June 18, 2013

MINASAN KONNICHIWA!!!!

I loved the package/postcard/letters!!! Thanks for everything, it means the world to me! To say I was jealous and completely mocked by the postcard is an understatement. As I was sitting in this white brick room I couldn't help but think... Boy am I so completely jealous.... But then I realized, I AM GOING TO BE IN JAPAN IN LESS THAN A MONTH!!! And I was okay again. :)

Time is flying by! i cannot believe I have been here so long, but at the same time I feel like I've been here forever. I only have 4 weeks left to really kick butt on the language so I can feel comfortable speaking to the Japanese people. Last Wednesday I was a host for the incoming sisters. I was lucky enough to be able to host one of the Japanese sisters! Of course, mine was the only one who didn't speak any form of English. So I definitely struggled big time to say anything to her. I wasn't going to say "konnichiwa! Genki desu ka?" adn then start bearing my testimony..... That's just about all that I can do. So as I scrambled through my notebook of vocab for any word that would be able to help me, she didn't understand anything I said. THat's basically the moral of the story. Hahahaha I just gave her a million hugs, said a millions sorrys, and let's gos and that was the extent of our conversation. It was sooooo aggravating!!!!!!!!!! I just wanted to get to know her and help her, but I didn't know how to say anything. Whatevs, she loves me and gets super excited whenever she sees me so I guess I did something right? It definitely pushed me to work even harder because I realized I will be in Japan and understand nothing that anyone says and it's going to be so crazy hard.

We teach two "investigators" every day. One of them we committed to baptism! Everyone was kind of jealous because we were the first to do so.... But that's not the priority. We work so hard to bring them to Christ! And if they do: WONDERFUL. If not, we've done all that we can. I know it sounds silly since they're not real investigators, but it feels so real.

Last Tuesday we went the the Marriot Center for the first devotional EVER in MTC hsitory. So it was pretty humbling to be apart of that. I was in the choir and it was a choir of about 1,300 missionaries. SO POWERFUL. Sunday the devotional was broadcasted from the west campus MTC for the first time. So that was also a monumental thing in MTC history. Obviously it wasn't my favorite to have to watch it from somewhere else, but it's only fair. The lines in the cafeteria are out of control! This place is soooooo packed. I mean it's cool because there are so many missionaries going out to change the world, but at the same time.... Why must I wait 10 minutes to get cereal!?!?!?! THe bathrooms here are also hilarious because they were made for men. Two stalls plus a urinal (which we don't really have much use for) and then let's have an entire building of sisters use this bathroom. With 3 girls who are always on different schedules? I swear we go to the bathroom 30,000 times a day.

I was called as a Sister Training Leader! So you're probably thinking "good for you sweetie, what does that even mean?" Well, I'll tell you! It's basically like the girl virsion of zone leader. We have meetings all day sunday, interview all of the girls in our branch (apprx 35 girls) once a week, go to their rooms every single time to make sure that they are all doing okay, guide the japanese sisters and help them with everything becasue they don't understand english (we're taking them to the temple for pday today. I'm super stoked, but it will be interesting to see how we do it!), be examples to the sisters, and then we relay everything back to our branch president. So I know that that doesn't sound like that much, but it is! Everyone was like "please don't call me as a sister training leader" - because it's so time consuming and learning Japanese is bad enough as is. However, I'm actually super humbled by the call. I am so lucky to be able to help these sisters out! I totally understand how hard everything is in MTC life, and I want to be there for these special sisters. The Japanese sisters are seriously the most loving and funny people in the world. Every time they see me they just scream and run to me with hugs and "i love yous." I love these people so much. They are sooooo unique and special. I don't know what I did to deserve this, I just love them from the bottom of my heart.

After the Tuesday devotionals we always have a district testimony meeting. We were so lucky to have 3 of the CUTEST Japanese sisters with us. So we went around and were talking about what an awesome devotional it was and were bearing testimony in English (of course). So as I was bearing mine  I look over and one of the sisters was crying.... (They are all so different that you just never know.) But then she bore her testimony (in Nihongo) and said that she didn't understand anything we said, but she could feel it, and it was pwoerful. She was saying what awesome missionaries we would be! I was super happy to hear that.:) Always being humbled here.

It's so funny how frequently Japanese is mentioned in devotionals and talks here. At this point I have lost count of how many times they say "learning Japanese isn't easy" or "if any of you are having a hard time, we'll sen dyou over to the Japanese branch and see how you feel", things of that essence, you get the point! I think I have this absurd expectation of myself in learning Japanese... I just want to learn it yesterday. However, I am being blessed so much in learning this language. Although I feel like I can barely say anything, it's progress. I just have to look at how much I have learned from the time I got here.

This gospel is so true! I am so stoked to be able to have Jesus Christ's name over my heart every day. I am so dorky... But every morning I have a "moment" where I put my name tag on and I swear there is a conchord of angels singing "hallelujah!" I love being a missionary!!! Although I am freak out level 15 about being in Japan so soon and not knowing anything. Yikes.... Deep breathing... Trying not to think about it... I don't think you realize how little Japanese I know! Despite how hard I am working, I seriously have to throw my mind out the door and start from square one to learn it. Hahahaha it's a blesing though, if I was anywhere else I don't think I would cleave to God as much as I do. Always receiving tender mercies. I love you!!!!!

Love,

Crofts SHimai