Sister Training Leaders

One of the things that I hear most often at the MTC while talking to other missionaries is "Don't worry, the language will come" and "Wow! You're here for five more weeks?" It seems to me sometimes that people are leaving left and right as I learn Turkish at an incredibly slow pace. Everytime that I think that I've got the hang of it, there is always more to learn and more that I am missing. The interesting thing about learning a language here is that you think that you are learning the language so slowly and a lot of times you don't think you are getting it at all! However, if I look back at when I first got here, it is literally amazing to see how much I have learned in such a short amount of time. I took three years of high school Spanish and learned basically nothing, but here, I have already learned the colors, months, weeks, future tense, past tense, present progressive tense, abilitative case, Aorist tense, and a ton of vocab! The Lord definitely has his hand in my learning of the language as I have been here at the MTC, and it gives me so much hope to see how much I have come in such a short amount of time. A lot of times, Satan likes to convince us that our progress is simply plateauing, which is discouraging and simply not true. Just looking back in my journal, I have seen that I have changed a lot since I have gotten here. Don't get me wrong, I am still very much me, but I am just becoming a more refined version of me. I think one of the fears that missionaries have going into the field is hearing that they are going to change, but what they don't seem to realize is that you don't change into a completely new person. I was talking with some of the girls in my district and we have realized that we are still us, but we are more focused on Jesus Christ and giving all that we can to Him and this work.

Last week, my brother, Jackson, left for the mission field. I hadn't realized how comforting it was to know that even though I didn't see him all the time, that he was still nearby and I could still hang out with him. When he left, I then understood that I wouldnt have that same comfort and that I wouldn't see my brother for a long time. We had done everything together ever since we were little. We had been in the same classes at school, got into BYU at the same time, went there together, and even opened our mission calls together. Even though it was hard to say goodbye to him, I know that he is going to be an incredible missionary. He is one of the coolest, kindest, and sweetest people that I know, and I know that he is going to do great things. I wish him all the luck as he serves in the Salt Lake City West Mission and then (soon) the Stockholm Sweden Mission.

Now, I suppose its time to get down to the subject of my email. Because my companions and I are here for so long, we just got called as the new Sister Training Leaders for our branch. It was a bit of a shock when we got called, but as we have tried our best to serve the sisters in our branch it has been incredible. It is so cool to be able to serve in this way as we try to make sure that everyone is getting along with their companions and that they are adjusting to MTC life (which can be pretty overwhelming). We do this by visiting the sisters occasionally, giving them snacks, and doing this thing called "toothbrush time", which is basically talking to them before they go to bed. Apparently, we have also been told that our companionship is supposed to set an example for the other sisters, which is kind of cool. I am so lucky to have Sister Woodford and Sister Haun as my first companions. They definitely push me to be a better missionary and help me as we all struggle to learn our languages.

We were lucky to hear Sister Rebecca Craven speak to us for the Tuesday devotional. She shared so many interesting and beautiful thoughts, but the one I loved the most was that our first commandment is to love God, but the first truth is that He loves us. She also talked about having "Courage in the Gap" or "Mut Zur Lücke", which is a quote she shared from Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf. That basically means being brave enough not to know everything, which is super applicable to us missionaries as we go out into the field, but also applicable to everyone. I know that I do not know everything, but as I have courage that Heavenly Father will help me with my own imperfections as I try my best to keep moving forward, I know that He will change me and help me as I try to do His will. Another thing that I really loved from this devotional was the testimony of Sister Craven's daughter as she testified about her own mission. One thing that really struck me that she said was that a lot of people tell you that it is so hard to take your badge off, but that is always true. It was the hardest truth for her to realize that she couldn't put that name tag back on. However, she told us that written on each of our hearts (every person, not just missionaries) is Jesus Christ's name. We do not simply take of the tag forever, but it takes a new form as we become missionaries for life. As members of the Church of Jesus Christ we are all called to share the message of the restored gospel, not just missionaries. One of the cool things that I learned in Turkish is that the word for "gospel" is translated to "the joyful news". This gospel is truly the joyful news! It has brought so much power and light into my life and I know that it can and will do the same thing to those that accept it into their own lives.

I am so glad that I get to write these emails to you all (even though the next few will be just me at the MTC)! I am also thankful for you all and your messages!

Love,

Sister Calder