July 10, 2013
So last Wednesday night we had our first "Training
Resource Center" which we were wholly unprepared for. Apparently as a companionship
we were supposed to lead a gospel discussion in Russian with a returned
missionary. It was the first time I had to really teach without any notes of
any kind. But I found I could do it. It involved a lot of hand gestures, and
some English words, but for the most part I was able to form sentences in my
head (whether the grammar was correct is a whole different story). Since then,
in all our lessons with investigators my only notes have been in English, which
is a good step in the right direction. Unfortunately we don't get to go to the
temple anymore for preparation day, because it is closed for cleaning until
August 10ish. So I guess I should be able to go one, maybe two more times at
the end of my stay here.
Thursday was the Fourth of July! Most of the day was very
normal, except probably 80% or more of the sisters were wearing red, white, and
blue (including me). Unfortunately for me, that was probably the worst day of
my cold. I was seriously out of it for much of the day. We had a substitute teacher
that day, who Sister Finlayson and I had to teach (the roommate of our
investigator) so I couldn't completely check out. The lesson seemed a little
rough to me. Afterwards he talked to us separately about how we did, and he
told me that I'm actually doing pretty well, and that I need to make sure I
don't compare myself to Sister Finlayson in terms of Russian proficiency. I
really appreciated hearing that. That night, however, was our special MTC July
4th celebration! We ended class early and all crowded into the Gym. We sang
some patriotic songs, listened to a patriotic musical number, and listened to a
patriotic talk. Then we got to watch 17 Miracles, which was really exciting.
But THEN... the fireworks! We got to stay up a whole hour later than normal to
watch the Stadium of Fire fireworks. After the movie we rushed out the doors,
grabbed the ice cream they were handing out, and pushed up to the fence
surrounding the MTC. Us Russians managed to make it to the front, so we had the
best view. It was pretty ridiculous to see hundreds of missionaries crammed
into this little area attempting to watch the fireworks from some other venue.
Anything from the outside world is exciting. We all felt the past our bed time
part though, and I think we even left for bed before the fireworks were over.
There was a burst that seemed like the finale, we were all singing the National
Anthem, which ended right with the burst of fireworks so it was perfect, so we
all went home. But then the fireworks kept going, but we didn't really care. We
were tired, and we still had to get up the next day at 6:30.
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| Watching the fireworks |
So Friday a lot of people were sniffling in class, which
I think was my fault. The MTC really is like an incubator for sickness.
According to my journal I was still pretty out of it all day as well. The only
thing of note was the other substitute we had (Brother Parson was at home for
the 4th). I cannot write his name, for I don't know how to spell it since he is
a native Ukrainian. He's actually from the Donetsk Mission area. He was a
character, and if all Ukrainians are like that, I have got one interesting
mission ahead of me. Sister Finlayson and I also had to teach him, so he was
watching our investigator's birds while he was away. Our investigator's name is
(Anglicized) Vadeem, but we taught his roommate and his bird watcher before we
taught him. Anyway, so our substitute had his phone on to bird sounds the
entire time we were teaching, and we were in a very, very small room. It was
actually kind of funny. I also discovered it is extremely intimidating to teach
a native Ukrainian. During class, he began teaching difficult grammar principles
that we weren't supposed to learn yet, and he went way in depth. And then we
started going late, so for our closing song he picked "In Our Lovely
Deseret" and then took it at lightning speed, so he basically sang a
Russian solo. When he left, it felt like I had been hit by a train. My whole
district was kind of stunned. Oh yeah, and some of his students kept bursting
in, which just made everything even more confusing. It was an experience.
So Saturday my cold was a lot better. But that's not
exciting. What is exciting was eating four bowls of cereal. You see, three of
the districts in my zone were leaving Monday and Tuesday, so for lunch on
Saturday apparently there is a tradition to try and knock out a cereal tower in
the cafeteria. We had enough people that we thought we could do two. In the
end, we did four and a half. We could have done more, but apparently such a
thing is called a "tower challenge" and is "not allowed"
(though I have not read anything in the white handbook or the additional MTC
rules pamphlet). We were going to knock out the Berry Crunch and Marshmallow
Maties, but then they refilled the Berry Crunch so we ate it all again, plus
added the Life, and Tootie Frooties. We only got through half of the Tootie
Frooties. It was a great zone bonding experience. Like I said, I managed four
bowls, but the record was eight. By a sister. She said she could have done
more, but then we had to stop. We all felt a little queasy for the rest of the
day, but I still think it was totally worth it. It was great to see the empty
towers. Saturday I also got a card from the Burke Ward CTR 7 class. It made my
day. It was also great to be reminded I was a missionary, and wonderful things
like this happen to me.
Two bits of news: one, Saturday we found out that Brother
Barnes, another one of our teachers (who is absolutely wonderful) is moving in
two weeks, so we're losing him! Our whole district is devastated. Other news:
So at one point all the Russians were going to move to the MTC West campus at
the end of July, which I dreaded, but now they've decided to wait until the end
of August (after my district is gone). I was fine moving to MTC West before I
got here, but now I wouldn't want to move, and just couldn't get myself excited
about the thought of moving. So I'm glad I'm not.
Sunday. Sunday was a big day. At 7:00am I was playing the
piano for the pre-Sacrament Russian hymn singing, and by 7:30am I had been
pulled away by my Branch President and asked, along with Sister Finlayson, to
be the new Sister Training Leaders! That was a surprise. Along with other
things, it meant I got to attend lots of meetings on Sunday. A lot of
meetings. I am excited to fulfill this position though, and will really have to
learn to rely on the Spirit. We get new missionaries not today, but next
Wednesday, so Sister Finlayson and I will get to help orient them into the MTC.
Funny story/not so funny story for Sacrament Meeting. So I thought I was over
my cold, but apparently I still had a bit of a cough in my throat. I was
fasting, so my throat was especially dry. Right in the middle of testimonies, I
all of a sudden am hit by a coughing attack. I was trying to suppress it, but
it just made it worse. Finally Sister Finlayson and I had to leave so I could
go to the bathroom and basically seize as my body is trying to get rid of this
tickle. I was afraid it would come back, so we spent the rest of the meeting standing
just outside the doors listening to the testimonies. So yeah, that was an
adventure.
I don't have much written for Monday, because that night
when I usually write in my journal, I was saying goodbye to the Sisters who
were leaving. One district left at 5:00am Monday morning, and the other two
left between 3:30am-5:30am Tuesday morning. I really didn't get much sleep
Monday night because of all the noise outside. But now my district and the
other district that came in with us are officially the oldest districts in our
zone! It is going to be one small branch at Sacrament Meeting Sunday.
Tuesday was just normal. Throughout the day however, I
began to realize more and more how strongly I can feel the Spirit here. It's
hard to explain, but it's incredible.
I think that is all for the week. I'll just say this: I
absolutely love receiving letters (we have a zone rule where you have to
wait until 9:30pm to open them, so they just tantalize me all day), and
packages are like Christmas. I got your package mom, and have already devoured
several packs of fruit snacks. And all the different kinds! It is very exciting
- thank you :). Oh, and as a bit of an explanation on the teacher situation, we
have two main teachers, Brother Parson and Brother Barnes. On most days one
comes in the morning and one at night. Then there is Brother Dean, who
sometimes comes in the morning to answer questions and teach a little. So we
have a lot more teacher time than that first week, but we still spend quite a
bit of time studying on our own.
Love you all!
Sister Tanner
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