Friday, October 23, 2009

Last P-day in the MTC. Leaving for Canada on Monday!!

Hey everyone!

So I got my travel itinerary this week! It was so exciting. We were supposed to get them last Thursday, but hadn't, so on Monday Soeur Andrews and I went in to the travel office and asked. Turns out they hadn't gotten the memo that we were only supposed to be here 3 weeks, so they hadn't planned anything for us. Because I don't need a VISA, mine was settled that same day. I'm flying out Monday morning on Delta. We're leaving the MTC at 5 in the morning, and our plane leaves SLC at 8, we have a very brief layover in Cincinnati and then on to Montreal. It's so exciting. And one of the elders in my class, Elder Dautel, is leaving the same day for Wisconsin, and he'll be on the flight with me to Cincinnati, so that should be fun :) Sister Andrews' was a little more difficult to work out: the French consul sometimes takes awhile, so they asked for it to be rushed, but submitted her for a temporary assignment anyways. If the VISA takes less than 2 weeks, they usually just let you stay at the MTC, but if it takes more, they send you to a temporary assignment. So she was headed to the Washington DC South mission for a few weeks, but then the consul called and said her VISA would be active this Wednesday, so she's leaving sometime this week as well. So we're both SO excited..she was not looking forward to having a new companion at the MTC or having to stay here longer.

Other than that, nothing too thrilling has happened this week. Sister Reed (one of our teachers) was sick all week, so that kind of threw off our schedule. We ended up combining classes several days which made things a bit more interesting, but we ended up repeating several classes that we've already had, so it wasn't as beneficial as I was hoping. But that's OK; our other teacher, Brother Owens, asked me which classes I specifically wanted during the next few days and rearranged the schedule to teach me what I wanted, which was SO nice of him. I have wonderful teachers here :) Class has been a bit different this week though...Elder Boer and Elder Mourin both left on Monday, so we've only had 4 people in the class and it has been SO quiet. AND we got new zone leaders and several new missionaries, so it's been quite a change this week in our branch. The zone leaders are incredible though...Elder Valgren is from Denmark and he served there for 2 months before coming to the MTC and at first I was not impressed with him at all, but then I actually saw him in the leadership position and working hard and completely changed my mind. It's really interesting how some people change when they get put in a leadership position and can really step up to the responsibilities given to them.

Oh, also this week I found out that my old home teacher from sophomore year, Travis Hall, works at the MTC. It was SO crazy...I saw him come in and it was just such a shock and he didn't recognize me at first because he didn't even know I was serving a mission. But I talked to him for a bit and it was really fun to hear what he's been up to lately. I also ran into Michelle's friend, Jeff, which was a bit surprising; I'd forgotten he was here at all. And one of Tiffany's students works at the front desk and so I saw her the other day too. It's kind of strange to think that my life I used to live with all my friends is only about 5 minutes away instead of clear across the country.

Other than that, there's nothing really to say. I'm glad to hear that things are going well at home, and thank you SO much for the letters! It's always wonderful to hear from people and know what everyone is up to while I'm not around. And Aunt Jackie and Uncle Bryan sent me a Halloween package! It was SO exciting...I can't believe I'll be in Montreal in just a few days and I'll be celebrating Halloween there! I'm so excited :)

But anyways, I hope all is going well for everyone still and I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend! I love you all tons! :)

Soeur Nicole Lindsey

Friday, October 16, 2009

Nicole makes us laugh! October 16th email.

Hey everyone!

So I made it to my second P-day in the MTC...finished at least an entire week. It took FOREVER! This week took at least a month it seemed like...there is so much packed into so little time. But then to think that I'm leaving in like 2 weeks is so crazy (I know it still says December 7, but my zone leaders said I was leaving Oct 27, so we're going to the travel office on Monday to check on that) and it seems like I haven't been here at all. We've been trying to speak French, but it seems like I'm still at the same level as I was before coming in where I really didn't know much of the vocab, and I'm not quite sure how I'm going to learn everything before I leave. But we've been working hard and I'm sure it will turn out all right.

How are things going for you? Thanks so much for the letters...that's always so exciting! And thanks for sending them dearelder, as opposed to emailing them to me, since email time is EXTREMELY limited. Soeur Andrews almost wasn't able to send her email last week because she got down to 6 seconds and it almost didn't go through before it kicked her off. So it's nice to be able to read the letters at other times and just type during this time.

It's so great to hear that everyone is doing well! Have David write me and send me pictures...I want to hear all about Homecoming this weekend :) it's great to hear that things with Racheal are going well and that she's such a good baby; that was a huge relief for me. Also, thanks for the updates about Mike! I STILL haven't heard from him, so if you happen to go in today to see him (good thing you didn't go yesterday...he never works Wed and Thurs, and you might want to call before going in today), let him know that I am very impatiently awaiting my letter from him talking about last week. I want it soon! ;)

So things here are going really well. This week was a bit crazy as we got more used to the schedule and got to know the other elders in our class more. Souer Andrews and I still get along beautifully, and it is SO much fun! I love having her around :) She had to go to San Francisco this week for a little day trip on Tuesday with 8 other missionaries to turn in her VISA (I guess with the French consul you have to turn it in in person) and so she was gone for a whole day and it was so awful. I was with the elders ALL day and I definitely prefer being with her. The elders are great, but SO different. And it seemed like everything funny happened that day while she was gone! First I was walking to lunch and talking with several elders in a different zone, and they asked where i was headed and I said "lunch" and they were very enthusiastic about it and said "Oh, that's so great! That'll be so much fun!" and I agreed, but it seemed a bit odd...so i asked where they were headed and they both said "Ärgentina" and I just started laughing...i guess they misunderstood when i said "lunch"and thought that that was where i was serving my mission. So I tried to change it and say Montreal, and they just looked at me funny and walked away. i thought it was so funny; I told Elder Dautel who was acting as my companion and he didn't find it near as humorous, but then when I told Soeur Andrews the next day, we both laughed forever. (She was supposed to get home Tuesday night, but their flight was canceled and so they spent the night there and got home Wednesday at lunch time instead). Then at lunch on the day she was gone, I was surrounded by elders, and Elder Boer (the one from Italy...I just love him :) ) was sitting next to me and showing me this "magic trick"where he used both hands to pretend to stick a knife up his nose and then have it come out his mouth, then in his mouth and have it come out his nose. So as he was having it come out his nose, he blew really hard to pretend like he was blowing it out his nose, and this huge thing of snot came flying out and landed ON MY SHOULDER on my jacket and it was SO disgusting, and all the elders were laughing so hard that they wouldn't even help me get it off...eww, it was so gross. So he's been referencing that ever since. And he realized last Sunday while talking to me that he can see his reflection in my eyes, so he randomly stops and does what Jacob used to do and looks at me and says ï can see myself in your eyes..." He's so strange :)

Oh, and we had our first TRC lesson the other day while Soeur Andrews was gone, so I was working with Elder Dautel and Elder Parisuthem (from India) and it didn't go all that well. we rated the first part about a 5, because the Spirit was there, but we were definitely not unified in our teaching, and then the follow-up appointment a 7 because it went MUCH better. It's just interesting to see difference personalities in each of the elders and different teaching methods, and they don't always complement each other at all. But it was good practice. We have our second one tonight, and thank goodness Soeur Andrews is back...I think i'll be MUCH more relaxed and teach much better with her. OUr only problem is that we both think the exact same things at the same time, so we both try to say it. It's pretty funny; every time I defer to her and let her say something, it's exactly what I would have said, and vice versa. OH! and we've gone to the RC twice now...the first time it didn't go that well: I had random phone numbers. A department store in France, A mexican who only spoke Spanish, an operator in Illinois, and several other random numbers. Then we went back yesterday and I had about 20 answering machines, 4 hang ups before I even said anything, one please call back later tonight, and then I gave away one gift. But it was great: we called back the person who asked to call back and she wasn't there so we talked to her husband, and asked if we could send the missionaries (i had asked her earlier but she said she had to talk to her husband about it and to ask her at 5 after she had talked to him) and he said that they were actually Baptist and didn't really need a church, so i said it might be fun to have someone to talk to about the Bible anyways, and they asked S. Andrews and I to stop by today. Seeing as they're in Tennessee, we really couldn't do that, so we said we could send the missionaries if they wanted to talk in person or we could call back. They wanted us to call back so they could tell us a bit about the Baptist faith and we could just talk about the Bible a bit, so we're calling back this evening. (side note: they said to call at 5, but I can't remember if TN is 2 hours off or just 1...oh well) So hopefully it goes well! I'm a bit nervous...these are actual people, not just members pretending to be investigators. So please say a little prayer for me if you can! :)

Also, we are learning SO much here that I think would be good to implement back in our home ward. If I get time, I think I might copy my notes and send them to Dad just as some suggestions for the sisters in our ward. We had a really great meeting the other day on simple thigns to do to get people to WANT to come to sacrament meeting, and I really enjoyed it. Also, we had a fireside where they talked about in the BOM, 1 Nephi teaches all the principles of the gospel, and for investigators, we should have them start at the beginning instead of just hopscotching around from place to place. So it was really fascinating.

Anyways, time is close to up, so I should probably get going. Thanks for all the letters! You all are amazing! :) I love you all TONS and miss you like crazy!

Sister Nicole Lindsey

PS: Tiffany, i did leave my watch at your house, but I think I'm getting a new one since that was too big for me anyways, so you don't have to send it to me if you don't want to.

Mom: I do have some things that I'd like you to send to me if you can. I think I left my clock at home, and I really don't want to buy a new one of those, is there any way you can send it to me? And maybe some pictures of the family? I want to send them to S. Andrews. Those aren't necessary though.

Also: My camera isn't working hardly at all. I tried taking 2 pictures the other day and the batteries died after only 1 of them, I replaced them and it just wouldn't take the picture at all, and the rechargeable batteries won't work at all in the camera. Do you have any suggestions on what to do for that? Could you maybe buy me a new one, nothing expensive, just something to last for the mission so that I have something to take pictures of everything? If not, that's fine...just let me know!

I hope everything is going well for you and I love you tons!! :)

Friday, October 9, 2009

First letter from Nicole. She loves the MTC

Hey Mom and Dad!

How are you? How is life at home? I got your dearelder letter...thanks so much! It was so exciting to walk in this morning and have mail sitting and waiting for me (it would have been handed to me directly, but Soeur Andrews and I were slightly on the late side...it's becoming a bit of a bad habit). And Rachael is the perfect name for her...I'm glad we stuck with that suggestion :)

So things here are going SO well! I really am enjoying myself. i don't think it's quite sunk in yet though that I'm going to be here for awhile...it feels very much like an adult EFY. And soeur Andrews (my companion) is SO amazing! We get along SO well and spend all of our time together, and not just because we have to either. We have so much in common and are so similar in everything, even how neat we are and how long it takes us to eat, haha. She's from San Diego and heading to Toulouse, France, which would be SUCH an incredbile mission. She goes to BYU-I and is studying English teaching with a minor in French, so like the exact opposite of me. There are 12 kids in her family, she's the 7th child, and the more we talk the more we find have in common. It was so funny; yesterday during gym time we went jogging for like 45 minutes just around the track and talked nonstop. About every 3 minutes we'd pass this group of elders on one of the weight machines and they just started laughnig at us after awhile because we never stopped talking and the things we talked about were so random...it was great :) And we both love to laugh; our class has come to the conclusion that we're the giggliest girls here. I love it.

And the classes have been wonderful so far. We're with the same group of elders all day, so that's fun to get to know them. Elder Dautel is from Germany, serving in Wisconsin; Elder M (I can't remember his full name...it's way too long) is from India, serving in Provo; Elder Pedebone is from Samoa serving in Orlando (I think); Elder Mourin is from Montreal (!!) serving in another Canadian mission; and Elder Boer is from Italy, serving in London, England. It is SO much fun; it's great to see the differences between the cultures. For example, Elder Boer is SO outgoing and SO energetic and loud and it seems like most of the other Italian missionaries are similar in personality. it makes class so much more enjoyable. We were sitting there yesterday waiting on our teacher and he just started singing Phantom of the Opera in Italian and then Hakuna Matata, also in Italian. It was so great. Then you can tell Elder M from India comes from a culture where men are more dominant...he's very respectful, but just in some of the things he says and does, it's fairly easy to see. But they're all great guys, and a lot of fun. We're in an international branch, and it has the largest group of sisters out of every branch in the MTC. There are about 32 sisters and around the same amount of Elders. So far, Soeur Andrews and I are the only American ones; everyone else is international. Many are from Samoa/Tonga (I can't remember who is from where) or Asia, and I'd say almost half of them are serving in the Temple Square mission. It's pretty neat.

Then, what else? The food is pretty standard...nothing too exciting. Getting around here though is AWFUL! Soeur Andrews and I have not found one place yet without having to look on the map, and we realized today that we're the ONLY people we've EVER seen looking at the maps. But I'm sure we can't be th eonly confused sisters, so our goal today is to catch someone else also looking at a map ;) Everything else is going really well. We had the gym time yesterday, which was fun, then every morning at 6 they have a work out program for any sister who wants to come, so this morning we got up and did kickboxing, and it was SUCH a workout. i loved it though; I think tomorrow is pilates and we're going back for that. We've pretty much accepted that there's no way to be on time for evreything though...no matter ho hard we try, or how early we leave, we end up getting lost and getting there late. But we're going to try harder from here on out :)

Oh, and to answer Tiffany's question from her letter, I have ran into several people I know! It was SO crazy..Becky Perez, my freshman roommate, reported here the same day I did! She's going to the Chicago North, Spanish-speaking mission. I had no idea she was even here, and then she came up to me and started talking! It was so crazy. Then I also ran into my Sophomore roommate Sophie who's been here 3 weeks and is going to Long Beach, CA, Spanish-speaking. That was SO exciting! And then I've seen Alex Peacock from my study abroad several times...it's just so crazy to see so people that I know here. I wasn't expecting to see anyone except Alex. It's great.

Oh, and yesterday we had to have our medical records checked and receive any immunizations we needed. They didn't have a paper for me at the beginning, so I had to wait in this HUGE line to see a woman about it, and she made a new paper for me and worked out all my shots and everything. We just guessed on the Hep A one because I couldn't remember when I received it. But that took awhile, and I decided not to get the flu shot, and they weren't too happy about that, but they let me do it anyways. But the whole procedure took close to an hour and a half, so we only had 5 minutes for lunch, making us late to our next class. But our teacher didn't mind much. Oh, and I met my branch president last night! He's so great :) we had a branch meeting and then personal intreviews, and I walked in and he said "Wow, you never stop smiling do you?" and then went on to tell me I have a beautiful smile that he's sure will help open doors to me. Made my day :)

But anyways, my time is almost up, so I'm going to have to stop writing...I hope all is going well at home and that you all have a wonderful week! Thanks for the letters, I always appreciate them. I love you tons!!

Soeur Nicole Lindsey

PS: Tiffany: thanks so much fo the MLIA: i laughed SO hard, especially at the leaf one...it's totally something I would do :) I shared them with Soeur Andrews and she died laughing.

And Michelle: thanks for the package! I loved it...it made me laugh so hard! Soeur Andrews thoguht it was so cute, and the chocolate chips were a great touch. Anyways, love you all SO much!! And I am glad I'm here after all :) I really won't have this opportunity again, so it's good I'm doing it now. thanks for all the support. i love you!

Thursday, October 8, 2009

How to get a letter to Nicole fast!

Anyone that would like to write a letter to Nicole can go to http://www.dearelder.com/index/
She is in the Provo MTC and her
po box is 301. The mission is Canada, Montreal.
You just write the letter at that website. If you do it before noon MST she will get it the same day. They print it out and give it to her. I know the missionaries have an unspoken (well maybe not unspoken) contest to see who gets the most letters each day!