Week 4 @ The MTC (Feasting on the Words of Christ...a la mode!

Regarding the subject line, you'll have to check out the Google Drive. I explained it in the video there, but let's just say that the Gospel is very yummy... just like ice cream.

Now! Let's get started! Me menemme!(yep, that's a real Suomi phrase)

On Friday, we had a birthday party for one of our Elders! His family sent him a cake - yes, in the mail - and we sang happy birthday to him! It's weird to think that I'll turn 19 in the MTC too...

However, we had a little situation during the week. One of our Elders, Vanhin Olsen, was admitted to the hospital Friday night. Nothing serious happened - he had strained his triceps working out, and we thought it was nothing, but then he had his blood checked, and his enzyme count was off the charts, clogging up his bloodstream. He stayed at the regional hospital for a few days to wait for the enzyme count to drop. (CK enzymes, that are released when you exercise, we were told. Regular levels are 300 - he was at 15,000. Yeah, fifteen thousand.) We not-so-patiently waited 6 days for him to get released! It was an interesting week without him here. It made us realize how close we've gotten over the past few weeks.

Speaking of weeks, yesterday marked our fourth! We've only five weeks left! It's been nearly a month in the MTC now, and I'll be honest - we're all itching to get to Finland. Even though we're still amateurs at the language, it's difficult, going to class day after day after day. But we continue to learn, and we'll get there and do a good work!

Now, as to our adventures in the MTC. One of our favorite pastimes, during exercise time, is to play sand volleyball at the field. We've gotten pretty competent at the game, and pretty aggressive! For some reason, the volleyball seems to gravitate naturally towards my face. It's a miracle I haven't yet broken my nose, with how often the ball hits me!

On another note, I found a fun video that strikes a chord with me. While watching Mormon Messages with what little free time we have, I found this video. The MTC's browser restrictions won't let me embed the video, but here's the address:

https://www.mormonchannel.org/watch/series/mormon-messages/a-pianos-purpose

I really liked this video - It pulled at my heartstrings a bit. I'd encourage you to play the video, and share it with others!

(Now, let's play a game. How many music-related puns did I fit in that previous paragraph?)

Now, guess what time it is!! It's time for quotes of the week!

"Do you ever get the nervous poops before you teach a lesson?"

-Sisar Brinton

"The what?"

-Vanhin Bolingbroke

"These days are blending together like a smoothie. Today felt like an apple."

-Vanhin Bolingbroke

"If you ever get sick again, Vanhin Olsen, I'm gonna kill you."

-Vanhin Gamett

"Suntämäpäivä fiesta!!"

-Vanhin Moats

"Manner, you know I can't keep up with you!"

-Vanhin Bolingbroke, lamenting the shortness of his legs in comparison to his companion's

"(exasperated groaning)"

-Everyone, whenever Vanhin Payne makes one of his trademark puns

"(Thunk)"

-the sound Vanhin Gamett's head made when he accidentally hit it against the wall

Well, anyway, we've had a fantastic time! As always, if you have any gospel-related questions for me, or even if you just want to talk, feel free to email me during the week! We love hearing from people, and answering emails!

Stay safe, and have the Spirit! I love you all!

-Vanhin Bolingbroke

Week 3 @ The MTC (I"m running out of Finnish puns already)

Terve, all!

Roses are red, violets are blue,

this email should be read

by someone like you!

Firstly, a highlight.

We had the opportunity yesterday to be the hosts for new missionaries(The guys that tear you away from your sobbing family). We had a batch of 600+ new people, so we had a lot of running around. While doing this, I was grabbing the bags for an Elder - his grandparents were dropping him off - when I took a look at the bags. An American flag. Team USA embroidered on the bags. I asked his grandpa, who said his right leg is a prosthetic - he's a TEAM USA paralympic athlete. I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say I was geeking out over him the whole time. I have huge respect for both olympic and paralympic athletes, and it was really something else to hear the stories he could tell about his competitions.

Secondly, an interesting experience. Well, a few of them. The first just happened a few minutes ago, actually. SLC's Finnish Consul came and visited us. We were nervous, because we thought it had something to do with increasing religious turmoil in the area(we got word of a terrorist attack in Finland, but I know nothing of the matter), us being religious missionaries and all, but the Consul actually used to be an Elder in Finland himself, and just wanted to lend his support and counsel to us. He talked with us for about an hour, it was pretty cool!

The second odd experience happened last Saturday. I was working the MTC tour - for about a month, the MTC was letting in visitors to see the missionaries, as well as the new buildings - and my family bumped into me there. (No, we didn't plan that. The stars just so happened to align in our favor that day.) While I was overjoyed to see my family again, it was difficult - extremely difficult - to say goodbye all over again. It felt surreal because I had to remind myself that I'm no longer a child, I'm a servant of the Lord. It's painful for me to say even now, but I'm now in the Lord's hands. I was grateful, however, for a few reasons. Seeing my wonderful family again did remind me of why I'm here - because I love them, and I know that my sacrifice will bring blessings upon them.

I also had another experience while working the tour that I'd like to mention. In the new buildings, T3 and T4, we have a series of murals. On some of the walls, these murals cover the entire wall, giving a huge, beautiful look at scriptural scenes such as Paul's encounter with an angel, Christ ministering to various peoples, the Nephite city of Zarahemla, and other various Bible/Book of Mormon heroes. I was in front of a smaller rendition of one of the murals - one of Moses, standing on a mountaintop. On a plaque next to this painting was the scripture Moses 1:6 "I have a work for thee, Moses, my son." I know a pretty interesting story about Moses and that scripture, which I was able to share with some of the passerby, and which I'd like to share here:

Moses' name means "son of none." The literal translation is drawn up(from the water), but a connotative meaning is "one who has no family", on account of the fact that he was found on the riverside, with nobody to care for him. In ancient Egypt, heritage and family were paramount to the societal workings. So, while Moses was adopted and did live in the palaces of Egypt, his very name was a reminder that he was a nobody. No family, no heritage, nothing.

Now, we fast forward to the scene in the mural I was stationed next to. In this mural, Elohim(God) is speaking to Moses, showing him the workmanship of his hands - which, may I remind you, is infinite. God specifically says to Moses, "My son." I think, that after a lifetime of being called "nobody," that would mean a lot to Moses himself. I imagine he says something like this: "I'm not a nobody. I do have a family! Not just that, I am the son of The Creator of the World!" That sounds pretty good, no?

This idea is supported even more by what happens next in the book of Moses. As Moses is descending the mountain, after his encounter with God, Satan himself manifests to Moses. He says, "Son of man, bow down to me. Worship me!" To which Moses gives a pretty witty retort. "Where is thy glory that I should worship thee? Behold, I am a son of God, get thee hence, Satan!" [I'm paraphrasing here.]

Quite simply, that verse is pretty powerful when you look at it more closely.

As for our advancement in Finnish: se on tosi hyvää! Mina olen stressaantanut. Mutta, kieli jatkaa tulla hyvää! We continue to teach, and learn, and eat, and sleep, and repeat! It's great.

Now, for funny/inspirational quotes of the week:

"My dead's brain."

-Vanhin Olsen, after a long day of studying Finnish grammar

(at Sunday devotional)"You sing well, but it needs to be better! Make this next hymn really loud!"

-Elder Weatherford T. Clayton, Sunday's devotional speaker

"Ironically, the next hymn is 'How gentle God's commands!' (chuckles)"

-Brother Eggett, choir director, realizing the irony in this situation

"Velli Ryan, how do you say 'bear' in Finnish?"

-Vanhin Gamett

"In what context?"

-Velli Ryan

"(unintelligible growling noise)"

-Vanhin Gamett

And, one of my personal favorites. I found this one while reading a talk given by President Utchdorf - On the wings of eagles.

"He turns not back who is bound to a star."

-Leonardo Da Vinci

That's a very good quote. I encourage you to think about that one.

Well, this has been a pretty eventful week! As usual, I've compiled videos from this week, and you're free to ask me more questions! I love doing it, it adds so much spirit to my study time! ​

Videos

And please email back! We love to hear about the outside world! I also expect to know as soon as anybody gets a mission call, so keep me informed!

Love you lots! Stay safe, keep the Spirit with you, and continue to press forward! And stay tuned for next week!

Rakas aina,

Vanhin Bolingbroke

Week 2 @ The MTC (How can I be Finnish when I've only just begun?)

Good morning, friends and family!

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood,

a beautiful day and I'm feeling good!

Won't you read my email?

The second week has gone by, with another litany of events! I'll chronicle them to the best of my memory:

For starters, we've been extremely busy. I'm sending a snapshot of my schedule, which is more than full of classes and devotionals. It's been a bit difficult for me - I'm used to a very active and movement-oriented lifestyle, and 90% of what we do is sitting in chairs. I've made it a personal goal to eat as healthy as possible here at the MTC (the food selection is appallingly sugar-filled), and I'm happy to say that I've not yet gained a single pound! Why am I sharing this, you may ask? Because I've mentally cataloged days where I eat healthy foods, versus days that I pig out(usually on the cereal bar). I find that I'm able to feel the Spirit more, teach better lessons, and remember Finnish grammar principles better when I've had a healthy meal. Who'd have thought that your diet can affect your spirit?

Learning Finnish continues to be an amazing challenge for us. Every day, we're learning a new grammar principle. Every other day, we teach a lesson, and it's rumored that we'll actually teach members in Finland, over Skype! Fun fact: The word "Finland" is actually a Swedish word(due to the fact that Finland was part of Sweden hundreds of years ago) meaning "beautiful land", the country's true name is Suomi. Suomi means "Swampy land", on account of the many lakes(187,888 to be exact) the country has. So in the future, if I refer to my mission as Suomi, you'll know what I'm talking about.

This week has also been an incredibly spiritual one. Remember how I said last week that Elder Bednar, of the Twelve, gave a devotional? Well, it gets better. On Sunday, Elder M. Russel Ballard gave another devotional, and on Tuesday, Elder Neil L. Andersen gave one! We're so lucky to have had three of the Twelve come talk to us missionaries in two weeks!

Another significant happening: WE GOT A NEW CLASSROOM! When we first got here, two weeks ago, we were shown our classroom. Our cramped, fourteen-people-with-no-space-to-breathe classroom. I personally nicknamed it the Cupboard Under The Stairs(No, it wasn't really under the stairs, but it's a Harry Potter reference). However, yesterday, our Branch President, President Coombs, talked to the building staff, and got us an actual classroom! We can breathe! We can move our legs! I feel like Harry Potter in the second book, when he gets an actual bedroom! Yesterday was a happy day.

I have another list of inspiring/funny/nonsense quotes from Elders, myself, and others.

"The eleventh commandment, reserved specifically for missionaries: Thou Shalt Not Flirt."

-Elder Ballard

"Am I the only one that thinks Russel Crowe's death in Les Miserables was the funniest thing?"

-Vanhin Olsen, at approx. 10:47 P.M., while we were all almost asleep

"Look down, look down, don't look them in the eye."

All the Finnish Vanhinmat(plural form of Elders), upon walking past a group of freshly arrived Elders

"Vanhin Manner, you're C-3PO. Bolingbroke, you're R2-D2."

"Is it because he's tall and I'm short?"

"Yep." Vanhin Gamett, laughing at my shortness

"Everyone in Rexburg with a dog is super old, except for the young people with dogs."

-Vanhin Manner

"Well no duh!"

-Vanhin Gamett, in response to Vanhin Manner's fairly obvious statement.

Now, on a slightly more serious note, I've had an epiphany! A friend recently emailed me, asking me a gospel question. I decided to answer via a video, instead of the written word. And I figured, why not continue to do so? So here's what's going to happen:

If you have a gospel-related question you'd like me to answer, email your question to me! I'll address your question, take a video of it, and get it back to you. THIS NEXT PART IS IMPORTANT. Gmail can't send files over 25 megabytes, so I'll send a Google Drive link. MOM AND DAD. READ THIS PART. You need to share the Google Drive file with everyone on the email list. ​

Videos

​This link, right above these letters, says "videos." Share that with everyone. You should be able to send it straight in the email, without doing anything, but if you have any questions, ask Trevor. He's tech-savvy, and should be able to do this easily. Let me know ASAP if it works, and if people can access the videos. And let me know what is accessible, okay? Okay.

Now, please don't misunderstand my motives when I do this. I want you all to know, I do not do this out of some sort of misplaced sense of importance, attention, or popularity. I do this because I am an ordained servant of the Lord.

Let me repeat this.

I do this because I am an ordained servant of the Lord. As of the moment I was set apart, it became my duty to spend my days preaching the Word of the Lord, with all my heart, might, mind, and strength. I am assigned to preach in Suomi, but I feel that I also am given both the responsibility and opportunity to preach His gospel to those in my own life - family, friends, and acquaintances. So help me do so! If you have a question, ask me, and I'll do what I can to answer!

And please do write to us. We love hearing how everyone's lives are going!

I love you all, keep pressing forward!

-Vanhin Bolingbroke