12 December 2022

Corvallis MT!!

I made it to Montana! I got assigned to Corvallis. It's in what's called the Bitterroot Valley. It's an hour south of Missoula so I'm pretty close to the Idaho border. There are two mountain ranges that run parallel to each other and stretch north and south. There's a string of small towns in between and at the heart of it is a homey little town called Corvallis. There are lots of trees and a big river that flows thru the valley it's so pretty. 

My trainer is this dude from Winslow, Elder Leonard. He's pretty dope, we have a lot of fun but he's also down to earth and puts in the work. He's teaching me a lot and we have plenty of work to do here.

 Never have I been on the receiving end of this much charity and love from strangers. The members here are cracked. Every Wednesday the Wridges feed us. Every Wednesday. Super nice fam and they make us name all 20 dead animals on the wall, in order, before we are allowed to eat. But yeah everyone here is so nice our dinner calendar is pretty much full all the way thru January. 

Part of the reason they treat us so nicely is because we really are needed here. There's a ton of growth. In the whole mission, there are 4 temples in construction and it is the 2nd highest successful mission in the country. So there's lots of activity, specifically in the Corvallis area too.

I've taught a couple of lessons and it goes fine but I have a lot to learn and have to learn how to missionary. It's weird but exciting. 

I miss my MTC friends but we keep in touch. My new district is pretty cool too.

Hmm

It's an interesting feeling to realize I have literally nothing to do all day but serve these people and befriend them. And idk [I don't know] it's cool. We helped this one lady move out. I gave her a blessing the very first night I got here, it was dope.
I'm getting used to the cold! Corvallis is relatively warm to the rest of the state bc [because] we're between the mountains but it's still close to 0 degrees.

So there are these beautiful big mountains all around me. And tons of deer. Like everywhere. I have yet to drive somewhere and not see them running around and in front of us. 

I thrifted a cool grandpa shirt!

I go to Montana next week and I'm scared 

For real this week was so much faster than last week. I'm at the Missionary Training Center in Provo for my new friends who just subscribed to my annoying emails. I fly out to the real-life mission field on Tuesday. It's wild. I'm somewhere in between wanting the MTC to be over so I can face the source of my anxiety and wanting my last MTC days to be long so I can enjoy the limited time I have with my amazing friends and procrastinate dealing with real life BUT it's cool.

It's cold and snowing now but tbh [to be honest] I'm getting used to it. It's a rude foreshadowing of what I'll be walking into this week. lol

Hmm

Classes are fine

I'm typing this in the laundry mat while my clothes are drying but I forgot to bring hangers so there's a pile of damp dress shirts on my lap.

I thought after I left on my mission my music would die with me, but from the looks of it, there's still a lot of support from my friends and fam and that makes me so happy.

This cafeteria food is not it. I can't complain because I don't make 3 meals a day but MAN some of the stuff they feed us is boofy.

OH, I got some of the sisters in my district to do the anime voice, funniest thing. You know the TikToks where it's a cliche anime stan and they talk like anime characters and it's super cringy? Kenedy, my sis, got me in the habit of talking like that every once in a while and the habit never died. My whole group always yells at me when I do it.

Knowing that I'm just a vessel in the Lord's hands and that He's really doing all the work is something that keeps me going. It's so nice to just trust Him and let go of everything. I can't imagine not being able to lean on him, I guess that's why I'm here, to show people how to do that. God bless

NEXT TIME I WRITE Y'ALL I'LL BE IN MONTANAAAAAA 

Peace

   

25 November 2022

First Email!

The MTC is so fun. I'll probably keep these emails short bc [because] I'm impatient but I'll cram the important stuff in. 

OKAY SO

First week! I was super emo at the airport and crying when I said bye, but once I got past security I wasn't sad at all and luckily haven't been homesick since. Partly because I've been gone before but also because I was greeted by another family of mine. Okay, that was stupid cheesy but I really do love my district. I did online MTC for just over a week with 14 other missionaries and we'd meet for 6+ hours a day on zoom, so the first time I walked into the room and saw everyone there IRL [in real life] it was so weird but exciting. They're so fun and I get along with all of them nicely.

My companion is Elder Watt. He's super dope and extremely knowledgeable. He's lived all over the world, in Beijing, Israel, and Mexico to name a few. I frequently have to ask him what the word he just spoke means. We click and I'm so grateful he's my comp.

The campus is fun. Class is fun. But I am intimidated about Montana, actually serving in the field, the sheer duration of that adventure, and all the implications that come with it. It adds up to something I don't like to think about it and can deal with later! (healthy) 

I was called as the district leader so basically what that means is I get to check the mail for everyone lol. There's other stuff I do but it's nothing too taxing or glorious. 

Oh yeah, for thanksgiving we did a service project and Elder Cook came and spoke to us and also one of the guys from Piano Guys did a concert for us. It was pretty dope.

slay

Do you guys want more or is this good? How in-depth should these be? 

Okay bye! 

PS spiritual thought I love this gospel and this church and the spirit here on campus is so strong. We went to the temple today and I fought back tears. I've been doing that more often than I'd like to admit recently. hmm. maybe a good cry would help. I'll deal with it later (healthy)