Okay just call me Elder Eminem

An unexpected week that's for sure. 

I'm just going to get down to the nitty gritty now and start with a story. 

This week on Monday I was on the phone with my family and when I said bye to them I realized all the Elders were in the backyard. I went back and they said, “Look there are scorpions!” I looked, and lo and behold, scorpions. One Elder tried to get rid of one so we would be safe, and he done got stinged in da forearm. We were all kind of freaking out but we got rid of it the scorpion and then iced his arm and gave him medicine and stuff. We thought, “Yeah, we are fine.” Not true. We got into bed and were all about to fall asleep when the Elder who got stung, Elder DeFord, said he was feeling tingly. It kept getting worse and pretty soon his body was numb and he couldn't feel his throat when he swallowed. We decided, "Yeah let's call the mission nurse" and she told us to get on this app and wait for a doctor to help us and tell us if it's really bad. We waiting on that app from probably 11PM to 1:30AM. It was awful. We tried to stay awake while Elder DeFord was rolling on the ground tingling and shaking. Looking back it was very funny but at the time, yeah, it wasn't. We were able to give him a Priesthood Blessing and we could all feel the spirt very strongly. We finally got through on that app and the doctor took a look at him and said, "Yeah you need to go to the Emergency Room.”  Elder DeFord was now having trouble breathing and thinking. We all piled into the car at around 2 AM then drove to the ER. We dropped him off and checked him in, then we went and just waited in the car. We all tried to stay awake but kept falling asleep. Finally, he called us, we got him and drove him home. They pumped him full of anti-Venom and all this other fun stuff. I think he just gotten a lot of venom and he, for some reason, had a really bad reaction. It was pretty crazy and we were dead tired the next day but at least we didn't have venom in us. 

Also this week my companion and I decided to go on a little bike ride and I was riding behind my companion when out of nowhere, BAM!,  I crashed. I think I let go and my wheel turned really sharp or something. I don't even know what happened but I was just dead on the ground. I got up and a lady asked if I was ok to which I responded, "Yes Ma'am". I am so polite. We got back and I couldn't bend my wrist so I think I sprained it. Luckily it has started to feel better now because I did a little voodoo magic on it and we’re good. Ok, kidding, I prayed that it would get better and would you look at that? I can kind of bend it already. Amazing. The Power of Prayer!

Finally, I have been talking to this guy from Ukraine on Facebook and I guess I am very nice to him but I told him "If you ever need anything let me know". He said, "Actually yes, I would love you to be my brother for eternity. I don't have any siblings and I would love to have you as a brother". I basically said, "Yeah, sure I'm down". So now we are brothers. If you check my “about” info on Facebook it says we are brothers. Yay, now I have 4 brothers. Chancellor, Dallin, Jackson, and Suchet a random Ukranian man. You're welcome Mom.

This week we had the opportunity again to continue teaching a lot of members and I was able to call some friends and help them prepare for their missions which was amazing. I hope I helped them and I know it helped me. Missions are amazing and I hope all my friends are preparing and are excited to serve. It's the best thing ever. Even in hard times it is all worth it. Christ did so much for us. Might as well give up this little time and do what I can to grow and learn about him and about myself.

This was a super duper week. I loved every second. Even though I destroyed my wrist and we went to the Emergency Room it was still great. I hope your week was great too. If you are bored send me the highlights of your week. I would enjoy that. Stay safe and have fun this week. 

Oh, I also buzzed my head. Baller buzz is back baby. I am Eminem now.

BYE BYE 

Elder Slavens 

Elder Eminem 

Elder Buzz

Elder James Mcavey 

หากคุณฉวัดเฉวียนหัวคุณไม่จำเป็นต้องใช้แชมพูมาก
If you buzz your head you don't need to use that much shampoo.

Alma 5:62 Wow this good stuff. Please read.

We went to a members house to get haircuts and they said, "Ok your turn". I said, "Just buzz my head". 

And now here we are. 

The Baller buzz never fails. Enjoy. Just really take it all in and enjoy.

The moment the hair left my head I couldn't stop rapping. Here is an example. I truly believe I'll be the next Eminem. 

Or THE Eminem. Just give me 2 months and I'll be there.

My new phone background. Thanks Leo for making me a better person. I strive to be a Leo.

This week I tried 12 eggs. It sucked. Too many eggs

I look like this man. If only I have a red turtle neck. If anyone has an extra you should send it to me. Thanks. 

I miss Shia Lebauf

Let me just say, "What a week!". Let me say it again in all caps "WHAT A WEEK!". Thanks. 

It has been a very crazy week. Yes it has. So so many stories this week. It has been very good though. We were able to call a lot of members of the wards here and find a few new people to teach. Very cool opportunity to be serving right now. 

Let's start with some stories. So this week, per usual, I got many many friend requests. I was at 250 one day and it is just overwhelming. I let a lot of them follow me because I am like, "Well, I will just find people to teach. How else will I find them unless I am following them". Bad idea. I get sooooo many texts from random people all over the world that just say "hi". I am always in like 35 conversations with a ton of people and my phone is non stop ringing with friend requests and messages asking how old I am and such. Wild stuff. This week I got a random request for a message so I started talking to this lady but then she started calling me cute and stuff and I was like ok weird. I just kept asking if she wanted to learn about Jesus. She then asked my height and weight. I then asked if she wanted to learn about Joseph Smith. It did not work and I think she was a robot. Sad day that was. 

More stories. I found this kid on Facebook this week and his name is Nervin. He is the cutest kid ever. We have called him a few times and are teaching him about our beliefs and the Book of Mormon. He is my new best friend. He loves to text us and show us tons of pictures of his friends. We talked for an hour one time and maybe half of it was just him showing us pictures and telling us about the flute. I learned more than he did. This week I also met a girl named Mu Paw on Facebook. She is from Thailand but lives in Iowa I think and she has a friend named Hser. Somehow those 2, my companion and I got into a group chat and they just talk to us all day. They have sung to us and sent us so many selfies. Hser sang, “I am a Child of God” and said, "Please rate from 1 to 10". I said "We talked and decided you deserve a 12". She was very happy with our answer. Ok and final story. Elder Groesbeck my companion and I went on a run and we took maybe 4 steps out of our driveway when a crazy big dog ran at us and ran past my companion and just bit my leg. I was like "yeah that would only happen to me". It didn't really leave a mark but still, that dog bit me. 

Ok besides those many stories, this week was amazing. We were able to call many members and have some amazing lessons. I learned if we look at trials and burdens from God's perspective it truly changes everything. He has something for us to learn and wants us to have trials. We grow from hard times and can become better than we were when we started off.  Work through trials in a positive matter and look to Christ for help. 

Well that's about it. Hope you enjoyed the stories and remember to find the positives in your day. If you find what is good in the day, then guess what! You won't focus on the bad as much. It's crazy and simple but it's true. Look for the positives every single day. 

Ok stay safe and don't get Corona this week. Good work. Thank you. Have a good one. Oh, and I am also learning the guitar now so if anyone has guitar sheet music you want to send me I would not complain. Thanks. BYE BYE now. 

Elder Slavens

Elder Silverns

สวัสดีผมชอบพิซซ่าและขิงเบียร์มันเป็นคำสั่งผสมที่ดี

Hello, I like pizza and ginger ale. It's a good combo.

Alma 25:12 Read and enjoy

We went hiking today and it was very nice. I got sunburned but that's fine. It was worth it. 

We hiked 8 miles and I thought I was going to die but since you are reading this I am alive. 

I found a big cactus. I took a photo by the big cactus. You are now looking at this photo I took of me with a big cactus.

I am not good with dares. I was dared to eat 10 eggs so I ate 10 eggs. I actually enjoyed my 10 eggs very much.

This week we were told to make videos of our hobbies and this is what I came up with. 

I truly do enjoy cart wheels quite a lot. I hope you do too. They are fun.

But I believe Elder Slavens can save the World

"Good morning Starshine, the Earth says Hello" -Willy Wonka. 

This quote came in to my head as I was writing this email and I feel like it fit quite well. It is true the earth does say hello. That's all.

Well, I am just going to say it, this week was sooooo good. You know that schedule I showed you last week? Well wow, it was the best. We worked so hard and did so much work. We started to figure it out. We called and had lessons with so many members of the Church this week. My companion and I cover 3 wards so we have a lot of work to do. Some people just never answer us so that stinks, but we still had so many lessons. We shared a lot of messages about General Conference and how members have learned to Hear Him. While I still do not know what any of the people that I talked to look like, I could hear them and could really feel the Spirit. It was an amazing experience. We had the opportunity to teach my companion's older siblings for the 2nd time on Easter and we called my Uncle and his family in Phoenix to share a little spiritual thought with them. It is amazing how easy it is to just share a message. I suggest all of my fans to do this. You can just post your testimony or share a miracle from your life. It is the best, and you feel amazing afterwards.

Sundays are amazing in the mission field, and especially in quarantine. We are able to bless and pass our own sacrament then have a cute little "Come Follow Me" lesson. Each week we read over the lesson for the week and talk about what we learned and the insights we gained. Since I have been in quarantine I go hard on "Come Follow Me." I read and take notes galore throughout the week. It has truly blessed me and helped me learn more about the scriptures. As I learn more I can really apply them to my life and try to make myself better each and every day. We are so blessed to have "Come Follow Me" and be able to better read, study and learn about the Book of Mormon. Try to study and learn more about the Book of Mormon and yourself. Especially in this time of "Ahhh we are locked inside what should we do?" Read that blue book. 

Now this week a few fun and crazy things happened:

1. We went on a walk and we stopped at this little park near our house. We noticed there was a dead bird on the rocks. I cleverly said, "Ok let's give it a moment of silence and bury it." We proceeded to do so and I played the high school graduation song and put my phone in my pocket but it slipped out and hit the rocks and BOOM, it shattered. My phone and the bird both died that day. Now I have a constant reminder of the buried bird. Sad for many reasons. 

2. Well it was Easter this week. This was a great Holiday to have on a mission. We all could focus on Christ and the Atonement. It was amazing amazing amazing. 

3. My mommy sent me 4 cartons of confetti eggs so watch the video and you'll be happy. I said "Everyone get outside right now and stand in a circle. We are going to throw eggs at each other." It was the most exciting thing I have ever done in my life. I've never felt so alive. 

Besides that stuff we went on walks and just had an amazing week. I hope you did too. If you had a really good week email me back and just say "French toast" I will understand. French Toast is good and so was your week.

Well, the time has come to say my goodbyes. I hope you have another french toast week. Love you all. Stay away from that evil Corona. BYE BYE. 

Elder Slavens 

Elder Shred the Gnar

Elder Avatar Slavens

ผมรักขนมปังฝรั่งเศสและอาหารเช้าเป็นอาหารที่ฉันโปรดปรานประจำวัน

I love French toast and breakfast is my favorite meal of the day.

Ok, so Elder Slavens (aka me) was laying in bed then sat up and said, " I'm going to shave an arrow in my leg right now." As you can see I then shaved an arrow in my leg. You can call me Elder Avatar Slavens. Thanks.

Me and my cactus. Arizona is just one big spiky plant. If you come here you will see. 

All houses are made of cactus. Cactus cars and cactus dogs. Everything is cactus.

When you have fans who make you posters and leave them outside your house. Paparazzi?  No, stop that!  

I know I get a lot of followers on Facebook but I'm not that famous. 

I cut myself this week. I put my hand in a drawer pulled it out and I was bleeding. A piece of glass just snuck in there and sliced me up. Shucks I got Corona. If you are queasy and don't like blood don't look at this picture 

or become a doctor. 

The video to end all videos. The egg war to end all egg wars. We had fun but now the backyard is covered in egg shells and confetti. I won't complain. I love color parties on the floor.

I found a lizard this week!

สวัสดีเพื่อนของผม aka hello friends of me. Yes you can just say it. I am a pro at speaking, writing, reading, thinking in Thai. Gilbert Arizona the town with no Thai’s is teaching me. JUST KIDDING. I am forgetting everything here. I ain't anywhere near a pro. To be honest, I used google translate to type that so you know as much as I do. Congrats! You (reader of this email) basically spent 9 weeks in the MTC learning Thai. I am so proud of you. I bet it was difficult but you did it. You did not let anything stop you, not even Corona from going to the MTC and learning this language. Wow! Round of applause for you!

Besides not being a pro at Thai and losing my Thai slowly, not much else happened this week. Well we had General Conference but I will get to that, don't worry. This week every day was pretty slow. Wake up at 6:30, lay there for awhile until I finally wanted to get up and start my day. I have been working hard all day though. I was able to finish the book “Saints” before General Conference. This book is a monster. It is a 586 page, 46 chapter book. It's huge. It is basically about the Saints and the restoration of the Church. I suggest you read it right now. Besides that, this week I talked to more people on Facebook and worked hard reading the Scriptures and preparing for conference. It was a very good week.

On Friday, right before I went to bed, I once again got a few random friend requests on Facebook but I said, “Oh well, that's fine.” and I went to bed. I woke up and had another 117 requests. I do not know why this keeps happening to me. I do not know any of these people so I just gave up and put my phone down. I am not going to deal with this issue. I am lazy. It is interesting and I don't know if I am just very attractive or because I have the last name Slavens. Whatever it is it's working because people flood to me. I then checked again and I had a few messages from people saying, “Hello handsome.” So now I am leaning more towards I am handsome and that's why people follow me. You can take your own guesses, but that is my guess. 

Since I have been in Gilbert, Arizona I have not had a schedule or any idea what is going on. That is going to change this week. We just received an email with a whole new schedule we are suppose to follow every day. It is going to be a lot of work but it will help us to be productive and stay focused. I am excited for this week and our new fancy schedule. 

WELL CONFERENCE WAS AMAZING! I learned so much during conference and it also really helped me find answers to questions and guidance I need in life. Every single speaker was so powerful and so directed  by the spirit AND we had 2 youth speakers. I mean, WHAT? It just kept getting crazier and crazier. Not going to brag, but watching conference as a missionary is so much more exciting. You are just screaming and every single word is like a spiritual knife to the heart. I had goosebumps for probably 75% of conference. I know President Nelson is a true prophet and I know that Joseph Smith truly did see God and Jesus Christ 200 years ago. I learned that we can work every day to improve ourselves as we all need to prepare to see God again. As we follow the footsteps of the Savior we can truly become better and stronger. This Church is true and if you apply the messages to your life you will be blessed.

I love you all and hope you had the chance to listen to conference and allowed the words to change and help you. Have an amazing week. I know life is hard with this Corona business but as we look to Christ for guidance we will be guided and saved. Stay safe and have fun. 

BYE BYE  โชคดี

Elder Slavens

READ D&C 121: 7-9 You do not have to battle Corona alone. You have friends and most importantly Christ. Rely on Him and endure it well.

ผมสุ่มจับภาพวิดีโอของอนาคอนดาที่กำลังกินสุนัขตัวโตที่กำลังมองหาในสัปดาห์นี้และผมสรุปว่าผมกลัวอนาคอนดาส.

I randomly stumbled upon a video of an anaconda eating a big dog looking thing this week and I have concluded I am scared of anacondas.

On my mission I have realized one of the best things ever is to shave your ankles. You never get the pain when the hair on your ankles get crushed. This will solve your problems and you look mega cool. Do it. I dare you. 

I was sitting in the house just looking outside pondering when I saw a lizard. I named him Shark. 

Enjoy my photos. He was so nice. He ate a fly! Shark and then Shark and me.

I am just patiently waiting for the day I can watch this movie. Facebook ads do not fail me ever.

If you think I am attractive as do most people on Facebook you will enjoy this photo. If you also enjoy bread and or Nutella and or both I suggest this meal. You can purchase this food in most local Walmarts. 

A great “Corona locked me in my house” snack. 

Here is my fancy schedule for the people interested in my life. Let the week begin.

Finally, I hope you enjoy this Thai song. I know I do. I don't understand the words but I can feel the words. 

My favorite Ninja Turtle is Raphael

Hello all my quarantined friends and family. This is the best isn't it? No jobs, no responsibility. We all just get to lie down and do nothing all day. You get to watch movies. I get to read the Book of Mormon. Happiness all around. 

Not gonna lie, It is kinda boring in this house. I have been here about 2 weeks now and I have talked to I think nobody from America. I do talk to people on Facebook but for some reason they are all from the Philippines. I went through my friend requests and they were from all over. I had requests from Nigeria, Colombia, Mexico, Thailand, Laos, some America, and lots of Philippines. You check my followers. It's quite a sight. I have been talking to some people and I have a few people who seem very interested. They ask me questions and I ask them some back about their beliefs and religious background. It is pretty cool. I never got trained when I got here so I don't really know what is happening but I am figuring it out. It is slowly starting to make sense. Maybe one day I will get it, then the next day I will be sent to Thailand. 

This week not much has happened. I read more books, studied Thai by myself and I got to call Elder Smith one day. He came to Gilbert with me and will be serving in Thailand. This week I also got to play lots of spikeball. I am basically a pro at spikeball. One day while I was playing, I looked down at myself and realized I was bleeding and I was screaming at everyone. That game changes you. Scary. Be careful if you play spikeball. Also this week we cleaned the house. This place was nasty but now now it's basically heaven. So clean. You can lick the floor and you will probably be fine. 

On Wednesday we asked a youth to tell his Mom we needed some water and she posted it on facebook and soon enough we had about 8 huge packs of water. Now we are peeing all day because we just drink water nonstop. It's the best. My pee is always so clear. Stay away dehydration and Corona. 

I still have no news about Corona and what is happening to me. All non-natives in Thailand got sent home this week so it may be awhile until I get set there but I am pretty sure I will be sent there eventually because a temple is being built. Nobody knows anything. I just go with the flow and hope we get to Thailand soon. 

In other news, today I called a member from Thailand and am helping him learn English, and I am talking to some other people from Thailand looking for referrals and more people to teach. This week is going to be a good one. 

Well, I love you all and hope you are preparing for general conference. It's coming up very soon. I am not sure what they will say but it will be life-changing. Make sure you read the First Vision and ponder the questions President Nelson asked us to ponder. Love you all. Have a good week and you will hear from me next week. 

Elder Slavens

Corona ไม่ดี แต่คริสตจักรเป็นความจริงและการประชุมทั่วไปจะดีมากในปีนี้ใช่มันจะ

Corona is bad but the Church is true and general conference will be very good this year. Yes it will.

Read all of Joseph Smith History this week and be ready for conference. You can do it! Yes you! You can do it!

I finally got my English nametag. It's legible and I look like a true Gilbert missionary now. 

Good old days when I was Trenton. Now I am super smart, super mature Elder Slavens. 

Just look at that garage. Take it all in. It wasn't this clean before, but baby look at it now. 

Just me and my best friends. Books. They are always there for me when I need them. 

And I need them now because I am bored.

When a member makes you pillow cases just reminding you that you are still locked inside. 

Awww thanks. 

1 day in Gilbert and I don't get to see Gilbert

Hello world. It is me Elder Slavens. I am emailing from nice little Gilbert Arizona. I am no longer living in the MTC. I am free. I left on Tuesday now I live in the real world. My final days in the MTC were amazing. Sunday we were able to meet as a district and have a baby sacrament meeting. It was so cute. The rest of the week was just saying final goodbyes and packing. It was so sad to leave the MTC. Even though 9 weeks was a very long time and I was ready to leave it was still hard to leave my teachers and my district. I cried so much. Yes, I cried, and that’s ok. Don't judge me. I got sad. I wouldn't have been as sad if we all got to go to Thailand but we all got transferred to different states. We split up and I'll be in Gilbert with Elder Smith from my Thai district. Great boy. He was actually born in San Ramon where I am from. Small world. We flew to Phoenix then drove to Gilbert and now I am here having a blast, kind of. 

And now I will tell you a little about what I have been doing this week. I got here Tuesday and was a normal missionary for a day. Biked around, had fun, talked to a few members. It was a great beginning. I am in a trio and we have another companionship in the house I live in. One of my companions name is Elder Groesbeck, he is a real bull riding cowboy from Wyoming, and my other companion Elder Welch is 25 years old. That's all you need to know about him. The other companionship has one huge Samoan named Elder Hunter that could kill me with his thumb, and the final Elder is Elder Parnes, an anime loving, redhead. Quite a wide range of humans in this house. Ok then I finally started my real first full day in the field. Wednesday we were having a good day then we receive a text saying sorry quarantine time. We are now locked in our houses. 

I have been in my house for 5 days now. I was bored after 3 hours. All I do is study and sleep. It's great! Every day I just get to read. I've been reading The Book of Mormon, Preach my Gospel, Saints, The New Testament, and I study Thai every single day. I'll be honest it isn't the best thing I've ever done, but I am really learning a lot. All of the Elders here talk about how much they miss the outside but I just got out of the MTC so I don't even know what being a missionary is. I'm totally happy. I get to workout and read and use facebook. Super duper fun if you ask me. 

My facebook is Elder Slavens (Trenton Slavens) if anyone is interested in seeing my life as an indoor missionary. It's really cool to use technology to proselyte and still invite others to come unto Christ. I get tons of random people trying to friend me every day which is kinda weird. A lot of Thai grandmas love me so that's nice. It is sad because my companions don't work that hard. Almost every other person in this house just sits on Facebook all day. I don't want that for me. I got languages to learn and books to read. So I have been working really hard. 

Besides being inside not much has happened. We go on walks sometimes and play spikeball. Pretty exciting. Any time we are outside we feel good. I feel like the sun is evil now. It touches me and I yell because it's been 2 days since I have seen the real light.

This is my schedule most days. Wake up at 6:30, lay in bed for a long time. Get up and workout for like 2 hours because I can. I then eat usually eggs with smoked ghost peppers on top and then I proceed to showering and changing. At this point I have a few options. Read Saints, the Book of Mormon or any other book I feel like. I read until it's lunch time. I then make maybe a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich for lunch then lay down on facebook send some messages and then guess what. I read again! More reading and studying until dinner or something else exciting happens in the house. I may then play spikeball or go for a nice walk or I may just keep reading. Then members usually bring us dinner so I eat dinner and study a lot of Thai, read and then go to bed. Then I wake up and start all over. That has been me for 5 days. It's the greatest. Oh boy reading makes you tired. Sometimes I just fall asleep then wake up and boom back to reading. 

It may sound bad but I love it. I am learning a lot and am working hard. Just today I found 3 new investigators. 2 people randomly messaged me and one of my friends from the MTC referred another to me. 2 of them speak Thai so I have to try to type out messages in Thai. Boy it's tough but super fun. It is amazing. I love it so much. I could stay here forever. 

Well that's about it for this week. I will let you know if anything changes. So don't expect anything big. I hope you are all doing well and are safe. Keep it up and wash those hands. BYE BYE. 

Elder Slavens 

สะท้อน

Reflection 

การผ่าต่ด

Surgery (an operation)

Moroni 7:48 I do suggest you read this.

The final tears the final day in the MTC. Don't make fun of us. Everyone cries it's ok. 

Elder Smith and I heading to good ol’ Gilbert Arizona. 2 photos, 2 legends. 

My pinky nail I have been growing for 9 weeks. I was excited to show off this bad boy when I got to Thailand 
but that plan failed. I had to cut it so I wouldn't get made fun of. Rip pinky 2020-2020

Approximately 10 minutes before learning we are under quarantine.
We were not this happy when we received that text.

The Facebook flirting.  I love it.  Keep it up Grandma.

Me typing Thai like a professional. Ok so I thought speaking Thai was hard,

but typing is like 48 times harder. Do not suggest.