Week One

Hey Family!

I just got my email account set up! :) I am very happy about that :)

The MTC is AMAZING! I love it! The Spirit is so strong here! I have awesome teachers, and fantastic District. We all get along great. :) Let me tell you all about them:

Me-(duh)
Elder Morrison-My companion. He's from Vernal. Nice Guy. We are very different people, but that isn't a bad thing. We get along just fine :)
Elder Grigg-District Leader, he and his companion are our roommates. Also a nice guy. Really really funny. He has LOADS of candy :) He is from Moses Lake, Washington.
Elder Troseth-(Grigg's Comp) He hails from Holden Utah, small town of 500 people. Very nice. Tall, lurpy, skinny, redheaded, wiry, super low body fat. He used to do Ultimate Fighting. Hilariously funny without even meaning to be.
Elder Moser-He's from Alabama. Quiet, reserved, smart. No sarcasm. But he's not uptight at all. He will always laugh at a good joke.
Elder Paul-(Moser's Comp) From Louisiana. Quiet. Always sleepy. :)
Elder Call-Gorilla of a man. From Oregon. Can't quite figure this guy out. Very nice. Very spiritual. Yet he is often talking about bad stuff. And he is struggling to stop swearing.
Elder Finance-(Call's Comp) Napoleon Dynamite. Looks like him, talks like him, acts like him. Yet he denies his Napoleonic nature, his napoleonicity, if you will. Also very nice and very spiritual.

Me, Morrison, Grigg, and Troseth are all headed for Oklahoma. The other 4 are headed to Las Vegas West.

Our teachers are Brother Davis and Brother Volmar. Davis is a relatively new teacher. Fairly soft-spoken. Big heart. Loves Missionary work. He understandably gets impatient with us and our lack of.... listening, i guess you could say? Volmar is a veteran. He taught for 2 years, and then got assigned to teach just Teachers how to teach the missionaries. But he wanted to teach a District to remember what it was like and to make sure he still had it in him(which of course he does). We are the first District he has taught in a year. It's really a wonderful opportunity for us to learn from the best. He is amazing.

Things are all going very well here. I am learning so much. There is just not enough time in the day to do everything I need to, plus have fun(we always make that a top priority, haha). Our District does have a major problem with Focus. We're working on it though.

Sunday was awesome! It was Fast Sunday. We had a Mission Conference, a Fast and Testimony Meeting, and a Fireside. The Fireside(with a noticable lack of fire) was about Joseph Smith. It was great. And immediately following, we had the option of staying in the Auditorium/Gym thing and watching Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration. I LOVE that movie. The Spirit was so strong!

Today is P-Day. We have e-mail, laundry, and, most importantly, the Temple. I am so excited to go! It feels like I haven't been there in ages! :)

Anyways. I love you all. I will be home before you know it. :) I hope you had a great time on Dos-o de Mayo. :) Have fun!

Love,
Elder Bracken

PS. Dad, take money out of my account and ship me a case of Dr. Pepper ASAP! Please! :)