I was literally filled with the Spirit as I taught Spanish

June 18, 2010

Hola!!!!!!!  I can honestly say this may be the best 30 minutes of my week.  I love emailing home!

So, things are good.  I am doing really good.  But time is flying!  While having 6 weeks left in the MTC still feels like it is going to take forever, the days are really moving.  Every night, Elder Allen and I kneel down for companion prayer and we always comment that it seems like 20 minutes before, we were saying last nights prayer.  Time is flying like everyone said it would.

It was really nice getting a new distrito.  Sam Swensen is in it!  That rocks so much.  As a zone, we do alot of stuff together.  We have pday together, temple together, meal times together, live right next to each other and have gym together.  So we see our zone alot.  It is nice not being the new Elders anymore.  I will send my encampment deal later.  But last week I read Jeff's and loved it!  That was amazing!  I think Elder Crawford has really let his mission change him.  Elder means 'defender of the faith' and just from reading that paragraph, I know that Jeff has really taken his sacred calling seriously.

The temple was so good this morning.  As Elder Allen and I walked outside the temple after the session, it was absolutely beautiful!!!  The roses were in full bloom, the fountains on the temple grounds were fabulous and it was just one of those amazing moments.

As far as athletes are concerned, there are some cool people here.  One of my zone leaders, Elder Richardson, was an Idaho State Champion for wrestling.  He was a heavy weight and is absolutely huge.  Like his forearms are bigger than my legs!  Anyways, he was a redshirt freshman for BYU and is an inside linebacker.  I also met an Old Spice Player of the Year, whatever that means, who was recruited by BYU and plays tight end.  And of course Tyler Haws is here.  It is really cool and I see him everywhere.

Next week there is going to be 113 new Mission Presidents here along with the whole First Presidency and most of the 12.  It is going to be awesome, I can only imagine.

My teachers here are amazing!!  They teach the gospel with such power and conviction.  I love it!  Also, I never understood how amazing PMG is.  It is almost the best book ever!  It is just that every sentence, every word, is valuable.  It is truly a miracle!

During gym while I'm playing baloncesto, I feel like Ben Ostler and think "How would it be to feel this way all the time?"  Gym is always a good break.  The ironic thing is that there is no gym time on pdays!  Hmmmm, seems kinda backwards to me.  Oh, also, I am only allowed to write letters on pday.  I found that out this week.

There are only 2 piano players in my zone.  Me and this other kid who is about as good as me.  So I get to play for Priesthood this week.  Yeah!  It shouldn't be so bad, Elders of Israel and Firm a Foundation.

My district has a goal to teach 10 lessons a week.  Elder Allen and I are doing good.  We already have 8.  Teaching fake investigators is good practice and I think we are getting better but it is just that, fake.  And sometimes the missionary investigators are just terrible.  You could introduce yourself and extend the baptismal commitment and they would probably accept!  But yesterday we taught this Elder who really related and identified with the role he was supposed to play.  He had a time in his life where he fell away etc.  It was an amazing and powerful lesson and Elder Allen and I were really humming.  After the lesson the other Elder said something like, "I wish you Elders would have been the ones to teach me that when I was repenting and coming back to the church.  We had such a good feeling.  It was powerful.  But I'm so excited to teach for real!  Vive Argentina!!!!!

Last night I had a real cool experience with Elder Huntington.  We were learning direct object pronouns and indirect object pronouns and he was really struggling.  So for 45 minutes I helped him and taught him and made sure he understood.  I felt the Spirit so strong as I was doing that.  How weird!  It was especially strange when I finished because I felt so good.  I guess it is just strange to me that I was literally filled with the Spirit as I taught Spanish.  Way cool.

Please don't send food for awhile.  I have a ton right now!  But thanks for everything and all the letters and everything.  And I probably won't send a pic card till I leave here.

On Tuesday, Donald Hallstrom spoke to us and it was about ordinances and covenants.  It was way awesome.

Dear Dad, Happy Fathers day!  I thought about wasting money on a little card, but I didn't for obvious reasons (like you know wasting money) when this will suffice.  Happy Fathers Day!

I also thought about wasting money on a Birthday card for you Amanda, but for obvious reasons, I didn't.  Happy Birthday Amanda!

How's mowing?  One time I thought about you guys mowing.  I think it was Tuesday morning at about 9.  I bet it's just great, like it always is.  Oh, and can you believe that I haven't lost anything?  I know, I am amazing.

Spanish is coming good.  Hummm, that's about all I got on that subject.

Tonight our distrito goes to the TRC, teaching resource center.  Tonight our task is to meet, get to know, talk about how families relate to the gospel in Spanish for 7 minutes to 2 different people (volunteers).  Then we have to teach the first lesson (in English) for 30 minutes.  Should just be wonderful.  This is like the climax of the week because it is as real as it's going to get here!

Well, I'm at 50 seconds.  I'm good.  I can't wait to get to Argentina.  Everybody loves my ties.  This one kid, I mean Elder, always wants to trade.  I say no.

15 seconds.
Bye
Love you