Letter #2 from Jacob

Dear family,                                                                                                          
Friday, August 16th


     Today is Day 3 at the MTC!  They've got a huge day planned for us, and nearly all of it revolves around our investigator Landon.  Tonight we're teaching him the first lesson after just a couple days of Portuguese and being a missionary.  My companion and I have been planning for this lesson for hours, because that's pretty much what we do here at the MTC.  My companion Elder H is kinda leaning on me for a lot of the language stuff, so we'll see how this goes.

     There's so much to tell you about the MTC, I don't even think I can fit it all in these letters.

     First off, I love you guys and miss you.  Expect an email from me in a week for our first P-Day.  Honestly, sometimes I feel a little homesick, but they keep you so busy here and there's really not a lot of downtime.

     And it's really a huge change here.  They have high expectations for missionaries, and the only way to be both capable and efficient is with the Spirit.  We're always expected to be busy, whether that's personal study, companionship study, language study, writing home or in a journal, preparing a talk, praying, being in class, eating, being in a workshop, etc.

     I'm not feeling sick or anything, the food here's not bad.  I've already ran into Elder S, Elder M, and Elder & Sister H.  It feels weird being called Elder.  There's really no more being called "Brothers & Sisters," instead it's "Elders & Sisters."  They're really finicky on the rules too: no calling people "guys," instead it's "missionaries."  No gum, no hands in pockets when you're speaking.  And if you're wearing a suit, button it up when you stand, unbutton when you sit down.  Those are some of the wacky rules they have here.

     I like the MTC.  Everyone's super friendly here, always willing to help answer questions.  They say that after your first Sunday, everything gets easier, because there's a lot they throw at you your first few days.  But if I just take things one day at a time, everything will be OK.  Im getting a lot of pictures of the MTC and it's truly a remarkable place.  No one is ever alone, and there's a lot of love here for companions, mission presidents, and everyone else.

     I hope everyone is doing OK.  Let me know when you guys get this letter.

I love you and miss you! The church is true!

                                                              Write back soon,

                                                                      Elder Nissinen