7. JUNE-And Sing Our Hearts Out We Did...

Greetings from within the walls of the MTC! Oh gosh there is so much to say that my hands are actually seizing up and refusing to cooperate, blasted things. Ok, first off......I LOVE YOU. I LOVE YOU. I LOVE YOU. I LOVE YOU. I wish i could give each and everyone of you a hug, not only because i am deprived of physical contact, other than a grimy/clammy handshake, but because...yes im going to say it again....i love you. Thank you all for all the dearelders you have sent me over the past week. My district is still making comments at this moment as the pile of support, love, advice, cheesy quotes, and poems sit beside me. I wish i had enough time right now to reply back to each and every one of them because i can honestly say that each and every one of those dearelders helped, and i want all of you to know that im doing much better! The work is still tough, Russian is still kicking my butt, getting out of the top bunk at 6:30 in the morning is still a trial my body is refusing to adjust to, but somehow.....im doing it. I have this strength that is helping me push forward, and i couldn't have done it without all your prayers! 

Speaking of getting up at 6:30 in the morning, Sis Griffiths my companion just set up her new alarm clock last night and this morning i woke up thinking that the fire alarm was going off, so i shot out of bed with my heart lodged up in my throat and immediately got into "life vs. death/everybody for themselves" mode and and threw myself off the top bunk onto the floor, completely ignoring the fact i had a ladder. My legs had not quite comprehended nor prepared themselves for such an awakening and buckled underneath me as soon as i landed. I was not a happy morning person that morning needless to say.
Oh and Sister Griffiths mom sent us a district party package! Huzzah!

The MTC has been a chang'n this past week! Mission presidents from around the world have been meeting here as well as the first presidency and the quorum of the 12. Rumor has it Uchtdorf is here right now! The entire missionary population has been kicked out of the cafeteria in their honor and we have been eating in the gym for the past week. Last night for dinner i stood in line for 45 minutes smelling the magical scent of bbq wafting from the doors. After my stomach had already began eating itself i entered the doors at long last, got in line, grabbed that soft sesame seed bun preparing myself for that juicy burger only to get the end to see........1/16" slab of dried up discolored ham.......apparently they did a miscount and ran out of hamburgers so had to pull out the leftover ham from breakfast. Today for lunch......one scoop of rice with the last drops of soy sauce that i could muster from the bottle and a single piece of broccoli. If im lucky maybe ill get the last scrapings of the mystery meat bucket at dinner.

So i sang in the worldwide broadcast! If you look close enough you can actually see my right shoulder and i believe a piece of an ear lobe! Let me tell you that camera man was missing out cause as soon as we starting singing i got the worst, most painful tickle in my throat! Half the song was spent only mouthing the words as i tried to use my singing to flex my throat in a desperate attempt of itching the blasted thing. I tried my best to make my contorted face look as spiritually touched as possible, i believe i might have even got a tear. It was amazing to be sitting there looking down on the backs of the heads of the apostles.....

Today was my last trip to the temple in America! The temple is closed for the next 5 weeks and in 2 weeks im out of here! My district can't stop talking about it and have started a count down they are so excited, but i honestly wish i had the original 12 weeks. Im scared out of my mind! 

I pray for my trainer each and every day cause she has no idea what is coming to her. I have been talking to my branch president a lot and he has actually setting me up to talk with a counselor. No worries, just to talk and see if maybe perhaps my downward spirals are not only a spiritual trial but perhaps something more. Cause there were times i was actually emotionally dead, yet another blessing in disguise, because this week me and my Sister Griffiths had to clean out the shower drains of the girls bathrooms! I have seen and smelt death, and it is not pretty. For two hours i was using a bent wire coat hanger to pry out what looked like rotten, soggy, disintegrated rat. I then had to pour down the drains some acidic live fungus sludge that then made shower stalls reak of burnt hair. If there was ever a time to have no emotion or care, it was then.

Elder Sitze birthday was spent decapitating a 5 lb gummy bear...

Have you ever tried drawing a portrait of someones face while not looking at your canvas? Well i have. Have you ever done so as a birthday token? I have. Have you ever unintentionally, suggested that they look like one of the characters from Beevus and Butt-head?...I have.

I want all the family to know that the tradition of the head massager is being passed on! All of the sisters in my district love it! So thank you sage! And Mom i want you to know that me and my roommates have now received two "COMMENDABLE" room checks in a row now! Miracles really do happen. 

 McCall, I WILL get to writing you! McCall is going to Argentina for all of those who dont know and i am so proud of her, and love her and dont care who knows it! McCall thank you so much for all of your support and love!.....and pictures, oh how they make my spleen burst!  ANNIE- dont get pregnant yet, and yes i love  you too. I love you all so much! I miss you and thanks again for all your prayers! Until the next crazy hectic P-day that doesn't give me enough time to say everything!

Lovey love,

Cectpa Po (Roe)

Week 7

5. JUNE-Curse Wrap Around Skirts with Awkward Splits Down the Middle....

Hello my American friends! (this is a line has been engraved into my mind and soul as i hear it at least 20 times a day)

We had a little walk up the temple for some pictures as we said our goodbyes to a slew of missionaries that have completed their training and heading out to the field...ready or not! Can you believe i have already hit my 1 month mark?! And during my 1 month here i have discovered one thing.....the MTC is Hogwarts. Let me explain.....

The cafeteria is the great hall, all of the entrances require a password (pass card). The cafeteria people wear badges that say "Prefect." The Spirit is like a marauders map in our head. Preach My Gospel is our spell book. We're learning a new language (our spells) to make magic happen (share the gospel). We are fighting against evil. The gym turns into our devotional room- this is the room of requirement. We have great power-Elders, like the elder wand. The temple grounds are like Hogsmead cause we only get to visit there once in a while. And DearElders are our Owls. We even got our acceptance letter to come here and it assigned us to our "house" or Mission.... and my stay at Hogwarts will be complete as soon as i receive my Nimbus 2000 aka AlphaSmart 3000 which is a handy dandy keyboard you can type on and upload later on the computer! "Extended" type time, mwahahaha!

Yup, this is what my District did during our P-day. Nothing like watching a good ol' game of sand volleyball! What? You didn't actually think i played did you? 

It's funny to see what the affects of movie deprivation can do to a couple thousand missionaries. Every sunday, during our spiritual feasting, we get to pick from a variety of seminars to attend, and there is always a spiritually uplifting church produced movie as a option, and i never thought in my life that i would consider The Testament a chick flick, but you wouldn't believe all the oooing and awwwing that goes on as soon as a boy and a girl get so much as 5 feet away from each other. Speaking of which! An elder played a sick joke on me last night when we were all walking back from the gym. He was walked ahead of me a bit and i was in my own thoughts behind him when all of a sudden he turns around and runs at me with open arms in 100% hug mode, the screech of my heels echoed through the halls as i shielded my face of pure horror with my hands. So it's officially official. Im a missionary. And i fear hugs from the opposite gender.

When life, or a package from a missionaries mom, gives you lime green balloons, you have a tournament to see how long you can keep all the balloons up in the air without them touching the ground, right? Well, that's our motto at least.

BIG NEWS!! Im so excited to tell you guys this cause im going to be singing in the MTC choir for the quorum of the 12 and the presidency!!! And it's going to be filmed live! Turn on your TV on July 23rd and you'll get to see pretty ol me singing my heart out. The MTC is so large now that we are now going to start having our devotionals at the Marriot Center at BYU. Our first night is tonight and im pretty sure one of the apostles is going to speak. Im so excited! Missionary work is booming over here and im so excited to be part of it! But even BIGGER news! There has been a switcheroo among companionship's in our district and...i have a new companion! SISTER GRIFFITHS!

Guys this is not okay, i think im getting sick. AGAIN! my throat is on fire and it feels like it's been coated in sand, im now eating Luden's cough drops as if they were candy. Speaking of sand......shower story! The other night all of the showers were taken up except for one shower.....the dark one covered in shadows and grime in the deepest darkest corner of the bathroom. It was 7 minutes till quite time and i was in a very desperate situation. I told myself "it can't be that bad" and dove into the depths. All was going well until i turned on the faucet, i heard a hissing, then a clanking of water pipes, i stood there puzzled as to what was causing the stall in the flow of water, when all of sudden an explosion of boiling hot water shot of of the shower head like a sand blaster and i was literally plastered up against the wall! Full on cheek shoved against wall with full body paralysis. I finally managed to reach my hand behind me and reach the faucet, and i can safely say that there was no germs or skin for that matter after that episode.
Flash photo sesh from a temple trip!

This week as been a normal fast week! The Russian is slowly becoming more familiar to me, and i LOVE singing the Russian hymns! It's one of my favorite things and it brings a really great spirit. I loved all my DearElders i got yesterday! So many laughs and smiles and squeals while reading Mom's, Tenaya's, Erica's, Sage's, and McCalls letters. Im so happy to hear about the pioneer trek! It sounded like so much fun! Maybe we can all square dance when i get home in celebration.

Well dinner is calling my name, and then it's off to choir practice! I can't believe im half way done here, im kinda freaking out, but i know the Lord will make up for the difference if i try my best. It's great being able to use this time to strengthen my testimony and relationship with Him. I love you all. Leetle Kiss Big kiss leetle kiss XoxooXOxo

-Cectpa Roe

Week 5