oh my heck! zao gao. i cannot believe that it's time for me to go. i'm freaking out a little. i feel like i have a lot more to do. but i'm going, stepping into the dark, with faith that our heavenly father will put something beneath my feet. i'm sure he will.
so, this week has been nuts. it has gone by super fast and has been so hard to focus. i don't think i've ever wasted so much time at the mtc. it seems like my brain is always a million places. what freaks me out (and needs to stop) is that if i'm not thinking about
this saturday was our last at the trc/lrc and we had the best experience! qian laoshi put us in a room with a REAL investigator from mainland china, everyone was sort of jealous. she's teaching mandarin in
after the trc we took pictures with our district and had a final testimony meeting. i am surrounded by the best of the best. i feel so unworthy of their friendship. really, my district could be translated. i love them and will miss them, but we're all going to gaoxiong. : )
i'm not sure what else to tell you. i have so many thoughts that seem so muddled and messy.
i am so grateful for what i've learned in the mtc. before coming here i took so much of the gospel for granted. i regret not reading the book of mormon everyday, skipping prayers and not utilizing the atonement to it's fullest. we are so blessed to have the knowledge we do. we are truly loved by our heavenly father and by the savior, jesus christ. the mtc has been hard, but so happy. i hope i have grown, i feel like i have. i pray that i'll be able to help the people of
the next year and a half will be tough, but i know they will be great. i was flipping through my planner and found a sticky note that said, "just know that it will be wonderful." it was something qian laoshi said to us once. i don't remember exactly what the context was, but i feel like we can say it about all that lays ahead of us. heavenly father wants us to be happy, and if we do our part we will be.
thank you family (and friends) for being wonderful. i cannot express the love i have for you, or the hope that i have that you realize the power of the gospel.
here i go! i'm excited, nervous, scared, comforted all at once. muah muah muah!!
zeng jiemei
Monday, March 24, 2008
Taiwan or Bust!
What the...
oh my heck! can you believe that i have only a week left in the mtc? i can't! i cry almost every time my teachers mention it. yes, i'm pathetic. the week before last, shi laoshi was interviewing me and said, "you're leaving soon. it's so exciting." and i burst out in tears. then i told the story to qian laoshi and cried again. freak man, i'm more emotional than i thought. i feel pretty unprepared, but i guess that's normal. liu dixiong, a member of our branch presidency from taiwan, yesterday told me that my mandarin is better than most sisters and that i'll be great out there. i know i'll survive but i want to excel. i can't handle being okay at mandarin, i want to melt faces in taiwan. i think that more than anything i need to better rely on the lord and better accept his timing. we all know, though, that i struggle with feeling dependent and with patience.
the trc/lrc this week was interesting. i'm grateful for my experience there. we were assigned to room two. we knock on the door to start the language practice portion (we're supposed to discuss our day to day and plan a p-day and goals and a lesson with a member). in the room is a brother with parents from asia and his girlfriend who speaks no mandarin. we start and they stare blankly, so we ask if they know the scenario. nope. we explain and begin again. the guy was a jerk! most of the volunteers help us with the language and make the trc/lrc a learning place. this guy laughed when we spoke wrong or said, "you wouldn't say it that way!" i was so mad. so then he asks what we'll be teaching him later. we're supposed to teach them as if they are members and rely on the spirit to meet there needs. i did not feel like meeting his needs at all!! we told him that we could teach whatever they wanted. he said, "lesson 3" which he knows we don't study in detail or prepare to teach in the mtc. our faces must have said something, he followed with, "what? you haven't learned it." i'm fuming!!! we tell him we're prepared to teach lesson one and he says "i want to hear lesson 3." so, we leave the room to prepare to teach and my companion and qian laoshi can tell i'm ticked . i told qian what happened and he went into protector mode which is so funny to me. he asked if we wanted him to talk to him and we said, "do what you think is best." so he went and corrected the guy. we prayed before teaching and in my heart i plead with the lord to help me have charity, i lack it too often. so we go back and teach and it was amazing! we ended up talking about missionary work and the testimonies role. i used scriptures i didn't know i knew the location of. the spirit was definitely there. at one point i said, "as we come to know the savior, we change. we recognize others as his children and want them to have the happiness he provides." my heart changed, i loved both this brother and his girlfriend. i am so so so grateful to know that when you seek the spirit, he is there! little girls, prepare to serve missions and PRAY all the time!
besides that other things that have gone on are... sheri dew spoke last night. she was so great! she talked about the power of influence and how as latter-day saints we have a duty to use our influence for good. it was really great. i admire her a lot. maybe one day i can be a sheri dew but with a husband, meaning i'd have a banging career, personal relationships with g.a.'s and an eternal companion.
well, i'm out of time! wo feichang ai nimen!
zeng!
the trc/lrc this week was interesting. i'm grateful for my experience there. we were assigned to room two. we knock on the door to start the language practice portion (we're supposed to discuss our day to day and plan a p-day and goals and a lesson with a member). in the room is a brother with parents from asia and his girlfriend who speaks no mandarin. we start and they stare blankly, so we ask if they know the scenario. nope. we explain and begin again. the guy was a jerk! most of the volunteers help us with the language and make the trc/lrc a learning place. this guy laughed when we spoke wrong or said, "you wouldn't say it that way!" i was so mad. so then he asks what we'll be teaching him later. we're supposed to teach them as if they are members and rely on the spirit to meet there needs. i did not feel like meeting his needs at all!! we told him that we could teach whatever they wanted. he said, "lesson 3" which he knows we don't study in detail or prepare to teach in the mtc. our faces must have said something, he followed with, "what? you haven't learned it." i'm fuming!!! we tell him we're prepared to teach lesson one and he says "i want to hear lesson 3." so, we leave the room to prepare to teach and my companion and qian laoshi can tell i'm ticked . i told qian what happened and he went into protector mode which is so funny to me. he asked if we wanted him to talk to him and we said, "do what you think is best." so he went and corrected the guy. we prayed before teaching and in my heart i plead with the lord to help me have charity, i lack it too often. so we go back and teach and it was amazing! we ended up talking about missionary work and the testimonies role. i used scriptures i didn't know i knew the location of. the spirit was definitely there. at one point i said, "as we come to know the savior, we change. we recognize others as his children and want them to have the happiness he provides." my heart changed, i loved both this brother and his girlfriend. i am so so so grateful to know that when you seek the spirit, he is there! little girls, prepare to serve missions and PRAY all the time!
besides that other things that have gone on are... sheri dew spoke last night. she was so great! she talked about the power of influence and how as latter-day saints we have a duty to use our influence for good. it was really great. i admire her a lot. maybe one day i can be a sheri dew but with a husband, meaning i'd have a banging career, personal relationships with g.a.'s and an eternal companion.
well, i'm out of time! wo feichang ai nimen!
zeng!
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
!!!
Well, I’m another week closer to boarding the flight. I cannot believe it! Two weeks left, ten days in class, two sacrament meetings, two devotionals. I don’t feel ready. But I guess that it how it always it. I’m sure that once I’m in Taiwan I won’t feel ready to come home. So… This week has been a bit blasé, therefore I will just list the items of interest and describe…
Our devotional on Tuesday was a big deal… JEFFREY ROCKIN’ HOLLAND ! I love that man! He was so great. It was so exciting to see an apostle and to hear his words. (I’m a new woman. I cannot imagine myself a few years ago being so into the Ensign. Ps-lds.org has some new features. Check them out!!) He made us laugh so much! Two things he said stuck out: 1. Be the missionary your younger siblings imagine you are. What motivation! I would never want to let down my little sisters. He said, “They imagine you in the white shirt and tie or blouse, but with a cape!” Then he stuck his arms out and said, “There is evil. I will go down.” I thought, “Phoebe and Naomi are too smart to think I have a cape,” but laughed anyway. 2. “Don’t you dare turn your back on Christ like everyone else did.” Whoa! That hit me so hard. I’m sure I do turn my back on him all the time! I don’t want to be one of the people that left him feeling completely abandoned. So I won’t.
Here’s something weird… I got a letter from a group of elders within the MTC asking me to people watch with them. Strange. I put my foot down and declared only through face to face interactions, no exchanging letters within a mission. Some elders are weird.
Oh! This one is kind of exciting… Let me give some background information by telling you that I got in trouble the other day for not wearing enough color. I guess navy blue doesn't count as "color". But, my wardrobe here is small. Brother Stohlton is one of my favorite of the branch presidency. He’s so cool. He’s old and has a buzzed head and awesome hats. After the devotional he pulled me aside and thanked me for having good style! RAD! He said, "Too often we make our sisters think they have to look like they came from Colorado City . You look professional but stylish without being too trendy." Oh yeah! Not that it matters out here (or in the real world for that matter) but still it was nice to hear. On a related note... the day before I caved and bought two Jody dresses for Taiwan . Ha! When Brother Stohlton complimented me I thought, "Little do you know what is in my residence hall closet." Don't judge me and my ankle length dresses, okay.
This Sunday I had an interview with much adored Brother Stohlton. I told him that I'm caving. I have gotten a ton of crap from President Garrett and many elders about my current schooling choice. I asked Brother Stohlton about getting into the Y. He was overjoyed! Don't go up in arms yet. As of now it is just a thought. Who knows, after going to Taiwan I may be set on attending college in Taipei (JOKE). The thing is that I really want to be an MTC teacher, and I really want to take religion classes, especially Brother Stohlton's B.o.M. class. (The man is a genius.) So, I'd have to go to the U and retake last semester's classses and then see about transferring. Who knows.
Wow! Every story I can think of is from Tuesday. Tuesday in class we had a miracle. A real life miracle. We set a goal as a district to get 30 referrals at the RC. I am a doubting Thomas and knew that there would be no way. I have such little motivation to hand out there with my few days left. Then an elder from another district told us about there rc miracle and my faith started to glimmer (but just a bit). So, we go to the RC with Qian Laoshi and sign on and there are like over 100 incoming calls. I have only ever seen 5 maximum! We got more than 20 referalls in one day! I talked to some elect. I was so happy. It was amazing!
I have no TRC story because my companion has been ill. We spent all of Saturday in our room, I studying and she sleeping. I think she's feeling better. I think she needs to get well before Taiwan , so that is priority.
What else is there. I finished the Book of Mormon and started again. This time I'm reading REALLY slow, reading every footnote reference. Highly recommended. It takes forever, but I'm learning so much! Maybe post-mission I'll write my own B.o.M. commentary. ha. I hope you all know that the Book of Mormon is SO SO SO true. Read it every day. It will change your life. I promise you!
Thank you for the emails and letters. I'm glad to hear the world still turns in my absence. You guys make me laugh, I miss you a lot. I know I'll continue to miss you, but the next 16 months will fly by. I'm already looking back on the last two wondering where the time went. I'm excited, though, for when I come home. I'll teach you so much (part of me is thinking about moving to Vegas. Maybe.)! I can't wait for you to hear more about the people I'm with all the time. It's strange to think that you don't know my best friends. I spend hours on hours with my district, companion and teachers but you have no idea who any of them really are. I hope my descriptions help. I love you all and miss you.
MUAH!
Zeng
Our devotional on Tuesday was a big deal… JEFFREY ROCKIN’ HOLLAND ! I love that man! He was so great. It was so exciting to see an apostle and to hear his words. (I’m a new woman. I cannot imagine myself a few years ago being so into the Ensign. Ps-lds.org has some new features. Check them out!!) He made us laugh so much! Two things he said stuck out: 1. Be the missionary your younger siblings imagine you are. What motivation! I would never want to let down my little sisters. He said, “They imagine you in the white shirt and tie or blouse, but with a cape!” Then he stuck his arms out and said, “There is evil. I will go down.” I thought, “Phoebe and Naomi are too smart to think I have a cape,” but laughed anyway. 2. “Don’t you dare turn your back on Christ like everyone else did.” Whoa! That hit me so hard. I’m sure I do turn my back on him all the time! I don’t want to be one of the people that left him feeling completely abandoned. So I won’t.
Here’s something weird… I got a letter from a group of elders within the MTC asking me to people watch with them. Strange. I put my foot down and declared only through face to face interactions, no exchanging letters within a mission. Some elders are weird.
Oh! This one is kind of exciting… Let me give some background information by telling you that I got in trouble the other day for not wearing enough color. I guess navy blue doesn't count as "color". But, my wardrobe here is small. Brother Stohlton is one of my favorite of the branch presidency. He’s so cool. He’s old and has a buzzed head and awesome hats. After the devotional he pulled me aside and thanked me for having good style! RAD! He said, "Too often we make our sisters think they have to look like they came from Colorado City . You look professional but stylish without being too trendy." Oh yeah! Not that it matters out here (or in the real world for that matter) but still it was nice to hear. On a related note... the day before I caved and bought two Jody dresses for Taiwan . Ha! When Brother Stohlton complimented me I thought, "Little do you know what is in my residence hall closet." Don't judge me and my ankle length dresses, okay.
This Sunday I had an interview with much adored Brother Stohlton. I told him that I'm caving. I have gotten a ton of crap from President Garrett and many elders about my current schooling choice. I asked Brother Stohlton about getting into the Y. He was overjoyed! Don't go up in arms yet. As of now it is just a thought. Who knows, after going to Taiwan I may be set on attending college in Taipei (JOKE). The thing is that I really want to be an MTC teacher, and I really want to take religion classes, especially Brother Stohlton's B.o.M. class. (The man is a genius.) So, I'd have to go to the U and retake last semester's classses and then see about transferring. Who knows.
Wow! Every story I can think of is from Tuesday. Tuesday in class we had a miracle. A real life miracle. We set a goal as a district to get 30 referrals at the RC. I am a doubting Thomas and knew that there would be no way. I have such little motivation to hand out there with my few days left. Then an elder from another district told us about there rc miracle and my faith started to glimmer (but just a bit). So, we go to the RC with Qian Laoshi and sign on and there are like over 100 incoming calls. I have only ever seen 5 maximum! We got more than 20 referalls in one day! I talked to some elect. I was so happy. It was amazing!
I have no TRC story because my companion has been ill. We spent all of Saturday in our room, I studying and she sleeping. I think she's feeling better. I think she needs to get well before Taiwan , so that is priority.
What else is there. I finished the Book of Mormon and started again. This time I'm reading REALLY slow, reading every footnote reference. Highly recommended. It takes forever, but I'm learning so much! Maybe post-mission I'll write my own B.o.M. commentary. ha. I hope you all know that the Book of Mormon is SO SO SO true. Read it every day. It will change your life. I promise you!
Thank you for the emails and letters. I'm glad to hear the world still turns in my absence. You guys make me laugh, I miss you a lot. I know I'll continue to miss you, but the next 16 months will fly by. I'm already looking back on the last two wondering where the time went. I'm excited, though, for when I come home. I'll teach you so much (part of me is thinking about moving to Vegas. Maybe.)! I can't wait for you to hear more about the people I'm with all the time. It's strange to think that you don't know my best friends. I spend hours on hours with my district, companion and teachers but you have no idea who any of them really are. I hope my descriptions help. I love you all and miss you.
MUAH!
Zeng
Monday, March 3, 2008
Three Weeks To Go!
oh my gosh.
the mtc has been kind of boring lately, so i made a list of the slightly not mundane things that have happened this week...
today we went to the temple early and did initiatories. it was amazing! one of the women had this wonderful way of saying things. you could feel her testimony in every word. it made me realize that i need to be that way and i can be that way. oh my word, i love the temple. i am going to miss it so much when i get to taiwan.
on tuesday at the rc qian laoshi helped me a ton with vocab. he is another great example of kindness. after his help i took a really interesting call from a man named george. i initially thought he was on drugs then figured out he was an old man kind of going crazy. he has been in a few convalescent homes that sound dodgy. he called for the missionaries at one but the priest working there sent them away in the rain and then threw away george's book of mormon. he's been a member his whole life but by the things he said i know that the homes' religion has seeped in. i contacted his area's priesthood so that they can get home teachers to him. HOME TEACHING is so IMPORTANT. make sure you do it. i'm realizing that we have a great duty to lift others around us when they need it. if we do so, the Lord will lift us. i know this!
on tuesday afternoon we decorated papers like different city features (for example, i drew a park with trees and a post office with a letter) then we taped them outside with "streets" we also made and practiced giving directions. this was exciting.
OH! the subpoena. that's big. i was called to the front desk then to spencer christiansen's office. he told me what was going on and told me that i may have to leave and that it's possible that the trial will be delayed and my mission too. oh my gosh! this threw me off all day. my district helped a ton. qian laoshi interviewed me the next day and gtave such good advice. that man's faith is astounding. you can't help but believe all that he does when you're around him. i imagine this is how christ is. on thursday elder welling said that he and elder cornelius had been talking and decided that they will be very sad if we don't all go to taiwan together. i agree. on sunday president garrett interviewed me and gave me so much comfort. he said they will do all in they're power to keep me here and that if i have to go to vegas for a few days i can still leave with my district! :) he said "if you have to leave, just enjoy the break." he's so awesome. he shared a quote that i loved. neal a maxwell said, "i am confident that the Lord will micro-manage your life if you allow him to." i need to rely on this. on sunday elder welling gave me a great blessing. i know this will all be alright. i have felt the lord's protection in the mtc. in helaman there is a verse that says, of Samuel the Lamanite, "the spirit of the Lord was with him insomuch that they could not hit him with their stones, neither with their arrows." (or something like that). i know this is the same here in the mtc. i'm grateful.
on saturday at the trc i saw my friend fu fan. (remember her mom? you met her at the party. her mom lives in kaohsiung.) it was SO COOL to be able to communicate with her in her language. it made me eager to work harder and learn more so that i can express myself better.
there is an elder here that looks like sufjan stevens but taller. RAD.
a sister from the phillipines is in the other mandarin speaking zone. she's amazing. listen to this... when she came she barely spoke any english, so in learning mandarin she had to translate from tagalog to english to mandarin (because all of our resources are english to mandarin/mandarin to english). now she's great with both! she is teaching me how to make books and how to sew a bit.
yesterday i took pictures with biff burley and josh cowles. i'll send some soon. (do you have the sneeds' address? i want to send one to them.)
curtis swarts' nephew elder harber is here. we have meals at the same time. he always invites me to sit with him and his comp. it makes me smile. what a good kid. he says that his brother is doing well in dc and he told me about zack. i'm sad that he was only able to be out for six months.
so, two of my friends left this week: elder kao, going to melbourne, australia, mandarin speaking. one of the kindest and most sincere people i know. and elder davidson, going to southern japan. their departures reminded me that i have three weeks! i saw my flights stuff in brother christensen's office. march 24 around 9 i head to LAX. crazy. time flies here. the next three weeks are going to be gone so fast! i think next week i'll send my stuff to a place where lauren can pick it up. it costs like five dollars from her end or something but works way better than mail. i'll let you know about it as soon as i can.
how is everyone in vegas? i miss you all. chloe, where have you been? i need to hear from you! little girls, i look at the pictures you've sent everyday. they are hanging next to my bed. dad, thanks for the mission stories. i had most of my zone cracking up during dinner when i got it.
i think that's it. oh! here is something... i have discovered that i really am a sister missionary. the other day i had an "encounter" with an elder i had so idea how to respond. i no longer know how to interact with the real world! kind of cool.
well, wo ai nimen!
zeng jiemei
the mtc has been kind of boring lately, so i made a list of the slightly not mundane things that have happened this week...
today we went to the temple early and did initiatories. it was amazing! one of the women had this wonderful way of saying things. you could feel her testimony in every word. it made me realize that i need to be that way and i can be that way. oh my word, i love the temple. i am going to miss it so much when i get to taiwan.
on tuesday at the rc qian laoshi helped me a ton with vocab. he is another great example of kindness. after his help i took a really interesting call from a man named george. i initially thought he was on drugs then figured out he was an old man kind of going crazy. he has been in a few convalescent homes that sound dodgy. he called for the missionaries at one but the priest working there sent them away in the rain and then threw away george's book of mormon. he's been a member his whole life but by the things he said i know that the homes' religion has seeped in. i contacted his area's priesthood so that they can get home teachers to him. HOME TEACHING is so IMPORTANT. make sure you do it. i'm realizing that we have a great duty to lift others around us when they need it. if we do so, the Lord will lift us. i know this!
on tuesday afternoon we decorated papers like different city features (for example, i drew a park with trees and a post office with a letter) then we taped them outside with "streets" we also made and practiced giving directions. this was exciting.
OH! the subpoena. that's big. i was called to the front desk then to spencer christiansen's office. he told me what was going on and told me that i may have to leave and that it's possible that the trial will be delayed and my mission too. oh my gosh! this threw me off all day. my district helped a ton. qian laoshi interviewed me the next day and gtave such good advice. that man's faith is astounding. you can't help but believe all that he does when you're around him. i imagine this is how christ is. on thursday elder welling said that he and elder cornelius had been talking and decided that they will be very sad if we don't all go to taiwan together. i agree. on sunday president garrett interviewed me and gave me so much comfort. he said they will do all in they're power to keep me here and that if i have to go to vegas for a few days i can still leave with my district! :) he said "if you have to leave, just enjoy the break." he's so awesome. he shared a quote that i loved. neal a maxwell said, "i am confident that the Lord will micro-manage your life if you allow him to." i need to rely on this. on sunday elder welling gave me a great blessing. i know this will all be alright. i have felt the lord's protection in the mtc. in helaman there is a verse that says, of Samuel the Lamanite, "the spirit of the Lord was with him insomuch that they could not hit him with their stones, neither with their arrows." (or something like that). i know this is the same here in the mtc. i'm grateful.
on saturday at the trc i saw my friend fu fan. (remember her mom? you met her at the party. her mom lives in kaohsiung.) it was SO COOL to be able to communicate with her in her language. it made me eager to work harder and learn more so that i can express myself better.
there is an elder here that looks like sufjan stevens but taller. RAD.
a sister from the phillipines is in the other mandarin speaking zone. she's amazing. listen to this... when she came she barely spoke any english, so in learning mandarin she had to translate from tagalog to english to mandarin (because all of our resources are english to mandarin/mandarin to english). now she's great with both! she is teaching me how to make books and how to sew a bit.
yesterday i took pictures with biff burley and josh cowles. i'll send some soon. (do you have the sneeds' address? i want to send one to them.)
curtis swarts' nephew elder harber is here. we have meals at the same time. he always invites me to sit with him and his comp. it makes me smile. what a good kid. he says that his brother is doing well in dc and he told me about zack. i'm sad that he was only able to be out for six months.
so, two of my friends left this week: elder kao, going to melbourne, australia, mandarin speaking. one of the kindest and most sincere people i know. and elder davidson, going to southern japan. their departures reminded me that i have three weeks! i saw my flights stuff in brother christensen's office. march 24 around 9 i head to LAX. crazy. time flies here. the next three weeks are going to be gone so fast! i think next week i'll send my stuff to a place where lauren can pick it up. it costs like five dollars from her end or something but works way better than mail. i'll let you know about it as soon as i can.
how is everyone in vegas? i miss you all. chloe, where have you been? i need to hear from you! little girls, i look at the pictures you've sent everyday. they are hanging next to my bed. dad, thanks for the mission stories. i had most of my zone cracking up during dinner when i got it.
i think that's it. oh! here is something... i have discovered that i really am a sister missionary. the other day i had an "encounter" with an elder i had so idea how to respond. i no longer know how to interact with the real world! kind of cool.
well, wo ai nimen!
zeng jiemei
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