Elder Q IS COMING HOME TO GET MEDICAL CARE

So... I finally came home to get some quality health care in Arizona.  I was home for one week and met with a gastroenterology, a myopractor and a sports medicine doctor.  On my first visit with Dr Charles Peterson, he showed me some xrays of my hips and said you definitely have unique hips and have FAI...Femeral Acitabular Impingement.   We will be meeting with the #1 surgeon in Minneapolis, MN who is also the doctor of the Minnesota Vikings. His name is Dr Chris Larson.  He will do 2 seperate hip surgeries 2-3 months apart and then I will need months of physical therapy in between each surgery. 

First surgery  June 2015
Second Surgery August 2015
Months of Rehab
CGCC - I took 3 classes there and an online BYU class
December 2017 - I WILL return to POLAND!

Looking back....Here is Justin's own words recounting his pain and experience (written after he came home for double hip surgeries)

Back Feb. 2nd PDay we were running to Biedronka in the morning to get some shopping done during our workout schedule. We ran through the bigger bazaar and we were making it through to the other side when we saw the metal trash cans that were mounted to the ground out in the middle of the walkway in the bazaar. I wasn’t wearing my contacts that morning since we had gotten up and raced out the door so that we could be on time to studies. I saw how high the trash can was, and decided I could jump over it. I ran at the second to last trash can and jumped. What I hadn’t seen was the 2 inches of extra metal that was sticking up at the other end of the trash can mounted to the lip. That metal tooth caught just the back of the my tennis shoes as I was mid-air. Well my feet stuck and my head stayed right above my feet, but my torso and back were thrown forward as I half-mooned. I heard this terrible crack in the lower end of my spine that scared me to death. I stuck the landing(barely) and slowly ended my jog in a crouch, and my back was just absolutely killing me. My back problems had come back!

So this one day it started becoming really uncomfortable to walk. My pelvis was hurting, my back was so bad, and it felt like I had a hernia. Well I thought that I could just walk through it-after all it was only uncomfortable… it wasn’t exactly painful. However, about a week later we were street teaching home after a Sunday family dinner at the other elders’ apartment, and all of the sudden the uncomfortableness turned into hot pain. I couldn’t take another step. I found a place nearby to sit down and rest, and we called the senior couple. The Gays picked us up not too far from where we were, and we went home. We talked to Sister Edgren and President, as well as Dr. Rajser. I stayed in bed for a few days hoping that it would just go away. Then it all began. 

I spent the next few days cooped up in the apartment, trying to remain a productive, yet immobile missionary. I studied my scriptures and my polish, and I worked through the area book, calling people and asking them to meet with the missionaries again. A few individuals actually set up-two of which had baptismal dates in that first scheduled meeting. After a few days the pain didn’t subside-and I was taken to a hospital up North-West near the River. They were speaking Polish to me, and prying, and they even had to take my blood. I react terribly when people try to take my blood. My body refuses to give it up willingly/easily, and I usually get pretty close to passing out. The Gays and Elder Berlin, who were there at the hospital with me, told me I looked like a ghost as they wheelchaired me upstairs to get an ultrasound on my stomach and testicles. After a very long day and long waits in the hospital-which resembled the hospital in the first episode of the Walking Dead- we finally received some information from the urologist at the hospital. In very broken English he told me of my large kidney stones, and blamed my problems on that. (this part is a little murkey) President Edgren, whose brother in law was visiting the mission and was going to be the next head-doctor over all of the European missionaries, told me that the symptoms didn’t match the problem. He asked me to pack a small bag and take a train down to Warsaw so that we could better diagnose the problem with a good hospital and trusted doctors. I rode the train into Warsaw the next day, getting in at night, and the next morning we went to the hospital, which was close-by the Edgrens home as well as the office senior couple’s apartment that Elder Swicegood and Guthrie were staying in. Again doctors were prying at me and prodding me. They tried to take my blood again, and it seemed like I was getting better at people taking my blood. They scheduled a contrast IV catscan so that they could try to see the problems inside of me. They referred me to a Urologist. 

We went to Szpital Mazowiec, arriving very late because we were told that the hospital was located on the street KEN-which we were not told was an acronym for ulica Komisji Edukacji Narodowej. We met with the Urologist, he gave me a rectal exam, and it was determined that I had prostytitus. Now we were getting somewhere. I was given a myriad of antibiotics and medicines to take while being told to rest at the Edgren’s home and at the mission office. Through many prayers and lots of miracles, many of my symptoms started going away. It was now possible to climb stairs. I didn’t have as much or as often shooting pain that started in my pelvis and worked down my legs, as well as up my back and chest. But, I still had a huge amount of pelvis pain and lower back pain. I continued to try to stay productive during the time, until I was sent back up to Szczecin with an order to take it easy and don’t dive in too fast. I hit it pretty hard, eager to work again, and the symptoms did not go away. I refused to call the Edgrens, knowing full well that doing so would earn me a one-way ticket to Warsaw and the possibility of being sent home. I tried just walking through it and working it off, but it was not getting better, just getting worse. It got to the point where I needed to take myself to the hospital. I refused to call Sister or President Edgren, but Elder Jourdan, my district leader knew I wouldn’t. He called Sister Edgren and explained the situation without me knowing. He did what was right, and I tried not to be angry that he cared enough about me to turn me in. I got a call a few minutes later from Sister Edgren and was told to rush to the hospital that minute, even though Elder Berlin and I were just about to hit the standard of excellence-we just needed to be present at our scheduled meetings that day and we would have it. I asked Sergiusz and Elder Berlin to go with me. Sergiusz knew the city and also would know how to explain to the doctors in an efficient way what my problems were. Elders Jourdan and Blunt came with me also to help support and encourage me. I was in so much pain. I was doing my best to get to the hospital, and sat down as much as possible, but things were not looking up. We ended up having to walk about ¾ of a mile to the hospital from the tramwaj stop. I made it 100 meters and couldn’t take another step. My boys literally picked me up and fireman carried me into the hospital. We tried talking to as many doctors as we could, but we weren’t getting anywhere. All of the sudden I received a call from President Edgren. He wanted me on the next train to Warsaw, which left in 40 minutes from the train station. I didn’t have time to run home and get anything, so we took a taxi to the dworzec and I barely made my train. Elder Berlin was told to come with me, so I had some nice company. I entered Warsaw with just the clothes on my back, and a blue plastic garbage sack filled with all of my medicines and antibiotics and results from the hospital. We arrived at around 8 or 9 at night, and we went straight to the hospital and started all over again. They  sent us to another hospital that they thought could help-and this hospital was even sketchier than any other Polish hospital I had been in. We showed up at like 11 or 12 at night and it was a little bit scary. The hospital was dimly lit, it was dirty, and there was almost nobody inside. We had to find our way through the dark to the urological section of the hospital, and we didn’t see a single soul on the way there. President Edgren and I had a lot of time to talk-about the mission, about life, to joke around-it was a really good time. Eventually a doctor finally came to treat me, and of course did the rectal exam and discovered that I had prostytitus. He referred us to a urologist again. Well we saw the urologist again and he just prescribed us some more pills to take, and sent us on our way. Well those pills weren’t solving the problem. I continued to stay in Warsaw for the next 2-3 weeks. I worked where I could, and even made it out onto the streets with Elder Campora for a day or two. I spent most of my time in the office where I could work and organize things and try to be productive with minimal movement. Eventually it came to the point where we didn’t have any answers, it wasn’t getting better, and I was wasting time as a missionary by just sitting in the office. President Edgren told me the time was coming unless I thought I could suffer through it for the next year. I went out on the streets hard to see if I could even possibly do it. The pain was still there, and I did a lot of praying and soul-searching. I received the spiritual confirmation that I couldn’t continue on, and I felt confident in my decision. I met with a church counselor as protocol to make sure I wasn’t crazy or anything. I passed with flying colors, and she told me it looked like I was going home. Within the next week I was packing my bags and heading out on a plane to Arizona. 

I talked to lots of people on the planes-all the wonderful people sitting around me. I met some really cool people! When I landed in New York, I had little time, and I needed to get off the plane, get through customs, get my luggage again, and get it onto my next plane, and then get onto my plane- and I was in this huge airport. I was praying as we flew into America that God would send me someone to help. While I was standing in the first line waiting to go through customs, I talked with this nice couple behind me. They were probably 60 and they were so sweet. They told me that someone had randomely come up to them on their last flight and told them exactly how to get through customs and do all the things that I needed to do, and they said they would take me with them! We made it in record time through all of the hurdles and hoops, and I made my plane. The Lord really answered my prayers that day. 

Once in Arizona I was able to reconnect with my family. It was an amazing day. I asked some of the most influential people in my life to come over and help give me a priesthood blessing. Dad Wardrop, Brother T, Bishop Barney, Pampa, and my Dad all laid their hands on my head and my Dad gave me a blessing. He struggled to say it because it seemed so out of the question, but with the Spirit’s enticings, I was blessed that “all would heal’ and that I “would be returned to full health”. Then began the long journey of visiting every specialist in Arizona to try and diagnose my problem. We spoke with literally everyone, until we had a meeting with a sports doctor-the same doctor who helped me when I fractured my arm. He finally gave us some answers. He talked about my back and pelvis and my hips. He recommended we see an orthopedic surgeon. He recommended his partner, Dr. Waslewski, who we set up a meeting with. However, one of Uncle Tyson’s good friends, and ward member, is Dr. Udall. He’s one of the best orthopedic surgeons in Arizona. It was a miracle that we were able to get in so quickly and he was able to help diagnose our problems. We were told that I have Femoro Acetabular Impingement, both CAM and Pincer inpingements. My hip ball was misshaped, and the top half looked like a rugby ball instead of being circular. Also, my socket was too large and overgrown, causing rubbing to occur in my hip. The Dr. told me that I’ve already lost 30-40% of the cartilage in my hip and I’m only 19. He also told me that I have ossicles and weird bone growths on my hips. On top of that, the very top of my femur which concaves into the hip ball is grossly misformed, and looks like a mountain instead of a shallow hill. I will need double hip surgery to fix both of my hips. He also told me that I have a hemi-vertibret in my lower back that will have to be fixed through physical therapy. Dr. Udall was an answer to prayers. Dad and I walked out of his office and both received a spiritual prompting that that was the place for us to be. We stepped out of the office, looked at eachother, and both said it. We were in the right place. We met again with Dr. Udall and discussed the surgery. Mom had been praying for a long time that if he was unable to do the surgery, that he would have the humility to tell us so that we could go to wherever we could get the best care. That plea was exacerbated by the fact that orthopedic surgeons are considered the “alpha-males” of doctors. They are the best of the best and they are usually very prideful. When we met with Dr. Udall, he was an answer to prayers. He told us that he is a very good surgeon and could do the surgery with very good results, but that there is somebody who is even better than he is. He had done a residency/gone to school with a Dr. Christopher Larson in Minnesota, who was considered one of the best hip doctors in America. Because of Dr. Udall’s connection with him, Dr. Larson was able to see my xrays, respond that he would do the surgery, and much much more very quickly. We would have never gotten to Dr. Larson if we hadn’t gone through Dr. Udall. Within 36 hours, we were able to get in touch with Dr. Larson’s office, schedule an appointment for the next week, get insurance pre-authorization(UNHEARD OF), get plane tickets, and also found out that because of the insurance we have, SOMEHOW we were considered in-network with Dr. Larson, meaning that instead of paying $60,000, we would pay only $2500 worst-case scenario. It was a miracle. We flew out to Minneapolis, Minnesota, then drove to Edina only a few miles away. Grammy and Mom came with me to help. The next day we had a pre-op meeting which went smoothly, then we had surgery the next day. Surgery went better than expected. Dr. Larsons hands were truly guided. My right hip looks better than anyone could have imagined. It is such a miracle. After surgery, I woke up in so much pain. They hadn’t given me the full pain medication because it looked like I was allergic to the small amount that they had given me early. So, when I woke up, I was a disaster. I don’t think I’ve ever been in more pain in my entire life. I was miserable. I woke up just ready to punch walls and scream. On top of that, my bladder was so full from being on the IV that it was ready to explode. But, due to the numbing effects of the shots in my hips, I couldn’t control my bladder to release the pressure. I sat in the bathroom in tears, and pleaded with Heavenly Father to help me through my pain and through this surgery. I begged like a baby for the pain to be bearable. Within a short time of my pleadings, the pain subsided and I was able to relieve myself. It was such a blessing. After that, I began healing at a miraculous rate. Within a week and a half, I was already able to walk with just one crutch, and sometimes without any crutches. My pain has more or less subsided, and everything was going well. I was able to drive and walk and ride my stationary bike and do all the things I needed to.

While doing this, I received many revelations on how to proceed with my life. I received that “lightening-bolt answer” that my Dad had talked about. God has a work for me to do in Poland-a work that only I can do. The reason I am healing so fast is so that I can see the hand of the Lord in my life, and so that I can return to Poland to do God’s work. I now have a purpose and a vision. I thank God for that. 

I continued healing in a miraculous way. Within 3 weeks I was fully off crutches and able to function on my own. Physical therapy kept me busy with hours of workouts every day, but I was diligent and became stronger and stronger. It started becoming easier to walk until I walked without a limp. With the time of surgery approaching, I continued to work hard and prepare. I was ready for the second surgery at only two months after my initial surgery. Time had flown, and I was ready for the next step. Again we flew out to Minnesota. This time, my Mom and my Dad came with me. This surgery again was a miracle. I had the whole routine down-got to the surgery center early, got all dressed in hospital gown and socks, got the IV situated, and used the restroom to prepare myself for the worst. I really enjoyed having both of my parents in the waiting room with me to comfort me and get me ready for the pain to follow. This surgery was another miracle. It couldn’t have gone better. No screws or plates were needed, the hip ball and socket are now correctly shaped, and I’m on the downhill now. Dr. Larson even told us that there was a good chance of me not even needing hip replacements ever after this surgery, since the operation went so well. That was so good to hear! I continued doing my physical therapy, always becoming stronger. It took me a little longer the second time around to heal because I didn’t have as much time to stay down and heal as I had on the first surgery. I had been tutoring with Brandon Lee for ’36 by Design’ as an English and Reading tutor. I was also taking my courses at CGCC that will transfer to BYU when the time is right.  However, with time everything was able to heal, I was able to lose the crutches, and I was able to live my life again.  The Lord has been so good to me every step of the way. I was able to compare my situation to Kylee Simkin’s situation. She came home exactly 2 months after me from Poland with a fractured femur and some Fai problems, as well. I realized just how quickly and efficiently the Lord helped everything work out! I was able to get in and get surgery in record time, I healed perfectly and quickly, and I was able to keep my head and my good attitude throughout it all. 

On top of that, the Lord was able to help me in all aspects of my life. I had become lazy and lethargic. The thing was, I was dating Staci Allen and was really enjoying it. We did everything together. She is a really great girl and we had lots of fun together. From the start, the Lord had blessed me with a spiritual experience to know what to do about that situation. I was praying about what to do soon before she came home from France, and it was almost an audible thought that entered my mind, which was not my own. It told me “do not kiss her”. I was super confused, but I obeyed, and I never kissed her. As time went on, that got harder and harder. I started spending more and more time with her, and less and less time doing the important things. I didn’t ever want to do anything but hang out with her. I learned real quick that in a future companion I need to find someone who motivates me to work harder and do better. I didn’t feel that with Staci-but I felt the opposite. It became hard for me to work, honestly, because there was no incentive. I had realized, deep, deep down, that I was living below my potention. The thought became ‘go on and break up with me when I’m doing nothing. I can do better.’ So it was really hard to be productive. My parents didn’t like the situation, either. They were trying their best to let me make my own decisions, but they also had their opinions on the subject, and they also saw that Staci wasn’t the right girl for me. That caused some contentions between my family and I that I didn’t like. As I spoke with my parents and prayed about what to do, I received the answer to break things off with Staci. That night, within a few hours of my realization, I called Staci up, went to her house, and broke things off. She took it like a champ and has been wonderful about it ever since. It has been the biggest blessing in my life. After, I got my ‘mojo’ back. I felt like myself again. I was willing and ready to go out and be productive, and do things, and date people, and work hard. It was a night and day difference. I feel on top of the world. 

1st hip surgery, June 2015  Minneapolis, MN

2nd hip Surgery August 2015, Minneapolis, MN

Justin and Kylie Simpkins from his mission in Poland.

Rehabing and attending GCGG until he can go back on his mission to POLAND

April 20th....Hanging in there!

Hey fam!

yep.... so I'm still hanging in there! :) This week has hands down
been the toughest week of my life- but looking back, I've absolutely
loved it and been so grateful for it because of all of the things that
I was able to learn throughout it all. Things are going good. I've
talked a lot with president, and things really look like they're
winding down to an end.... Essentially we're just
waiting for the results of the MRI... which is kind of unnecessary
because if the results are bad- they have to send me home to get my
back fixed. If they're good, then they have to send me home because
they don't know what's wrong with me. My only two saving outlooks are
if 1) the results come back and it's a minor problem with my back
causing all of this pain that can be fixed in Poland, or 2)
Miraculously all of the sudden I get up and am perfectly fine.

I know that God has a plan. I trust in the Lord 100% and know that His will
will be done. If He wants me to be healed, then I know I will be. If
he needs me to go home for a time, or go home for good, then there's a
reason for it. I'm just doing my best to trust in Him, and work every
single day like it's the last day of my mission. I even tried going
out the other day, out of the office,  to see if I could do real missionary work. It ended
up getting to me pretty good, so right now it's not looking good.
However, we will see! There's a huge mission president conference in
Germany these next few days that all of the doctors will be at...
which means that I will just be waiting to receive news for another
little while. It's been really hard to have absolutely NO control over
my situation, but instead have to trust 100% in the Lord. Throughout
all of my life, I have not had many opportunities to do that. My life
has been filled with situations where I had full control over
everything that was happening. If I wanted good grades, I went out and
got them. If I wanted to start on the soccer team, I had to go out
there and win it. In this specific situation, literally the only thing
I can do is work my best to keep my head up, continue to work, and be
grateful for each and every day. This trial is allowing me to learn
lots of patience and trust in God. It is also helping me learn empathy
for others like I never would have imagined. It is so much harder to
judge others and be impatient with people when I realize that at any
moment, they could be going through a fraction of what I'm going to,
which instantly makes me feel so much more patience and love and
concern for them. I am working to become more loving and kind to
everyone, despite their differences, idiosyncrasies, and
imperfections. I am grateful for the trials and challenges in my life,
and for my Savior, Jesus Christ who carries me through them. I am
grateful for the chance to be tested and tried in my life, and I am so
grateful for the gospel which gives us perspective in our lives. I
love the Savior, and I love all of y'all! Make it the best week of
your life.
-Elder Quackenbush

Caring for Others

Hey y'all!
     This week was a really good week! I was able to work a lot on
Caring for Others this week. I always feel like when I pray for the
ability to love others and work towards that goal, I'm always blessed
with situations where it's really hard to love others/be caring/etc,
which sometimes makes me ask myself WHY I would pray for such
experiences... but I absolutely love being able to progress and work
towards becoming more Christ-like. I also had a goal to leave the
house with a smile(to facilitate having a better attitude about what
we're out here doing). It was way cool to see the difference between
the times that I did start the teaching blocks with a smile, and those
times that I didn't... attitude is everything! I also tried to be less
selfish and give of myself to others throughout the week. It makes me
so much happier when I am concentrating on blessing the lives of
others instead of just focusing on me.:) This next week, I am working
on a few different things 1)Loving it 2)Being even bolder and giving
up on people less 3)Focusing. I'm really excited for this upcoming
week to learn myself, and to also work with Elders Fotu and Allen.
They are coming into Szczecin for an exchange. Elder Allen is knows
for being a Polish wizard, and Elder Fotu is one of my mission role
models... so I'm way excited!
     Sunday was really cool because the district president, President
Isaac, was in Szczecin for church. Also, I was able to have a really
cool  meeting with Elder Gay and Jan Tamborowski. Elder Gay and I were
also able to meet with Agnieszka, an eternal investigator, and help
her continue to work towards a baptismal date. I gave a talk about
Baptism in Sacrament meeting, and it was super cool because I didn't
actually write it out... I just kinda put ideas down on a paper and
then let the Polish do it's thing. I'm super grateful for how much the
Lord has blessed me in my life and over the course of my mission,
especially with Polish! We also had a special musical number, and
Elder Jourdan and I had solos, and it was a super neat experience. It
was Miłość ma tu plon... and I can't remember what that is in
English(and the translation is Really rough.... so...)
       It looks like the Lord has blessed me with another trial in my
life-one of the biggest ones I've had yet. I was able to spend almost
the entire day yesterday in a sketchy Polish hospital(Let's be real...
it looked like the hospital from the first episode of Walking Dead).
Thankfully it's not very bad. I've been in contact with a bunch of
doctors, and had a pretty bad scare the last few days-not gonna lie...
they were some of the hardest days of my life- but all is well. I just need to slow down for a
little bit and make sure I don't get hurt further. As I've thought and
pondered and prayed a whole lot the last few days, I've decided that I
really have 2 options. 1)get mad, ask "why me", and maybe even cry,
or 2)trust, love, be diligent, and learn something from this all. I
know that I'm going to have a wonderful and extensive opportunity to
rely on the Lord and to learn more about Him and to come closer to
Him. I'm really excited about that! I've decided that I'm not going to
let this slow down my missionary drive, or affect my attitude, but
that I'm going to keep going(carefully of course) and put my trust in
the Lord. I'm so grateful for this opportunity to learn and grow
through trials and tests, and am determined to prove myself worthy to
stand, even through trials. I know the Church is true. I really do. I
know my Savior lives, loves us, and is always there for us. I love all
of you-make it the best week ever.
Love,
Elder Quackenbush

picture: Szpital time!

April 13th...Health problems continue, sadly.

This has been a tough one to send out this week.  The Mission President is doing all he can to try to get Elder Q to the right doctors and figure this out but it sounds like we may be getting him home so we can figure out his health issues here in the US.  Thank you for all of your love, prayers and support!  They are all felt...

Tiffany Quackenbush

Hey guys!
   Well I've got some unfortunate news: Things aren't going exactly as
we had hoped. Unfortunately, this isn't going away, and actually
getting worse in a few areas. Essentially the doctors don't have any
idea what's wrong with me at this point and basically it looks like
this: I have a doctors appointment at 11 today here in Warsaw. Unless
he has some significant insight/many miracles happen, then it looks
like they will be sending me home to figure out my medical issues. I
have 100% faith, and know for a fact that if the Lord wants a miracle
to happen, then a miracle WILL happen. However, at this point I really
don't feel like that is what he is planning for me. Over the course of
my mission, I have been tested and tried with many, many physical and
other trials. Each one was significantly more challenging than the
trial before, and I have really learn and grown a lot throughout my
trials. I have been fully aware since the beginning of my mission that
the biggest trial I could possibly go through as a missionary would
probably be having to get sent home for medical problems. I have told
President Edgren, and others that if that were the case, that they
would have to track me down, find me, and then drag me onto a plane.
And so here we are... with me staring this airplane right in the face.
I'm not happy about it, but I'm definitely not letting it get me
depressed. I know that whatever happens will be 100% the will of the
Lord. I will follow His plan for me, and be faithful in every way that
I know best. Thankfully, the Lord has been walking with me throughout
this the entire time. I have had some amazingly spiritual experiences
over the course of the last few weeks that have helped me through
these trials. Miracles really have happened. Over the past week, I've
been able to serve with Elder Campora and Elder Swicegood. They were
literally the 2 missionaries in the mission that could keep me
laughing and enjoying my time throughout something like this. I have
really loved serving with them this week.  Also, throughout my trials,
I really have come so much closer to my Savior Jesus Christ. I don't
even know how to describe it-other than by referring to the talk by
Jeffrey R. Holland "Lessons from Liberty Jail". I have such a more
personal relationship with Christ than I EVER have in my entire life.
I have been fortunate enough to rely on Him for the last 6 weeks, and
know Him so much better throughout it all. I have become so much
closer to the Spirit, and absolutely love the relationship that I have
gained. Also, every time I have thought about the situation(a LOT)
over the past few weeks, I feel the Spirit so strongly, and the
thought comes into my mind Every.Single.Time. "Everything will be
okay". That doesn't mean that I will be able to stay in Poland, but
that does mean that Heavenly Father is watching over me throughout
this all. I know that He is our Father in Heaven, and that He loves
us. I know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is true, and brings us true
happiness in this life. I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior, and
has already experienced Everything that we have experienced in our
lives. I know that He can help us through our trials if we only turn
to Him. I love Him and I love all of y'all. Make it the best week
ever.
Love,
Starszy Quackenbush

April 6th ...The Battle continues

Hey y'all!    Man, this week was really a good week! Some crazy stuff happened,and I'm so excited to tell all about it!    I never thought I'd say it... but Elder Berlin and I have abaptismal date with a murderer :) Czyli we met a guy on the street,had a cool talk, and then walked him to the chapel where we had amember waiting. We had a member lesson, and taught him about thegospel, and invited him to be baptized. He wanted to be baptized onthe 30th of May. Unfortunately, he's not exactly all the way there,and needs some professional and medical help.... but that was a greatexperience, and he didn't kill us. So that was a plus :)    A lot of funny things happened this week. Elder Berlin and Icontacted some guy on the street who was wearing huge headphones(likethe Beats style). We told him we were inviting others to listen to amessage about how we can come closer to Jesus Christ through acceptingrestored truths, and he just laughed. He took off his headphones andput them on me... and he was listening to hard-core satanic music...it was awesome. It was almost as weird as this one time where some guyhad me read the poem that he had tattooed on his chest... that wasanother good time!     Really, though, miracles are happening in Szczecin. We finallywere able to meet with a referral from Poznan named Mariusz. He's afirefighter, 27years old, and has a fiance. He's the coolest. He ispreparing to be baptized on the 30th of May, and he's so ready. He hasbeen searching for the true church for 10 years. We told him aboutMoroni's promise in Moroni 10:3-5, and all about how he could gain asure witness through the Holy Ghost that what we are telling him isthe truth. Since then, he has been texting me Daily, searching thescriptures, and even watched two different live sessions of GeneralConference on his computer. He's golden. I'm so excited to work withhim. The Lord is really blessing us! I'm so grateful for theopportunity to get to work with him and help him come unto Christ. :)   Other great news is that Lech is back! He had been going throughsome tough times, and has finally come back around. Everything isgood-we had a meeting with him this week, and he even came with us tolook for less-actives Saturday morning! Also, we found Ewa!! She is amember that has been gone for a while, now. We finally caught her athome, exchanged numbers with her, and will be in contact on Wednesdaywith her so that we can meet with her at her home... we are soexcited!    General Conference has been absolutely amazing. I have loved everysecond of it. I have a sticky-note about the questions that I haveneeded answered, and prayed for help in answering my questions-andeverything they're saying is exactly for me. It's the most beautifulthing ever... the church is so true, and God has given us a prophetand apostles in our day. Please make sure and get as much as you canout of conference... I promise that something will touch your heart ifyou are seeking answers and searching with real intent! :)     Unfortunately, I did end up getting sent back to Warsaw Saturdayafternoon. Things aren't really getting better, and I'm in some prettygood pain. I'm back in the mission home, and have been in a fewhospitals here in Warsaw over the past few days. (It was actually areally good experience... I was stuck in some nasty polish hospital atlike 2:30 in the morning trying to tell people in Polish why and whereI'm hurting and all that fun stuff.... it was a really good experiencefor me! I have an appointment with an internal medicine doctortomorrow at 11:00 so that someone can finally figure out what's wrong.I don't really know what to do, other than continue to have faith andtrust that the Lord knows what he's doing with me. I know that God hasa plan for each and every one of us, and I am so grateful for theopportunity I have to be able to learn and grow so much throughoutthis earth life. I have really learned a lot, and realized some thingsthat I have never realized before. This life's a test, and I'mdetermined to make the best of it! I'm going to make this week thebest week of my life! Love y'all. Stay classy!Love,Starszy Quackenbush

Picture #1:  They have this thing called "Spring" here.... In a 30 second time
period I walked through hail, into rain, into complete sunlight.... we
don't have that kind of stuff in Gilbert.
Picture #2:  Resting at the bus stop

Picture #3:  Elder Swicegood wanted a quick pic on Sister Edgrens computer in the mission home... lol smacznego!

March 30th ...Whew...on the mend maybe.

 Well guys, Jeszcze Żyję:) So this week was another one of those weeks

where you almost just have to laugh at the fact that you Ever had yourlife together...! This week I really learned that God really is incontrol-and if we just follow His plan, then everything eventuallyworks out! It was a really tough week, but it really made me gratefulto be able to be a missionary. After being stuck inside or in theoffice for 3 weeks, I almost went crazy! God pushed me and tried mejust to the point of breaking, and then everything turned back around.I went to the hospital again on Thursday, and everything is going tobe fine. I'm obviously not all the way better, but I told PresidentEdgren that if I stay in Warsaw for another day, then I'm going to gocrazy. He laughed and let me go back to Szczecin on Friday!!!! Itfeels SO good to be back. I've sure missed this place, and I've reallymissed Elder Berlin. I really really enjoyed being in the office withElders Swicegood and Guthrie(love those guys-they're pretty awesome!),and I really got to realize how tough it really is to be in theoffice. It used to be that trouble missionaries got sent to the officebefore President Edgren came, but President changed that. Right now wehave an AP and a branch president in there, and they're really got themission on their backs... I'm proud of those guys!     Anyways, Szczecin is doing really good. Elder Berlin and I havethe opportunity to work with some really cool people. Unfortunately, abunch of the baptismal dates have fallen off the map/went to Germanyfor a month/other excuses... but that's not going to stop us.Dawid(the one we've been working with for forever) is doing SO good.He's still searching and reading and meeting with us, and he'seven wanting to come to church! It's a miracle seeing that change! Wehave a meeting with him with Jerzy on the lesson this Wednesday! :)     We had a branch party at the Gay's on Saturday night before theyleft today. It was literally some of the most fun I've had in my life.We had investigators and members there, and it was hilarious. I ReallyReally love these people.    Also, I got sustained as Branch President in Szczecin yesterday,which was really cool! I've known for a little while, and I'm soexcited and ready to serve here in Szczecin and to work with ourawesome members in our branch! I'm really going to learn and grow alot-that's for sure!     The Gays left this morning to Warsaw. They're flying hometomorrow. It's really tough because over the last 5 months, they'rebecome my 3rd set of grandparents. We're not supposed to hugsisters(that's for sure) but I gave Sister Gay and Elder Gay huge hugsbefore they left. I promised to visit them, and even told them I'mbringing a girl to them for approval before I agree to marryanyone-because she's got to pass the Sister Gay test :) They're great,and we're sure going to miss them!     Other than that, everything's good! I'm really excited to getback to work and to work together with Elder Berlin to help peoplecome to Christ. Miracles are happening. I am grateful for the trialsin my life that help me to better myself, and come closer to mySavior, Jesus Christ. I love Him, and will follow Him! Love y'all,make it the best week ever!Love,Starszy Quackenbush

March 23rd...Health Trials

Hello everyone,

Thanks so much for the prayers and love this last week- they reallymeant a lot throughout this week! It was definitely a tougher week,but it really was one of the best weeks of my life.Something really cool happened this week. I didn't want to lay down and donothing while I was down, so I made a bunch of calls through the areabook, and set up a meeting for Tuesday night with a former namedAgnieszka. The other elders met with her while I had to come down to Warsaw,

and now her and her boyfriend have baptismal dates... The Lord has reallybeen blessing me!So on Tuesday last week, I got a call from President telling me that I needed tobe on the next train to Warsaw (never thought I was going to be thatmissionary that got sent to Warsaw for health problems... but there Iwas). I had really the coolest experiences on the train. I told myselfthat I probably couldn't do normal missionary work for a little while,but I could definitely talk to people on trains. I made a bunch of newfriends. I talked to a lady and her husband who live a little waysoutside of Szczecin. They were really cool, and even gave me theirnumber when they left. I had given them an ulotka, and they werereally excited to go look us up. Then, I had a really coolconversation with this lady who had just become a grandmother like afew hours before. She was headed right then to England to see her grandson. Shewas excited to go learn more about us, also. Then, my train layover inPoznań was super late, so I was running around the train station withthis girl (It's really long and polish and I can't even remember it...oops), and we ended up spending a while together-and I got to teachher all about the Restoration in the train station. So that was reallycool! But the coolest part was that when I got onto my train fromPoznań to Warsaw, I met Ula. She's a member, about 40-50 years old, 

and from Warsaw. She's SO cool. I talked with her for literally 3 hours straight.

She bought me dinner on the train, and we talked all about her family and hermission to the United States, and her church calling. She's honestlythe sweetest person in the world-I already love her so much... I thinkI'm going to keep her;) She ended up calling me later in the week justto check on me, and then she found me at district conference onSunday, and gave me the coolest present I've ever gotten. She gave methe Poland, Warsaw mission tie that was given to her by the missionpresident 2 transfers back-it's the mission tie that all of the reallyold missionaries that have been home for years have. I almost criedand then almost hugged her, but was able to refrain myself.So in Warsaw I spent a lot of time in hospitals (I had to go to twodifferent hospitals). Essentially all three hospitals I visited told me threedifferent things. Unfortunately, they were all right lol. It's coolthough. Everything is going to be fine and work out in the end. I getto stay in Poland!! :) I'm also on a bunch of medication (I look like adrug dealer), which is really helping. I stayed at the mission home for a few days and Sister

Edgren took great care of me.  Now I'm in the office helping out the office elders while I recover.

I have another hospital appointment on Thursday night with the Specialist at 18:00,

and hopefully after that I should be able to return to Szczecin! I'm so excited to get back. Abunch of these people that we've been teaching and finding want to bebaptized. We have 9 baptismal dates in Szczecin. The Lord is Reallyblessing us:)So this week I've been really trying to understand the enabling powerof the atonement in my life-and to apply it when I didn't think Icould go any farther. I've been really turning to the Lord, and givingeverything to him. So last night in the middle of the night I woke upin just so much pain. I was somewhere between almost crying all overthe place, and just starting to punch everything in sight. I literallyhurt so bad. In faith, I said one of the most sincere prayers I'veever prayed. I prayed that the enabling power of the atonement wouldhelp lift me and carry me through my trials and that everything wouldbe alright. Instantly the pain went away. I went back to sleep andwoke up in the morning with no pain. The power of the Atonement is soreal. I am so grateful for the many opportunities that I have had overthe past 3-4 weeks to rely on the power of Christ's atonement, and togrow closer to him. I really have, and I've really come to understandthe power of the atonement on such a deeper level.This week I was also working on not "murmuring", but being positiveand thankful. I really tried my best with that. I am happy to say(Idon't want to say "proud" or that might just have to become nextweek's attribute) that I didn't complain once. Sister Edgren, my mission presidents

wife had to tell me to stop smiling and acting fine so that the hospital wouldtake me seriously. They said I would be the only person ever to smilethrough something like this. I definitely wasn't trying that to be"seen of men", but that was definitely something cool to see that agood attitude really does affect everything. Some nights I would justbe in so much pain, but stopped and told myself to look for thepositives. I usually focused on the fact that my ears almost Neverhurt. I was really grateful that night for the fact that my ears feltgreat and that everything was going well with them. I also learnedthat God has a sense of humor, because the next day my ears startedhurting... haha :)So that's me and the update... I'm actually really grateful for the manyopportunities that I've had over the past few weeks to really grow andto experience trials. I am grateful for the relationship that I havegained with my Savior. I am so grateful for the Atonement, and that wecan use it's power every single day of our lives. I know that thischurch is true. I know that Christ is my Savior and yours. I am sograteful to Him and to my God. Love y'all. Make it the best week ofyour lives.Elder Quackenbush NOTICE: This email message is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message.