09/28/2016 - "Being a Missionary is so Awesome!" 10 out of 10 recommend

HEY EVERYONE!!!!

I cannot believe how fast time is going by. It´s already been another week??? What the heck. In 11 days I will officially be in the field. Exciting stuff!!!! Every week is kind of a blur because of how fast it goes by. Also, everyday is just about the same. But it never gets old!!! Being a missionary is so awesome. 10 out of 10 recommend. My lessons with the "investigators" are getting so much easier. At first it was so hard because my spanish was horrid. It still kind of is, but definitely better! I have noticed that my brain is switching to spanish (if that makes any sense) because I forget how to spell some things in English and I have forgotten how to say so many words in english. Now I can´t speak either language!!! So, in this MTC every like 10 sets of missionaries has their own house. I live in house 44. A lot of the missionaries parents send them packages often so a lot of the time we have a feeding frenzy before bed. It´s a beautiful thing. Our teachers are the best. Our teacher in the morning is HILARIOUS!! Pretty much all of the time it´s hard to get exactly what they´re saying because they talk in spanish to us, or in spanglish. Whenever someone would talk to me in spanish when I first got here, I would just say "sí" awkwardly and walk away. It worked like a charm every time. Whenever we have devotionals they usually speak in spanish and then have another person standing next to the speaker and translate it. I really needed the translator at first, but now I´m like no go away I actually understand what the speaker is saying hahahah. 

Anyways, There isn´t anything new here. Just a wonderful routine that I´ve got going on. I hope you´re all doing amazing!! I love you all. Be safe. 

 

Elder Hepworth

 

District 8A Mexico MTC

 

MOM'S TAG PICTURE!!!!! 

 

YES MY MOM LOVES ME!

AND SHE LOVES ME!

Welcome sign from the Welcome to the MTC package my mom sent!

 

09/21/2016 - Elder Hepworth Bore his Testimony in Spanish

HOLA!

I am doing so well here in the CCM! I love it here. Last Thursday was Mexican Independence Day and we had a ceremony for it. Mexicans know how to dance!! All of the missionaries were going crazzzy. Probably because we are never allowed to lol. Every day is pretty much the same. We learn Spanish, how to teach, and we teach lessons to "investigators" (really just teachers here). I love the work though!! It is crazy to me that this is already my fourth week??? I feel like I got here like a week ago. Not going to lie, Sundays are the absolute best but a tiny bit scary because everyone in the branch has to write a talk and then you find out during sacrament meeting if you´re giving the talk. I had to give a talk this Sunday and not gonna lie I kinda killed it. Oh, and yes the talks have to be all in Spanish. 

I really try to be exact obedient here. Some of the rules are honestly kind of stupid, but that´s not an excuse to disobey. My testimony of the church just grows every second that I´m here. I have felt the spirit so strongly, so many times. We often have devotionals. The words of the prophets when they talk about Christ, like "I know his voice" hit you in a different way here. Those words have never hit me as strongly as they do now. 

I am loving every minute here. Before I know it I will be out in the field teaching real people and it´s kind of intimidating! (just a little). Tomorrow we do a TRC thing where we teach people outside of the walls on the CCM. They could be actual investigators, less active members, or just members. It´s kind of scary because my spanish is not good enough quite yet for that! I guess that is what the spirit is for!!! We had our typical Tuesday devotional and one of the speakers spoke in spanish and then a lady next to her would translate it in english. I was surprised at how much spanish I knew! I wanted to lady to stop translating because I could actually understand most of what the other lady was saying in spanish! I can understand spanish better than I can speak it. It will all come with time. 

Today I actually get a real P day because we aren´t going to the temple this time. I absolutely love the temple but I´m glad I can finally relax. 

I hope you are all doing well! I love you guys! One more thing I want to do is bare my testimony, but in SPANISH! Bare with me because I am still a little limited on what I can say lol.

TESTIMONY

Yo sé que está iglesia es la verdad. El libro de Mormón es el mejor correcto libro en este mundo. Mi testimonio de José Smith ha fortalezca mucho. Hay no manera que José Smith trandujo El Libro de Mormón incorrecto. La Iglesia De Los Santos De los Ultimose Dias es la solamente verdad iglesia en la tierra. Me amo mi familia, y mis amigos. MUCHO. Y yo sé que Dios bendices familias. Dios es nuestro Padre Eterna, y Jesucristo es el hijo de Dios. Y yo sé que la Expiacion es real. 

Excuse me if it´s a little rough! I´m still learning haha. Love you all!!

 

Elder Hepworth

 

(Google Translate's best shot at translation:  I know that it is Church is the truth. The book of Mormon is the best correct book in this world. My testimony of José Smith has strengthened too. There is no way that Joseph Smith trandujo the book of Mormon wrong. The day Ultimose Church of the Saints is the only true Church on Earth. I love me my family and my friends. A lot. And I know that Dios bless families. God is our eternal father, and Jesus Christ is the son of God. And I know that the Atonement is real.)

 

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The pictures of the ceremony are terrible but I tried! They dance insanely fast haha. Also the picture with my companion and I makes me laugh!! Our house is actually pretty nice. There proabably ten missionaries in each house. Theres like 50 different houses here. Also Hermana Art requested a drawing for her in her journal! I felt honored.

 

   

09/14/2016 - Elder Hepworth Loves Mexico MTC Food

Hola Everyone!!

I am loving it here in the MTC. It´s still crazy to me that I´m in Mexico city haha. I get to go to the temple for the second time today. It´s a little different in Spanish hahah. The food here is amazing. I don´t remember if I told you guys that Tuesday night is Costco pizza but... but it is. That stuff is like gold. My spanish is improving so much. You learn it so quickly!! I can mostly understand what people are saying, but what to say back is the challenge hahahah. My district is so awesome. They´re like my brothers and sisters now. We have so much fun and laugh a lot. Honestly, it´s pretty weird to be out on a mission. I felt like it was never going to come and now I´m already two weeks in???? The days honestly do go by sooooo fast. The food here is still bomb. Still lovin it. Every day I get so happy to go eat. Food is life. I´ve learned so much on how to teach people, the only hard part is that I don´t know how to say it in spanish lol. I really hope you all are doing well! Live life in the present and enjoy every moment you have, that´s the key. You guys are in my prayers! 

 

Elder Hepworth

 

Mexico City Temple

 

Mexican Lays Chips



Mexico City



District A at the Mexico City Temple

Bus rid to the Mexico City Temple

Hermana Art is from Mesa Arizona

Elder Hepworth is becoming friends with Chef Esteban!  Amazing chef at the Mexico MTC

Elder Hepworth and Elder Pickering
MTC Companions

Sacred Grove of Trees

07/09/2016 - This Hermana Art is from Mesa Arizona

Hermana Art sent this to her mom on her P-day and said "mom this elder is headed to our hometown.  Please take good care of him.  He is in my district in the MTC."  The mom found me on Facebook!

Lisa

09/07/2016 - Elder Hepworth Loves the Mexico MTC

HOLAAA TODOS LAS PERSONAS!!!!

I am digging it here in the MTC. Being away from home is honestly hard, but what I am doing is a really good thing. 10 out of 10 recommend. The people in my district are like my family now. We are all so close. They are all so fun.

 

Elder Hepworth with his Mexico MTC District

The food here is sooo bomb. Authentic mexican food is where it´s at. Every Tuesday night we have Costco pizza, so I get a little taste of home every week. My spanish is coming along really well! I talk in spanglish now haha. Sometimes I´ll just be doing my thing, and I´ll be like WOW I´M IN MEXICO THATS WEIRD! There are palm trees everywhere, and parrots all over. It´s awesome!  There are mountains on both sides of the mtc and there are houses that run up them. They´re not well put together, but they´re sooo cool looking. On the second day that we were here we had to teach a lesson is spanish. IT WAS A TRAINWRECK!! But we just laughed about it. I am having a lot of fun! Sundays are the beeest. Except they´re kind of scary during sacrament meeting because they don´t tell you before hand if you´re going to give a talk. You just have to pepare a talk beforhand and they just pick whoever on the spot. And, it can´t be in English. Our teacher is soo awesome!! He is really funny. All of the workers here speak little to no english so it´s kind of awkward when you have to talk to them because you just kind of awkwardly say "uh huh.. sí.." and then walk away. We have a lot of devotionals and videos that everyone watches together. There are about 750 missionaries here. It¨s a lot! The newest missionaries arrived yesterday so now I don´t feel so singled out and little now lol. I hope you all are doing well!! If any of you guys want to email me, go right ahead! I love you all.

 

Elder Hepworth

 

Elder Hepworth with his companion and roommates with Chef Esteban