3
February 2016 Valparaíso,
Chile
Dear
Elder Heflin,
Happy
Birthday to our charismatic and skillful missionary grandson, Elder RWH
Heflin!! We love you. What a wonderful place to be on your 20th
!
“We share a message like no other.”
W. Christopher Waddell, 2nd Coun Presiding Bishopric,Worldwide
Missionary Training, 20 Jan 2016
Your
cousin, Elder Heflin, is now in Arlington, Massachusetts:
“I
will cover Arlington, Lexington, and Medford - a bunch of super nice suburbs to
Boston/Cambridge....My new comp, Elder Brockbank, is here for the Haitian
speaking members....It's gonna get crazy these next 6 months though. I mean, it's serious crunch time and Arlington
very well could be my last stop, so now I gotta finish guns out! haha”
Here
are some things we learned about Arlington:
Three
widely recognized television shows have been filmed in Arlington: This Old House, Trading Spaces, and Made.
A History Channel special, Bible Battles, was filmed in Arlington.
History lesson about the area:
KING GEORGE sent about 700 British
soldiers to the colonies. Britain's GENERAL GAGE had a secret plan: During the
wee hours of April 19, 1775, he would send out regiments of British soldiers
quartered in Boston. Their destinations were LEXINGTON, where they would
capture Colonial leaders SAM ADAMS and JOHN HANCOCK, then CONCORD, where they
would seize gunpowder. But spies and
friends of the Americans leaked word of Gage's plan. Two lanterns hanging from
Boston's North Church informed the countryside that the British were going to
attack by sea. A series of horseback riders — men such as PAUL REVERE, WILLIAM
DAWES and DR. SAMUEL PRESCOTT — galloped off to warn the countryside that the
REGULARS (British troops) were coming. It is a myth that Revere and other
riders shouted, "The British are coming!" This warning would have
confused a good many of the Americans living in the countryside who still
considered themselves British. The REGULARS were known to be British soldiers.
These COLONIAL MILITIAS had originally been organized to defend settlers from
civil unrest and attacks by French or Native Americans. Selected members of the
militia were called MINUTEMEN because they could be ready to fight in a
minute's time.
On the night of April 18, 1775, the advance guard
of nearly 240 British soldiers set off from Boston toward Concord,
Massachusetts, in order to seize weapons and ammunition stockpiled there by
American colonists. Paul Revere's famous midnight ride to alert colonists took
him through MENOTOMY (from the Indian word for "swift running
water"), now known as ARLINGTON. In the early morning of April 19th,
eleven Old Men of Menotomy intercepted a British wagon convoy headed for
Concord that morning and so seized "the first prisoners and stores to be
taken as a result of forcible attack in the Revolution."
The British reached Lexington, where
approximately 70 minutemen had gathered on the village green. Someone suddenly
fired a shot—it’s uncertain which side—and a melee ensued. When the brief clash
ended, eight Americans lay dead and at least an equal amount were injured,
while one redcoat was wounded. The British continued on to nearby Concord,
where that same day they encountered armed resistance from a group of patriots
at the town’s North Bridge. Gunfire was exchanged, leaving two colonists and
three redcoats dead. RALPH WALDO EMERSON in 1837 penned “CONCORD HYMN” for the
dedication of a battle monument at the site of the North Bridge. The opening
stanza is: “By the rude bridge that arched the flood/Their flag to April’s
breeze unfurled/Here once the embattled farmers stood/And fired THE SHOT HEARD
ROUND THE WORLD.”
Later that day, when the British were forcing
their way back from Concord and Lexington toward Boston and passed through
Menotomy for the second time, it became "... the bloodiest half-mile of
all the Battle Road." Menotomy's Minute Men under Captain Benjamin Locke
were the first to answer Revere's midnight alarm. There were three Menotomy men
who perished in the town that day: Jason Russell, Jason Winship, and Jabez
Wyman. There was more bloodshed in Menotomy than in the battles of Lexington
and Concord combined. Minutemen from surrounding towns converged on Menotomy to
ambush the British on their retreat from Concord and Lexington. All in all, 25
colonials were killed in Menotomy (half of all Americans killed in the day's
battles), as well as 40 British troops (more than half their fatalities).
Here
are some pictures of us on our mission and things we see:
 |
| They are still working on this side of an apartment building |
nk your mission is
"hard". Is it all in the attitude? What is the hardest thing? Best
thing??
Here
is our note to Elder Heflin: “There are missionaries – and then those that
go on missions.” Riley, you are one of
those truly converted missionaries. You
have taught us much and we enjoy your talent in speaking and writing as we read
the emails you send home. It is a joy to
serve at the same time as you.
We
do know that a mission is a blessing. We
are also working hard to be truly converted disciples of Jesus Christ. As you teach others what you have learned in
your life, you know these ideas are true:
3 skills you need to be successful in life, and 15 ways you can become more charismatic, by Mark Ford.
Three
Skills You Need to Be Successful in Life
THINK WELL:
assess, analyze, and solve problems
create and follow a trend of thought
distinguish good ideas from bad ones
understand logic
SPEAK WELL:
express worthy thoughts concisely and clearly
WRITE WELL:
express worthy ideas concisely and clearly on
paper
Friday,
December 18, 2015 by Mark Ford
Mark Morgan Ford (also Mark Ford and Michael Masterson) is an
American author, entrepreneur, publisher, real estate investor, filmmaker, art
collector, and consultant to the direct marketing and publishing industries.
Ford is the author of essays and books on entrepreneurship,
wealth-building, economics, and copywriting. He has also written a book of
poetry and a book on word-use titled “Words
that Work”.
Ford's business writing is published under the pen name Michael
Masterson. His books, “Automatic Wealth” and “Ready, Fire, Aim”, were recognized on
the Wall Street Journal and New York Times Best Sellers lists.
15 Ways You Can Become
More Charismatic:
1. Behave in a way that makes you
likable.
Direct the conversation away from yourself.
2. Be polite and patient.
3. Do exactly what you promised AND by the
deadline you promised – or sooner.
4. Resist the urge to be more than you are.
5. Have others' best interests at heart.
6. Don't pretend to be able to do something well.
7. Be honest, ethical, and aboveboard.
8. Use persuasion, not power, to get people to do
what's best for them.
9. Eat right. Exercise. Stay fit. Dress well. Be
well-groomed.
10. Be "real." The best way to show
you're a regular person is to be cordial, friendly, and to avoid pretensions of
every sort.
11. Listen and pay attention to what others are
saying.
12. Use how you are like someone as an anchor to
create a connection.
13. Be accomplished yet humble.
14. Be productive.
15. Practice these skills sincerely.
Self-Made
Millionaire: 15 Ways to Boost Your Charisma
By Mark Ford, founder, The Palm Beach Research
Group
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
These
are the answers Elder Heflin gave to his Mom’s questions:
Do you think your
mission is "hard"?
...Most missionaries
that have a hard time are those who are not fully embracing their call.
…They feel like the mission is a sacrifice, not a
blessing....
Is it
all in the attitude?
....Hard things happen all the
time....But that doesn't make a mission hard. What makes a mission hard is yourself haha. It's up to you I guess. You can look at
everything as an opportunity to learn or as a burden. So, yes, it's all in the
attitude....
.....I'm not saying that you have to be an
optimist. I'm saying that you need to do
what it says in 2 NE 31:20. Faith, hope, love, diligence, obedience. You should probably follow Moroni 7:45 too :)
Charity is a huge difference maker. And
as you work to obtain these things (because I'm definitely still far from
perfectly achieving any of that) you find a good attitude and overall joy in
the mission. Overall I'd say that, when you reach that point, you begin to
experience the blessings of consecration. It's really neat how it works, and it's
definitely knowledge and happiness that comes exclusively from the Spirit. But you have to work at it. It's a process of becoming.
What is
the hardest thing? Best thing??
....I think the hardest thing in the
mission is overcoming the weaknesses we have that hold us back from furthering
our spiritual development... but the best thing is when we accomplish just
that. The best thing about the mission is when, as a result of EVERYTHING I'm
talking about, you experience a change from the inside. That's the coolest part
about it all. -Elder Heflin
