Ola! Tudo Bem!
I am finally at the MTC! In Provo, Utah...not where I
originally planned going, but I am still having a great time waiting for my
visa. My first companion is Elder Thompson and he's from Ohio. There are four
people in our District (group of 14) who have now got there visas and travel
itinerary, including my companion. They leave next Tuesday so I will get a new
companion then.
The MTC is pretty much feels like boot camp for Mormons. Or
it also feels like the maze runner for missionaries. We are thrown into this
fenced in area with different tasks and meal times. We wake up at 6:30 and go
to bed at 10:30. And all day we are either in class, having study time, or
practicing teaching lessons. My Portuguese is coming along slowly but surely.
We had to teach a lesson in Portuguese the third day and let's just say it was
quite difficult. But by our third lesson I was able to pretty much understand
what our "investigator" was saying and be able to respond back
without just reading out of the book. It is definitely harder and easier
knowing Spanish before learning Portuguese. A lot of the vocab is similar,
however the most tricky thing for me is that the "tu" form is formal
the "voce" form is formal so we use voce more often. Which makes my
mind think a little harder every time I need to say something.
Our room has three sets of bunk beds. I got top
bunk...because I display dominance of course. Haha not. I like the other Elders
and Sisters in my district and we all get along pretty great. We went on our
first temple walk on Sunday and it was SO AWESOME. Getting out of the MTC was
honestly the best feeling. And today we get to go to the temple again which is
such a blessing. Some days I feel so locked up. I can just say that I am
excited to get out into the real mission field. I am sorta planning on a
reassignment. Two of the people that got their visas are from Colorado
(including Sister Arbuckle). They all
put their visas through the Dallas constulet. Which kinda stinks because I put
mine through LA because we thought it would be faster. And now LA is backed up
and Dallas is faster. Which means I would've had my visa right now if I went
through Dallas. But oh well, maybe I'll get sent to New York for the time
being.
The food here is exactly the same as the BYU cannon center
except less options. So not great haha. But it's fine I just eat a lot of
fruit. Gym time is the most relaxing part of the day to unwind. Elder Markhem
and I workout at night before bed. He has p-90x workout sheets that we use. Oh
btw, Sorry if I spell words wrong...I am on a timed schedule and don't have
autocorrect sorry!! We get 60 minutes to email but it flies by and I am getting
a cramp in my wrist from trying to type fast lol.
The Lord is truly blessing me here at the MTC. Being away
from family and friends is tough but I know I am getting strength from Heavenly
Father because I wake up everyday (way earlier than normal) and am so excited
to learn about Portuguese and the Gospel. If you have a Book of Mormon near
you, please read Moroni chapter 10. We shared that scripture with our
"investigator" and it's really good. I hope everyone is doing well
and I would love to hear emails from everyone!! Please keep me updated. I'll
try to send pics but they are large and will come in separate emails. I have
pics of the district and my companion among other things.
