Only two more weeks left in the MTC!!!!!!

I'm getting pretty excited to head out into the field and things are getting really close. We got our new name tags (Full Chinese, Chinese and English, etc.) today (I haven't seen them yet, but they are apparently waiting for us in our classrooms!!) and I'm really excited. Travel plans come this week too!

Before I get too far into the week's details, thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes! It was a great week and I felt so much love. Love you all so much!

One of the highlights of the week was running into so many of my good friends! My roommate from freshman year, Sister Kelly Smith, is now living on my floor of our residence and will be heading out this week for Denver Colorado. My good friend Sister Whitney Bang, who I grew up with in Michigan, just entered the Mandarin zone here and is preparing to leave for Taipei, Taiwan in eight weeks. I also saw Sister Nicole Richards who I knew from freshman year,  Sister Heidi Lewis from Michigan as well, and Sister Megan Beaudette, who I know from Boston. I also ran into Jamie, a girl who lived across the hall from me my freshman year while visiting the temple. Such a fun week!

One of the highlights of seeing old friends was finding out that people do read my blog! Thank you so much! I wonder sometimes how effective my writing is when I don't get to see the results, or the actual posts for that matter. But just so you all know, I appreciate it!

The Chinese is really starting to sink in, since the other night I was unable to fall asleep for over an hour and then continued waking up throughout the night because my mind kept automatically translating every thought I had. While I'm glad the Chinese is really coming, I'm glad to be back to sleeping normally. At least I'm not as bad as one of my roommates who wakes up her companion almost every night as she starts teaching lessons in Chinese in her sleep. Needless to say, it's fairly entertaining and we're all getting a kick out of it.

This past week Elder Russel M. Nelson came and gave a devotional for all of us. I am proud to say that I was the first missionary (as far as I've been able to deduce) to find out since I say the teleprompter being written in the tech booth. Thank you TV News training! One of my favorite quotes of his was "this life isn't a time to rest, it's a time to progress." It really is important to know that we have been blessed with the time that we have and that we should always be striving to make the most of it and better ourselves.

We also had an amazing devotional by Sister Mary Ellen Edmunds last night. She's served as a leader in the Relief Society (the Church's women's organization) General Board, never married, and has served an amazing number of missions. If I can grow to be even half of an amazing person as she is, I'll be thrilled with my progress in life. Her sense of humor and faith are inspiring. A thought of hers I loved went something like this: Each and every one of us has been hired by the perfect boss. And because he is the perfect boss, he hires the perfect person for the job. God has chosen each and everyone of us to fulfill the role that we have been given in life. He is our loving Heavenly Father who knows us perfectly. Because of us he knows our abilities, strengths, and weakness; most of all, he knows that we are up to the job. If we ever feel insufficient or like we can't handle the challenges that have been placed in our life, we can take hope from the fact that God has faith in us, and that if we have faith in Him, we can accomplish anything.

I'm so grateful for the opportunities I've had to teach this week. I've seen investigators realize that God answers their prayers and express excitement for baptism. I learn so much from them that I often wonder who the teacher really is. And then I remember that it's the Holy Ghost. It is through the Gospel of Jesus Christ that the greatest knowledge is gained.

Officially two-thirds of the way through my time at the MTC! I'm definitely stuck between a dying to get out into the field and dreading leaving because of all the amazing friends I've made here. I love my district and generation so much and with all of them heading off to Taiwan (minus one to France and my companion with me to Toronto), it'll be hard to say goodbye.

Mother's Day here at the MTC was really good. They brought in some great speakers for us, one of my favorites being Janice Kapp Perry. Had me crying like a baby. But let's be honest, I'm a pretty easy cry. She re-wrote the words to the hymn she composed "As Sisters In Zion" and re-titled the new version "The Sisters In Zion". It's all about sister missionaries and referenced my favorite Primary song (that she also composed and wrote) "We'll Bring The World His Truth (Army of Helaman)". It was absolutely beautiful and we were the first people to ever sing it. It was a really amazing experience. I doubt that "The Sisters In Zion" is publicly available yet, but if you aren't familiar with the other two, check them out online. Really beautiful songs.

But one of the best parts of Mother's Day this week was perhaps that it was...MY BIRTHDAY! Yes folks, I am officially in the "best decade of my life". The twenties are here. And I couldn't be happier that I'm starting this part of my life out by serving a mission. I've only been gone six weeks and I can't even describe how much it's blessed my life. As for birthday fun, my roommates surprised me throughout the day with treats and little notes filled with puns and some of the other girls in our generation decorated our door with balloons and candy and a cupcake (which I'm unsure as to how the procured, but regardless, I'm impressed!). It was so nice! And the Elders in my district also sang a rousing chorus of "Zhu Ni Sheng Ri Kuai Le", "Happy Birthday" in Chinese.

Today Sister Willoughby and I made our first real excursion into the outside world! Her retainer broke so we had to make a trip to the orthodontist and by far the weirdest part of being outside of the MTC was hearing non-church music. We walked into the the office and were greeted with Justin Beiber's "Girlfriend" playing over the speakers. Sister Willoughby was maybe a bit too excited. ;) Who knew she liked The Beibs? 

I've also run into a few friends from my freshman year who've just recently entered the MTC! I saw a friend of my going to Bulgaria, a friend going to Poland, a friend going to Milan, and a friend going to Brazil! And this week a friend from back home will be entering the Chinese zone! Thank you start of summer! It's so great to see so many people I know heading off/already serving missions. I am so excited for each and every one of them. The closeness that I feel to my Savior while I'm out here is incredible and I can't wait for everyone I know to feel the same way. He really does love each of us individually and perfectly.

Hope you all have a fantastic week!

P.S. Check out this link! The video is amazing (may have brought me to tears...)

Five weeks in and I'm realizing just how cut off from the outside world I am right now. But, despite the slight cabin fever from being in the same square half-mile for the past month (and about another month to go) I'm still alive and doing well!

This week I've been doing a lot of praying to have more love for those around me, and wow can I feel the difference! Not only have I been able to teach in more unity with my companion, but we finally had a break through with one of our investigators that I had been having a hard time with. Christlike love for everyone is so important. So important. I can't stress it enough. When we try to love people as Christ loves us, we are better able to understand their needs and to serve them in the way Christ would serve them if He were with them here on Earth. I feel so blessed to be able to have this opportunity to increase in my love for everyone around me and I encourage all of you to make an effort to, as our devotional speaker this week, Chad Lewis (the NFL player), said "look past everything you first notice, don't like, are confused by, etc., and see into the hearts of the people you meet."

Tomorrow, we lose yet another generation of Chinese speakers here. They are mostly heading off to Taizhong, Taiwan, and I'm super excited for them (though I'm sure my excitement nowhere matches theirs), it's such a beautiful area! Once they leave, my generation will be the oldest in our zone. This has meant a bunch of reorganizing of leadership positions, which are usually made up of the "eldest" generation. Two of the elders in my zone, Elders Phelps and McKay, are our new zone leaders. They have fantastic work ethics and I know they'll do an amazing job. My companion and I have been called to serve as the Music Coordinators for our zone. We're in charge of picking music for church, arranging for people to play piano and lead the music, setting up special musical numbers, and working hard to get everyone to participate in the MTC choir. I am so excited for this opportunity to serve and get to work with music, which I love.

Along with the Chinese speakers who are leaving, two of mine and my companion's good friends who are serving in Korea headed off this morning. It's crazy to think how good of friends you can become here at the MTC in such a short amount of time. I can't wait to meet up with all of the people I've met here post-mission. I have honestly met some of the best people since coming here.

Also, highlight of the week, I got a package of cards from my Primary kids! There is NOTHING cuter than little five year-olds writing how much they love you. I cannot even explain how happy I was seeing the pictures they drew on the cards for me. If there is a perfect example of Christlike love anywhere, it's in little kids. Love them!

And one more thing, I ran into my good friend from Freshman year, Ellie Ott! She's serving in Poland and just got here on Wednesday. Haven't seen her, or many of my friends from Freshman year in over a year and it's so good to start running into them. The MTC is such a small world!

All my love!
Sister Makena Bauss