Life in the Missionary Training Center goes by quite quickly. Language study (along with everything else) is intense, but I love it. Yesterday I learned how to pray in Thai. Time is very, very precious here. More to come.

It's hard to believe I've already been here a week! Time is going by faster and faster. My district (12 elders and 3 sisters) is pretty tight (we do everything together), which makes the MTC experience even better. Twelve weeks with really good friends: what more could one ask for?

I've been here in the MTC for four weeks now. Time is really flying by. Thai is coming along spectacularly - the Lord is blessing me with the gift of tongues more than I imagined was possible. I'm going to start memorizing the discussions today. These updates will get longer when I arrive in Thailand. Until then, I'm doing quite well here - our district is awesome and we're all very excited to go to Thailand come November. The other Thai district leaves for Thailand on Monday. Our time will come soon enough. I'm having a lot of fun with the language.

In a few days we'll hit our halfway mark here at the MTC. It feels like I've been here forever. We bid adieu to the other Thai district on Monday afternoon. They arrived in Thailand Tuesday night and are probably all in their new areas by now. I haven't been working as hard as I ought to with memorizing the dicussions (I've only done half of Principle #5 of the first discussion), but yesterday I decided to reform. :) My companion (Elder Orrock) found out today that his grandfather just died of cancer. I can't help but wonder if anyone I know will be gone when I return. I'm glad I know that life continues after death and that we can be with our loved ones forever because of Christ's sacrifice. Death cannot part us.

We hit the halfway mark last Saturday. Before we know it we'll be in Thailand wondering how anyone can survive the humidity. :) I did some calculations the other day and found that I've been with my companion for over a thousand hours already. Wow. The time is racing by -- only four and a half more weeks. I memorized two principles of the first discussion a day or two ago. I'd like to have all six discussions memorized by the time I leave. The key to missionary work is losing oneself in the work, losing one's life in order to save it. If we forget about ourselves and just love the people, focusing on them, we'll find joy. That's what the Savior did. On a side note to any of my friends reading this: If you want to send packages, do it now while I'm in the MTC and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg :) Please write -- missionaries love letters! It's a good way to help the missionary effort. :)

We've been here for eight weeks now - we're practically ancient. :) I'm focusing almost solely on memorizing the discussions now. It's coming along quite well. We get our flight plans next Friday. The spiritual growth I've experienced here is amazing, especially in the last couple of weeks. I've learned that having faith in Jesus Christ is one of the most important requirements for a happy life and that faith is a real power. Studying the scriptures (mostly in the Book of Mormon) is a treat every day. And I'm now at a point where I know enough of the language to be able to answer most questions. It makes a big difference. :)

I leave the MTC on Monday at 5:00 pm. We fly to L.A., then to Taipei, Taiwan, and arrive in Bangkok on Tuesday at 9 or 10 p.m. (which is Wednesday at 11 a.m. in Thailand). Even though I'm terrifically excited to go to Thailand, I'm satisfied with my current situation. That's the way to live. :) The MTC is awesome and I'll miss it. I've grown a lot here. My next update won't come till the 13th, but there will certainly be a lot to tell. One elder in our district, Elder Lo, might not be able to fly out with us (his wrist needs surgery). We've all been praying for him.