Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Life Lessons

This past weekend we had my family reunion. By parents, brothers, sister, and their families met at Mammoth Creek for the weekend. A good time was had by all. We usually rent a house that we can all fit in. This one was a cabin style on Mammoth Creek. It was a beautiful setting with the creek running right behind the cabin. We ate good food, played games, walked, talked, laughed, watched movies, hiked, and enjoyed each others company.

I was able to complete one of my bucket list items this year. There is a bike trail from Brian Head to Panguitch Lake that my family has ridden in the past. This is a ride that I have wanted to attempt for a long time and just never felt like I could do it. Well this year my brother, Jim, took me and my two sister in laws on the ride. Jim is an experienced rider and gave us pointers along the way. As I thought about his pointers they made a lot of sense in our daily life. I thought I would share some of my insight.

Rule #1: If the trail gets too difficult to ride it is okay to get off and walk. There was no shame in recognizing the trail was too difficult for my abilities and I needed to get off and walk through a particular section. Sometimes in life I think we need to get off and walk.

Rule #2: Whatever you focus on, on the trail, you will hit. So if you focus on a log or a big rock in your path you will utlimately hit it. Life is much the same. Wherever we put our focus that is what we will hit. Wow, so important to be focused on the right things.

Rule #3: Don't cross the chain. Meaning it is very difficult for the chain to work when it is small on front and big on back or big on front and small on back. The chain has difficulty functioning properly. The same goes for life. We have to live our lives in harmony with what we believe. It is important that our words and actions are in sinc with one another.

Rule #4: It is easier to go through soft sand quickly. When I was riding the trail and came to soft terrain it was so much easier to go through when I was going fast. The slower I went the more I got stuck and lost my balance. When we find ourselves caught in doldrums get out. Move through them quickly and get on to what is important.

Rule #5: It helps to have some guidance and encouragement along the way. As we traveled the trail my brother would stop and inform us as to what we could expect ahead of us. He would give us some pointers from his experience as how to best complete that leg of the trail. He would also give us encouragement and tell us what we were doing well. So it is with life. There are people put in our lives to guide us along the way. These people may have more life experience or knowledge and are there to help us avoid lifes pitfalls. They are also there to give us the encouragement we need to continue on when the journey gets tough.

Rule #6 Well this could have been rule #1 but none-the-less....one should would protective gear. I never knew if or when I might crash along the way. Wearing the appropriate gear is so important. As it worked out I did crash and was grateful to be wearing a helmet so as to protect my head. We are given many opportunities in life to put on our protective gear. Our testimony is something that should be a great protection to us all of our lives. If we truly believe and follow what we know we will protected beyond our understanding. There are other things that will give us protection as well...prayer, scripture study, good friends, paying tithes, service...the list could go on.

Rule #7: Enjoy the journey. As we went on our ride it was so amazing to enjoy the journey and to take time to see the grand views, to observe nature, to learn to respect the elements, and to feel God's love. Life is a journey. We can get so wrapped up in the everyday tasks that we forget to enjoy the journey.

Rule #8: Take it at your own speed. My brother is an accomplished mountain bike rider and could ride the trail quite quickly. My sister in law has also ridden many trails and was more comfortable with the trail. I am a novice mountain bike rider and my skills were quite challenged. It was quite alright for me to go at my own pace and complete the ride. The other riders would go at their pace and then wait at a point in the trail for the rest to arrive. Then we would rest, get a drink, talk and then move on with the next leg of the trail. I learned I need to take life at my own pace. Even though there may be others who are speeding past me it is okay for me to take life at my own pace. It is good to take a break, get a drink, and regroup before going on to the next task before me.

Thanks to Jim, Lisa, and Tammy for a memorable ride. I learned so much that day. More about life than about riding a bike.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Week 91 Some pictures from the past week

Elder Hatch, Sister Dalton, President Dalton

Elder Doane (Zach's new comp), Elder Hatch, Elder Medieros (Outgoing AP comp)

Elder Eteaki the Missionary in the white clothing, is said to be Zach's brother from a different Mother.
Not quite sure who this is but I will find out.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Annie and Steve are moving

Annie and Steve will be moving into a house next month. We are so excited for them. It has been completely remodeled and is in a great Taylorsville neighborhood. It has 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, large kitchen, and a family room. There is a big back yard for toys and several sheds for storage.

3 months, 3 months, 3 months

Yeah I know I just posted 100 days. But I'm keeping up with the monthly countdown also.

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

The Count Down Begins


THAT'S RIGHT, TODAY THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS. TOMORROW WE BREAK INTO THE DOUBLE DIGITS.

Monday, July 12, 2010

Weeks 89 and 90 Could his life get any busier?

Disclaimer: I am making this blog into a book to remember our year. This entry is quite long but I feel it is important for the book. So I apologize for putting the whole email in.

Alright I will do my best to recap the last couple of weeks events.

Monday 28th- So it was p-day, but we had some things so get ready for the last zone conference as well as some final things to help President Peterson before he went home. He told Elder Medeiros and I that he wanted to interview the both of us one last time before he left and he wanted to give us some advice for the future. So I was able to sit down with him one more time face to face and heart to heart and have a good conversation with him. It was really great. He is such a wonderful man and I have learned so much from him. He has been like my father away from home. Anyway he gave me a temple recommend interview and he also just talked to me about my mission and the things that would take place after the mission. He gave me some great words of counsel and advice that I will take to heart and use. In his last interviews with the missionaries before they go home he asks them about their favorite companion and their favorite area and so on and it was great to tell him what my favorites were. He said it was very interesting to him to hear what the missionaries say. Anyway we did that and then we went and taught a lesson in our ward and it was a good day.

Tuesday 29- Today was the last Zone Conference for President and Sister Peterson. It was going to be perfect and we had it all planned out and then we got to the church where it was going to be held with all of the missionaries on Oahu and Elder Medeiros and I were setting up and realized that we had forgotten out jump drives back at the office. We were like oh no so we told President, then Elder medeiros and I got in the car and went back to the office as fast as we could. They started without us and we luckily got back just in time to do our part of the zone conference. We really lucked out. The Zone Conference went well though. I think it was really hard on the Petersons knowing that is was their last one. At the end of the zone conference I got asked to present this book of tributes to them. It was a book we had all made of our feeling towards the Petersons and what they had done to help us. It was a really neat experience to present it to them. But after it was over, all of the polynesian missionaries did the haka for him and they asked me to help them do it since I had been around most of them my whole mission. It was really cool and President loved it. Then all of us that did the haka sang to President his favorite Tongan song while we were down on one knee. We really wanted to give him the best before he went home.

Wednesday 30- So today was pretty much just a normal day. Nothing to exciting happened. We pretty much just made ourselves available to help President with whatever he needed. He had us help him pack and get the transfer board ready and stuff. It ws a pretty laid back day. We made sure that the office and the cars were clean before we went to pick up the Daltons.

Thursday 1- Wow today was pretty crazy. So today was the day that the new president flew it. We went with the Petersons to greet him at the airport. We got there and were waiting and then all the sudden here they came. We greeted them and said our hellos. President Peterson told them that we would go grab their luggage and asked how many bags they had and they said the had 11!!!!! We were like wait what?? Your kidding right? They were like no we brought 11 suitcases so we went over and pulled off all 11 bags. Lets just say that is was a good thing that we brought the van otherwise there wouldn't have been enough room to fit it all in. So we loaded it all in and while the Petersons took them to lunch Elder Medeiros and I took all of their bags to their house. Then after that we went and got a quick lunch. We went back to the office and just waited for them to come because we were going to have to show them around the office and do whatever they wanted. So we waited for them and they came and we spent some time getting to know them and showing them around the office and stuff like that. He also wanted to meet with Elder Medeiros and I briefly to talk about a few things. So my first impression was pretty good. He was a vey happy and pretty laid back guy.

Friday 2- President Dalton had a few things that he needed to do around town and knew that we knew our way around town and asked if we would help him do them. So we picked him up in the morning and took him places to do his internet stuff to get it set up, we helped him get a bank account set up and we helped him get his whole phone situation figured out. It took a good portion of the day to get it all done but it was a great opportunity t get to know him a little bit better on a personal basis. He has a pretty high tech phone that took some time to figure out. Then after that it was time to go with the Petersons. They wanted to have dinner with us one last time and wanted us to be the ones to take them to the airport and to send them through security. So we picked them up back at the tabernacle and we went to the Spagetti Factory with them. We had already decided that we didn't want them to have to pay for dinner so we got up and told them we had to go to the bathroom when really we were going to pay for the food. So we went and paid for it and then we were sitting there waiting for the bill and President was like why isn't the waiter coming we need to get out of here. We were both like it's ok we can just go. President was like no we can't we have to pay before we leave and the two of us were just like no it has already been paid for. He was like you two are going to get it from me when you get home. Anyway after dinner we took them to the airport and they had a few people that came to say one last goodbye to them before they left. Then came the hard part of sending them through security and now it was Elder Medeiros' and my turn to say our final goodbyes. This was kind of wierd since we had been watching the rest of the mission do it for the last two weeks and now it was our turn to do the same. So we said our goodbyes which was a lot easier than I was expecting but I think it was because we knew that we were going to see them in just a few months. We drove back home and let me tell you it was a pretty quiet ride back.

Saturday 3- Well we woke up to our phone ringing and some of the released missionaries calling and telling us that President and Sister Peterson had made it home safely. So we were glad to hear that. Today was kind of a day to drive the Daltons around and get them used to some of the places around as well as to have them go and teach with a few people. SO we made a few phone calls and told the missionaries that the new president would like to go and teach a lesson with them. Some of them were really freaked out but my man Elder Eteaki pulled through and jumped at the opportunity to go and teach with him. So he went with them to a lesson which gave Elder Medeiros and I a chance to work on our training for Monday. After they came back from their lesson we had to go straight to a baptism that was out in Ewa Beach. It was really good for him to see a baptism on just his second day here. After that we went back with them to their house and spent a couple of hours helping them unpack and getting their computers and their phones and their electronics all put together.

Sunday 4- We had church. I always love going to the Tongan ward because you never really know what is going to happen. So we got to church and they always have us bless the sacrament so we were sitting there and then all the sudden guess what they came back and asked us to bless it again this week. We agreed and went up and did it. Then after we were teaching our gospel principles class and one of our ward members were in there and we were talking about repenting and he was asking a question about something he had done but was trying to make it sound like a general story that wasnt about him. It was really funny because he started out just by saying thingsd like what if a person did this, and then it turned into I tried to do this and so forth it was so funny. We made our progress record as usual and gave it to the ward. We thought that we were going to have meeting but it turned we didn't. Then after church we spent a good chunk of time working on our trainings again because we knew that we had to get them done before tomorrow. Then we went to a 4th dinner at one of the members in the Manoa Ward with President. It was really great and we were able to get aquanted with a few more people around in the area. We collected the numbers as usual that night and then called it a night.

Monday 5- Today was ZCL (Zone Leader Council) This was the meeting that we wanted to make just perfect for President Dalton. This would be the first opportunity that he would have to meet all of the zone leaders and to get a feel for his leadership. So Elder Medeiros and I got everything all set up and ready to go. We had the meeting going and it was a really great meeting. He was able to get a good feel for his leadership and then he was also able to talk about a few things that he had on his mind as he came into the mission. We had all of the zone leaders account and explain what was going on in each of their zones so that he could get a really good feel for the mission. We were a little worried because we had never had to run the whole show before but it went really well. I think that the leaders really liked him and got a good feel for him as the new president. You could definately feel that the mantle had switched over to him and that he was the new president.

Tuesday 6- Today was the first chance that we had to go around and meet a few of the districts with president. He was able to meet a few of the first groups of missionaries. It was really a good thing for the missionaries I think because they are able to sit down face to face with him and meet him. That night after all of the meetings were over and he had met all of the districts he had dinner with the stake president. Elder Medeiros and I got stuck at the chapel without a car for a couple of hours so we decided to walk around and talk to a few people. We were supposed to have dinner at our member's house but he was running so late that we had to cancel and just had to run by later that night and pick up the food from their house. It was ok though it wasn't that big of a deal.

Wednesday 7- Today we went back to Laie and you all know that this is one of my favorite places. I have always loved this place and it has a very soft spot in my heart. So we went there and had their meetings up there and went and got lunch with a few of the elders. It was good to spend a little time with them and to talk with them . We had to take a fridge to some of the elders there so we asked for all of their help in getting it into their pad. We did the second group meeting and they were able meet all of the missionaries there. Daltons were having dinner at the pcc with a few of the stake presidents so, I decided to to go to one of my favorite members grill and have dinner there. I love this family so much and knew that they wouldn't mind if we just showed up. Sure enough we showed up and they were just so happy to see us. It was good to see all of them as well.

Thursday 8- So today we had to go to Kauai. We knew that it would be a really quick trip. So we got there at about 1:30 and President was really hungry so we got a quick bite to eat and then we went to have the meeting with the missionaries. Then we had dinner with a few of the missionaries while president was at dinner with the stake president. Then we went back to the airport. I think we were there about a total of 6 hours or something like that. All I know is that it was a really fast trip. It was funny though because President was just there with his whole family 3 weeks ago on vacation before their mission started. They had this vacation planned long ago and it just happened that they got called here on their mission.

So that pretty much sums up what happened in the last two weeks. I hope that this email doesn't bore you too much but hope it gives you some insight of what I have been up to for the last couple of weeks. It has been a crazy few weeks. This week is going to be pretty crazy as well but I know that it will be good. Well I love you all. Thank you all for your support.

Ofa atu

Elder Hatch

Monday, July 5, 2010

Family Update July 5, 2010


Well I thought I would update you on the Hatch Family.

Annie and Steve are looking to buy a house. They are ready for homeownership and the responsibilites that come with that. That way when things break they don't have to wait for the landlord to come and fix it. They are expecting their first child in January the day before Annie's birthday. Needless to say we are all excited about the news.

Maddie is enjoying her summer break from school. She will be heading down to St. George to do an internship in the hospital for 3 weeks. She just got a new bike and she is planning some great mountain rides. She is trying to enjoy her summer before her third year starts. She has some awesome friends and has had many fun summer nights having a good time with them.

Zach is still in Oahu. He is working under a new mission president and is trying to get to know his style of leadership. He is trying to lose some weight before he comes home but it is hard when those islanders feed him so well. He has about 100 days left on his mission and then back to real life.

McKay is loving summer. He is trying to read all the Harry Potter books again to be ready for when the movies come out. He is currently reading the fifth book. So he is well on his way. He plays tennis a couple of times a week and is getting ready to go to scout camp. He will be going to a basketball camp with his cousin Josie. He is still deciding if he wants to play football or not.

Mom and Pops are finally finishing up a 6 month house remodel. It has come to the point of ridding ourselves of things we have collected over the course of our marriage. If it doesn't have a home now it never will. So we are doing some exhausting sorting and cleaning. We get to go to Hawaii to pick up Zach. We weren't going to go but an opportunity came up that we couldn't pass up so we get to fly home with him. It will be awesome to tour the island to see where he has been serving. Other than that we are also enjoying summer and getting some projects done around the house. We are running Zach's lawn business while he is gone. It is a lot of work and we are tired but we hope to keep it going so he has some income when he comes home.

Gracie and Ruby, our dogs, keep us busy as well. Grace is getting old and tired. She has arthritis and doesn't move very well. Ruby is still a puppy and loves to play. She will play any time you sit down. She also loves to chew things up, nothing is safe anymore. They are great pals though and get along really well.


Well that is us in a nutshell. Life is good and we are all well and happy.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Week 88 Remember to remove jewelry before trying to board a plane

Alright so this last week was pretty crazy so I will try and recap it the best I can so you can get a feel for how busy we have been.

So Last Monday (June 21) was p-day of sorts. More like p- hours because there was so much to do and so many things that we needed to get ready that we didn't have a whole lot of time to spend just playing around and stuff. So we had to finish our training for Zone Conference, print off the sheets that Sister Peterson needed, put together a few slideshow presentations so that everything would go a lot smoother when we actually started doing the zone conference.

Tuesday (June 22) We got up pretty early and got on a flight for Kauai. This is always our first zone conference and being that it is the first they are always kind of the guinea pig to see how things are going to work for the rest of the mission. So we get there and some of the missionaries had to take their car to the toyota dealership and no one that could drive knew how to get there. Elder Nau, my former companion who serves there, knew how to get there and I pretty much knew how to get there so we jumped in the car together and took off to pick up the other missionaries before zone conferences started. So we got them and headed back to the church just in time for the conference to start. We got it going and we did our training. The training went really well except for the fact that it ended up being like and hour longer than Elder Medeiros and I had planned on. President was ok with it going longer though because he said it was all stuff that the mission needed to hear so we didn't feel so bad. Then Sister Peterson gave her "dying testimony" and it was really good. She shared a good quote with all of the missionaries that I liked. It said, "Don't be sad that your mission is over, just be glad that it ever even happened." I was like wow that is so true. Then President got up there and gave his "dying speech" and man did he have a lot of words for all of those missionaries. He gave them part of the speech that he gives to all of the dying missionaries. It was really good and I took lots of notes because this was the last counsel that I was going to get from president for the next little while. Then it was time to fly back and we get to the airport and I forgot to take off my watch as we went through security and they got all upset and gave me the pat dowm and the little wand test and checked my palms for gun powder and I was like you have got to be kidding me. President and Elder Medeirso were just laughing at me the whole time. It is funny that they did all of that though because the only place you can really fly to from the Kauai Airport is to Honolulu on one of those little island hoppers. I thought the whole thing was pretty ridiculous.

Wednesday (June 23) We had the next zone conference up in Laie and it went really well. I love Laie so much. For some reason this zone conference was a lot harder on me? It was so hard to see president in Laie for the last time. All of the memories that I had of me sitting and talking with him all came back to me and I knew that I was really going to miss him a lot. I had some really deep conversation with him while I served there. It was wierd though because there has been so many changes up there since I have served there. Most of the sisters that I served there with have gone home. It is wierd how fast the time goes and how even when there is a rotation in people the work still goes forward and eveything still works the same. It just goes to show that the work of the Lord is the same eveywhere that you go.

Thursday (June 24) We were headed to the big island today, but we had some minor set backs that were a test of President patients, haha. The flight that we usually left on no longer exsists so, we had to change the time that we flew which got us to Kona a lot later that usual. We usually start zone conference there at 10 but our flight didn't even land until 9:30 and we had an hour drive to Waimea where zone conference would be held. Then as we were driving there we got stuck behind some really slow drivers which made us even later than we already were. It all worked out though so that was good. I had quite a few of my mission friends that I served with over there so it was pretty good to see them all and to be able to spend time with them. This trip was harder for President because he really loves the big island. It was a really good trip though. It was a really fast trip we were only there for a couple of hours and then we flew right back to Oahu. I was so tired at the end of the day. I was drained emotionaly, phyically, and mentally from all of the stress.

Friday (June 25) We flew out to Maui and this zone conference was really special. I have always loved Maui and the spirit that is there. It is so amazing the history that is there. We had a general authority come a little while back when I served on Maui and he told us that I think it was George Q Cannon who was visited by the Savior himself there when he was thinking about giving up on the Hawaiian people because he couldn't understand the language and he couldn't eat the food. Pretty amazing story. Anyway we did the zone conference at the Palehu Chapel which if I am not mistaken was the first chapel in all of the islands. So there is some serious history there as well. Anyway it was really fun to do it in that old chapel where the spirit was so strong. Then at lunch the old tongan ward where I served was in charge of lunch. It was so fun to see so many of them and to feel of their spirit again. I was surprised how well they remembered me. I thought because it had been so long that they wouldn't remember me but they all did. So it was a vey sweet reunion.

Saturday (June 26) We thought that we would be able to do some catching up on a few things today but it turned out that the Lord had a few other plans for us. In the morning we got a call from a companionship of sisters who locked themselves out of their apartment. So we got what we thought were the keys to their pad and drove clear out to Mililani. When we got there the key they had listed as the spare key to their pad but it wasn't. So we called one of the senior couples that are in charge of housing and he called the landlord and was able to get another set that were the correct set. So we drove all the eay back to Honolulu then all the way back to Mililani again. It took forever. We got it unlocked for them and were starting to leave and found out that they locked themselves out again. So we went back and opened it. Then we went to a party that our ward put on and it was insane. It was supposed to be a farewell but it looked more like a wedding it was pretty crazy.
The rest of the week was pretty chill. So that was what happened. I will give you a little tid bit for next weeks email. I had a good last interview with President. Sending President home and so forth. Anyway I love you all and I am grateful for all of you.

Ofa atu

Zig