Update

William is in Denmark today!!  He left the MTC yesterday and flew through NYC on his way to Copenhagen and was able to call home which we all enjoyed.  He sounds great and is excited to go to Denmark.  He was supposed to arrive in Copenhagen at 830am on Tuesday morning.  He was scheduled for an hour of contacting and then an orientation at the mission home.  He will have dinner with the mission president's family and sleep there tonight.  On Wednesday he will be assigned his area and companion.  He wanted to thank all of you who have been writing letters - they really help.  His P-days will be on Monday, but I probably won't get another update up until I get back from Germany (Clarissa and I leave Thursday for her senior trip).  We all hope you have a wonderful two weeks.

The Mom

Update Week 7

Hej min Familie!!!  Hvordan Går det???

 

This is probably the quietest week in the MTC.  Absolutely nothing exciting has happened.  How is dad doing in the new calling?  He DearEldered me and it sounds like alot of fun..........not!  Are you still plum petrified or has the original shock kinda worn off? 

 

So this week we made a new goal.  That goal was to make English extinct for us.  So we are trying our best to speak kun Dansk (only Danish)!!!!!  So yeah that ought to be interesting.  The new Danish tutor is way more strict  and hard on us than the teachers are.  I'm kinda glad about it.  Sometimes I feel like the teachers are  just trying to get us to feel good about ourselves rather than speak good Danish.  So yeah Bror Brock is telling us how it SHOULD be pronounced and what a real Dane would say.  Often I think the teachers just don't have time to help us with everything so I am really glad he can help us out. 

 

Yesterday ended the streak of apostles.  Its a little sad but the talk Elder Kevin Pearson gave yesterday was fantastik!!!!  He focused really heavily on finding your own personal identity.  He shared with us my new favorite scripture, 3 Nephi 5:13 which talks about "I am a Disciple of Jesus Christ".  He said to substitute your own name into the verse and you will really notice a difference when you live that attitude.  Anywhos the talk was awesome! 

 

So a couple things I learned about Denmark just in general this week.  Don't ship packages that are over $50.  If they are over I have to pay a fee. 

 

So yeah, we get our travel plans on Friday so I'll be getting back to you soon with those.  11 days left and one more P Day then look how Denmark here I come!!!!!!!!

 

Love,

 

ældste William Veach 

Update Week 6

davs alle!!!!

So I got TWO great speakers this week. It was really cool. On Sunday evening Sheri Dew came and spoke. She talked about three things that the adversary will do to keep you from fulfilling your mission. 1. Not know who you are. 2. Keep you from fully understanding what the Savior went through with the Atonement. 3. Keep you from knowing how to recieve personal revelation.  If I could I would go over the whole talk, but I don't have time so I'll just sum it up by saying that it was one of the best talks I've ever heard. May put details in this weeks letter. The second speaker was last night at the devotional was Elder David A. Bednar. He gave an awesome talk about doctrine, principles and applications. He said that too often we focus on the application without knowing the doctrine behind it and vice versa. It was an awesome talk. He also said that no one can accomplish his or her mission alone. That its impossible. We have to rely on Christ through the atonement to make our burdens light and offer comfort when we are down. On Monday, Elder Mohrman left. Now I have the bottom bunk, a new desk and a very quiet room. Oh well.

This week we've started speaking completely in Danish. It's a little overwhelming but I'm surprised at how much I can understand. We also started on the Plan of Salvation in Danish this week but have yet to teach it so that should be interesting. We have a tutor now. One of the old teachers who was in a bad accident a few weeks before we came in is tutoring since Bror Stacey has his old job. Bror Brock (the tutor) is way cool. He was swimming in a lake in Maryland and a boat ran over him and broke his femur. Nearly died. Now he's on a cane and walks with a huge limp but says that he functions so theres no reason to complain. He served in Denmark about five years ago. (BTW, Bror is brother in Danish just in case everyone thought I was doing BRo. wrong). I think it is really helping to have him as a tutor.

Dad also asked what responsibilities come with being DL in the MTC. Not alot. Basically, I watch over the district, preside and run district meetings, report to ZLs and Branch Presidency, and other little things like call on people for prayer and what not. The big news for me this week is finding out that Dad was made 2nd Counselor in the Bishopric. I must admit I laughed for a long time and couldn't stop laughing for a while. We've also got snow today!!! Its cool!

That's basically the end of another quiet week in the MTC. We have two more P Days I think and less than three total weeks left. We're starting to feel the pressure. I at least am looking forward to going to Denmark!!! Til næste uge!!!!! Vi Ses!!!! Jeg elsker i!!

ældste William Veach

Update Week 5

Hvordan Går det???

 

Ok well I'm now on the downward slope in the MTC.  I passed my half way mark this week.  Just like the previous weeks its been relatively slow.  Last night, Elder M. Russell Ballard came.  His talk was amazing.  He talked about communicating your message clearly and simply and how much easier it'll be for investigators to feel the Spirit.  He told lots of cool stories.  Apparently, on his mission in England he had a lot of street meetings where he would just get up and preach to a group of people and whomever came and listened was who they taught.  He did that 750 times and said because of that he could tell the message of the gospel in a simple, clear way.  I felt like, thats just great, I've got this teaching thing just about down in English and now I have to switch to Danish.  But he told us thats where faith in the gift of tongues and just plain old faith in Christ will help us to master the language and in turn become "Master Communicators". 

 

Speaking of teaching in Danish, we taught our first TRC lesson in Danish this week and rocked its socks off!!!!  I felt way good about it.  Even our teacher told us that we did an excellent job.  I was also able to memorize that First Vision in Danish!!!!  >>>Jeg så en lyssøle lige over mit hoved, som var stærker end solens glans....<<< yeah feeling pretty good with that!!!!

 

So mom your teaching how to plan paid off and I was labelled, basically, by our teachers as a master planner!  They said that my planner looks exactly like it should if it was in the field.  They then used it as an example to teach the rest of the class.  I must admit I was feeling very good about myself. 

 

One last thing, I got made District Leader this week.  It's kind of in a cushy enviroment compared to the field, but it still feels good being selected for leadership. 

 

Yeah well this is the end of another quiet week.  Elder Mohrman leaves on Monday, so I'm kind of looking forward to getting his bed, desk and just more room to do stuff.  Well four weeks left, for me.  Jeg elske i!!!!  (I love ya'll)

 

William

Update Week 4

Hello All, 

 

Sorry I have not been keeping up with the blog.  I am trying to get all the posts up including some of William's letters.  He leaves the MTC on November 29. 

 

Hey all,

 

Hvordan Gar Det!  Things are same here.   I did my first successful door contact in Danish and taught my first lesson in Danish with notes and from memory.  Bro. Stacey said that he was impressed with how much we were able to do.  I'm shooting to memorize the First Vision in Danish by our next TRC visit on Monday.  This visit will also be our first official Danish lesson taught.  I was also able to memorize one of my favorite scriptures in Danish, D&C 121:7-8. 

 

So I hear that BYU football won.  The next day we had a fireside and the speaker (some guy from the mission dept.) said, "Elders, you chose a great time to go on a mission."  It was pretty funny.  But yeah from what I hear we're so bad I ain't missing a thing! 

 

Last night for Devotional, Elder Richard G. Scott came.  TWO APOSTLES IN A ROW!!!!!!!!  Usually I have a hard time listening to Elder Scott but not last night.  He gave a very good talk about following the promptings of the Holy Ghost.  They were really good juicy stuff that I hope I'll be able to use on my mission and in my normal life.  He also gave three apastolic blessings, one of which was the Gift of Tongues to all those who will work and be faithful in the field.  Not just in our foreign languages but also in the language of the spirit. 

 

We are also some of the missionaries selected to help Sister Clegg (wife of one of the Mission President's counselors) and be here minions at the Thanksgiving service project.  The project is making school bags for the Humanitarian Center.  The Elders that they've selected, which includes the Danes, are running stations for the different areas and zones.  We are also being filmed for a little demo video on Friday that will be shown to the whole MTC.  If they keep this service project it will also be shown every year that they do it.  That's right, I'm going to be a livin' legend, on a Service Project Demo Video for the MTC......

 

We had a culture night the other day, because Sister Ronstrom was leaving for Denmark on Monday.  It was cool because we found out more about the mission, the country and the what we can expect.  Bro. Stacey is way cool.  He's gotta be up there on coolest people lists.  He said that the bakeries were to die for (you can tell what I was focussed on).  He also said that we would get to use cars alot of our mission too.  We probably wouldn't have to buy bikes because the old Elders just hand theres down and you just use them and also you use alot of cars.  He said that members are really nice but that they take a long time to warm up to and start to trust you. 

 

Well thats about it.  Elder Mohrman's got less than two weeks left, I've now got about five.  I'm am now to the point where I am a voice of experience which is nice.  The language is coming along and we are totally ready to get the field!!!!!  Love you all tons!!!!!

 

William