This week was awesome! Much better than last week as usually everything gets better with time when one breaks out of a comfort zone. But now the mtc is great! Basically everyday we do the same thing. Class, study, food, study, class, food, class, study, etc. Gym is still awesome! so i played 4 square for the first time this week. i'm addicted. it is so much fun. also, i dominate. like i'm trying to be more humble, but for reals, i dominate. it is actually kind of bad because people will put a 'target' on me to get me out and i don't think some people like playing with me anymore. i need to be smarter in the way i play and make some alliances. ha ha it is soo great. Also cool thing, remember the DI bin that i loved at campus plaza? Well check it out, the mtc has 2 di bins on each floor in the residence hall! Score! Sisters will put things in there that they don't want anymore/things that won't fit into their suitcase. Saturday night, Sunday night, and monday nights are the golden nights because everybody leaves either mondays or tuesdays. I've scored.

Tagalog is coming along! Slowely, but surely! We taught our first Tagalog lesson without any notes this week. Before we've always taught in Tagaglog, but we brought notes with us. The lesson without notes actually went way better. Granted i'm sure the investigator didn't understand everything we said, but we think we got out point across. ha ha it was great. and it is a testimony to me that the gift of tongues is real. The gift of tongues is absolutely real, and i also have to work really hard to qualify for it i feel like. i'll be honest i sort of figured i would just pick up the language-not so. i have to study a lot, and mentally it is like i'm back at school studying for finals. except for the fact that there are no tests. just people that we have to communicate with. which is kind of a big deal. i love learning how to understand tagalog though! no joke, it is so cool when my teacher will say something and i can understand it 3 seconds after he says something. Also something cool, i love that my mind has started to thing in Tagalog, actually more like Taglish, more than English.

the devotionals this week were super great! on Tuesday we had this man who works with the church come and he was really funny. He taught us as well as the spirit taught us how important prayer was. i learned a lot about how the way we can communicate with our Heavenly Father and how much He truly cares about communicating with us. What i learned from that devotional has helped me improve and change the way i pray with my Father in Heaven. He really does love me sooo much and check it out, He loves you also! And wants each of us to communicate with Him all the time! He cares about what we are doing in our lives, nothing is too small or too unimportant to Him. I also learned in the other devotional how much our Savior loves us and how it is so wonderful that He took upon Him all of our burdens, sins, griefs, pains, etc. He knows how each of us feels always. What a neat thing for us-that He loves us so much!

So next week, i'm going to bring my journal along with me as i email as i forget what specific things i do during the week. That shows how much our weeks run together. I think we only have 27 more days here? Luke left this week and i didn't see him again which was a bummer, but oh well. i'm excited for him! Anyway i love you all so much and thank you for your love and support! I love getting letters and it makes me feel so loved! I hope everyone is doing FANTASTIC! I LOVE YOU!!

Cordially, Sister Davidson :)

Pictures:
1. My kasama (Sister Tauiliili) and i holding the samoan flag
2. My kasama and i jumping in front of the provo temple. SAvanna i thought of you and hs musical for this one
3.Most of my district

Marie and her district missionaries.

 

Marie and her companion HSM look alike

 

First Week

How are you all? What have you been up to?

 

My first week at the MTC has been great! I've learned a lot and I have A LOT to learn.

 

After you dropped me off Wednesday I went inside with Luke and got my nametags, some paperwork, and then Sister Swenson (my friend from high school) was my escort to take me to my room and classroom! It was so great seeing Sister Swenson! She is going to Poland this week. After she dropped me off at my classroom then I did this survey thing on the computer, then went back to the classroom where I met my teacher (he spoke ONLY Tagalog the whole day) and some people in my district. We tried to learn Tagalog while waiting for everyone to come. I met my companion (Sister Tauiliili from Samoa) and we went to dinner I think after that? I don't remember really. Anyway then the days since have been pretty similar. We wake up, go to class, go to breakfast, go to class, go to lunch, go to gym (SOO GREAT!), go to class, go to dinner, go to class, go to bed. That about sums it up. In class we are either working on Tagalog or learning more about how to be good teachers of the Gospel. We also have personal study time, companionship study time, and additional study time in those class times. This week we have only had a teacher for about 5 hours a day and the rest we do on our own. That was something I wasn't expecting. I thought we would have somebody in charge of us, but nope. We are basically on our own a lot. Which is good, we have to discipline ourselves to be productive.

 

Best times at the MTC? Well it is all good actually. But great times I look forward to... meal times and gym time! Meal times is not so much the food as I've eaten it all before, but that I get to see all my friends! I love seeing people I know and saying hi to them! Then gym time is also super fun! One day I played volleyball with my Samoan companion and ALL the Tongans here at the MTC. At one point I was the only palangi (white person) on the whole court. Ha ha I felt like that happend to Riley one time when he was in the MTC. Only difference-Riley could compete with all those Tongans. For me, they're all bigger and stronger than me-ah oh well it is fun. Ha ha something I think I've learned about Tongans in how to suceed... be louder than they are and laugh at EVERYTHING. Ha ha we have a Tongan Sister in our room and she is hilarious. The best way we get along is to be louder and laugh at every stupid thing you can think of. Ha ha it is so funny the things they think are funny. It is funny now to me because they think it so funny!

 

My district is awesome. We're all going to the Angeles mission! That rarely happens in a district! There is an Elder from New Zeland, Tonga, a Sister from Tonga, and my companion from Samoa. It is great. My Samoan companion is awesome. She has a Samoan accent when she speaks English and I am picking up on that on accident! I'll find myself talking like her and then have to catch myself so that she doesn't think I'm making fun of the way she talks. She thinks it is so cold here and I just laugh. We went to the temple this morning and took pictures of us in the snow for her to send home. I will try to send some pictures next week.

 

Ah there were so many things I wanted to tell you but now that I'm writing this email I've forgotten basically everything. Learning Tagalog is coming along slowly. It is good and it is fun and it is hard. I can bear my testimony and say a prayer in Tagalog! I'm impressed with myself for learning how to do that on day 3. Granted I probably sound crazy but eh who cares right? The Lord knows what I'm trying to say. We have taught one of our investigators 3 times already! ALL in Tagalog! It is crazy awesome that we've been able to do that. Ha ha remember how Savanna was saying 'don't be that one missionary who is all high and mighty about already knowing the language.'? I'm blessed as nobody I have met has been like that. We're all learning and let me tell you it is an awsome testimony to me of how the Gift of Tongues works. I'm not joking, it is hard to say some things in English now becasue we say so many things in Tagalog. I catch myself about to say something in Tagalog and have to switch back to English because I don't actually know how to speak Tagalog and everybody here actually only really knows English. But ya- it is a neat testimony builder to me of the Gift of Tongues! My testimony has grown here at the MTC! I will be completely honest, the first few days were rough. And now it is amazing. On Wednesday I thought to myself "what have I signed myself up for?" Not in a bad way, but in a "can I really do this?" sort of way. I know why I'm here though and I am grateful for this opportunity the Lord has given me! I'm grateful that I know that the Lord is sending me to the Philippines becasue He knows that is where I need to be! I love my Savior and Heavenly Father and am so grateful that they love me and you!

 

Okay well I understand how missionarys always say how they have zero time. We really do have zero time here. Speaking of this my time to go is now! So until next time! Also just so you know... my family CAN send me mail and emails. :) Thanks Parker for the first letter I ever got in the MTC! and Deanna for her sweet letters! I also know now why missionaries love mail so much. It makes them feel so loved! So... if my immediate family (Dad, Darla, Savanna, and Ryan) wants to make me feel loved (even though I have no doubts whatsoever you love me), you can email me and write me letters or DearElders. DearElders is sups easy Dad and I vote you DearElder me at least once. If you don't know what DearElder is or how it works, talk to Deanna. :)

 

Thanks and I love you!!

 

Cordially, Sister Davidson

Farewell Family and Friends!

Hey all! I'm heading off to the Provo MTC tomorrow and will be there for 6 weeks attempting to learn what I need to know before I head to the Philippines!

Basically I'm terrible at saying goodbye to people. So here is a solution to helping alleviate that problem; my family and friends can write me! That means YOU :) I'd absolutely LOVE to hear from the awesome people in my life! (Again that means YOU:) And possibly, actually probably I'll write you back! But if you get distracted with life, as usually happens, and you don't write me, check it out... you can read what I write back home on this lovely blog!

So here it goes... goodbye for the next 18 months! I can't describe my excitement about serving a mission. And in the freaking Philippines! I'm so excited! Also, I would be lying if I said I wasn't super nervous. I'm crazy nervous actually. Oh well, it's a good nervous and I'm looking forward to what the future holds for my family here at home, and for me!

Thank you all for your love and support in my life! I can honestly say that I would not be where I am at today without the love, service, kindness, GREAT examples, and friendships you have all given me. Thank you thank you thank you!

I love you all so much and I am excited to hear and see what the future holds for you and your families in life! If you want to help me practice patience I can wait to hear from you until I get back. However, I can always procrastinate (something I'm great at) practicing patience (say that 3 times fast... procrastinating practicing patience.) So if you want to keep me updated as I'm out, I'm okay with that! I'd love it actually!! Best of luck to you and your families! I love you!!!

MTC Address (good for the next 6 weeks):

Sister Marie Davidson
MTC Mailbox #160
PHI-ANG 0327
2005 N 900 E
Provo, UT 84604-1793

Philippines Address:

Sister Marie Davidson
Philippines Angeles Mission
1827 Gumain St, Redwood Villas
Clark Field, Angeles City
2009 Pampanga
Philippines