Email from Sara 9/16/08

Dear Family (and anyone else who might read this =),

Life at the MTC is going well. Right now the laundry is going and we only have a few more hours before I have to go back to the skirt and nylons. I guess I'm kind of getting used to that, but it's still not my favorite.

Thanks for all the letters I've received! Yesterday was a great mail day and I got four letters! Happy Day!

Alright, I'm going to try to answer questions that were posed in the letters. I may have answered some of these before but I don't remember so if you're getting duplicates, me dispiachi.

Okay, my companion and I are the only sorelle in my district and there are 10 anziani. They are great and it puts a little pressure on the sisters because they all seem to look up to the sisters.

There were 26 missionaries that came in with me who are all going to either Rome or Milan. In my room there are 6 sorelle. My companion, Sorella Hawkey, is from Arizona and we get along so so well. I actually told her this morning how thankful I am that we're on the same page most of the time and even when we aren't that we're not so stuck on different pages that we can't work things out. We're both pretty laid back about little things and agree on the important things, like being obedient and learning, etc. It works out great. She took a semester of Italian at BYU so she helps me A LOT! She's only a year younger than me and graduated from BYU with a degree in MFHD, and taught junior high for a semester before coming on a mission. We have fun and enjoy being companions.

Last Tuesday I went to the temple with my zone and it was so great to see all of my new friends there. I was reminded of Alma when he rejoiced that his brethren were still his brethren in the Gospel. We were also privileged to hear from President and Sister Uchtdorf last Tuesday and we look forward to another fantastic devotional tonight.

The days in the MTC can be so so so So long. But the time is already seeming to fly by. The Italian is coming very slowly, but it is coming. As long as I have a chart with all the rules I seem to do okay, but as soon as I try to actually put a sentence together in my head everything falls apart. Every Monday we go to the LRC- Language resource center. There we do "door approaches" to volunteers. We do them in Italian. Before we go we practice all sorts of phrases and approaches and all that good stuff, but it seems like as soon as they open the door that everything I've tried to remember jumps out of my head. Very frustrating. But I guess I can get the general idea across even if the grammar and pronunciation is very very very wrong. After our LRC we have a "Teaching Appointment" where we go back and teach the volunteer one of the lessons. For the past two weeks we have been teaching lesson one on the Restoration. Teaching has gone very well for me and my companion- we work well together and have been able to feel the spirit very strongly when we've been teaching. It's a testimony builder for me to feel how the spirit will help you when you sincerely pray before you teach. I love the message of the first lesson and feel so grateful to have that knowledge in my life. That I am a child of God, that He loves me and wants to answer my prayers. That Heavenly Father wants us to have the truth and not wander in darkness and confusion.

The Italian is rather poor, but apparently Dad was disappointed that I didn't put more Italian in my last letter, so I'll leave my testimony (It's one of the only things I know in Italian :) I am using my notes this time though, so hopefully it is a little more.... uh... right.

La mia testimonianza:

Io so che Padre Celeste e Gesu Cristo amano tutti i loro figli. Io so che Padre eleste ha un piano per me. Io so che Dio ha restaurato il vangleo di Gesu Cristo mediante Joseph Smith. Io so che Joseph Smith e un profetta e Thomas S Monson e un profetta oggi. Io so che le famiglie sono eterne. Io so che il Libro di Mormon e vero. Io so che dio guida la mia vita. Io so che Gesu Cristo e il nostro Redentore e Salvatore.

Nel nome de Gesu Cristo, Amen.

I love you all and look forward to more letters!! Thanks for the endless love and support!!!

Love,

Sorella Leckie.

p.s.- I'm going to try to attach some pictures but I'm running out of time. We had a regular photo shoot at the temple the other day, so this is what you get. It's my zone and the sisters. Okay, apparently that's not allowed, I'll print off some pictures to mail... Okay... I'll talk to ya all next week!!! Love ya!