Colene and I had our first zone conference yesterday in Des Moines. Lots of great Elders and 4 sister missionaries there. I felt that Iowa was in good hands. These conferences are intended to feed our spirits every quarter, and last from 0930 until 430. Pres. Jergensen presides but speaks only about 2 hours, while others have assignments to teach, including the assistants to the president, the fleet manager, and other missionaries. There was lots of interaction, practicing teaching and answering common questions about and objections to the Book of Mormon. Neither of us feel like we're able to answer a question by having a scripture come to our minds, but it will come as we study more and are worthy of the spirit to direct us.

Last nite I was able to set up a Saturday afternoon with a local history expert on the Mormon Trail our landlord told us about. He was very congenial and talks to about 10 buses of Mormon tourists visiting Wayne County and Garden Grove, specifically, where he is a landowner at this site where a number of cabins were made by the saints. He said the Mormon Trail and the exodus is their history and our(as latter-day saints) heritage. They enjoy the history of the exodus across Iowa as much as we do. We hope to have 3 senior missionary couples come with us as we visit trail sites with this man.

Our first roll of film passed muster, so things are going in the right direction. Our biggest challenge is feeling comfortable enough with light settings to move quickly and be productive. We have lots to film and need to get it done in a timely manner.