Hola todos,
It has been a very good week at the MTC. Thank you to Sydney, Mom, Keith, Regan, Amanda, Dad, and Corinne for the letters. Please keep them coming. THis is my only way of hearing from you!
This has been a week with ups and downs but overall positive. Much better than last week. I am no longer sick. I cough occasionaly but no worries. I have had such a spiritual week and I have learned so much. I hope you all have had good weeks too!
So this week we had our first experience with the TRC (teaching resource center). The TRC is a place where we get to go and practice teaching but we teach members. People in Provo come in to volunteer and they play themselves. It is a real life scenario no body is acting. I love it! It is fun to teach members who understand a bit more, and share their own insights more than an investigator would. We taught this sweet older gentleman named Baxter and we were talking about what the Book of Mormon means for us and how we can still find new insights. We wanted to commit him to find a favorite scripture after we shared ours, but he shared his too. I knew I wanted to commit him to something so I asked him to invite a friend or family member to find and share a favorite scripture. HE filled out an evaluation sheet and told me and Hmna greenwood that he felt the spirit and was excited to follow through on our comittment.
This week I had my first real cry. I was in my interview with the Head Sister in our Zone or group of missionaries. Things had not been getting better with one of the sisters, and i was still sick and just stressed about everything. I had been holding it in for too long and i just started crying. She was super nice and really helped me feel better. Also, things are going a lot better with me and the sister.
Gym has been fun this week. NOrmally I would just run, but we have started playing four square and ladder golf. We have also started going outside to the field more. I love getting fresh air.
Spanish is going better. I still speak English, but I feel like Spanish has definitely become the language I speak in the majority of my day!
Hmna Butler left for the Guatamala MTC on Tues. so now I am in a trio with Hmna Minert as well. I really like her and having a trio is good.
This week my teachers have said such inspiring things, it has always been just what I needed to hear. One teacher told us that working hard was worth it and that letters from home were great and all, but it was the change in peoples lives that would really make us enjoy our missions. HE told us that we had to believe things before we could help others belive them. He said Don't you dare...(commit someone to read the Book of Mormon) unless you are...reading the Book of Mormon. Etc.
We also have a teacher that just pops in every now and then to answer questions or whatever. ONe day, we really needed a question answered and we thought he was the perfect one to answer it. We decided if we thought about him really hard and how much we needed him to answer our question, he would come. It was kind of a joke, but 2 minutes later, he was in our classroom. It was a tender mercy from the Lord.
Yesterday, there was a computer glich, and our regular teacher was replaced by a sub. SO we had this teacher that wasn't great, but I was still able to learn from her. She really taught me the importance of loving my investigators and really being animated when teaching. Also, she was from SPAIN! I got to hear her beautiful accent and I COULD UNDERSTAND HER! I felt pretty happy! It was a tender mercy, I needed her to teach me that day.
On sunday, the only breakfast they serve is cereal so we just bought food from the vending machine and I got a muffin and milk. I took one sip of the milk and it tasted nasty--it had expired three days before! EWWW~
We saw a little mouse this week. It was just sitting on the path (2 inches long?) So cute.
On sunday, we got to hear from the 1st counselor in the General YW presidency. And from Mark Jarman--trainer of education at the MTC. He spoke at institute at the Elms for the Institute kick off, it was great to hear from him again. On Tuesday we got to hear from an apostle of the Lord, Elder Andersen. It was Pres. Monson’s birthday, so we sang happy Birthday. Elder Andersen told us that he had been speaking with the Prophet earlier and Pres Monson wanted all the missionaries to know that Pres monson was thankful for us, and that he sent us his blessings! It was so cool to know that a prophet was thinking about us! Sunday night we got to watch the Testaments movie. i thought of all of my Bird 306 girls!
This week, i do not know which night. I had a dream that I got to go home! That was not a fun one to wake up from. I was mad in the morning because I was thinking about how I wouldn't be able to call home until Christmas. THen I realized I can call at the airport (still no news on the Visa so I don't know when that will be).
This week I taught my worst and best lesson. My worst lesson was with Daniel and we were teaching about the first vision. I didn’t explain it well, and when I tried to recite JSH I totally messed up and eventually got through but with many mistakes. It was not a good lesson, but he seemed really nice about my horrid spanish. I think it was a blessing in disguise because I learned that I will make mistakes but that things will be okay.
With Hmna. Butler gone we teach and do everything in a three-some. But we have had great success teaching in a three some. Our lesson with Patricio went really well. He asked how to know that you got an answer. I felt prompted to tell him the story of when I decided to know the church was true. I went to my room and prayed about it and pondered. I had always just taken my parents word for it, but at age 17 I decided I needed to know. I prayed and felt an overwhelming feeling of peace and I remembered past experiences when I had felt that way. I couldn't deny that the church was true. I told Patrico this and I think it helped.
On tuesday we always do service. Me and Hmna greenwood were vacuuming the floor and couches. i found money while vaccuuming the couches ($2 about) and they said I could keep it! Also while doing service, I passed a door with a Sis. Peterson living there. It made me think of Kate, and Sis. Peterson!
There is a tree on Campus that smells like Creme soda! We took pictures smelling the tree. There is also a world map, and so before Hmna butler left, we took pictures with the 4 of us pointing to our respective missions.
The MTC bookstore, (Which everyone calls the mall) is now selling minature Preach My Gospels. IT has all the same information but it is about the size of a quad. SO much lighter and awesome!
Every Wednesday new missionaries come and i love saying "Welcome to the MTC" When I say that I try to invoke the message that things are going to be hard and overwhelming but totally worth it. We are not alone in our trials and although a mission is probably the hardest thing I have ever done, it is also the most rewarding thing i have ever done!
My favorite scriptures right now are Nephi's psalm and Alma 7:12. BUt I like alma 7:12 better in Spanish. It contains the verb Socorrer which is to succor. But Correr means to run. So it really means to run to the aid or support of! I love it!
I love you all, please write me and have wonderful weeks! Smile and make a difference in someones day!
Amor eternal,
Hmna. Olsen
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