Hola Amigos y Familia!

Reporting direct from the Provo MTC, this is Hermana Sarah Tritsch with an all-new blog-cast for all of you!!!

I am happy to report that the Swine Flu Battle may be coming to an end with the preventative flu pills we have to take, as well as the contagious germaphobia that sweeps the MTC. Elder Wannop recently got out of quarrantine and said there were only 7 unfortunate missionaries there down from an all time high of 135.

There is a no-touchee rule here at the MTC and it is getting very old, very fast. I want to hug my Relief Society Presidency and my companion and the other Sisters in my district, and shake the hands of my Elders, but it is strictly prohibited because of swine flu. But the word on the street is that we almost got it beat... Maybe I can hug my companion before I leave this place (fingers crossed).

We got trained on the mormon.org website chat system and started chatting online with real investigators. After having brief chats about the gospel and the website and getting cussed out by an angsty teenager, we chatted with this man named Joshua who seemed genuinely interested in learning about the gospel. We answered his questions about agency and about God's Plan and made an appointment to teach him again over chat the next day. Unfortunately, when the time came for our appointment, he did not log in. but Sister Greene (my companion) and I still pray for him.

On a lighter note, I joined MTC Choir at the request of my father and the support of Kira and love it soooo much!!! I love getting to know more people at the MTC and being able to sing for the devotionals.

This week is going to be kind of hectic because this week is New Mission President training Week, and they have whole buildings roped off and unaccessible to missionaries. There is a rumor going around that all of the first presidency and every apostle will make an appearance at their training seminars. Unfortunately, they are not going to visit with the missionaries, only the presidents. Maybe one of them will stick around for the tuesday-night devotional which, this week, has been moved to Friday to accomodate the Mission Presidents. We will just have to see.

My Spanish is progressing, albeit slowly... Its really great learning languages with the spirit and the "Gift of Tounges" because I am sure that if I was learning spanish just to learn Spanish, I would not be nearly this successful at this time.

The whole MTC is slowly turning digital. Part of the instruction is on a computer program called TALL which helps with spanish, and we have cards that are like an ID card that we scan for everything. Haircuts, Meals, Computer Use, Emails, everything. Everything then turns into statistics that the MTC uses to evaluate and to do things more efficiently. Its really cool, actually.

I am really happy here and I am exited to be in the Lord's service. One of my teachers said it this way: "You have been alive for about 20 years, and now you are giving two back to the Lord -- 10% of your days -- Its like tithing!"

I love you all and look forward to hearing from you. Remember: Write me, and I will try my best to write you back.

-Hermana Sarah Tritsch

Hola mi famila y amigos!!!

This is Hermana Tritsch logging in for the first time since reporting to the MTC.

First of all, my new email address for all of you to email me is sunrisenightingale@myldsmail.net
Please write me at this email because it is the only one I have access to here in the MTC.

I am soo exited to be here, but I am overwhelmed at the same time. Everything is planned out to 15 minute increments, and I am always busy. It was very overwhelming the first day, but I am getting better as the weeks progress. The nice thing was, we had these orange stickers on our nametags that told everyone we were new and had no idea what we were doing, so the other missionaries knew to help us out. The missionaries at the MTC call these orange stickers, "Dork Dots."

My Companion's name is Hermana Jennifer Greene and she is from Cortez, Colorado. She went to school at BYU Hawaii, and is really patient with me. I have known her less than a week and I love her already. We work really well together, and I am looking forward to accomplishing great things with her as my companion.

I also have a temporary pseudo companion named Hermana Kristi Green. We have been companions since sunday, because her companion left for Long Beach and was a "Solo" missionary. Hermana K. Green leaves for Houston tomorrow after an extended missionary stay because of the swine flu. She and Elder Shawn Lemmon, the Elder they call "Abuelo" which means grandfather, leave tomorrow early and even though I am sad they are leaving, I am glad they get to go serve the Lord.

They call Elder Lemmon "Abuelo" because he has been at the MTC so long, also, all the other Elders in our Zone look up to him for advice and guidance, so the nickname really fits. I will miss Hermana K. Greene as she served in the same capacity for me.

On another note, Elder Wannop, an Elder in my district from Canada, caught Swine Flue and was quarrantined yesterday. The funny thing was all the other Elders in our district started singing, "God be with you till we Meet Again," in spanish as if he was dying or something. When they found out he was actually quarrantined, instead of feeling sorry, they thought it was even more hilarious. Silly Elders.

Because of that, however we have to take preventative flu pills to assure we do not catch the flu..

On Sunday, We were priveleged to hear from Sister Ann M. Dibb of the General Young Womens Presidency. She taught a wonderful lesson on the value of virtue, and told us that "this gospel is a gospel of Happiness, and to make sure and tell our faces that we are happy and smile."

Then she let us ask her questions about her father who is none other than President Thomas S. Monson (The current president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)! We got to ask her all sorts of questions about her life growing up and how her father got called to be an apostle when she was 9 and she found out he was going to be the prophet at the press confrence like everyone else.

Tonight we have another devotional and it usually has a visiting general authority talk. They really like to keep who it is under wraps until they are on the stand, so there is alot of gossip as to who it may be... (Stay tuned in next week to find out who talked!)

I got to go to the temple today and I really loved it. Hermana K. Green wanted to do sealings for her last week, so Hermana J. Greene and I went with her. They did not let us do husband-wife sealings, but they let us be the son/daughter, and I loved it anyway.

The work at the MTC is long and intense, but I am really glad about my descision to serve a mission and I love it. I especially love feeling the spirit 24/7. Its as close as you can get to the spirit you feel in the temple without being in the temple.

All my heart, Hermana Sarah Tritsch

Well, Sarah is now begun her missionary adventure.

Hello Friends,

I am exited to report that my mission report date comes up faster than fast, and soon, I will be on my way to representing the Lord in Argentina. Super exited and super nervous at the same time. Although, not as nervous as I thought I would be. I thought I would be a nervous wreck at this point, but I am just nervous, probably because of my avid temple attendance as of late.

Everything is taken care of, at least as far as I can tell, and I think I am as ready as I am going to be. Its not like I can learn more in the next six days than I already know.... Cramming was never very effective for me. LOL.

I am sure once I get to the MTC I will be fine, but this interim wait-period is getting the better of me.

Thanks to the instances of Swine Flu at the MTC, my parents will have to kick me out at the curb and say goodbye there. Unfortunately, there will be no "Kiss and Cry" session as my father calls it. Mom says it is for the better.

Anyway, I know Heavenly Father loves me and is looking out for me, and everything will be okay.

OH! BTW

Packages are more than welcome in the MTC, however once I get to Argentina, its really best if you do not send them, they are expensive to send, and come with an expensive tariff for me, and the post in Argentina is not very reliable to begin with. So, just send me letters, remember that the most mundane things for you will be very interesting for me, so just send them. My Contact information is on the sidebar.

I love you all, and I will see you December 2010.

-Hermana Tritsch