A Photo!

We received a nice letter from Melissa's mission president, President Evans, on Tuesday.  Enclosed with the letter was a photo of Melissa with President Evans and his wife.  So good to see her smiling face!

We're Not in Utah County Anymore, Toto!

After what felt like a very LONG time, we got email from Melissa this morning.  So nice to know where she is and what she's been up to!  Here are some quotes from her email.

I am HERE!  Mondays ARE my pdays, and I get an hour to e-mail so hopefully I'll be able to write everything that I want to. Time is already ticking and I'm a slow writer/thinker so I'll do the best I can.

I am serving IN the city. I live in Brighton.  Boston is beautiful. We often drive on the highway right along the Charles River and see the skyline all lit up - it is fantastic. Ah, I have so much to tell you I'm already getting stressed out but hopefully what I say makes some sense.

So. I am with Sis. Meier. She is a wonderful trainer and is very kind and patient with me. She is going home December 16, so she's training for her last two transfers, which, as I understand is somewhat atypical. But she's great! We live in an apartment with two other sisters, Sis. Barben (from Cedar City) and Sis. Carpenter (from Gilbert, AZ). They are all super nice and trying really hard to make me feel welcome. When I got in on Wednesday night (after dinner and some orientation at the President's home in Needham) they greeted me and had even made my bed for me! Super thoughtful.

So yesterday was my first baptism! Her name is J*. She's 42, a single mom of 2 teenagers, and is about the most loving person ever. She is technically my first baptism because I was here, and because I did help with the service and everything, but because I never taught her and she's had this date set since before I even entered the MTC, it doesn't feel quite the same. She's so nice. She calls us all her sisters and calls me "Brookie" because she can't say Broekhuijsen. She was just so READY. It was cool to see her really understand, and then bear her testimony about how much it means to her to really KNOW that she is a daughter of God. Oh man, I was a wreck (surprise, surprise). I wish I could give you more details but I really don't have time! I'm hoping to maybe send some pages from my journal home so you could read them. I write a LOT in there.

Let me tell you a bit about how my day to day life is. Sis. Meier and I sleep in the family room (we do have beds, in addition to the couches that are in there) and we have a big beautiful desk and lots of space for books/binders/notebooks. The other sisters are in the one of the bedrooms, and the other bedroom has all our dressers and is where we all get ready, because the bathroom is teensy tiny. We do have a kitchen, but because we're out all day, we don't cook a ton. A lot of times the members or our investigators take us out for dinner/lunch. I've eaten more pizza here in 5 days than the rest of my life combined. We volunteer at a food pantry, and they give us a TON of food for free, so we don't have to spend any money on groceries. It's such a blessing!  It's kind of like "Bountiful Baskets" because we never know what we're going to get, but then we just have to try to come up with meals based on what we have. It is a fun challenge.

Because we live in the city, our schedule has to be modified a bit. Normally, our schedule would be: 6:30-7:00 exercise, 7:00-8:00 get ready and eat breakfast, 8:00-9:00 personal study, and 9:00-11:00 comp study (this new 12 week training program gives us an extra HOUR of comp study!) then head out for the day. BUT because we're here and we have to take public transportation (which will now be referred to solely as "the T" because I'm a true Bostonian) we have to leave way early for everything, so we have to fit in our studies whenever we can. It takes at least an hour to go anywhere helpful. Our church building is just off Harvard Square. That's right, the actual Harvard. I walk around Harvard almost every day! I even met with an investigator on campus and ate in one of the cafeterias in the law school. It's weird, but it's cool. I think just by sitting in there my IQ went up several dozen points (as well as my pride.) It's cool to be that close. I'm starting to get the hang of the different buses and subways I have to take everywhere. We pick up the 86 about 3/4 of a mile up the hill from our place, and that can take us straight to Harvard, which is nice. Then the 57 takes us to Kendall Square/MIT when we need to go to the Stake Center. And on our way home from the stake center, we take the greenline and then hop on the 64? I think? We've only done that one once. It's tough but it's not phasing me too bad. I've got a pretty good head for direction, and I'm trying really hard.

Funny story, and the reason for the e-mail title: The buses do HAVE a schedule, but they don't actually show up according to the schedule. So basically you have to get to the stop 10 minutes before it's supposed to be there... and then you just wait until it comes. It might be right on time, or you might be standing there in the humidity for 45 mintues. So. The other day was one of those waiting days. This girl was getting really antsy and eventually just squatted down, rolled up a joint, and had at it. It was hilarious. She had little baggies filled with paper, another with weed, and just rolled it all up in broad daylight. I'm pretty sure cops were driving by and not doing a thing about it. I guess that's normal but I found it funny. I'm so not in Utah. 

Let's make a list of things I'm grateful for:

-Because we run the AC on full blast 24/7, it doesn't get too humid in our apartment!

-The bus stops are all within a mile of our apartment!

-President and Sister Evans are the sweetest, nicest couple around

-My companion and roommates are all very kind and easy to get along with

-Like I said, totally free groceries!

-Sometimes I have really cool moments where I get to see the Charles, and the Skyline, and I say to myself, "What a wonderful world"

-There is wildlife up the waZOO here. Pres. and Sis. Evans said that they have seen foxes, deer, wild turkeys, squirrels and chipmunks. Plus there are many hideous pigeons

-Earplugs. Nuff said

-So far, I have not gotten yelled at.

Things that I am grateful for because I'm trying to have a good attitude:

-With all this humidity, I'm saving at LEAST 2 dollars a year on moisturizer!

-The fact that it's 46 degrees in my apartment (because of the AC) makes it so that I get to sleep really well under my thick comforter

So, clearly I am very fortunate. Really, I know I'm being taken care of.

I love you all! I'm thankful for your prayers and support. Please write me letters! I haven't gotten any out here yet and I'd really love to hear from people.

Please know that I know that I'm being blessed. I have seen little things that remind me that God loves me. And even though this is hard, I don't ever have to doubt that I'm doing what God wants me to. 

This is truly Christ's church, back on the earth. And I'm so thankful to know that.

-Sister Broekhuijsen

Last MTC Email!

It's a mixed emotions kind of a day.  Of course, it's always wonderful to get email from our favorite Sister missionary, and we're very excited to hear all about the next phase of her mission - in Boston!  But, knowing how much she has loved the MTC, it's a little sad she has to leave so soon!  And, I selfishly will miss having her 30 minutes away (even if I can't go see her there!)  Anyway, here are some words from today's email:

First of all, thank you SO so so much for the packages! I love that I just write a big ol' list of things I need and they show up at my mail room mere days later. I really appreciate it.  I have SO many dinosaur stickers right now that I'm basically bursting forth with joy and gladness. That does NOT mean to stop sending them to me. I could never have enough. With my kitten stickers too, the possibilites are truly endless. :) You know me too well.

It will be fun to have Vancey [Melissa's Uncle Vance, who is coming for the BYU football game this weekend] and crew over this weekend! Let's hope the Cougs don't suck as bad as they did this PAST week. Geez. Speaking of that, Sis. Tofete and I dressed up in blue and white - very matchy - in support of the Y on Saturday. I have more school spirit here in the MTC than I ever did when I was actually going to school. What does that say about me? Anyway, I guess showing my cougar pride was NOT helpful to them because yes, I did hear the score, and yes, I was disappointed. Geez, Jake Heaps! Just kidding. I don't know if it's his fault, that's just the only football player's name I know. Unless Fui Vakapuna is still there. That's the other one.

So, this past week I got a sinus infection. And oh MAN was it a bad one. But you know what, I'm choosing to look at all the blessings. It showed up Thursday afternoon. Very rapidly and severely. I had the worst sore throat I've ever had, but no congestion, so I thought it must be strep. I went to the health clinic first thing Friday morning, and got an appointment for 2:40 that afternoon. By that time the sore throat had lessened, but I had MAJOR conjestion, headache, teethpain, the works. So it was my classic sinus infection, just a really bad version. The strep test came back negative, thank goodness, so I didn't have to worry about spreading that to my companions and other roommates! The Doctor said that because the air is so dry here in all the buildings (because they crank up the ventilation to try to not spread airborn sicknesses so much) it makes people more susceptible to sinus infections and the like. So that might explain why it was so bad.The clinic isn't open on Saturdays, so if it hadn't hit so suddenly, I probably would have just tried to wait it out, and then it would have been really bad on Saturday/Sunday. So as it is, I have already been on my abx for 4 days! I'm glad it happened this way, and I really do know that that's a blessing. I asked the Doctor, with tears running down my face, if this would delay my flight out on Wednesday, and he said that as long as it doesn't get worse, and I don't develop a fever, I should be just fine. 

So Friday night I slept terribly. Let me rephrase that. Friday night, I didn't sleep, and it was terrible. I was in so much pain, and I was coughing really badly and couldn't breathe. Even Sudafed and Tylenol weren't cutting it. I also woke up with really painful sneezing fits. Who has ever heard of those? No one. I swear they're not real, but they happened to me. Anyway, Saturday day was pretty miserable too. And Saturday night was even worse than Friday. I was definitely feeling worse. So Sunday morning I asked Elder Morrill and his companion (Elder Escobar) for a Priesthood blessing. They were kind enough to oblige, and I've been feeling much better. Between the abx kicking in and the blessing, I'm able to feel almost 100% as long as I stay up on my sudafed and tylenol dosing. In the blessing, I was promised that this sickness would NOT delay me getting to Boston. So that was a huge relief. I feel so lucky to be surrounded by worthy Priesthood holders here at the MTC. 

Going without MJ [Michael Jackson - for those of you who read this blog but haven't actually every MET Melissa!  :-)] has not been as bad as I thought it would be. I'm trying to REALLY love the hymns. I hum hymns every night in the shower and I often get awkward compliments through the curtain :) What would REALLY make my day would be if Jim Croce had a CD of hymns. Man, I really miss that guy's voice. I had another really cool experience with a hymn, though, this week. We sang "There is Sunshine in my Soul Today" and I choked up at the line "Jesus, listening, can hear the songs I cannot sing!" because I usually CAN'T sing when I get too emotional! I love that thought. 

Something I've come to love here at the MTC is that I get so much comfort and joy out of being able to say, "You don't have to take my word for it!" when I'm teaching a lesson. I feel like LeVar Burton in the Reading Rainbow. But really, that's one HUGE advantage to being a missionary for this church! I just have to teach, and I have perfect faith that God will convert these people through the Holy Ghost, if they're willing to listen. How great is it, that we can KNOW things for ourselves? I'm convinced that that's really one of the biggest blessings He gives us. 

I love love LOVE being here. Even though I'm by no means sick of the MTC, I AM excited to get out to the field. It will be more real, and in some ways it will be easier not being in Provo, so that I'm not constantly reminded of how close I am to my old life. 

I'll leave you with a couple new  definitions for faitht that I learned this past week at Sacrament Meeting. 

"Faith is not believing that God can, it's knowing that He WILL." 

and 

"Faith is not about everything turning out okay, it's about being okay no matter how everything turns out." 

I love to think of it that way. 

Love,  

Sister Melissa Brownielocks* Broekhuijsen

*Brownielocks is Melissa's dad's nickname for her from when she was little.  He starts out his letters to her now, "Dear Sister Brownielocks."