July 19, 2017 ~ I LOVE IT HERE! (Week 1)

Oh Wowwww! This has honestly been the longest and shortest week of my life. My journal entries went from " I can't believe I haven't even been here a week," (because it felt like I had been here for at least 14) to "I CAN'T BELIEVE I'VE BEEN HERE A WEEK!!" (Because it felt like three days). Haha so crazy.

My flight to Mexico was great. I bonded very quickly with Hermana Ferrin because I accidentally fell asleep on her shoulder and stayed there for the entire 3 hour flight. Whoops. Haha then we turned out to be companions, which was cool because we were already well acquainted. 😉 But I am actually in a trio! So I get double the love!! We have so much fun together and we get along really well!

Hermana Ferrin, who I sat next to on my flight, is from Farmington Utah and is literally the funniest/ coolest person I've ever met. She is a year older than me, and did 3 years at Weber State. All 3 of those years, she took Spanish.. so she is pretty much fluent and does really well here. She can quote any movie, has 6 brothers (so she has a comeback for everything I dish at her), and she is equally sarcastic and sweet. We laugh alllll day together. (Sometimes even during prayers, which is bad. Don't do that). And she is going to my mission so I have 18 fun months with her! I can't wait!

                                                                                                 (Hermana Farmer, Me, Hermana Ferrin)

Hermana Ferrin is my hero for many reasons, but the number one reason would be because of her dedication. She has always wanted to go on a mission, but when she initially went to her bishop, she was informed of a weight requirement that had to be met. So she went home, set goals, and followed through with them. She lost 90 pounds before coming here, and she still works hard and eats right. We get up at 5:45 am to exercise with the CCM President's wife, Hermana Bennett, every day. Then during the day, we have gym time, where we exercise again. She keeps me healthy! She is really into aerobic boxing, and actually received a scholarship because of It! Apparently, this scholarship was originally for a "student athlete" but she submitted her application as an "athletic student". She shared her amazing story of weight loss and her journey of becoming healthy; she showed how her hard work paid off.. and was awarded $1000 because of It. Two years in a row. For aerobic boxing. HOW COOL IS SHE!?

Not only does she work hard in being healthy, but in the gospel and studying and Spanish and everything else that has to do with a mission and life. She has already taught me so much. We work so hard, but we have so much fun while doing so!

My other companion is named Hermana Farmer. She is from Wiggins, Colorado and is a year younger than me. She did a year at  BYU and almost died in a longboarding accident.. But knew she was kept alive for a reason! So, when she was healthy, she submitted her papers and was called to the California, Arcadia mission! So she will be with Megan!! 😃 She is the sweet to the sassy that Hermana Ferrin and I have, and she knows a lot of Spanish. She is super fun to be with and the three of us balance each other out perfectly. I love my companions!

(My District)

My district is AMAZING. We are all so different but we get along so well. My trio is the only sisters companionship, and all of the elders are pretty much our younger brothers. We joke around a lot, but they are always taking care of us and making sure we are okay. We spend all day together in class, we eat together at meals, and then we end every night singing hymns until we have to return to our casas. We are all going to missions in California except two elders. 😊

The CCM is pretty awesome. We get fed well, (no spaghetti in a tortilla.. yet).😉  It's pretty much a buffet at every meal, with a salad bar, fruit bar, pb&j bar, and cereal bar. And that doesn't even include the main course of the meal, which is usually tacos or some kind of meat. And, best of all, almost everything is made with corn, so I don't really get sick! 😃😃

(With Elder Branden Brooks)

I get to see Elder Tucker Skinner and Elder Branden Brooks (my cousin) at every single meal. It´s the best! They are such awesome elders, and it´s so good to consistently see familiar faces. I hugged Branden when I first got here on Tuesday, and there was pretty much an audible gasp in the lunch room. It was kind of funny. haha   

It's super beautiful here. It rains almost every day, so it's very green! We are enclosed in a gated campus, so we are very safe. But we often hear gunshots and sirens outside of the walls. And by often I mean almost consistently. Haha don't tell grandma Sue.

We have two teachers: Hermano Hernandez in the morning, and Hermana Diaz in the afternoon. We speak Spanish 90% of the time in class, and are encouraged to do so outside of class time as well.

The first few days were really rough, because I am pretty much the only person at the CCM who came here without any prior Spanish instruction. (Most people took at least a year in high school). I didn't even understand enough to answer my teacher when he asked if anyone didn't understand... It was so hard!

On Thursday, we taught our first investigator (who is our afternoon teacher, Hermana Diaz). All I could contribute to the lesson was my testimony (which I read) , comprised of 3 sentences that took over an hour for me to write. I didn't understand a word that was said in that lesson, but I felt the spirit so I know my comps did a good job.

The next day, we were assigned "practicing partners", who pretended to be an investigator that we had to teach. My partner was an elder from my district, but he was assigned to pretend to be a mother of 2 who was a heroin addict. "She" was ready to submit herself to her addiction and give up her children, so lost that she didn't care to live for anything else. I had so many things I wanted to share, and I felt the spirit so strongly as I began to teach this investigator.. But I only knew how to say one sentence in Spanish. I was so discouraged and frustrated that I didn't know how to communicate with this person! I wanted so badly to help "her" but didn't know how.. I would rather  lose the state championship every day of my life than feel the pain I felt by my inability to help her... I have never felt so helpless in my life. It was then that tears started rolling down my cheeks. My poor partner just kept telling me that I was doing good and that the one sentence I had said was "perfect spanish", and to keep going. But I couldn't! So I flipped through the pamphlet and taught with pictures and very few words.. It was a super frustrating and heart breaking moment for me.

But it's in times like that, that Heavenly Father reveals himself to us if we choose to look. That night, I prayed so so hard that Heavenly Father would help me to learn Spanish. The next day, we met with our bishops as a district.

During this meeting, my bishop turned to me and asked me to speak in sacrament meeting, Which he had just explained to us took place in strictly Spanish. The elders in my district were shocked at first, and then they literally started laughing hysterically. How ironic that the one girl who can't speak Spanish, would be asked to speak in a strictly-Spanish sacrament meeting. Heavenly Father sure has a sense of humor.

But this motivated me even more to learn the language of the people I will be serving.. So I studied every chance I could. My companions would spend their evenings letting me read out loud to them and correcting me on my pronunciation. They translated for me and taught me words every chance they could. And they even helped me to translate my talk.

When Sunday morning rolled around, we prayed as a companionship that I would have the gift of tongues. Then, I gave my talk. In Spanish. In a strictly-Spanish sacrament meeting. My bishop came up to me afterwards and said I was rookie of the year, and that my talk sounded like it was given from an apostle. Haha he laughed (because he knew he was exaggerating), but then sweetly bore testimony to me that Heavenly Father had made something that was very weak, into something strong. At least for that moment.

Alma 26:12 says,

 12 Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.

I testify that the gift of tongues is real! It is not something we wake up with one day, but it is something we have to work for. Heavenly Father wants to bless us, after we do all that we can do. He wants us to try and then he wants us to trust him that he will make up the difference. 

(Sister Ferrin, Me, Sister Farmer)

I am so grateful for the opportunity I have to be here. It is by far the hardest thing I have ever done, but it is also the best. I love my companions, I love my district, I love being a missionary, and I love my Savior.                

I love having the opportunity to wear His name over my heart every single day.

If any of you are considering a mission, please start to prepare now! Study Preach My Gospel and sign up for beginners Spanish, because they expect you to arrive at the MTC ready to teach, having already learned the basics prior to your mission. No matter how hard of a day I have here, or how little I understand, I find myself sincerely thanking Heavenly Father every night for the opportunity I have to be here. And I know you will too! 

God is so good! I love you all! ❤❤❤❤❤❤

Love, Hermana Brooks                                                                    

(1. Me, Hermana Ferrin & Hermana Farmer)
(2. Sister Fisher & I)

           
                                                               
(3. This is my attempt at "holding" Hermana Fisher. It didn't work. Solid effort though.)

*Teresa's Note: As manager of this blog, I may take a few liberties and add things now and again :) Here are a few extra tidbits that Sister Brooks shared:

*Yes, I am doing great! The first couple of days felt like years and they were really hard, but it´s so good to be here. Heavenly Father reminds me over and over that what I am doing is right, and that things take time. But I love my comps and the weather here is nice and I am learning so much. I am honestly so grateful that I get to do this for the next 18 months. Best decision I've ever made.

*The weather here is great. It's never hot, which is so nice. We usually do something for class outside every day, so yes we get to go outside lots. But it rains lots too. My first day here, I had to drag my giant bags 2 blocks to my house. In the pouring rain. 🌦☔ Haha I got drenched. But I changed my clothes, ate an awesome dinner, then went to a great devotional put on by the MTC president. The rain doesn´t bother me 😂🌧🌈

*I can't tell you what a typical day is like because I don't have a typical day. Every day is different. But we study lots and teach lots and eat 3 times a day. haha that´s about it. We spend a lot of time as a district. 

*Thank you for the letters you put in my suitcase. I've been savoring them and only reading them when I have had a hard day... so I haven't read them all. But tell the family thank you and that they mean so much to me. I will save them forever!!! 

*Yes, it feels so good not to be the newest missionaries anymore. I literally got to tell a new elder today that it gets better here, just like someone did for me. Of course at the time, I didn't believe them, just like I'm sure he didn't believe me, but we had a good chat and it feels good to be the person that encourages others, rather than just needing encouragement myself. I have grown so much here, its hard to believe its only been a week. They cram pack our days and its normal to have headaches before going to bed because you learn so much, but its so awesome. The language is really hard. I wish I would have studied Spanish before I came here... but I picture myself, one year from now, hugging my investigator that I taught in Spanish, and I know that there will come a day when that really happens. I just "move forward with faith, hope, joy, and optimism", and I find myself loving every day here. And every day I understand/get to say a little bit more than the day previous. 🌞