May 29, 2015 (Second Email)

This is it. The time is almost here! I only have two days left in the MTC! Am I excited? Yes. Am I also terrified out of my pants? Most definitely. (This is why I wear skirts) SO much has happened in this last week! There were a lot of really cool experiences I had with my companion, and also the girls in my branch!

Highlight of the week: Elder Holland came to speak to us all in the MTC on Tuesday evening. Everyone in the MTC was abuzz the whole day! He's basically as celebrity as the LDS church gets, second to the prophet himself. He gave us an amazing talk. He did the Elder Holland thing, where he gets all up in your face. He does not mince words. This is greatly appreciated, because there is NO way you didn't get the message unless you were asleep! 

He talked about how there is one thing that is the most important for us while we are on our missions. He made us promise that we would convert at least ONE person on our missions. That person being ourselves. He was bold in his words, and there was nothing missed. This is not like conference, where we can go listen to the talks after a day or two. We only get to hear this talk once! I have six whole pages of notes on the talk.

Word of Wisdom for the week: "We cannot help another come closer to Christ unless we are on higher ground than they are." This is true! We cannot help others (In anything, really) if we ourselves are not on firm ground! It's kind of like the whole "Do not seek to remove the mote thingy out of your neighbor's eye if you haven't yet removed the beam thingy from your own." ........ or something like that. I'll look that one up later. The point is, before you step to help someone out, make sure you take a good look at yourself, so you are more able to help them!

Funny story of the week:  Missionaries aren't allowed to have pets. One of the Elders in our district decided to push this limit, so he picked up some of these HUGE pinecones we have here on campus. We now have a pinecone family in our classroom, and they all have names, costumes, and a background. One of our teachers dressed them all up in pinecone clothes, and one of my other teachers is threatening to burn them because he hates them so much......... yeah. So none of that is gospel related, but sometimes we role play gospel doctrines with the pinecones in class. Anyways. Maybe I'll take a picture and send it to you all. 

So. The MTC has been nothing like I expected. You ask why, and I can't even explain. We have all been remade, which is both joyful and painful. 

I cannot wait to go to Tonga to teach God's children. I cannot believe that I, a mere 19 year old, have been trusted with something so sacred and special as the lives of these children of God. I'm rather astounded at the immense and marvelous work I'm about to embark on, but I know, whom the Lord calls, the Lord qualifies. I love you all. I love hearing from all of you! I just want to give you a heads up, I may not have internet, in fact, I most likely won't have internet for most of my mission. So, write me a letter! Send it to me! I will write back! 

I must end. But, I want you all to know, God lives, and he loves us.

ofa atu! Koe Sisu Kalaisi ae mo'oni taha Eiki.

Love love love love love,

Sister Wunderlich

May 29, 2015 (Last Email From The MTC)

Dear family, I do not have a lot of time. So much has gone on today and in the past week! I have not had a normal MTC day this week. It's been so hectic! 

I got your package! I loved all of the little notes in there and I will be taking them with me to Tonga. It seriously was the highlight of my day! On Saturday evening, I will be sending out a package of clothing and of other items I don't need/don't want to lose on my mission. There is a lot! There are a ton of clothes in there, they don't need to be washed because they're fresh out of the laundry from today. Also, a lot of them can't be dried in the dryer, so if you disregard that first statement please don't wash them anyways.

Such a small world! I didn't know that sister Gee knew sister Riss mom! Also, now there's even more of a connection because I introduced sister riss to elder gee. 

I will be able to call you from the airport on sunday, so be ready! I don't know how long I get to call you for, but we shall see. The flight will be long.

Interesting factoid, Outside the mtc I've heard nothing but good things about tonga. Inside the MTC i hear nothing but bad things. I think our teachers are trying to prepare us for how hard it will be, but don't you think they could go about it a little better?

Alright, I have to sign off. Today was nuts! I love you all, and I miss you.

This is where my adventure begins! HERE WE GO!

OFA ATU!

Sister Wunderlich 

P.S. I saw all of those pictures, and I love the llama and the duck! I will take them with me.

LLLLLOOOOOVEEEE

May 22, 2015 (Second Email)

Hello All! I'm here to tell you that this week's email will likely be no more organized than last week's. first off, i apologize for my lack of skill with grammar and for all of the following spelling errors. the reason for these is this:

a. I'm lazy

b. I'm short on time

C. as my tongan gets better my english gets continually worse.

so really, if you can't understand my emails, that's a good thing! 

Funny story of the week:

Our teachers have been pushing us lately to teach more investigators. This is the MTC, and there are no tongan speaking "Investigators" to be had, so my companion and i have taken to teaching the wall in our residence hall. I have made tiny paper people that we stick to the wall and then preach to in tongan, even though they don't respond. I absolutely love doing this, because not only does it help me with my teaching skills and my tongan, but it's really funny when people walk into the room and you're talking to a wall!

Lesson for the week: being tired is a good thing.

Every night when I go to bed, i have to force myself to write in my journal, plan in my planner, and take a shower, because when we get back from 10 hours of class, we're absolutely exhausted! We are literally tired ALL the time. 

But, we absolutely love it. Every night we go to bed exhausted from the day's work. I am so very grateful for the exhaustion I feel, because the day has been spent doing the absolute best work possible! I love being tired! It let's me know that i've been working hard! even if I can barely brush my teeth!

The Fijian district left us this week. BOO! It's strange how much you can love someone so much in such a short amount of time. every time our branch sends another district off, we sing songs with them, always ending with "god be with you til we meet again."

This song, friends and family, we are convinced is the root of all evil. We can barely get through the first line of this song without everyone bursting into tears, unable to finish. If you want to make any missionary/return missionary cry, simply sing that song. 

SO. I just realized, I now only have 12 days left in america. Duhn duhn duhn! We are all anxiously waiting for our flight plans, and if they don't arrive today we are scared that it may be because our visas have not yet arrived. :(

One last thing this week. FOR THE FIRST TIME, IN THE HISTORY OF THE MTC, 52% of the missionaries here are sister missionaries! This is because of the age change! Had this not happened, it is estimated 3/4 of us might not even go on missions. Isn't that super awesome!

Alright. My hour has ended. Ofa atu, everyone!

Sister Wunderlich

May 22, 2015

I have twelve days left in america. (Everyoone screams and you hear terrifying noises in the background) 
as of today, i have officially been out for one month! woot! it has flown by, but at the same time it feels like it's also been moving so very very slow. 

I'm sorry i have not yet sent a list of things I need. i am waiting for my flight plans so I know how much stuff i can take first. Our flight plans still have not come! It's really annoying. also, the shift key on this keyboard is sticky so I'm just going to stop using it. maybe. every day we get up and tell our branch "pray for the tongan's flight plans!" maybe they'll come later today. hopefully.

I greatly enjoyed the many pictures you sent me! I printed most of them out and i will crop them and put them up on my wall. the picture of gringo makes me super happy because I can see him just wanting to attack the camera. i love the pics from the mtc, too, and around the temple. those are also being hung up! I loved the pictures from guatemala, and i wonder if guatemalan way of living is similar to tonga's? we'll have to see. There is no warm water, and all of their drinking water comes from rain. we were given these super expensive water bottles when we got here, to maybe help us not get sick. (if the tongans don't steal it from us first...)

AS OF WEDNESDAY the mtc is 52% made up of sisters! WAHOOO! girls represent! This is the first time in history that this has happened! 

I feel a little strange because there actually isn't a whole lot to write about this week. Much has been the same old same old stuff. The new fijian district got here, (two of them, the international missionaries did not make it because of visa issues, so we will not meet them while we're here. :( ) Sister Rachel Singleton has arrived in our branch and i love seeing her because we were friends in high school, and we were in the same ward for a little bit!

Dad, i think that float will be super awesome! i wish i could be there to help out making it because I love that hands-on kind of stuff. also. Will you send me Alex's email? I want to be able to contact her!

i'm so sorry this wasn't longer, and if i think of anything to say I'll send a little letter.

OH. The dear elder letters are working! I love getting them! Keep sending them! make luke email me or something! 

Sister riss and I will go to the mail room again tomorrow with Hayley for more pictures. don't worry, they'll come!

Love you all! 

Sister wunderlich

May 15, 2015 (Second Email)

Ok, I haven't been sending any emails, and for that, I apologize. If you don't already know, we have a very small window of time to email friends and family. However, I will try to be more diligent!

Since it is nigh impossible to describe all of the experiences I've had here thus far, I will just have to word barf all over you in a series of unorganized bullet points and try to sum up the last three weeks at the MTC.

The MTC has been absolutely..... nuts! I've had amazing spiritual experiences, I've had really really good days, I've had lots of crazy bad days. The best way I've found to describe the MTC is this:  You've been dropped onto a treadmill that's already running at full speed, and you have to catch up running in time to not trip and fall flat on your face.

Yeah, that's pretty accurate.

In light of that, I'm titling this email "Things I've learned".

I've learned that if you lock yourself out of your room your first week, you and your companion have to walk to the front desk two buildings away and get a key. Even if you're in your robe and pajamas.

I've learned that missionary work is hard. Who knew?

I've learned that Polynesians are really loud, but they are really fun people to be around!

I've learned that Polynesian people really DO eat a lot. A LOT. 

I've learned that you can leave messages for other missionaries in little boxes in the wall in your room. (true story. Thanks, mom.) 

I've learned that exact obedience to God's will brings bountiful blessings.

I've learned that Tongan is a weird language, and if you basically smack your tongue against your mouth and go "Falalalalala" you can basically say any word in the Tongan language.

I've learned that the MTC food is really heavy.

There really IS something wrong with the orange juice. Don't drink it.

The second day at the MTC, we had to teach a lesson to an "Investigator". (our teacher, in disguise.) But, we had to do it completely in Tongan! I consider myself a good student, but let's face it, even I can't learn a language in a day. We had to rely a lot on our notes to get us through the lesson. It made both me and my companion realize how little we actually knew!

 The MTC has taught me to make mistakes! Whenever we have a bad lesson or a bad day, we lovingly call these "Learning Experiences". A term looked upon with sarcasm and much sass. But really, the term is true! In every bad experience is a good lesson waiting to be applied. When we are asked to do something hard, we cannot be afraid to make mistakes! Because you won't get anywhere trying to live that way. My first week, all I wanted to do was everything right, and all it did was make me ten times more stressed, and it held me back from learning. I wouldn't speak in Tongan because I was afraid of saying something wrong. I wouldn't volunteer an answer in our doctrine classes because I feared being wrong.... And I did not learn that way! Now, I have learned to embrace mistakes as I make them, examine them, learn from them, and finally, let them go. 

I'm so sorry this email wasn't more organized! Perhaps next week will be a little bit better.

Please, send me your emails! I miss all of you and I want to know how you're doing!

Ofa atu!

(love you)

Sister Wunderlich

May 15, 2015

Hey, what gives? I get on and I don't have any emails? Preposterous! 

Send me many photos! We'll do a photo trade. Ill send you lots of photos if you send me lots of photos. You guys, the mountains, the sheep, (the llama, if you can catch him) the dog, Phin and Gringo. Everyone! make clytie come over just so you can take a picture of her!

Sister Riss and I have now been assigned as the sister training leaders for the remainder of our stay here. This means we are over all the sisters in the branch, including the marshaleese, tongan, (duh) Samoan, Fijian, and Kirubati sisters. Woo! It hasn't been too bad thus far, we've only been in this calling for two days. But, we get a cell phone! (oooooh) Its this little dinosaur that we just have to carry around with us whenever. The new Zone leaders are Elder Carbone, and Elder Ortiz. So Tonga is ruling the Branch right now! However, even the zone leaders don't get a phone!

I've decided that the MTC is the best and worst place for a people pleaser. I want to please everyone, (mostly God) so I'm super obedient and I'm blessed for that! It is also the worst place, because If I'm not careful, I could lose myself and my personality in trying to please someone that doesn't even matter that much. I remember Mom's letter when I think about this!

We've had two elders leave and go home while I've been here thus far. And we admire their courage! it takes guts to decide that you need to go home, and it takes guts to face everyone when you get there. The most recent departure was an Elder adams, and he was going to Samoa. The sisters in his district were so very heartbroken that he was leaving! It was very sad to see. We reassured them that had he stayed, the next two years would've been very miserable for him.

I've been thinking a lot this week about my testimony, and how my own testimony even got started. My earliest Testimony building memories all happened when I was in elementary school, around the age of 8 or 9. (or 6, for Cohen's sake.) 

The one I'll share this week, I remember from sometime around fifth grade. Someone called from the bishopric to ask If i would sing in sacrament meeting. Mom said to them that I would and I started freaking out because I didn't want to sing by myself in front of all those people! Mom told me to go upstairs and ask God what I should do, and I did. I'd never thought of asking God a question before, and I didn't know if he would answer me or not. I was on my knees in my little room, crying, and I asked God if he wanted me to sing in sacrament meeting. Like a blanket, the spirit wrapped around my 8 year old body and comforted me. My tears quieted, and I knew that God had answered my prayer. Since, it has never been that easy for me to receive an answer like that, but that first little prayer sparked my testimony about God and how he listens to our prayers and answers them.

Funny story of the week: We were doing our laundry and Sister Clark (Going to the marshallese Islands) walks around the corner with a look of panic in her eyes. We asked her what was wrong. she says to me: "Uh, are all of the machines on the back wall dryers?"

"Yes....?" I say.

"No!" She starts laughing and runs to the back wall, and opens the dryer that had her clothes in it.

"I thought this was a washer!" She'd poured soap all over her clothes and put them in a dryer, which had just made a huge mess all over the dryer! The best part is, she'd just been writing in her journal, and the last line she finished before she realized what she'd done just said:

"Today I'm doing laundry. I think I'm pretty pro at this new skill."

Tell me what's happening at home! I wanna know what's up! OH the whittakers sent me some cookies! They were super delicious, and I've still saved half of them. But I now realize I don't have any of their emails to say thank you! Will you send me abby's email? Ofa atu!

Sister Wunderlich

May 8, 2015

Mom: How was Guatemala? I can't wait for your email about it! I want to know about everything you did there. I have sent you a card in the mail and I hope it reaches you by mother's day.

Family:

I'm not sure what to write about this week. Much of this week was the same as last week. We'll have to see what I come up with.

Guess What? On Tuesday, I'm 1/2 way done with my experience in the MTC! Wahoo! I'm so glad, because the MTC is super stressful. (not that the mission field ISN'T going to be stressful)

This morning we went to the temple like we do every P-day. When we got to the session, all the missionaries sat down in the back. One of the elders on the other side gasped and said, "Oh my gosh, my parents are on the front row." We all looked at him. This elder is polynesian, and his family doesn't even live in Utah. Apparantly, they were in town for his cousin's wedding. He sat quietly in the back until his parents saw him when they went up to do the prayer circle. They looked at him in surprise, but didn't say anything. After we got into the celestial room, we all sat and waited for this elder to see his parents. I think we were all interested to see what would happen. He walked in last, took a deep breath behind them, and tapped his dad on the shoulder. His parents got up and just hugged him. His mother started crying right then and there, and the rest of us standing around him started crying, too. I think as we all watched how tender the scene was we couldn't help but wonder what would happen if we saw our parents, too. It was especially hard for the new sisters that joined us this week, because many of them are literally countries away from their families. Poor sister Sua (who just came from Samoa) Looked at me as she was crying and said "Can we leave?" I just hugged her and we walked out.

On the bright side, YAY new sisters! Last week the old Samoan district just left, and we all sang them our goodbyes in our respective languages, and then we finished off with "God be with you Till we Meet Again" Which basically ripped us all apart. I'm slowly learning to dread that song. But, we received five new sisters this week, some from Samoa, Some from Hawaii, and two Palangi sisters. We are the LOUDEST branch ever. But, we also have the most fun. Even in our own Branch we Palangis are out of place! 80% of our branch is Polynesian, and of that 80% 90% of them actually live in the South Pacific. We have a few Australians, too. I enjoy hearing their accents. Sister Riss and I have two new sisters in our room, One Palangi and One Hawaiian. They are both going to Samoa. (There will not be any new Tongan members until we leave).

For Luke, Tate, and Cohen: I love you all! Luke, I can't wait to hear if you succeeded in your auditioning endeavors! Make sure to let me know! I am SUPER proud of you . That will be SO fun! Tate! Kid, I heard about your orchestra concert. :/ but I would like to issue you a challenge: When I come back, I expect to hear you play a song for me on your Viola. Deal? Good. Cohen, Mah mini man! Dad told me you went out to eat Sushi again because of your good grades! Keep up the good work! I love you so much! New Tongan Word for the week: Manuki (Mahnookee) It means sarcasm, or, to make fun of. I don't know why I thought of you when I learned that. Maybe it was because of that one time when you were..... six? :P

Ok ok. I'm behind on time. I gotta go! I can't wait to talk to you all on Sunday! Be there or be Square! OH. Send me pictures of you guys! I can print them and put them on my wall! Love you!

Sister Wunderlich

Sister Wunderlich and her branch.

May 1, 2014

Dear Family,

Malo e lelei means "Hello" in Tongan. I'm not sure about exact translation but I know "Malo" means "Thanks" and "lelei" means "good". 

Sister Riss, Me, Elder Ortiz, and Elder Carbone, make up the Tongan class/Tongan district. We are currently the smallest district in our branch, because there are just four of us! There are many people going to Fiji in our branch, and Samoa. The other districts in our branch have no people in them, but I think The Marshalese (I don't know how to spell that) Islands are getting a new district this wednesday.

Sister Riss is from Pleasant Grove Utah.  Two days ago she was complaining about a pain in her mouth, and asked me to look. Turns out, she had one of her sockets where her wisdom teeth were collapse, and we had to call the missionary clinic after hours. The doctor told her to take some pain medicine until she could come in the next day. Whatever she took didn't agree with her, or something, and she was throwing up all night long. We finally went and asked some Elders in our branch to give her a blessing, which they did, after the SPRINTED to the phone to get permission from our Branch President. (There are very strict rules regarding elders and sisters, and Priesthood Blessings) Finally, yesterday we left MTC campus (which was weird) and went to her dentist where he prescribed her some antibacterial medication. Her and I were in and out of the clinic all day, so we didn't go to class! This makes me uneasy because this means we missed a lot of material. Sister Riss is pretty cool, though. She told me the first day here that she doesn't cry, and she won't sympathize with me if i do...... however, she cries more than me! So whenever she tells people "She just doesn't cry" I smile a little inside. We have our differences in personality, but overall, she is an amazing girl! In one of our Tongan lessons the investigator asked a question we weren't prepared for, and she started Spitting out sentences in Tongan that we didn't know! And what's weird is, I understood her! She wasn't grammatically correct with her words, but the spirit told her what to say with the knowledge she had, and she helped the "Investigator" (our teacher, sister Fotu) understand the message we were trying to give.

Our name tags have our real names on them, but our teachers all call us by our "Tongan" pronounced names. This turns Riss, Wunderlich, Carbone, and Ortiz into Lisi, Unitalisi, Capone, and Otisi. 

Sister Riss and I are on the top floor in one of the older dorm buildings, but I do not remember any plate face. We will explore upon our return to our residence halls.

Iniki is just the name of a Tongan friend of Sister Riss'.When I asked what we should name it, she named it after her friend. I'm not sure what Iniki means, but most tongan names mean something so I'll ask my teachers tomorrow.

There are basically no chip bags or packaged foods in the cafeteria, so chips aren't popped very often. HOWEVER. At least one meal a day, somebody drops and breaks a plate. and yes. Just like in elementary school, all the missionaries go OOOOoooohhh. No joke. XD

I got Tate and Cohen's Cards! They made me laugh, and they're now hanging up in my room, next to the pictures I brought of all of you. I have written letters back to them, and I will put it in the mail today when I go to lunch.

I got all freaked our when I read about uncle Mark. I am so glad he is ok! Sister Riss and I will remember him and his family in our Prayers.

We have our first TRC tomorrow. This means we're teaching real people, not just our teachers! I am TERRIFIED. Because guess what? I don't know Tongan. The other districts told us they didn't do TRCs until week three, but we're doing ours at the beginning of week two! Yikes!

Also, the people we are teaching are most likely going to be sister Fotu's parents, because not many people around here know Tongan. So really, it shouldn't be that different, because they'll still report back to sister Fotu about what we did. Sister Fotu is one of our three teachers. She scares the mimi out of us. (Ask Tate what that means when he gets his letter) She is kind of crazy, but is really spunky. She is a great teacher, but she is absolutely terrifying! We are all afraid of her. Even the people that aren't in our district! I have never been more afraid of someone in my life! But because of this, she's the most effective teacher we have. She's not mean, just scary. I decided I like her. Most of the time.

Ok. I have some more e-mails to write, so I'll talk to you later. I love and miss you all!!

Sister Wunderlich

The Tongan District

Sister Wunderlich and Sister Riss

Sister Wunderlich, Sister Riss, Elder Carbone, Elder Ortiz

P-day laundry

April 24, 2014 (First Email From the Missionary Training Center)

Malo e Lelei!

That's like the only word I can remember from language class, and I knew that one before I came here! P-days are Fridays for my district, just FYI. Our Tongan class is super small, it's just me and my companion and two elders as well. That makes it nice, because then you get more one-on-one with the teacher. Our first day here, Brother tanner only spoke to us in Tongan. I keep reminding myself that I've only been here two days, so I shouldn't get frustrated with the language just yet. ;)

my companion's name is Sister Riss (or, Leesee in Tongan Pronunciation). Her and I together will be the second and third american sisters to serve in Tonga. The previous sister, sister Fox, left the morning we both got here.

overall, I'm doing well, here. I'm happy, the food is good, (you were right, it's heavy, too.) I'm not super stressed out, like I usually am about things like this. for example, today is my second full day here at the MTC, and Sister Riss and i are already scheduled to teach an investigator in Tongan this evening. A whole lesson in Tongan! I don't Even know how to say a whole memorized sentence yet, but we get to write it down and read it.

Every day (at least the two that I've been here) ends with exhaustion. But, it's the best kind of exhaustion. When I go to bed I know that my day has been Jam-packed with good things, and I am grateful just to finish it all! It's the satisfied feeling you get after a good day's work. :D I have to write a talk tonight, because just like dad said, they choose two missionaries at random to give talks in sacrament meeting. Even if I don't speak, I can have those talks and try to translate them into tongan so that I can whip them out on my mission whenever necessary!

So, knowing me, I mess up ALL the time. well, yesterday morning, sister Riss and I left our room to go brush our teeth in the bathroom. Out of what I thought was good habit, I closed the door behind me. sister Riss and I looked at each other and realized that neither of us have a key. We had to ask the Samoan sisters in our Branch to tell us where to go when we lock ourselves out of our room! Then we had to go to the front desk, (IN OUR ROBES AND PJS,) get a spare key, run back up to our residence buildings and get ready for class! We called it "The walk of shame" because we had to parade across campus in our PJ's. Sister Riss was super mad at me for closing the door. XD But, the Samoan sisters told us that the tongan sisters that were there before us ALSO locked themselves out on their second day! Looks like we've started a tradition. Somebody warn the next sisters!

There is a tiny unicorn hanging from the ceiling of our room. we don't know why, but we've decided to leave it there and name it Iniki.

Our room also smells like feet.

We also came up with a silly game called "Missionary Tag" Where you take off your tag, but leave the magnet behind it in your shirt, and your companion has to try to throw your nametag back on you! we haven't played it but we thought it was a funny Idea.

Our branch President's name is President Willes.  He is a very wise and spiritual man. everything that comes out of his mouth invites the spirit and gives knowledge! He has asked us all to do something very specific. Every morning and evening in my prayers, I am to plead with the Lord for the gift of tongues. I am also supposed to ask you to pray for me, and also plead with the Lord that I may receive the gift of tongues. He promised us that if we do this, the Tongan language will come easier to me in the next six weeks.

I love you, and I miss you! But, I am doing good things here. I am not working miracles yet, but let's hope I get to see some! :) Please, don't forget to write me! I will look forward to all of your letters, and I get to print them and keep them with me through my mission. (Boys, this means you, too. I'd better hear from you!) My P-day is every Friday while I'm here at the MTC, and Sister Riss and I will usually check our e-mails at around 11:00 AM.

See you next Friday! I love you!

Sister Wunderlich

(Sistah Undahleesee)

Also.

Fakalelei = Atonement

Fakalele = Diarrhea

If you accent the wrong LE in LELE you're basically saying we can be saved through the diarrhea of Christ. Yikes.