Esta Bien!

Hola familia!!

So, we are now past our halfway point at the MTC! Depending on reassignments or travel plans we probably only have two weeks left. And hopefully the end of this week we should know about reassignments! We're all kind of assuming we'll be reassigned, because visas for Argentina take so long to come- most people going there spend at least six weeks somewhere in the states before they can head out. So we'll see! It could be an adventure. But it's pretty crazy how far we've come. And it definitely feels like we've been here a while, we are such good friends as a district that it's so easy to get distracted and start telling stories or jokes when we're together in the classroom. We can really tell we're at the halfway-- we have to work harder to keep up our diligence in studying and working hard in class. We also have way too much fun as a zone. And we got a new district this week! It was really cool to meet them and see how they've become friends with all of us so fast. I've loved being the Sister Training Leader. The zone leaders and I met them wednesday night and did a little orientation, and then thursday night we went over with the branch presidency and we all got to know each other more and then the ZL's and I took them on a tour. The sisters are so nice and fun, it has taken them a little time to get out of their shells but we're having a lot of fun with them. The elders are awesome too. Two of them barely missed their high school graduations to leave on missions. It's weird to think I'm one of the oldest in the zone.

As I've said so many times, our teachers are incredible. We got to know Hermano Davis a lot better this week, which is good because we were all a little intimidated by him since before he was one of our investigators. And he has a really deep voice. But one day we just talked to him, asked questions and had good discussions for like 2 hours after class. It turns out he is a spiritual giant who has the most amazing marked up scriptures and yet is so humble. He wants to be a seminary teacher. We predict he'll be an apostle.

Our lessons with our "investigators" Abbie and Alex have been going really well. We found out that we get to teach them the rest of the time--unless they drop us! Scary. Fortunately though they're really doing well and most every lesson is wonderful and spiritual. Plus Abbie comitted to prepare to be baptized in three weeks. :) That was exciting! And it really gets me excited to teach real investigators in a few weeks. The other day we had a lesson with Hermana Young on teaching people how to pray. We did a role play and I acted as the missionary, sharing the importance of prayer with my companion who was the investigator. I think my favorite principle to teach out in the field will be the doctrine that Heavenly Father is truly our father and loves us, and so desires to listen to our prayers. It is such an incredible feeling to look in someone's eyes and tell them that God loves and knows them.

This last sunday was incredible. We had a mission conference, which is kind of like a stake conference with the whole MTC. A whole bunch of presidency members and their wives spoke. Each topic was so different, but full of gems-- I learned a ton. One I especially loved was on the Book of Mormon--how we should treat it as the treasure it is. It truly is such an amazing book. I love just studying it and learning from it for my investigators and for myself. If you don't love the book of mormon with all your heart then you aren't reading it enough! It truly is the way God communicates with us. We also had a super cool devotional that night. A man named Ted Gibbons came and did a sort of monologue/scene thing. He was acting as Williard Richards, a friend of Joseph Smith, and told the story of Joseph's last days and the martyrdom. It was incredible. At the end we sang Praise to the Man and I felt like Joseph Smith was there with us, looking on the huge group of missionaries preparing to go out and spread the word of the Restoration he began. I just love Joseph Smith. 

Something fun this week was getting to see a ton of old friends. I ran into my roommate Lauren Cottle, Brooke Bowers a couple times, Kyle Lyons from BYU, and my favorite Claire Curriden! I actually saw Claire a ton and it was so awesome. I just loved talking to all of them and having a little connection to everyone else out there.   

This last week we went up to the fields by the temple to play beach volleyball, and almost the whole zone came. It was so fun. And it was awesome being outside. I cannot get over how amazing the mountains are. Last week there were a few rainy days and so they are so green and lush now. I'll never get over that view! My companion and I often go outside to study. One day she had to go the the byu health center to get a persciption and it was such an adventure. We walked off campus and everything! I really love my companion. I feel so lucky to have a companion who I can have a ton of fun and be silly with, but also have serious spirital experiences with. We have a good balance. And us four hermanas in the district are so tight. We have so much fun together, and they teach me a lot every day. Last friday night we got nutella and prezels and just talked and laughed. It was almost like a sleepover, except for the part when we went to bed at 10:30 (or maybe a little after that-whoops).

This week was a little more stressful and hard to focus that before. It's a little like the honeymoon phase of just blissful happiness is fading a little bit, and we're realizing how tiring the working nonstop is. BUT I wouldn't change a thing! One day may be hard but there is so much to appreciate and love in each day. And the gospel makes it all worth it. I now I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be.

I love being a missionary, and I love the gospel. It's true!

love,

Hermana Nelson

p.s. the subject line is one of our favorite things to say in our district. Elder Parkinson especially says it all the time - but it reminds us to look on the bright side! (we use it to mean "it's all good")

P.P.S. The first picture is on our impromptu stripe day. That's Hermana Hadley next to me, and next to her is our adorable teacher Hermana Young. And then at an appropriate distance is Elder Hicken (he's wearing a striped tie).

The second is all the hermanas in the zone at the temple last sunday!

Jesus es mi Luz

Hey family and friends!

It has been another awesome week in the CCM. There is so much to talk about! We got a new district last Wednesday, with 8 Elders! It's pretty unusual; most districts nowadays are closer to half and half. But its fun getting more people in our zone, and they all seem pretty cool. We're also going to be getting a new district tomorrow, with 4 elders and 4 hermanas. We have such an awesome zone, we really have to set goals though on how to be more reverent because we often have so much fun together that things can get a little crazy. So much for quiet dignity. I received the assignment of being the new sister training leader for our zone! I was seriously so excited. It basically means I am to be a leader for the sisters in our zone, to make sure they are doing alright. When the new district comes in on Wednesday, I'll help with their orientation and whatnot. I get to work a lot with our zone leaders. I love the hermanas in our zone so much. We've gotten really close, especially because there are so few of us. 

One thing we've started recently is doing TRC, where we go teach members of the church short lessons. It isn't role play, we get to know them for real and try to share messages and commitments that will be helpful for the questions they have. It is one of my favorite things. In general most of the people we've taught have been old ladies, and they are so sweet and often really funny. Plus they are okay with using Spanglish. It is such a confidence booster, they always tell us how much they love being with us. It's much more low stress then teaching investigators. We've also done a lot of role plays with our district and another district, which is really cool. Sometimes we do role play and sometimes we teach each other for real. It's such a good learning experience, because for the most part we're really comfortable with each other and we get to evaluate and practice and stuff. And we get to experience how the other missionaries in our districts teach.

As for the subject line, that's our district theme song. For those non-Spanish speakers it is The Lord is my Light. :) We've been singing it so much though we decided to save it for the closing hymn on Friday nights. Whenever we sing it we get so excited. And we've almost got it memorized!

I especially love my three hermanas. Often it feels like we are more of a quartet, rather than two companionships. Every once in a while we have an official "Hermana council/meeting" in which we talk about the things we've been learning and relate experiences, and also ways in which we can help the elders. And we have so much fun in our room; it already feels like home there.

I've already mentioned this but our teachers are incredible. Hermana Young of course is the best, but another one that comes in sometimes to teach us is Hermano Duran. He has such a gift for asking inspired questions. The other day we did a reading of the Book of Mormon in Spanish, while also discussing. I had been wary of reading it a ton because I felt like I wouldn't be able to get much out of it. But he promised us that if we prayed to have the spirit to guide us, we could receive answers and have a significant experience while reading the Libro de Mormon. We read 3 Nephi chapters 11, when Christ shows himself to the people in the Americas. It was so cool. I really did get so much more out of it than I ever have before, even more than when I had read it in English. That book has such power! If you really read it with the intent to know if it’s true, and pray about it, there is no way you can deny its truthfulness. It is my most prized possession.

I finally attached pictures! Hopefully they show up. Most of them are from our temple walks, where we walk over to the temple grounds and hang out with our zone and take pictures. It's one of my favorite parts of Sunday. There's one of the hermanas with our Argentina flag, one of our district, one of just me and my companion, and a super cute one from our morning service activity. We four have claimed the job of cleaning the stairs, and we are pros. It's actually really fun because we sing and talk and have a good time together. And that one was taken just this morning!

I love you all, and think about you often. Thank you for those who have sent letters, they are the best!

The gospel is true, and Heavenly Father knows each one of us personally. I know it!! The best way to build your testimony is to bear it.

Love,

Hermana Nelson

Where is the time going??

Dear Family and Friends,

I can't believe it's been another week! It's true what they say about the time just flying by. It has been such an incredible week and I have learned so much. This is truly the best thing I have ever done. I have never been so happy while working so hard. The days are long, we get up around 6/6:30 and then are in class or studying until 9:30 at night. But it is SOOOO much fun. We have become so tight as a district, our quote wall has grown exponentially (I even made it a couple times!) and we have also bonded so much as a zone. A couple elders and a couple sisters left yesterday and we really feel their absence. I am so glad I'm here for six weeks. I love learning with amazing teachers, going to devotionals, practicing teaching, and having fun times with my friends. 

Every night we close the day with a prayer as a district and it is the hardest thing to not hug the elders. But it doesn't stop us from bonding.

So much has happened this last week, it's impossible to cover it all. But I'll try to get the highlights. First of all, I have gotten so many letters! haha I guess my plea for letters worked. Seriously though, I love each and every one and they make my day.

I'll start with last Tuesday. So after I emailed we went to the temple as a zone. It was incredible. I love that place. I also felt like Samwise Gamgee as we were walking out the MTC gates. "One more step and this will be the farthest I've ever gone!" It was a very exciting moment. Then that night we had a devotional, and Elder Nelson came! He spoke on how connected family history work and missionary work are. We have the help of those on the other side. So cool. He was giving us all this advice and was like "I've pounded the pulpit on your behalf so you better live up to that!" referencing his talk "Ask The Missionaries!" from a year ago. So awesome. He also gave us all virtual handshakes. It is so good to hear from an Apostle from the Lord. We testify that the fullness of the gospel has been restored and that the Lord speaks again through his prophets. So true.

We've had a ton of teaching practice. We finished up teaching our investigator Gorge, and our last lesson was so good. I bore my testimony that a particle of faith can grow into a great knowledge if you act on it, and I knew it was true. But then, the next day we walked into our afternoon class and there he was. As one of our new teachers. So turns out Gorge is actually Hermano Davis!! Super weird. We were all feeling pretty strange about it, because we had gotten so attached to Gorge as an investigator. But he is an awesome teacher. We also did some practice lessons on some elders from the other district in our zone. So we were teaching the first lesson to one of them, Elder Wood, and he said his name was Nacho. He works at a monastery feeding the orphans. 

Sound familiar? I about died laughing when my companion said in her prayer, "please bless... Nacho". But it is always good practice and I think we improve as a companionship every time.

Something I've been studying a lot about is how to teach as the Savior did. I read 3 Nephi 17 and all of the sudden it became so significant to me as a missionary. He blessed each person according to their needs, rather than giving out a generalized blessing. Each person needs something different and we need to listen to the spirit and listen to them in order to teach them as Christ would. He knows them better than anyone, so we need His help in order to be the instruments through which he can bless them. I love teaching! Spanish is rough, and sometimes feels like a block. But when you focus on the message and the spirit you wish to convey, the language seriously doesn't matter anymore. Regardless it is such a relief to teach in English - my comp and I taught our district Sunday school lesson on Sunday and it was so liberating! I can't wait until I feel that free in Spanish.

Sunday was so good, which is not a surprise. It's just us hermanas for a bit in the morning, and we study and just talk with each other. Relief society was great, we talked about our purpose as members and how we need to always seek out those in need around us. Then was Sacrament meeting, which is just our zone. One elder and one sister speak each Sunday besides a member of the presidency, and basically you don't know you're going to speak until they announce it at the pulpit. And it's in Spanish. So if you don't want to feel confident then you have to prepare a short talk every Sunday. Which I guess is pretty good practice! After our district meeting is the temple walk. We go as a zone, and just walk around the temple, take pictures and hang out. It's so fun. If my camera works then I'll upload some pictures from the past two walks. The weather was so lovely this Sunday too! THEN is the devotional, and a hilarious older sister spoke on missionary work. She is unmarried and has served like 5 missions. She was SO funny, she had everyone laughing and then bore the most beautiful testimony. Then we got to watch the Testaments! I love that movie. Except there's a lot of nervous giggling from the missionaries when the romantic scenes happen. It' s so funny.

Anyways, my second favorite day is P day. I get to wear jeans, which is the best thing in this world. We write letters, hang out as a district, do laundry, and then go to the temple! It's the best.

I love you all, think of you every day, and hope everyone is happy and healthy. This gospel is true and makes me so happy!! I love being a missionary for the Lord.

Love,

Hermana Mackenzie Nelson

p.s. I'm having a hard time uploading pictures. I'll try to do some for next time though!!

Week #1 in CCM!

Dear Family and Friends,

 

I have been looking forward to email time so much! I love hearing from you and all that's going on outside the bubble. It's kinda strange to be in this little campus so secluded from the world, but it is very peaceful. We are (almost) constantly working hard, but we are also constantly being uplifted and encouraged. It's pretty weird to be on this side of the missionary email! But it feels SO good to be here. The CCM (MTC en español) is the greatest. It's hard to know where to start. It's true what they say, that the days feel like weeks and the weeks feel like days. I'll start with the language. So it turns out italian, and experience learning languages, is a life saver. Except I often slip into italian when I don't know the spanish words. It really confuses my companion. Our teacher, Hermana Young, is the loveliest person in the world. She is so sweet and gentle, and always makes sure we can have the spirit to help us in class. A couple times she has just talked to us privately, to make sure we are doing well. Especially after the overwhelming first few days talking to her was a lifesaver. It was almost as good as talking to my mom. 

It is a very interesting, and sometimes rough, experience, trying to communicate in a language I don't really know. Which brings me to lessons. So our second full day here we were presented with a progressing investigator, whose name is Gorge. Basically it's a situation where we've meet and been introduced to him, and our first lesson was the next day. The teachers really talk us through it though, we discuss where they are in their lives and what their needs are. Then we planned together, first in english and then attempting to translate into spanish. What really helps though is inviting the help of the Spirit. We are truly just messengers, and our role is to invite an investigator to Christ, not to convince. We pray often for the gift of tongues, and just struggle through teaching with the hope that he feels the conviction that we have and the spirit that is present when we testify. Because we are so invested in this "fake" investigator, (he's actually just an MTC teacher) I really do love Gorge and want so much for him to experience the joy the gospel brings me. It's a strange thing.

I wrote a little to the fam about our first day, which definitely is like a blur in my mind now. I just remember the way it felt to sing with all the new missionaries. These words felt like a testimony to me: "We have been born, as Nephi of old, to goodly parents who love the Lord. We have been taught, and we understand, that we must do as the Lord commands! We are as the armies of Heleman, we have been taught in our youth, and we are NOW the Lord's missionaries, to bring the world His truth!" It's definitely been my favorite song here. And you know who wrote it? Janice Kapp Perry. More on that later.

It's only been 6 days, and yet our district (6 elders and 4 hermanas) has bonded so much. Us hermanas are especially tight, which is so awesome. Except its getting harder for us to get to bed on time because we just like hanging out and talking together. Also our elders are the funniest boys and they already feel like little brothers. Some of them especially are super hilarious, especially Elder Hillier. I wish I could explain him. He's got this low, nasally, drawl-y sort of voice and even though he's awful at spanish he tries to speak it all the time. Like the other day me and my companion were talking with our teacher about how to say some things to our investigator in spanish, using the verb ser to make comparisons. So he says something like "Elder Lo'amanu (our district leader) is similare to Elder Hilliar". And Hilliar just jumps into our conversation from the other side of the room and goes, "si, todos los dos son intelligente, amable, bonito, suave...lo siento." basically all the adjectives we had just learned in class. I hope I portrayed at least a little bit how funny it was. Basically when you spend almost 12 hours a day in a small classroom with the same 10 people then you get tight pretty fast. The only hard part is we get more distracted especially as the day goes on and we get more tired. The other day we decided to sing (spanish) hymns in language study time and ended up quoting Tangled and singing the songs. Elder Hicken especially is a pro at quoting Tangled. Also, my companion, Hermana O'Hara, is a super cute and sweet girl who I love being companions with. She is okay with my occasional awkwardness, and has already taught me a lot- like to really rely more on prayer. We pray often together and it has really bonded us.

Every single meeting here is incredible. On sunday for Relief Society, all the sisters met together in a big room and our guest speaker was Janice Kapp Perry! She is so funny. And inspiring. She told us that the best way to invite the spirit is to use music. SO TRUE. We sang a medley of her songs together and it was awesome. We pretty much were all crying. Also, she wrote new lyrics to As sisters in Zion, and they are specifically for sister missionaries! And we were the first group to sing it. It's called The Sisters in Zion, and it talks about bringing the gospel to the world and all that great stuff. It was the highlight of my day for sure. Sunday in general was so nice, just a change of pace and there was time to relax and study and talk together. There was also a devotional and time to watch the Joseph Smith movie at night.

There is so much to tell you about, it's pretty impossible to cover it all! The most important thing is that I am loving being so immersed in the gospel all the time. The food may be getting old already, but I can't imagine ever getting tired of learning and teaching and talking of Christ all day. I hope EVERY girl (and boy of course) gets the opportunity to go on a mission. It is for sure the best decision I've made. I miss my family of course, and think of you often. But I know I will return to you in 18 months more comitted to living the gospel to its fullest and my relationship with Heavenly Father will be even stronger. I really have to rely on Him, and speak to Him often since 

I can't talk to my family or friends. Fortunately I also have these hermanas and elders in my district, who are becoming like family. Also, we have an awesome zone (3 districts), the elders are super funny and the sisters are so sweet (and also funny of course). I know the best source of joy is the gospel, and it is TRUE!! I know it.

I love you all, I miss you, and thank you for the prayers.

 

-Hermana Nelson

 

p.s. PLEASE send letters or Dear Elders!! (just go to dearelder.com and write it on there). Letters come every day but I can only check emails once a week. Everyone in my district has received letters except me. :( haha. Fortunately though Aunt Aleisa sent me a lovely package full of my favorite foods. She is awesome.

Also, specify which Hermana Nelson it is (write my full name please) because there are dos hermana Nelsons in my district. It's kinda confusing sometimes.

 

 

p.p.s. Please forward this to all the rest of the family :) Thanks!!

Called to Serve

Almost six months ago I opened my mission call, and found out I would be spending 18 months serving in Bahia Blanca, Argentina. I've always wanted to serve a mission, and so it's been a long wait! This wednesday I leave for the MTC in Provo, where I'll spend six weeks learning spanish and practicing teaching. I am super excited and I can't wait to start this great adventure.

This is where I'll be:

My weekly letters home will be posted on this blog, but I would also like to hear from you! Family and friends can email me at:
mackenzien@myldsmail.net
Or write me at:
Sister Mackenzie Lee Nelson
MTC Mailbox # 118
ARG-BABL 0618
2005 N 900 E
Provo, UT 84604-1793

The Recap

So, I've really been slacking on this blogging thing. So much has happened and it's impossible to cover it all! But I have taken some good pictures.

So here's the brief overview of life so far at BYU. It's been so great, I just love the lifestyle and how the church is a part of everything. Classes are awesome, and not too hard, and I've joined a couple clubs like Adopt-a-Grandparent and Best Buddies.

Some reasons why I love BYU:

1. My cousins are some of my best friends, and just the coolest people ever. You can just tell they are amazing by this picture of Tara and Claire.

I'm also reunited with some old friends, like Amber and Andrew from Holland. We even went on a double date (gasp)!

2. I have a super cool roommate. (notice our faces of unsuspecting excitement before our first football game, where we were later slaughtered by our rivals)

Cosmo is also my favorite. This is one of three pictures I have with him--

3. I love the girls in my hall! They are so cool and we have definitely bonded. We've had a late-night "sleepover" and a trips to the cocoa bean and Sammy's. They are so fun.

4. Despite the afore-mentioned first football game fiasco, the games really are fun. I get to sit with Morgan and Amber, which is super cool. It's also great when BYU wins.

(Another reason why I love BYU-- that beautiful Utah sky!)

My favorite is when BYU wins.

5. Yes, I also go to classes and do the school thing. I actually love it, my professors are awesome and I have already learned so much. But my FAVORITE part about BYU is that the church is part of your learning. Everything just makes more sense when the religious and secular can come together. I love having spiritual thoughts before classes like biology, and studying the Book of Mormon for school. THAT is why BYU is the best.

Summer - Texas Style

Yes, I have already had a week of school at BYU, and I love it! Since I've been neglecting my blog, I've got some catching up to do. 

I had an awesome time with Matt and Angelica in Houston for a week and a half, just relaxing and hanging out with friends. Most of our activities were centered around eating, to get a head start on the freshman 15.

They were the best hosts ever! The fridge was stocked with Bluebell ice cream for my tasting as soon as I arrived.

I spent a whole lot of time just hanging out at their apartment, and some days they even let me have their car to go visit friends. I saw a lot of my friends Nick and Laura Clifford who I have known since 7th grade.

We went to some real Texas barbecue at Goode Co, which was delicious. 

Matt and I also made a trip to the mall and I got some new glasses:

Thought I'd make a good impression at school with these ones!

We went to NASA, the Galleria, and various restaurants in the area. I saw our good friends from the ward the Brenners, who have grown so much since our days as tennis buddies in Holland!

It was also great seeing Allie, one of my best friends from Holland. We dragged her with us to NASA one day and it was super fun.

So Houston was great, and Matt and Angelica were incredibly gracious even though I broke one of their plates and used up gas in the Jeep. 

We were then off to Las Vegas, and then made the all too familiar drive across the desert to Provo. It was a lot of this...

... but eventually we arrived at my new home in Provo. 

In the next post you'll here more about this:

Thanks for following! I'll try to post soon about my college life.   :)

(hint: it's awesome.)