Week 4: I Am an American

Léih hóu!

Honestly this has been the fastest week so far, yesterday I woke up super confused cause it was already Sunday again. My district is pretty sure the MTC is a simulation and they're speeding up time or something. 

One of the biggest highlights from this week was the Fourth of July! We got out of our evening class half an hour early and they had us watch the an hour long movie about Joseph Smith which was actually not too bad. Either that or it's been too long since I've seen a movie and my judgement is off. Could go either way. It did go over some stuff about his story that I totally forgot that are pretty incredible though. It reminded me of how strong my testimony of Joseph Smith as a prophet is, he's amazing. After the movie they gave us BYU Creamery ice cream and we got to watch the BYU Stadium of Fire through the gaps in the buildings and it was awesome!! I love fireworks so it was really cool to get to watch.

This week I also had a ton more friends show up at the MTC and it's been awesome seeing them again! It's been so fun getting to catch up with them. I did have to say bye to two of my best friends on Monday though which was a little sad, but I know they're gonna do amazing out in the field!!
In our immersion class we've started practicing teaching lessons in Cantonese, and it's going alright! I definitely can't explain anything super well but most of us can at least give an overview of some of the points and give a testimony. During breaks we've also been trying to translate the duck song into Cantonese, so far it's been a success but we'll see how far we get.

For a spiritual thought this week, I read this verse recently in Mosiah 21:16 - "And it came to pass that they began to prosper by degrees in the land..." If you feel like the Lord isn't in your life then try to take a closer look. Look at the details of your life, look at how far you have come already. Remember to count your blessings and see the good, and have patience as the Lord helps you prosper by degrees.

Love you all!
Elder Blankenbiller

Pictures:
1. My favorite mural
2. Average break activities
3. Kabooms






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