MTC Week 8

Dear ya´ll!

Hey, so ya, this week has been nuts so let's get right down to business. :)

Katie, I apologize for only saying "whatsup" when we saw you. I was in a hurry to get back to my apartment to get showered for lunch. If ya'll are there again next Saturday and I happen to be coming by, I will for sure stop and say more than hello. I actually feel kinda bad about that so sorry! I hope that maybe we shall see each other once again :). Glad it made Dad happy though (I hope he liked the little parkour that was for him). So ya!

I finally have a place to live and now my companion and Gomez 장로님 [Elder] want to move again..... I am disinclined to aquiess to their request as a famous movie would say (although they would spell it better than I would). I have been busy studying; it has been an intense week. We got all moved on last P-Day and then the mail services decided to crap out. So long story short, I won't be getting any dearelders sent until like Thursday or Friday (hopefully that will be a big mail day for me ;) *HINT HINT* haha. It has been kinda depressing to go to the mailbox and not have anything. Although I do have to say thank you to dad for the package, it has been very nice to be able to have some good munchies at night. So funny story: I straight up KILLED my soda stash this week. So ya, it's gone, but that isn't exactly relevant or anything. I just am amazed at how much soda I have been drinking (especially considering how little I have....weird) Also thanks to mom for the drug drop. I have been progressively getting better and better with the acne so life is starting to take a turn for the better in that department (I can also start the MTC black market now cause I got the hookups :)).

Ahhhhhh, so yes, the new Elders and Sisters, how do we describe them? Well, like this I think: HOLY FREAKING SISTERS. We got 14 new 한국 [South Korea] missionaries-- 11 of them are sisters. I almost died there are SO many; oh my goodness stinking gracious. But they are doing like this new curriculum with them and they are learning at a crazy fast rate; it's kinda disturbing. But ya. So we do have 1 native speaker-- he came in with the new missionaries. He will probably be like Elder Moon and Elder Seo who were with us but left with the older district. 이 장로님 will probably leave with us. So ya that's that.

Things are definitely kicking into high gear these last 4 weeks. We practice teaching so much. We hardly even do any Korean study anymore so any Korean that I want to learn I have to learn on my own. Now that is interesting, let me tell you. But ya, we are getting new Korean Koreans in either 25 hours or 7 days. One of the two I'm not sure exactly which, but we shall see what happens.

So my departure date is actually on the 10th of October so ya, that'll be an exciting week. I'll let ya'll know about my travel plans and phone since I am allowed to make some phone calls from the airport, so I will have more fun and exciting news about that. I probably will fly to Sacramento California and that is where I will make my calls home since that is where I will have the longest layover (this is at least what I am guessing based on what the last group did). But like I said more news to come on that in the future.

So, the feeling about me getting to see my family amongst the elders is GREAT (as long as they get some food out of it-- they are like "Please she [your mom] can come every day") but ya Sisters don't really notice and frankly, the sisters are very vocal about their opinions about stuff so we Elders have just gotten used to tuning out any comments the sisters have because they are so opinionated. In fact, I want to talk more about that and ask for expert opinions from ya'll. How do you teach a sister who has said that she "can't learn" how to learn? I am at a standstill because it is just killing me. Her companion came to the MTC all ready to help her out learning the language (because she already speaks Korean pretty well). Well, we are 8 weeks in and this sister's companion comes to me all the time frustrated because her companion doesn't know basic concepts that we learned on like day 5. I don't know what to tell her, so of late I have just told her to be patient with her and pray for her, but honestly, it is frustrating as an observer to watch how willing this sister's companion was to help drop because her companion says she "can't learn." I just frankly don't believe that at all. We are sent here to this earth to learn and I have a hard time accepting that a sister thinks she just can not. It is frustrating to me, but at the same time it's one of this things I'm getting used to and starting to just tune out. I am just frustrated. So any advice that you have about how to get it through a sister's head how to learn is welcomed and wanted.

Letters this week, just Dad. I didn't send any out last week besides this email because I didn't have any mail to respond to and we had to move and 50 thousand other things so this week has been pretty depressing mail wise. But hey life goes on (for now... it may stop later if the mail shortage continues. You never know how much you need to talk to people till you come to the MTC and just CAN'T). I did, however, get my first letter from Victoria last week; that was awesome (Victoria you will probably read this so thanks again :)). So ya at this point I'm just studying my mind out and doing all sorts of study and then I study some more and that about describes my life. So ya!

So about the pictures. Mother if you will check your tutoring folder at the MTC I left you a fun little CD in there that should have quite a few pics on it :). I figured you would prefer digital pictures as opposed to hard copies so I ordered a CD when I got some pics printed. (Oh about the 125 some odd pics of like 4 different people. I discovered that my camera has a high speed burst camera option so I had some fun taking crazy pics of people. Don't have to worry :)). So......... ya let's see interesting stories from this week............

Oh yes! Ok, I got one, so this week we (Elder Miller and I) took care of some of the problems in our district. Starting with a much needed, heavily encouraged Companionship Inventory. Elder Miller and I had to talk to both of the sisters to get them to understand what a companionship inventory actually was. (I believe I described it a couple weeks back so just in case ya'll were wondering you should be able to go look up that). The two sisters apparently went at it for like 2 hours and got things resolved. It was cool, I am happy that I got to take care of my problems with Miller 장로님 when I did. D&C 122:7 is really true "all these things shall give thee experience and shall be for thy good." It has been a blessing because of how far we have come just because of that one Companionship Inventory. They are BEAUTIFUL things and can really strengthen the relationship not only between missionaries but between any two people anywhere. It is way cool. I really have a testimony of Companionship Inventories because I have been a part of the process where the spirit has touched my heart and made me want to change and be better. Gah, this church is so cool! I love it!!!! ^_^

Ya, life is good here. I am diligently reading the Book of Mormon and it'll be fun in the coming weeks to finish it again. I really do find tons of cool stuff every time I read it. It is awesome! I am excited to hear from ALL of you on Thursday/Friday *WINK WINK* haha :). I guess I will bear my testimony again. BUT this time I'm gonna do it in English.

I want ya'll to know that I know this church is true. It is amazing and has blessed my life in a way that I can't even describe. I love the Atonement. I love that I can take my weaknesses and take my struggles and pains and sorrows all to my Savior. I testify from the deepest part of my soul that he can and will help us. He will make us clean, he will take away all our pains, sorrows. He will help us through those struggles in our lives.

I think about that story of the Savior and a man were walking down the beach. Every step the two of them took was another step down the life of the man. One day as the man was walking down the beach he looked back on some of the hardest times in his life. During those times he saw only one set of footprints. The man asked the Savior: "Where were you during those hardest times of my life?" The Savior smiled and replied: "My son, that is where I carried you."

I know that I have felt that in my life. I know that I am make so many mistakes. I struggle daily with everything I do. But I know that if I turn to my savior he will ease my burdens and if need be he will carry my through some of the trials in my life. I am so eternally grateful for that. I love the Book of Mormon! It is literally God's words. I love Scriptures like Alma 7:11-13, or Ether 12:27. These kinds of scriptures bring a peace to my heart that only the Holy Ghost can bring. I know that Joseph Smith translated this book. I know it's true. I know that Joseph Smith saw God, Our Eternal Father, and our Savior, Jesus Christ, in the Sacred Grove. I know it to be true. I wouldn't be out here preparing to take this message to the other side of the world if I didn't know it was true. I am so grateful to be here, I am eternally grateful that I can serve this mission. Noone ever said it would be easy, they only said it would be worth it. I love this experience. Every day is a challenge, but EVERY day I see the blessings.

I add my testimony to that of everyone that has gone before me. He lives! I know it to be true. These things I testify of in the Sacred Name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Love you everyone!

Crowther 장로