First Email from the MTC: HOLA!!!

Hola! And hello everybody :) I'm so excited to finally have my p-day. It's been a long week, but also a short one at the same time. Each day felt like an eternity, and I was always tired and hungry. But looking back, it feels like I was just dropped off yesterday, while I simultaneously feel like I've been here my whole life.

Mom, to answer your questions, my first few days have been crazy. The first day was a whirlwind. I got there and was plopped right into my Spanish class. It was crazy and hard, but I made it through. I feel so bad for the Hermanas who had literally no background in Spanish (two of them spent many years taking French), and the Elder who has been having a hard time. His name is Elder Baxter, and he got here a day late because he was supposed to go the Mexico MTC tomorrow, but he got a call last Tuesday night that said he was supposed to get to the Provo MTC the next day! How crazy. He wasn't even set apart until Thursday. But Spanish for me is going really well. I love the language, and I love the classes and mi maestro, Hermano Mace. It's honestly really great, and I've learned SO MUCH. I can now pray and bear my testimony semi-fluently in Spanish. And I've already taught 4 lessons to "investigators" since I've been here. It's really really hard not knowing how to express myself in the language I need to use. It's beyond frustrating, as I'm sure you can imagine, knowing how much of a perfectionist I am. I generally refuse to use a word unless I know exactly how to say it or conjugate it properly. But when I'm teaching lessons, I'm learning to get over it in order to at least get my general message across when I teach. But even though yo y mi compan~era struggle hard-core with teaching in Spanish, we always feel the Spirit so strongly in our lessons, and there have been so many tears from the wonderful truths we've taught. It's honestly been a magical experience, to know that it doesn't matter how much I suck at speaking Spanish; the Spirit does the work in the conversion process, I'm just the helper. I need to let go of my need to be perfect and good at everything in order to share the lovely truths I've been called to share. 

 

I actually really like wearing my skirts every day. I haven't disliked it at all :) I'm afraid of that moment when I realize I've run out of outfit combinations, but I think I'm good for now. It's only been a week but I practically feel like an MTC expert. My companion, Hermana Walborn, is so so so sweet. She and I get along so well, and I'm so grateful to have her as a companion. I couldn't have asked for anyone better to be my first companion. She's encouraging and hardworking and thoughtful, and she's just all around amazing. She's struggling with Spanish, or so she says. But honestly, considering the last time she took spanish was at the beginning of high school, she's doing so well. She's an awesome person to have in a lesson with me when I run out of things to say or I get stuck on a word, she'll just jump in and bear her testimony on what we're talking about, and it's fantastic.

And I have no problems with the schedule. I don't have a problem waking up early (yet), except for this morning. I slept in 15 minutes. Rebuke me. Haha I was just tired. But we went to the temple this morning at 7 am, so I kind of had to hurry. 

 

And about my shoes...
I wore each of my new pairs the first two days, and I got really bad blisters. so I decided to just wear my flats during the day because it honestly hurt too bad to walk in my new shoes. But my feet have also been swollen this week, mi companera says it's because of water retension, and it's just kind of common for missionaries feet to swell up with the flights and all the sitting. So as my feet kept swelling, even my loose-fitting flats started to rub against my blisters, and none of my bandaids would stay on. On Sunday, we walked up to the temple to take pictures, and my bandaids came off, and I was tired of the thousands of bandaids I was using, so I didn't worry about them for a few hours until I got home. As Sunday progressed, it got harder and harder to walk, and it was just painful to walk in my flats. I figured I'd put some more bandaids on when I got back and see how they were in the morning. So I get in my pajamas and my left foot was huge and swollen and red. It looked horrible. I knew I didn't break it or anything, but I figured one of my blisters gave me an infection. I waited until yesterday, and I went to the doctor, and he said that I got an infection from my blister (obviously) and prescribed me an antibiotic that I walked to the Student Health Center to get. The nurse came in and gave me the notorious "peanut butter shot" which was, as expected, not fun. the left side of my body ached all day, because she had to stick it in my hip. It wasn't pleasant. So yeah. My foot's still swollen, I have LOTS of good moleskin and huge bandaids from the doctor, and I'm taking an antibiotic 4 times a day. Hopefully the infection goes away soon, because my feet are honestly the only thing keeping me from having the best time of my life. I really do love it here :) So, lesson learned. BREAK IN YOUR SHOES BEFOREHAND.

So, on that lovely note. Here's a little on the rest of my district :) There's me and Hna Walborn, Hermanas Nicholls and Daniels, Hnas Houghton and Warner, and Elders Hendrix and Baxter. Elder Hendrix is a hoot. He's really sarcastic, and always says the dumbest randomest things that get everyone to laugh. Especially just his facial expressions and the way he says everything. It's hilarious. But none of us can ever tell when he's kidding or not. He's honestly already mostly fluent in Spanish. He was at the Mexico MTC for 3 weeks, but he got really sick and had to come home. Now he's back here, and he just turned 21 on the day we got here :) Apparently at the Mexico MTC, if you're not fluent by the end of the first day, you're going to have a hard time. So he knows it very well already, and helps us out.

 

Elder Baxter is Marshallese, so he's originally from the Marshall Islands, which are out by Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. He moved to NC a few years ago, and he's lived in Morganton and Raleigh and stuff like that. He's super funny, and is fun to be around. he had a really really hard time with Spanish, because English is already his second language, but he's doing so well. It's kind of inspiring :)

Hna Houghton is from Chicago. She's 6 ft tall, has super pale skin, and has the most ridiculously dark and curly hair. It's tight ringlets, and it's so gorgeous. She loves to laugh, and she's very thoughtful and sweet. Hna Warner is from Utah, and she is kind of quiet, but super sarcastic and apparently very good at Call of Duty. She's hilarious, and I love talking to her.

 

Hna Nicholls is really tall too, ginger, and has the best laugh. Super loud, but she's also very musical, and I love listening to her talk.

The hermanas in our zone that have been here for a month decorated our door :)

Me and Hna Walborn

Todas las Hnas in nuestro districto :) (All the Sisters in our district)

Our entire zone at our temple walk! From left to right, E' Deland, E' Crockett, E' Dobbins, Me, Hna Walborn, Hna Van der Toolen, Hna Gudmundson, Hna Snow, Hna Warner, Hna Houghton, Hna Daniels, Hna Nicholls, E' Baxter, E' Hendrix

Just the Hermanas in our zone :)

Top of the Provo Temple (for kicks)

Hna Houghton y Hna Warner. This is what language study at the MTC looks like.

This is right outside our room in the residence halls. Jose Smith is how we spell Joseph Smith in Spanish, and so whoever did this obviously must have taken Spanish ;) It's been here for forever. It's supposed to say Fire Hose. But Naw.

Me and Hna Walborn again

Hna Daniels is everything I aspire to be. Super athletic, super healthy, and so so so excited about the Gospel and missionary work. She went to BYU-H, and she inspires me every day.
And of course, Hna Walborn. She's the cutest and most adorable person I've ever met. She laughs loudly, and at everything, and she's just a light. Everyone is drawn to her. I'm so grateful to have her as my companion. She's caring and lovely, and I can't wait to get closer to her at the MTC.

On Sunday, we had a devotional with JANICE KAPP PERRY. That's all E' Hendrix would talk about. She kind of wrote every single one of my favorite children's songs. I got to take a picture with her and meet her and her husband. The devotional was about music, obviously, and was fantastic. Her husband is adorable. She told the story about how before they were dating, they were in band. She played the clarinet, and he never really talked to her. Until one day, he got her attention and said, "Those lips look like they were meant for something other than playing the clarinet" and everyone went CRAZY. It was hilarious! And then her husband got up and went over to her and grabbed her a face and kissed her right there over the pulpit. We lost it. Everyone was screaming and laughing and he was soaking up all the attention and it was adorable. I loved that so much.

We also watched Elder Bednar's talk in the MTC a few years ago called "The Character of Christ." If you can find it, I highly recommend you watch it. So so so good.

I gave my first sacrament meeting talk in Spanish! Everyone needs to prepare a talk during the week about a certain topic. In Spanish, and about 3-5 minutes long. No one knows who's speaking until they literally announce it over the pulpit. And I finished my talk in the 15 minutes we sat there before sacrament meeting started. And of course, I was the first one to speak. Of course. But I just read of my paper, but I made good eye contact, and I bore my testimony from the heart in Spanish, and it was really fun. I got so many compliments on my Spanish, and it made me feel pretty good ;)

So, I'm about out of time. Sorry this message was so long, but I just had so much to tell you guys! I hope you're having an awesome week, and I can't wait to talk to you all next week!

My favorite scripture this week (and always) is (I believe...I'm going off of memory here) 2 Nephi 2:11-13. Read them. So good.

Hasta luego! Les amo mucho!!