Email from 10/1-- Almost 1 year!

Well it's crazy to think that this Friday I will have been on my mission for a full year! As much as I miss everyone it still has flown by so fast! It feels like just yesterday I was back in Mclean 2nd with Elder Campbell, was in a car rather than on a bike, and 30 pounds lighter! The mission really has been great so far though, I hope the second half stays just as awesome. This past week was a really great one too but man did it bring back a lot of year ago memories. We had a guy in our ward give his farewell talk on Sunday and he flew out to the MTC today. So on Saturday we got invited to his farewell BBQ with all his friends and family for dinner and man it was weird, it felt like I was just at my own of each of those! Time has flown. We had a few people we are teaching come with us to church on Sunday as well so it was an awesome thing for them to be able to experience as well. The guy who is leaving is Elder DeLeon and he is headed to the Guatemala mission. He is the first of 3 that will be leaving from our ward this transfer. We'll be having a Sister head to Taipei and then another Elder heading to the Anchorage Alaska mission right after she leaves! Lots and lots of missionaries! We have had some sweet storms this past week as well. This past Thursday? I think it was Thursday but I don't remember for sure, we were biking home and all of a sudden we realized that there were some really dark storm clouds all around us and the wind was really picking up and then all of a sudden it just started pouring! There was lightening like every couple of seconds and thunder like crazy! It was so awesome to see up close haha. We made it home all safe and sound and everything but man were we soaked. It was a great end to a great day! This P-day has been quite a crazy one as well though. We have been all over the place shopping! We biked about 10 miles this morning to go to Costco to buy food in bulk (Elder Cluff has a Costco card) so it would last us through the new transfer, and then we biked a few more miles over to Walmart and then stopped on our way back for a haircut and finally made it back just in time to be able to email! So unfortunately because of the crazy bike riding everywhere my time to email is a little shorter than normal, so this email is going to have to be just a little short this time around. I wish I had more time! Oh and by the way Elder Cluff and I are staying together for this next transfer here in Centreville 1! I forgot to mention that somehow haha. It really was a great week here though, just as it always is out here in the mission field! I hope everybody has had a great past week as well! I love and miss you guys lots!