It's Wednesday! Happiest day of the week!

email 6.26.13

My dearest family!

Wow this week has been crazy, and emotional roller coaster for sure, but what would you expect from me?

Anyways first of all, I am so proud of everyone for graduating!  You guys did it!  I always believed in you!  I love the pictures, keep sending them!  PS did you find my camera charger?  Also good  news for Luke, he can have my phone, if you haven't already given it to him, just try and save my info but if not its okay, life goes on. 

Okay how exciting was Sunday?!  It was the best ever, I don't think I was on the video but I was wearing my red long sleeve dress...so maybe you saw me!  But yes it was probably the most exciting thing for all of us missionaries.  I loved all the talks but there was a couple of things that stood out to me.  The first was when Russell M. Nelson urged us to act by inspiration, motivated by love.  Perfect.  I love the new push for members to be involved in missionary work.  The thing that is so great is that we simply need to share what we know and allow others to pray for a confirmation that it is true.  I trust in the gospel and the Lord 100%, so if people are ready and have a sincere heart, it is pretty much fool proof...kinda.  Awesome.  I had a thought during the meeting.  I think Angel, the boot camp lady, needs to hear about the gospel.  I am not sure to what extent, but I got a prompting to tell you guys to get on that.  Just a thought.  Anyways we haven't gotten any other additional information yet, they are pretty preoccupied with the mission president.  They have locked us out of the main building because it is swarming with general authorities, and they make us eat in the gym!  Today is the last day, so its not too bad.  But the coolest thing happened.  On Sunday night my companion got a message saying that her Aunt Barb wanted to meet with her Monday morning, Aunt Bard is coincidentally married to Uncle Tom...yes L. Tom Perry.  So we go to the main building and we are sitting on the couch waiting for Aunt Barb to show up, and guess who she brings with her...Uncle Tom.  Hi.  It was amazing.  We just chatted for twenty minutes...he shook my hand three times...and told me that Virginia was lucky to have me.  It was the best. Sunday night I had a nice remembrance of the reason why I am here, it was a good day to recenter my faith and press forward. 

I am getting so anxious to get out to Virginia!  Mom, I took pictures of the play by play of our day yesterday that I will send to you.  Every day is pretty much the same.  We either work out first thing in the morning or last thing before we go to be, which is really nice, not everyones is like that.  But throughout the day we have time for personal study, language study, and companion study.  We have two, three-hour blocks of time when we are in class.  In class we learn teaching skills, spanish, and we teach lessons.  Currently we have two investigators, who are also our teachers, Maria and Sandra.  They are out progressing investigators, and we are inviting them both to be baptized tomorrow!  So that is exciting.  We are always planning lessons, we study the doctrines  that we are going to teach during personal study.  Figure out the words we need in spanish during language study.  Bring it together during companion study, then teach.  Its a great system that we have worked out.  Hermana Petersen and I are a great team.  We have to rely heavily on the spirit to teach in broken spanish, but it is awesome.  We started singing hymns at the beginning of each lesson, which has made a huge difference.  Its hard, but it is good.  Other than that we eat and have a devotional on Tuesday nights.  Sundays we get a break from studying the language and just hear really awesome speakers, and then there is P-day, today, hurray!  We went to the temple this morning and did inititories, but it was our last week for the temple because they are going to close for cleaning.  But i think next week we actually go clean the temple so that can be fun.  Other than that we just write letters and do laundry and hang out, we do have language study tonight, but its a good day. 

Also, I see Rachel and Kendall all over the place, its the best ever. 

Mom, you're the best for reading third Nephi, its awesome, I love you insights, keep them up!  You're an inspiration to me!  I love what you said about not getting casual about my testimony in Christ.  Also, I am going to send some clothes home, there are a couple of things that I want you to send. First the red lace pencil skirt.  Also there are two long sleeve blouses that I that I brought.  One is dark blue and the other is cream with black on the collar, they are both from forever 21.  Also if you could print out come thou fount lyrics, that would be awesome. 

Dad, I loved your letter.  I am glad you are still entertaining children, you're the best for that!  I hope fathers day went well!  I have been thinking about you, its crazy that you are just across the street!  Please eat some yummy food for me, maybe go to costco, and give Ryder a big kiss! 

You are the best family in the whole wide world!  Thank you thank you thank you!  I love you! 

xoxo, Hermana Myer

dreams of mercy, never ceasing

email 6.19.13

My dearest family,

Week two of the MTC, and I am still alive!!  It is the most amazing place on the face of the planet, and I am learning so much every single day.  I love it.  I love the gospel. 

Okay so where to start, first I will answer your questions.  My camera battery charger should be in the moving box that was in the office at some point, maybe in my room, but the only moving box I have.  Yes, we get to go to the temple on p-days, which is today, we go and eat breakfast before, its the best ever.  We do exercise, every day but sunday, sometimes we go to the gym and sometimes its the field, and other times its just whatever we want to do.  YES I am the boot camp instructor and I make everyone sore.  The workout cards are money, and tell Angel not to worry, and she taught me well!  I have been cleared to wear sandals, so yes I wear them almost everyday, except sunday.  However bow head scarfs are a no go...at least for the MTC, no headbands that go over your hair...so thats sad. 

Nicole's letter made me cry, I am so so so so so happy for her, I think about her constantly.  I know she is going to be amazing. 

SIDE NOTE before I forget:  PLEASE tell Kelly Anderson thank you for me, she sent me a package the first week and I don't have her address to thank her.  Tell her the rolls were yummy and exactly what we needed the first week, she is so sweet!

Dad- I hope you got my letter that I sent to you, I hope you had the best fathers day every!  I thought about you all day.  One of the speakers on sunday said that as much as our Dad's missed us they were happier to have us out here, making you proud.  I cried, but I know its true, just know how much I love you!

Mom-  Thanks for sharing all your thoughts from conference.  I am happy you got to meet with the area 70, you told me you were going to ask him about visiting teaching...what did he say?  I know how much you love visiting teaching, so I hope you got some help!  David Dowling is obviously amazing, its funny that he talked about the priesthood, on sunday the relief society lesson was a large part based on the priesthood.  She told us that while we are on our missions we need to use the priesthood leaders that we are blessed with as much as possible, so your insights were perfect. 

I am sorry to hear about Julie, I am going to send her a quick email. 

I see Kendall all the time!  Yay ill send a picture.  I have seen Lizzie at choir, and I see Haley Christensen every day.  Rachel Farnsworth came today so that was really happy I met her on the curb and took her to her room and whatnot!  I am so excited to have her here with me!

I have been thinking about everything that I have learned this week, which is alot, but I want to share with you guys whats going on over here.  For whatever reason I have been reading in 3rd Nephi alot, when Christ appears to the Nephites.  I just love to read about the way that Christ shares his gospel and spends time with his people, read that this week and let me know your thoughts.  I have made it a goal to keep Christ on my mind constantly, everything in in my life is possible because of him. On sunday our Sacrament meeting was all about repentance.  There are two points that really struck me, the first is when we kneel down every night we should be asking our Heavenly Father " what have I done or not done today that I need to repent of?"  If we do, we can more fully be able to repent and live our lives in accordance with Gods will.  The second point is that we should remember our sins, but not suffer for them anymore.  As a missionary I wear Christs name right under mine, at all times I am representing him, and because of that I can do anything.  Awesome.  Love this missionary business. 

I hope you all are planning on watching the broadcast on sunday, Yours truly will be singing in the choir, so look for me.  Apparently there is some big announcement, so get ready, and take notes fore me, because I am not allowed to.

The past couple of days we have been hearing and talking alot about Member missionary work, and how very very vital it is.  They have been instructing us to get close to the members, astonish them, and then they will want us to teach their friends.  It made me think alot about you guys.  I know that its easy for me to say because I am on a mission, but being here has made me realize how much we really need to share the gospel with everyone we encounter.  The gospel is happy, good, perfect, and most of all everyone needs it.  Everyone needs Christ.  The first like of our missionary purpose it to invite all to come unto Christ.  The key word being invite.  We need to speak up, and share with people what we know, and you guys can be doing that while I'm out here!  Be friends with the missionaries! 

We also talk alot about how missionary work is a revelatory work, we need to be doing everything we can in our lives to be close to the spirit, because thorough the spirit peoples hearts are changed.  Last night at the devotional, our speaker was Robert C. Gay.  He told us that we are not here by accident.  Every human has been prepared from the foundations of the earth to do the work that they are doing.  I love that. 

I love you so much.  Thank you for supporting me.  Thank you for sending me so many letters, keep them coming, you guys keep me going.  I feel so blessed to be here, all week I have been singing come thou fount of every blessing and the line that keeps sticking with me is streams of mercy never ceasing, love that, its perfect, and real. 

I do need one thing, a calendar, preferably a really small one, maybe just on a sheet of paper or something, nothing fancy, but we have no calendars here! 

Love, Hermana Myer

Hermana Myer is in the MTC

It's official. Riley Jane Myer is in the MTC and loving it. Here are some pictures to prove it.

email 6.12.13

HOLA!  I have to start off by saying I LOVE THIS PLACE.  It is so amazing, its hard to describe everything that I am feeling and learning and experiencing, but I will just start off by saying it is awesome.  So I guess I will just start off with the first day.  Hermana (Erica) Mahterian was my host, which was the best thing that could have every happened, just a big hug and smile from a friend was exactly what I needed.  She took me to get my name tag and books and drop my suitcases off and then straight to class.  It  really was a blessing to have her with me on that first day.  Sadly she had to go home and have surgery so she left, but at least I had a few days with her!  So I got to class and it was not as scary as I was expecting, and I love my teacher, Hermano Cameron, he is so enthusiastic and hilarious and friends with some of my friends from school, so that is just great news.  The first night we had this teaching experience thing where there was a simulation of a lesson being taught and we got to watch, it was amazing, a good introduction to what teaching the gospel actually looks like, who knew I didn't really know what that looked like.  Anyways we ran around all night and met our branch presidency heard a couple of talks, honestly it is kind of a blurr.  But I felt good and that's all that mattered.

So the good news is my companion is the best ever.  Her name is Hermana (Jacie) Peterson and she went to high school with Abbey and Bailey!  Yes, she is 19, and yes we are soul sisters.  She is hilarious and positive and best of all willing to work hard.  We are on the same page and get along great.  She has been a huge blessing to me, and I really do love her.  I'm sad because she is actually going to Texas, but we are going to live it up while it lasts.  We have two other girls in our district, Hermana Bingham and Hermanan Wilkins, who are both going to Richmond with me.  We all share a room and I already love them.  We have six Elders in our district, all different ages, and they are the best.  We all get along and work well together and they even did matching polka dot day with us sisters already, so you know it is going to be a good six weeks.

As far as spanish goes, I LOVE IT.  I love speaking spanish, and learning spanish, and teaching in spanish (it is very rough).  But yes the gift of tongues is very very very real.  We have already taught two lessons is "spanish"  I am sure it wasnt quite spanish, but either way I love it.

This place is just so unreal.  Everything time I hear a speaker or a talk or anything like that I know that they say something directly for me.  The first three days were the hardest, because they had us so busy and they pretty much drill rules into you like crazy, but once Sunday came I felt a million times better.  On Sunday we had relief society with all of the sisters, someone changed the words to As sisters in Zion to a sister missionary song and after that I was a total goner.  I have learned so many things since getting here.  I think first and foremost I have realized how much the Lord helps us along every single step of the way, he is involved in every aspect of our lives, especially while here in the MTC.  I think I pray out loud with my companion at least ten times a day.  Whenever we a feeling a little down or frustrated or anything we just pray.  I know that he is up there listening to every word and he gives us immediate blessings, it is unreal.  Another thing that I have learned is how much the Lord has been and is currently working to prepare my investigators for me, and because he is doing that I need to prepare myself for them.  Everything I am doing here and have done in my life it to prepare myself for them.  It is amazing.  I have realized how much work I need to do with learning the scriptures and the doctrine, but I work at it every day, all day, so its good.  I thought of Mckenna and Rachel the other morning during my personal study, I want them both to start studying Preach My Gospel, there is great information in there, just to know as a Latter Day Saint, I love that book.  But Start working on and it girls, you two would do amazing out here!  

Also on the 23rd there is a special missionary training broadcast that you should all go to, the first presidency and the quorum of the twelve are going to be there and yours truly is going to be singing in the MTC choir.  It is going to be amazing!

It's hard to think of everything that I want to tell you guys.  As for the less important things, the food is awful, mostly I just eat spinach salad, wraps, and apples, so maybe that is good news.  But this morning before the temple we ate breakfast at the temple with our zone which was a nice switch up.  Also, we have the best zone ever!


PS.  SEND ME DEAR ELDERS, getting them at the end of the day is the best thing ever, every day is really really busy and when I get back into our room there is nothing would love more than a letter, even if it is one line that says I Love you or something like that.  That goes for you Alyse, Chad, Mckenna, Luke, all of you!  But Seriously that's all I want for my early birhtday, a dear elder every day!

I love you guys so much, I think about you all the time, I pray for you all the time.  I know that our heavenly father loves us and know us each individually.  I love this gospel with all my heart.  I love being a missionary.


Yo se que le evangelio de Jesucristo es verdadero.  Yo se que el libro de mormon es la palabra de dios.  Yo se que Thomas S. Monson es un profeta de Dios.

I love you all, sorry next time my email will not be so long, also maybe I will be able to figure out how to send pictures!

xoxo Hermana Myer