Week 2 in person ✅

Hey everyone!! 

Wanna hear something crazy? I'm already halfway down with my time here at the MTC 🤯 It's literally so crazy cause I simultaneously feel like I just got here and like I've been hear for a year haha

Like I mentioned in my email last week, I was able to go to the temple with the sisters in my district on Wednesday. We did proxy initiatories, which might just be my favorite ordinance. Don't get me wrong, all ordinances are great and everything, but I just think there's something so special about initiatories. After we finished, we went into the celestial room, literal heaven on earth, for a while. It was so nice to just sit with Sister Herring and be together in such a peaceful place, especially after such a hard and crazy week.

Sister Herring and I had to teach our first lesson in German on Thursday and it was roughhhh to say the least. The person we taught was atheist and did not use any English, so it was hard for me to understand, let alone answer, his questions about the gospel. Luckily I have Sister Herring and she carried for sure! 

Another rough German experience was the English fast we had on Saturday. An English fast is when we don't speak English for 24 hours and instead use whatever German we know and look up what we don't. My conversational German might just be worse than my religious German, which is saying something lol. But I survived so alles gut. One good thing that came from this though was Sister McIntyre and Sister Warren trying to tell us about their time at the gym. It was hilarious and made the English fast all worth it!

Last night was the general authority devotional and Sister Dennis from the Relief Society presidency came and spoke to us. Sister Herring performed at the dinner they hold for the guest before the devotional. She played an arrangement of "I Believe in Christ" and it was amazing! I've been listening to her practice it for the past week and it gets me every time. I gave the closing prayer at the devotional and not gonna lie I was freaking out. Saying a prayer in front of and in behalf of like 2000 people is pretty intimidating, especially when you get told 12 times about all the rules your prayer has to follow! Thankfully our God is a merciful God and did not smite me for my lack of thee, thou, and thine lol

Today for pday our district is going to the temple to do baptisms and then get our double gym time in 💪

A little something I've been thinking about recently. God is so aware of each of his children and is always looking out for us! Not only does he know us perfectly, but he is active in our lives and uses this knowledge to bless us. One of this biggest ways I have seen this is through people he places in our lives. I know that every person I have met is a gift from God for whatever season of my life I was in and I have been able to more fully understand God's love for me through them. I'm so grateful for all of you guys and for the roles each of you have played in my life and for the love you have shown me. Love you all!

Tschüss,
Sister Downing

Me and Sister Herring ❤️ 

Temple trip with the sisters of district 11-F

Walking to Sister Herring's audition (which she totally rocked!!)

Spotted Elder Miller in the medical center lol 😷

Joined class from the residence hall lobby cause Sister Herring was too sick to go

They make virtual class worth it!

Hit a new low this week and had to eat cup of noodles that someone had gifted me with pencils as chopsticks 😂

I stare out of this window for like an hour everyday and today I noticed a heart made out of leaves!!

Signed the hall rat

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