Living away from major "mormon zones" is always both interesting and rewarding. The wards and branches are very different from the Utah wards Dan and I are familiar with. We've experienced this both in Chicago and here in New York.

In Chicago, Dan serves with the young men in the ward. Many of the youth come from homes without a father, homes where each sibling has a different father, and are often the only ones who come to church in their families. Sometimes when Dan drops them off after Tuesday night activities, they have to wait in the car until neighboring boys outside leave so they don't get beaten up. Dan helped one youth's family find places to stay after they were evicted from their apartment.

Here in Queens, Dan and I teach the Youth Sunday School class. The regular members of our class are Brazilian (2), Peruvian (1), and Caucasian (1). We often have more visitors than regulars. Yesterday we had two class members who couldn't really speak English. We also had a brand new young investigator. It definitely adds a new twist to the lesson when someone asks, "Who is Thomas Monson?"

We love living in places where being a Mormon is totally weird and abnormal. Having wards made up largely of converts not only shakes up the traditional Mormon culture, it helps us see just how much the gospel can change lives.