Hello hello from the MTC!
Didn't I just write home like yesterday? Seriously, this week has soared by like an eagle, literally, I saw the week grow wings and fly by, it was nuts. Haha, but seriously, this week has gone by really fast. I seriously do not understand how time works here, it really does make sense when you're here, because it's like the days are so incredibly slow but then you look back and then all of the sudden it's Thursday again.
Let's see, what happened this week? I guess I'll start by saying that on Thursday last week after my last email home we went and did initiatories for the first time here and it was really nice, I missed it. I am so glad that I was able to work in the temple for that month and a half or so before I came here so that I can understand a bit more as to the importance of everything that we do in the temple. I solemnly believe that there is no more peaceful place that you can stand in than a temple. You leave behind any tiny little care in the world out in the world where it belongs, and lose yourself into the love that is felt in the temple, absolutely wonderful, and I will be going again today, but probably not initiatories.
I was really fearing Sunday last week because it was Fast Sunday and they don't have breakfast or lunch here so you are kinda forced to fast haha but it was really nice. We had like a MTC-wide power outage from like 6AM to around 1 in the afternoon. And you may think, ah, whatever, what's the big deal about a silly ol power outage, but every day here is the same. And a power outage is a change so it was like a huge deal. There was no hot water for showers which was almost unbearable since it's like 30 degrees outside, and with no electricity, they can't really cook hot food so all we had was like cereal and sandwiches haha, but that day was still really good. I bore my testimony in sacrament, and I was the last one to go up. It was kinda funny because when they first said that it was open for the bearing of testimonies, no one went up because they naturally thought that they had to bear it in Spanish, then one guy went up and just said "I'm gonna say my testimony in English" haha so then that opened up the floodgate for the rest of the people, but we still had 2 people bear full Spanish testimonies, one being Hermana Johnson, and it was really good. When I went up I was like, "next Fast Sunday before I leave I'll try it in Spanish but for now I'll stick with English." So after that, we didn't have choir on Fast Sundays, so we had like a 3 hour block of time for like personal study, so we sat in class and I just read scriptures, and it was incredible. I'm really progressing in the Book of Mormon, I'm like half way through Alma now, and any free time I have, I get right back to reading. And seriously, besides it being an amazing testifier of Jesus Christ, it is simply an entertaining book, in all honesty. That's the reason why I want to read it so bad, is to see what's gonna happen next. Everyone, I'm giving you some homework, I think from now on for each email I am going to write down 1 scripture that really stood out to me this week, and write it in the email, this week's will be Alma 26:29. Look it up, it is something I plan on reading again at the end of my mission, its's a great scripture.
But seriously, I almost look forward to Sundays more than I do to p-days, cuz seriously it is what reminds me every week that this adventure I'm on isn't for me, it's for the Lord and I am simply an instrument in His hands, and that's all there is to it. He has given me a testimony, and I'm going out to share it. That's what missionary work is, honestly, a mission is just a giant testimony. You go out and bear your testimony in thousands of different ways to thousands of different people.
Devotional this week was Elder Eduardo Gavarret of the 70 and his wife, and they were a pretty good, Spanish couple. Both had really strong Spanish accents and I just kept saying "Come on, speak in Spanish, you know you want to!" A little bit of that was fulfilled, his wife bore pieces of her testimony in English, Portugese, and Spanish, so I understood 2/3 of it. And Elder Gavarret bore his in English and some crazy language like Japanese or something, totally unexpected. But one thing that I wrote down during that devotional is something that I want to put a patent on, everyone, I made this up myself, ready? Ok here goes: (Missionaries are like the Special Ops team of the Lord's Army!) Seriously, I'm not prideful at all but that is genius! I give you all permission to use it whenver you want though :)
Choir this week we had two really good songs, but the last one was the best, called The Lord is My Shepherd, look it up, see if you can find it on youtube or something. Too bad I've been sick since Monday, so it was tough singing, but we still sat in the 1st row and sang our hearts out, well, I squealed my heart out haha.
This week Swasey got himself a girl with a bit of a crush on him, it was totally hilarious because being here zaps all swagger you have to talking to girls, as it should be. So when she came up to him saying he was really good at basketball and gave him her address and name, he was like totally freaked out haha. Now we have something to hold over him for the next 5 weeks, cuz it was just so random.
I spent one of my hours of language study this week to memorize the First Vision in Spanish, and I was so proud of myself. I thought it would take so long but it was actually pretty easy, and now it is so much more powerful when you don't have to look it up in JSH.
We had the 1st real snow this week Saturday night, so we had snow all over the place on Sunday, it was awesome, I made a snowball at the temple during our temple walk, a small one, cuz there wasn't a ton of snow but cool nonetheless.
I've spent like my last 2 weeks worth of gym time shooting around in basketball, teaching myself to shoot the correct way, and it's really fun, and I'm getting really good. Piece by piece, un poco por un poco, but like today I was seriously making em rain.
How's everyone doing back home? Thank you all for your letters, I'll be writing a bunch today. Mama T, I am definitely getting your Dear Elders, I promise, that's why I've written you back twice :) Oh and Mama T, when you talk to Max, tell him I love him, and that we had the 1st lady of Honduras here visit another district, pretty crazy, we never saw her but she came and talked to some guys going to another mission there in Honduras. We got our last set of noobs today before Grant comes, and I'm stoked. I wanna see if I can carry his luggage and show him around (Host him), but I don't know if they'd let me, we'll see.
Language is going well, I have to write down less and less to prepare for lessons, just have to keep being diligent and trying my hardest. Swasey and I are seriously like a dream team now during lessons, we own it with the language together, trading off back and forth.
Speaking of Swasey, he got a haircut here for the 1st time, the first out of our group, and no joke, she finished in 6 minutes. It was so fast. I think I'll get one next week, then one right before I leave.
I bought myself a Panama shirt here at the bookstore, it's awesome, i'll send pics home. Lots of people here buy shirts in the store of the missions they're going to, so I wanted to get one for myself.
One highlight of the week though is last night we gave Elder Clark a blessing, because he's definitely fine after he passed out/seizure (he doesn't like when we say he had a seizure), but the dumb medical staff is still making him get brain tests like twice a week and he's getting so frustrated. But that was the first blessing we had done together, and for me, it was really powerful. The Spirit is so strong with priesthood holders united to help another person through rough times.
Love you all, have a great week. Study the scriptures often, seriously, it will change your outlook on the day. If you believe in how powerful the Book of Mormon is, you will see so many blessings in your life fall into place, and that is the Gregg guarantee.
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