Week 7 - MTC

Hey family!
This week has flown by, but I dont have much to update you on. We skype members from Hong Kong now and teach lessons, which is pretty tough. Sometimes it's hard enough to hear what people are saying when they speak English over skype, but we manage. Maybe. Actually, who knows what we really say haha. I'm really still loving learning this language though. The hardest thing for me is remembering the grammar when I'm talking. The concepts and structures are actually really easy for me to understand, but it is kind of backwards from the way we think in English. So I'll have an idea and I'll start speaking, and then mid sentence I realize what I'm saying technically should have been at the beginning of the sentence. And if I need to add any additional thoughts to my sentence and have it still be part of my idea, that was also supposed to be at the beginning. So then I have to start my sentence over a billion times, and we lose any ounce of the spirit we might have had haha. So for example..."you show faith in Christ when you take the sacrament at church" would be...."When you, at church, take the sacrament, at that time you towards Christ show faith". Weird, huh? and who knows if that's actually right or not, but I think it is. I'm getting better at really thinking out what I want to say before I start speaking, and I'm glad for that.

And yes! I have seen Oscar! Or Elder Ayala. He looks great! I had my eyes peeled for him all day on Wednesday and Thursday. We were friends with the Portuguese elders going to Madagascar the transfer before him, so I knew his probable classroom was next to our Cambodian district's classroom. So when Sister Adams and I went to meet with the our Cambodian sisters, I peeked my head in to see if he was there. He's in a trio, and looks like he gets along with his companions. They seem like awesome missionaries. And then I saw him again on the temple walk yesterday. It's a hard schedule to get used to, and the first week is pretty demanding, but he seemed to be handling it alright, and he looks really great. He is so humble and has a great testimony. It made my week seeing him! Hopefully I'll see him around often.

This week we got to hear from Elder Nelson and his wife. We really are so blessed. Something I loved about this devotional was their desire for us to learn to become 'desperate missionaries.' When we understand the value of this message, we will be desperate to share it with everyone we come into contact with. When we are desperate, we more easily understand what is most important, and are more willing to sacrifice whatever we must. We find time. We find energy. We more intently love and give ourselves to this work. We share our message confidently, but work desperately. And I think back to times where I felt desperate for answers or things in my life, and those have absolutely been my most spiritually stretching and growing moments. But how cool if we can achieve that progress or growth and side-effects of desperation without necessarily having to be in desperate situations. Kind of the idea of becoming humble before the Lord without being compelled to be. I just kind of thought it was a neat idea.

Today Sister Adams and I were given the opportunity to go to the Temple. I am so grateful for Temples. What an amazing and powerful place. I know that our family will be together forever, and honestly, nothing makes me happier than to know that. I love our family, and that power is so real. It really is.

Well I love you all. I really do. Only 2 weeks left here! Do you mind sending me Alan's address? I have a couple letters to send him. Thanks again for your letters. I love hearing about your lives. Hope you have a good last week of school!!

Love Hannah