Mom/Editor notes: these are the questions I asked her this week, which she answered in her letter first off:
5 Questions:
1) Did you leave your little iPod charger plugged in in the family room? We found one there and didn't remember whose it
was. It looks newer, so I thought it might be yours. I hope you took your new one with you.
2) Can you print the attached sheet music? Or do I need to send a hard copy too?
3)
Did you get to watch the Women's Meeting? Or is that for the Hermanas
while the Elders are in Priesthood meeting Saturday night?
4) Did you get the other letter I sent via the Mexico MTC package
service? I'm curious with the time frame of getting it to you.
5)
How is the laundry situation for you at the CCM? Are the facilities
like school? Are your clothes getting clean enough? Do you have enough
supplies?
Primera, respuestas:
1. I nunca charged my iPod in the family room....so it's not mine.
2.
I don't believe we can print. If we can, we've gotta supply the paper.
But I just drew/wrote the music down for Come Thou Fount. It was so dim
that my photo of the computer screen wasn't visible. The other one will
be fine. I used to have it memorized so I think once I play it some more
I'll be fine.
3. We
didn't watch the women's meeting last Saturday, but we get to watch it
this Saturday mientra the elderes watch the session de sacerdocio. We
are stoked. I've loved Conference for a long time--especially once I
began taking apuntes--but this time is unlike any other. I can't explain
it. I mean, we have devotionals here two or three times a week, but
conferencia general is gonna be like devotionals on steroids, times
five. So, yeah, we are pretty dang excited. And then, our last Sunday,
our topic for talks is our favorite discurso from conferencia general.
So, it'll be even more fantastic.
4.
I got two letters in the mail from the Dear Elder thing (one I got the
email of first) but nothing else. Well, I did get a letter from Grandma
Jo--I will write back Grandma, I'm just a slacker--but nothing else from
you guys. So if there is something else, no I have not gotten it.
5.
I'm good on laundry supplies. In our casa we have three washing
machines and three dryers--though one doesn't work at all--so it's fine.
We don't have to pay for it so that's super bien. I believe my clothes
are getting clean enough.... I feel clean, anyway. And I guess that's
what really matters.
Mamá,
¡es una mujer loca! I know Scott really appreciates everything you do
at work, but just in case you need another reminder: you're awesome.
Really. You've taught me so much sobre working hard and giving every
task my all. Por ejemplo, ayer for servicio, we got to help fold
laundry--we don't have to wash our own sheets every week--and I got put
on the crew folding fitted sheets. The cute latino hombre taught us how
to and the whole time I was thinking, "mi mamá me enseñó cómo hacer
este." You are great. Mis hermanas were saying they wished they knew how
to do that previously. So, thanks to you, I'm one step ahead of the
game. Gracias.
A dear friend on our ward was going through some tough times, and I asked Jill to include her in her prayers
I
will definitely keep Doris in my prayers. She is such a fantastic
ejemplo para yo y todas las chicas en el barrio. (I can't remember the
word for ward, only branch...) Por favor, diga a ella que yo le amo.
Mucho.
We
found out this week that we're actually an intermediate Spanish class.
That was a little weird. Mis elderes (specifically Elder Olsen) said I
ought to be in the same class as los latinos. ja, yeah right. They're
sweet though. I also found out today that Olsen's familia found my blog.
So, if the Olsen familia is reading this, shout out to you guys! Sister
Olsen, you have raised quite a good young man, though I'm sure you knew
that already. Though we tease him about "Isabel", he really is a
fantastic missionary--plus she left today. He's decided that lecciones
are better when he doesn't write anything down for them. (I can see his
point.) He does such a good job as our líder de distrito. He may be
silly frequently, but he has some really good spiritual insights when he
tries. And I don't know how much he's told you, but we decided what
animal everyone is most like: he's a flamingo. He disagrees, but he is,
he is. And we all love him.
Mamá, please get Cameron for this next paragraph or so. This is going to be specifically for him.
Cameron:
sorry about your calc test. But who said this was going to be easy?
Because I guarantee I didn't say anything of the sort. But, need I
remind you: you are a strong, independent [man] who won't let no
calculus test bring him down! Look, in all seriousness, you are a
brilliant kid. And I know we've told you before, but you just need to
apply yourself. Look at how far you've come with golf. Do the same exact
thing with calculus! You had Henry for golf; find yourself a tutor or a
friend who will help you through it every day. I'm willing to be that
Amy will help you when she has the time. You golfed hours on end EVERY
day this summer. You need to apply yourself just as much with math. I
know you've got other responsibilities, but you really need to apply
yourself in class. And then set aside some time EVERY day for calculus.
If something doesn't make sense, then call up a friend who can help you
out. I know you've got the resources, you social butterfly, you. If I
were a commercial, you know what I'd say? Just do it! Plus, YouTube has
some great stuff on there about math. Use the Internet--productively. I
promise you can do it. If you put in all the time that you can and then
pray for help, I promise you that you will succeed. (I'm a missionary
remember, and I do not tell lies nor slander.) Success may not be
exactly what you want it to be, but it will be success all the same. I
promise you. Okay? Okay. Good talk. P.S. What was the name that you
always called Trent? Not that I want to call him that, but I've a point
to prove with Jensen. I can't remember what it was, but you always had
one specific name for him....remind me, please. Thank you. Love you,
brah.
Sorry about your visiting teaching, Mamá.
I imagine in a month or so I'll be able to really relate to that....but
I'll worry about that when the time comes.
That
Medical Explorers thing sounds fantastic! Man, I don't know exactly
what suturing pigs feet will be like but it sounds thrilling! Wish I
could do that....I miss chemistry and bio so much. I know, I'm such a
nerd....but I do. Today, I was talking with Hermana Capps about my knee
grinding and she said it's probably my meniscus. My first thought was
the meniscus in a test tube or graduated cylinder.....I'm such a dork. I
know. But, when you're a biochem major, what else do you expect?
Cam and I were asked to "chaperone" a singles dance last week and I told Jill about that experience.
A
30+ singles dance....? That just sounds....painful. Oh man. I feel for
Amy and Chris and Heather. No está bien....that's rough. I don't even
want to contemplate that. I can't even contemplate dating in 17 months.
Uh, yeah, just, no.
Oh man. Talk about rain.
EVERY single time it rains super badly, I'm wearing those off-white
flats I have--that have holes in them. Oh my goodness. It's awful. My
feet are soggy and gross way too frequently. No me gusta.... I love the
lluvia, but not having mojados feet.
Sunday was our annual Sacrament meeting Primary Program
Glad the
Primary Program went well. All three of my hermanas taught primary at
one point and liked it and I was just like...I subbed a few times...and I
never wanted to go back.....ah well. Maybe someday I'll like Primary.
Just kidding. I mean, hopefully maybe but I am doubtful. Which means I
will most assuredly be in the black hole of the church at some
point....wow don't I sound like quite the optimist....lo siento, mamá.
I told her of plans for care packages to two darling friends in the Provo MTC prior to their leaving fro foreign countries soon.
Oh
hey, speaking of Josh: I saw him! I mean, we watched a live streaming
devotional last Tuesday (I think) and he was singing in the choir. I
watch for Maddie every time but have yet to see her....ah well. I think
it's more fun than playing I Spy for Mr. Whitaker during
conferencia....I should probably pay more attention, but it's kind of
hard to take notes during a choir number. I will say that it's kind of
weird to hear english music now...when we have live devotionals from
provo and they put the words on the screen, Presidente Pratt makes us
find it in our himnos and sing it in Spanish....it's kind of weird.
Watching the chorister is trippy when he's singing the wrong words, too.
If you get ambitious, try singing along to a song during conferencia in
español. Es muy divertido. But, don't feel pressured to do that. It's
just kind of fun and trippy.
Okay, so: antes I
tell about my week, I have compiled a list of things I wish I would have
known prior to entering el CCM, and some things I'm glad I knew. Here
it is:
1. Bring laundry detergent and dryer sheets. The Tide
pods work fantastically. You can buy laundry detergent at la tienda, but
it's kind of a hassle. Each tiny bottle is only good for two loads, is
my understanding....but those are your options. Also, you don't have to
wash you sheets. Just take them off every Monday morning and put them in
the pile of sheets by the door. Then get a new stack of sheets at the
end of the day from the closet by the cleaning supplies. That is really
great.
2. Hermanas, you are required to wear a slip. 24/7. So
don't forget one. I did, and had to buy one at la tienda. They're about
80 pesos, I think. So not terribly expensive, but I wish I would've just
brought mine.
3. You're going to use muchos papeles. Bring
notebooks to write in. Especially if you're learning a language. Mi
compañera es muy listo. She has one notebook for spiritual stuff
(devotionals and classes and whatnot) and one for Spanish stuff,
including lesson plans. Do things like that. You can buy notebooks here,
including a cool little binder thing to reuse with notebooks (I would
highly recommend getting one because where else are you gonna get
something like that? Exactly.) But you'll want paper.
4. You
don't need bedding here en el CCM. However, you do need towels. Do NOT
forget towels...that would be bad. Those microfiber towels work really
well, and I would suggest bringing a towel for your feets when you get
out of the shower. Currently there is no rug on the floor and the floor
gets really quite disgusting....so, be warned.
5. It's
actually cold here in México, on occassion. You probably ought to bring
sweaters and cardigans and leggings and other warm things. I would also
suggest bringing boots. You will use them. Promise. Though, it is
extremely hard to guess when it's going to rain (and when I say rain I
mean, pour.)
6. Definitely bring an umbrella. I don't care
where you're going after the CCM. You will want an umbrella. Also, rain
coat. That would be a good idea. Yeah.
7. You're given oodles
of language help books, plug Preach My Gospel and Predicad Mi Evangelio
& español escrituras--no need to bring your own. So many books, so
little time. Seriously.
8. If you like water, bring a water
bottle. They do have their own clean water here so you won't need a
filter during your stay in el CCM, and they will give you a water bottle
with a filter before you leave. (We've been told everyone gets one
regardless of where they'll be serving. Not positive on the truthfulness
of that information though--stateside is questionable.)
9.
You'll get a "debit card" of sorts to use at the tienda. Do NOT just
throw away the paper that it comes on. There is a PIN underneath where
the card is. Do not lose that PIN. If you do, to check your balance or
withdraw pesos or anything, there will be a fee. Just, don't lose it.
Hermanas will begin with 120 pesos on the card and then get 120 each
Wednesday for the next four weeks. Elderes begin with 100 and get 100
each week for four weeks. So if you forgot something you desperately
need, you'll be okay. Most likely.
10. If you want to buy
things at the temple book store, bring cash. You can exchange American
dinero for pesos, but Finanzas en el Recepción building has weird hours.
So get that all figured out in advance before you go to the temple. You
can't use cards at the bookstore. Only cash. Also, in case you're
wondering, the scripture cases I got are 45 pesos each (90 for the set),
and then there are t-shirts, as well as Mexican looking shirts and
skirts (for Hermanas). They also have HLJ rings, and bookmarks and lots
of other fun things. Lots of people will get scripture cases for family
members or other things as gifts. So, look forward to that trip.
11.
Hermanas, you're not allowed to wear earrings here that are longer than
an inch long. So...yeah. That didn't affect me, but Hermana Powell says
that most of the earrings she brought are too long. So watch out.
12.
When I asked mis elderes for their top piece of advice, they all agreed
unanimously: more corbatas (ties). You can bring more than you'll wear
and even some you don't want to wear to trade ties with people or give
them to gifts (hermanas, you may want to bring some for your elderes. I
promise you'll learn to love them.) So, lots of ties. That's the number
one things from mis elderes.
13. My hermanas said more skirts
and shoes. We decided a black skirt is necessary, as well as white and
grey and navy. We were told that we're not allowed to wear Toms because
they're canvas and the rain is kind of a problem with that, but I still
wear mine because they're not too casual looking (they're sparkly black
Bobs). But I wish I would have brought a pair of black flats. As well as
nude flats. Also, I'm wishing I would have brought more/different
shirts. Bring shirts you love, not just shirts that match everything.
Also, wish I had more shirts that don't need to be layered. Because it
gets hot here....cardigans are great because they keep you warm when
you're cold and you can just take it off when its too hot.
14. Elder Jensen's piece of advice: "it doesn't suck." Enough said.
15.
The food here IS good. Yes, there is a lot of authentic Mexican food,
but there is cereal for almost every meal, plus milk, and they
frequently have nutella and peanut and bread by a whole line up of
toasters. Peanut butter and nutella sandwiches are heaven sent some
days. But you'll like the food. Just give it a chance. However, you may
want to bring your own snacks. Mexican candy is an acquired taste. Mis
hermanas wish they would've brought Swedish fish and Tootsie Rolls and
chocolate and things. You'll want some normal American treats every once
in a while...
16. You'll want more SD cards than you think.
I've brought a total of 32 GB, and I think I'll be okay, but if you take
a lot of pictures, you may want more. I dunno. Also, I would strongly
suggest getting an SD card reader that works (test it before you get
here.) It is fantastic. Plus, then if you get sent pictures you can put
the pictures on your SD card and have them for sure. Also, you could
probably set up a Dropbox account for pictures instead of using so many
SD cards. Just get it set up before arriving, and then email the link to
your myldsmail account so you can easily access it. I didn't do this,
so I'm just guessing that it would work. I know some missionaries do
that.
17. I wish I would have brought one or two more pairs of
shorts for gym. We're not allowed to wear spandex of any kind. Some
loose fitting sweats (from the PJ section of Target) would also be
advisable. If you don't get too hot when you work out....I'm probably
gonna invest in some when I get to Illinois.
18. I wish I
would have brought more T-shirts too. Mostly I brought black T-shirts
and my shorts are black as well...so I look a little odd. But yeah. If
you don't sweat a ton or work out that hard, I wouldn't worry about it.
These are just my musings.
19. Tide-to-Go pens. You will want
these. Whether or not you are prone to being messy, I would bet money
(if I were a gambling sort of missionary) that a member of your district
will be prone to messes. I can't tell you how many times I've used
mine. They're fantastic. The elderes especially use them frequently.
20.
You may want to bring your own whiteboard markers. You can buy them at
the tienda, or you could bring them, or you could not use them. If you
have them, make sure they are clearly marked as your own. Mine has Hello
Kitty duct tape all over it (thanks to Hermana Haws) so no one will be
taking that anytime soon.
21. Flash cards! Bring some index
cards and scissors so you can cut them up into smaller cards. That helps
a lot with vocab. If that method of learning works for you, do it.
(Again, these materials are available at the tienda if you don't bring
some then later decide that you want some.)
22. I wish I would
have brought a laundry bag of some kind... the closets are not optimal
for anything really so currently I use one of two drawers for my dirty
laundry. Then there is a small sort of shelf and then some hanging
space. You can bring your own hangers but there are also some in the
casa--see if you can't find any more when you get here.
Okay, that's that. Now, let me tell you some stories about the week.
Currently, we are listening to Primary songs in Spanish. ¡Está muy bien! Oración de un niño, en este momento.
Uh,
yesterday Elder Bronson had about a half an hour long discussion with
Hermano Sanchez about whether or not Sanchez should bring him some ties
from outside the wall. (He's not allowed to.) But Bronson just kept
trying to convince him to do so. Oh man. He just would not give it a
rest.
We've been trying to memorize la Primera
Visión en español. Pero, está muy difícil. So, we developed a game of
hand volleyball. Every time we hit the "ball" we say the next word. It
is actually really effective. And muy fun. We got the baptismal
invitation memorized through that, and we've got the first half of la
primera visión down tambien.
En Jueves, we had
un devocional, live aqui. We had two people come speak to us. One was
Elder David F Evans and the other was stephen B Allen. One is the
managing director of the missionary program, and one is the executive
director. It was amazing! One of my favorite quotes from it was "Your
pruspose is not so much to be doing missionary things but to become a
missionary." Also, they told us "Plead with the Lord for help, then get
up and go to work!" I think that applies for all aspects of our lives.
Whether or not you're a missionary, plead with the lord for help and
then get up and go to work. That's as simple as it gets.
Durante
Sociedad Socurro, en domingo, we talked about the doctrine/gospel of
Christ, contained in 2 Nefí 31 y 32. It was really good. When we read
the part in 32:4 that says if you don't understand it's because you
haven't asked, my first thought was when Nefí has his visión y Laman y
Lemuel don't understand so they ask him to explain and tells them "have
you asked God?" and they're all like "uh, no." Okay, so the only reason
they didn't know was because they didn't ask. And it applies to our
investigadores: they could have spiritual experiences like Laman y
Lemuel pero if they don't ask, then it'll be for nothing.
Entonces,
en clase con el CCM Presidencia, we talked about the Gift of the Holy
Ghost and the difference between the gift and the power. My favorita
parte, by far, was a quote by Parley P. Pratt. Go and find this in it's
entirety: "The gift of the holy Spirit adapts itself to all these organ
or attributes... In short, it is, as it were, marrow to the bone, joy to
the heart, light to the eyes, music to the ears, and life to the whole
being." Oh man. How fantastic, no? Yes.
Then,
for our Sunday devotional, we watched a recording of a devocional from
Provo, recorded on Christmas Day. It was Elder Bednar. ¡Santa vaca! It
was amazing! He spoke about the true character of Christ, and how we can
exemplify that. The biggest prompting I had during it was this: by Him
and through Him, all things are possible. Conversely, anything we do is
by Him and through Him. I mean, we're called the dust of the earth, no?
Everything and anything we do is because He helps us to do so. That was
kind of mind blowing for me.
Then we watched
Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration for our video. I had this
thought during the video: When we tell people the story of the
Restoration of the Church of Jesus Christ, logic dictates that this
story cannot be true. But the truth of this Gospel is not dictated by
logic. Our spirits can feel the truth of it far deeper than our logical
minds can comprehend. That is the level we need to be reaching with our
investigadores. They need to FEEL the truth of the message of the Gospel
of Jesus Christ. For that is the only way to KNOW the truth. I
shared this thought in our discussion as a distrito afterwards. Jensen
told me that I write like a general authority....uh, yeah. I don't think
so. But thanks anyway. He's nice, usually.
Now, about non-spiritual things:
We
played tennis as a distrito one day. We tried playing around the world.
Oh man. It was fun, but hard. We needed a few more people I think.
Plus, we weren't particularly good at it. Then, the rest of our distrito
decided to play volleyball, but Hna Capps and I stayed and played
doubles with Jensen and Hoffmann. Jensen and I were on a team, and I
think it was the longest time he's gone without saying something sassy
to me. It was odd, yet refreshing. Funny kid.
Durante
TALL ayer, Hermana Velázquez was with us, and there was this giant
thunderstorm and the power got knocked out briefly so we convinced her
to let us have a jam session on the piano again. She didn't sing along
with us though she knew the songs. Oh man. It felt so good to sing songs
other than himnos again. I love himnos, but sometimes I need a break.
Plus, I've had Love is An Open Door stuck in my head for days--Hna
Powell and I jammed out while she was in the shower and I shaved one
night to all the Frozen songs. Plus, one day we passed an hermana who
was singing For The Longest Time and that was also stuck in my head for
days. Today, Olsen was singing the piña colado song. Oh man. I detest
that canción....no me gusta nada. Ayer we sang a bunch of snippets of
songs in class as well. Mucho enjoyable. Jensen makes us sound like an
angelic choir, that's all I'm sayin'.
En
Miercoles, we had our first TRC. We teach "real" investigators a short
lesson with almost no preparation. It's hard but I liked it. Our first
was a woman who is less active because she works on Sundays. The second
was a guy who is an active member. It was fun, but difícil. We do TRC
again tomorrow.
Hoy, durante almuerzo, Hermano
Shawn Cates came and sat with us. He's the director of the CCM. Oh man.
He did a devocional a while ago and it was fantastic, and I've always
assumed he was a great person (he sounded like it) but now I know for
sure. He asked us what our favorite and least favorite parts of the CCM
are (I told him my least favorite part is having gym in the middle of
the day...) and we talked to him about his plans after this job (it is a
job, not a calling--we didn't know that until we asked.) His darling
children are fluent en ingles y en español. It was a really fun chat.
We
met a pair of hermanas at dinner one day and one of them was named
Hermana Purnell. She was roommate's with Melanie Andersen at BYU. That
was kind of coincidental.
There's been an Elder
here who has sung a few musical numbers for devocionals and whatnot.
His voice sounds like IL DIVO meets Josh Groban....it was trippy. He
sounded amazing though. We could've listened to him for days....
A pair of sisters of Jill's childhood friend Brittany are missing, having run away fro home together in July...
I had a thought this week: has there been any news about the Wolferts sisters? I'm keeping them and Britt in my prayers..
En
viernes, Elder Bradbeer drew a fantastic picture of Jesus (based on a
folleta) on the white board, and en la mañana de Sabado, Elder Olsen
tried drawing a different picture of Jesus. The hair on Jesus wasn't
straight and wasn't curly so someone asked about it, Olsen turned around
and goes, "it's like Hermana DeBuck's hair!" Uh.......yeah. I'm still
not sure I feel about that...it was random.
Also,
Bronson was trying to tell Hermano Villalobos that he was cool but he
wasn't getting his subject and verb matching, so he changed his sentence
to "Su cuerpo es muy suave." Villalobos cracked up. He told us that
that means his body is squishy. haha (he's not squishy at all. he's a
twig.)
I made papers for a bunch of irregular
verbs that have seven different conjugations on each of them. I must
really love my distrito or something.
Okay, my biggest spiritual experiencia this week. You ready?
Sabado
we were doing practicing teaching. One of us misioneros was the
investigador and the other the misionero. I was the investigador first
(Rosana) and it was fine. Hoffmann was my partner, and while his spanish
wasn't perfect, I could still feel the Spirit. I'm trying to get out of
the habit of correcting people because it isn't that important; the
spirit is what's really important. Anyway, so that was fine. Then we
switched and I was trying to follow the Spirit as I taught. And I
honestly can't tell you what happened exactly but Hoffmann and I ended
up arguing. Immediamente, I felt the Spirit leave. And I could NOT
continue. Without the Spirit, I am useless. I tried to continue, but I
just couldn't. So I left the room, went to the bathroom, sat on the
toilet seat in my stall and prayed. Which means I ended up crying. Man.
It was...awful...but amazing. I realized how much I need the spirit in
my life, especially as a missionary. And it made me realize that even
though I don't always feel the presence of the Spirit, he is almost
always there. And I am so grateful for that. hermana Capps ended up
coming in and asked if I was okay. Which set me over the edge so then I
was really crying. I eventually told her what happened, between sobs,
and i was alright in the end. She and hermana Powell both gave me hugs.
I'm so grateful for them. Y por their words of comfort too. Hna Capps
later told me that she was kind of jealous about my experience. I'm not
sure why because it wasn't fantastic, but at the same time I kind of see
her point. It was really powerful for me. I also shared this experience
on Sunday for fast and testimonio meeting. The boys later told me it
sounded like I was mad at the elder I was with. Apparently i didn't
explain that well enough: I was mad at myself. I should know better.
But, live and learn. "Eso sí que es" or whatever.
Well,
that's about all I have time for. I love you guys lots. I know this
where I need to be, and I'll see you 17 months. We ship out in 2
weeks--13 days technically. how crazy is that! Oh my. Also, I'm afraid
I'm going to freeze when I get to Chicago....ah well. I'll survive.
Con Todo Mi Amor,
Hermana DeBuck
Our district with one of our good friends, Hermano Sanchez (he wasn't one of our teachers, but he visited often)
Us hermanas with Hermana Velasquez, our investigador-turned-maestra. Love her!
Hermana Capps and I with Hermana Arnaud (also not one of our teachers--but we think she and Hno Villalobos should get hitched.....)
Our distrito plus maestro, making fat faces.... (I don't think Hno Villalobos has enough skin to make a fat face...he's too skinny)
The Elders took a ride in the elevator--and may or may not have gotten trapped for a short time.
FHE: the most hard-core game of rock-paper-scissors of all time (most likely)
Service at the CCM: we would always ask to go fold laundry--the guys there were so fun!
Mexico has letters on "mountains" too! B for
"Benamerito", the name of the Church's school here before it was the
CCM.
A note from our maestra, Hna Velasquez. She's so sweet.
God's Plan of Love: this may be slightly misleading, but it's still pretty
cool, you've gotta admit.
Hermana Capps and I are super and here we're models, so....fill in the rest
yourself.
Our district: whiteboard version.
Lego hands in Mexico!!
Me and
Sister Jones. (:
Yes, we actually fit in the cupboard where we kept el gato de Satanas...
Oh what do you do
in the summertime--when you have to exercise every
day except Sunday? Well, we play volleyball, no matter the weather.
