December 12, 2016

December 12, 2016

Hello everybody!

Wow. This week went by craaaazy fast. Time sorta just melted away. It was crazy. So lets do a daily rundown!! Yay

Tuesday: Lets start with a spiritual experience, shall we? My studies were really good on Tuesday. I was reading in the Isaiah chapters of 2 Nephi (you know, the place where we all get stuck, don't read for awhile, then go back to the beginning? Yeah) and here is the good part! I was actually understanding everything! It was awesome! I attribute this to the fact that I was marking a certain topic the whole time. In the MTC talk "The Character of Christ" (you can't watch it outside of the MTC. Sorry:)) Elder Bednar gives a suggestion. He says to go get a paperback copy of the Book of Mormon, choose a certain topic or Christlike attribute, and then mark it every time it comes up. Then when you finish that, start again with a different question/topic. By the time you're 70 you should have at least 50 (one for each year, but you can read faster if you want) on a shelf somewhere in your house. So that is what I've been doing! For this one, I have just been marking every time it says a name of Christ. (Only the name, because if I marked it with too much detail, every page would be completely red.) Those people who say we're not Christian have never read the Book of Mormon, because the Book of Mormon says a name of Christ literally every page. In fact, I don't think there isn't a page so far that has not said it. I really am getting such a love for the Book of Mormon. It is so amazing! Every time I read it I am just blown away by amazingness.

We had the last district meeting of the transfer on tuesday. Awwww tender. Actually, I wasn't super sad about it because most of our district is ASL missionaries who are definitely not being transferred, so it was like "See ya in a week" But it is very possible Sister Wuthrich will be transferred, so that is a bummer. 

Wednesday: Okay, I've decided my favorite days on the mission are Service Days. I love doing service so much. Our service days are Wednesday and Thursday, and it is awesome! This week we raised a cobblestone side walk. We had to bring like 20 wheelbarrows of sand up from the bottom of a big hill, so that was hard. But when you make it a race, it makes it way better! True-biz. Anyways, we worked really hard. It was awesome! Then we went to Institute to teach and interpret for Talvin. So Wednesday really isn't crazy. Oh I forgot! The best part of service is we always go get 2 Bros and drinks from 7-11 after! Best pizza in the world, hands down. I love it.

Thursday: Not much happened on thursday. We had service, then went to Buffalo Wild Wingz because it was Elder Garcia's last Service day. He goes home Monday, so that was sad. I like him. He is a fun guy, and a good missionary.

Friday: We went to a store called V.I.M to do Christmas shopping. This was kinda frustrating to me, because I thought we should've done this on our P-day, but we put it off, so we went today because we need time to send it home before Christmas. Then we went to go visit Karen and Byron, and Talvin was there too. We are really working on getting them sealed, so that is what we've been pushing. The only problem is that Karen works most Sundays, and its really hard for her to change her schedule. So that is frustrating for me, because Eternal Life totally trumps work in my opinion haha. But she has her agency. So we just need to be patient. It shall happen. We were at Karen and Byrons way to late,so we missed a lesson with Pedro. So that was frustrating. 

Another frustrating thing is that, because we have to skype most of our lessons, usually Elder Brown just does the lesson without me and Elder Larson. Or Elder Larson does it without me and Elder Brown. So I am getting frustrated with that because I want to participate, but I don't have oppurtunities, and Elder Brown is always telling me to practice whenever I can to learn the language, but then won't let me practice. So that is really really frustrating. So needless to say, Friday was not a very good day.

Saturday: Saturday was good. We had Zone Training Meeting, which was super spiritual. It was so good. Elder Garcia and Elder Hull gave their departing testimonies and stuff, so that was good. We also did a Mannequin Challenge (look at us being hip and trendy) And we had really really good workshops. So that was way awesome. Elder Garcia had us look at the story of Enos and the look back to our hardest wrestle with God, and then think of the good that came when it was over. It was awesome!

One frustrating thing. At Zone Training Meeting we had Accountability, which is when we look at our numbers from the transfer, and we were waaaaay below the belt on two of the three numbers. It was awful. So it kinda made me feel inadequate and stuff. So that was frustrating.

Sunday was Awesome! I was really really happy all day. I can't really explain why, but I was! It was so awesome. And Church was really good, and I talked with a bunch of the members, and I was just really happy! So that was awesome! Then after church (because we go to church in Manhattan) we went to go take a peek of the Rockefeller Christmas tree, so that was fun. The streets were sooooooooooo packed! It was insane! We basically had to crowd surf to get anywhere! But it was still fun. And it was snowing, and there was the christmas tree, so it was super magical! Also the Rockefeller center was lit up bright, so that was cool.

So yeah! that was my week! 

Language: The language is coming! I am getting a lot better at expressing my thoughts and saying what I want to say. Its hard because sometimes I literally just don't know how to say what I want to say. So that is frustrating. But I am getting a lot of encouragement from the members and other missionaries. So that is really good. Soon I'll be a pro! In a few months... but still!

Pitied is the hand that sins. Envied is the hand that paints. Honored is the hand that builds. Appreciated is the hand that helps. Respected is the hand that serves. Adored is the hand that saves--even the hand of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Redeemer of all mankind."  -Thomas S. Monson (Hands, October 1972)

There is my quote for the day! It is a good one! Actually, that whole talk is really good. Go read it! Be the hands that build, not the hands that tear down. Remember the hands that were pierced and bled for us. I love you all. Have a good week. Be safe, and remember that Christ lives. Amen.

Elder Wright

"History has its eyes on you"

December 5, 2016  

Hey everyone! 

2 months ago to this day, I went into the MTC! What? This is my ninth week! What?! I feel like I've been gone forever! I wonder how its going to be when I am about to come home! Haha y'all prolly won't even recognize me. 

Wow. What a week! Lots and lots of crazy stuff happened. But also some of the coolest things happened too! So lets talk about them!

Exchanges: I went on my first missionary exchange! President wanted me to get out and experience real missionary work, cause my companions are lazy and sometimes we just don't go work, which is really frustrating. So President arranged the exchanges with the Zone Leaders. I was paired up with Elder Fowles. It was awesome! We went to try to contact some people in the projects, but that didn't work out. The lady we wanted to see wasn't home, so that's a bummer. And then we knocked on a door, and the lady looked through the peep hole. Yeah, we could totally tell she was there. So Elder Fowles calls out "Its the missionaries!" And all we here is "No... Hablo... Ingles." So Elder Fowles right off the bat says "Son los misionaros!" Silence.... Haha that's what you get for trying to say you don't know English. It was funny. So we left and went to go to the Tadros family's FHE. It was good! They are a less active family, and their son Mike is getting the Aaronic priesthood soon! So we talked about that and shared a video. It was really cool normally Mike doesn't even participate in the lessons, and really doesn't care. But this time he participated, and seemed to realize how important this all is. It was awesome. So we were walking home from that, and there was a lady walking by us, and we passed her, so it would be kinda awkward to stop and talk to her. Besides, it was dark, two strange men... Yeah, I'd be scared. But Elder Fowles stopped, turned to her, and said "Hi, we're missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and I just wanted to give you this card." So he hand her the card, she looks down at it, looks up, and says "How can I learn more?" WHAT?!?!?! It was so awesome!!! Her name is Feteye (Feh-tee-yay), and she is from Turkey. She doesn't have a religion, but wants to learn more about our church. She is so nice and kind! She has been here for five months, and is going to school here. A lot of foreigners come here and are super nice, but then become Americanized and are no longer open to us. But she is still so very nice! So Elder Fowles and Elder Garcia are met with her on Saturday, so updates will be coming about her soon! Such a cool experience! We celebrated with Honey Buns and Mountain Dew. So awesome :)

Carols on Columbus: Okay, this was like one of my favorite things my entire mission. So the guy who normally interprets the concert is in Utah this weekend, so he asked the missionaries to interpret, and the North Missionaries were too busy, so Sister Provard and Elder Larson got to do it! So we had spend the whole day on friday and saturday there. So that was boring for the rest of us. But it was still good! The music is incredible! The temple is actually right across the street form Juliard... So the entire YSA ward in Manhattan is ridiculously talented. So the music was so so so good. But that wasn't the only good part!! Background info time!!!! Some of you may have heard me talk about the Hill Comoran Pageant (Honestly, I'd be surprised if you haven't heard me talk about it. I kinda never shut up about it. Aaaanyway.) So there are like 4 families on the island of Manhattan I know from the pageant, and I saw every single one of them at the concert!!!!! The Buckners, the Ortons, the Belnaps, the Pelos! I ran into President Buckner, a man who has inspired me greatly and cared for me in hard times, and that was such a blessing. I am so grateful to know so many great people. I can't even explain it. I felt so blessed. This weekend was incredible. I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to be there. It was amazing.

Language: Its coming. It is super hard though. I feel so pressured to learn this language, but I feel like I'm not learning as fast as I should be. But its helpful that everyone is patient with me. The members completely understand and are totally willing to help me, so I am really thankful.  I am doing what I can, and praying for the Gift of Tongues.

One thing I have learned on my mission: The hard times are always followed with blessings and better times.

And to finish up, here is a quote from Abraham Lincoln! (Again.)

"I can see how it might be possible for a man to look down upon the earth and be an atheist, but I cannot conceive how he could look up into the heavens and say there is no God.”  -Abraham Lincoln

I love you all! Have an awesome week! And remember to #LIGHTtheWORLD

Elder Wright

"History has its eyes on you"

December 2, 2016 Picture sent from NYC

Mom here:  I got a text at 9:00 in the morning with a picture from Sister Buckner and her letting me know about the day of the missionaries in NYC. Apparently the church members do a big concert (two times in a row to fit everyone in).  Anyway, later that evening we got this picture from Bro. Belnap with Joey in a crown of pageant friends.  I was so excited to see him encircled by so many loving people.  What a great day it must have been!!!  Very excited to hear about it on Monday from Elder Wright.

November 28, 2016

The subway is empty. 

Dart gun wars at the church.  Ouch.

The trees are taking over! Hehehehe it ate a brick! You see this often in NYC

Hello everyone!!! 

What a week. What a week. Lots of stuff happened. A crazy week. But first off, HAPPY THANKSGIVING 🦃 I hope it was good for everyone and everyone stuffed their faces full. Actually, I really wasn't looking forward to thanksgiving this week. As ASL Elders, we don't get fed. Ever. Elder Larson, in 16 months of being out, has had 1 dinner appointment in the ASL program. So that is fun. But hey! That way I stay slim! Still under 200! But also, I realized something. I really don't know how to cook. At all. #cerealeveryday However, thanksgiving wasn't too bad. We had a lot to do that day. We had a turkey bowl at 8 with some of the Elders and a couple of members and investigators. And one random kid joined us. It was fun! I got a lot of exercise, and scored two TDs. Go me. After Turkey Bowl, we went to the church for our Zone Activity! It was so fun! We had dart wars. PVC pipe makes really good dart blowers. We had a great time, and I got some nice welts on the face. It was good 😊. Then we had to rush back and get changed for our branch party. Okay. So Deaf parties are awesome!!! Every party lasts for like 6 hours. It's so cool, and they always have food. This one went from 12:45 to 6 (well, really 6:30 because Deaf people don't really leave on time.) I have to explain this a bit. Deaf people loooooove parties. "Why is that?" you may ask. Because everyone needs people to socialize with, someone to talk to. There are not a lot of Deaf people, so when they get together, it is a blessing, and they talk a lot! So it is really easy to get non members to a party. We literally call random people and invite them, and they are like, "sweeeet". All you have to say is that there is a party with free food. They will come. 😊 Unfortunately due to travel time we didn't get there til like 4. So that was a bummer. All the North Mission Elders were gone at that point. But it was still good, and we had a little bit of food!

Our Zone Leader wanted to make sure everyone had a place to go for dinner. So when he found out we didn't really have a place to go, he invited us to Mama Myers apartment. Oh my goodness. It was the best part of the day! She is the nicest lady ever!!!! She loves all missionaries, and always feeds them when they come by. She cooks really really good. It was awesome. Also, she just talked to me. It was really nice. She is incredible. I felt so blessed to be there. 

Friday was a crazy day, but at the same time ineffective. We went out to Far Rockaway to go see Jose Pagan. We knocked on the door... no answer. Ugh. Jose!!! I've been thinking about him a bit. I just wish he had the desire to come to church. But oh well. Then we walked a mile or two to go contact a referral. But alas, no answer. It's possible he moved. Or was just gone. Or the sisters gave us he wrong address. Luckily we have his VP number so we will try to get in contact with him and get the right address. 

Friday night we went and visited Karen and Byron. They are members in Brownsville Brooklyn. We are trying to get them to the temple to be sealed. But they haven't been coming to church lately because Karen works sundays and Byron isn't really motivated to come without her cause their two kids are craaaazy. But he and the two kids came on Sunday! Oh man. The two kids are my favorite!! They are CODA (children of Deaf adults) so they are soooo loud and kinda crazy. But their parents don't hear it, so they keep it up. But they are so funny. Byron Jr. is six, and Brett is 2. They are my favorite! So adorable. 

Yeah. Kinda a crazy week. Meetings, interviews with the President, traveling, lots of stuff. But I still feel like we're not working as hard as we could be. We have a lot of free time that I know we shouldn't have. So that's something I'm trying to fix. 

The language is getting better every day! I am starting to be able to follow conversation, and also make conversation. Interesting thing. When I talk with members, I sign better than when I'm talking with Elder Larson and Elder Brown. It's possible it's because I am intimidated or feel I need to be better when I am with my comps, rather than just signing and not worrying what they think. So I will keep working. So pray for me! 

I love you all. Remember to share the #LIGHTtheWORLD video, and do good to others! One of the quotes I heard this week really blessed my life. "No one can fall further than the Light of Christ shines"  -Elder Jeffery R. Holland. This means a lot to me. No matter how hard or how far you've fallen, you can't escape the light of Christ, and the blessings of the Atonement. He will always be there for you! That's a promise. 

Read this talk. What Is A Friend? by Marvin J. Ashton in the October 1972 conference. It is so good! And here is a quote from Abraham Lincoln, my all time favorite president! "Am I not destroying my enemies when I make them my friends?"

I love all of you! Have a great week!

Elder Wright

"History has its eyes on you"

Mission Office Address to send mail...

Joey Mentioned that he loves to get mail.  Here is the official address:

Missionaries love receiving letters through the postal service, so share the Mission Office address with others. We ask that mail be sent to the mission office, and we will redirect it to the missionary. When addressing the letter be sure to use your missionary’s full name as it is not uncommon to have two elders or sisters with the same last name. The mission office address is:
85-69 60th Dr.
Elmhurst, NY 11373

Elder Wright Day 2 IN THE GREATEST CITY IN THE WORLD!! (Work work)

The much appreciated "he made it" photo with his Mission Pres Reynolds and wife.

Proof---he is in NYC

Wow! I can't believe I'm here!!! I love it so far!!! Everything is so packed and busy! It's so cool! I was super nervous at first, but I can definitely feel the Lord helping me out. It's awesome. 

Let's start with funny stories, shall we? 😂. Let's see. First day here, we headed off to District meeting. I went into the bathroom, and I had something on my shoulder. Guess what it was?? Bird poop! First thing that popped into my head? Welcome to New York. First day here and I've already been pooped on. It made me a little down in the "dumps," but I was able to recover at a "running" pace. Okay, that's enough with the poop puns. I will try to avoid the pigeons though. But that will be hard cause there are SO MANY!!! Another funny story. Well, sorta. This guy walked into the subway, and was letting off some very colorful language to no one. It was interesting. I already experienced a ton, and it's only been two days! Wow! 

Monday was crazy! We woke up at 3:30 to get to the travel office, and then went to the airport. I got to call my mom and dad though, so that was great! It was great to here someone's voice I knew and loved so dearly. That also helped the wait time go by. The plane ride was good. I had a window seat so I was able to get sleep pretty easily. It was nice. Then we met the President and the Assistants. It was awesome! I love President Reynolds! He is so kind! Sister Reynolds is awesome too. I feel so blessed, and I already feel like I can trust them with anything. I love them! We headed to the mission home and ate food. I hadn't eaten all day, so that was nice. I also met my new companions, Elder Brown (Deaf, Tongan, super funny and nice) and Elder Larson (District Leader, from Arizona, also very nice.) I think we will all get along great

One thing I am gonna have trouble learning is the Subway systems. Elder Brown is a pro though, so I will trust in him. That's for sure. And I will do my best to learn it. Tuesday, we rode the subway a ton!!!! Like, half the day. I didn't talk to a lot of people though. It's just scary. I'm working on it though! Trust the Lord and he will provide!

I met my first NYC Deaf member! His name is Jose Jimenez. He is a recent convert, and he needed Elder Larson to interpret so he could send a package. We walked through one of the Chinatowns (turns out there are like 5 of them, so don't think I was going to Manhattan. That's outside of the mission. We only go there on Sundays. Not joking. That's where the Deaf Branch is.) Anyways, Jose is getting the priesthood this Sunday! He is gonna pass the sacrament soon! It's awesome! I am super excited for him! It's so cool, and even though I couldn't really understand him cause he was signing so fast, I was feeling the Spirit so much. It's awesome. 

I am loving the city. We were headed to the Church building in Brooklyn (I think), and Elder Brown 
pointed behind me, and I saw an amazing view! You can see all of Manhattan, and Downtown Brooklyn. It is so cool!!! Oh that reminds me. I am in Brooklyn! That's where Captain America is from! I will send a picture with me at the Captain America statue (in your face Connor! Ha!) 

Anyways, i am really loving the people here. They are really cool, and there are so many different people, and people who look like they could and should be members! I love it! The people look sad though. I am trying to change that by saying Hi and smiling though! Some people react well to it! Others? Noooot so much... But some people look and say hi back and smile! I love it. 

230 Ocean Parkway Apt B4
Brooklyn NY 11218

That's the address I'm at if any of you want to send letters. Packages need to be sent to the mission home. So send ALL THE MAIL! I loooove getting letters and emails. 

I miss you all! Have a good week! Stay safe! 

Elder Wright
PS. Hamilton songs have been running through my head. And In the Heights. Anyways. Love you all. 

Here are pictures of the district:

The eyepiece dab is in reference to President Reynold's sign name

November 11, 2016

Hey Everybody! 

Elder Wright here! Wow. I can't believe its only been six weeks. It seems like only yesterday I was dropped off by my parents. Wow. Its even weirder to think that I will be teaching the people of New York in 4 days! What?! On the other hand, I don't really remember what my life was like before. I feel like I've been gone forever, but its literally been no time at all. But hey! Life moves on! 

We finished teaching all our PI (Progressing Investigators) and our MAPIs (Missionaries As Progressing Investigators) It was really good. Manny was a great source of frustration though. He would not open up to us whatsoever!!! Ugh. It was so frustrating. But it was also good help for me learning how to love the people. It was awesome! 

The Sunday Devotional this week was AWESOME! Jenny Oaks Baker came and played songs for us and gave messages. She has incredible talent. And her whole family. Her 10 year old son came out and played the guitar like a pro. It was so cool to see her whole family participating with her, and you can tell that all their efforts have made their family grow. Its awesome!

I am going to miss the teachers here so much!!! They are my favorites! We had prolly one of the best lessons I've ever had in my entire life the other day with Brother Featherstone and Sister Rice. It was about the Atonement, and was probably one of the most enlightening lessons I've ever had. It was amazing. Ever since I got here, my testimony of the power of the Atonement has shot through the roof. The Atonement is real. We can use it whenever we need. We should use it everyday. Whether or not we use it, Christ still suffered for everything we've gone through, so if we don't use it, it is wasting the gift Christ gave us. Use it! Repentance is not a bad thing! It is the greatest thing in our lives, and using it WILL bring us happiness. 

OH MY GOODNESS!!! THE CAFETERIA SERVED US REAL MASHED POTATOES FOR THE FIRST TIME! I FEEL SO BLESSED! It was an amazing experience. Especially cause the potatoes they usually serve are fake and have the consistency of Moon Sand. Like, you could sculpt Michaelangelo's sculpture David. Then they'd put that in the museum. You all think I'm joking, I'm sure.

Yesterday we had In-field Orientation. It was helpful, but sitting there for all that time with no break? Yeah, I'd rather not go through that for the rest of my life. Thanks. Oh well. It still was helpful to me.

I love you all! Keep it up! Remember the Lord our Savior, Jesus Christ died for you! Not as a group, but individually! He loves you! I testify of that! 

I love you all! When I talk to you next, I will be in NYC! Woot woot!

Elder Wright

Me and Elder Wallace's fresh cuts! Aw yeah!

Me and Elder Wawro!!! I forgot he was coming soon, so this was an awesome surprise!

Me and Brother Gines! So happy I saw him!

October 28, 2016

Hey Everyone! Elder Wright here! Wow. I can't believe its already P-day. Time travels really fast here. But also really slow. Its a paradox. But this week has been great!!!! The language is coming a long great, and things with my companions are getting better! We have been doing really good companionship study, and that has helped us learn how each other sign and has really helped us get unified. Companionship study is really important!!! USE IT! If you're married, do it with you spouse! Take an hour every day and just study with each other! I promise it will bless your life!

Alrighty! Daily rundown!

Saturday: We didn't teach anyone today, but it was still a long day. 9 hour days are hard because often study time becomes "study sleep habit time" If you see what I mean. Staying awake for personal study is really hard. I'm praying everyday for energy, but it is still hard. Oh well. I just need to get used to the fact that "good nights sleep" doesn't exist for the next two years. But today we played a really fun game called "Energy Ball" It would be a really good game for warm ups before acting. It involves classifiers (ASL term. You use them to show how big something is, or describe something that doesn't really have a sign or you don't know the sign for it) Anyways. It was really fun. I loved it. And I was really able to get into it

Sunday: Good day! Guess what? I'm the new district leader! Yay! Although its really not a super big accomplishment. There are 3 elders in my branch, and one was already District Leader, so it was a 50/50 chance. But hey! And I can already see how much of a blessing this calling will be in my mission and in my life. I am really enjoying it! 

Sunday devotional was awesome! Elder Allen of the Missionary Department spoke. It was so good. I loved it! He taught us about.. well, everything. He said what the spirit told him to talk about. He had us say a prayer so he could recieve inspiration. It was soo cool! He answered a loooot of questions. Also, to all you thinking about serving a mission? If you do, DO THE MTC CHOIR!!! IT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE!!! So yeah. Brother Eggett is awesome.

Monday: Brother Peck was sick. So it was really hard to focus. But our gesture lesson went well. IT was hard but good. Gesturing is so hard. The person you're teachign can't really express if they understand anything, but that is why the spirit was important. We said bye to all the Malagasi Elders so  that is sad. Elder Alvarez (Abby Barrett, you know him. If you ever read this....) is really awesome. I'm gonna miss him. Besides, he listens to Hamilton.... So we have a connection there. 

Tuesday. The devotional was awesoeme! Also, Brother Eggett taught me more about the Atonement than I have ever thought of in my life. Once again... TAKE MTC CHOIR. 

The devotional was good! Elder Natress spoke. He was ordained in 2016, sooo he is a pretty new Seventy, but he did really good!!

Wednesday/THursday: Class, class more class. But some really really funny things happened!!!! That is for sure. Including Elder Martinson acting out the stripling warriors with gesturing. That was so good. Also, brother Featherstone is really good at telling stories! Its so cool! Oh my gosh!!:) He is a genius.

The language is coming, thats for sure. Its hard, but very rewarding. I can't wait to come home and be fluent! I am thinking of being a teacher at the MTC! Brother Peck told me to talk to him about it after the mission, so here is hoping.

The epic games of Volleyball are awesome. But not quite as awesome as at the Hill Cumorah Pageant. Nothing quite compares to that though. Still. We have fun.

The one thing i miss so much? Acting. And music. So I guess that is two things, but still. I miss it a lot. I can't wait to do community theater when I get back. And I'll be a pro after doing ASL for two years, right?! :) Lets hope

Well, I love you all! The church is true! Press forward! Till we meet again! Choose the Right! Now let us rejoice! Okay, now I'm just naming hymns... Love you all!

Elder Kronk (Thats what all the elders in the districts call me. They even convinced Brother Featherstone to have that as an optional sign name... I'm cool with it though. Kronk is one of my favorites)

Elder Wright

NOV 4 2016 MTC

Hey everyone! This has been a crazy week! So much has happened, So I won't do a daily rundown. But I will tell some great things!

Halloween: Halloween was so good! Oh my goodness!! :) Hopefully you can tell from the pictures. Elder Cherry's mom (she has sorta become our district mom. She sends goodies and stuff. Its awesome. She also writes full letters for our district. I love it so much!! So for halloween, she sent a HUGE (cha) (thats an ASL thing...:)) box that was full of costumes and candy. I got a fake mustache and a fireman's hat. It was epic. Also, Brother Featherstone's faces are pretty fantastic in the pictures we took. It is seriously the best. Haha I love my teachers. For TRC later that night, Brother Featherstone wore the dinosaur hat the whole time. He became very attached. Elder Cherry let him keep it. :)

Devotionals/choir: Okay. literally the best part of the week. Sunday's devotional was good. Richard N Holzapfel spoke. He is the President of the BYU YSA 1st Stake. He was really cool. He gave a lot of good insight, and he was a very emotional speaker, which made it really cool. So for choir this week we sang Praise to the Man by Mack Wilburg. So that is cool. Brother Eggett (As usual) gave a lot of really good insight to the Restoration. It was awesome!:) Tuesday was even better. Choir was really really good, and then guess who came and visited??? President Russell M Nelson!!! It was so awesome. I can't even start to describe. He also gave us a message from President Monson. President Monson told us he loves us. So thats awesome. It is awesome to see the pure love that the Apostles show us. It always makes me happy :)

Sooooo funny thing we learned. Apparently there was a trend going around that is #foreheadselfie. It is where people do the peace sign on their forehead, and post it cause they think it is cool. I just want everyone to know what that means in ASL. When you do the peace sign on your forehead, it means stupid. No joke. In fact, some Deaf people sometimes tell hearing people that that actually means hello in ASL so they do it to other people. We all had a really good laugh about that in class :) ahhh good times.

ASL is coming. I had a lot of struggles this week. I just feel like I'm not progressing really, and that is hard for me. But as long as I try as hard as I can, the Lord will bless me. 

Frustrating thing this week: The Tongans and Samoans in our branch are really laid back, so they don't really follow the rule about 10:15 quiet time and 10:30 lights out. Last night they were being really really loud. Ugh. Oh well. Just remember, President Nelson told us that exact obedience brings miracles. True fact. And repentance works. True-biz (another ASL thing. It means fo' realz. or fo' sho'

I love you all! Have a great week! CTR! 

Elder Wright

PS. I love getting emails and mail. Just a hint. :)

Halloween, Christmas Tree Lights, Our Bananaolantern, and me as a Fireman missionary! Happy Halloween!

My teacher Brother Featherstone

Banana-lanturn

MTC CONTINUES: October 21, 2016

The Cheeto aisle:  My Favorite!

October 21, 2106

Hey everyone! 

Wow. This week has been crazy, but also kinda fast. The days past slow, but the weeks are picking up. That is pretty nice right now.

Daily rundown:

Saturday-Class... for nine hours.... yeah. Long long day. But excersise time is really nice cause we play Four Square with the Malagasi Elders. They are my favorites!!!! But they leave Monday, so that is really sad for me. But we had a lot of fun!!

Sunday- Sacrament meeting was really good! Luckily I didn't have to give a talk. They randomly pick people for those... eeeee. The temple walk today was awesome. It was perfect weather, and I loved it! But also, the weather makes me kinda homesick... I love this weather so much, so when I can't take advantage of it, its hard. But oh well. At least i will get to see NY in the fall. That will be awesome. The sunday night devotional was awesome!! A man named Vai (long tongan name) talked. He is a sportcaster in Philly. True fact: the CEO of the 76ers is a mormon now. He was baptized. Vai talked about him a ton. It was awesome. Vai was also the first tongan to play for BYU. He also played pro football for the Cardinals and the Eagles. No big deal.

Monday: STRESSSSSS. In the ASL community, there are some people who don't know any language, and are also deaf. So no English, ASL, Spanish, Russian, whatever. No language. At all. So the only way to teach them? GESTURES. We are teaching "J". Thats her sign name. We don't actually know her real name. Soooo yeah. Having to teach about the restoration? NOT EASY. Its like teaching a 50 year old toddler who is deaf also. But our teachers said we would teach at least one of those lessons in the field. The lesson we taught crashed and burned. Yeah. 

Tuesday: We taught our other investigator, Manny. (he's actually brother peck, but whatever.) He is pretty cool. But we really struggled to teach him. The 3 of us are really good teachers on our own, but are too prideful to work together, so thats what we're working on. The tuesday night devotional was awesome! Elder Robbins talked about a lot of stuff. Christlike Attributes, companions, patience. He said having a companion now is preparing us to be with our Eternal Companions. So thats exciting.

Wednesday: Class all day. One thing... ASL is really hard to understand when you're tired. True fact

Thursday: 9 hours of class..... Yay... But it wasn't to bad. I was super sore after sitting that long, but I survived.

So that was my week! 

Okay, so learning a language is really hard. But I am doing a lot better than I ever did when I took ASL! The gift of tongues is so real! True fact. 

Thats all I can think of to say... well, I love you all! Keep on going! Woohoo!!

Elder Wright

PS. I'm so bummed the Malagasi Elders are leaving. And the Haitian Creole Elders. I'll send a pic of Elders watson and Salmond later. Man I'mma miss them. Today Elder Chulamony waited in Elder Alvarez's closet for like 10 minutes, just to shoot him with a dart gun. #MTCShenanigans

October 7, 2016 MTC

Hey everyone! Its been a crazy 1/2 week! As soon as I was dropped, I was whisked away, got my supplies, (Including my iPad. Yes. I get one. But I don't really use it a lot...) and then went straight to class. I walked in, and one of the teachers was there. Brother Featherstone. He didn't say a word the whole time. I was really really overwhelmed. But I made it through class. Brother Featherstone is Deaf. He's super nice and funny, and he always ends his class by telling us he loves us. He isn't my teacher though. I have the other teacher. Brother Peck. He is super nice too. I love both of the teachers. They are helping me a ton! It kinda makes me want to be a teacher at the MTC after my mission!

At class I met my companions (yes, I am in a threeo. I don't know why we say that and not trio, but oh well.) Elder Wallace and Elder Whicker. I like them both a lot. Elder Wallace is really spiritual and determined. Elder Whicker is really quiet, but he says he's doing good, and I can tell he is trying.

After class, we went to a meeting with all the new missionaries and the MTC president spoke to us. It was really good. Then we had dinner, and then we came back and did role plays with one investigator and 50 missionaries asking questions. It was crazy, but cool. Then we had a meeting with the Zone Leaders and Branch President. I really like our Branch President. He is super friendly, and knows what he's talking about. He always tells us he loves us. So thats awesome. 

Thursday started with another New Missionary class. The brother who taught us was really cool, but I don't remember his name... Oh well. He told us a lot of cool stories. Then we had lunch, and then class. It was crazy! I could feel the spirit working with me a ton! I've learned so much. And we met our first investigator! Her name is Kaylinn! She had her dad die when she was nine, and doesn't like her stepdad. But she is excited to meet with us! Its amazing. I've find myself constantly thinking of ways to help her and answer her questions. I already have this love for her, and i want her to change. Its awesome!

Later our branch had a meeting with the Branch Presidency and they're wives. The Presidency did 3 minute interview with each of us, and the wives instructed and introduced us. 

I LOVE MY BRANCH!!! Here are the places our branch is going to: Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, Kiribata(I'm not sure how to spell the place but thats the language), Marshall Islands, and then? The ASL missionaries. We have a lot of Polynesians in our Branch. THey are so funny!! I love them so much!! I like elder Fifita, Elder Fifita (twins) and Elder Sagapolu. 

Today we played volleyball! I loved it! We didn't keep score at all. The only thing that mattered was who got the coolest spikes. It was soooo fun!!! And then later we're going to the temple, so I am super excited for that.

One thing I have learned since I got here is that the Gift of Tongues is soooo real. I have already learned so much, and almost have the Missionary Purpose memorized in ASL, and I can pray in ASL too! I love it!!! Also, we constantly feel the Spirit here, and even more when we are signing. I love it!

Another thing I love about the MTC? The constant feeling of the Spirit. I always thought people exaggerated the spirit. They don't. It's amazing. I love it. 

Anyways, thats about it! I love you all! The Church is true! 

Elder Wright