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