Last email from the MTC - 6 days to departure

Dear Everyone!!!

Well ya here I am with 6 days left in the MTC basically and I'm going nuts to say the least! I have gotta keep my head though and stay focused because quite honestly I think I am gonna go insane if I don't. It has been quite the experience here in the MTC and I am loving it but am very much ready to get to the field and do this.

Well family since there are SO MANY STINKING QUESTIONS!!! I will begin to answer them now and give myself more time to think of a story or two for the week.

@Dad: Conference was a blast. I am now desperately in need of a new journal as I go into the Field seeing as how I took all my conference notes in my journal (They are just that important) and so ya, 20 pages of notes later I am running out of space. We viewed conference in 19M big gym and everything and that was awesome; saw a lot of people, lot of interesting conversations and got some fun pics (Elder Plummer, Elder Blackham, Elder Frazier, Elder Turner, Elder Bateman LOTS of elders that I know by one way or another. I have some pics but I am waiting till next week to send them home seeing as how I won't have to pay to print off a CD). As to your flight plan question, I will answer that in a minute. Basketball stories are scarce this week seeing as how I didn't play a whole lot. Lots of soccer (I am going to Korea) and so I've been doing that quite a bit. I'll take a picture of my knee, I totally jacked it up playing but ya. I do, though, have to say that I had my first "+10 blocks in one game" game (and seeing as how we only play to 7 that's pretty good). It was a slaughter to say the least and I discovered that I can get my hand about 11-12 feet in the air if you just let me set up for a jump and I got some adrenaline. That's pretty fun.

@Mom: To be perfectly honest there isn't a whole lot I want for Christmas. I'm on a MISSION! That's my present most of all, but as to things I could use. I need a translator and I am planning on buying one sometime next week in Korea so I'm gonna be needing some money. And I kinda am down to like 100 dollars (which is my emergency money) because I've been using my "cash" for "needed" things (Temple Breakfast, Dry Cleaning...Lamination...Things missionaries need ya know?) So ya I kinda am worried about that but not too bad. Just thought I'd let ya'll know. But ya I don't know how much translators run in Korea but I will need to be getting one in a very very short timeframe so... just a heads up. BUT if you are gonna send me an email saying "I WANNA KNOW WHAT YOU WANT" then I will have to say I want a shiny Korean suit. The nice kind that is all tailored and pretty :) So ya :)

@Jenna: Yes, Jenna, I did get your letter! I haven't had a whole lot of time to do responses to stuff because well frankly, even on P-Day "Personal Time" is usually being dominated by prep and other stuff we have to do. So I apologize for not being as diligent about my responses as I could have been. Today though I promise I will write everyone in my family a letter because well, honestly, I've been meaning to and I just kinda forget. I'm sorry, I'm a lot absent minded and ya. :) So I will make sure you all get your letters this week. Leaving the MTC is just straight up exciting though and I am so ready to go! Living with a companion is different ya, but it's fun to always have someone who (like it or not) gets to stick around you all the time so I get to talk a lot. Which is chill in my book. As to my companion in Korea, I honestly have... No idea. I hope it's a native Korean, because that would be a crazy challenge but I would learn a lot really fast and it would be really good I think. So ya!

@Kellie: Let's see, who has been writing me? I'll give you a list of who I can think of... this week though has been pretty scarce, for my whole district. So I think I got a DearElder like 2 weeks ago from Daniella, I got a letter from Estee a while back, Victoria wrote me about a month ago, Shannon about 2 weeks. Cam wrote me last night though and that is actually one of the emails I need to be sure to send today. So ya :). YES I am definitely gonna be a missionary for Halloween, I'm gonna wear the tag and everything! It's gonna be so cool. I actually get new tags when I get to Korea, sooooo... I am probably gonna send my current set of tags home (Mom, don't let the girls break them, they are very precious to me, just ask Dad about his). So ya :) And yes.... I have tried the Orange Juice, and honestly NOTHING HAPPENED. That was like the biggest bummer ever, everyone talked it up and it is really nothing at all. Although the powerade is boss and Chocolate Milk is pretty dang beast too :)

@Alissa: My favorite part of conference.... That's a tough one Siss, i'm gonna have to say that I liked two parts: I liked J. Devin Cornish's talk when he talked about how because God is our Father the things that are important to us become important to Him and He's willing to help us out with that. That was really cool, then the other one was Henry B Eyring's talk on the Book of Mormon. I had actually been praying a lot about the BoM (I'll talk about that more later too :)). So that talk was very helpful and an answer to a prayer. Favorite part of the MTC..... That's tough, probably my teachers. They are amazing. Brother Davis, and Sister Corrigan. They are so helpful and such good teachers. I love em both and have learned SOOOOOO much from them it is ridiculous. I love it :)

@Katie: yes, bug, I'm gonna remember your birthday, don't you worry. I already know what I'm gonna do. :) But it's gonna be a little early because I can't exactly send it out and have it get there when I want. So you'll get it pretty soon. Don't you worry :)

So ya, that is everyone's questions-- hope ya'll are happy with the responses so ya!

Now the two exciting things:

First off....

I GOT FLIGHT PLANS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

so ya let me describe them to ya'll:

Leave Salt Lake City, UT (at 11:15 AM) and Fly to San Francisco, CA (arrive at 12:18 PM [local time????])

Leave San Francisco, CA (at 2:10 PM 10/10/11) and Fly to Seoul, Korea (Arrive at 6:35 PM 10/11/11) -> That's gonna be a long old flight

So ya that is the plan. And it is getting closer and closer every day I love it! So ya! I am planning on calling family when I get to California, because that's when I know I'll have the most time (I am gonna need a phone card I'll see what I can do though, I still have to dry clean another suit....)

So that is that. It is so exciting! AHHHH!

Secondly, I promised a story, so here it is....

Last week I lost my suit. (Yah I know right?) I gave it to the dry cleaners and they just straight up lost it. So after checking with the dry cleaning office every day for 6 days I finally found it! Take a guess at what happened.... Me and one of my companions went to the office and turned in our suits, he is a 1 suit elder and I am a 2 suit elder. So his suit gets rushed. Well, they rushed his suit, under my name. And then delayed his...... SO I got it back and it's all pretty but I now know the people at the dry cleaning office and how they do their jobs :) I just have spent that much time there haha! SO ya that's one of the stories. And second of all, we have had some native Koreans with us the last 2 weeks. They are HILARIOUS. Oh my it is awesome, but ya so we kinda got in trouble with the security office because we kinda were screaming REALLY STINKING LOUD (for all my Korean friends we played Shocking and then we played 007. I'll send home pictures of my back after we played. I got destroyed). So ya the security guys came and told us to be quiet haha. So ya that wasn't so good, but hey, it was a fun game anywho! And we have since toned things down again so we don't play those games anymore. But ya so that's been that!

And lastly...

I don't know who reads these letters and frankly I appreciate very much all who do! It is great to have people who care enough to keep track of where I am.

But I thought that today would be a good time to issue a challenge.

As I have been studying these last 12 weeks I have really come to realize the importance of the Book of Mormon in my life. It brings more peace and comfort than any other book on this earth. As I have been studying I have prayed to know that it is true. And I think It was said best at conference "We must either decide that the Book of Mormon is from God, or from the Devil." There is no middle ground. Not with this. I know it's of God, it has brought me comfort in times in my life when all that I had and wanted came tumbling to the ground. With my Struggles, with my Sins, with everything that I do. The Book of Mormon can bring peace to our souls in a way that nothing else can. The Book of Mormon is the Word of God. I know that to be true, I have tested the promise in Moroni 10:3-5, and I know for a fact that if we sincerely want to change, if we sincerely want to have God's love in our life, if we will do WHATEVER IT TAKES to come to know Him, that God, our Eternal Father in Heaven, will answer our prayers. I know that to be true. That is the message I am taking to Korea, that I know it's true and by that fact I know this church is true. That Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God and that he receives revelation from Him for us. I know God is guiding this church and I pray for your prayers as I go to share this message. I know it's true, and gosh dangit if you don't sit down and find out. We must decide if it's from God or the Devil, that is our choice. But anyone who honestly and truly reads that book can only come to one conclusion. It's from God. I know that to be true, and I testify of these things in the name of our Savior and Friend, Jesus Christ. Amen.