April 10, 2012

4/10/12
Hey Fam and friends! How are you all? I am doing pretty great here.
It's been a crazy week! On Wednesday, I had to go with Elder Cox to
the dentist (Elder Bartling stayed here) to fix his teeth after his
little (big) accident in the Temple. He cracked 3 teeth in half and
had to get crowns put on all of them. It was a 4 hour appointment! Ugh
time goes by so much slower when you're just sitting there, but I
guess it was pretty nice to get out of the MTC for a while.
On Saturday, we had TRC again. We taught two lesssons on the Atonement
and recieving revelation through the Book of Mormon. It went really
well, the language is coming along great, and I'm starting to be able
to say whatever I need to, especially when we're teaching. We've made
a new district goal to SYL (Speak Your Language) pretty much 24/7.
There are times when we'll have to speak English, but other than that,
it's all Thai. It's rough. Our motivation to do it though is the
promise from Bro. Olsen that he'll wear a sick brown pinstriped suit
that he got in Thailand if we get 100% on the week haha. I gotta see
it. The reading and writing are moving along slowly but steadily. It
still takes a bit of time to read, but definitely not half an hour for
half a verse. Writing is tougher, because there are several different
characters that make each of the sounds, so you just have to know how
the word is spelled. It's quite annoying sometimes, but I'll get it.
Can you believe I've been here over a month?! The time has flown by so
fast! (for me, anyways). All of the Phii Thais left yesterday around
4:30. I think their first flight took off around 8 p.m., so that means
that they're still in the air right now. They had lay-overs in LA and
Hong Kong before going to Thailand. I miss them, but I'm excited to
see them in 6 weeks! Only 6 more weeks in the MTC, love it. I'm so
ready to get to Thailand, it sounds so awesome! Oh, so you know how I
was going to get to Thailand, have Pres. Smith as my mission president
for a month, and then get a new one? Well that's still happening,
but...Bro. Chiu went to a mission reunion over the weekend, and he
said that they announced that the new president's wife just had a
brain aneurism, so they aren't going to be able to accept the call.
It's so sad. But they've called a new one, not sure what his name is
though. He'd already gotten called to serve as a mission president in
North Carolina, but they're switching him to Thailand. What a shock
that would be! And the thing is, he didn't even serve in Thailand, he
served in Japan. So he doesn't speak any Thai. That would be tough,
but the Lord knows what's best right?
I've got a new calling. I'm now a Zone Leader! I'm really excited.
I'll be working with Elder Bartling. It'll be cool to give the new
missionaries in our zone the orientation, especially our nxng thais,
which will be here in a week from tomorrow. We're getting nine of
them. It'll be cool to be the big kids on the block, and to help them
out with the language. Trust me, my Phii thais helped me a ton.
How great was Easter?! Two awesome Sundays in a row. Sunday morning we
had an MTC-wide Sacrament, which brought in a great Spirit, then we
listened to Pres. Packer (you got it Laur) and his son speak to us. It
really was awesome. Pres. Packer's a lot more animated than I used to
think. He cracked a few jokes and then gave a great talk about the
Atonement and Resurrection of Christ. It definitely made Easter a lot
more meaningful. Thanks for the Easter packages Brooke, Mom, Dad,
Laur, and Car! The cake bites were amazing, and the basket made me
feel like I was home for a little bit, and don't worry, I didn't open
it until Easter morning. I especially enjoyed the talks that were
included, and I found the Special Egg in about 5 seconds flat (you
can't fool me haha). The caramel popcorn was also delicious. It was an
especially big hit with Josh, reminded him of the Dohnals haha. On
Sunday nights, we always get to watch a church film or talk of our
choice. Me and my comps had already seen both of the movies that were
playing, so we decided to watch a talk by Elder Bednar that he gave at
the MTC on Christmas Day called "The Character of Christ." I don't
know if there's some way you could look it up on the Church website or
something, but if you can, do it. It was probably the best talk I've
ever heard given. I don't want to ruin anyhting, so I won't say much,
but it was truly inspiring, and made me look at my life a lot
differently. It sounds like Easter at home was great! Wish I could've
been there, but I'm super glad you all had a great time.
It was great to see Kyle on Wednesday and catch up! I'm sitting right
next to him at this very moment actually. It's a big help to see
friends. I can't wait until VK and Red get in here! And Preston and
Landon, keep preparing!
The Book of Mormon challenge is coming great! Mom, I'm glad you're
doing so well on it. Temple time is a great time to read, and that's
so awesome that you get all of that time in the Celestial room, it's
the best place in the world (I actually made it there this morning
haha, no more crazy accidents). Elder Cox is doing really well now.
How is everyone else doing on the challenge? Even if you're not doing
it, I encourage everyone to read it. It really is the best book in the
world. I'm really understanding the historical part and storyline much
better than I ever have before, and truly feasting on the Word of
Christ. Personal Study time has become my favorite part of the day
because of it.
I've been getting sick again the past coupole of days. UGH!!! I guess
theres been a flu epidemic going around the campus, so hopefully it's
not that. I just got over sickness!!!
Alright I'm planning on sending my SD card home probably today. I've
taken quite a few pics. Oh so I guess there's been some "items" that
get passed down from Phii Thais to Nxng Thais, and I got one on Sunday
from Elder Martin. Penguin Footy Pajamas! They are LEGIT! I'll take a
pic with it on before I send my card home.
Ok, Mom, you know my old pinstriped suit? Well it's been great here,
but both pants are now shot. One has a big hole right below the front
pocket on the side, and one of the hems fell out of a leg in the other
one, so I'll probably just send the whole suit home. They announced on
Sunday that we don't have to wear jackets anymore since it's getting
warmer, so do you think you should send me my new slacks now? Or
should I wait until I get out in the field? Just let me know what you
think.
I'm super jealous of the new Dixon! That sounds like an awesome Easter
present, Mom. Way to go Dad! I heard you've been pretty busy at work,
I guess that's good right? Hope Sharp's is doing well! What's going on
in the sports world? And I cannot wait to get a new suit! It's not
even a question that I'll have some sweet design on the inside haha.
Dad you should get one too! And I'll bet Derek would want one.
D, how was the Master's? I heard it was sick! That's so tight.
Well I better be going, but thanks for all of the love, prayers, and
support! I love you all so much!

ความรัก
Elder Sharp