when we get back. I know that it wasn´t just chance that Brad Johnson was in Oklahoma with me, or that Chris, Ryan, Grant, Adam, Andrew, James, Austin, etc. Were in the same priests quorum as me, or that Tim, Mike, Verl, and Jeff, etc were our leaders. I know it wasn´t just chance that I have the aunts and uncles and cousins I have. I know for a fact, and with absolutely no room for doubt that it wasn´t just chance that I have the brothers, sisters and grand-grandparents that I have. And I am abosutley astounded at the wonderful, genuine, great, helpful...I´m running out of space....parents that I have. Everyday I see more and more parents that don´t care, or don´t know how to care for the kids. And everyday I grow more thankful for the parents that God allowed me to have. When people ask me how I know there is a God, I don´t start by looking at the trees or the rivers or the animals anymore. I start by telling them about my family, my friends, and my leaders. I love you all, and I thank everyone of you for every little thing you did or me to help grow. I agree with Elder Simper that I can´t think of how I would have deserved it. I can´t even dream of how I could deserve people like you, I guess the Lord you that I would need you instead.

Thank you all, I love you and I thank you,

Sincerely,

Elder Travis Neiswender