When we got to the MTC, a brother greeted us outside and sent us inside to check in. We were given keys to our bedroom, and a key card to use to get into all the buildings, and our nametags! The MTC bookstore, travel department, laundry, cafeteria, and classrooms were all close by. Seniors come on Monday, young missionaries come on Wednesday.
There were ninety couples in our group. We were divided into districts, each with a district leader. Greg was our district leader. We grew very quickly to love the other couples in our district. Nobody cared where anyone was going. Several of the couples were going for a year, most for eighteen months. Most of the couples in our group were driving somewhere in the United States. About half or our group went to the new SLC Headquarters Mission. They had no idea what they were going to be doing, but hoped it would be Family History. Everyone stayed one week unless you were called as office support. Six couples stayed for four more days the second week to receive office training on the church's mission software.
The food was okay, and I am sure the young missionaries loved it, but two weeks of cafeteria food..... They feed so many people there. The cafeteria employs 300 part time students. The dining room is open for an hour for breakfast, and an hour and a half for lunch and dinner. So the room fills up and empties quickly. They have what the missionaries call the Wall of Lettuce, which is a salad/wrap bar open for all three meals. Then there is the main meal, which is new everyday. And then there is a left over kind of place where they take the leftovers and make them into something else and serve also. There is cereal, fruit, green salad bars, and some kind of dessert every day. One day Greg said, "I had to take a zantac today." And I laughed and said that's because you are eating four cookies a day. On Wednesdays when the new missionaries came the place was packed.
There is a devotional every Tuesday evening. Most of the missionaries are in the missionary choir. So when they sing at the devotional the stands are packed with the choir and it is like they sing to the General Authority speaking that night. Elder Meur and Elder Gong were the speakers when we were there.
Our first week we studied Preach My Gospel. We had wonderful young return missionaries teach us. It was wonderful experience. I learned a lot and felt more equipped to invite people to hear the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The second week we were taught the church's mission software. It was not as exciting, but necessary.
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Laundry room-only one row!
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| Waiting for Polly |
And then we both got bad colds, felt miserable, but got over them during the drive east.
