Week 2: Tiendas y Testimonies


Buenas Tardes, hermanos y hermanas!

I've made it all the way to week number 2! It seems like its been forever since I left from the airport, and I think I've (mostly) adjusted to missionary life. 

Last week I informed you all that the food wasn't sitting well under the impression that we'd all soon be adjusting and after a week everything would be fine and dandy. However I was dead wrong. We are all still having indigestion - most everyone has officially given up eating the eggs for breakfast. :)

My mother asked about my duties as a district leader, and luckily, I don't do quite as much as a district leader does out in the field (probably because everyone in my district is located in the same area and we all have the same schedule). But it's pretty similar to what I did as a 1st assistant in the Priest's Quorum. I attend weekly leadership councils with Pres. Gulbrandsen, conduct district meetings, organize lessons for Sunday School and basically assume responsibility for my entire district to make sure we are on task and doing what we're supposed to be doing.

We had a fantastic testimony meeting the other day with our entire district and we all got to hear Hermana Simpson's 30-minute (abridged) conversion story which was so crazy. She was baptized only two years ago and is the only member in her family. Everyone else in my district was either born into the church or baptized at a young age, but everyone has had an amazing story to tell. My companion, Elder Taylor, was baptized when he was 8, but his parents were inactive so he took the missionary lessons when he was 12 and they were his primary inspiration for serving a mission.

We got to visit the supermarket this week "to practice our Spanish" but the cashier started talking in English when I went to check-out. Unfortunately, from what I've heard, it's even worse in Puerto Rico and almost everyone speaks English, so I'm crossing my fingers I'll be able to use Spanish plenty when I get there.

Hasta Luego!
Elder Thornton

P.S. I forgot to include some info: I'll be at the MTC for a total of 6 weeks before I leave to the field so I only have 4 weeks left in the MTC. Also, we'll be getting new missionaries and say goodbye to the older missionaries next Wednesday, so that'll be a pretty crazy day. About 30ish missionaries will be leaving and we'll be getting about 40 new missionaries so we'll have a new MTC record (about 85 missionaries) again and everybody's a little concerned about having full MTC meetings in our 3-classroom "chapel" that can barely fit everyone right now.

  
Sorry for the lack of pictures... We're not allowed to use our cameras except for on p-day, so we don't take a lot.


1) Dominican food (candy) that I bought at the store. I have now found a new favorite candy bar!
2) The Elders of my district!
3) My uke and songwriting notebook


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