hola!

Hola todos!

 

Como estan? Este semana fue muy bueno. Recibimos nuestros planes de viaje ayer! Ay que ver! (that's what our Spaniard teacher used to always say!-Jamie, maybe you can back me up on that expression) Anyways, I can't believe next week is our last full week here! This month flew by!

 

A few people have asked me about what the MTC is like now, so I thought I'd talk a little about that today. There are really 3 time blocks here- breakfast to lunch, lunch to dinner, and dinner to bed, each about 4 hours long (casi). Generally we have 2 three hour class periods each day during 2 of those blocks, with either additional study or language study. The other time block we spend at gym, studying, etc. Each class period is lead by a teacher (we have 2, so each teaches one block a day). During the class times, about an hour of that is spent teaching progressing investigators. Not everyone teaches each class period, but generally every one teaches one of the investigators every day (3 companionships teach in the morning/ afternoon and 3 teach at night- something like that). Then they spend the other part of class going over grammar principles or talking about gospel fundamentals for missionary work, and doing coaching, as a class or they pull individuals or companionships out to do coaching, where you  can get more personalized help or get answers to questions you about teaching. We have 2 progressing investigators- Mario and Ricardo (though we are not teaching Ricardo anymore, so we have a new one now) that we teach regularly, a few times each week. We also have started teaching each other as investigators while other missionaries are teaching- we teach each other. While other missionaries are teaching during class periods, or while the teacher is doing individual coaching, we have companionship study, where we can plan lessons, study language/ gospel study, etc. In the monings, at 10:30, we always have personal study (right before lunch) for an hour. Everything else changes a little depending on the day. On Tuesdays, we only have one 3 hour class period because we have devotionals that night, and on Fridays because it's our pday. Anyways, I have a feeling I probably just confused the heck out of some of you, so if that didn't make sense, then forget what I just said :) The MTC is great- very long days, but generally, the weeks go by pretty fast.

 

This week we taught at the TRC again yesterday. Our new teacher, Hno. Stoddard (he lived in boston a couple years ago! before his mission), told us to essentially not use our planned lesson and just walk in and teach without any plan or clue what we'd teach. We had a pretty good lesson planned, so it was a little sad. Anyways, we got in there and just started talking to her and getting to know her. Eventually we got on the topic of enduring to the end, so I shared 2 Ne 31:20 (one of my favs now). It was a good lesson, hopefully what she needed to hear. On her eval she said she wasn't really sure where we were going with the lesson some times, which I thought was kind of funny, because, neither did we! It's been very helpful to learn here, how to rely more heavily on the Spirit to teach lessons. I've loved learning a little bit more about how to do that.

 

I wanted to bear my testimony today before I say goodbye. I really do know that Joseph Smith was a prophet. If there is anything I have learned deeper and know more, it is that. The Book of Mormon IS the word of God. Joseph really did translate it by the power of God. I know the Restoration was necessary for us to become disciples of Christ. I know it. I know Heavenly Father loves His children more than we will ever understand. He loves us so much that he restored this Gospel back onto the earth so that we can choose to make the covenants that will lead us back to Him. I know He lives. I know he speaks to His children today. I love this Gospel more each day. It is real, It is powerful, and it changes lives everyday. I know because it changes mine everyday.

 

I love you all so much.

 

Love,

 

Hermana Laree LaPierre

 

PS- Tanner: I met a girl a couple days ago from Tri-Cities, WA. She knows some of your family! There's another hna in our zone from there too- hna. Braggs.

mom- no i never got the CD of the talks- want me to send you my ipod so you can put them on there? either way

 

 

LOVE LOVE LOVE YOU!