Today I also received Elvera's letter. It had a lot explained in there. Kind of ironic I just finished telling my companion about how much I admire this girl for everything she has done with her life, always putting the Lord first and sacrificing so much. Then we hop onto finish emailing today and I see your note about her.  Wish her all the best of luck for me. And let her know I love and support her so much! She has always been such an example to me in her sacrifice and dedication to doing what is right even when it means sacrificing so much. I know Heavenly Father is looking after her right now.  I will keep her and her family in my prayers. Thank you so much for helping. I think its so great that so many people can love and trust you and Dad to be a place of refuge. She sure has a strong spirit. Please let me know as to her call as soon as you can :]  I will definitely write her back soon!

 

Wow you sure were busy all week!  Thank you for all the stories, congrats to Hyrum on the lead role and how exciting for Lydia with the rabbits. Yep sounds like my childhood. Guess it comes and goes in cycles.  Sometimes I dont know how you do it Mom. You've been playing soccer mom for what 25 years now and still going strong. Congrats on the bikes! How exciting :]  I'm not gonna lie, I miss biking and running lots! Hopefully I'll land a companion that likes to go for morning runs.

 

I got my flight plans! I fly out on Aug 7th. I leave the MTC at 4am!!! HaHa my poor companion. I arrive in SACRAMENTO at 11:49am!!! Ao yep I'm calling home in the morning between flights. Maybe before my SLC to Pheonix flight if we have time in the airport waiting around. Will you be up by then? Wo thats 8:15 your time when I leave so the earliest I could call would be around 7am.

 

Hmmm Okay what  did I do this week? The temple is back up and running so we did initiatory's today. It was awesome, especially with the perspective as a missionary now. Other fun things stood out. The temple is so wonderful. and whats even cooler is teaching about the temple to investigators. They kind of perk up when we teach about the blessing of the temple. We are teaching an investigator who said she had a dream that her dead sister visited her in a dream and told her she needed help! How stellar awesome is that!  Is was so neat to teach her about the temple and how she could help her sister. She was so happy to finally have an answer! Awww I love this gospel. Its so wonderful that the Lord blesses us with so many truths that can make us so happy.

 

Did I tell you I have the spirit animal of a kangaroo? Maybe I already did. There is an elder in our zone who has a "gift" for finding ours. Haha so funny. The funny thing is I can actually see a kangaroo fitting quite nicely.

 

Okay well my time is up! Sounds like you're having a fun summer.  Give Elvera a big hug for me! Yep all you kids better give her one for me. All at the same time, well thats up to you. Love you all so much! Thanks so much for yours prayers, seriously they are doing miracles. I'm proud to say I'm working hard and loving it more and more everyday.

 

Horrah for Israel!!

Sister Oliphant

Happy Pioneer Day Monday!

Oh so much to share! This week has been out of this world.

 

Okay well first of all my best friend Sister Morrison left the MTC. She is seriously the funniest sister at the MTC. In the evenings I would literally roll on the floor laughing. I miss her greatly already. She is going to Jersey :] Her district was quite the hoot as well. One of the missionaries in that district, decided he has a gift to find out what each of our spirit animals are. Surprising he was very right about his gift. He's nailed everyone almost perfectly. Last week in our zone we had a walrus, chipmunk, pigeon, pug, gazelle, vulture, flamingo, rat, koala, buffalo, panda, and a bush baby. Oh good times! Can you guess what I am? Yep a kangaroo. Never would have thought that, but I thought he nailed it perfectly.

 

This week I also got to leave the MTC! and they let us back in! Haha.  No my companion, Sister Furnell has tendonitis. Yep from signing. Poor thing. Its very painful and even more painful to sign. We were are going to the physical therapist in Provo for her to have treatment twice a week. It was awesome getting out of the MTC bubble, but at the same time it was strange. The real world has become this foreign unreal thing.

 

So currently I have had a very interesting realtionship with the zone leaders and seeing we have 5 meetings a week together things have been quite fun. We're working on solving our problems and moving on. But yeah it sure has made for a pretty dramatic week. I wish I could say I dont like it. I dislike the fact that we don't have the ideal relationship, but it sure spices things up.  Haha.

 

ASL is coming along. Its either I'm super bored with it or I've been very humbled by the fact that I cannot understand half of what deaf people are saying when they sign their normal speed: SUPER FAST! I'm working on it and fervently asking the Lord for help to grasp the language. Please pray for me to learn ASL better. I need as much as I can get in the next three weeks. Oh and yes I leave in 18 days! They're shipping me out a week earlier than my district so my MTC departure date is Aug 7th. I'll get travel plans next week and I'll let you know what the details are. Any time in the airport I have I can call whomever I'd like. I'm hoping I'll have plenty of time :]

 

Okay so back to ASL. Oh my goodness it's so fun. So ASL grammer is very much opposite of English. So when the missionaries in my district find themselves talking we often find ourselves accidently speaking in ASL grammer instead. So yeah don't be surprised if I come home speaking like Yoda. "Love me you will still then right??" Also the other funny grammer thing we do is the word "not."  When used properly it should be used at the end of a sentence. Its hilarious cause it looks like im saying PYSCH after everything. "Cookies I like, NOT!"  Haha finding fun in the little things here.

 

I'm curently teaching 5 fake investigators in sign language. they're coming along. This week we broke through with success on a few of them.

 

So the ASL classroom is down in the basement with all the ESL missionaries. I feel really quite at home with all the diversity. LOVE IT!  It is quite entertaining. I've made great friends with two elders, one from Hungary and the other from Armenia. Those two elders are quite awesome and its so fun to chat with them. We are always trying to chat with everyone on the floor, so I've picked up a little bit of every language. Okay not really but I keep trying. They are always asking us about ASL and how to say things. So the entire floor is constantly signing "how are you?" We've also taught them "Jesus Christ loves you."  I love them all so much. Funny that other than our zone all of our friends here are learning English.

 

Question for you, what's the difference between the children of Israel, and the house of Israel. Its something I have been trying to find an answer to and I just keep getting confused.  Any insights?

 

Also... I've really been studying my patriarchal blessing a lot since I've been here. Wow it finally popped out the lines that are about missionary work. It's so neat how scripture changes. Not because the scriptures change actually its just our lives and perspective changes. Do you feel comfortable sharing your patriarchal blessings with your children. I think it would be wonderful to share them with each other if you want to do so.  I would love to reshare mine with you mom and dad. Let me know what you think.

 

I am currently in need to classy cute stationary and clothes. I am already sick of the clothes I brought. I'm dying to go shopping the first pday in Sacramento if my trainer lets us. I think I'm just going to wait and buy shoes in the field so I can pick them out myself -- you are are so right that I am too picky, especially when it comes to shoes.

 

Love you all. Don't forget about me. I know the computer is having trouble. Hope it gets fixed soon. that must be very annoying.

 

Sister Oliphant

Well do I have stories for you.

 

If only I had the time to actually share them. They give us only 4 hours for letters and email and it feels like the writing section of the ACT.  My hand is always about to fall off, even though I only write a few people. Funny how already my letters are already getting shorter and shorter, yet the things I want to say only get longer and longer. I know my emails have no real format to them. They are kind of just "brain on paper" and a list of things that happened this week or things that I wrote in my journal about. Maybe I should be better about sharing real stories. But it also just means I'll have lots of good stories for when I return.

 

Hmm. Well on to that list of things to share.

 

Did I even tell you there's a boy in my district from Waukesha?  Ironic. And this week when getting to know the new district there's another boy in my zone from northern Milwaukee area. Same ward as the elder in my district.

 

ASL is rad, Richard sorry you didn't have a lot of formal training here at the MTC. Our teacher has yet to give us name signs so we have all kind of picked up ones from each other. Mine still remainds elephant but with an O.  The rest of the district I've pretty much named though, and they have just kind of stuck. Some are quite hilarious.

 

I got some pretty crazy news this week. Jon Llewellyn and Max are both engaged. Yep engaged. Blew my mind and put me in shock but I'm trying to get used to the idea. I know more letters with news like that will continue all thru the mission. So excited for them tho, and strange to not be able to be there for Max's wedding, when i feel like he's like a brother to me.  Russians.

 

Fourth of July here was fun. We got to stay up late! And in that I mean instead of going to bed at 10:30 we weren't allowed back into our dorms until after the fireworks ended. So like 10:50pm. The sleeping schedule is really strange and hard to get used to from the typical college student schedule.

 

I cleaned the temple today!!! It was so legit! We disassembled two large chandeliers, cleaned them, and put them back together, like a giant puzzle. So cool. And wow it was gorgeous. Our instuctor let us sisters do it 'cause he said the sisters always love to play with the "jewelry of the temple." The provo temple is currently closed for its biannual deep cleaning and they asked a few of the missionaries to come over and help. Well we got asked and we were all so pumped. Such a blessing and way cool. But also can't wait for the temple to open back up in a few weeks so we can continue to go on P-days [preparation days to do laundry, write letters, etc].

 

Is there any chance you can send me a few family pics? Like our last good one, and maybe that really goofy one of us all on the living room couch from so long ago. Preferably the goofy one again and not the one where my eyes are not level. :]

 

Okay so you know how elders exchange ties here. Yeah its cool. and I'm jealous. But I kind of want to exchange ties anyways so I can collect and send a few to my favorite to people as a joke or gift. Any chance I could get a few sent along my way? Ones that are trade-able status, and maybe one thats purple trading status because I've already got my eye on a tie owned by the elder from Waukesha, he hates it and I love it and I told him I'd trade him. And seriously I think I have mentioned the Missionary Tie Club quite a few times in the last few weeks and a few friends have been really curious about it. You should send along something that I can give to elders or something and they can mail home for their families to check out. Don't want to be promoting anything while I'm out here, but I don't think passing along a website would be harmful if they ask about it. [but I do.]

 

I got that shot finally. Yes I was tearing up. I'm a wuss.  The nurse was so nice to me tho. She even sang me a song: "I hope they call me on a mission, so i can get a shot or two..." as she poked me. Haha. I felt like I was 5 again.

 

well love you lots!

would love to hear more from ya all, and words of support and love. 'Cause seriously I need it. Remember I'm the emotional child.

 

LOVES!

Sister Clarissa Oliphant

So I have been commanded to write home weekly but really there's not much to say and I have no time. I love you all so much. I thank my Heavenly Father everyday for all your love and support :]  Hope Your July 4th was great! We got to stay up late and watch fireworks! ... which just meant we were all walking zombies the next day. Great fun tho. There are two sisters in my zones who are my new best friends. They are seriously so great. One more week down, and less than 6 to go. Hope you are having a great long weekend up in Michigan and not getting eaten by the mosquitoes.

 

Take care. Next week's letter will be better promise :]

 

LOVES!

 

Sister Oliphant

29 June 2012

Just read your letter :]

really thanks so much for the package! it made my day! i got the package Wednesday actually, and Terrills letter Thursday (yesterday). apparently the mail service is pretty fast. thanks for the updates on the week back home, sounds like you are all being so productive with spring cleaning :] maybe there will be space for me to have a little corner of the basement for the few weeks next December.

love you family!

AND THANKS FOR THE PACKAGE!!!! BAHAHAHAHA that shirt brightened my whole day! Did you remember me going on about how i wanted one of those really bad just because in the third grade when they were super popular i never had one. haha thanks for thinking of me :] Cant wait for the monthly packages!!!! And thanks TERRILL for the letter! Youre a stud! :]

 

My week has been wonderful! I am trying hard to keep up the postive and i can do this attitude. We'll do it with the help of the Lord, cause honestly theres no way id still be here unless i did.

Devotional on tuesday had 9 apostles show up to! And of course i sat front row :] 70s including Rassband and McCallister sat right next to us!!! but yeah it was stellar. the mtc has so many awesome blessings :]

okay my comp is having tech problems so im going to come back and write more later. toodles for now.

peace and blessings

Clarissa

[later]

so sorry all my emails have been short and not very good this week. email is strange. ill let ya know on the feedback. and ill try to be honest and get you pictures. my comp already dared me to actually wear that shirt. ive taken it as a challenge to find a way to do it while still looking half normal and missionary appropriate. but really thanks it made my day i was laughing so hard i might have shed a few tears. okay a few things to share real fast.

 

DADS bishop growing up is the second counselor in my branch presidency here. brother Goodman. great guy. He told me to say hello to dad. i told him to say hello to gpa o for me.

 

this is for amanda: how do you know elder buggeman? appearently you added him on facebook and hes not sure how the heck he knows you. hes from west jordan area i think. anyways he saw my name tag and was like whoa an amanda oliphant randomly added me on fb a few weeks back. strange.

 

and they called me to be coordinating sister! which has been a blessing and way fun getting to know all the girls that much better. lord knows i need more sisters in my life and less of these crazy 19 year olds. but yeah its fun cause i also get to skip out of class with the zone leaders and do training fun stuff.

 

so much to tell you with no time.

 

but ill let you know lastly that i love ya mucho!!!

Clarissa