Dear Family,
Hey I got your package yesterday! Loved it, thank you very much. I love to hear how my lovely family is doing, just 5 mins. away from me :) I did receive your Dear Elder, thank you it was nice to hear from home. I did by a second belt and an umbrella, but I don't remember getting a rain coat at all. I did receive the shoes thanks! They are very nice like really, but I think they might be a little too big. My foot had a lot of space to slip around in there so I don't think that would be good when I am walking everywhere. I am sorry cuz they are so nice, but I want to be able to not have that many blisters ha ha.
They gave us some exercise bands so we can do whatever strange thing we want with them ha ha, but I would really like a compact jump rope that would help a lot. Our mission president doesn't allow us to play any sports ever so we have to run in the mornings or whatever, so a jump rope would be really nice...please :)
I am sorry I couldn't help but tell them! He was so interested and now he's like telling everyone, so I told him it was just a theory. So at the last day when all is known unto us I said that if it wasn't true...then don't blame me for lying to you ha ha. It would be great if you could send that story. It is interesting to me. Thank you for the poem by the way. EVERYONE loves it in my district. They all want copies ha ha, so thank you mom!
Our companionship has continued to get better which has been a great blessing. Elder ? has really opened up now and he's pretty funny. So that's how the companionship is going so far. We still have our awkward moments, but it's all good. Only 3 more weeks from tomorrow (Monday)! We should be getting our flight plans sometime this week. Crossing my fingers! So it's really starting to get down to the wire.
Yeah, my teacher interviewed me yesterday to see how I was doing and what not. He told me I reminded him a lot of what he was like coming into the MTC. He told me we are in the MTC for 12 weeks not to learn the language cuz if we wanted to learn the language, they would throw us into Russia 6 weeks in and we would have a better chance of learning it. He said we are in the MTC for 12 weeks because we are going to a place that is a spiritual black hole, in a sense. Where there is always cold and darkness literally, ha ha. He told me to be sure to charge up my spiritual batteries here and told me I am doing a great job at that. I love reading the scriptures! I really don't get enough time with only an hour a day. It's amazing how magnified they are in here and I see how much they apply to me in my life here serving on a mission. I just started the chapters of Alma, where Amulek is shutting down Zeezrom as Zeezrom tries to prove Amulek wrong. I don't know if I'll get much of that in Russia, but I know that if I truly trust in the Lord he will always provide a way for me...just as he did for Amulek. I am very excited to finally be able to do something other than just sit in a class forever each day. I know it's going to be a lot of very hard work, but I am willing to do what it takes!
Thank you very much for the scripture you sent, it really helps when I have so much support back home :) I also hope you are all keeping up on your scripture reading at home! I wish I would've realized the significance of them before my mission, but it's hard when there are so many distractions in the world. That's why I love it here also, cuz there are no distractions and you can just sit and focus on the scriptures without any other worry...because of this I've seen a lot more in the scriptures then I ever have before.
We had a large group meeting last Thursday, as we always do every Thursday, but this one I really felt the Spirit strongly. I loved the speaker, his name was Brother Hanson and he served a mission in Zimbabwe English speaking. He had a lot of interesting stories from there. He spoke on the subject of exercising our faith and near the end he showed a little clip from one of President Gordon B. Hinckleys talks about the three 18 yr. old young men who carried all those people across the freezing river. It really struck me deep how they were willing to have so much faith and served others rather than caring for themselves. They lost their lives because of the damage done crossing the river many a times. It really hit me hard too, when he said that once Brigham Young got word of what they had done, he wept like a child openly saying that because of this one act, they are assured a kingdom in heaven. I've heard this story many times in my life, but to hear it in the MTC as a missionary is something else. I know that I too have the opportunity to serve others, as they did and I want to have the faith, as they did to totally trust in the Lord with all my heart. I know I probably won't cross rivers carrying people because well...we're not allowed to get in the water, but I know that I can help carry people spiritually who are stuck on the banks of a cold, dark place...where the light of the gospel is not yet fully embraced there. I have the opportunity to show people the light and help carry them towards it. So yeah, that's how I've really been feeling lately.
The firesides and devotionals are always amazing and I've written down so many notes from all of them, ha ha you sure would be proud. Just this last Tuesday Elder Groberg came and spoke to us on doing service for others even when it is a pain to do so. If we just go out of our way to help someone and go above and beyond the call of duty, we will be blessed beyond measure. He said "Do not miss a single opportunity to serve someone". He told a story of a young man down in South America somewhere who was kind of searching for a solid church. He was already attending a church and every day he when would walk to school he would see these missionaries and he would always get the impression to stop them...so he went to his priest and asked what he should do. His priest immediately told him to stay away because the missionaries were bad people only wanting to take their soul. So the young man took his priests advice and just continued to go on with his life. Well one day as he was sitting at the bus stop, kind of hidden from view, he saw these two missionaries walking by. He kind of just sat back and watched them and as they were walking by, he saw one of the missionaries pick up a piece of trash and throw it away. The young man was stunned. Bad people wouldn't do that when they knew no one was watching so he immediately ran to the Elders and was soon baptized 2 weeks later. This young man grew up to be a stake president in one of the stakes down in South America and all because some missionaries did service by picking up a piece of trash.
Well I hope you have a wonderful Sabbath day and let me know how the dinner went and all! Be sure to tell Grandpa Swainston, that I am praying for him and am very sorry. I'm sure you'll hear from him before I finish their letter. [Grandpa Swainstons younger sister past away.]
I am looking forward to receiving that camera and pictures! I am dying for them both ha ha. Have a great week and I'll be emailing you Tuesday :) Loves to all of you, especially Sophie! Thanks again for the packages! Love ya!
Love your son,
Старший Сваинстон
PS. We got our Russian name tags this week and this is how mine looks, Swainston in Russian ha ha. I'll be sure to send one of my English name tags home once I get to Russia.
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