MTC Week 3: Time

Caleb's email address: caleb.figgin@myldsmail.net

Keep on writing to him! He loves it. Here are some excerpts of his letter:

I'm not writing you some fancy letter,  I'm talking to my family and friends.  This is the one day a week I'm allowed to relax a little so I'm taking advantage of it in any way possible haha.  So anyway... this week was alright.  Everything sorta mixes together so I don't even know what to talk about.  As far as class... we still sit in the same room for 16 hours a day... it all sorta just blurs together haha.  "I've become comfortably numb"- Pink Floyd.

Spanish is going good... I'm picking up more and more.  Understanding is getting way better. I don't have to strain to figure out what people are saying... usually... I'm able to talk in Spanish more.  In lessons I don't have a script anymore,  I just say what I wanna say.. but I totally sound like an autistic caveman.  So it's mas o menos, but está bien.  It makes for lots of really funny jokes.  I told a guy that I am God,  in stead of I know God..(whatever it was I  was saying.  Can't remember)

We found a piano this week so every meal we eat as fast as we can and go play.  Elder Lang and I have figured out how to play a bunch of songs... hotel California (the Eagles),  Layla (Eric Clapton),  three little birds (Bob Marley), da**it (blink 182), miss you(blink 18),  stairway to heaven (led zeppelin), wish you were here (pink Floyd), and tons of other stuff... it's pretty great.  Gives us a release before it's back to the classroom for more Spanish haha.

We found out that my companero,  Elder dyerly talks in his sleep and it is the most hilarious thing in the whole world! He falls asleep in class sometimes and we can talk to him and he is a total savage haha.  He totally roasts everyone and it's great.  It happens every time he falls asleep too. It's pretty great. 

One night we got into some crazy science and math topics and had this huge discussion about everything crazy... like quantum physics,  string theory,  crazy calculus concepts... it was super fun,  and it was a good break from the usual topics of girls and poop. I feel like that needs some explaining.. the food here messes. You.  Up.  So it has made for a ton of interesting bathroom conversations... basically we have All reverted back to being in fourth grade.  And girls... well.... we're around a bunch of guys 24/7 so of course we talk about girls all the time. 

Oh yes,  I'm going to be sending home a song of the week (if you haven't noticed, music is kind of a huge deal to me and it's literally constantly playing in my head. It is definitely my biggest distraction but I'm not complaining.  The fact that I can totally listen to a song in my head helps me survive) so for the first week,  the song was people are strange by the doors because when we got here every missionary that was already here seemed crazy. Week two: I'll be here a while by 311. Pretty self explanatory. This week,  the song is time by pink Floyd.  "Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day... fritter and waste the hours in an offhand way" it is pretty fitting.  I do get a ton of work done on the mission,  and I work really hard but sometimes I also feel like I'm the stress reliever of the district.  I'm the one that makes everyone laugh and I am more laid back than anyone else in the district and I definitely fritter and waste a lot of time in an offhand way... not sure if that's a good thing but it's my personality and I don't know how to change that haha

Anyway,  the mtc is a very different place... still not used to it in the slightest but I'm making the best of it! Sorry I don't share a ton of spiritual experiences... I do have them.. a ton... but every missionary in the history of ever has lots of spiritual experiences.  We all know it and we've all heard it all from every missionary we know.  So besides some really cool stuff that happens in my mission,  I'm gonna be keeping this a little more fun to read.  Sorry if anyone doesn't like that but that's how I feel.  So until next week! I love you All thank you for being so supportive!

Pictures:  The ones with all of us are back at the dorms... all the other elders just left our zone to go to their missions so we inherited a ton of stuff and had a party.  We had a mini basketball hoop,  tons of candy and food,  and even got a mini fridge! Pretty dope.  That was a fun night.  The one of me on the floor was Sunday night and marley hadn't sent me a selfie and the wifi turned off for the night so everyone was roasting me for half an hour about how she is gonna dear John me now.  It was a long half hour;)

MTC Life, Week 2

Caleb would love to hear from everybody! He very much looks forward to emails/letter/packages. His mailing address is:

Elder Caleb Daniel Figgins

DEC27  NY-NYCN
2005 N 900 E Unit  33
Provo UT 84602

Email:

caleb.figgins@myldsmail.net

Here are a few snippets of his letter this week:

I am doing slightly better with Spanish,... it's hard because all the people in my district have some previous Spanish.. like high school so I'm pretty far behind.  Me and hermana (sister.. it's so weird to say stuff like sister and companion now.  It's hermana and companero haha) Durston are the only ones that have zero Spanish background so we both struggle haha. 

Also tell Megan to send me an email... I don't have her email.  Put that in the blog... and on fb and everywhere... tell everyone I can't email them unless they do it first.

I miss home and it's a lot of work.  I miss you guys a ton but I know you'll be there when I get back so that is all manageable.  

The things I miss most are music,  because it is my stress reliever so now I have to find something else to relieve stress and I haven't figured that out yet. I constantly have songs flowing through my head and Elder Lang and I sing rock songs constantly haha.. everyone must hate us heehee but it's still hard without my violin and guitars.  And I miss Oakley... I wanna take her on walks every night.  That was my alone time to think... now all I can do is sit in a bathroom stall with all the other elders being ridiculous outside haha.. got a big ball of wet toilet paper thrown at me while I was in the bathroom the other day.. that was fun haha.  I also miss Marley... a lot. 

We go to the temple once a week... on p day.  It's fun.. we go to the birthday cake.. so that's.. cool I guess;) we don't do it in Spanish,  maybe we could once we know a little more. 

If dad wants to try and make a belt that matches the boots I made that would be awesome... just use the buckle from the one the dogs chewed up and dye it with the light tan dye.  He needs to get a new blade for the strip cutter first,  then he should be able to do it.  Tell him to use rivets in stead of sewing it too.  That isn't necessary but it would be nice.  

Anyway,  it's all going pretty well.  One more week down! Love you all.  Te amo.

Elder Figgins

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

First P-Day

Alright,  it's my first p day.  I've made it one week.. it has been such a crazy long week but it has been good! The days are long.  Sssoooo long. We are in class for thirteen hours a day speaking nothing but Spanish... mostly... I can't speak Spanish to save my life.  
 

Ah I miss you all a ton! The mission is cool though.  My companion, Elder dyerly only likes computer programming,  but he is fun.  We get along alright.  

The other companionship in our dorm room is really cool.. Elder Lang is awesome.  He is from California,  likes classic rock and is super chill.  We think of a song of the day every morning and sing it randomly all day.  We also are doing a song of the week every week of our mission,  the song for this week is people are strange by the doors. 

His companion Elder bly is from Canada... kinda by Alberta... and he reminds me a ton of Ryan. It's pretty awesome.  Elder bly, Lang and I are all going to the NY NY north mission so that's cool too. 

Spanish is going to be crazy to learn... the moment I got here they spoke nothing but Spanish which was hard but after only two days I could actually understand most of what they say.  That was an awesome experience.  

When we started teaching our first investigator I couldn't say a single word in Spanish and it was really hard.  The next two times I had a script I spent hours preparing before and could only say what I wrote down,  but yesterday I went in,  and had a script bit I ended up just closing my notebook and saying what I felt I needed to. I was still struggling a ton and had to ask my companion how to day a ton of stuff but I started to just speak Spanish which was so awesome.  

Dad, I remembered what you told me about the spirit touching everyone in the room if you feel it there,  so I knew she was feeling it and just said whatever came.  It was a great experience.  If I can learn as much Spanish as I have in the past week again every week I'll do great. 

There have been so many things that have happened in toys first week,  and so many of them I can't even remember,  but it's be good.  

We have a good district of elders and a couple sisters and we all have lots of fun.  Already so many inside jokes and it's great.  

I'll try to write more stuff down this week as they happen so I can have more stories to tell.  We laugh as much as we talk.  It's pretty great.  
Alright,  to answer my mom's specific questions...

Who is your companion and what is he like?
Elder dyerly, and he is pretty great.  From California,  likes computers, and programming.  He has no interest in girls and gets a ton of heat for it haha.  The other day he tried to teach our district binary... we were all laughing so hard we couldn't understand what was happening.  It was pretty great.  

We get along pretty well,  except for mornings... the first day he turned the light on less than a second after the alarm went off... we all were like WHAT JUST HAPPENED IT'S SO EARLY!  he is a robot in the mornings which is a great thing because it keeps us in check.  So far I'm quite happy about him. 

Do they speak only Spanish to you?
All Spanish... all the time.  It's really hard but I'm understand a ton of it now so it is a good thing.  still can't speak much but it's getting better.  

Do you know your departure date?
No idea.  Don't have time to find that out.  

Do you know of any missionaries with wifi cameras?No,  I man maybe but eh... I've just taken a few with my tablet.  But I'll work on taking more because I'm bad at that. 

Is there anything you need?
Lots of emails.  I can read emails at Any time so anyone who wants to two me something fun about home please do.  It is literally the only thing we all have to look forward to. 

Anyway,  I'm running out of time and need to write some other letters so goodbye for now! Love you all

Elder Figgins

here's a couple pictures.. Elder dyerly (my companero is closest to me,  Elder Lang is on the top bunk and Elder bly is on the bottom. ) Elder bly is from Canada and is totally just like Ryan is pretty funny

 

 

This is Caleb's district; the picture was posted on facebook by another Elder's mom! Happy coincidence.

 

 

 

Settled In

From: Caleb Figgins <caleb.figgins@myldsmail.net>
Date: November 18, 2016 at 8:15:00 AM MST
To: Anna FIGGINS <atfiggins@msn.com>
Subject: Re: Hello

Hi FAMILY! I can only talk for a minute to day I made it safe and am settled in.  My p day is Wednesday.  I love you all and will send an official letter home on Wednesday.  Until then,  remember that I love you and the church is true! 
P.S. please tell Marley to email me before Wednesday so I have her email address.