MTC Photos From Elder Brower's Blog

Elder Brower's mom told me I could have these photos that Elder Brower took in the MTC and post them here on Elder Wilding's blog.  So here are some pictures from when they were still in the MTC....

After seeing this I can understand why they also had so much fun (or so it appears) in the MTC as well.  Otherwise they might have gone crazy!

From Elder Brower's Blog: Hope you are all doing faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaantastic. ;) Me and elder Wilding say that alot ;) hahaha We say "hi" to random elders and catch them off guard. OK RANDOM THOUGHT! We say hi to like everyone....I'm serious when I say this. haha I call people out from across the MTC haha and only like 40% say hi back!!! Like why??? Are you anti social? YOU ARE A MISSIONARY! If you can't talk to other missionaries good luck speaking to random peeps on the street!....Grrrr hahah anyway! Me and Elder Wilding always say "hi" to people and ask them how they are, but when they ask us how we are as we are walking past them we just say, "FAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.......AAAAAAAANTastic!!" hahha its funny ;) Hope you are all doing FAAAAANtastic too!!!

MTC Selfie....I think he stole Elder Brower's camera.

 With his trio.  Elder Berrios and  Elder Brower

 Russia bound....

I'm leaving..... on a jet plane, don't know when I'll be back again! Hopefully in 2 years!

WOW

The MTC has flown by that crazy fast!  I can't believe that I'll soon be in Russia in less that a week.  I sent you my flight plans in the photos.  So I leave the MTC at 3:00 PM which is super nice because it seems like everybody leaves at 3:00 AM.  From the Salt Lake airport we fly to Las Vegas and will be there in a layover for 3 hours.  I will probably call you between 3:45 and 8:00.  And maybe I will even call you when I'm in Vegas for 3 hours.  But I can only call you in the states.  After Vegas we fly to Seoul Korea and have a 6 hour layover there.  I heard Korean Air is amazing!  Don't know why but everybody tells me that haha.  After the layover I will fly to Vlad and spend a day or 2 in the mission home.

Something super cool and amazingly awesome that has never happened at the MTC before and probably never will happen again is that we are going to perform with the Nashville Tribute Band the day before we leave!  I didn't know who they were before I got out here but they are a country band that makes gospel music.  It's pretty surprising that the MTC would allow them to come and let us perform with them because even though it is church music it isn't really hymns.  The songs we are singing with them are 1st "I was born"  2nd  "John's song" and 3rd "The hardest thing I've ever loved to do"... the last one might make you want to cry mom.

We teach everyday in Russian!  Sometimes twice a day.  It's fun!  Me and my companions are getting really good at teaching together!  To bad we are about to get separated haha!  We were continuing teaching U-li-a (the one I asked to get baptized) and we scheduled he baptismal date so soon that we didn't have much time to teach her all the other things we had to teach her.  So we taught her all the commandments in 20 min. Haha I don't even know how!  It would have taken me longer than that to teach the commandments in English. God is with us!  She got baptized (not really just in our minds) and then we taught her the laws and ordinances lesson!  

Another one of our investigators whose name is Andrei (Brother Clark my favorite teacher not a real investigator) is a really hard investigator or at least we thought.  He would always ask questions that would derail the lesson and it felt like we taught him nothing but we always left him with the commitment to read and pray.  One time we even asked him to pray in front of us and he refused.  But for some reason he always kept his commitments.  We never asked him to be baptized because we were always too intimidated.  Foolish thing to do we should always ask them to be baptized on the first lesson.  Anyways we asked him this time and he said then would!  He said when he read the Book of Mormon he felt God's love.  That's the most important thing. That they read the Book of Mormon when we're not there and that they pray when we are not there.  It is important that they do those things when we are there but much more important if they do them when we are not there.

So we had a sub teacher.  We taught them as if we were tracting.  Russia has a weird thing where it is bad luck to shake hands in doorways.  So we knocked on the door and he opened up and my companion said we are missionaries.  I then put out my hand and shook his.  I looked and saw the confused look on his face and realized what I had done.  I then proceeded to walk into his house!  What was I thinking haha!  He had a even more confused look on his face and I just got out of there as soon as possible haha!

Other investigator.  Our teachers play people they taught on their missions.  We were teaching a woman maned Galina.  She said that her son has been online and read about the Mormon church and was reading on LDS.org.  So she knew somewhat about the church.  We were talking to her about the Plan of Salvation and how we must be baptized in order to get into the highest kingdom.  She said "dyevaye" which means Lets!  Some people are prepared!

Can't really think of anything I need. I guess besides that track phone.  Oh and Bryce, Taylor, and Sky's Emails.  I love your packages and that's something I am going to really miss about being at the MTC.  Getting your wonderful packages full of all kinds of sweets!  I got the voice recorder just have been kind of busy but I'll use it in the field.  I lost my RVCA shirt.  Not my Russian shirt.  It's ok if I get 2 of them though because I like it.  I am grateful for the clothes you sent me in the last package and for the food! 

Love you all!

Don't know when I will write again because who knows when my P-day is?  I look forward to talking to you!

Love,

Elder Wilding

Elder Wilding with Elder Diedrickson (Little Deeds - friends from high school)  They are both serving in Russia but Elder Deeds is serving in Moscow and so he will fly out of New York while McKay flies out of Las Vegas. 

With Little Deeds and companion Elder Brower

 Flight plans

SIDENOTE:(from Mom)

In case any of you are interested in the Nashville Tribute Band, here is their amazing song The Hardest Thing I've Ever Loved to Do.  McKay is right, it does make me cry every time I hear it.  The first time I heard it was when Taylor was on his mission in Brazil.  But, it's quite an incredible song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yr5Kzy4FF1g

WE GOT AN APOSTLE!

I don't know how I got that but I accidentally did control and hit some key and it started typing like that.  I'm on a different computer now so that's why it's back to normal.  As it says in the subject last night we got an apostle to speak at our devotional!  It wasn't only an apostle but the president of the apostles!  President Russell M. Nelson!  He was amazing!  Not only was he super spiritual but also very funny!  He said, "People will ask you on your mission if you believe in the Bible, you will tell them yes and that the people who wrote the Bible are members of our church!"  He talked about how we are supposed to become "epistles" of the Lord.  As Peter said in 2 Cor 3:3.  He described what an epistle was but at the moment if I tried to describe what he said it wouldn't do it justice.  He said we are going to teach so that we can gather scattered Israel.  That really hit me because all of the tribes of Israel are in Russia.  If you get around 20 Russians together that have their patriarchal blessing more often then not every tribe of Israel will be represented.  His wife talked first.  He remarried in 2006 after his 1st wife died.  When I heard that all I could think is what it would be like to date an apostle.  How would the apostle find the time?  The devotional was broadcast to all the MTC's around the world!  I was in the choir as usual so I hope that some of my friends in the other MTC's saw me!  We sang "Be Still my Soul".  Brother Eggett who is our choir instructor who is just amazing told us he chose this song because of the huge responsibility that President Nelson has now to run a huge part of the church.  Brother Eggett whenever he is teaching us a song he always tell us stories that in one way or another relate the song and they are always incredibly powerful.  This time he told of how because of agency and the atonement, no outside person can vanquish you.  You are the only person that can beat you.  He told that no matter what sins we've committed or no matter what has happened in our lives, Jesus pleads with us to come unto Him and be forgiven.  In the Savior's words, "As of as my people will repent, I will forgive them."  As long as we keep trying to push ahead and keep trying to repent even if we keep on making the same sin over and over again, the Savior will always forgive us.

So for teaching, our teacher sister Thomas is playing a person she taught on her mission named Ulia, Uleia, youliea.  I don't know how to spell it in English haha but it's U-lee-a.  Anyways we are always supposed to ask them to be baptized unless the spirit directs otherwise so that people know our expectation.  So we were teaching her and towards the close of the lesson I was bearing my testimony of Jesus Christ and all that he has done for us and then I had a thought come into my head that just seemed like a normal thought but it said bear testimony of how much you love the Savior.  And as I started to the spirit came in a way i haven't felt my whole time at the MTC.  It was so powerful I can't even describe it.  It was like the Holy Ghost was literally there we just couldn't see him.  And after that I asked her to be baptized and she said YES!  It was the best feeling in the entire world and even more of the spirit was poured out when she said yes and committed to be baptized!  The Church is true.  How else could 18-19 year-olds convince people of the gospel otherwise?  Something I've realized is that I can't do this alone.  I can't learn learn this language alone.  But I don't have to.  The Spirit is there and He helps me.  The gift of tongues is real. 

It rained here a little bit and after it rained we went and played volleyball outside and it was awesome!  The sand is usually so hot that it burns your feet so you have to dig holes in order to play.  The Grinch robe is the best!  Everyone loves it!  I wear it every night with pride!  We learned how to tell time this week!  It's different then English.  Let's say the time was 7:05, instead of saying that they say 5 of the 8th or five minutes of the eighth hour.  And if it was 6:32 they would say, without 28, 6.  We taught the Elders who have been here 2 weeks the case chart.  Which is basically the most important thing ever.  It tells you how to conjugate so many things.  Basically everything beside verbs, and those aren't so bad.  When I taught them I learned so much more about it than I ever understood before.  I think that was kind of the teacher's plan.  When you teach you understand a ton more.  So weird story when we do service which I love so much we get different BYU students who work there to supervise us.  SO this time we got this girl who served in Tahiti.  She got hit by a car and died.  Was dead in a ditch for a little while until someone gave her mouth to mouth and her heart started going again.  Then she died again in the ambulance and was revived again.  A drunk driver hit her and her companion got hit but the car's side mirror and was fine.  Pretty crazy.  Oh during the devotional me and little deeds were companions for like 2 hours!  We were on splits because of we sit in the choir and my companions were in a different area so we got assigned splits!  Watched a talked Elder Bednar gave at the MTC like 8-10 years ago.  The talk is entitled "Becoming a Missionary".   He said it is not enough to just be on a mission.  We must become missionaries and serve with all our heart might mind and strength.  He said the main indicator of success on your mission isn't baptisms.  He said the Lord won't change people's agency, the harder you work doesn't mean you get more baptisms.  Baptisms are a gift from God.  Our church isn't a church with a check off list.  If you do so much then this will happen.  He wasn't saying don't work hard because no matter what you do you won't get baptisms.  He was saying work as hard as you can but just because you do that it doesn't promise baptisms.  I hope that comes across right not sure if I worded it good enough.  Probably my favorite thing he said was when it is time for you to return home from your mission, "Return home but never leave the Mission field."  He said we should be weird when we get home, if we're not then we didn't put everything we had into our missions.  He said how could someone focus on a mission with everything they've got for 2 years and come back and not be weirded out to be around girls again haha.

We had a BYU basketball player who served in our mission 2 years ago come and talk to us for a little bit.  Really awesome guy!  He said just embrace their culture.  It is up to you if you're going to be happy or sad, whether you're going to work hard or be lazy.  He said just keep on studying Russian and write down sentences the way you would say them and write down words you hear people say but you don't know and one day you'll realize that there's not much you don't know how to say.

I love you all and I love it out here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Elder Wilding

I turned part of my robe into a tie!

Elder Brower stole my camera and this is the picture he took while I was trying to get it back.
Me and Elder Prestwitch
We love the cheese

Me and Ty (Elder Palmer)
OH DA!!!!!!!! With Little Deeds....... the grinch ROBE!!!!!!!!!! again

Week 6

Week 6 already.  Wow.  You can't explain time in the MTC unless you've been to the MTC.  It flies by but also goes by slow.  I think we get some new Russians this week and that's always exciting!  One of the sister missionaries that left for Vlad last week wrote us and told us Vlad is completely different than what she thought.  She said it's hot and very humid.  Everything is green.  I look up the weather for Vlad and Brigham everyday because it is on my missionary portal.  The weather right now is basically the same but it seems like the low is always colder in Brigham.  But once the winter rolls in it's going to be a whole different story!  Especially if I'm in Siberia!  We had a sub this week because Brother Clark went camping.  Her name is sister Gish and she mostly told us stories about her mission!  She served in Moscow.  She said it's a normal thing to see dead bodies in the street because they get drunk stumble outside in the snow and freeze to death because of how cold the nights are.  She said the Mafia loves the missionaries!  Sometimes some of the mafia members convert over to LDS after they change everything in their life.  But sometimes they're connected in it.  She said some Elders in her mission were teaching a mafia person and he said, "If anyone messes with you, you tell me first and not your branch president."  haha The missionaries never took him up on that offer I hope!  Told us some other stories that might scare you mom so I'll just tell you them when I get home.

We did Skype TRC!  We actually talked to someone who lives in Russia!  The man we talked to is named Alexander.  He lives in Moscow and was baptized about 10 years ago.  He served a mission in Samara.  He asked if we knew anyone that was going to the Moscow mission and we told him little deeds and tried to remember all the Elders that were going and he was like what no sisters are coming! Haha our teacher says that he tries to get all the sisters to marry him haha.  He said all the missionaries know him as the "candyman" and that's because he always gives the missionaries candy.  He was talking to us in English like 50% of the time haha.  We asked him if he would read the book of Mormon every day and he said he would try.  We told him it's either a yes or a no and he was like so "do or do not there is no try" and Elder Brower whispers to us that's like Yoda right?  Well, he heard him and said "that is Yoda" and then told us how to say that in Russian!  When we had to say goodbye he did the Spock sign with his hands I think he said live long and prosper but he said it in Russian so who really knows.

Can you send me the book "the missionaries little book of inspirational stories" Elder Perry has it and it seems really cool.  This week flew by.  We don't have our flight plans yet, but I think we fly to Vegas and then from there go to Seoul.  Don't know how long the flight is but I know it's super long.  Some day's I think I know Russian and I'm getting the language but then the next day I realize I know nothing.  I am understanding cases a ton more than I thought I would.  Our teachers say that is the most important thing to get while you're in the MTC because you'll pick up the language when you're there but nobody will understand you no matter how many words you know if you can't conjugate right.  Love all the time we have to study the scriptures!  We have about an hour or 2 a day but it never seems long enough.  It's cool reading them from a missionaries perspective especially the sons of Helaman.  Whenever I read about them I substitute my name in for theirs and Russians in for Lamanites.  The people of Russia need this gospel.  They need hope in their lives.  That's what I can give them.  The poem I sent you yesterday is awesome!  Describes how religion isn't free in Russia and a lot of the time people don't get baptized because their family or friends would disown them if they did.  President Clark told us a story of how a man committed to be baptized and then missionaries warned him that because he had done that they would now prove to him the church is true.  They said up until the time he got baptized Satan would be throwing at him everything he's got.  And that the next few weeks were going to be really hard.  But he has no need to fear because God would be with him.  They got a call 2 hours later from that man saying that all his friends just beat him up.  SO the missionaries asked, "So what are you going to do?"  He said get baptized of course.  That proves what I'm doing is right.  Awesome people in Russia!  I can't wait

Love you all!  

Elder Wilding

BEST PACKAGE EVER

Somebody set traps

Way to remember Russian endings to some words

WHO ARE YOU BOY?

Who Are You, Boy?

Poem to Missionaries from Russian Convert, circa 2000

Who are you boy? For a boy you are,

Journeyed to this land of ours, 

This land where I've endured my days. 

And felt oppression kill my soul 

And force me into some tight mold. 

And teach me that I should not hope,

Unless I care to smell the smoke of dreams that the Red Army tamed.

Who are you boy? 

From this land of plenty, 

Teaching God, if there is any. 

You have all; we have none. 

Do you know what that feels like, son? 

And yet, you ask me to believe in something that I cannot see; 

Some force you say will bring me joy. 

Do you know what that feels like, boy? 

Where you're from, faith is free, 

But it has a price for me. 

When I have pain, I have my bottle. 

Hurt dies quick when you down it with Vodka. 

That's enough to warm my soul. 

I work, I sleep, the days go by--

I'm waiting for the day I die. 

You don't understand this place. 

You say believe, obey, have faith, 

Live life well, serve and give. 

Here in Russia, we just live.

Who are you, boy? 

Why did you come? 

To save a soul who once was numb. 

To teach a wretched, hateful, man who cursed your help, refused your hand. 

I thought that we were worlds apart. 

So how is it that you knew my heart? 

A fraction my age, you calmed my rage; 

Mercy paid my generous wage. 

I should have been left behind. 

It is hard to love my kind. 

Hope in your heart, power in your hands, 

Why did you come to this distant land? 

I know now, it was for me. 

The Red Curtain fell, but I was not free. 

Until a boy from nations away brought me my Lord. 

I bless the day. He led me to weep at my Master's feet. The American boy I met on the street--

New and naive, still in his teens, with a message to bring the world to its knees. 

I thought that the truth would come from another--I did not know

This boy was my brother.

1 Month Then Russia!

Family!!!!!!!!!!

I love P days!!!!  The other days are good as well but P day is always awesome!  We get to go to the temple in the morning and then we do our laundry and write letters home and try to plan a lesson and get to the gym to play some volleyball or 4-square or basketball!  The amount of things we can fit in a day when we plan our day the night before is outstanding to me.  Never knew how much time was in a day.  We had a super good speaker at the devotional last night!  He was an emeritus 70 and he told us 10 steps that if we do we will be a happy and successful missionary.  The steps were simple, and nothing I haven't ever heard before.  And then it hit me.  It's not a complicated thing to be a happy and successful missionary.  All I need to do is trust in the Lord, forget about myself, work hard, love the people and my companion, obey the mission president, love the scriptures and there were a few other steps, but it is basically that simple!  The gospel isn't complicated.  I didn't know of a surety that the gospel was true when I first left my mission.  I believed it was true and that's why I chose to serve but I know now that I'm here.  My testimony has grown and I know this church is true!  I love reading my patriarchal blessing!  I never realized until I was out here but my blessing predicted my mission call to Russia!  

At our district devotional last night a traveling counselor was in our classroom.  He goes around to different districts around the whole MTC.  He was telling us how going to Russia isn't going to be like just going to another part of the world.  It's going to be like going to Mars.  He said there won't be much we recognize besides that there are people there.  They eat food like we do although it is different and they want similar things out of life as we do.  I'll totally be out of my comfort zone but that's a good thing!  One of our teachers said, "There's not much learning found in a comfort zone, and not much comfort found in a learning zone."  That's when I'll learn and grow and gain experience not just for my mission but for my whole life.  In the devotional last night the man said that all mission calls are inspired from God. And he said more importantly than what language your learning, the country you're going to or even the people that are in your area that you will teach, is your mission president.  So basically he said that you get called to your mission president more than you get called to a mission.  When we met our mission president it was amazing!  I couldn't even believe how great he was.  He will have a huge impact on my life and I'm so lucky to have him!    

Our zone leaders left to Russia Monday morning at 3.  They are going to St. Petersburg.  They were great Elders and I'm going to miss them.  I've realized that no matter where you are you will make friends.   It felt that I have known those Elders far over just 4 weeks.  My teacher Brother Clark was telling us how we can't compare ourselves to anyone.  If we just do our best that's good enough for the Lord and he will take care of the rest!  I think about the scripture that I chose for my plaque.  When I am weak then I am strong!  Without the Holy Ghost I am nothing.  But with Him I can do all things!  The speaker last night said we should come back tri-lingual. I should know English, Russian but most importantly the language of the Spirit!  I love it in the MTC.  And yes mom the suit does fit!  The time goes by fast.  On Thursdays we change our bed sheets and every Thursday it feels like I changed my sheets the day before.  But Wednesday to Wednesday takes forever.  Time is a super weird thing.  Still teaching in Russia almost everyday.  I'm getting a lot better at the language!  Me and my companions just go in with the pamphlets for the lesson we are going to teach and the scriptures.  When I first got here I would write everything down I was going to say in a notebook and then underneath it write how it sounds in English!  Haha a lot has changed.  I can talk about some gospel topics really well but just normal conversation is something I don't know how to do.  We were playing rock paper scissors in Russian and the loser had to speak Russian the rest of the day and it was like 11 A.M.  It was best of one.  I pulled out paper and Elder Perry did scissors.  Let's just say that was the quietest I have ever been my whole time here.  I love thinking about the future and how I will know Russian and basically only little Deeds will know what I'm saying.  I really like having him here!  We played spike ball yesterday and it was so fun!  

Well things are going well here!  I was called here for a reason.  The Lord knows I can do it!  

Love

Elder Wilding

Last Sunday with the Elders

Last Sunday with the Elders

Our classroom mascot Vlad

This is for you mom.

Russian Hymn Book - Inside of hymn book with thumb and without

It was suppose to look like I was sitting on a throne of packages but
it just turned out awful haha

Last picture of Elder West *** Last pictures of Elders Larsen and Crookshank and Elder Berrios in the background **** "INVADE FOR MOTHER RUSSIA" *** One of our sisters got a wedding announcement from her crush haha

We put 6 pounds of gummie bears in Elder West's pillow

Pano of classroom

 My desk 

A MONTH ALREADY?

I can't believe it's been a month already!  Time truly does fly!  Meeting a lot of cool people here in the MTC.  I didn't realize that I said Russia would be easier than the MTC.  I obviously know it won't, must of been just a mistake or something.  This week has been good!  We had a devotional for a Emeritus 70.  His name Was Ben B. Banks!  Hilarious man!  Made us laugh then immediately brought the spirit!  We sing in the choir every Tuesday night and I think if you go on the internet you can watch it live but I don't know?  Me and my companions are usually on the screen though!  The Language of Russia is coming!  I can say a whole lot more than I could last week!  And that's all that matters!  Improvement!  The food has been really good this week!  I love saying, "Welcome to the MTC Elder/Sister" to all the new missionaries!  I remember when I was dropped off and it seems like just yesterday!  My teachers are amazing!  I can tell they actually care about us and want us to succeed!  One of my teachers said something really cool!  God didn't send you to fail.  He didn't!  I know I can rely on my Savior Jesus Christ at all times!

I went to the temple today!  Haven't been in 2 weeks because of it being closed for cleaning.  It was my second time coming since I've been in the MTC.  We had a very spiritual time and then went to the cafeteria!  The temple cafeteria is the best food ever!!  Tastes likes angels made the omelets!  Anyway while we were eating our food, a man came up to me and my companions and asked us what mission we were serving in.  We told him Vladivostok, Russia.  To my surprise but great joy he said that is the exact mission he served in only he got back from there 1 year and 4 months ago.  So he came down and sat next to us while we asked him thousands of questions about Vladivostok.  I asked him about the showers and the apartments and he said the showers are always hot, maybe even too hot.  He said that the apartments are usually really nice but he said he had a few that were infested with termites and cockroaches.  He then told me something that he said changed his mission.  He said that he wouldn't only be obedient but would be consecrated.  He said he got really good at planning so that he would know where he was going to be at every moment of the day.  He would make it so if he was on his way to somewhere he would talk to everyone on his way and if somebody didn't show up to an appointment that they would have a back up plan and go visit a member or inactive or just somebody nearby so that they always knew where they were going.  He said by doing this God could consecrate his plan of the day and put people in his path because he knew where they would be going.  I wish I could explain it like he did but he was a super cool guy!  He told us he had a really hard time his first few transfers and that it is really hard when you get out there.  I asked him how long it took him to learn the language and he said there was never really a point where he knew he knew it but he said that one day this guy comes into church and starts talking about how he was abducted by aliens and that he saw God in space and what not.  Even though the guy was straight up crazy he was like wow, I just understood all of that.  Really happy I got to meet and talk with him!  He made me excited and also let me know how important it is to plan and be obedient and always be doing something.  We asked him why he was in the temple and he said that last night he couldn't sleep and so he tried to walking or something and then realized he had a few more hours before he had class so he came to the temple!  God works in mysterious ways!  And good things happen to you when you are in holy places!  I know the reason he couldn't sleep last night is so he would go to the temple and then subsequently meet us and talk to us about Vladivostok. 

Tell Tanae congratulations for serving well!  This week I saw Derek and that was cool!  Our zone leaders are leaving at like 3 AM Monday morning.  Kinda sad because I'm going to miss them.  I don't know why I can't think of anything else to write down, it's like my mind when blank.  I think I'll play some sand volleyball today.  We play 4-square a lot at gym and that's really fun!  My flight is going to be like 30 hours or something like that. I won't get my flight plan for a few weeks.  The Elders that are leaving are flying to Germany and have a layover there for like an hour.  I heard a story where the people filling out the Visas accidentally checked male instead of female and it was a sister.  When she got to Russia they detained her for several hours and then let her go.  She had to remain in her apartment for a month until she got a visa.  That would be awful!

Well, I've got to go but I love you all!  I love getting your letters!  Sorry for not writing many handwritten ones lately but I've bust.  I bought a container of melted cheese to eat with chips.  So I opened it a few days ago and didn't realize you have to refrigerate it after you open it.  Today we opened it and it was growing hair.  YUCK.  It was disgusting and sad because I was really looking forward to eating that cheese.  I met that one girl that Taylor knows that CJ was dating her best friend.  She told me to tell you you're cool hahahah.  

Love you all!

Elder Wilding

PPS

Can't believe it has been ten years.  I think about Tyson all the time.  I know he is here with me.  I watched the Joseph Smith movie and when his brother Alvin dies I feel like I could relate to Joseph a whole lot.  It said that Alvin was Joseph's hero on earth.  That's what Tyson was for me.

I miss him everyday.

Elder Wilding

VLAD THE DRAGON

Me and D-Wank (Elder Wankier)

GOOD QUOTE

WEEK THREE

JULY 8, 2015
Already week 3 what???????  The time flies like crazy!   I love the devotionals that we have every Tuesday and Sunday nights!  They are so uplifting!  Last night we got Elder Spencer J. Condie of the 70.  He kinda looked like President Hinckley but more stern of a face.  When he talked he was about the funniest speaker I've ever heard!  Completely surprised me!  He talked about Joseph Smith and the first vision.  What a powerful testimony that man has.  He knows of a surety that the gospel is true and that God the Father and the Son appeared to Joseph.  He quoted President Hinckley a few times and every time he would do it he would impersonate him.  If I closed my eyes I would have thought Gordon B. Hinckley was there because of how good he was impersonating him!  He told a story of how some preacher from another church said to President Hinckley, "That's very egotistical to say you're the only true church."  President Hinckley said, "I didn't say it, God did.  I'm just quoting Him."  He also told of an investigator question the truth of the first vision and he told them, "We have witnesses!  Ask God, he was there."  He phrased it a lot better than I did just now but just an inspired man!

So for the 4th we had a special devotional!  The speaker was very good!  He told a cool quote that one of the prophets said, it was more or less, the day Christ shall come back, I firmly believe the stars and stripes will be flying.  That promise is amazing!  I wish I would have wrote down exactly what he said and which prophet it was, too bad.  After the devotional we all went outside and watched the BYU fireworks from a certain area in the MTC.  Only problem was that there were a lot of tall trees in the way so you couldn't see the fireworks very well.  Still an awesome experience to be able to celebrate this nation's holiday while in the US for the last time in a while!  We got to go to bed later then 10:30!  I think the fireworks ended at 11.

So the Russians celebrate Christmas on a different day than we do in America.  I'll get to wish you happy birthday Dad!  They celebrate it on January 7th!  And that's when I call home instead of the 25th.  I guess this could just be a rumor but some of the elders going to Saint Petersburg said that on New Years everyone gets drunk and goes crazy in the streets so it's dangerous to go outside.  They said that we can watch Disney movies on New Years!  Just to keep us from going out of our room.  Apparently it's pretty wild for about 3 days after.  I really hope we will get to do that!  Everyone here always asks me if I've seen Anastasia.  A Disney movie about a princess in Russia.  I haven't but maybe that's a good thing because I heard the Russians hate that movie.

I am so grateful for my call!  Russia?  What a place to experience!  There is this crazy counselor who works at the MTC and goes around to different branches sacrament meetings and church meetings throughout the day.  He spoke in sacrament and he was talking about the Siberian tigers in the woods.  Haha he was excited about it it was awesome!  Taylor, I meet a teacher here who used to live in Sao Palo or however you spell it.  He served in Brazil and then moved here to go to BYU.  Anyway his name was brother Alves.  Don't worry Bryce I asked him and he said he is not related to Dani.  Anyhow his brother served in Belem and got home like 5 months ago so that would be cool if you served with his brother.  He is really an awesome guy!

It's a privilege to serve!  I only have 2 years to bring as many souls into salvation as I can.  I love it in the MTC!  It's a extremely spiritual place!  It's kinda weird there's some people here that I feel like I have know before we meet in the MTC.  Haha it seems like everyone here is either home-schooled, goes to BYU, or was in band.  Haha my companions are cool though!  Brother Clark who served in Vlad told us to buy mittens so we get skin to skin contact.  He said he would have his hands in his pockets moving his fingers around all day because of the cold.  I started singing "I'm leaving on a jet plane" and it has really caught on in our dorm.  We have all agreed to sing it at the airports because will be always be flying with each other because we will need to renew our visas at the same time.  Maybe in a bathroom or something because we probably shouldn't do that in public!  

Thanks for everyone's prayers and thoughts!  I love being out here!  Best job in the world!  I had this amazing quote from a Russian person  but I can't remember it.  Wait now I do. "If anyone could prove to me that Christ is outside the truth, and if the truth really did exclude Christ, I should prefer to stay with Christ and not the truth."  That's from Fyodor - whatever his last name is- I sent you a different quote of his last week but this one is my favorite! Love you all!!!!!!!!!!!

Elder Wilding

PS

The packages are awesome!  One request is send more of the mini starbursts!  Those were gone the night we got them!

Light saber in hand upside down!

At the Fireworks

Elder Barr's Aunt is amazing!!!!  She sent us an entire meal!  
Me with Tanforce

With Elder Dallin

Our room decorated for the 4th * With Jordan * The view from my room (sheep) * The MTC gets to some people

Elder Dallin and Elder Robinson

The Russia Vladivostok Mission includes much of Siberia and some of the harshest weather on the planet, including Yakutsk, the coldest city on earth.  Their average daily temperature in winter months is -37 F!