Hey everyone!
Thanks for the letters and your continued support. This week has been pretty average I guess.
We are growing closer as a district and learning how to love and let others be themselves. Our two hermano teachers went out of town for thanksgiving, but Hermana Alletto didn't so we only had a sub half the time.
I can't remember if I told you this, but last Monday I had a 20-25 minute conversation with a guy who called for a DVD. It was really cool. He said he was looking for answers in life, but he didn't want to talk to the missionaries. He decided to ask me some questions instead. He asked what the difference between Mormons and Christians are and I explained that there isn't a difference, we are Christians. Then he asked me about a passage in Hebrews I think. He was just nervous about the atonement and whether it ever stops working. He wondered if God loves us and so I bore my testimony to him and explained everything the best I could. I left him with our website so hopefully he goes there and gets some answers.
Before devotionals and firesides we always have prelude. Instead of just listening to the organ, we sing a couple songs before the meeting starts (and then we have an opening song). It's really cool when everyone is singing and it helps bring the spirit.
Like I said in my letter Thursday (which I hope you got), we got to put 10,000 first aid packages together on Thanksgiving. It was my job to put 200 elastic bandages in the zip lock bags. Our table made 200 kits and there were lots of other tables so it was pretty amazing. While we worked we sang hymns and primary songs which made it lots of fun.
That night we had another fireside by the mission president and his wife. For those of you who don't live at home, On Thursday we had 3 firesides, some free time, and that service project. One of the firesides was on humanitarian aid that the church does around the world.
Since it was thanksgiving weekend we didn't have TRC, but we sure have been practicing teaching a lot anyways.
On Sunday I got to play the cello they have here at the MTC. I'm thinking about playing in Sacrament meeting before I go. It was fun. They had someone donate a cello and a violin so you can go check them out and use them in musical numbers etc. On Sunday we watched the Restoration and the Legacy of Kirtland.
There is a funny joke I heard, but only those who know Spanish will probably get it. There was a Mexican that went to a store and he only knew Spanish and the store person only knew English so he walked around pointing at stuff asking "is this what you want?" and the Mexican would shake his head until finally he pointed to socks and the Mexican said "Eso si que es!" Pronounces (s-o-c-k-s) and the store clerk was like why didn't you spell it in the first place?
Love,
Elder Curtis
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Snail Mail Letter 11/27/08
Hello!
Surprise Letter! Hope you guys enjoyed your thanksgivings. Too bad I couldn’t celebrate it w/ you.
So today we didn’t have any classes. We got up, had breakfast, studied a bit, then went to a morning fireside from a member of the 70. Then after it was over we had 2 hours to eat our Thanksgiving meal. Since everyone else went right away, we waited an hour so we didn’t have massive lines to wait in. It was a pretty good meal, but nothing like Thanksgiving at home.
Then we had some free time till 3:30. At that time we went to a fireside about humanitarian work of the Church. It’s really amazing how much the Church does. At 4:45 half the MTC went to do the humanitarian project while we stayed in the gym and watched a recorded BYU choir concert. They had funny hair so I’m guessing it was in the 80’s.
Right now everyone is eating the sack dinner we picked up after lunch. We also have permission to write letters. J
At 7:00 it’s our turn to go to the cafeteria and assemble first aid boxes. Each half of the MTC is doing 5,000 kits so it’s pretty incredible. I will be at a station putting the same item into each kit that our table does. There are like 30 stations per table and multiple tables. They have it organized quite well.
You should see the MTC. They started putting up Christmas lights beginning of November, so it’s going to look like temple square by the time I leave. J
Oh, you’ll never guess what son we sang today at the fireside, lol. It was also the last song of the BYU concert. J
I’m listening to the London Brass Christmas CD right now – such an amazing CD. Hope your Christmas season is joyful and full of the spirit. Make lots of happy memories. I’m sure I will.
Oh, on Tuesday the speaker was Elder Allan Packer of the 70. It was a pretty good talk.
Have a great school-free weekend. Love you all so much!
Elder Shane Curtis
Surprise Letter! Hope you guys enjoyed your thanksgivings. Too bad I couldn’t celebrate it w/ you.
So today we didn’t have any classes. We got up, had breakfast, studied a bit, then went to a morning fireside from a member of the 70. Then after it was over we had 2 hours to eat our Thanksgiving meal. Since everyone else went right away, we waited an hour so we didn’t have massive lines to wait in. It was a pretty good meal, but nothing like Thanksgiving at home.
Then we had some free time till 3:30. At that time we went to a fireside about humanitarian work of the Church. It’s really amazing how much the Church does. At 4:45 half the MTC went to do the humanitarian project while we stayed in the gym and watched a recorded BYU choir concert. They had funny hair so I’m guessing it was in the 80’s.
Right now everyone is eating the sack dinner we picked up after lunch. We also have permission to write letters. J
At 7:00 it’s our turn to go to the cafeteria and assemble first aid boxes. Each half of the MTC is doing 5,000 kits so it’s pretty incredible. I will be at a station putting the same item into each kit that our table does. There are like 30 stations per table and multiple tables. They have it organized quite well.
You should see the MTC. They started putting up Christmas lights beginning of November, so it’s going to look like temple square by the time I leave. J
Oh, you’ll never guess what son we sang today at the fireside, lol. It was also the last song of the BYU concert. J
I’m listening to the London Brass Christmas CD right now – such an amazing CD. Hope your Christmas season is joyful and full of the spirit. Make lots of happy memories. I’m sure I will.
Oh, on Tuesday the speaker was Elder Allan Packer of the 70. It was a pretty good talk.
Have a great school-free weekend. Love you all so much!
Elder Shane Curtis
Snail Mail Letter 11/25/08
Hello Everyone!
They have a picture developing program at the bookstore and it’s really cheap so I decided to send you some pictures.
They have a picture developing program at the bookstore and it’s really cheap so I decided to send you some pictures.
This one is my district in front of the temple before Elders Ortiz and Winters left to Guatemala. From right to left – me, Elder Peterson, Elder Freeman, Elder Ortiz, Hermana Demers (she’s 27!), Elder Land, Elder Winters, Elder Hadfield, Elder Johns (DL), and Elder Skiles (sky-uls).
Left to right – Elder Kinser, Elder Peterson, Elder Lam, me – Elder Curtis.
A sweet card they gave me when I got here to carry with me on my mission. It’s not as big as it looks in the picture.
Every week we have a TRC appointment – Training Resource Center. I already told you about last week’s, but I wanted to explain it in general more. Every week we have a situation. We know ahead of time info about the “investigator” we’re going to teach so we prepare during the week. We have a beginning part where we have to use Spanish and talk to the person in different settings. The first week we contacted someone in “the park”; a different week we took someone to church on a “bus ride” and had to ask certain things during the ride. One week we “helped someone move” and had to know furniture words, etc., plus share a short message; last week we had to learn food vocab b/c we “ate at a café” an investigator owned and this coming Friday we are buying clothing at a store. These activities are mostly just to get us to learn certain things in Spanish and half the time we can’t do them b/c we don’t have time or there aren’t volunteers, but we prepare and learn the material so that’s what matters. After the 15-20 minute activity I just described we then teach a lesson. Before last week we did them in English, but now we teach in Spanish. Sometimes our teachers have us practice teaching people from other districts so we get lots of practice teaching.
Have I told you guys about my district’s obsession with the song “Come Thou Fount (of every blessing)”? There is a computer in our classroom and every day they get on to this certain general conference where MoTab sang it and they play it often, usually more than once a day. My companion is constantly singing/humming it and we are singing it for the second time in choir tonight. It has been talked about in at least 2 firesides. It was one of two special musical numbers in firesides (one was w/ piano, a cello, and voice), a district sang “O My Father” to its tune in Sacrament Meeting, and yesterday Jeri wrote and said she sang it in choir too! I was like AHH, this song is haunting me! Oh, and it was the closing song to a fireside (at least one). It’s really powerful, and I like it a lot, but too much of a good thing can get old pretty quick, and I swear I’m being haunted by the Ghost of Come Thou Fount. J
It was really cool in the fireside Sunday, because they talked about this documentary film they show all new missionaries called “The District.” The guy who was in charge of it talked to us about how it came to be. It’s like a reality-TV sort of thing. They had 4 missionaries trained in PMG for 5 weeks and then sent them to do missionary work for a couple weeks as they followed them around with cameras 24/7. It’s a really neat thing to watch because both companionships end up baptizing people at the end. It’s pretty cool they could teach and investigators could listen and respond pretty normally all in front of cameras. They had one of the sisters who was in it come talk to us as well. The mission they did was San Antonio TX.
As I said in my email, Elder Holland talked to us last Tuesday and it was so powerful! He speaks with so much passion he can’t hardly get all the words out he wants to say. He said VERY strongly “Don’t Go Home!” He talked about how WE are the most important ones to have a testimony. If we come home after the mission and fall away, PMG has failed because that’s one of its main purposes. He also talked about how important it is to teach w/ the Holy Ghost. We can have a member of the Godhead with us as we teach! The Father and the Son can’t come, but the Spirit can and it must. He also said very strongly “My mission means everything to me!” and said that quote about how he things of his mission every day. He’s an amazing teacher. He said he was exhausted but decided to come talk to us anyway – and boy did he talk! J
I got a haircut today so I’m not shaggy anymore. It sure is nice.
Hope you all have a good week. Love you so much,
Elder Curtis
P.S. I forgot to tell you who Elders Kinser and Lam are. They are some elders that left 1 or 2 weeks ago and they were awesome missionaries that really inspired me. They bore their testimonies to Elder Peterson and I and talked to us in Spanish for about 1 half an hour or more one time. They talked about how bad they were (at Spanish) when they first arrived, but through Christ have gotten much better. They are going stateside and are just awesome people.
Have I told you guys about my district’s obsession with the song “Come Thou Fount (of every blessing)”? There is a computer in our classroom and every day they get on to this certain general conference where MoTab sang it and they play it often, usually more than once a day. My companion is constantly singing/humming it and we are singing it for the second time in choir tonight. It has been talked about in at least 2 firesides. It was one of two special musical numbers in firesides (one was w/ piano, a cello, and voice), a district sang “O My Father” to its tune in Sacrament Meeting, and yesterday Jeri wrote and said she sang it in choir too! I was like AHH, this song is haunting me! Oh, and it was the closing song to a fireside (at least one). It’s really powerful, and I like it a lot, but too much of a good thing can get old pretty quick, and I swear I’m being haunted by the Ghost of Come Thou Fount. J
It was really cool in the fireside Sunday, because they talked about this documentary film they show all new missionaries called “The District.” The guy who was in charge of it talked to us about how it came to be. It’s like a reality-TV sort of thing. They had 4 missionaries trained in PMG for 5 weeks and then sent them to do missionary work for a couple weeks as they followed them around with cameras 24/7. It’s a really neat thing to watch because both companionships end up baptizing people at the end. It’s pretty cool they could teach and investigators could listen and respond pretty normally all in front of cameras. They had one of the sisters who was in it come talk to us as well. The mission they did was San Antonio TX.
As I said in my email, Elder Holland talked to us last Tuesday and it was so powerful! He speaks with so much passion he can’t hardly get all the words out he wants to say. He said VERY strongly “Don’t Go Home!” He talked about how WE are the most important ones to have a testimony. If we come home after the mission and fall away, PMG has failed because that’s one of its main purposes. He also talked about how important it is to teach w/ the Holy Ghost. We can have a member of the Godhead with us as we teach! The Father and the Son can’t come, but the Spirit can and it must. He also said very strongly “My mission means everything to me!” and said that quote about how he things of his mission every day. He’s an amazing teacher. He said he was exhausted but decided to come talk to us anyway – and boy did he talk! J
I got a haircut today so I’m not shaggy anymore. It sure is nice.
Hope you all have a good week. Love you so much,
Elder Curtis
P.S. I forgot to tell you who Elders Kinser and Lam are. They are some elders that left 1 or 2 weeks ago and they were awesome missionaries that really inspired me. They bore their testimonies to Elder Peterson and I and talked to us in Spanish for about 1 half an hour or more one time. They talked about how bad they were (at Spanish) when they first arrived, but through Christ have gotten much better. They are going stateside and are just awesome people.
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