Week 2 at the MTC has
been even crazier than the first few days and I have so much more to say and
still only 30 minutes to write. I will try to answer as many questions as I can
because that is pretty much all I have time for. Before I do that -
THANK YOU TO EVERYONE
WHO HAS WRITTEN ME!
It has been so nice
to read all of your words of encouragement and love;
it makes the days so
much better to know and to hear from you all,
so thank you so much
for all that;
it really has kept me
going on the long hard days;
I hope to hear more
from all of you even if I can’t respond to each letter you send.
P-day is going to be Friday
for the next 9 weeks. I have until 6pm to do all my personal stuff and then its
back to the classroom for another 4 hours. I am actually liking classroom time
a lot more than I thought I would. It is something I look forward to each day
even though it is sometimes 6 hours in a row.
I am in a threesome
now and probably will be for the rest of my time in the MTC. For a while there
was a chance of us being split up but now that new missionaries have come and
none have been moved up I think el trifecto is secure. That is what we call
ourselves. I learned how long I would be in the MTC on the first day I got here
when they gave me my 9 (10) week schedule. I will be here for 63 days but that
is over 10 weeks—if that makes sense.
Daily routine is
boring to read but actually fun to do I get up every morning at 5am and make
some soup.
Just kidding.
I get up and 6:30 am
and get ready for breakfast at 7:10. After breakfast, we head to the classroom
for study time or for classroom time—it changes. Some days it’s different. On
Tuesdays and Fridays though after breakfast is either temple or service time. But
the other days it’s classroom time. If we study first, we have class after
and then gym time. If we have class first, it is study after and then gym time.
It’s actually pretty easy to remember. After gym we have time to shower
and go to lunch and after lunch is either study or class time. So for most of
the day, we are sitting in the classroom being taught or trying to teach
ourselves. Sometimes, we have class time after dinner, which we use to teach
our investigators. After dinner we have class or study or sometime until 9:30
pm when we go back to the residence and get ready for bed and get to sleep by
10:30. It’s hard because I often can’t write in my journal because there is
never enough time. That is the basic schedule. 2 three-hour blocks of
class per day with a gym time and about 3 hours of personal and
companionship study. It’s a lot of butt time.
There are 3 in our
room but there are 4 beds, which is nice because we are not too
cramped. Elder Harvey and Noyes sleep on the bunk bed closest to the
door and I sleep on the bottom bed across from the window.
The MTC food is awful.
I have been sick this past week, and it has been so hard to eat food that
is gross while wanting to puke before and then even more after. I haven’t
been able to eat too much because most of it just ends up coming back up. So
lots of PowerAde and salad. For some reason those 2 things don’t upset my
stomach very much although they do not lead to exciting meals by any means.
About the sickness. This
week has been really hard because have been feeling so sick and so
sad. It’s been really hard to not feel sorry for myself and still be an
example and a leader. It is a good thing I have that leadership-ness to
hold on to other wise I might have broken down a long time ago. Life is hard
here. But I can feel myself learning and growing each day which makes it
all worth it.
I don’t really need
too much, although a few more pairs of socks and some more shorts and t-shirts
would allow me to not have to wear the same gym clothes everyday hahaha. That
also might help the bedroom not to stink as bad. It’s not a big deal, I can
definitely survive without them. I get all the dear elders you guys
send usually the same day, which is so nice, although if they had
dates on them it would help me a lot, because Dear Elder doesn’t say when they
were sent.
I am in the
intermediate district, which is between native and beginner. We speak
Spanish 100% of the time but we are still in the MTC for 9 weeks. Native
speakers are only here for 3.
Wednesday was Independence
day so we did get to watch the BYU light show/fireworks and eat ice-cream it
was fun but they didn’t want us returning to bed until it was over and the show
didn’t finish till after 11:15.... so Thursday was a longggg day. I don’t do
too well with less than 8 hours of sleep. Before the show there was a fireside/devotional
thing, which was pretty cool. Not as good as the one on Sunday about Joseph Smith.
Gym time is fun. I have
been playing volleyball and it is such an experience. There are some real
athletes here. I hope in 9 weeks some of that skill can rub off on me.
Thanks Cameron for
the Dear Elder letter. It was so nice to hear some things from home and be
reminded of the things that make me happy. I laughed till I cried over the
quotes you sent me. I am glad that you are having a good time.
Thank you also uncle Adam
for sharing your MTC experience. You don’t have to apologize I love hearing
tips and tricks and ways to make the most of my MTC experience. As long as its
different than the mantra "be obedient," it is something new.
I hope I can some how
get across how much I love being here. I was thinking about this part
specifically yesterday how awesome it is to be able to sit and bear testimony
whenever I feel inclined. Or talk about Jesus Christ openly and deeply without
the fear of being over bearing or anything like that. It is an amazing blessing
and only begins to scratch the surface of what is so special about this place.
There is no better testimony of the sacredness of the MTC than the constant
spirit that is here. Even when everything seems bleak there are still things to
make it all seem worth it. I am so happy to be here. Weeks I’m sure will drag on
but they will be worth it and full of growth. After all they are to help me
better serve and there is nothing I like more than doing that.
Something that I have
been thinking about a lot lately and that has helped when I miss home a lot is
the corny but awesome saying
“Missionary: someone
who sacrifices time with the people they love, so those they teach can spend
eternity with theirs.” That is the best way I think I have heard it put, because
it truly is a sacrifice to be here. I feel that whenever anything reminds me of
life before June 25th. It stings but then thinking about the blessings and the happiness
that I could bring to people reinvigorates me. In the scheme of it all then my
2 years seems like a bargain for anyone's salvation and their opportunity to
live with their family forever. What a blessing that could be for me to bring just
one person into the fold. Just one person who can have that hope and joy that I
feel. If I could teach 1 family of their divine potential I could die a happy
man because I know that their lives will be changed and they will have such a
great happiness with the knowledge that not even death can separate them. What
a beautiful blessing this is.
The gospel is true and
restored and it is on the earth to bless everyone. I hope to be able to fulfill
that.
I hope to hear from
all of you. All your letters mean so much. Dear Elder is pretty awesome.
To everyone I didn’t
get to address I am sorry. Know that I love you all and I am thinking about you
all the time.
See you all
soon..ish.
Elder Anderson /// Sam.
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