Did I mention I get to call home on Wednesday? I'm still not exactly sure if I can call home when I get to the Salt Lake airport or the San Jose one but should I call the home phone? That's what I'm planning on. And I bought a calling card with 500 minutes...only it takes 129 to make the call in the first place. So hopefully you can answer the first time? My flight leaves SLC at 835am so if I call from there it'll be 7 or 730? Not sure. But sometime in the morning so make sure you're awake :) And then I'll be in California at 1036am (Utah time) so I might be calling closer to 11. Dad will you be able to stay home from work that late in case I can't call until I'm in California? Also, I don't know how it'd be possible to talk to Andrea and Jessica too...so if anyone has ideas let me know!
So this week has been pretty crazy with getting ready to leave for the field. And it's gone by even faster than most other weeks. I'm over my cold now...which means I stopped taking my cold medicine at night which means I'm not sleeping as good anymore haha. Our teachers think (at least they say) that our Spanish is more advanced than any other district they've taught. They might tell that to every district though. I feel like I technically understand everything they teach us, I just can't quite apply it to my speaking yet. But when I write and can take my time with everything I do a lot better. Unfortunately I won't be writing lessons to my investigators though huh? In our fireside last Sunday we learned about the importance of saying positive things to people...especially when labeling them. Make sure you only use labels that Christ would. We also learned, from an old Elder Bednar fireside, the importance of our missions. This mission isn't an "experience" that will be over in 18 months...it's training for the rest of my life and it will shape the kind of person I am. I only have 16 months left to shape the kind of person I will be for the rest of my life! Well obviously there will always be growth and progress throughout my life but 16 months just seems so short. I just pray that I'll always have the desire that I have right now from being in the MTC for 2 months and that is to bring others unto Christ.
I also realized this week how AWESOME the plan of salvation is. I've never studied it like I have these past two months. We are so lucky to know where we came from before this earth, why we need to experience earth life and what happens once we leave this earth. Such a blessing. I think I've just always taken it for granted. I don't know how you (my parents) talked me into taking piano lessons but I have been so shocked how many people DON"T know how to play the piano. I've been able to play a lot for workshops etc and I think I've taken that talent/ability for granted a lot of my life too. But it's been fun to be able to help out through playing the piano. My kids better take piano lessons. Our Devotional on Tuesday was with a member of the 70 Elder and Sister Gavarret and they were native Spanish speakers with real thick accents but it gave me hope that if they can learn English then I can learn Spanish. And sister gavarret bore her testimony in Spanish and I understood it! It was so cool!! But then she switched to portuguese half way through and I could only pick up a few words and didn't realize she had switched languages until someone told me. Listening to them speak gave me this huge love for latinos and I'm so excited to be working with them next week! I want to share my testimony in Spanish so you can see where I am at the end of my MTC experience...then after my mission we can compare and see how much I thought I knew leaving the MTC...but really didn't: (I bore my testimony in Spanish to our district on Wednesday but it's going to be hard to type because I don't know where the accents are. And I'm sure there are tons of errors!)
Yo tengo gracias a mi Padre Celestial por la oportunidad yo tengo estar aqui en la CCM y preparar servir El y a mis hermanos y hermanans en San Jose. Yo se que sin ninguna duda en mi corazon que Jesucristo vive y cada dia yo siento el amor de Dios y Jesucristo por mi. Yo se que Jesucristo es mi salvador y a traves su Expiaction puedo regresar y vivir con mi Padre Celestial otra vez. Estoy muy agradecido por el Evangelio en mi vida especialmente que mi padres han ensenado estas cosas a mi. Yo se que si obedece los mandamientos, tenga paz y gozo en mi vida. Mas importante yo se que Jose SMith fur un profeta de Dios y hoy tenemos profetas qui gian la Iglesia a traves revelacion de Dios. Tambien, yo se que el Libro de Mormon es verdadero y contiene la plenitud del Evangelio. El Libro de Mormon es un otro testimonio de Jesucristo. Yo ouedo testificar que estas cosas son verdaderas porque el Espiritu Santo ha confirmado. Y yo se que todas personas pueden saber estas cosas son verdaderas timbien a traves el Libro de Mormon y oracion a Dios. Yo digo estas cosas en el nombre de Jesucristo. Amen.
So did anyone know what I said? :) Does Liana have her mission call yet? I swear within the last week every single building is now under construction to prepare for all the new missionaries coming in next year. I'm actually really happy that I'll be gone by then...it's going to be hectic. Our classroom is getting changed into sisters residence so we moved on Thursday to a new buildling...that is super old. Probably similiar to what Dad had while he was here. Tiny desks etc. I guess we were pretty spoiled our first 8 weeks here with padded rolling chairs and big desks and computer labs. But we'll only have 3 more classes in that room. I finished the book of mormon on wednesday...so I read it 1.5 times since I've been here. I was in helamen when I first got to the MTC so I re-started it about a month ago. I can't remember. But that book is SO awesome. And SO true. How could a book that testifies of jesus christ and the bible on just about every page NOT be the word of god? No se.
Yestereday we had in-field orientation all day and it was really helpful. It made me realize that I really am leaving and I really will be sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with people everyday all day. But it sounds SO fun! And hard. But mostly fun. I realized everything I've been taught here is contrary to what I've been training for the past four years of my life: "Success is given from constant dilligence, not sudden bursts of energy" What?? I'm a sprinter not an endurance runner! But oh well...I just keep relating it to training for those races. That definitely required constant dilligence. I'll try to comment on everyone's letters now:
Dad- I got a foot picture for you but not by an MTC sign. I don't know where you've been seeing pictures of it...but no one here seems to think it exists. So hopefully you're okay with the one I got. It's on the statue where the missionaries are biking across the world. Not sure if i'll be able to send it today or not. But I will be sending my card home one day. They've taught us a lot about effective ways of finding people whom the lord has prepared to hear the gospel and tracting was not one of them. They did mention the internet as a way...not facebook but some missions do set one up. Mainly using mormon.org to help them answer faq. But that story really is cool. I think you're right...that the elders were led by the spirit through technology. I don't think God allowed the internet to be invented for people to do their christmas shopping. He also has better ideas in store. Sounds like the kitchen is definitely coming along. You'll have to send pictures soon. I think my texas airline ticket was about 300 and then I used my voucher. So 387 might not be too bad. How early did you have to get in line for black friday? I did that once...last year....never again. I don't miss christmas shopping this year. Just the Christmas music. And dad I'm gonna tell you what we tell all of our investigator's when talking about the word of wisdom..you only get ONE body for your entire life on earth so you better take care of it. Did you get your foot in a boot yet? It doesn't sound like you'll be doing soccer next year. Oh and horror stories about the overcharges at the airport for making calls..they charge 20$ a minute if you use your debit card. So I'll just use my calling card. And I can call home for christmas too.
Mom- thanks for checking my bank account. Did the christmas tree get decorated? I want to see lots of christmas pictures! Will christmas be at your house? And I don't know what the best form of mail will be while i'm in california. Maybe snail mail or email..i guess dearelder still works but you have to pay for it right? Thanks for sending my package! I'm excited to get it. And I have some clothes that I won't be taking to california with me. Actually maybe just one skirt. I might put it in the donation box I don't think it's worth sending home. It's the pink skirt that I already had and it's pretty old so I don't think I'll miss it. So you've mentioned a lot about member missionary work and we talked about that A TON in our workshop yesterday. I don't have time to write everything but here is what needs to happen for anyone to be converted and you can help in any and all of them:
Be invited to investigatte, be taught the missionary lessons, read from the book of mormon, pray, attend sacrament and other meetings, live the commandments including the word of wisdom, law of chastity, law of tithing, fast and hold fhe etc. There are more but those are a few examples. I wish I could role play with you. We role play ALL The time and it's super helpful. Role play with dad haha it'll be a fun fhe activity. Plus your example of how you live and how you've raised your family is missionary work in and of itself.
Andrea and Jessica- I don't have time to email you back so i'm gonna write both of you real letters before i leave the MTC. I got the package you two sent and I'm so excited to open it!! But i'll wait until christmas even if it kills me. And andrea yes you can give him my address but you should probably wait until I have my california address. Thanks for asking! Jessica I LOVED The pictures of ethan and alex. Super cute.
Okay I have to go but I'll talk to you soon!
Love, Hermana Billings.
Showing posts with label MTC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MTC. Show all posts
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Friday, November 23, 2012
November 23, 2012-MTC
!Feliz dia de Gracias! I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving! Sorry if I'm not replying to anyone that wrote me yesterday or today. We won't get mail until tonight because of the holiday. But mom, I did get your Thanksgiving letter. Thanks! It was nice to get one last letter before the holiday. I'm glad President Lee spoke about Missionary Work. They teach us a lot about the importance of getting members involved. I've never read the Joseph Smith History by his mother all the way through but now I'm wishing I did. It's crazy that SO many people put SO much trust and faith in Joseph Smith. And are willing to sacrifice their entire lives for what he has taught. Why do we trust him so much? Especially when we've never even met him? Because through the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, Pearl of Great Price and Joseph Smith Translations of the Bible we grow SO much closer to Jesus Christ and learn SO much more about Jesus Christ. It's pretty simple. There is so much evidence that he is a prophet of God. This Thanksgiving I am most grateful that because of Joseph Smith I have this knowledge of the gospel and the Book of Mormon. But most of all I am grateful for the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ and his example of perfection.
So tell me all about Thanksgiving! Was it at mom and dad's house? Who came? What did you eat? Are you already putting up Christmas decorations? I think I'm going to miss decorating for Christmas more than I'll miss the actual holiday. But they did put up nice Christmas lights here at the MTC. I sent a picture with the lights...hopefully you can see them. So I'll tell you what Thanksgiving was like at the MTC. It was actually so much fun I loved it! In the morning Elder Holland came and spoke to us. He had a few of his really cute grandkids do musical numbers and/or share their testimonies. He talked a lot about the this final dispensation and how every other dispensation has known that they will end in apostasy but we know that this dispensation will finally end in victory. It should put weight on our shoulders to get the work done. He also said that our future families will be equally as important as missionary work but NOTHING is more important that this mission because for 24/7 we are engaged in the salvation of a human soul...starting with our own and taking it to as many people as we can. It's just so true! I can't believe I even considered serving a mission as a sacrifice because it really is a huge blessing AND responsibility. He also talked about how we are part of God's family so he is working just as hard to get us to return and live with him. He wants to live with his entire family again just as we want to live with our families again when we die. Everything god does is to bring about the eternal life and salvation of men. For Thanksgiving Dinner (lunch) we had turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans and pie (well that's what I had...but they also had stuffing and rolls etc.) So it felt just like a normal thanksgiving! Really good food and I ate until I was stuffed. I actually out ate all the elders in my district haha Elder Christensen was like, "I just don't understand where it all goes!" We then went to a Thanksgiving Program thing where I was in a skit as an Indian Princess (I sent pictures of that). They told the story of the first Thanksgiving and then we sang "Over the River and Through the Woods" All the missionaries went wild being able to sing a non-church hymn for once. I actually didn't know that song was about Thanksgiving until we sang it. Then we worked on a humanitarian project and made 4200 education kits and 4500 health kits for children in Africa (I think the city was ouelessebougou...maybe Scott will know?) We finished the night off watching 17 Miracles and they handed out bags of kettle corn for everyone. That movie will make ANYONE realize just how grateful we should be. And how blessed we are! Elder Holland also said that we have the opportunity to do more in one day than our ancestors had to do in an entire lifetime.
So for the rest of the week it was pretty typical. Nothing exciting happened on Sunday...no apostles or spur of the moment testimony bearing opportunities but it was a great day. Well it was raining so we couldn't go on a temple walk..instead we had a mormon messages movie night in our classroom until dinner time. Super relaxing...Sunday's aren't going to be relaxing once I'm in California I'm sure. Our fireside that night was on the importance of staying healthy and how , if we want to be 100% obedient, we need to workout at least 30 minutes a day. I was happy to hear that! Now my companions won't have any excuse about working out with me. Yay :) Funny story of the week...we were talking to our investigator about what to expect after he gets baptized (which will be on Saturday) and I was trying to explain that the bishop will most likely give him a "calling" so that he has the opportunity to serve others. Well I said "The lord will call you as a servant" He couldn't stop smiling but he didn't tell me what I had said until after the lesson.
Everyone started getting sick a few weeks ago and I told my companion that I wasn't worried because I never get sick. Well Lo and Behold I was the only one that got sick. Well and another Elder in our district. And Elders at this age really don't know how to take care of themselves without their mom. I had to buy him medicine haha But I've been sleeping so great because the medicine I take every night knocks me out. Maybe I should have gotten sick earlier. Hopefully I'll be better before California. Which reminds me...we got our travel plans. I leave for San Jose on December 5. My flight is at 730 or 830 I can't remember. All I know is I have to be at the travel office at 5am. The rest of my district leaves December 4 ( including my comp) So i don't know what I'll do by myself for that entire day. We're supposed to go to the travel office to figure it out but it's been closed for the holiday.
Mom did you find anything out about my bike? And are you going to be able to send that stuff to cali?
Our devotional on Tuesday was about the importance of using our agency. God created things to ACT and things to be ACTED UPON. If we don't choose to act then we are choosing not to use our agency. Especially as missionaries we need to act...we can't be passive because people NEED the gospel of Jesus Christ. Once we realize that someone's salvation is at stake we are able to realize how important missionary work really is. Being a member of this church is not just a lifestyle or a social group...it's the difference of salvation. I don't think I realized how big of a deal missionary work was/is when I decided to serve. But I am gaining an understanding of it now. Most people have lost hope and so they stop acting. Satan wants us to lose our agency so he takes away our hope. The gospel of Jesus Christ restores that hope. Everyone on this earth has already exercised their hope in Jesus Christ by choosing to follow God's plan and to be on this earth in the first place.
Anyway...sorry this wasn't the most exciting update. One more week in the MTC and then I'm sure I'll have lots of exciting stories to share from California. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and I hope to hear from you soon! Take care and God Bless
Love, Sister Billings
So tell me all about Thanksgiving! Was it at mom and dad's house? Who came? What did you eat? Are you already putting up Christmas decorations? I think I'm going to miss decorating for Christmas more than I'll miss the actual holiday. But they did put up nice Christmas lights here at the MTC. I sent a picture with the lights...hopefully you can see them. So I'll tell you what Thanksgiving was like at the MTC. It was actually so much fun I loved it! In the morning Elder Holland came and spoke to us. He had a few of his really cute grandkids do musical numbers and/or share their testimonies. He talked a lot about the this final dispensation and how every other dispensation has known that they will end in apostasy but we know that this dispensation will finally end in victory. It should put weight on our shoulders to get the work done. He also said that our future families will be equally as important as missionary work but NOTHING is more important that this mission because for 24/7 we are engaged in the salvation of a human soul...starting with our own and taking it to as many people as we can. It's just so true! I can't believe I even considered serving a mission as a sacrifice because it really is a huge blessing AND responsibility. He also talked about how we are part of God's family so he is working just as hard to get us to return and live with him. He wants to live with his entire family again just as we want to live with our families again when we die. Everything god does is to bring about the eternal life and salvation of men. For Thanksgiving Dinner (lunch) we had turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans and pie (well that's what I had...but they also had stuffing and rolls etc.) So it felt just like a normal thanksgiving! Really good food and I ate until I was stuffed. I actually out ate all the elders in my district haha Elder Christensen was like, "I just don't understand where it all goes!" We then went to a Thanksgiving Program thing where I was in a skit as an Indian Princess (I sent pictures of that). They told the story of the first Thanksgiving and then we sang "Over the River and Through the Woods" All the missionaries went wild being able to sing a non-church hymn for once. I actually didn't know that song was about Thanksgiving until we sang it. Then we worked on a humanitarian project and made 4200 education kits and 4500 health kits for children in Africa (I think the city was ouelessebougou...maybe Scott will know?) We finished the night off watching 17 Miracles and they handed out bags of kettle corn for everyone. That movie will make ANYONE realize just how grateful we should be. And how blessed we are! Elder Holland also said that we have the opportunity to do more in one day than our ancestors had to do in an entire lifetime.
So for the rest of the week it was pretty typical. Nothing exciting happened on Sunday...no apostles or spur of the moment testimony bearing opportunities but it was a great day. Well it was raining so we couldn't go on a temple walk..instead we had a mormon messages movie night in our classroom until dinner time. Super relaxing...Sunday's aren't going to be relaxing once I'm in California I'm sure. Our fireside that night was on the importance of staying healthy and how , if we want to be 100% obedient, we need to workout at least 30 minutes a day. I was happy to hear that! Now my companions won't have any excuse about working out with me. Yay :) Funny story of the week...we were talking to our investigator about what to expect after he gets baptized (which will be on Saturday) and I was trying to explain that the bishop will most likely give him a "calling" so that he has the opportunity to serve others. Well I said "The lord will call you as a servant" He couldn't stop smiling but he didn't tell me what I had said until after the lesson.
Everyone started getting sick a few weeks ago and I told my companion that I wasn't worried because I never get sick. Well Lo and Behold I was the only one that got sick. Well and another Elder in our district. And Elders at this age really don't know how to take care of themselves without their mom. I had to buy him medicine haha But I've been sleeping so great because the medicine I take every night knocks me out. Maybe I should have gotten sick earlier. Hopefully I'll be better before California. Which reminds me...we got our travel plans. I leave for San Jose on December 5. My flight is at 730 or 830 I can't remember. All I know is I have to be at the travel office at 5am. The rest of my district leaves December 4 ( including my comp) So i don't know what I'll do by myself for that entire day. We're supposed to go to the travel office to figure it out but it's been closed for the holiday.
Mom did you find anything out about my bike? And are you going to be able to send that stuff to cali?
Our devotional on Tuesday was about the importance of using our agency. God created things to ACT and things to be ACTED UPON. If we don't choose to act then we are choosing not to use our agency. Especially as missionaries we need to act...we can't be passive because people NEED the gospel of Jesus Christ. Once we realize that someone's salvation is at stake we are able to realize how important missionary work really is. Being a member of this church is not just a lifestyle or a social group...it's the difference of salvation. I don't think I realized how big of a deal missionary work was/is when I decided to serve. But I am gaining an understanding of it now. Most people have lost hope and so they stop acting. Satan wants us to lose our agency so he takes away our hope. The gospel of Jesus Christ restores that hope. Everyone on this earth has already exercised their hope in Jesus Christ by choosing to follow God's plan and to be on this earth in the first place.
Anyway...sorry this wasn't the most exciting update. One more week in the MTC and then I'm sure I'll have lots of exciting stories to share from California. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and I hope to hear from you soon! Take care and God Bless
Love, Sister Billings
Friday, November 16, 2012
November 16, 2012-MTC
Well Sunday is definitely turning out to be the day with all of the excitement. Last Sunday I met an apostle of the lord Jesus Christ...face to face...and shook his hand. It was so neat! We were leaving breakfast Sunday morning, walking down the same hall that we always do and I saw President Brown (MTC pres) walking down another hall with two other men (who I thought were just some missionaries). So I waved to him...he's really easy to recognize from far away because he has bright white hair. Anyway, he said "Sister Billings come down here for a minute" So we walked over there and I was just looking at Pres Brown I didn't notice the other people he was with. Then he said (to one of the men) "Shake the hands of Sister Billings and Sister Snow" and I thought he was just introducing us to some new missionaries. So I look up to shake someones hand and I'm staring right at Elder Bednar. My jaw literally dropped and I said "Oh! Hi!" He actually laughed at my startled expression. Later that day we ran into President Brown during lunch and he said that he told Elder Bednar "the missionaries don't get better than that" and Elder Bednar said, "I could feel it" Not like he would ever say "umm...i've met better" but I'll take what I can get from an apostle. And I can't believe I got to shake his hand. He works DIRECTLY under Jesus Christ...that's all I could think about the rest of the day. Remember how President Brown asked me to get up and bear my testimony? Everyone was saying that's exactly why you don't make friends with President Brown....well now I'm definitely glad that I did. I was glad I did before he introduced me to Elder Bednar though.
I used my jump rope last week and my calves were so sore for like 2 days! And I only did it for 10 minutes. My comp doesn't want to stay for gym for the whole 50 minutes anymore so it's killing me to not get as much gym time. But at least I still get some. And I'm learning to compromise with others.
My teacher said not to read Jesus The Christ anymore until I'm out in the field. I'm supposed to just focus on reading the scriptures, especially the book of mormon, and preach my gospel. I was really starting to enjoy Jesus The Christ though. I got a letter from Liana about her decision to serve a mission. That is so neat! Will someone tell her thatmyfashioncorner.com is a really good place to get missionary clothes? If I knew about it before I would have bought all my clothes there. They have a small selection from myfashioncorner in the MTC and I bought a new skirt and white collar blouse. And the prices are really reasonable. Speaking of missions...in D&C i think section 79 there is a mission call calling John Carter to the same mission AGAIN (I think to Vermont) and I had the thought that one day it would be so neat if everyone's mission calls were re-instated and if they were in any possible condition to serve again to go back to their mission. Wouldn't you want to go back to France again dad? Everyone would be a full time missionary until Jesus Christ came again. Sounds like a perfect world to me :)
We taught our first 40 minute lesson on Tuesday (usually they're 20) and it was surprisingly easy. Well easier than I thought it would be. I'm so surprised at how much Spanish we've learned. It's a miracle. Has anyone heard of John C. Tanner? I hadn't...so if you haven't either I HIGHLY recommend searching for the video of him about the Law of Consecration. It might be on lds.org
On Wednesday we got to host the new missionaries and it was SO fun! At first I didn't want to do it because we had to miss Gym...but it was worth it. The first sister I hosted is going to San Jose, leaving the same day as I am! So we'll get to travel together. She also went to school at BYUH and served in the RS presidency with Aysia. Aysia if you're reading this her name is Brittany (and then some samoan last name which I can't remember or pronounce) What are the odds? I'm excited to have finally met a sister that will be going to the same mission as I am. Especially leaving on the same day. My teacher's girlfriend's litter brother also entered the MTC and will be leaving for San Jose the same day. He's already fluent in Spanish and the other sister is going english speaking. The second sister I hosted went to Davis and was on the track team..she's one year older than me though and will be serving in Arcadia, Ca.
So during class one day I had THE weirdest experience. Hmno Wright was sharing a story with us about when he was younger and he was speaking in Spanish but I honestly understood everything. Usually I have to translate word for word. As soon as he was done with his story though I had to go back to translating word for word. For a second I thought that he had told the story in English. I can't explain it....but it was weird. I also had my first experience with transfers and having to pack my bags super fast. We were asked to move up to the fourth floor in our building so that they could do construction on our floor. I am now on the top bunk and I almost die every single time that I try to go down the ladder in the dark.
Andrea- Those pictures of Boston were SO cute!!! I wish I could print them out. As soon as I get to Cali I'm printing out all the pictures of Boston, Ethan and Alex. Dad you're right...I should have brought a little photo album. But I can buy one here. You should have seen everyone's reaction when I told the district they were making a sequel to Boy Meets world. Is it the same actors? Actually some of the elders were too young to even know what Boy Meets world is. But all the sisters and a few of the older elders were really excited. And thanks for sharing your thoughts about God being in control...that's a lesson that I definitely need to learn too. No matter how much I study I still can't learn what I need to without his help. Especially with the Spanish. I need His help. ANd I don't know that'd I'd be able to communicate with the construction workers either...well I could definitely teach them about Jesus Christ and modern day prophets but other than that I can't speak spanish. At least not yet.
Mom- yay I'm glad you can eat grains now! Is that your first time reading the entire old testament? I wonder if I'll ever read it...haha I've only tried the one time but I haven't read from it since I got to the MTC. Guess what? The first day that I missed scripture reading (personal studying...not just reading) in TWO years was the first day of my mission. Ironic right? Oh well. ANd about the book..I have no idea. I bought it for Matt and he said he got it. So they shouldn't be refunding me if he has it. You'll be sending my bedding to cali in about a week right? Could you include some other things too? My green shirt with white stripes, maybe my green dress but I can't remember if we put a hem on it. If not don't send it. All my belts...haha the black one, white one, brown one...I think that's all. Just the bigger ones...not all of them. And the other bottles of lotion that I left. I think I left two..and they should be full. I've already gone through one bottle. If you have room maybe send me a hoodie. One of my thin track hoodies...either black or blue. I don't know if I'll need it in cali but I've been wanting one here. Also, could you check about shipping my bike to cali? If it'd be cheaper than buying one there. Someone said it's about 200 but that's cheaper than buying it there. So I dunno.
Dad- I can definitely see how athletics has helped me up to this point. I didn't think it would be similar at ALL but it really is. I'm still looking forward to the day that I'll be able to think in Spanish. I'll let you know when that happens. I didn't count how many times we pray a day but I know it's right around 15 as well. They actually said they're trying to get away from the importance of saying kneeling prayers so my knees don't have callouses. I probably only say 6 kneeling prayers a day. The rest we are either sitting or standing. Did they have 4 square when you were here? That's one of my favorite games to play...they don't let the sisters play soccer. But they might take it away from the elders too because so many are getting hurt. And they don't have the MTC sign thing anymore. I guess they took it out during some construction a few years ago. Where else would you like the foot picture?
Aysia- I love that you pretend like you're in Harry Potter for your astronomy class. That is awesome!Thank you so much for writing me I wish I had time to write more! And If you don't want to pay for postage you can use dearelder :) Your Halloween sounded awesome. I think this is the first year in 21 years that I didn't watch hocus pocus for halloween. My favorite part about the MTC is the Tuesday Night devotionals. We always have a general authority and it's always super inspirational. I also love the high standards and strict rules...and busy schedule. And the graham canyon ice cream. Favorite part about the mission is learning spanish and learning how to help others.
Grandma- Thank you so much for writing me! I was really happy to receive a letter from you. I didn't know that Obama spoke Spanish? Or did he have an interpreter? I'm glad the Lord has been watching out for AUnt Ellen and Steve and their home didn't receive any damage and I'm glad your house is all ready for winter!
Jessica- How do the boys like their batman cave? You should send me a picture!!
Well my time is up! God Bless everyone!
Love, Sister KK
I used my jump rope last week and my calves were so sore for like 2 days! And I only did it for 10 minutes. My comp doesn't want to stay for gym for the whole 50 minutes anymore so it's killing me to not get as much gym time. But at least I still get some. And I'm learning to compromise with others.
My teacher said not to read Jesus The Christ anymore until I'm out in the field. I'm supposed to just focus on reading the scriptures, especially the book of mormon, and preach my gospel. I was really starting to enjoy Jesus The Christ though. I got a letter from Liana about her decision to serve a mission. That is so neat! Will someone tell her thatmyfashioncorner.com is a really good place to get missionary clothes? If I knew about it before I would have bought all my clothes there. They have a small selection from myfashioncorner in the MTC and I bought a new skirt and white collar blouse. And the prices are really reasonable. Speaking of missions...in D&C i think section 79 there is a mission call calling John Carter to the same mission AGAIN (I think to Vermont) and I had the thought that one day it would be so neat if everyone's mission calls were re-instated and if they were in any possible condition to serve again to go back to their mission. Wouldn't you want to go back to France again dad? Everyone would be a full time missionary until Jesus Christ came again. Sounds like a perfect world to me :)
We taught our first 40 minute lesson on Tuesday (usually they're 20) and it was surprisingly easy. Well easier than I thought it would be. I'm so surprised at how much Spanish we've learned. It's a miracle. Has anyone heard of John C. Tanner? I hadn't...so if you haven't either I HIGHLY recommend searching for the video of him about the Law of Consecration. It might be on lds.org
On Wednesday we got to host the new missionaries and it was SO fun! At first I didn't want to do it because we had to miss Gym...but it was worth it. The first sister I hosted is going to San Jose, leaving the same day as I am! So we'll get to travel together. She also went to school at BYUH and served in the RS presidency with Aysia. Aysia if you're reading this her name is Brittany (and then some samoan last name which I can't remember or pronounce) What are the odds? I'm excited to have finally met a sister that will be going to the same mission as I am. Especially leaving on the same day. My teacher's girlfriend's litter brother also entered the MTC and will be leaving for San Jose the same day. He's already fluent in Spanish and the other sister is going english speaking. The second sister I hosted went to Davis and was on the track team..she's one year older than me though and will be serving in Arcadia, Ca.
So during class one day I had THE weirdest experience. Hmno Wright was sharing a story with us about when he was younger and he was speaking in Spanish but I honestly understood everything. Usually I have to translate word for word. As soon as he was done with his story though I had to go back to translating word for word. For a second I thought that he had told the story in English. I can't explain it....but it was weird. I also had my first experience with transfers and having to pack my bags super fast. We were asked to move up to the fourth floor in our building so that they could do construction on our floor. I am now on the top bunk and I almost die every single time that I try to go down the ladder in the dark.
Andrea- Those pictures of Boston were SO cute!!! I wish I could print them out. As soon as I get to Cali I'm printing out all the pictures of Boston, Ethan and Alex. Dad you're right...I should have brought a little photo album. But I can buy one here. You should have seen everyone's reaction when I told the district they were making a sequel to Boy Meets world. Is it the same actors? Actually some of the elders were too young to even know what Boy Meets world is. But all the sisters and a few of the older elders were really excited. And thanks for sharing your thoughts about God being in control...that's a lesson that I definitely need to learn too. No matter how much I study I still can't learn what I need to without his help. Especially with the Spanish. I need His help. ANd I don't know that'd I'd be able to communicate with the construction workers either...well I could definitely teach them about Jesus Christ and modern day prophets but other than that I can't speak spanish. At least not yet.
Mom- yay I'm glad you can eat grains now! Is that your first time reading the entire old testament? I wonder if I'll ever read it...haha I've only tried the one time but I haven't read from it since I got to the MTC. Guess what? The first day that I missed scripture reading (personal studying...not just reading) in TWO years was the first day of my mission. Ironic right? Oh well. ANd about the book..I have no idea. I bought it for Matt and he said he got it. So they shouldn't be refunding me if he has it. You'll be sending my bedding to cali in about a week right? Could you include some other things too? My green shirt with white stripes, maybe my green dress but I can't remember if we put a hem on it. If not don't send it. All my belts...haha the black one, white one, brown one...I think that's all. Just the bigger ones...not all of them. And the other bottles of lotion that I left. I think I left two..and they should be full. I've already gone through one bottle. If you have room maybe send me a hoodie. One of my thin track hoodies...either black or blue. I don't know if I'll need it in cali but I've been wanting one here. Also, could you check about shipping my bike to cali? If it'd be cheaper than buying one there. Someone said it's about 200 but that's cheaper than buying it there. So I dunno.
Dad- I can definitely see how athletics has helped me up to this point. I didn't think it would be similar at ALL but it really is. I'm still looking forward to the day that I'll be able to think in Spanish. I'll let you know when that happens. I didn't count how many times we pray a day but I know it's right around 15 as well. They actually said they're trying to get away from the importance of saying kneeling prayers so my knees don't have callouses. I probably only say 6 kneeling prayers a day. The rest we are either sitting or standing. Did they have 4 square when you were here? That's one of my favorite games to play...they don't let the sisters play soccer. But they might take it away from the elders too because so many are getting hurt. And they don't have the MTC sign thing anymore. I guess they took it out during some construction a few years ago. Where else would you like the foot picture?
Aysia- I love that you pretend like you're in Harry Potter for your astronomy class. That is awesome!Thank you so much for writing me I wish I had time to write more! And If you don't want to pay for postage you can use dearelder :) Your Halloween sounded awesome. I think this is the first year in 21 years that I didn't watch hocus pocus for halloween. My favorite part about the MTC is the Tuesday Night devotionals. We always have a general authority and it's always super inspirational. I also love the high standards and strict rules...and busy schedule. And the graham canyon ice cream. Favorite part about the mission is learning spanish and learning how to help others.
Grandma- Thank you so much for writing me! I was really happy to receive a letter from you. I didn't know that Obama spoke Spanish? Or did he have an interpreter? I'm glad the Lord has been watching out for AUnt Ellen and Steve and their home didn't receive any damage and I'm glad your house is all ready for winter!
Jessica- How do the boys like their batman cave? You should send me a picture!!
Well my time is up! God Bless everyone!
Love, Sister KK
Friday, November 9, 2012
November 9, 2012-MTC
Dear Family-
I've been a missionary for over a month now and I still feel like I haven't left for my mission yet. I keep thinking my mission starts once I get to California. So daylights savings time as a missionary is like Christmas. I have never enjoyed an extra hour of sleep more than I did last Sunday. It felt like 4 extra hours and I loved it! Remember how I was called to speak in church two Sunday's ago? Well this last Sunday was Fast Sunday so we had a two hour mission conference with the MTC presidency and all the missionaries. At the end of the meeting President Brown stood up and said "well we have some extra time so I would like to hear the testimony of a couple missionaries" Who does he call first? Sister Billings. So I bore my testimony in front of 2,000 missionaries. Definitely a new experience for me. When I got up there the first thing I noticed was all the tele-prompters and I was excited to see what they actually looked like but they didn't have any words on them...so I am still wondering how they work. On the podium there was a little tv screen of myself and it made me realize that I was not only talking in front of 2,000 people but I was on camera being displayed on two screens like 30 feet big. I don't really remember all that I said but I've been told it was recorded and I can watch it if I want to. I do remember bearing my testimony about prayer and the personal relationship we can have with our heavenly father and I mentioned something about doing the will of the Lord. After me he called Elder Christensen who is my district leader. I don't think President Brown knew we were in the same district but our branch president was very happy that two members of his branch got called...and from the same district. Elder Christensen knows president brown fairly well because his dad works at the MTC. I have talked to President Brown a few times while in the cafeteria but I was shocked that he remembered me. He even remembered that I was a runner (or used to be a runner) and that I went to davis etc. Some people, like president brown, are just really good at being personal. Anyway, that day I felt like a celebrity. Everywhere we went people kept mentioning my testimony and by the end of the night I was so excited to change my clothes because I knew no one would be able to recognize me anymore once I did. No one recognized Elder Christensen because he looks just like all the other elders. It was an amazing experience though and whatever I said was completely lead by the spirit. AND I didn't even get nervous mainly because I didn't have time to even think about what was going on.
I didn't run one day this week for the first time since I've been in the MTC because I have really bad shin splints from the track. It has super tight corners. But I found a record board that they have of push-ups, sit-ups, dips etc. and my new goal is to beat all of the girl records. Well probably not all of them. But I realized how competitive I am and it's definitely something I need to work on. Dad why isn't your name on the soccer juggling record?
Yes I heard that President Obama was re-elected. They put it on the menu that morning during breakfast. And they let us read the first presidency message. We heard a rumor that Obama wants to bring in Romney for help? True? And Romney won the popular vote right? I don't understand our political system at all...shouldn't the president be whoever the most people vote for? Maybe I should take an American Government class when I get back because I don't understand that at all. That day we spent the whole class talking about the second coming of the messiah and all the signs of the times. It was very interesting although we didn't learn any Spanish. I think it's interesting that the Lord has called (what...500%?) more missionaries at this time. We were told that the applications they received for sister missionaries within once month since the announcement is more than the amount of sister missionaries we have serving in the entire world right now. Speaking of sister missionaries we taught this cute 18 year old girl at the TRC this week who is deciding if she wants to serve a mission. She was asking all sorts of questions about why we chose to serve etc. and at the end she fills out an evaluation sheet about how we taught and at the end there is a question that says "what do you want to do as a result of their teaching?" and she put "serve a mission". I just kept telling her that any sacrifice you have to make will be worth it and you will never regret a decision to serve the Lord. I hope she really does choose to serve.
My goal this week has been to study the character of christ (again...I think that was my goal last week). But I've been reading Jesus The Christ and I love it. I highly recommend it to anyone who hasn't read it yet. If you can't get into it, skip to like chapter 7 because the beginning is pretty slow. Oh and everyone asked if it wasn't Gordon B. Hinckley that came so speak to us who was it? Someone from the 70. I can't remember his name now but I wrote it down....somewhere. And he spoke in conference. That probably doesn't help at all sorry.
Funny story of the week: last night during class we were talking about the restoration of the gospel and it was really quiet. My leg was stuck to my chair (they cushions are that leathery material) and when I moved my leg it made a loud farting noise and I said "Oh my gosh that was the chair" but my face went super red and everyone laughed. I bet some people really thought I farted. But either way it was SO loud so I was really embarrassed.
Jessica- Cute pictures! None of alex? And is someone going to send me some from the night of Halloween. I laughed so hard when you told me mom got scared by the dancing skeletons because she had mentioned them in her letter to me. Funny visual in my head. And you said I look like such a missionary in my pics....what exactly does that mean?? haha and which pictures did you guys receive? Dad which ones did you put on the blog? Do you know which one is my companion? The shorter blonde is Hermana Connelley and her comp is the one with the glasses. The other one is my comp (hermana Snow). I'm glad your new calling is keeping you busy! And thanks for updating me about the world :) I can't believe the kids ate all their candy in two days!
Karla- thanks for you letter last week! How's your horse? You asked if my letters home were my journal...I want to print off my blog when I get home but I also write in my journal every night. I've missed one night because we had a member of the branch presidency come talk to us and she stayed late so I didn't have time.
Mom you asked what the TRC is...training resource center I believe. It's just one of the buildlings on campus where we go to practice teaching lessons in Spanish. I feel like myself in those lessons so they're my favorite. The other lessons (Where we teach an investigator) I almost feel like I have to act like a certain character because that's what our teachers do (they pick a character to act like).
Dad your soccer story was so funny. I was wondering what you were doing playing soccer. And what exactly do you want in your foot picture? Me with no shoes? In front of the MTC sign? My comp got a card reader so I think I"ll be able to send pictures home now. Maybe next week?
Well the language is coming finally but I want to learn ALL of it before I head to California...which I know isn't possible. But I leave in almost three weeks!! Can't wait to hear from you all soon and thanks for your love and support :)
Love, Sister Billings
I've been a missionary for over a month now and I still feel like I haven't left for my mission yet. I keep thinking my mission starts once I get to California. So daylights savings time as a missionary is like Christmas. I have never enjoyed an extra hour of sleep more than I did last Sunday. It felt like 4 extra hours and I loved it! Remember how I was called to speak in church two Sunday's ago? Well this last Sunday was Fast Sunday so we had a two hour mission conference with the MTC presidency and all the missionaries. At the end of the meeting President Brown stood up and said "well we have some extra time so I would like to hear the testimony of a couple missionaries" Who does he call first? Sister Billings. So I bore my testimony in front of 2,000 missionaries. Definitely a new experience for me. When I got up there the first thing I noticed was all the tele-prompters and I was excited to see what they actually looked like but they didn't have any words on them...so I am still wondering how they work. On the podium there was a little tv screen of myself and it made me realize that I was not only talking in front of 2,000 people but I was on camera being displayed on two screens like 30 feet big. I don't really remember all that I said but I've been told it was recorded and I can watch it if I want to. I do remember bearing my testimony about prayer and the personal relationship we can have with our heavenly father and I mentioned something about doing the will of the Lord. After me he called Elder Christensen who is my district leader. I don't think President Brown knew we were in the same district but our branch president was very happy that two members of his branch got called...and from the same district. Elder Christensen knows president brown fairly well because his dad works at the MTC. I have talked to President Brown a few times while in the cafeteria but I was shocked that he remembered me. He even remembered that I was a runner (or used to be a runner) and that I went to davis etc. Some people, like president brown, are just really good at being personal. Anyway, that day I felt like a celebrity. Everywhere we went people kept mentioning my testimony and by the end of the night I was so excited to change my clothes because I knew no one would be able to recognize me anymore once I did. No one recognized Elder Christensen because he looks just like all the other elders. It was an amazing experience though and whatever I said was completely lead by the spirit. AND I didn't even get nervous mainly because I didn't have time to even think about what was going on.
I didn't run one day this week for the first time since I've been in the MTC because I have really bad shin splints from the track. It has super tight corners. But I found a record board that they have of push-ups, sit-ups, dips etc. and my new goal is to beat all of the girl records. Well probably not all of them. But I realized how competitive I am and it's definitely something I need to work on. Dad why isn't your name on the soccer juggling record?
Yes I heard that President Obama was re-elected. They put it on the menu that morning during breakfast. And they let us read the first presidency message. We heard a rumor that Obama wants to bring in Romney for help? True? And Romney won the popular vote right? I don't understand our political system at all...shouldn't the president be whoever the most people vote for? Maybe I should take an American Government class when I get back because I don't understand that at all. That day we spent the whole class talking about the second coming of the messiah and all the signs of the times. It was very interesting although we didn't learn any Spanish. I think it's interesting that the Lord has called (what...500%?) more missionaries at this time. We were told that the applications they received for sister missionaries within once month since the announcement is more than the amount of sister missionaries we have serving in the entire world right now. Speaking of sister missionaries we taught this cute 18 year old girl at the TRC this week who is deciding if she wants to serve a mission. She was asking all sorts of questions about why we chose to serve etc. and at the end she fills out an evaluation sheet about how we taught and at the end there is a question that says "what do you want to do as a result of their teaching?" and she put "serve a mission". I just kept telling her that any sacrifice you have to make will be worth it and you will never regret a decision to serve the Lord. I hope she really does choose to serve.
My goal this week has been to study the character of christ (again...I think that was my goal last week). But I've been reading Jesus The Christ and I love it. I highly recommend it to anyone who hasn't read it yet. If you can't get into it, skip to like chapter 7 because the beginning is pretty slow. Oh and everyone asked if it wasn't Gordon B. Hinckley that came so speak to us who was it? Someone from the 70. I can't remember his name now but I wrote it down....somewhere. And he spoke in conference. That probably doesn't help at all sorry.
Funny story of the week: last night during class we were talking about the restoration of the gospel and it was really quiet. My leg was stuck to my chair (they cushions are that leathery material) and when I moved my leg it made a loud farting noise and I said "Oh my gosh that was the chair" but my face went super red and everyone laughed. I bet some people really thought I farted. But either way it was SO loud so I was really embarrassed.
Jessica- Cute pictures! None of alex? And is someone going to send me some from the night of Halloween. I laughed so hard when you told me mom got scared by the dancing skeletons because she had mentioned them in her letter to me. Funny visual in my head. And you said I look like such a missionary in my pics....what exactly does that mean?? haha and which pictures did you guys receive? Dad which ones did you put on the blog? Do you know which one is my companion? The shorter blonde is Hermana Connelley and her comp is the one with the glasses. The other one is my comp (hermana Snow). I'm glad your new calling is keeping you busy! And thanks for updating me about the world :) I can't believe the kids ate all their candy in two days!
Karla- thanks for you letter last week! How's your horse? You asked if my letters home were my journal...I want to print off my blog when I get home but I also write in my journal every night. I've missed one night because we had a member of the branch presidency come talk to us and she stayed late so I didn't have time.
Mom you asked what the TRC is...training resource center I believe. It's just one of the buildlings on campus where we go to practice teaching lessons in Spanish. I feel like myself in those lessons so they're my favorite. The other lessons (Where we teach an investigator) I almost feel like I have to act like a certain character because that's what our teachers do (they pick a character to act like).
Dad your soccer story was so funny. I was wondering what you were doing playing soccer. And what exactly do you want in your foot picture? Me with no shoes? In front of the MTC sign? My comp got a card reader so I think I"ll be able to send pictures home now. Maybe next week?
Well the language is coming finally but I want to learn ALL of it before I head to California...which I know isn't possible. But I leave in almost three weeks!! Can't wait to hear from you all soon and thanks for your love and support :)
Love, Sister Billings
Friday, November 2, 2012
November 2, 2012-MTC
I can't believe that tomorrow will be exactly one month since I've been a missionary. Weird. Time goes by really fast...I need more time! So mom the investigators that we teach are our teachers. We have two teachers and we switch off teaching them for 20 minutes everyday. They act like investigators that they taught while on their missions and they don't break character so it's pretty easy to take it seriously. It's really fun and a really good learning experience. They always tell us funny mistakes we made during the lessons too. We also go to the TRC every Tuesday and teach two 20 minutes lessons to members who are either native Spanish speakers or know Spanish from their own missions etc. It's more like a visiting or home teaching lesson since they're already members. It's more relaxed because we don't have to worry about extending commitments. The TRC is my favorite and I always learn so much. My companion doesn't like it though. The guy in our last lesson made her cry because he kept correcting her Spanish. He was correcting mine too but I liked it. Thank you for sending me more tights. It was actually really warm this week so I didn't even wear them but I talked to an Elder who lived in San Jose and he said it gets pretty cool there so I'll probably end up wearing them there. Hopefully I won't need you to send me any more stuff...at least for awhile!
I voted last Friday...someone better write and tell me who the new president is (hopefully new). We don't hear anything in this place. Apparently there is a huge storm on the east coast? Anyone wanna fill me in on details? Is it near Grandma? On Sunday our district did a musical number and I played the piano. I also got called to speak so I gave my first talk in Spanish. It was fun! I'm sure I made a ton of mistakes...I know of one for sure. The talk was on baptism and I was talking about my friend on the track team who made a TON of changes in his life, got baptized and is now married in the temple. The word for tired is cansado and the word for married is casada. Well I said cansado "He is now tired in the temple" Luckily I noticed it though and corrected myself haha. Okay going back to the musical number...I was so nervous for some reason and I knew my hands wouldn't stop shaking and when my hands shake I always mess up so I was actually praying that they would call me to speak because it always calms me once I get up there. So when they called my name I was SO relieved and once I was up there speaking my hands stopped shaking and I was able to do the musical number right after without messing up. Maybe that's weird that I wanted to be called to speak but it helped. I also guessed correctly who the speaker would be two weeks ago and then I told everyone that it would be me this week so now they're all asking me who I think it will be next week. My president said that if he had known I was doing a musical number they wouldn't have called me to speak but I told him I was glad they did. President Roch (one of the MTC presidency members) was visiting in our sacrament meeting that day (which made me even more nervous for the musical number) but when he got up to speak after my talk he said it really is a miracle how much Spanish the missionaries learn in such a short amount of time.
Every time we sing "We'll Bring the World His Truth" I get major chills and feel the spirit so strong when we say "we are now the Lord's missionaries" I love being able to say that I am the Lord's missionary. We watched a film of a talk that Elder Bednar gave about the Character of Christ and how even when Christ was at his very lowest he still turned our towards others. For example, after he suffered in the garden of gethsemane and his apostoles ( I can't remember how to spell that in English) fell asleep and he got betrayed and handed over to the guards (then peter cuts off one of their ears) he FIRST thinks and acts to help the guard and heals his ear. He never turned in selfishly and never worried about himself. I have been trying to be more like that. Even if I think I DESERVE things to be a certain way I have been trying to give it up and always do things the way others want them done. Still got a lot of work to do. Even if you've been treated like crap do what Christ would do...he would turn out towards others and try to help them. If we make "helping others" our goal then there will always be something productive to do.
Our district did two full days of speaking only in Spanish and next week we are going to do three. Every week we are going to add a day so that by our final week we can go the entire week speaking only in Spanish. I love SYL (HSI in Spanish) days. We make a lot of mistakes but we cant actually communicate in Spanish to each other now. I can definitely feel Heavenly Father's help as I learn this language. And I can tell other's are praying for me.
At the fireside on Tuesday everyone was watching the doors waiting to see who would walk in (everyone is always hoping that it's one of the twelve) anyway I saw the speaker walk in and I 100% thought that it was Gordon B. Hinckley so I gasped and grabbed my companions arm but as soon as I did that I remembered that he's no longer even living. I felt pretty stupid but I had to explain myself since I grabbed her arm. For Halloween we did all we could to make it feel like a holiday. We all wore orange and black. Yup that's pretty much it haha. The district was going CRAZY though and it was so hard to study. Everyone was seriously bouncing off of the walls. Our lesson that day was definitely our best one yet though. He even broke character at the end and told us that we did a really good job. The weather was so nice that day so we went to study outside on the benches in the sun and apparently I fell asleep. I still insist that I was awake the whole time but another district in our zone said they walked by and I was fast asleep. They won't let me forget that either. In our second lesson last night I was setting up the next appointment and I wanted to say Friday but I said verde....I knew it started with a "v" He started laughing and just started naming off other colors.
How was Halloween back home though? Jessica are there more pictures of the Ball nephews from the day of? Did they have fun trick or treating? The weather was nice so I'm guessing they didn't freeze this year. You can send me the extra Halloween candy if Dad doesn't want to eat it all! Andrea your Halloween pics were so cute!! Did you wear your wedding dress? It was a small pic so it was hard to tell. Oh and did you guys get some pictures emailed to you? One of the sisters in my district sent her camera card home and I think her mom was going to email the pictures out to our family. Let me know if you get them..if not I'll send my card home before I go to Cali. We got two new roommates a few nights ago. They're SPanish speaking as well but they're only here for 3 weeks because they go to the D.R MTC. It's weird to think that they'll leave way before us even though we've been here FOREVER. Well my time is up so I need to go but I hope everything is going well back at home and I can't wait to hear from all of you soon!
Con amor, Hermana Billings
Friday, October 26, 2012
October 26, 2012-MTC
So right after I emailed everyone last Friday I ran into Elder Hicks. I think Dylan Hicks? He seems so grown up and mature! And he's the district leader for his district. I've seen him one other time. It's crazy that he'll be leaving the MTC before me even though I got here three weeks before him. He was very nice and delivered your message, dad. I think the schedule finally caught up to me this week because I was so tired. One day during personal study I was having the hardest time staying awake and I fell asleep TWICE right in the MIDDLE of highlighting a scripture. Our lessons are starting to go much much better. Well all of them except for one. Last Friday we had our first (and probably not our last) experience with a lesson going exactly how you don't want it to go. Looking back on it now it was actually really funny. We were teaching him about prophets and had him read Amos 3:7 where it says God doesn't do anything before revealing it to his prophets first and then our investigator asked if WE were prophets. I only understood the prophet part so I said "Yup!"....apostasy. Somehow we finally realized what he had asked and did our best to tell him that we were actually not prophets. Oops.
The language has been coming much better this week. Much MUCh MUCH better. My teacher told me to pray for specific help. not just "please help me with the language" so I started praying that I would just be able to remember what I study and I have never had such a good memory in my life before. I put forth the work and do the studying and then God helps me remember what I study. I've been able to remember stuff that I've only studied once and it's been a huge blessing! My spelling in English is getting horrible though. I'm starting to spell in Spanish. There aren't very many words in Spanish that repeat letters. I wouldn't say I'm starting to think in Spanish but I think about certain Spanish phrases and words a lot.
After our lesson we went into the computer lab (there's a program that helps us learn Spanish. We can listen to native speakers and then speak and compare how we sound...it's really helpful) anyway my companion rolled her chair over to talk to me and since her headphones were on she was connected to the computer so the entire computer followed her and crashed to the floor. It was really loud and she was so embarrassed. We started quietly laughing for just a second and then we both started crying. haha I have NO idea why. Too much emotion for one day I think. Our teacher came over and the look on his face was pure confusion that it made me start laughing again. Every time he came over after that to talk to us he was really hesitant. I think he was worried we might burst into tears again. I bet Dad, Justin and Scott never experienced random outbursts of tears like that on their missions! Embarrassing story of the week #2 ....There is an Elder in my district named Elder Crapo (pronounced cray po) Well I called him Crap- O TWICE! I felt bad...I hope he doesn't think I was making fun of him.
It's really cool to hear about the increased number of missionary applications. One of the Elders in my district has a friend who just got her call to Switzerland (German speaking) and she's only 19 or 20. She must be one of the very first young sisters to get her call. She doesn't come to the MTC until February though. I doubt I'll see any of the young group in the MTC while I'm here. But I'm sure I'll see a lot while I'm in the field. Is there anyone in our ward that will be serving a mission now? And Yes I do need my four generation pedigree chart please. Just sometime before I leave the MTC. I don't think I'll need it while I'm here but it would definitely be easier to send it to me here than Cali. And yes I have stopped pirating my notebooks for paper. I will use the paper that mom sent me.
This Sunday my district is doing a musical number for sacrament meeting and I am playing the piano. We're doing the EFY Medley (As sister's in zion/ the army of helaman) great song! So every Sunday we watch a movie after the fireside and we got to watch The Testaments. It was SO good. I got more out of it this time than any of the other times combined. The elders couldn't handle the kissing scenes though. They had to be told that whistling and clapping was not appropriate. It was funny. Oh and that Sunday morning our alarm clock was the fire alarm. The entire building had to be evacuated at 6 in the morning and we didn't get to go back in and get ready until 7 (which is when we're supposed to be at breakfast). Everyone was sleeping on the floor in the building across from us. It was funny to see so many missionaries in their pjs sleeping on the floor. They said some dust set the alarm off.
Sister Dibb (Pres Monson's Daughter) came and spoke to the sisters on Sunday. She was so awesome. She told us a lot of fun stories about the prophet that made him seem like just a normal person. I guess he his after all. When she got called to the young women's general presidency he called her and said "do you want to know who the new presidency is?" and she thought he was letting her in on the secret and got all excited. Then he read her name and she started crying and said she couldn't do it. As her dad he told her that she could and then as the prophet he asked if she would accept the call. It was a cool story. She also told us that He treats his wife really well and told us a couple stories about that. I wish I had time to write them but I don't sorry. Maybe next week! Hermano Christofferson also tells us stories about the 12 apostles all the time and it's so neat! (I told you his uncle is D. Todd right?)
Mom- Yay I'm glad you can put my emails up on my blog now. Thanks for doing that! Did it snow yet over there? We got a lot of snow yesterday.Hopefully you got all the vegetables out of the garden. I really miss fresh veggies. I can't wait to be in California because I'm already sick of the snow. Skirts are just not warm enough for snow! Luckily we really only have to go outside for meals because our class and dorm room are in the same building. How come you're making stockings for everyone? And why don't I get one???? Just kidding. Kind of. Will Christmas be at your house this year?
Dad- Good to hear about Romney. I put him on the prayer roll last time we went to the temple...hopefully that's okay. But I would just way rather have someone as president who holds the priesthood than anyone else. I didn't have time to vote last p-day but I will today. One of the sisters in my district is from Virginia and she didn't even vote! sheesh. She said she doesn't care what happens because it won't affect her since she's on a mission. I think who runs our country DEFINITELY affects us even if we are on a mission. Plus we won't be on a mission forever. It sounds like the garage looks nice! And it sounds like mom is making the front porch look nice for Halloween. I'm definitely going to miss decorating for the holidays this year.
Jessica- Tell the boys thanks for the pictures. They were so cute!! And the pictures of them in their Halloween costumes are adorable. My favorite picture was the one of them in the truck with all the pumpkins. It seems unreal that it's Halloween in the real world. Thanks for helping mom with the blog too. Oh and the story about Alex and his pumpkin was so cute. I read it to my class and they all thought it was funny. What color did you pick for the house? And when will the house be done? Or is there not a set date yet? That's awesome about your new calling. That will be fun and keep you really busy I'm sure! I thought you were going to say relief society president haha. And snail mail is great. I don't care what form it comes in I just like to read it. I do get to read dearelders anytime too though...in case you don't want to use stamps every week.
Andrea- I'm glad Matt finally sent you my talk. I haven't even listened to it so I don't really remember what I said. I can't believe Scott ate all of that. There are actually several elders who eat like that every single meal here. It's so disgusting. Even eating the "healthy" food here probably isn't even that healthy. For breakfast I saw one sister with 3 donuts on here tray and nothing else. How did your audition at Golds go? That sounds fun! Did you choose aqua fitness or is that what they assigned you? I think you'd like teaching the elderly!! At least I would. If you email me a link to your blog I will not be able to read it. They have all sites blocked except for email and lds.orgCould you copy and paste it into a dear elder? I dunno if you'd be able to do pictures though. But you could email the pictures. That's probably a lot of work but I won't have time to read it if you email it. I barely have enough time just to email. Tell Boston thanks for singing his ABC's for me. I really enjoyed it :)
Thanks everyone for praying for me! I feel very loved and supported from everyone and it helps a lot! The work is hard but for sure not the hardest thing I've ever done. Everyone said it would be but I disagree. I think because there are so many people willing to help. Maybe the field will be different. Actually I'm sure it will be. The day that I got here one of the sisters leaving said "This will be by far the hardest thing you've ever done" So I assumed she was talking just about the MTC. But I like it here and I'm learning a ton!! I know I've only been out 3 weeks but I'm already wishing it would slow down. Can't wait to hear from everyone again!
Con Amor-
Hermana Billings
Friday, October 19, 2012
October 19, 2012- MTC
Hola!
Thanks so much for sending me tights! Now hopefully I won't freeze. I found out last week that they have a little fridge in the cafeteria with gluten free bagels, bread and other snacks. I don't eat from there very often though.
They have a different salad and soup every day so that's usually what I eat. They also have rice and chicken almost every meal. I don't eat much for breakfast...surprise surprise. I don't think I need a flat pencil case. I have a pocket in my purse that I keep a few pens and then I leave the rest in my desk in our classroom. I can't believe there has been a 600% increase of missionary applications. They're really trying to prepare the missionaries at the MTC now to be prepared because we are most likely going to be training a lot of the new younger missionaries once they get into the field. I might have a 19 year old companion! Not sure how to feel about that. That was really nice of Brother Hanks to say I should go into public speaking. I enjoy it but I get pretty nervous. Especially now that I have to speak in Spanish.
The weather has been really nice and during language or personal study, my companion and I sit outside in the sun to study. It's so nice.
Mom I really liked your comment about missionary work being a little piece of heaven. That's exactly how it feels here. Nothing else matters except serving others and brining them to Christ. I just need to remember to enjoy it ALL the time. And this week I learned that the way to gain a greater love for someone is to serve them. You have always been a selfless server. It's easy to serve the people you already love but if you serve someone first it's almost automatic that you'll appreciate them more. Especially if they show appreciation for what you've done. That's why it's important to serve and to let others know that you appreciate their service. My companion and I got a lot closer this week because of that. The blog password is the same as your other blog. It's on the same account. I think it was ethanalexboston or something. So however you sign into appleicious. Maybe Jessica or Andrea could help you. If you can't figure it out Amy Kate and maybe a few other people will want you to forward them my emails because I told everyone to check my blog. Or maybe Andrea and Jessica could make a different blog and put it on facebook.
Andrea & Jessica- Thanks for the letters! I love hearing from both of you and especially how the boys are doing. Reading stories and hearing about them in the middle of the day makes it a thousand times better! I want to see pictures of their Halloween costumes in a couple weeks. Andrea are you still going to send me blog posts? You can email them to me since you're family. I only get 30 minutes though so if you mailed them it might be better. How are both of your houses coming along?
And Dad you were close with "como es ta"..."esta" is one word. But you used the right form! A lot of missionaries have had to break the habit of saying "como estas" which is the informal form. I didn't know anything in the beginning so I haven't had to break any habits. I did take a foot picture for you but I don't know how to send pictures from the computer yet. I might print some off for you guys soon to send in the mail. Did you figure out how to deal with the troublesome coaches yet? It sounds like it's their own problem. But I'm sure there's a way to handle it. Even if you're right and they're wrong. Just don't turn it into "who's right and who's wrong" because that just causes contention. Maybe you already figured it out. That's a good idea to get testimonies from the people here in the MTC. Four elders in our district are leaving on Tuesday for the guatemala MTC.
I hope when I get back from my mission I stay in the habit of going to sleep at 1030 and waking up at 630. I love it and I get SO much more done. Mainly because we have to. But I'm always so shocked at how much I can do before noon. I'm definitely starting to recognize certain phrases and every time we learn a new verb I recognize it all the time during conversations. They expose us to conversations with native and fluent speakers all the time. Our first conversation with a native speaker was very interesting. I couldn't understand a word he said but somehow I still knew the message he was trying to get across. If that even makes sense. So I responded to what I thought he was talking about and he seemed to understand. At that point I didn't know how to conjugate anything so it probably sounded ridiculous. But we finally learned basic conjugations! Which I think would have been helpful to learn the first day not the second week. But oh well, at least now I know.
Is the kitchen done yet? I haven't used my jump rope yet because they have a lot of things in the gym that I want to take advantage of while I'm here. I still alternate lifting and running every other day. I got my voting ballot so I'll fill it out and send it in the mail today. We got our second teacher. I don't know if I told you that already. He's the nephew of Elder D. Todd Christofferson and he has some awesome stories to tell. He served in Argentina so his accent is very different. He doesn't say his "S's" So Dios sounds like Dio and I never know what he's saying. But I'll probably be running into people with different Spanish accents all the time so I guess it's good to get used to it now. I never thought I'd miss CC but I do! Don't sell her while I'm gone.
Sister Burton (the RS presidency) came to speak to the sisters on Sunday. And then we all got a lesson about being "lady like". I felt like Miss Congeniality. She demonstrated how to "glide" not "bop" down the stairs and a whole bunch of other stuff we should do. Right after the lesson I was walking up some stairs and I took like three at a time. Oops...that definitely isn't gliding. Sunday's are definitely my favorite day. Our district walked to the temple and it was such perfect weather. The fireside we had that night was about having an eternal perspective and it was awesome. The speaker also talked about making "finding people" (as in finding those who have been prepared to come unto Christ) a lifestyle instead of an event. That way, once we return from our mission we will still be able to bring others unto the gospel of Jesus Christ. The book of Mormon really is evidence of everything we believe. And I'm so grateful we have the fullness of everything we need to know. I thought missionary work meant you had to know a whole bunch of doctrine but the Book of Mormon has all the answers anyone could ever ask or want to know. So I'm not worried about not knowing enough anymore. Not knowing enough Spanish is another story though So I'll just make sure to carry enough books of mormon for everyone. Well I think that's it for this week! Feel free to pray for me in learning the language :) Love you all!
Hermana Billings
October 12, 2012 - MTC
Dear Family-
Hola! It's been great to hear from everyone. Thanks for writing. I really really love and appreciate hearing from anyone and everyone. Dad, I got a letter from Jessica and Amy Kate writes me about everyday. It's great! And dearelder.com is definitely the best way to do it. I can't believe I already have one week completed in the MTC. Has it gone by fast for everyone else? I will be able to e-mail every Friday now. We didn't have a preparation day the first week, so that's why I had to send a hand written letter. Well first things first...General Conference was amazing! The missionaries still haven't stopped talking about the new age change. What a great announcement!!! I'm so excited that more, especially sisters, will have the opportunity to serve a mission. Elder Bednar came and spoke to us the following Tuesday and said there has been a lot of speculation about why the change took place. He said "The Lord can do his own work and will hasten it as he pleases. And the Lord is hastening his work". Anything else is merely coincidental. It's so funny to hear the Elders perspective about it. One of the Elder's in my district got a letter the next day from his girlfriend saying she was meeting with the bishop the next day to turn in her mission papers. He was really excited for her. As he should be. I loved that Conference spoke a lot about discipleship. I think Elder Bednar, Eyering and Ballard gave my favorite talks (they seemed to be the same talk). Which is interesting because when Elder Bednar was speaking to us on Tuesday he told us that they do not assign topics in Conference and they were just as interested to know what the other apostles were going to say as we were. He said, "The lord is the master planner, not his servants". It's just interesting how when we're doing what we're supposed to, everything works out. But sometimes we don't notice it until it's already been worked out. Anyway, I might end up training a 19 year old sister!
Mom, thanks for sending that belt and some yummy gluten free homemade snacks! I have them in my room now so I don't have to go to bed starving. I'm actually starting to get used to the early dinner now though. And yes Dad there are vending machines but I never use them. We only get $8 a week (which is $2 more than the elders!) so I try not to use it on snacks. I bought a Spanish Hymn Book and some flash cards with the money last week. And yes I have a hole punch. Which I've already used a ton so I'm glad I brought it. If you are sending another package I would use some stationery (because I don't have any...maybe just blank cards or something?) but you don't need to go out of your way to send another package just to send it. I'm fine using boring lined paper.
My companion and I share a room with two other Sisters who are in our district. There are 3 bunk beds, so two of the beds are empty. We each have our own little closet and we share a desk area with our companion. We don't spend any time in our room besides sleeping and journal writing. My companion is going to Fortworth, Texas and the other two are going to Arcadia, California. I haven't met anyone else going to San Jose, California Spanish speaking. What does that mean? SOOO many missionaries are going to Arcadia, California though. I love my companion and the other two sisters in my district. We all get a long great but we're all pretty different from each other. One sister is from Tennessee and she has the cutest accent. The other sister is from Virginia. I think I already mentioned that my companion is from St. George Utah. We have scheduled gym time alternating morning and afternoon. I get to lift weights in the mornings (which I love!!) and then I run and play four square in the afternoons. I like morning gym time a lot better. And I've been sore from gym ever since I've been here. Probably the last time I'll have sore muscles though. My companion said she wanted to run with me the first day and I was like, "great!!" but she stopped after 3 minutes and hasn't mentioned trying again. Luckily we don't have to be with our companions during gym time. The lines at the cafeteria are not long at all. I think the longest we've had to wait is 10 minutes and that was only during General Conference because everyone had the same meal times. Other than that, there are no lines. So I haven't been getting any reading done. But I did start reading Jesus the Christ the Monday after General Conference. I haven't made a ton of progress but I plan to continue reading it throughout my mission. I've also started reading el Libro de Mormon. It's taking me forever! I just barely finished 1 nephi 1.
We can't listen to any music while in the MTC so I haven't taken my ipod out yet. Everyone sings a ton here...down the halls, in class, in the shower. I find my self whistling ALL the time. I'm glad my corolla found a good new home. I'll miss that car! I don't know how you got $6300 from my uesp savings and selling the corolla but that's great! I'm glad my mission will be able to be paid for. Thanks for supporting me. And mom, you said you would like to serve a mission one day? GREAT! Like I said in my other letter, I can't believe I ever considered NOT going. If you have a testimony, a mission really is for everyone. At least that's what I think. I think the Lord would want ALL of his children to serve if there is any way that it's a possibility for them. Especially in these days as he's starting to "hasten his work". It's really the most important thing we can do. I've learned a lot already about why I'm out here. To bring others to Christ. Not to share my beliefs and try to get others to believe in them as well (although I will be sharing my belief) it's to show others what they need to do and how to do it in order to follow Christ. It's so much more than I originally thought. Everyone has been talking about their mission plaque...I didn't get one? Do you know anything about that? If anyone asks, I want Alma 29:9 on it.
Spanish has been coming a long slowly but I think I'm learning more than I give myself credit. One night I was really frustrated about Spanish and I just wanted to be an English speaking missionary so I could just focus on learning the doctrine of Christ. We had a combined class with a few other districts and at the end our teacher was saying something important, but I wasn't listening because I was too focused on all my doubts with the language. There's so much I want to be able to say but I don't know how to form sentences! Anyway, as we were walking out he called me and my companion over and said, "My message was for you two sisters. Don't ever think that you can't do it because this is God's work and he will provide a way for it to be accomplished. He will help both of you and don't ever think that he won't". We both started crying, hugged each other, and then burst into laughter. We were both in much better moods after that. And neither of us realized that we had both been experiencing the same feelings. Not that the language is easy now, but I know I just have to give it my all and the Lord will help me because he needs to use me as an instrument to bring other unto Christ. He probably wants me to learn Spanish more than I want myself to learn Spanish. So of course he'll help me. And he already has so much.
How are the boys doing? I wish I could talk to them! Tell me all the cute and funny stories about them that happen while I'm gone. How's Katie doing? We're going to the temple today so I'll remember to put her name on the prayer roll. You could probably send me family names if you want? And then I can send them back. I'm sure my companions and a few other sisters would love to do some of our family names. We are doing some family names for an elder in our zone today. Dad, how'd your ping pong tournament go? And how are the presidential debates going? I'm glad Romney did well the first night. And I hope everyone is doing well! Write soon? :) Love you all!!
Con Amor,
Hermana Billings
Hola! It's been great to hear from everyone. Thanks for writing. I really really love and appreciate hearing from anyone and everyone. Dad, I got a letter from Jessica and Amy Kate writes me about everyday. It's great! And dearelder.com is definitely the best way to do it. I can't believe I already have one week completed in the MTC. Has it gone by fast for everyone else? I will be able to e-mail every Friday now. We didn't have a preparation day the first week, so that's why I had to send a hand written letter. Well first things first...General Conference was amazing! The missionaries still haven't stopped talking about the new age change. What a great announcement!!! I'm so excited that more, especially sisters, will have the opportunity to serve a mission. Elder Bednar came and spoke to us the following Tuesday and said there has been a lot of speculation about why the change took place. He said "The Lord can do his own work and will hasten it as he pleases. And the Lord is hastening his work". Anything else is merely coincidental. It's so funny to hear the Elders perspective about it. One of the Elder's in my district got a letter the next day from his girlfriend saying she was meeting with the bishop the next day to turn in her mission papers. He was really excited for her. As he should be. I loved that Conference spoke a lot about discipleship. I think Elder Bednar, Eyering and Ballard gave my favorite talks (they seemed to be the same talk). Which is interesting because when Elder Bednar was speaking to us on Tuesday he told us that they do not assign topics in Conference and they were just as interested to know what the other apostles were going to say as we were. He said, "The lord is the master planner, not his servants". It's just interesting how when we're doing what we're supposed to, everything works out. But sometimes we don't notice it until it's already been worked out. Anyway, I might end up training a 19 year old sister!
Mom, thanks for sending that belt and some yummy gluten free homemade snacks! I have them in my room now so I don't have to go to bed starving. I'm actually starting to get used to the early dinner now though. And yes Dad there are vending machines but I never use them. We only get $8 a week (which is $2 more than the elders!) so I try not to use it on snacks. I bought a Spanish Hymn Book and some flash cards with the money last week. And yes I have a hole punch. Which I've already used a ton so I'm glad I brought it. If you are sending another package I would use some stationery (because I don't have any...maybe just blank cards or something?) but you don't need to go out of your way to send another package just to send it. I'm fine using boring lined paper.
My companion and I share a room with two other Sisters who are in our district. There are 3 bunk beds, so two of the beds are empty. We each have our own little closet and we share a desk area with our companion. We don't spend any time in our room besides sleeping and journal writing. My companion is going to Fortworth, Texas and the other two are going to Arcadia, California. I haven't met anyone else going to San Jose, California Spanish speaking. What does that mean? SOOO many missionaries are going to Arcadia, California though. I love my companion and the other two sisters in my district. We all get a long great but we're all pretty different from each other. One sister is from Tennessee and she has the cutest accent. The other sister is from Virginia. I think I already mentioned that my companion is from St. George Utah. We have scheduled gym time alternating morning and afternoon. I get to lift weights in the mornings (which I love!!) and then I run and play four square in the afternoons. I like morning gym time a lot better. And I've been sore from gym ever since I've been here. Probably the last time I'll have sore muscles though. My companion said she wanted to run with me the first day and I was like, "great!!" but she stopped after 3 minutes and hasn't mentioned trying again. Luckily we don't have to be with our companions during gym time. The lines at the cafeteria are not long at all. I think the longest we've had to wait is 10 minutes and that was only during General Conference because everyone had the same meal times. Other than that, there are no lines. So I haven't been getting any reading done. But I did start reading Jesus the Christ the Monday after General Conference. I haven't made a ton of progress but I plan to continue reading it throughout my mission. I've also started reading el Libro de Mormon. It's taking me forever! I just barely finished 1 nephi 1.
We can't listen to any music while in the MTC so I haven't taken my ipod out yet. Everyone sings a ton here...down the halls, in class, in the shower. I find my self whistling ALL the time. I'm glad my corolla found a good new home. I'll miss that car! I don't know how you got $6300 from my uesp savings and selling the corolla but that's great! I'm glad my mission will be able to be paid for. Thanks for supporting me. And mom, you said you would like to serve a mission one day? GREAT! Like I said in my other letter, I can't believe I ever considered NOT going. If you have a testimony, a mission really is for everyone. At least that's what I think. I think the Lord would want ALL of his children to serve if there is any way that it's a possibility for them. Especially in these days as he's starting to "hasten his work". It's really the most important thing we can do. I've learned a lot already about why I'm out here. To bring others to Christ. Not to share my beliefs and try to get others to believe in them as well (although I will be sharing my belief) it's to show others what they need to do and how to do it in order to follow Christ. It's so much more than I originally thought. Everyone has been talking about their mission plaque...I didn't get one? Do you know anything about that? If anyone asks, I want Alma 29:9 on it.
Spanish has been coming a long slowly but I think I'm learning more than I give myself credit. One night I was really frustrated about Spanish and I just wanted to be an English speaking missionary so I could just focus on learning the doctrine of Christ. We had a combined class with a few other districts and at the end our teacher was saying something important, but I wasn't listening because I was too focused on all my doubts with the language. There's so much I want to be able to say but I don't know how to form sentences! Anyway, as we were walking out he called me and my companion over and said, "My message was for you two sisters. Don't ever think that you can't do it because this is God's work and he will provide a way for it to be accomplished. He will help both of you and don't ever think that he won't". We both started crying, hugged each other, and then burst into laughter. We were both in much better moods after that. And neither of us realized that we had both been experiencing the same feelings. Not that the language is easy now, but I know I just have to give it my all and the Lord will help me because he needs to use me as an instrument to bring other unto Christ. He probably wants me to learn Spanish more than I want myself to learn Spanish. So of course he'll help me. And he already has so much.
How are the boys doing? I wish I could talk to them! Tell me all the cute and funny stories about them that happen while I'm gone. How's Katie doing? We're going to the temple today so I'll remember to put her name on the prayer roll. You could probably send me family names if you want? And then I can send them back. I'm sure my companions and a few other sisters would love to do some of our family names. We are doing some family names for an elder in our zone today. Dad, how'd your ping pong tournament go? And how are the presidential debates going? I'm glad Romney did well the first night. And I hope everyone is doing well! Write soon? :) Love you all!!
Con Amor,
Hermana Billings
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