2 Weeks Into the MTC

  Alright, well we are two weeks into the MTC!!! It's kind of weird, because it seems like just yesterday I was back home with all of you, but at the same time it seems like I have been in here forever and have another 7 weeks left... But it's alright because I really am loving it!!! So the language is pretty intense!!! Believe me, I am nowhere even close to fluent. I can barely even congegate basic sentences in my head, but we just work hard to translate scripts and memorize our lines.   We are actually starting to be able to have some conversations with the teachers if we prepare for the lessons well!  I would try and write out some Hungarian, but spelling is a bit of a struggle, so maybe that will be a venture for next post (something to look forward too!) 

     We definitely try to find as much fun in the MTC as we can (while still following the rules...) I am in the choir and it is a lot of fun. We got to sing at the devotional on Tuesday, and apparently, the big screen zoomed in real close on my face. I would have looked, but it did the same thing in practice, and I just broke out laughing, so I had to restrain myself in the actual performance. I've seen a bunch of my friends from BYU too!  I see them everywhere. I saw my friend Alex, Sean Haskell (Yes, the REAL Sean Haskell), I saw my roommate Morgan, my friend Katie, I also saw Elijah, the kid from our stake that we went to the temple with, and a few more that I probably just can't remember right now. But it is super weird, and it's super weird trying to call them Elder or Sister.

     I totally love my companions, my district, and my zone!!! We are all having a lot of fun together and it has been super great. They are all super great missionaries and we have a good time. We are tight as a zone too, so we do a lot of stuff like zone soccer or volleyball. That's probably the thing that I look forward to most in a day, is gym time. After sitting in class for 4 straight hours (having had 3 hours in class earlier that morning) it's definintely the little stuff that gets you through. That 50 minutes of gym time is definitely the highlight of each day. We mostly just play soccer, basketball and volleyball, but it is just awesome to go out and get some exercise. The hardest part so far is getting up at 6:30 every single day... I mean I have definitely gotten used to it, but that doesn't mean it's not hard. I did get a nap today, since it was my P day, and let me tell you, it was wonderful. 

     Unfortunately, the past few days have been tough because I have come down with a little bit of a cold. I didn't get much sleep last night because I was up coughing (I apologize to my roommates) and I just felt awful for most of the day. I am feeling a little bit better now.   It's pretty tough being sick in the MTC, because you basically just have to keep going, and you barely get any breaks as it is, but hopefully I will get better soon (and hopefully I don't get everybody else in the MTC sick too. I guess these things happen when you are crammed in a small room with a group of people for 16 hours a day.). 
      We have had a lot of really great speakers at the MTC so far, but probably the best one was  John Groberg, and if you don't know who that is, he is the missionary from the movie The Other Side of Heaven. For those of you who haven't seen this movie (which is probably many) I would suggest watching.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dKsHYzIoUI    My mission is going to be a little bit different from his, but it is a great story and example of how difficult a mission can be. He gave a really great talk (and we even got to watch some clips from the movie, it was great.).

     Well yeah, I think that's about it for this week. It's kind of weird, because each day and week seem to blend together now, I had a litttle bit of trouble remembering what even happened this week, but it has been a great experience so far. I am really loving it, and I am learning to enjoy the language (even though it's ridiculous...) and I am super excited to be here. Feel free to send me any more emails if you have any questions about what I'm doing or just want to show some support, and I will try and get back to you next week on my next P day! Oh, and before I sign off, I do have one more funny story. My teacher told us about her experiences in Hungary and apparently the people over there struggle a little bit with clothing. Mowing the lawn, picking up the mail, and even grabbing some groceries at the store, are all regular activities that are frequently performed in the nude. So I guess I'm in for a very interesting experience over there! Alright, that's all for today. I absolutely love all the support I am getting from back home, and it definitely gets me through the day. Love you all and hope you have a great week!

Dalton Elder