Elder Jeffrey Bassett: First Group Email!

Hello everyone! Today marks a week and a half "in" the MTC. You know, I always said I was gonna be bad at writing emails and no one believed me; they always said I would feel differently once I left. Well, they were both right and wrong, because I both have a lot I want to say and have no idea or incentive to say it, haha. Maybe it's because my entire family is here, and I can still see them frequently.

My "classroom"

Today is easier though, because I can get away with giving a quick run down of what’s going on in the MTC/CTM. The way it works is we have a zoom call at 10:30-1:30 every day with Irmã Gabriella. In this call we learn a lot of basic Portuguese. It’s mainly review for me, but there are certain things that are new simply, because I learned more by talking when I was in Brazil rather than reading books. For example, I now know what ^ and ' do, haha.
From there we have a two hour break; this is when I do my companionship study. My companion’s name is Elder Bailey, a strapping young lad. He decided to go right after high school instead of waiting a year like me. He and I are getting along really well; helping each other with Portuguese and having hot seats where we ask each other questions to learn about one another. He for example, is an avid skier who loves all sports (especially basketball), hanging out with friends, and if he were to perfectly befriend any land animal it would be a cougar or a grizzly bear. You learn a lot about a person based on what animal they would have as a pet if they could. He’s a big hiker and camper, and I’m hoping we can meet up sometime and do something like that on P day. We only live 30 minutes apart, so that shouldn’t be too hard to do. From there we have another block from 3:00-6:00 with Irmão Santos. That lesson we practice a lot of Portuguese and have mock lessons with "Marcos" AKA Irmão Santos in a polo shirt.

Our district with Irmão Santos (top right corner)

Living with my family while undergoing the MTC training is definitely an exciting experience. Most missionaries don't have to worry about hearing a soft "hiiiii" "hiiiii" from their 1 year old nephew and see the bathroom door open while they are in the shower. Or while I’m in a meeting talking to my companion have my mom come up and exclaim "The desk is covered in trash", referring to the two crumpled up post it notes and a single protein shake bottle I finished 30 seconds earlier. Love you mom ;) But I also get to see my nieces and nephews often or have sushi for lunch and Nielsen's frozen custard for dessert, so I can't complain. It’s also very nice to be able to get settled into the missionary lifestyle while also being able to figure out what I need and don’t need. For example, a few days ago I finished one of my meetings and started stretching. A little too much as it turns out, as I heard a very loud rip behind me. Well, the benefit is that now I know that shirt was too small and can get another one before I actually leave.

Overall, the quarantine has made the experience so much easier for me in a lot of ways. I remember the day I was ordained, I was feeling a little overwhelmed and more than a little unsure of what came next. It was then that Liam, Whit, and Tay FaceTimed me, and Liam kept saying my name and giving me kisses through the phone. That was especially a big deal to me, because I lived with him for months before that and spent every day with him for at least a couple of hours non-stop, and he would say everyone’s name except mine haha. But because of the difficulties of Quarantine, I have the opportunity to personally teach him "Jeffrey favorite uncle" while I’m a missionary. I’m reminded of 2 Nephi 2:2, "… thou knows the greatness of God, and He shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain." I know what I’m here for, and the fact that I can’t be in Brazil right now in the CTM isn’t stopping me from fulfilling the purpose for which I was ordained.... as long as I remember that I have a testimony that God will consecrate this time with an online MTC to be full of preparation for my experiences as a missionary.
I’ll finish up by talking about how Portuguese is going. I’m already more or less fluent, I just have a hard time talking about the church. My main goal is to read a chapter a day in the Book of Mormon out loud, to journal and email with my companion in Portuguese, and in general make an effort to speak as much as I can in Portuguese with Elder Bailey while we are studying together and preparing for lessons.

Here are some pictures of some of the things I'm able to do while still being 'at' the MTC: