SEMANA... UHM... FINAL!!!!

So I give up on numbers, but first of all I think you should all know THAT MY VISA WENT THROUGH AND I'M OFF TO THE FIELD ON MONDAY!!!! WOOOOOOT VOY A LA ARGENTINAAAA!!!!!

*smooths skirt* Back to business. So, I'm getting rather lazy as it goes with trying to remember everything that is going on lately, my apologies. In my defense, at the moment my life is in essence wake up, eat, study, class, teach, sleep, repeat. 

In the MTC things are a weird combination of all one and yet somehow all the other at the same time. You feel like you've been here forever, and yet you feel like you just got here. You feel like you've learned nothing, then you look back at where you started. Everything is so simple, yet so hard. You feel so unprepared for the field, yet you are soooo ready just to get out of here and get to work! It's hard to explain. You have no time yet at the same time... No that one is basically straight forward. Your schedule is filled to the brim.

I've come to terms with the fact that six weeks won't make me into Super Hermana. I've done my best and worked my hardest, the rest will come in the field with much work. So this past week has been fairly uneventful in terms of things I can report that won't be much of the same. Entonces, this will basically be my "Things I Learned From the MTC" email!

1. The gift of tongues doesn't just happen. No doubt about it, it's real, but you can't always just ask for it and suddenly speak fluent Spanish. You still have to work for it, and sometimes it seems really hard and you feel like you're learning nothing... Until you see how far you've come and realize that the rate you are learning and comprehending is nothing even remotely close to average. People spend months learning what we've learned in a few weeks. That would not be possible without the Lord.

2. You have literally no time to email in a satisfactory manner. (forever bitter)

3. Living with a companion is hard, but not that hard. Maybe I'm just weird like that.

4. I've learned to love study time.

5. Still working on keeping it simple when teaching.

6. MTC is not the mission. But I'm still so glad I have it.

7. Sitting at home eating is pleasant.

8. L. Tom Perry is very tall.

This list is getting tedious. But yes, we got the opportunity to listen to Elder L. Tom Perry! That man is wonderful. He spoke on being where you are supposed to be and taking care of your companion. What I took from this week is that even when things are hard, they are not nearly as hard as they would be without the Lord. He is always with me. He loves me. I am his precious daughter and I am doing his work. I testify these things are true.

Well, next time you all here from me I will be in Argentina! Buenos suertes to you all, I love you!

Week 4 MTC Sister Ashley Hanks

HOLA!!!!

Man... I've already been in the MTC for a little over a month. That's crazy. I leave in TWO WEEKS!!! I'm both excited and at the same time freaked out, because once I'm out of here that is when the real work begins. Now let us see... Anything eventful? 

Well, as a prelude, in my zone we have a tradition where we don't really talk to the new district until the Friday after they arrive. That Friday they are initiated when that night they are called in for a "zone meeting" and informed that someone in the zone is "going home.";) After we get them sufficiently worried everybody starts shouting this Spanish hymn called "Placentero nos es trabajar", with everyone dropping into shouts and the elders climbing into ear-shattering falsettos. Between each verse everybody screeches, "MAS! RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR *gasp* RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAPIDOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" 

It is basically the best thing ever. And thus the new district is welcomed into the zone! So this past week we got a new district of all elders, and I was designated as the one who was going home. I had way too much fun. All those years of theater have finally paid off! The elders looked skeptical.... Up until the point I started sobbing, with real tears! Sold it! 

At any rate, it was a lot of fun, and I had way too much fun doing it. Although, I did feel a little guilty.

Let us see... I have the best zone, and especially the best district ever! Everybody is just so strong, and we know how to have fun, but when we settle down for discussions and lessons it's just... Awesome! This one elder, every time he opens his mouth the Spirit just... WHOOOOSH! Ha ha our poor elders, putting up with us emotional sisters.;) It'll be so strange not to have all these people in my zone/district, not to mention having a new companion. I can scarcely imagine it! Still, it'll be good.

Our teacher is pretty much the hardest teacher EVER. He does not coddle us in any sense of the word. Still, I'm sure we will all be immeasurably grateful for that once we get in the field. 

We get L. Tom Perry for devotional next week!!!!:D So I am pretty excited for that....

Let's see... The highlight of my week might very quite possibly be TRC. My companion and I taught about faith in Christ. It went really well. Still, why can't teaching our "investigators" (read: teachers) be so smooth as teaching the members in TRC?

For me the most spiritual experience this week was when my companion and I were teaching our investigator and I went to testify of the Atonement. I pretty much lost it. I talked about how through the Atonement Christ didn't just take upon Himself our sins, but also every pain, challenge, sickness, and sorrow we have ever experienced. This is an aspect of the Atonement I think we sometimes overlook. No one understands and loves us better than Christ. If you are ever going through life thinking you are alone, and nobody understands how you feel, just remember that Christ does. He experienced it all, and all because He loves you. I'm reminded of the soldier who lost his ear when Peter was trying to defend Christ following Gethsemane. When that happened, and Christ healed him, Christ had felt the exact pain of that soldier losing his ear. He knew his name. As He suffered the physical abuse and mockery of those who crucified them I can imagine that Christ knew every face, and every pain they have ever faced. Though they reviled against him and treated him so cruelly, He understood them perfectly. And he still loved each and every one of them. I testify that Christ atoned for our sins because He loves us all. I know that through that Atonement we can repent and have eternal life.

I love you all, until next time!

Week 3 MTC

Thus ends week three at el CCM!!! Hola familia y amigos! Thus commences my third attempt at cramming all the many, many, many stories into one puny email in under an hour.:) Heh, heh.... 

At any rate, the question is where to begin... So, I love being on West Campus, even though main campus's facilities are quite nice. However, West Campus gets cooler privileges. For instance, other than going to the temple, main campus missionaries don't get to leave campus. Here, we can go to Brigham's Landing (hellooooo Jamba Juice and Great Harvest!) Not to mention go to main campus as a part of our P-days or devotional. We get to enjoy the walk between campuses, and it is quite great. Have I ever mentioned how much we sisters looooooove being able to wear pants on P-Day?! 

There have been so many great little experiences this past week... As always, my language skills are improving. It is so mind blowing when I go to say something and the words automatically come in Spanish. Somewhat begrudgingly, I am losing all of my Japanese! I'll go to talk to the Japanese speaking missionaries on main campus and Spanish comes out! Well, there goes all those classes.;) Our teacher no longer tolerates English in class unless it is preceded by "Como se dice...".

Here is a prompt my lovely mother has sent me:

"The food here is  mas o menos. Really, it isn't bad, though apparently the orange juice does weeeird things to your body! My favorite meal has been when my companion and I stay in the apartment for breakfast and just eat cereal or something. It's peaceful, comfortable, makes me feel like I'm playing grown up, and the food is trustworthy! ;)  . My favorite thing at the MTC so far has been el Espiritu Santo! I love how being here just makes me want to be better!  I get up at 6:30 am... mas o menos  and do my morning routine. I have umpteen hours of free (study/language study/gym (depending on the day) ) time before lunch and  no really, what is this free time you speak of?  

On Sundays we have the best time eva! We have your typical church activities, but in Spanish, personal study, lots of free time, ice cream, devotional, choir, and films (this week we watched the Joseph Smith restoration video, love it!) .
How is your Spanish coming, it's coming great.  I can already teach a lesson on practically anything in frankly bad Spanish. It is hilarious when our teacher (who is from Peru) cringes from our accents and says, "Ah! Muy gringo!"
I get 60ish minutes of gym time once aday & I usually play volleyball, because that is what my companion loves at the gym.
I get to go to the temple every Wednesday in the morning. Right now I am studying uh... Everything. Language, whatever lesson is relevant at the time, and whatever scriptures also feel right at the time. It is the MTC, studying is pretty much your life.;) and one of the goals we have as a district is to SPEAK OUR LANGUAGE!!!_.
I am sleeping at night, and occasionally during the day.;) I'm only half joking, unfortunately, although since my body clock has adjusted it hasn't been bad! What would be the best care package you could get?  Mas cereal and craisins!:D Pictures of family and friends! A puppy. And I don't know, be creative! Honestly the best thing in the world is getting a package. Scratch that, half the time I'd rather just get a letter, because I really don't have anywhere to put stuff in my luggage!;) Still, yessssss to the above stuff!
One time I have really felt the Spirit here was when gee, what a broad question. Most recently was during the district meeting after devotional. Our speaker was a member of the Seventy, and I all I remember is his name is Carlos, he is from Brazil, and his conversion story was awesome! In the devotional and the meeting afterwards I learned so much. One thing was something I was personally worried for about myself. He told a story about how his first encounter with the church was a ridiculous youth activity where they were playing a game called poor little cat where some poor victim crawled on all fours acting like a cat, and if someone laughed, they had to be the cat. So this Carlos' first impression of the church was very, very weird. BUT he was struck by how, even though what they were doing is really weird, how that had practically nothing and no one at the activity... They all looked so HAPPY. They had a light. And he wanted that. I got two things out of that story. One: we have a light that others can see. Sometimes, especially growing up in the church, ESPECIALLY growing up in Utah, we don't realize what we have and how beautiful it is! Another thing he mentioned was how after he had talked with the sisters how he went home, jubilant, shouting to his parents, "The Church of Jesus Christ! It's back! It's back on the Earth!" Their reactions were unenthusiastic, but young Carlos was beside himself with amazement, "You don't understand! THIS IS THE CHURCH. OF. JESUS. CHRIST!!!!! *insert strangling of the mic here*" Do you realize what a beautiful thing we have? Do we realize that by refraining from opening our mouths and sharing the gospel we could be depriving GENERATIONS, past and future, of it's blessings; simply because we don't think about it or we are afraid of offending someone? Look at what we have. 

The other thing I got out of that story was, now this is weird, I identified with the game. I realize that I have this fear that others will be put off by my oddness, my quirkiness. I'm afraid that people are constantly annoyed with me and subsequently do not want me around. That story made me feel better. I hope that when people see me they don't just see me as annoying or way too happy, too nice or whatever. I hope they see that I am happy. I hope they see the light in me. I hope they see that I am kind and that it is all because of this gospel _.

On that note I am out of time. I love you all! Talk to you next week! Write me! (DearElder.com is a great way to get me letters.) Onward to week 4!