My first ever missionary email!
Home MTC has been amazing. It is still so fresh to be a missionary, but I'm loving it. Seeing all of the new Elders and Hermanas just like me that are starting their journeys on the mission is so cool when we are all together on Zoom for workshops. The feeling of all of us having the same goal and working so hard to accomplish it, is a real testimony builder. The days are long, but I'm having fun learning Spanish, trying to get better at understanding more scriptures and just building what I know to be true everyday. My desk is so crowded with materials like "Preach My Gospel," scriptures, journals, Spanish pamphlets, and everything else that I use all the time.
My district of 11 other missionaries are great, most are going to Guatemala as well or El Salvador, but nobody else is going to Quetzaltenango. We are starting to become more open with each other and talking more with each other since Wednesday. My companion, Elder Tenney is great, we both share the same love for Christ and both really want to get better at Spanish.
There have not been too many "normal days" because we just started, but a normal day consists of waking up at 5:30, showering, getting ready, personal study until our Zoom classes start at 7. Then we have class until 11:30. Yes, 4 and a half hours. But, it doesn't feel like it at all. When you are focused and concentrated on every word that our teacher is saying (because 75% of it is in Spanish), you have to pay attention to understand what she is teaching and how we can apply it, the classes go by a lot faster than what over four hours feels like. Then we have our lunch time, which I have been using to eat breakfast and workout. Those of you that know me know that I can't eat breakfast when I first wake up. So I'll start with chocolate milk before morning classes and then actually eat something during lunch time. I have been working out twice a day. It's so nice to have a set plan every day to be able to commit to working out. Yesterday marked 25 straight days of lifting weights, with some exceptions haha. But I've never felt stronger than how I feel right now and am excited to keep doing so over the next 6 weeks. After lunch is over, we start our afternoon classes, which are with a different instructor. We go over the same things as the first class usually, just in a different way. For instance, we have "Spanish Basic Core" or "Book of Mormon read" or Grammar instruction, stuff like that. I can say that these things we are learning and getting better at are happening fast. It's been three days and I can already tell how much better my Spanish is then when we've started. During or after our afternoon classes, we will have a workshop with all 278 new missionaries just like me who are doing the Mexico MTC from home on Zoom. The Spirit is so strong during those workshops because you can see all of the other missionaries who are going all around the world to teach those who need to hear our Heavenly Father's message. After we are done with all of our classes, my companion and I do a companion study and plan for the next day. There isn't much to plan because we already have a schedule for 90 percent of the day, but it's good to go over our goals and update on where we are on them. Usually our goals are how much Spanish we want to learn before a certain time or about what we want to get out of our classes.
Once I am done with that then I'll go workout again in the garage, shower, eat dinner and then get ready for bed. Before bed, I will do some more personal study, write down in my journal what I've learned, how the day went and how I felt during it. Then I'll be in bed around 8:30 and be asleep before 9.
We have been learning a lot about the Gift of Tongues, so far. That we need to pray and work for it to be able to obtain it. I know that I have the Gift of Tongues, I just need to keep working on learning Spanish and it will come to me. I'm excited to continue working hard on Spanish, my knowledge of the gospel, and what I know to be true through my testimony. Even though I don't have the Spanish down yet, I'm so ready to get to Guatemala and start sharing the message that we have. Even If I could only teach by example, I would want to. I know that when the time comes and I am able to get there, I am going to work so hard on teaching and spreading the gospel to those around me, and my Heavenly Father will bless me to be able to do so.
Our first scripture that we have to memorize in Spanish so far is Moroni 10:5. It reads "Y por el poder del Espíritu Santo podréis conocer la verdad de todas las cosas." Which means by the power of the Holy Ghost, we can know the truth of all things. This is so true because it is the Holy Ghost that teaches us, the one that confirms that what we are learning and going to teach to others is true. Since being set apart as a missionary, I know the Holy Ghost has been with me so much more than ever. When we strive to live as our Heavenly Father wants us to, we can have the Holy Ghost with us and have that feeling it brings with it.
On Thursday, after my afternoon classes, I closed my browser that had Zoom open in it, and ESPN was open in my dad's browser that was behind mine, and it was showing how the NBA draft was happening. And I had no idea the draft was going on, I had totally forgotten from before I was a missionary that the draft was coming up. As I was sitting there, this overwhelming feeling came over me about how distant from the world I already am. In past years, I would know exactly when, where, who, what was happening in the NBA draft. But now I don't even care. I wasn't upset that I didn't know it was happening, because I had this feeling come over me that I have a different goal. That I have a different mindset on what it is I need to be doing. And that feeling was so strong that I had. It was that I know what I'm doing is right and Heavenly Father will bless me for it.
I am starting to get used to the missionary schedule, but I'm excited to get to where it is completely normal to do what I'm doing everyday. Which is hopefully in Guatemala soon.
Sorry for the super long email, they won't be this long in the future haha. I just had so much I wanted to say about how amazing missionary work is and how I feel about it.
Hope everyone is doing well, Love you all!
- Elder Copeland
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