Hey Everybody!                                                                                       September 28, 2012

I am now pushing my 7th week here at the MTC. It's been nuts to experience how fast the days and weeks go by. I guess that is how it goes when you're busy learning and working hard. First off thank you so much for the packages!! Dad was saying how Mom is really pullin' through with some awesome packages...I couldn't agree more! I loved those caramel apples so much! The apples from the apple tree are easily my favorite apples ever, and they reminded me of home :) I shared them with my district and they also really liked them. Thanks also for those funny stickers Mom! It was fun passing out stickers to all the guys in my district and stuff. You should see the back of my name-tag...it looks cool haha. Also I've had fun with the bouncy balls, silly putty, and flarrrp. It's keeping me sane ;) Anyway it sounds like everybody is doing really good. Dad everything with work sounds really awesome. Thanks for telling me about the book drive and 5K that you're involved in. Sounds like a great cause! Also, that's exciting the hear about the house in St. George. It will be fun when I get to see it in a few years. Just to answer some questions, yeah Dad I've been playing quite a bit of basketball and my knee feels great, no problems there. We also play soccer and other stuff sometimes so that we can be better when we go to Mexico. Also, I never got the email from Tyler, I don't know why. Make sure he sent it to the right email: ryan.kitchen@myldsmail.net. I'm glad he wrote me, so make sure he tries to send it again, thanks! So the singing went really well. We were all really nervous, but we all feel like we did really well. I'm glad I got the opportunity to do that. I will never forget the experience. And Mom yeah we have all wondered if we could see a recording as well, but we haven't really found out about it. It would be cool if there was some kind of recording of it.

So I'll tell you a little bit about what is going on with me this week. This week our zone and district experienced a whole lot of changes. For some odd reason we were re-assigned to a completely different building of residence. So, one night we packed everything up, and then in the morning we hauled everything to a different room. Our residence now is a whole lot nicer and newer, so I won't complain. Also, it is that time when they change up all the district leaders and stuff. During the MTC experience they change the district leaders every few weeks so that people can have the experience to learn and step up and serve. President Claybaugh (our branch president) asked if I would serve as the new District Leader. I'm grateful for this opportunity to learn and grow as a District Leader. I hope that I can do the best for the District. It should be fun. Also, I thought I'd let you know about the visa situation. Most of the Peru Elders (3 of 4) have already got their visas and have left. There is 4 elders going to different parts of Mexico and they have already got their visas as well, and are good to go for October 15th. But the 4 of us that are going to Puebla have not got our visas yet...I'm praying' that it will come soon! Anyway everything is going great here, and I'm determined to make the very best with the time I have left here in the MTC. This week we have been learned what is called Subjunctive Grammer in Spanish, and it completely turned our world upside down! Ha, it's okay I know I'll get it down.

Well thank you all again for all of your love and support each and every week. I was thinking about this the other day: What would I be without my family? Nothing. So thank you all for everything. I love you guys. I am the person I am today because of the things that you've taught me. I wish you all health and happiness. Here is a good quote from President Packer: "If all you know in life is the things you see with your natural eyes and the things you hear with your natural ears...you don't know very much at all." I am so grateful that we have the Gospel Light in our lives, and that we have had the great blessing of enjoying it for our whole lives. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is such a blessing. By living by Gospel, we decide to use our agency in a positive way that not only affects our lives, but the lives of others. I loved hearing that you all are making a good effort to read the scriptures and pray together! It really makes all the difference in the world. Make sure you all also make an effort to study, ponder, and pray personally, so that you can have the strength and personal revelation that will bless your live and the lives of others. It is a commandment from God that we ALL do these things, so that we can be close to him :) So that we can become better people. So that we can become more like our Savior. I love you guys and I look forward to hearing from you next week!

Love Elder Kitchen