February 2nd, 2010

hello my family!!!!!! how are you all doing!? well it has been another week.! i am officially half way through my mtc training. its so crazy!! the time seems to have flown by extremely fast!! but on the other hand so much has happened, that it all seems like a blurr!! its so crazy tommorrow we teach the first lesson in portuguese! i cannot believe it. i don't really feel ready, but i think everyone goes through it. i sure hope that it goes well. im kind of nervous!! i feel like the language is coming pretty good, but i feel like i should know so much more. but that just probably how i am. never satisfied with were i am at.

happy birthday dad!!!!! the big 52... thats awesome!!!!! i am going to send some stuff home for you today, so i hope you get it at the end of this week. i hope you have an awesome day!!!!!! you should take the day off and go snowmobiling!! i love you and hope you have the best birthday ever!!!

on sunday i learned something kind of different about the pre earth life that i thought was was really cool. have you ever thought really thought why a third of the people followed satan? i never really had. but our branch pres. told us that when the plan was made that jesus christ would come down to this earth atone for our sins, and make it possible for us to return. the people that followed satan did not trust that jesus would actually do what he would do. but all of us here on the earth already had faith in jesus christ and knew without a doubt that he would complete the atonement. i just thought that that was really cool. i thought that people that i will teach have already had this faith, and that i am just reminding them about it.

anyways, like 20 visas came this week. it was pretty exciting. but mine didn't come :(. so i guess they are still coming so that give me hope. every p day we get to go to the temple. i think that you have had that question for me for a while, so i am just letting you know. i would really like for you to get me tanner and grandma and grandpa larsens address for me so that i can write them!! other than that i really can't think of anything else i need. oh wait!! i would actually really love some home made oreos. an elder in my district got some and i decided that i wanted some haha!!!!! it is so crazy!!

while i have been here in the mtc, i have realized that thing that dad has talked to me about for the last couple of years is really important. that thing is self motivation. i never thought that i would have to have complete self motivation because i have always had a coach or something. but thats what missionary work is. self motivation is so important. sometimes its really hard because you jsut want to relax and take it easy, but there is no time for that. i am so grateful i am on a mission for this purpose. learning how to be self motivated will help me for the rest of my life. and i definatly need to learn how to do this. so thank you dad for all for all of our talks we have had, i think about them all the time.

well im pretty sad. i still haven't recieved a letter from ross :( . what the heck!! haha. its ok i guess, i know what it is like being home. its hard to write missionarys. i never wrote landon. but thats no excuse. haha. i have heard from ben and taylor!! they are doing awesome! taylor was made a zone learder!! that is really cool.well if i can think of anything else to write i will write a little later!! love you so much!! thank you for everything. have a happy birthday dad. if you have anything you want me to answere write me an email. today!
 love you
elder larsen