20 July 2025
VOLUME 13 – NUMBER 618
Brooke and Braden on river trip
I finally got to go on my first river trip! I was a little nervous at first, but it turned out to be so much fun. I loved being on the river, and the scenery was beautiful.
The rapids were super fun, but I think my favorite part was just floating as the current pulled us downstream. It was nice to relax on the water and be disconnected from the world.
On our second night, we had all gone to bed. I was having a hard time falling asleep, and I was thinking about the scary story Arkin had told us about the Lady of the River. It was about a lady whose ghost haunted the river and walked around with a lantern out in the distance. At that campsite, there was actually a light across the river in the dark.
Brooke and Braden on Red Creek Rapid
As I was thinking about that, the wind blew our tent, and the opposite wall ended up on my face. It took a second for my brain to register what was happening, so there was a moment of panic—Ha ha!
Then everyone woke up at the same time in surprise. It had started to rain pretty hard with lots of wind, and there was thunder and lightning. Thank you to Ashton and Selvin for holding up the tent walls for hours and keeping us from getting soaked!
Also, thank you to Arkin and Isaac for planning this trip. It was so much fun to raft and to spend time with everyone there. I’m so glad I got to go!
Caleb and Keaton on Red Creek Rapid
It finally happened! I went on a river trip that London has raved about since I first met her. The water was freezing cold, and the weather wasn’t very warm or sunny—a bad combo for someone who hates the cold. I know I probably looked pretty unconventional, but I think next time I’m going to bring a wetsuit. Despite this, I had a ton of fun.
The rapids were the best part, and I think going down them was almost as fun as canyoneering. The scenery on the river was golden, and all I could think about the whole time was how much fun climbing the cliffs would be. Maybe next time I’ll bring some shoes and try some deep-water soloing on the cliffs that touch the river.
Keaton cliff jumping
The last night was also an adventure. I remember drifting off to sleep only to feel the tent blowing onto my leg a little. I thought it was annoying, so I slid my sleeping bag two feet to the left and closed my eyes. Then I woke up suddenly with a tent pole smacking me right in the face—and that’s when it started.
After that, I woke up a few more times as the tent slammed me in the wind. Thanks to some of the others in the tent who held it up for long hours through the storm, I was able to get some sleep. Despite the less-than-warm conditions and the storm, the river trip was awesome, and I look forward to doing it again.
Ready to go on river trip
This week was pretty tiring. We were busy trying to set up for the river trip, which, if you don’t know, takes a lot of preparation. The hardest part of the week was the lack of people—it was basically just a handful of us getting everything ready for the trip. Eventually, everything was ready, and we were on the road, headed for the river.
The trip was a blast. It’s always amazing to float through the canyons and valleys, just enjoying nature. On the first day, we arrived a little late, so we stopped a few miles short to make camp.
The campsite was easily one of my favorites. Unloading and setting up was really easy because we didn’t have to hike or walk at all. After dinner, Dad figured out a name for the campsite. He called it Father-in-Law, named after the rapid we went through right before we found the site, which was called Mother-in-Law.
Dinner at Daddy-In-Law Camp
The next morning, we found that no campsite can be perfect—there were spiders everywhere. There were dozens under the canopy of our tent and on top of our poop tent. Isaac and I even found a few on our raft.
Some people thought they were just daddy-long-legs, but no—they were deadly-long-legs. Later that morning, Dad switched the name from Father-in-Law to Daddy-in-Law as part of an inside joke about how many spiders there were.
The rest of the trip went pretty smoothly. Red Creek wasn’t that hard this year because the water levels were much higher than previous years. We got to float along most of the day since all the rapids were mostly gone.
Packing up at end of river trip
When night came, we set up camp, ate dinner, and headed to bed. We were all pretty tired, so we fell asleep around 9:30pm.
Later, everyone woke up at 10:30pm to a massive storm! The tent basically got folded back like paper. It probably felt worse inside the tent than it really was, but it was still scary. Ashton, Selvin, and Caleb stayed up most of the night holding the tent so everyone else could sleep. I am so grateful for that.
I love river trips. I love being out in nature and seeing God’s creations. Thank you, Dad, for all the hard work you put in every year to make this possible. I love you!
Boys at Daddy-In-Law Camp
The river trip was awesome! I always forget how much fun it is. Honestly, having a few days to disconnect from technology motivates me to make sure I give myself time and space in my daily life to be away from my phone and media.
Some of my favorite moments on the river trip were the times at camp after a long day of work, when everyone was a little tired and the conversations went a bit off the rails with jokes and lots of laughter.
I love our family and am so glad we all have the chance to do things like this.
Ashton and Braden riding the rapid
Quick recap on some of the people we’ve been teaching. Unfortunately, Erika sent us a message saying her dad told her not to meet with us anymore because it was a sin. That was a bit of a bummer, but we sent her a message sharing our testimony of our Savior, Jesus Christ, in hopes that one day she’ll decide to listen to the missionaries again.
Now about America. We decided to stop teaching her because she wasn’t progressing and didn’t want to do the work required to be baptized. Hopefully, she has a change of heart one day!
We’ve also been teaching two people named Henri and Carlos. I was able to set a fecha (baptism date) with them for August 9th! We are going to work hard to help them be ready to make their first covenant with God.
Jenn and Isaac on river trip
Now for Lesli and her kids. This is more promising than the last two. For a while, we were never able to meet Lesli in person, but eventually, by a miracle, we caught her outside. We had a little chat, and she talked about how her kids mentioned us and shared what we had taught them. That was so great to hear.
The next day, we went by their house one last time to see if we could share something, but Lesli wasn’t there. We shared a message with Katia, Carlos, and Iver but decided to focus on other people since Lesli was never there.
Caleb and Keaton on river trip
As soon as we walked away, Lesli texted us in response to a message we had sent earlier that morning asking how she was doing. She told us she wasn’t doing very well. I strongly believe that was a sign from God, telling us not to move on just yet.
The next day, she finally came to the door to talk with us. She let us know that she has major social anxiety and other challenges, but there is something about us that she trusts, and I know it’s the Spirit. The Spirit can bring comfort and peace into people’s lives.
Jenn and Selvin on river trip
We’ve also been working with Dulce and José to help them get married so they can be baptized by the end of this month. We have a lot of work cut out for us, and as 19-year-old boys, we aren’t qualified for this, but with God on our side, He makes us qualified. Let’s go!
It’s also crazy how hard Satan works on people who want to hear about the gospel of Jesus Christ and be baptized. For instance, José was working in construction, and one day we got a text from Dulce saying he fell from a two-story building. It was scary, and I’m willing to bet it was an attempt by Satan to prevent them from getting married and baptized.
The cool thing is, God is much stronger than Satan. José walked out of the hospital with nothing more than a badly bruised leg. Miracles happen, and when God has a will, He provides a way.
Monte and Elder Larson eating pizza
One final thing to close this email. Elder Larson and I were talking after our personal studies, and the topic of prayer came up. I read a scripture that says we need to pray before we do things, so that Jesus can consecrate that thing for our greater good. Then we talked about ways we can find those who are ready to be baptized. Our motto now is:
Invite people to be baptized every day, every moment, always.
Pray every day, every moment, always.
Repent every day, every moment, always.
This doesn’t just apply to us as missionaries—you can all pray and repent every day, every moment, always.
Kai and Isaac on Red Creek Rapid
I’m playing catch up again with newsletter articles. Last week, on Monday I worked another 12-hour shift, which was really rough because of work and some of the residents and their families.
On Thursday, I went with the Danielsons to a wedding reception for their cousin Emma. The reception was in Daybreak, and it was really nice. I enjoyed it, and most of the time I played with their younger cousins.
During some of the dancing, I joined in a little bit. My favorite part was the daddy-daughter dance because they did the chicken dance. That got everyone involved, which was really fun.
Family at baseball game
Also, Mom, Dad, Joanna, Quinn, and I went to watch the Raptors baseball game up in Ogden. I’ve only been to one other baseball game, and that was many years ago. At first, I was really confused about the scoring and how the game worked, but as it went on, I started to understand and learn a little bit.
On Saturday, I was able to hang out with Hazel. I drove her, which was the first time I’ve ever given someone a ride who wasn’t family. We went to Jordan Landing to shop for a couple of hours, then grabbed some Swig and headed home.
On Sunday, I met with my bishop to get my temple recommend for my endowment and to start my mission application. My missionary portal is now open, so I can begin whenever I’m ready. I’m just getting really nervous because I’m moving from teenage life into adulthood.
Quinn, Joanna, Gloria getting Slurpees
I also took Quinn and Joanna to get a Slurpee from 7-Eleven on Free Slurpee Day—7/11.
On Saturday, I was able to visit my family up in Salt Lake. My aunt came to pick me up, and once I got there, all of the cousins and my little siblings came running up to give me hugs.
Most of the time I just played dollhouse and hung out with the kids. I also talked with my family and looked at pictures of when I was a baby.
Gloria with Esperanza and Christian
We had fun while the people on the river trip were gone. It was nice to have only four dogs. Cougar, Endia, and Owen also came over to visit. We played Gungeon with Cougar, which was a lot of fun.
Once Cougar and Endia left, London, Gloria, and Troy played Overcooked 2.
Arriving at Cow Pie Camp
The family river trip is this week, and everybody except for me, Gloria, Quinn, Joanna, and Mom stayed home while everyone else went. London also stayed with us, and Endia and Cougar came over while they were gone.
Quinn and I played a lot of football because we only had Beauty as the extra dog, which was nice. It gave us a lot of extra time to play.
When Cougar was here, we also played football with him. We got to the fourth level in Gungeon, which was the farthest Quinn and I had ever gone. Cougar, on the other hand, has beaten the game several times and was trying to help us finish it.
Family river trip
I also got to play Overcooked with London and Gloria, which was pretty fun. I spent a lot of time reading as well and finished my book, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. It was really good but sad because Dumbledore dies.
Now I have to wait until next week to go to the library and get the next book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which I can’t wait for because I love reading Harry Potter.
Promotion ceremony on river trip
This summer, I am finishing my classes at BYU and planning to graduate this August! Before that happens, I’m doing an internship at Foothill Treatment Center in Spanish Fork.
At Foothill, we work with clients who struggle with long-term substance abuse. I primarily help facilitate groups, support individuals, and assist them in making a plan to be successful after they finish the 90-day program.
I am learning a lot about substance abuse, human suffering, healing, and making positive changes in life.
Dad at his 1000th river mile
Alongside this internship, I am taking my final class, Positive Living. BYU created this class to support and help students with their mental health.
There is a flood of students trying to get into the free therapy services offered at BYU—more than they could realistically accommodate—so they made a class to teach better thinking patterns, healthy therapeutic skills, and truths that lead to better mental health.
I would like to say that I have learned there is a lot of power in gratitude, and I have many things to be thankful for. If you are reading this, then you are someone I’m thankful for, so thank you.
Family picture before river trip