Hello Family and Friends!

I Korean-in letter write want-(past tense)-but I enough words know-(negative). Instead, I Korean grammar to use fun would be think-(past tense)! Dash word previous word's end-to is attached means. But, time is short-and this is hard-because I normally write-(future tense).

I probably didn't even get all of that right, but that's a general taste of what Korean grammar is like - it's crazy. But I think I'm starting to get the hang of it and it's a lot of fun learning Korean. This past week has been great and I am doing really well. Last week I was nicknamed "The Chosen One" by my district because I seem to always know the answers to anything Korean. I think it's mostly because I put a lot of effort into learning before I came, which has really helped, but I am also learning quickly and picking it up pretty well. I actually haven't learned a ton of new things in class that I didn't learn before I came, but there are always little things that I do learn and it's always good to practice and solidify what I already do know.

Probably my greatest trial this week has been a set of very sad, sore legs. Last Wednesday, I had this great ambitious idea to "hammer" my legs with my companion during gym time. I did a wall sit for a while, then we did frog leaps all the way around the track in the gym and then did lunges for half a lap. It might not sound that bad, but it was so hard. I literally could barely walk after we were done and almost collapsed multiple time while trying... I would have loved to have a good workout like that, except that I forgot that I haven't really worked out my legs for quite a while... So rather than just having a good hard workout, my legs have been incredibly sore for pretty much the past week. For the first couple days I could hardly bend my legs, walking was just a pain, and going up and down the stairs was torture. But it has been getting better over the last couple days. They are still pretty sore to the point that I don't think I can jump at all and even a light jog is really hard and pathetic, but I think I will be back to normal pretty soon. Unfortunately, because I've been hobbling around all week, I managed to lose my title of "The Chosen One," and now I am "Old Man Tolman." It's pretty funny.

Aside from my legs, though, I have been feeling really well. My cold has been gone for a few days and I feel pretty healthy. I will definitely be glad to actually be able to use my gym time for something other than limping around and trying to stretch out my quads. We have continued to teach lessons in Korean pretty often. We taught 5 lessons to one investigator, 윤 서 영, and it went pretty well. We also got another teacher this week and she is really good and really cool. I'm enjoying the classes and being able to learn about my purpose as a missionary, how to become better, and to learn the Korean language. Teaching lessons all in Korean is pretty difficult and stressful because it takes so much planning, but we're getting better at it and I'm able to understand and speak more without having to script it out. And even though it is tough, it is a lot of fun and I enjoy the lessons.

 

One of the coolest things that has happened this week is that a few of the Elders in the older group (who have been here for about 8 or 9 weeks) knew that I like to sing and asked me if I would sing in a musical number with them. I was thrilled to say yes. I thought we would be performing in Sacrament meeting or something, but it turns out that they were planning on auditioning to be a musical number for one of the MTC programs, possibly even a full MTC devotional or something. It was a tiny bit intimidating, but mostly exciting. We learned an absolutely gorgeous arrangement of "Lord, I Would Follow Thee." It love the song. What is even cooler, is that one of the Elders who is singing with us, Elder Smith (not Tucker, unfortunately), is the guy who arranged it! It's pretty incredible. We had to have in memorized for the audition, so we learned it and memorized it in a couple days (which was a miracle because the song is pretty tough) and we auditioned on Thursday. After we sang, the ladies in charge of the auditions said they absolutely loved it and that it was amazing. They said that we are a definite yes which means that they will assign us to sing at one of the different MTC programs in the next few weeks and let us know. I hope that it is at a devotional or fireside so everyone can hear it, but I'll be happy to perform no matter what. I'm so grateful they let me sing with them and have this awesome opportunity! Oh, and before I forget, one of the other Elders singing in the quartet is Elder Leavitt from Mesa and he happens to be pretty good friends with Garrett Heiner, which is pretty cool. He is one of the Zone Leaders here along with Elder Smith (the one who wrote the arrangement).

 

I have been getting all the DearElder's that have been sent (I think) and I love them, so if you get a chance and want to just say hi, I am always happy to hear from you. I also got the package you sent and I love it. Thanks Mom and family!

 

This Sunday we had a lot of talks about testimony, so here is a portion of mine! I know that this really is the work of God and not of men. Because it it God's work on the earth, I know that the callings, the leaders, the commandments, the principles, the doctrine, the scriptures, and everything else that is associated with the Gospel of Jesus Christ is given to us by God and is truly inspired. I know that as God leads His work, He will bless and magnify our efforts to help us more fully love, serve, and learn from all of those around us. I know that God depends on each of us to make the most of the time, the talents, and the testimonies with which we have been blessed and it is essential that we give our very best every single day to help feed His sheep and bring His beloved children back unto Him. 저는 여수 그리스도의 복음이 참되다는 것을 알고 있습니다. 저는 몰몬경이 하나님의 말씀이라는 것을 알고 있습니다. 저는 하나님께서 모두 자녀를 사랑하다는 것을 알고 있습니다.

 

I love you all! Thanks for all your love, your prayers, your example, and your support! 사랑해요!

 

-톨만 장로 (Elder Tolman)