*Disclaimer* I'm really bad at coming up with subjects for emails...so sorry
HOLY MI FAMILIA Y AMIGOS!!
^That's about the extent of my Spanish at this point. Shoot, and to be honest, I don't even know that is grammatically correct.
ANYWAYS. This week has been the biggest roller coaster. I am trying to type as fast as I can!! My fingers are flying. I will try and remember everything that has happened. (Jord- don't judge my grammar or spelling. :) Hopefully this email makes sense because I am seriously all over the PLACE right now. I have been absolutely dying to email you guys and have missed you INCREDIBLY.
We got to the MTC and we immediately went and got our name tags and went and met the MTC president and his wife and their counselors and their wives. A few other things happen but that literally feels like YEARS ago. We went to our classroom and we met our first teacher, Hermano Byers. He is INCREDIBLE. We walked into class and immediately talked to us in Spanish. We didn't speak a word of English the entire first day. So that was overwhelming a little bit.
Spanish - the second day I was here we had already learned to pray and bear our testimonies in Spanish. That was crazy too. Since then, we have been asked and expected to pray in Spanish. It's really cool, but I'm definitely still working on it. 52 hours after we entered the MTC, we were already teaching our first investigator. I almost pooped my pants when Hermano Byers told us that. I was dying. It went okay, and me and Hermana Jackman (my companion who rocks) struggled through it the best we could in the tiny amount of Spanish that we know. Her name is Diana, and since then we have taught her 4 lessons. Our last lesson with her was on Monday. The entire time, I never heard her speak on word of English, so that was overwhelming.
Then yesterday, we learned that Diana is actually our new teacher, and that her real name is Hermana Tuft! She taught us our first lesson yesterday and to EVERYONE's surprise in our district she speaks English!! It was so weird for her to come into class and give us feedback on our lessons, and have her speak English! It was so bizarre. Anyways. She is seriously incredible too. I am SO lucky to be taught by her. She graduated from Lone Peak in 2010! Maybe Addy knows her? I think her maiden name is King? And she is really short and darling. She went to Texas on her mission and just got married this December. I love her. I really, honestly hope to be like her when I'm done my mission.
My companion is Hermana Jackman! She is from Lehi and she actually found me before we came into the MTC on instagram. So that's cool. We get along really well, and I'm SO SO lucky to have her. We have been a good support to each other throughout the week as we have both struggled as different times.
I hope that even makes sense. I'm all over the place.. oops. Sorry.
The MTC is definitely harder and very different than I thought it would be. We are sitting at a desk in a tiny classroom for 9 hours a day. My district is cool too. There is 4 hermanas and 4 elders. If you were to ask me how I like the MTC, it would depend on the hour that you ask me. Sometimes it's the best, most encouraging, spiritual place, and sometimes I feel SO down and SO discouraged, and SO homesick. But I just keep going, and it's slowly been getting better. Everyone kept telling me to just make it until Sunday, and they were right. Sunday was a phenomenal day. The spirit was strong. Then Monday was another hard day. The MTC is like trying to drink out of a fire hose.. It's SO overwhelming. Something Hermano Byers said really struck me though. He said, "The MTC is just a boot camp on learning how to trust and rely wholly on the Lord". I'm just trying to have faith in him. Faith like I have never had before. It's definitely tough, but since Tuesday, it's definitely gotten better.
THE FOOD..... I'm already over it. It's yuck. I've mostly resorted to eating salads when they have them, and fruit, and cereal (shoutout to Taylor Ramsay).
The girls in my district are me, Hermana Jackman, Hermana Johnson, and Hermana Allphin. Me, Jackman, and Johnson are all going to the same mission, and Allphin is going to .... wait for it... CALGARY! What?! Spanish speaking! Isn't that AWESOME?! I have told her that she has to go visit you guys!! How sweet is that?! I seriously love all of them, and we get along really well, but I especially love Hermana Allphin. You pronounce you name like "dolphin, but without the d". She is great. I'll try and send pictures if I can figure it out.
Goodness I have absolutely been dying to write you guys. It's crazy that it's already been 8 days here. It feels like it has flown, but it also feels like an ETERNITY since I have seen you all.
We got to do a temple walk on Sunday.. that was kind of hard actually. Since I have been in the MTC, and I have just been trying to be HERE, and not think about home and stuff, but when we got to walk out, and I again realized how seriously close I am to you guys, and that I am just a few miles away from The Village.. that was hard.
GUYS. A good way to get a hold of me during the week is letters or through Dear Elder! I can't read your emails throughout the week, but at least while I'm in the MTC, I can write throughout the week. Dear Elder is a great thing! You write an email, and then they print it out here and I get it that same day.. then I can write a letter back which takes a few days, but if you want that works great! Email also works too, but I can only see them once a week. I don't exactly know how Dear Elder works, but I don't think it's very hard.
They have been really stressing obedience here. The rules may be tough, but I have come to know that when we are obedient that Lord blesses us. Even if it's hard. I just want to be the best missionary I can be, and I know that the rules are here to help and protect me. They aren't just there to make my life hard.. so yeah. Working on being obedient. Shoot.
Also!! We get to go the Temple TODAY! WOOHOO!! Can't wait for that. We do Temple walks every Sunday, and then we get to do a session on our P-days. YAY. That will rock.
The mission is hard, but I LOVE having Jesus Christ's name on me at all times. I LITERALLY represent him. So that keeps me going when I get down.
I hope this is even making sense. I love you guys so so SO much!! I'm so grateful for you and your prayers. You are in every one of my prayers, and if you haven't been on a mission, you pray A LOT. More than I have ever prayed in my life.
I love you guys. Thanks for everything. Sorry if this email was boring.. or didn't make sense. I'll try and do better next week!!
XOXOXOXOXOXO
HERMANA EHLERT
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