Teper ya ye kozakom (May 16, 2007)

Hello again everyone! This was a fantastic week, largely because Sunday was Mother's Day and so I got to talk to most of you, which was awesome to do!! I don't have that much news since then, however. It seems as though after this transfer, my current companion, Elder Walk, will be leaving and I'll be inheriting this area; it also seems to be that I might be going senior comp next transfer, which if it's true, is kind of scary but exciting at the same time. But, as usual, I'm not certain of any of this, and next transfer is still four weeks away, so I wouldn't be surprised to end up in L'viv or Lutsk, clear away in the West.

Since news is so short, I thought I'd send a few attachments along. Before you begin thinking that I and all the other missionaries in my pictures have gone apostate, let me warn you that we have been asked to not wear nametags, and we've been allowed to wear colored shirts and, if we want, to go without ties; there's been some demonstrations and protests and things here, so the mission office just wants to be safe. Honestly, I get a street's-eye view here, and I've never seen or experienced anything to make me feel unsafe, so there's no need to worry, it's just a precaution.

CIMG0745 - On Mother's Day we missionaries dressed up like Cossacks and sang a traditional Cossack song about mothers. This is a recording of Elder Walk and I singing. Um...let me just say that this will not be our hit single.
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CIMG0741 - This may be my favorite picture so far from Ukraine.


CIMG0711 - Elder Pace, Elder Kauffman (from my MTC group), and I in a really fancy (and a little too expensive) pizza place in downtown Kiev.

CIMG0627 - This one's from Ivano. We were reading the Book of Mormon with some young member children, when their pet cat jumped on my shoulders and fell fast asleep. And laid there for about twenty minutes.

Well, I've got to go, but I love you all, and I'll write again next week!

--Elder Hurst

(PS-the subject line says "Now I'm a Cossack")