Week 5: Last Week in the CCM

Hola Familia y Amigos!!!

It's my last P Day here in the CCM! I leave for Xalapa on Monday morning at 6:30 in the morning. We are going by bus which is interesting because a lot of missions closer are flying but I think its because we have 15 missionaries all heading to Xalapa together. Its gonna be a hoot. I got made Travel Leader which is fun because I get to inform everyone of the travel plans except I had to tell the Latino District coming with us which I was scared of because they dont speak english. Luckily theres one elder who speaks both so he was able to translate. Dodged a bullet on that one.

Other than that nothing really happened! Elder Doman and I have really gotten to know the Districts in our Zone which is fun because there are some great missionaries here. We had to say goodbye to two Districts this last week which was sad because we got so close but they are going to do some great things out in the field. After they left its been tough to motivate ourselves to study because we know how close the end of the CCM is but we are trying to push ourselves. Not a whole ton has happened honestly. The CCM is funny becuase it is just the same thing day after day week after week so we really run out of fun things to do. So I guess its good that we are leaving this week because we have kinda hit our limit here. We are all so excited to go out and serve and be the best we can be. I know that our entire district is going to do great work and Im just excited to see what everyone does.

Something that is really fun is that we have gotten really close to our two teachers, Hermano Hernandez and Hermana Cabrera. Hermano Hernandez teaches the morning and Hermana Cabrera teaches the afternoon and so being with them half of every day gets us pretty close to them. They are both like 22 and 21 years old so we can joke around with them because deep down they are still just goof balls. On the ground all over the MTC are these little seed pods type things that are pretty hard and easy to kick so we all try and meg each other with them (kick it between their legs). We do it a ton with Hermano Hernandez which gets super funny and he does it back. We have gotten pretty good at it. We also play a lot of legit games for Spanish language learning which are fun also because then we get to have fun and learn some spanish. I really like our district and am gonna be sad to see some of them go because they are going to Oaxaca, Mexico and Fresno, California.

Something really cool about the CCM is that we get to watch every Sunday exclusive MTC videos from apostles when they came to the MTCs. The one we got to watch a couple weeks ago was with Elder Holland about missionary work and the importance of the new Preach my Gospel program (this was a few years ago obviously). In it he talks about the importance of "feeding His sheep" just like Jesus asked Peter to do three times after he came back to meet them. His talk really fired me up because he shared about the importance of teaching investigators by love and by the spirit. He pushed us to study hard and dedicate these two years to the service of the Lord. I know the importance of this work and know how much I can bless people's lives if Im being the best I can be. I love this work.

Love you all and hope you're doing great, 

Elder Anderson

1. The BYU boysssss (elder Powley and elder johnson)

2. Former Zone Leaders and new Zone Leaders

3. Hermana Taylor and Hermana Longhurst!

4. Me at the Mexico City temple!

 

Week 4: Mexico City Temple & Immigration

Hola Familia y Amigos!!

Gotta be quick but here’s my update this week!

Time is flying by here! Can’t believe it’s already been a month since I’ve been out. Everything is going good, we really do just do the same thing over and over again which can get a little frustrating and boring but at the same time it’s been really nice to “eliminate the variables” in a way and just focus on our Spanish and our gospel study. But besides that, there were a couple really fun things that happened. 

We just barely got back from the Mexico City temple which was awesome. It’s huge and beautiful and just an awesome experience to be able to go. There is awesome a really cool store on the grounds that sells really cool ties so we loaded up on that. It was also nice to get outside the walls and see a little bit of Mexico. Also last Friday I went to immigration so now I’m legally aloud to stay here!!! It was also great to see a ton of the city and got me super excited to leave. 

In other news Elder Doman and I got made Zone Leaders of our Branch! How the CCM works is that there are districts of about 10 people and then a branch/zone makes up about 5 districts so now we get to oversee about 50 ish missionaries. It’s a very exciting opportunity and I’m just excited to get to know and serve the missionaries in my branch. Even if it is only just for like 2 more weeks. 

Well that’s about all for this week! I wish I had a little more time to share some stuff but I’ll make sure to share more and have some pics next week! I just want to end by saying how grateful I am for all of you who have made me into the person I am. I know I wouldn’t be in this position to serve and love the people of Xalapa without the wonderful influences you have all been in my life. 

I love you all lots and I’ll talk to you all next week (my last pday at the mtc ahhhhh!)

Elder Anderson 

Here are two pics I just took:

 

1. Of my new fresh really short haircut 

2. Of my ties I just bought 

 

Week 3: Chokis

Hola Familia y Amigos!!!

Hope all is well! Its been a short time since I emailed last but ya know thats how the Mexico MTC Be sometimes!! Anyways all is doing great here. We are just working hard, doing the same thing over and over again. Learning a ton of spanish. Elder Doman and I have been continuing to give lessons to our teachers and it has been awesome to see our growth. Gift of Tongues is real here people and its been so crazy to see how comfortable I have been able to get with the language. Still have a long looooong way to go but in just three short weeks I have been able to learn so much. Crazy stuff. 

At the tienda here in the Mexico CCM there are Mexican cookies called Chokis. They are like Chips a hoy on steroids and we are like addicted to them. Every week at the tienda Elders get 100 pesos to spend and hermanas get 120 (ridiculous I know) and we probably blow roughly 80-100% of it on Chokis. We've gotten to the point were we will bet each other a sleeve of Chokis if we can memorize a verse or speak in spanish for a whole day. Its been a good time. Get your hands on a sleeve of Chokis if you have the opportunity, it'll change your life. 

On a slightly more spiritual note, we watched a video about obedience in a devotional last sunday and they showed a talk which included a story about surfers who were upset about a barrier in the sea that was blocking them from surfing the bigger waves. However, after further examination of the barrier with binoculars they were able to see that the barrier was blocking hungry sharks from entering the beach and keeping everyone safe. The line that was impactful for me was when he said, "Don't be too critical of the barrier, its the only thing keeping from being devoured". Sometimes I look at some of these mission rules we have and think we are pointless or unimportant and sometimes we can look at the commandments the Lord has set and feel the same way. But I promise that these "barriers" are protecting us from far greater threats that we can't see with the naked eye.

I love you all, hope you're doing so great, continue to email me with pictures because I love seeing how your lives are doing!!

Hasta Miercoles!

Elder Anderson

anderson.jack@missionary.org

1. Chokissssssssssss

 

2. Aloe Water Mexico Editionnnnnn

 

3. All of the Chokis we bought today

 

4. A mural in the Joseph Smith building that was cool

 

 

Week 2.5: Superior Genes in the CCM

Hola familia y amigos!!!!

Almost through Week 3 in the Mexico City CCM!! Before I begin, my mission email is anderson.jack@missionary.org and I would love to hear updates and see pictures about your lives!! Also, the website missionarypackagemx.com has a free letter service where you can type and send letters to the CCM and I can read them on days other than my P Day!! 

The CCM is lots of fun, spending like the whole day with people makes you really close and thats how I feel about my district. We have so much fun together and Im lucky to have the group that I have with me. Its been so awesome to see our growth as a district language wise and faith wise and I just know we are becoming powerful missionaries by the day. I am in a weird place right now where I know I need to learn and practice but Im also just so excited to leave for Xalapa. I guess I have no control over it so Im just thinking about how I need the to keep practicing to leave and serve. 

We do these things where we "role play" teaching our teachers lessons. It has been so awesome to see me and my companions growth as the lessons feel more natural and we are definitely learning how to serve and invite the spirit into our lessons. Its also making me anxious to get out and teach actual people. Except for the fact that I know our teachers talk extra slow for us and Im scared to hear them speak at normal speed. Our teachers have also challenged us to talk to 5 actual latino missionaries a day about what we have been learning. So its funny to see one of us go up with our Spanish booklet and have a conversation about where we are from and what we are learning. But the latinos are all really nice so they are patient with us.

In other news 3 people in our district threw up this past week. And another person in another district in our branch got a parasite. But Ive got superior genes and a stronger stomach so Im not even scared. The CCM chicken is no match for my stomach. 

Last Sunday we watched a devotional by Elder Bednar which was really awesome. He basically talked about the character of Christ and his message was for us to lose ourselves in the work and become more like Christ. He shared some really powerful stories that really touched me and showed me the power of service. I cant wait to serve and I know that I will be so blessed in all aspects of my life when I put service to others over myself. I want to look outward instead of inward and I want to challenge you guys to do that same. 

I actually have pics this week!!

1. Me and Elder Doman mi compañero! 

2. Me and my man Elder Powley (BYU) 

3. Me and my man Elder Johnson (also BYU) 

4. A pic of the MTC on a beautiful Sunday and you can see a little bit of the giant wall that keeps the peeps safe

Love you all! Hasta Miercóles!

Elder Anderson

 

 

Week 1: The CCM

Hola Amigos y Familia!!!

I have officially completed my first week at the Mexico City CCM. Not gonna lie, it felt like a month but it was so good. Learned so much Spanish and have been making a lot of great relationships. Here are some of the highlights:

I landed in Mexico City last Tuesday at like 5 and had to wait like 2 hours until we could leave the airport. Apparently some Hermana was coming from another airport and had to Uber over to us. The lady that picked us up also said there was an Elder who had to change to Provo so that made me sad because I knew it was Elder Clark... rip. 

When we finally got there I went into my casa and found out that I am staying in the same building as Elder Johnson and Elder Powley, two really close buds from BYU so that was awesome to have and really relaxing.

My companion is Elder Doman, who is fresh out of high school and is from Missouri and will be going to BYU when he gets back. We get along really well and both know a good amount of spanish so we are pushing ourselves to keep going. I have 12 people in my district, 10 elders and 2 hermanas, and we all have lots of fun together which is good because we are together like all day every day. We make a ton of jokes and have fun with our teachers which keeps the mood light. 6 of the elders are going to Xalapa and the other 4 are going to Oaxaca. One of the elders looked up the word for beautiful which is hermoso, so now whenever someone does something good we say Hermosoooooooo. Its a lot funnier than Im making it sound I promise. Maybe we are just a little laugh happy because we've been grinding hard on that español. We get gym time every morning and play some volleyball and I have been taking over and taking straight dubs even with the fact that we arent allowed to keep score. My high school volleyball experience is really shining through here. 

Other than that we have been working hard and learning a ton of Spanish. Its crazy how much you learn here at the CCM. Its good to see a ton of friends from BYU in the comedor and around campus, its almost like a little bit of an efy or BYU type thing idk. 

I just want to end with a tiny spiritual thought. We have been learning so much spanish but we always make sure to study more personal time to learn about the gospel than about our language. I want to challenge everyone that if you feel like you are swamped or have so much to do, make sure you find time to dedicate to the Lord and you will be blessed tremendously. I have seen that time and time again here and I have no doubt it can help.

I love and miss you all so much,

Elder Anderson

ps: we are only allowed to take pics sundays from 5-7 and on pdays so I dont have any pics but Ill make sure to get you some coming up.

Note from Mom:  Here are some pics from our first video chat with Elder Anderson today! (July 3, 2019) It was so good to see him and hear all about his past week!