Tyzden Styri

hello all!

this is my fourth email home, meaning i have almost been at the mtc for a full month. it is crazy how fast the time flies here. this week has been really good. early in the week i was really surprised to see carol nikita (is that how you spell her name) from ksl walk into our classroom. she filmed a spot in our room and filmed us having a language review with brother van de graaff so perhaps you will see me on tv this weekend when ksl does their special report on the mtc between sessions of conference. the food here still isn't great, but we are learning to be a little more positive about it. i have figured out that the reason people always gain weight in the mtc isn't because there isn't a healthy option, it's because all the healthy options taste like crap. the fruit is always over ripened, and the vegetables taste like soap. yeah, i said soap. the only things that taste good are the doughnuts and the fries and the cactus cooler. honestly that is probably the best thing about the food in the mtc, the high availability of cactus cooler. truly it is the elixer of the gods. if you are reading this and have never experienced the ultimate joy that comes from drinking cactus cooler, i strongly suggest that you go to the store right now and buy some. every time i drink it, i am reminded of all the time i spent eating lunch at croshaw's in st. george, so not only does the drink taste good, but it also brings back fond memories. enough about that, more about the mtc. i have been singing in the mtc choir on tuesdays and sundays. it has been pretty fun. it's definitely a BIG step back from being in chamber singers just a few months ago. the mtc choir probably isn't quite up to the standard set by say...our concert choir last year at skyline, but we have had some performances that i think have gone pretty well. it is kind of upsetting that the one time i am at the mtc, the mtc choir isn't performing for priesthood session, or any session of conference. i was really hoping i would have that opportunity, but o well. they have special musical numbers at all the firesides and devotionals here, and every time they have one, i wish dad were here with me to critique the performances. so far, i think there would have only been one he would've liked. my first sunday here, a sister sang the Lord's Prayer, and did very well, but every other musical number has been some cheesy efy song. why do people think Heavenly Father like pop music? i don't know everything about our Creator, but i don't think that he wants praises sung to him in a way that seems more fit for an american idol audition. we aren't allowed to listen to music here at the mtc. i guess they have had too many problems with it in the past. originally i was upset by this, but actually i'm okay with it because elder bezas told me on the first day here that he brought a lot of efy cds with him. he's a great guy, but i don't think i could stand to listen to anything from efy while in the residence halls. we open every class by singing a hymn in slovak, which is fun. some of the translations are pretty good, but some of them are really REALLY bad. for example, the translation for "love at home" never once uses the word home. it is for that reason that we don't sing that song very much. i'm alright with that because to be quite honest "love at home" is one of my least favorite hymns in the book. cheesy lyrics about roses blooming and a boring bass line does not a good hymn make. i think my favorite slovak hymn translation is the one for "count your blessings." the Slovak title is "scitaj dary" which simply means "count gifts." not your own personal gifts, just gifts in general. things with the language are still going well. it is definitely a difficult language and at times the concepts and the grammar really kick my butt, but considering the fact that i've only been learning it for about four weeks, i'm pretty pleased with my progress. there are a lot of things to remember. there are genders assigned to inanimate objects. there is good ol' mr. oak tree (dub), madam street (ulica), and mrs. bone (kost) just to name a few. there are also words that are neuter. determining gender, though, isn't very hard. the hardest part is remembering all the cases. any word in slovak, depending on where it lands in the sentence, what preposition it follows, etc., and word can be spelled one of six different ways. most words, depending on their gender, follow a similar pattern, but the patterns can still be difficult to remember. however, i feel like i am making some pretty good progress with the language. elder bezas and i taught a lesson completely in slovak this week. it was an uphill battle, but we pulled it off. by this time next week, we won't be teaching in english anymore, which is both exciting and scary. anyway things are continuing to go well here. i know that if i just rely on the Lord, all things are possible. i'm so excited to get out to slovakia and serve. it won't be long now before i will have the opportunity to do so. i love and miss you all! i love reading all of your letters to me, so please keep them coming.

 

dovidenia

sam

 

ps- is opening day for the mlb this week? if so go dbacks! hopefully they don't suck too bad this year