Day 3

Kamusta Pamilya ug friends!

My Preparation day (P-day) is on Fridays here in the MTC! It's funny that I have only been here for three days before I got to email you all. I don't even know where to start! It's so busy here and I feel like so much has happened and I've already learned so much! 

I was already in my first language class learning Cebuano only 20 minutes after arriving on Wednesday! And our teachers only spoke in Cebuano with an english word thrown in here and there! I'll admit it was overwhelming, but also a lot of fun trying to figure things out. I already know how to say a simple introduction and prayer in the language. Hopefully it will get easier the more I learn.  In our classrooms we met our district and companions. It turns out that I have 2 companions! Their names are Sister Powell (Rexburg, ID) and Sister Allen (Farmington, UT). I have already learned so much from the two of them and we keep joking about what it is going to be like in the Philippines. We can barely handle the heat and humidity here in Utah the last two days, I don't know how we will do in the Philippines! They are both really nice and although we are a group of 3, we make it work. :) It is so cool walking around campus here and hearing so many different languages. And there are people here from all over the world! There some Missionaries in my zone who are from Fiji, Korea, China, Australia, Samoa, England, and a bunch of small Islands I've never even heard of! Our whole district is going to the Philippines, but only half of us are serving in the Tacloban Mission. The others are going to Cebu, which is an Island right next to our two. Both Sister Powell and Sister Allen are serving in Tacloban too and we all ship out on September 17th! Sorry I haven't taken any pictures yet, but I will try and have some by next week! 

The food here is alright, and I'm just glad we don't have to worry about cooking our own meals because we are busy enough as it is! We wake up at 6:30 am and go to bed at 10:30 at night. The days are so long and we do and learn so much. it almost feels like I've been here for weeks! By around 6 pm we are all wiped out. The first night I had a really hard time falling asleep, but last night was much better. This morning we went to the temple and did an endowment session which was really nice. 

Life at the MTC so far has been unlike unlike anything I have ever experienced before! While I know I still have a lot of hard work and challenges ahead of me, I know that being here, with these exact people, and serving a mission is the right thing for me. I have felt the spirit and God's love for me SO much on a daily basis. Whether it's in group meetings, singing hymns, personal study, learning the language, or even just walking around campus. It is such an amazing feeling. that I hope I can keep with me through my whole life!

I'll talk to you guys next week! With love,

Sister Healey