Wait, There's Life Outside the MTC?!

December 11, 2013

Hey Fam and Friends,
  Wow! This week actually flew by pretty fast! Like I said last week, I'm so grateful for everyone's letters! I really wish I could find the time to just sit down and reply to all of you, but I only have these couple hours to write today and well, I spend most of it on this message. So I just wanted to say that your mail and packages have NOT gone unnoticed. I thank you so much and love you all.

P-Day - Time for laundry and emails.

  This week is pretty hard to remember because it seemed to all blend together. I actually had to go back in my journal to see what I wrote to remember what went down this week. So last Wednesday we got some new Elders in our hall and we, of course, started doing all the mind games to them. It drove them insane trying to figure them out. One Elder said he stayed up past midnight trying to figure out just one of them, and he was unsuccessful haha! On Wednesdays, when new people come to the MTC, the new Elders (as I did once) get their tags and the tags have an orange sticker on them to tell everyone that you're a newbie. So everyone who has been at the MTC goes up and yells to new guy's "WELCOME TO THE MTC!" So usually everyone takes those stickers off and throw them away asap. But my companion and I decided to keep ours and now every Wednesday we slap 'em back on the tag and mess with the people who welcome you at the MTC. For example, they would yell at you and then my companion and I would stare at them and slap our bodies as if it were some kind of language. haha. It's pretty funny.
  This week was pretty mellow though. I can tell you that the MTC is very tiring because you are just sitting the whole day and gotta get up at 5:45 sometimes. So it was one of those early days and we had personal study in the morning. Well I started reading the scriptures, and then I put my head in my hand and then I got comfortable. And that's where I went wrong. I fell asleep for 40 mins. and apparently my companion was periodically poking me throughout my whole nap. haha. I woke up with a big red hand mark on the side of my head and my wrist was throbbing. But I still got my studying in that day because I still had 50 more minutes of personal study.
  That night everyone was trying to guess first names based on what you looked like you would be. A sister who is from Germany, who actually is still trying to learn English and she's learning Italian, and that's gnarly, but I digress. She said that Elder Frieba looks like a solid German Nazi and that I look like Prince Charming hahaha. Other people were saying that I look like a Jacob or Brody. But, yes, eventually I had to say nope, my name's Blair and I guess I don't look like a Blair according to them so I don't know if that's a good or a bad thing, but I don't really care haha.
  Oh I got to teach Amy Remsburg again. We got to speak English at the end and we talked about Romania. Yea, I'm gonna be cold. Apparently it's 80% humid in the cold and gets into the negative fairly often. If it's below -10 c, you don't go out and tract.
  I got the chance to usher at a devotional yesterday and I got to sit up in the front two rows to see Elder Cook talk. It was a great talk and in his talk he said that spiritual miracles will come when you are doing something or blessing someone else and well, I can definitely bear witness to that. So that hit home for me.
  Also, yesterday my companion said, "Hey, do you know if there is a bathroom close by anywhere?" and I was like, "We are pretty much one person, I've seen every inch of this place that you have haha. I didn't even realized how true that was until I said it, because you are with your companion EVERYWHERE (even bathroom, you wait outside, but yea) But it's not as bad as you think though because Elder Oldham and I are like good friends. I mean it does get a little annoying sometimes like, "Come on Elder, you have to go againnn" haha But it's pretty comforting to know that your never gonna get lost or ever be alone around, well, anywhere.

  Today, my companion had to go to an eye doctor outside the MTC because for obvious reasons. And I've never been so thrilled to go into a Shopko before (partly because I've never seen a Shopko in my life, but mostly because I've been in these MTC walls for three weeks, sheltered in this environment) We were waiting for the shuttle to take us to the Shopko and a girl (not a sister mish[missionary]) walked out and passed us, and we both looked at each other and were like, "She had a Phone!" haha. So actually being able to see people with phones, hear Christmas music, and view the store items was pretty exciting. (Everyone was jealous haha.)

I never thought I would be so happy to be inside a shopping store that looks exactly like Target in my life. haha
   And that was pretty much my week! Love you guys!
                   -Elder Houk

Drawn by another Elder

Elder Friebe is from Vista. They played basketball together in their youth.
Elder Friebe is going to Germany.