We're almost a complete two weeks into the MTC experience. Food is running low. I haven't seen the sun for many days. My rations of clean water are running low, and I'm not sure how much longer I can make it. I fear I may never breathe a hint of fresh air again.
Not really. It's been amazing. At the moment of writing this I just got back from playing sand volleyball with my district and am now waiting for my laundry to finish. Just as I mentioned in last week's email, volleyball is a huge thing here. We had a great game this morning. Me and Elder Sheffet have also gone to the weight room before, and he's a very good gym partner. My arms were jelly for a few days thanks to him.
However, as great as volleyball is, it's nowhere near the highlight of this week. Last Tuesday everyone at the MTC had the opportunity to go to a devotional, and the guest speaker was the man, the myth, the legend, Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf. Not only that, but I got to sing in the MTC choir to him. The song was Hope of Israel. Unfortunately I wasn't able to shake his hand, but the spirit in the room that day was some powerful stuff. He and his wife, Harriet Uchtdorf, waved goodbye to everyone as they left and they made the "I love you" sign, which was very touching to me. It made me think of the day I left my family and we did that same sign as I left. They're both amazing people and a beautiful couple.
Language study is becoming harder and harder as the days go on. The vocabulary is very challenging and some of the words start to blend together after a while. But I'm thankful for my district, we've helped each other keep our heads up and keep learning. We've gotten so deep into the habit of speaking in Fijian that we talk to people in it without even noticing. Basic words like yes, no, thank you, excuse me, and quickly don't even exist to us now. They are now io, sega, vinaka, tilou, and totolo. Our teachers speak strictly Fijian for most of class, which has been helpful in picking up what it sounds like but sometimes not so much helping us learn vocab when all we can hear is blabbering and catch a few random words inside the chaos. But the most important part is that we're progressing, and that's very obvious. Just a week ago I could hardly count to four for the life of me without a cheat sheet, and now I can count to over a hundred. Even the culture has been rubbing off on us, we've gotten into the habit of clapping three times when something is finished, whether that be a meal, prayer, lesson, or more.
This morning I had the opportunity to visit the Provo Temple as well. It's a lot more complicated than the Denver Temple, or maybe it just seemed that way because I couldn't tell left from right in there. It was a great experience though, I've now been to two temples. Only two hundred eighty left!
We received another wave of missionaries last Wednesday, and me being a big strong man I was assigned to carry suitcases up stairs for people. It was difficult both physically and mentally. Not too difficult physically though of course, I barely even covered my shirt in sweat. But it was hard otherwise because the staircase I was assigned to was right in the center of where the new missionaries say goodbye to their families. They would pull into the parking garage, go down a car line until they reached the staircase, get out of their car to grab their suitcases (or have me grab them for them) and have a touching moment before they left. It wasn't awkward in the slightest to stand there watching them cry. But that aside, we got a ton of new missionaries which is awesome! As a zone leader I got to welcome any of the Elders in my branch personally. We've gotten some great people and I'm happy to be here with them. It's weird though since none of them are speaking a new language and will only be here for two weeks; which means they'll be leaving before me even though I got here first.
A common topic floating around the MTC recently has been reassignments. Since there are so many people going to foreign countries, and as missionaries we serve for 18-24 months, we are required to get a Visa in order to go to whatever country we were assigned. However, those Visas don't always come on time and many missionaries get 'Visa waited'. Some missionaries make it a big deal and guess where you'll go and have parties about it just like real mission callings. Anyways, only two out of the fifteen missionaries in my district have their Visas. It's more likely than not that I'll have to wait as well, but I still have two weeks to get mine.
There's so much I'd love to talk about more and tell everyone about, but I'm running out of time since this email has been written and revised throughout the chaos of the day. However, I would like to add one last thought. As much as I can and love to talk about all the fun things happening at the MTC, the most important part is the spiritual growth happening to me and all my fellow missionaries. The blessings and miracles I've seen throughout these past few weeks have been more amazing than words can describe. I have been personally touched by the spirit multiple times and testify of its truth. I know that its light and love will spread to all of God's children.
Mosiah 3: 17
With love, Elder Coleman
*Note from Mom: when we talked on the phone today, I asked if he'd received the packages I'd sent. He forgot to pack the socks we had just bought him (first package I sent), and last week he told us he was really cold at night because they only gave him a really thin blanket (so I sent his hoodie and sweatpants in a second package). He said he got both and the second package came just in time. He got really sick and had a couple missionaries give him a blessing. The package came with his sweatshirt and sweatpants and he was able to take a few hours nap and finally be warm! It was a tender mercy! He was feeling much better and didn't seem sick when we talked to him. He is glowing with the light of Christ!
