Okay I dont have a lot of time and I have a lot to relate so I will
jump right in. This week was AMAZING. On Tuesday we went out
proselyting in the streets of Guatemala with our Latina companions. It
was beautiful and crazy and a lot of fun. We probably had 80 people
crammed into a school bus sized bus to get there (there were about 50
missionaries). When we got to our destination they gave us about a
half mile worth of streets and told us to get to work. The experience
was amazing. Even though I couldnt understand a lot of what was being
said, I could understand enough and even communicate back a little. We
placed a few Books of Mormon  and folletos and got addresses from some
people. It is amazing to me to see the circumstances that some of the
people live in here. We talked to an old man with no teeth and shoes
that had holes worn all the way through them and a shirt that was
barely being held together. It breaks my heart and makes we want to do
something to help them. I am so grateful that the gospel blesses us
temporally as well as spiritually and that I can share that with the
people here. So a funny story about proselyting. Hermana Martinez and
I contacted this woman on the street and I started the conversation.
In my limited Spanish I asked her where she was going and she looked
at me all suspicous and asked why I wanted to know. I told her that
was the only phrase I knew in spanish and we laughed a little about it
and we ended up placing a Book of Mormon. The Lord really does use our
weaknesses!                          Okay so the other HUGE highlight
of the week. ON Wed. Hermana Melgar (my teacher) pulled Hermana Heiner
and I aside and told us that we were going to start teaching a real
investigator. His name is Estuardo and he is a security guard here at
the CCM. We of course were excited out of our minds and also really
scared because our spanish is still struggling but we went out right
that minute and met him and set up an appointment to teach him the
following day. So the next day rolled around and it came time for our
lesson with Estuardo. Hermana Melgar came with us to help us and
translate if we couldnt follow. It was one of the most amazing
experiences of my life. He is so prepared for the gospel. We sat down
and I asked him if he had any questions to start of with and he
immediately asked about Joseph Smith. So we taught the apostacy and
first vision to him and talked about how Joseph Smith was just a
regular guy he wanted to know which church was correct and prayed to
recieve an answer. He looked at us and said, Oh, so Joseph Smith is
like me? We told him yes and he said: Oh, so I need to pray to know if
this is the true church? Yeah...I know... golden. So anyways, we
talked to him about how Gods power has been restored to the earth and
how if he is baptized and worthy he can recieve it too, which got him
really excited because he said that a lot of churches here are set up
so that only those with connections or money can have positions in the
church. Anyway, we asked him to pray and then be baptized and he said
he would if he recieved the answer the church was true. We are meeting
with him again hopefully next week so PLEASE pray for him. I dont know
why I was given the opportunity to teach him out of all the people in
the CCM because to be quite honest with you, I didnt do that great of
job during our lesson, but this whole experience has confirmed to me
that the Holy Ghost is the real teacher.                 Well familia
I have to end my letter now, but I just want to say that I got  your
Dear Elders this week and it made my day. Because mail is unreliable
here and takes a long time, emails are probably the safest bet for the
future, especially because I dont know if I will get your dear elders
before I leave for the field in 3 semanas. Anyway, I love you all and
know that God loves and blesses his children.  Love, Hermana Manning

Familia! First off I just want to thank you Dad for writing me. It
really means a lot. I know you know this. Also, the mail here is super
slow and that includes Dear Elder. For the package that Jimbo was
going to send to me, if she hasnt already she should use my first name
in addressing the package and not hermana. Also dont put guatemala mtc
in  the address. Now on to better things. This week has gone so fast.
Some of the highlights are 1) On Thursday the Nortes got to go to the
temple. The Guatemala temple is a smaller temple and they packed 39 of
us into one session. It was actually pretty funny because some of the
sisters had to sit pretty close to the Elders and everyone was really
awkward. I got to do part of the session in Spanish though which was
really cool. 2) Here in Guatemala we have something called La Casa CRE
where we teach members. For our first week we got to be the members
being taught which was really fun, but this week we taught families
that had driven from Honduras to come to the temple. It is amazing to
me that they make the sacrifice every month to come to the temple.
There faith and diligence is inspiring. I couldnt understand a lot of
what they said but I am starting to pick up more words here and there.
3) For chuch this Sunday we got to leave the CCM and go to a little
chapel by the temple. The whole service was in Spanish so I didnt
understand a lot of it, but I definitely felt the spirit. They had the
Norte hermanas do a musical number and it just reaffirmed to me the
power of music in communicating the spirit. For Relief Society they
pulled the Norte Hermanas in a room and talked to us about the things
we can expect for bathrooms, etc. in the mission field and the kinds
of sicknesses people get... it was awesome. In the night we got to
listen to an address Elder Holland gave at the MTC about the spirit
and PMG. It was AMAZING. We got to watch it in the presidents
appartment which was like a little piece of home. All of the new
Nortes piled on his couches and it was kind of like being home on
Sunday night with the whole family. 4) I have been getting to know my
Latina roommates and they are so sweet. It is amazing to me to hear
their stories. Some of them have only been converts for a few years or
are the only members in their family. They help us with our spanish
and we teach the phrases in English. It seems to me that they are
picking up English faster than we are spanish and we spend all day
studying it! 5) My teachers are amazing. I have so much love and
respect for them. They are all Latino and teach us in a mix of mostly
spanish with a little english every now and again, but most
importantly they teach by the spirit. So many times this week, they
said or did something that opened my mind and heart to new knowlege or
a new perspective. One of those times was on Wednesday. I had been
having a really frustrating day and was starting to get discouraged.
One of my teachers could tell that something was different with me and
my companion and asked us to come have a talk with her. We were able
to talk out our frustrations but more importantly she taught me how to
meet the needs of the people you teach. She sat and listened and had
us act. Then she guided us to answer our own questions and finally
testified of truth with the spirit. This is what missionary work is!
Anyway, I am so happy to hear that all of you are doing well. I pray
for you throughout the day every day. I love you all. se que Dios nos
ama y que Jesucristo sabe nuestras pruebas y como ayudarnos. La
iglesia es verdadera. -Hermana Manning P.S. I am learning to roll my
Rs and I am getting closer!

Okay,

I know that I am going to talk to you in a little, but just to keep everyone updated here is a recap of this last week.

 

In the MTC there is a glorious period of time called "gym" and I discovered this week that there are records to be broken for girls and boys. The girls three point record was only 3 threes in a row but you only get to try and break it once a day. Well I set a goal, I practiced, and .... failed miserably- yeah I'm a disgrace I know. The three point record is still up for the taking so Seesters work towards a mission and get your name down in MTC history. On a brighter note, we had a new group of Elders come in and they were playing lightening. I asked if I could join them and they kind of said yes so I jumped in line.... and took them all down. Definitely a highlight of my week.

 

On a more spiritual note, this last week was definitely the hardest I have had since being in the MTC. Along with our 2 investigators, Hrma. Pearson and I also had to teach to TRC lessons and be in charge of District Meeting. In the moment, it felt like it would be physically impossible to do everything that needed to get done, but the Lord does not make His servants do His work without help. We somehow made it through and at the end of the day every single person in our district had reached a new level of  humility. Our inspired teacher Hermano Piperato asked all of us to go around the room and bear our testimonies in one sentence and it was a powerful experience. I invite you all to take a moment and think about what you have the Lord has given you to testify of in the last few days. I promise that if you do so, you will see the Lord's hand in your life and feel the confirming power of the spirit.

 

Another powerful experience also took place last night as we had our final lesson in the Provo MTC on teaching investigators how to pray. Our teachers taught the lesson and then invited our District Leader to say a prayer. After he did, they just sat and let all of us soak in the feelings permeating the room. As I did, I realized that I have not been taking the time to listen during my prayers. If there is one thing I have learned since coming to the MTC it is that the Lord is always trying to give us more and help us grow but we have to decide to recieve it by taking action. I bore my testimony of this and then Hrmo. Piperato asked all of the sisters to share their testimony of prayer. What an amazing experience. Preach My Gospel says that all truth must be revealed through prayer and I know that this is true. Pray. Do it on your knees and vocally and then sit quietly and listen and I promise that you will feel the Lord's love for you.

 

I have just a few items of business:

1- I will be calling with a calling card around 4-6 ish probably so be ready. I will call once. Please answer. Then I will hang up and call with on a cheaper program so be ready so I can make the most of my minutes.

 

2- Also, thank you so much for the Dear Elder, Madison. It compeletely made my day. I love hearing what is going on with all of  you so please email me and feel free to attach pictures.

 

3- I don't know if the package was ever sent, but I still haven't gotten my green blouse or debit card and I am leaving for Guatemala now..... So yeah. If you would like to send me something in the future, I have been told to have you put it in a shoe box and keep it under 5 pounds and it will be more likely to reach me.

 

Se que nuestra iglesia is verdadera. Jesucristo es el Salvador y Dios amo todas personas. La expiacion ha poder cambiar nuestras vidas. Me amo ustedes.

The next time I write I will be in Guatemala!

 

Hermana Manning

 

Mi Familia!

 

Week 2 has officially ended and I have a lot to say and only a few minutes to type so hold on.

 

Items of business:

1) I have my travel plans. I fly to Guatemala in a week. You might be able to get a phone call from me so please send me the number you would like me to call you on in a Dear Elder. Also, if I could get my green shirt mailed to me quickly that would be amazing.

 

2)Thank you for your letters. I love them. Just so you know, Dear Elder is amazing. If you write to me I will get the letter the same day and it is freeeee!!! Also, Hermano y hermanas, I would love to hear from you personally.

 

3) Congratatualtions to everyone. It sounds like you guys are doing awesome.

 

Okay, on to the carne of the email. Here at the MTC they try to encourage the sisters to observe what has been termed "quiet dignity." While I try my best, I do not always meet this standard. Below are some examples.

 

1) While playing volleyball I got a little excited when the other team set me up with the ball right on the net. I slammed it as hard as I could and did a little bit of trash talking. Later that day, the Elder that was playing the net came and showed me his hand and I had jammed his pinky and it was swollen and bruised. The Elder? You guessed it, Elder Fuimaono.

 

2) I dropped my tray in the cafeteria and broke to plates. I now know where there is a "no cheering when plates break in the cafeteria'' rule.

 

3) Hermana Pearson and I have a lot of fun together and one day this resulted in a race to the showers. In flip flops. On wet tile. You can imagine the scene we made.

 

4) On Sunday we get to watch a church movie and this week the movie was Legacy. Before the film started, we were warned that there were romantic scenes and we were not to make in catcalls when they came up. So when the mushy parts came along, the whole gym exploded into a loud shushing sound. 19 year old boys are awesome.

 

5) The Elders wrote all of our names on the whiteboard in our classroom and the a at the end of one of the Hermanas got erased so we are now the Hermans.

 

Okay, onto the more important things.

 

We got all new teachers this week, and one of them is Hermano Jarman. Jp he served with you in Spain and was wondering if you remember him. He is an amazing teacher and although my spanish is still nasty, I feel like I am learning a lot, and I feel the Lord's hand in my life. This week as I was studying committments it all clicked for me and I realized that when we show the Lord we are committed by making a plan and taking action, we open ourselves up to recieve his help. I testify that this principle applies to all aspects of life whether it be learning Spanish, praying about the Book of Mormon, or learning to love someone. The Lord blesses those who commit themselves.

This week I also really got hit with the humility stick. I don't have time to relate the whole story, but I will say this, I have learned that I must come to trust in the converting power of the gospel and Holy Ghost. A lot of the time I think I was scared to share the gospel because I didn't know how to entice or convince others to accept it, but the truth of the matter is that the gospel is true and because of that, those who take the action that the Lord has lined out in the scriptures, will feel of its truthfulness and be converted. (Proverbs 3:5-6).

 

Well family, I love you and am so grateful for your support. Yo se que Dios ama familias y el quiere nuestro familia recibir paz y gozo en esta vida. El evangelio bendice f amilias. Jesucristo es el Salvador.

 

I love you all!

Hermana Manning