Sister Heather Crofts

September 7, 2017

Week 5

Wahoooo I made it to September! There were a couple times I was a little skeptical but hey looks like I made it. Tomorrow is my one month mark. That is crazy. Some days I think wow!! One month already. Other days I am like wow, one month huh? But it has been so good.

Thank you so much for the package. I was so excited that I like ran around with my stuff all day. Needless to say..... it's all already gone. The cereal was sooooooooooo yummy. And the beef jerky didn't last long. But really.... THE REESES. I am confident that the Reeses came straight from God himself. I don't know if I was just desperate for chocolate. But ohhhhhh man they hit the spot. If you ever want to randomly make my day. Reeses.

I have loved the talks that I brought. I read the Elder Holland talk the first week several times. This last week, we taught Relief Society all about the atonement of Jesus Christ. It was amazing and the talk by Elder Bednar helped us so much. We both just read and read it because we were in such awe. That whole day on Sunday was all about Christ. I bore my testimony in Spanish during our sacrament meeting about the Savior. We taught our lesson & we had 3 devotionals alllllllll about the Savior and the atonement. It was really cool. Monday I had a cool meeting with my branch President and he gave me some things that he wants me to study: it's all about the process of conversion rather than just having a testimony. It's some of the coolest stuff I've studied. I have learned tons already just in the last couple days.

This week has been great. A lot of the same things. All day, every day it feels like I am going from Spanish class to Sunday school. But hey nothing wrong with that right? Actually I go a little crazy from sitting in class ALL day. I have a week and a half until I leave the CCM and there are lots of mixed emotions about that. But not being confined to my classroom all day will be a definite bonus for leaving to South Carolina. I definitely see how a mission blessed people's lives. I have learned so much about the gospel it's incredible. Hahaha. So yeah, I’ve learned a lot and I have learned how to really rely on Christ. Just happy to be here.

During one of my classes this week, we were learning how to do our commands in Spanish. I felt like hey... I know this stuff. Wahoo something I actually remember from high school Spanish. So everyone was just kinda chatting and I don`t know what my thought process was. But I was thinking I would show off that I had an example so I shouted ¡AYUDAME! (HELP ME) Everyone just stopped what they were doing and stared at me. They thought I was having a heart attack or something. hahh... well I am fine.

Also this week, we taught with our Latina companions again. I really struggled with it last time and the lesson did not go well...I was kinda dreading it for this week. My Latina companion (whose name I still can`t pronounce) drew some pictures for me so that I would understand during planning. I think she was worried it would repeat last week. But she did tell me that my Spanish has improved by probably double just this last week. I laughed and said "My Spanish must have been really bad last week then" and she laughed...well...I think that is answer enough.

I'm really scared to leave the CCM. My Spanish has improved so much. Even since last week it is like a gazillion times better. But it's hard! I'm really hard on myself and constantly think it should be better. But I always just have to say "Heather. You're still learning. CHILL." some days I feel really good about the language and the next I'm lost. So the thought of leaving my little haven I've created here is terrifying. The thing I've noticed is that the second you get comfortable they rip the ground out from under you. Example 1 Finally confident in teaching my lessons in Spanish and have to teach a couple lessons a week with a Latina companion in the CCM. Example 2 I am really comfortable in the CCM. I have this place figured out. Now they're shipping me out.

This week we got punked or something. I went to my Spanish class in the morning and there was a new teacher. He told us that Hermano Rodriquez was fired and he couldn`t give us a lot of details. We were all just speechless. We loved him and he`d been there for all 5 weeks with us. Why now? Anyway it wasn`t true he was just sick. But we alllllll just died. Later that day we were in a devotional from Provo and Elder Oaks was our speaker. He starts out by saying "We miss our beloved Prophet Thomas S. Monson......." He talked all about the service he has given to the church, what a great man he was. Everyone had their jaws dropped turning to each other saying "They would have told us right?" But then Elder Oaks said "We appreciate the calling that he holds" Everyone let out a huge sigh of relief. Seriously it sounded like a Eulogy. So if anyone dies or anything drastic happens. Shoot me an email haha.

I was really sad to hear about the fire that hit Uintah. I will keep those families in my prayers but I am glad that everyone is doing okay. We are kinda having the opposite problem here. Every night around 6pm it just POURS. We have had a lot of flooding in the streets around the CCM, but then you go to sleep and it is gone. The next day is a repeat.

It sounds like I leave for the CCM and the world suddenly is falling apart!!!!! There is an Hermana here who was supposed to go to Houston last Monday but is now on her 8th week here and doesn`t know when she gets to leave. Please pray that South Carolina doesn`t get hit by this hurricane coming because as much as I really do love it here, I don`t want to spend an extra two weeks here. I am really hoping that hurricane skips right over South Carolina.

Well friends and fam. Nothing really exciting happened this week but I hope that everyone is doing well and is happy. Love you all and I pray for you all the time.

Lots of love

Hermana Crofts