Happy Weight Loss - from 08/18/2018

My parents and I

Hello everyone!!!!!!! I hope you all enjoyed my Swedish last week. I won’t bother you with Swedish every week.

Anyway, let’s start with birthdays: Happy birthday to Katie Dixon!!!!! I hope you have an awesome birthday this week. You’re super awesome!!!! Oh, and my old FHE (Family Home Evening) sister and current roommate to my old roommate (lol) Amanda Messerli!! She probably won’t see this but happy birthday to her too!!! She’s an amazing person.

My comp and I

Title: Here’s a little back story. Two years ago, when I went to Peru and started my first semester at school, I weighted 130 pounds. I never had a scale and didn’t weigh myself for about three or four months. 

When I finally did, I was 160 pounds of pure fat. I hadn’t been working out and I always ate food. It wasn’t noticeable, and I wasn’t complaining that I had gained weight because I liked weighing more but I was extremely afraid that I would continue gaining weight and become overweight. I think 165 or something is the cutoff for someone who is 5’8” and then it’s considered overweight. Anyway, so I stayed there, fluctuating between 155 and 160, for the past 1 ½ years. When I left for Vegas, I was around 160. I usually start losing the most weight when I am at home, doing nothing all day, watching the Office. The 3 months I was home, I was shocked that I didn’t gain anything. Anyway, I noticed that I started losing a little weight in Vegas. I biked about 15-20 miles a day, I walked a few miles a day, and I “exercised” every morning. By exercise, I mean that I sat on the workout bench for half an hour while the other 5 elders did something. I slowly started going down. I could eat a ton of food but I would lose weight. I got myself down to 150 or that’s the last one I remember. Anyway, I don’t know if my scale in my apartment is broken but it now averages me at 140 every day. I still don’t feel healthy because I don’t eat the healthiest and I don’t have a 6 pack, but I am happy that I’m losing weight. It feels good to be back down to a weight that I’m comfortable with and happy to be around. I know that in no way am I fat and that there’s other people who are trying to lose more weight and are more uncomfortable with their bodies, but it does help me to know that I’m losing weight. Don’t ever give up and it’s possible to be happy with your body.

On to the fun news.

Us on the jumbotron at the Bee's game

Elder Howes and I

Bee’s game: We got permission to go to the Bee’s game and watch it. We also stayed until after the fireworks and didn’t get back to our apartment until 10:30 pm. So that’s fun but also super insane because that’s not only pass missionary curfew, but missionary bedtime is 10:30 so we were way past it. We had a blast. The Bee’s lost but they were playing against the Washington Rainiers, I wasn’t complaining because I love Washington State and Seattle. The fireworks were actually cool. I’ll attach some videos and pics. I know that no one really cares because we have all seen fireworks. Haha.

Service: We also went to the senior home on Sunday to help with church for them. I love old people. It was so awesome. Old people are so funny. We also went up to Ensign Peak again and helped clean it up. It wasn’t too bad.

My mom and her cow costume

My comp, parents, and I 

Visits: So I saw my parents yesterday. They were walking up the steps near Temple Square and I was walking to the FHL (Family History Library) from the JSMB (Joseph Smith Memorial Building) and as soon as I was about to enter the gates, I saw them. It was just out of nowhere and random. Well, I knew they were going to be in Salt Lake but did not really expect to run into them. I also saw Trent Gharring. He was here for Hunter Jensen’s wedding, congrats to him, and stopped by.  It was awesome to see him. A ton has gone on lately and seeing people has just been a huge tender mercy. If you are ever in the area, you can always “accidentally” run into me or you know where I work. First floor of the FHL, turn left and the huge QRC window. Monday through Friday from 9:30 to 12 and 1 to 4:30. Times may vary though. I am always happy when I see visitors so I am not complaining.

Trent Gharring and I

Spiritual thought: Everything happens for a reason and Heavenly Father is always there for us. I know that everything that happens in life is happening for a reason and there are no coincidences. A lot has happened the past couple weeks because of my own fault but we are here for a reason. It has been a huge struggle. I know I have said that quite a few times but it truly has and I am learning to improve and be better. I am not going to hide anything and pretend that this mission specifically is easy or that I love it. I am learning to love it and I am slowly making it better and better. However, I know that having our Heavenly Father by our side and knowing about the atonement of our Savior, Jesus Christ, that he will help guide us in our trials. I am grateful for the knowledge I have of the gospel and being able to help my ancestors on the other side. Always remember that someone loves and wants you. You have a purpose on this planet and you are here to change the world. I have slowly been learning that and realizing the potential I have in life and in this mission. I have wanted to give up almost every day but I know that I cannot just quit and throw in the towel. Things will get better and I am here for a reason.

Here's a model of the Salt Lake temple
 that I built

If you ever have free time and want to send a letter then feel free. I always love getting letters. We are able to get our letters every day in this mission, unlike in Vegas, and it always brightens my day. Thank you to the few of you who have written me, it means a lot. Don’t be afraid to write me. I love you all and I’m extremely grateful for your thoughts and prayers. Stay safe everyone!!

Heavenly Father loves you and you have a purpose in life!!

Until next week and with a heck ton of love,

Elder Michael Skaggs

15 E. South Temple

JSMB 3 East

Salt Lake City, UT 84150

And then the 5 billionth picture
of fireworks that you have seen
in your lifetime

Here's some Swedish words - from 08/11/2018

Välkommen och god morgon!!!! Jag talar inte Svenska. Jag älskar Svenska. Mannen äter soppa. Jag älskar en kvinna. Mannen och kvinnan äter frukost. Pojken tycker om flickan. Vi äter ett äpple. Du läser en tidning och en bok. Det är ett brev.

Ok. Hey, everyone!!! I’m currently learning Swedish because I have a friend serving in Sweden and it would be cool to communicate with her plus I want to learn a new language. I am on Duolingo all the time. I hope everyone has a great week. Before I begin the rest of my email, let me translate that paragraph. Oh and I actually wrote all of that based on my knowledge and didn’t use any cheat sheets for it.

Translation:  Welcome and good morning!!! I do not speak Swedish. I love Swedish. The man eats soup. I love a woman. The man and the woman are eating breakfast. The boy likes the girl. We are eating an apple. You are reading a newspaper and a book. It is a letter.

I am learning quite a bit and it’s really fun. Knowing a second language is cool. My goal is to master Swedish eventually.

No birthdays that I know of at the moment but if any of you have a birthday then happy birthday!!!!

I do believe that Gavin Brown and Jozelle Aguilar just got married or are getting married soon so congrats to them. As much as I want to get married and meet my eternal companion, I have to wait another 20 months and finish the mission.

Fires: My prayers go out to California again because they are on fire. I’m not surprised that they are necessarily on fire but I’m surprised by another piece of information. Last year the Ventura fire became the largest fire in California history. At 250,000 acres, it was already hard for it to reach that size and make history, but it became even harder to break. Prior to that, the largest fire was like hundreds of years earlier. Well, the fire in Northern California has reached around 255,00 acres and has now beaten the Ventura fire. I am shocked at that information and really surprised that within a year, that record, which we never wanted to be broken, has been broke. Now we can just hope and pray that next year is a calm year and that another huge fire doesn’t break out. I hope everyone in California stays safe during these next few months of fire season because we all know how bad it gets out in California.

Service: We got to leave mission Thursday to go to the humanitarian center and do some service. We helped with school kits for those in Africa. I wish I could go there more often. I was so productive and had a blast. I was at the beginning of the assembly line putting notebooks into the bag and I was getting them done quickly. I feel like I did more yesterday than I have done my whole entire mission here. Haha. I will be honest, it’s pretty slow here and we don’t do a lot, but our mission president is trying his best to implement more things for us to do so it’s not slow and unproductive. The service was cool though. My companion was a driver, so we had to make multiple trips to take everyone because it was only half the mission going.

General Authority: Yesterday, we were walking in the underground tunnels/parking garage after grabbing lunch in the Church Office Building cafeteria. I’m walking with another missionary in front of his companion and my companion, when we notice that the other two stopped. We look back and see my comp and the other missionary staring at something and we ask what they’re doing. Then they’re like, “We’re pretty sure that’s Elder Gong.” He’s the new apostle after President Monson and Elder Hales passed away. Then two other missionaries walk up and they confirmed it was him. We just stood there and stared at him for a few minutes as he was getting his stuff out of his car and then watched him walk into the administration building. We are told not to approach general authorities and only engage in conversations if they approach us first because they’re people with lives and they want us to be respectful towards them. It was an awesome experience though.

Things are going semi-good. I am still working on getting along with everyone else here. It has just been such a huge adjustment and a huge change that I need to watch my sarcasm here and just work on getting along with everyone. I truly do think everyone here is awesome, but it is still rough.

Semi-spiritual thought: This mission is amazing. We aren’t any different because we aren’t a proselyting mission. I actually think we are more important because they trust us with access to the Granite Mountain Record Vault, secure access in many places on Temple Square, the tunnels and so much more. I think we are more trusted than any other missionary in the world. Contrary to my emails, we actually do a lot in this mission. Some parts of the mission are slower than other jobs but altogether we are just as productive as other missions and we are just as awesome. My mission president said that he believes one day, there will come a time where you either get called to a proselyting mission or a service mission and both will be seen as equally important. As in, there will be service missions created throughout the world that won’t be proselyting but will be doing service for others. That will be such an awesome day. To clarify, we aren’t a service mission though. We are a fully functioning mission with different responsibilities. There is a distinct difference between a service mission and our mission. Service missions are just as awesome as any other mission though. I don’t look down on service missionaries anymore because they do so much to contribute to the church and the gospel. I hope that the missionaries here aren’t looked at in some different light and seen as not capable. I’ve heard stories about proselyting missionaries making comments towards missionaries in this mission and it’s quite annoying to know that they think they are any better than us. There are very many different reasons why a person may be in this mission and that doesn’t make us any less important.

Challenge: If you feel up to it, just post on social media your thoughts on service missionaries and non-proselyting missionaries. I have seen the reaction that many girls give at BYU schools and how some of them think there is something wrong with us because we weren’t on proselyting missions. They look at us like they can’t marry or date us. Just spread around and let others know how serving a non-proselyting mission doesn’t make you any less important or any less worthy of a person than others. I hope to one day reach the point where everyone can see and understand that there is no reason to shun us or not give us a chance. I hope for the sake of the thousands of young church service missionaries who are looked down, that you will do this for them. Don’t do this for me but do it for those who aren’t given a chance and are labeled as different. We all deserve to be known as the people we are and not the stereotypes placed on us through ignorance. I would love for everyone to be able to share with their friends and family how to not pass us off and to give us a chance.

I know this is where I need to be and there’s a life here that I need to change. I know it will help me become a better person and to change into who I want to be. I’m loving it and can’t wait to see where I am in 20 months when I get home. I hope April of 2020 doesn’t come for a long time because I want to spend these next couple years at the best of my abilities. I know there are many friends and family members that I want to see but that can wait. Besides, you all know where I serve and where you can find me. Just come to the 1^st floor of the family history library between 9:30-12 and 1-4:20, Monday through Friday. Sometimes I’m not here at those times so I can’t make any promises. Wednesday and Friday nights, I am also in the international B1 floor from 6-8:30 ish. It’s not hard to find me. If you’re in the area, then stop on by. Anyway, thanks for all your love and support. It means a lot and I am grateful for everything all of you have done.

Don’t forget to write or email me. We get letters everyday here and not just on P-day so that’s probably more effective to contact me because I can actually read it and send a letter back out before Saturday.

Love you all,

Elder Michael Skaggs

15 E. South Temple

JSMB 3 EAST

Salt Lake City, Utah 84150

Week 2 Getting Better

The Dernbach family was the 1st
family I ran into. Lily, Wesley me and
my comp

Hello everyone, I apologize because apparently my group email didn’t get sent out last week. That sort of sucks. I am transitioning from my other missionary email to the one we created in this mission. We don’t get a church approved email in this mission. Our mission president is working on getting us as equal as any other mission. But, I hope this one gets sent out, let me know if you receive it.

Birthdays: So birthdays from this past week we had Brother Haroldsen!!!!!!!! I hope you had an amazing birthday. Thanks for letting me come surprise Bri for her mission farewell that was awesome.

Transfers AND WHERE TO FIND ME: In this mission, the missionaries come straight into the mission and then for a week we have training and then transfers after that week. Tuesday we had transfers. That is also when the missionaries going home leave, it’s interesting because in other missions, they go home before the new missionaries come in but this one you get to meet the missionaries going home. Anyway, my new comp is Elder Shaw from Oregon. HE IS SO AWESOME!!!!!!! He went to a semester at BYUI before this and has been out since February. We stay up every night talking, and I think he’s the first companion that I haven’t wanted to kill after the first day. Don’t get me wrong, I have loved every single companion, but I really get along with him. We are currently working in QRC. In case some of you are in the area and want to “accidentally” run into me. So, Monday through Friday, we are in the small office towards the left of you as you walk into the Family History Library. There’s a huge window and you should see me if I’m not off fixing something. Feel free to “accidentally” run into me if you’re in the area. I take lunch at around noon until 1. And then we are off after 4:30. From 6 to about 8:30 we are in B1, the international zone. Don’t be shy!!!

We have a swap meet the 1st Saturday 
of each month and I took a ton of
Christmas decorations

Zone: There are a ton of zones in this mission. QRC, we are responsible for fixing things and collecting lost and found, IT IS BORING. We sit on our computers all day. It is currently Thursday morning and I’m drafting up my weekly email because we aren’t doing anything. That’s why I need visitors. The international zone is SO AWESOME THOUGH!!!!!!!!! That’s where people come in that need language help or need to find records of ancestors in every foreign country. Wednesday night, since that’s our night zone, was awesome. I was working towards the front desk and we had a family from Bulgaria, The Netherlands, and France come in. They all had super awesome accents and it was cool to see people coming to visit America. The family from France flew into LAX, went to Disneyland, came to Temple square, and they are going up to Yellowstone. It’s so awesome that temple square is such a huge foreigner tourist destination.

Temple Square and the area: I highly recommend EVERYONE, whether you’re LDS or not, to come visit Temple Square. It’s super awesome to just hear about the history of the church and everything but it’s also super beautiful. Plus, the family history library is AWESOME!!!!!!! You can trace your family tree so far back. I found ancestors all the way back to 740 AD the other day. Really interesting. But yeah, if you’re in Salt Lake then come and visit because it’s actually way cooler than you would think.

Tunnels: Can I just say how awesome the tunnels underneath temple square are? You can go from the JSMB (Joseph Smith Memorial Building) to the COB (Church Office Building) to the church history library to the temple and not see the light of day. It’s awesome.

The Bountiful temple

Bountiful Temple: We took some names to the temple to do baptisms and other ordinances. It was awesome to experience another temple. It is such a beautiful temple and it was cool to leave our mission boundaries. Our mission is small but our boundaries and where we can go is actually quite big. We spend a lot of time at City Creek Mall and then at the visitor’s center. It’s getting better and better. I’m slowly learning to enjoy it and have a fun time.

Spiritual thought: I don’t have anything super special to say but to just turn to the Lord when you need help and strength. I was struggling a lot this past week but turning to the Lord and remembering why I am here and who I’m doing this for helped. I remembered my inspiration for the mission and might have a few people in mind 😉. But I remember that I am here to help others, I am here to be an example to my family. I am here to be an example to my future family. I am here to show my future children a path that they should follow and be an example of a man with faith and dedication. I am also here to express my love for my Savior and this gospel. I am here to be a righteous and obedient missionary and show my future wife the man I am. I just feel that there’s a lot of people I need to be an example to and maybe a few people I need to impress, and I can’t just quit like that. I know that I need to be here for a reason. I need to also be an example to the other missionaries and leave my mark. I want to be especially known in the mission but when missionaries talk about me, I want it to be positive and know that I left a good impact on other people’s lives. Always turn towards God through prayer and faith and he will guide you and comfort you. Always go to Jacob 3:1. I shared it a couple months ago when I was in Vegas and it still holds true.

My other comp is a Capitals
fan and they beat us in the Stanley cup

I love you all and thank you for your love and support!! It means a lot to have so many people out there that I know are wanting me to succeed. I know the next 21 months is going to fly by and I will be home in no time. Don’t forget about me everyone. I am still alive and well. Write me letters or send me packages. I am always accepting of food, gifts, and letters. With the amount of free time I have, it is very useful.

With much love,

Elder Michael Skaggs

15 E. South Temple

JSMB 3 East

Salt Lake City, Utah 84150

It's been rough

Hello everyone,

A beautiful selfie of my beautiful
face - haha

Well this has been a rough week. I’m having a rough time adjusting from a proselyting mission to this mission. I miss Vegas. I miss my companions and zone and district and mission president and I miss being around members all the time. I wish I could have been sent back to Vegas because I had such a fun time and I was enjoying it so much. I am still not quite sure why the Lord directed me to this mission and it’s been hard. Don’t get me wrong, this mission is amazing for so many people but I am not sure how much I love it. I won’t share everything publicly but if you want then you can email me and I’ll share what I feel comfortable sharing.

Birthdays: Well, I have missed a ton of birthdays so let’s do this real quick. 

June: Sister Eisenhut and Evelyn Hunter. Two amazing people that I love a ton. I hope both of your days were amazing. Even though I was home for them. 

My badge that gives me the power
to do so much stuff

July: Kyle Haroldsen, who is going on his mission to New Mexico or something like that. Salena, who I saw last week but I hope your birthday was great. Veronica Christiansen, who I also saw last week. I miss you and Houston a ton. Maddy Dean, I haven’t seen her in forever but she’s a great friend. Taylor Sexton, also congrats on the engagement. Ashlynn Henderson, my BFF for the past 8 or so years. I wish I could have been home for your birthday but it’s ok, I’m doing great things here. Finally my dad. I love you so much and I can’t believe you’re 50. I hope you have an amazing day and that you are able to celebrate with the rest of the family.

Elder Ballard in the parade

Pioneer Day: So here in Utah, Pioneer day is a huge thing. It’s a legit holiday with places closed and everything. Since our mission relies on the Church Office Building and Joseph Smith Memorial building to do our work and training, everything was closed. Which that meant that my second day in the mission was basically a P-day (preparation day) minus the emailing and laundry. We did go grocery shopping so our host companions didn’t have to feed us all week. In the morning, we went to the pioneer day parade. I saw Elder Ballard only a few feet away from me in casual clothes riding in a car for the parade. It was weird seeing an apostle of the Lord not dressed up. Then we relaxed and napped for a couple hours. Later on in the afternoon we hiked up to Ensign Peak, which had an amazing view of the Salt Lake valley. It was so beautiful. Then we hiked back down and went to President Fenn’s house. Fun fact: his wife is the daughter of Bruce R. McConkie and they live in his old house. He was up all night since 8 pm cooking brisket for us to eat for lunch. Wonderful evening!!! 

The hoses and the road blocked off
because of the fire

Fire!!!!!!! Best part of the week was almost getting stranded at President Fenn’s house due to a small brush fire. As we were packing into the vans to go back down to our apartments we saw smoke and thought it was cool. Well, I don’t know whose bright idea it was to have ONE road leading up to an area with hundreds of houses but someone thought it was cool. There was a 100 acre brush fire burning along the only road leading up to his house. So we had to go back and wait at his house. He went down to the bottom and got permission from the police for us to walk down. So we walked all the way down the mountain, a good 3 or so miles. To paint a picture, for my Vegas friends, it would be like the Highland Gardens neighborhood how there is only 2 entrances to the main street and then one entrance to a bunch of subdivisions. Imagine an emergency and everyone trying to get out but the roads out of there were blocked. For Temecula friends, basically like every single gated community that exist in Temecula.

The Church office building

The rest of the week was good. We haven’t done much else and there’s a ton of free time. The free time is sort of a struggle because it gives me time to think and miss friends and family. In Vegas, I was always preoccupied with other things and didn’t have much time to focus on other stuff and I didn’t have time to think about my family. It sort of sucks now.  Oh and I love the security clearance I have. Not much to it but the fact that I have a badge that lets me open up places is sort of cool. 

Friends in the Salt Lake mission: I also have a friend in the Salt Lake mission, Tara Pope. It’s super funny because she has run into missionaries in my mission and told them to  tell me that she said hi, and I’ve run into missionaries in her mission but we still haven’t run into each other. I am waiting for the day that I see her. It might be a huge tender mercy to see a familiar face. 

View of the State capital from the

                top of the COB

Visits: Do not openly come visit me and expect to see me. If we run into each other then we run into each other. As much as I would

love to see you all, this mission seems sort of pushy on that. You guys will know my assignment each transfer though so you would easily be able to find where I am working. Don’t let that deter you away from coming over. I think it would be awesome to run into you.

Also, this mission does work in the vault. For those of you who don’t know, the Granite Mountain Record Vault is a vault for the church where they keep EVERY SINGLE record in the church. It is like the top five most secure places in the USA. Not every missionary gets to serve there but it would be so awesome to have access to one of the most secure places in America. 

Gift cards: If anyone wants to send gift cards or anything, send Cheesecake Factory gift cards or Chick Fil A. That would be better because I would love to eat at Cheesecake Factory but it’s expensive. 

Spiritual thought: I was reading in 1 Nephi 20:18-19 and really loved the scripture. 18 - O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments- then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea. 19 - Thy seed also had been as the sand; the offspring of thy bowels like the gravel thereof; his name should not have been cut off nor destroyed from before me. 

I found it super interesting when it compares your peace to a river because rivers are generally calm and we should have peace and calmness in our lives. And then having righteousness be like the ocean with power and dedication and always pushing through.

View of U of U

Any uplifting notes or emails would be great because it definitely is hard and I’m questioning my decision to accept this call.

I will add the address down below. Also, I will be emailing from a new email which I used as the main email above. Email me at  elder.michael.skaggs@gmail.com from now on. My proselyting email will be expiring soon and they had us create these emails to use from now on.

The view of the Salt Lake Valley
from Ensign Peak

Thank you for all the love and support and prayers. It means a lot. I am learning to love the mission and to love everyone here. I know that over time I will grow to love it. I have had thoughts of coming home but don’t want to quit now. I don’t know if maybe the Lord wanted me going a different direction and I chose the wrong one. I am only here for 21 months and I only have 21 one more

 months to serve the Lord.

If anyone wants to chat back and forth, I’ll be back on around 2 o’clock Utah time and I’ll have 1 ½ hours to chat.

Love,

Elder Michael Skaggs
15 East S. Temple

JSMB 3 East 

Salt Lake City, Utah 84150 

The conference center

The view of the airport from Ensign Peak
(I love airports and flying on planes)