Konichiwa! (From MTC end of week 1)

Konichiwa!

I'm very glad to have your emails to read. I just got your package yesterday and loved it! The letters and pictures were a joy to read. Tell Jake and Lizzy thank you!

I can't believe I've been here for more than a week. The last couple of days have been going by faster which is weird. My companion (doryo) is Welch Choro (Elder). He's been great so far. He's easygoing and fun to be around. We are definitely different, but that's not a problem. There are four companionships in my district. Shepard Choro, Iwaasa Choro, Dowell Shimai (Sister), Ibanez Shimai, Owens Choro, and Voohorees Choro. Our sensei is Bingham Kyodai (Brother). He's been fun, understanding, and patient. I've enjoyed every minute of the MTC! Time flies and I learn a lot. Japanese has been a struggle though let me tell you something. Anime honestly helped a lot for the first two days because of the greetings I've learned. And the songs I've memorized have helped too. When Bingham Kyodai says a word I recognize it's awesome! The food is fine, no complaints. Last night was steak night (just so you know Dad) and it was good. The orange juice has unpleasant effects for some people. I feel like I handle it pretty well though :D

My zone is kind of sugoy (awesome)! We have zone prayer every night and we all get huggy lovey as soon as it's done, "ai shite imasu"!! (eye shte mas) (love you). You don't pronounce the i or the u often times in Japanese. Funny language XD. I've met Adam, Christian, Megan, and Ryan Prestwich here. Adam left to Nashville the Monday we just had, at three in the morning! By the way, try to find David A. Bednar's MTC address "Character of Christ". It will make your day. I've been loving gym time every morning. I've been doing laps on the track while making it a circuit as well with pushups and crunches in between laps. One of our Choros is a Justin Bieber look alike, no joke, almost exactly like him. I would have included pictures in this email but my camera isn't accepting the SD cards I bought it. I even tried buying a different kind at the store here and it just isn't able to read them. I think maybe the camera is "too old". So I'm going to buy a new one here at the store. If you guys could move 100 over to my checking that would be great. I'll send you pictures later.

My first Sunday wasn't a 'Silent Sunday'. I asked other Choros about it and they said it's not a thing anymore. It was still good. We had a temple walk that was awesome. By the way, the weather has been good. Some rain, some sun, good stuff. By the way, we can't cut our own hair while at the MTC, we have to go to the MTC barber. I'll hang on to it though because I've been told that barbers in Japan might be expensive. As I write this email I am in the basement laundry room waiting for my stuff to dry. I can print off emails throughout the week so I can read, just not respond until P-day. I will handwrite responses to your emails throughout the week so that when P-day comes around I can respond faster. I've been good about writing in my journal. And I've been great about reading scriptures. I'm also reading Drawing on the Powers of Heaven. I'm feeling very spiritually fed, yet I am the same David you know. I've thought about it a lot. The person you really are can change, but that takes time. The parts that change rapidly are the parts of you that are appendages to your core self. Therefore, I am the same David, just a little better :-D

Well, there are other emails I must respond too. If you want you can email me more today (there is a slight chance I can get back on the computer). I'll see if I can respond. Also, have you compiled the list of emails from my Facebook? There are a couple of email addresses in my Facebook Messenger that can be accessed through the Facebook website. Thank you all for your prayers and good wishes. 

Ai Shite Imasu!!!!!!!

Until Next Time,

Sincerely,

Pikoku (David) Choro