November 23

Mom,

With but a little time will i write this letter, so forgive any spelling errors or any situations shared with little detail. First off, I love you and miss you! Also, a few "housekeeping" items:
1) Bouncy balls--in order to improve memorization, many Elders are using bouncy balls, kind of random I know, but could you send me a couple sometime?
2)Mr. Mac--I have my other suit in for mending and dry cleaning. They said that it will take three weeks! And so, Mr. Mac hasn't quite sent the second pants to the new suit yet, which would be quite useful, so if you wouldn't mind could you call and see if they are sending those anytime soon?
3) Typhoid Shot--I had my typhoid shot done a couple days ago. I didn't know what you wanted me to do for payment, so I just said you'd call with your credit card ID number or something. So could you do that please?
4) My p-day is officially tuesdays, and instead of emailing, could you dearelder.com me while I am in the MTC? I know you and dad haven't done either yet, but I just wanted to let you know that dearelder would be perfect so that I can read it on a day other than p-day and write (not read) emails the whole time during my thirty minutes on p-day.
5) Last thing--sorry!--could you send me the mission office addresses of neils hazen, jordan mccullough, and david germann? And also the email addresses of everyone in our immediate family?

OK! Phew, I wanted to get all the things that I was worrying I would forget off my belt at first. So let me know if you have any concerns or anything about any of them. I would appreciate any help with those though.
Now down to business. This past week has been marvelous. I am so grateful and soooo excited to be here in the MTC and preparing to be out in the field. I arrived to the MTC and got my first companion, Elder Erickson (going to Mexico City South mission), and my two other roomates were going to my mission! Woot! So that was great! Elder Erickson was pretty homesick, particularly for his girlfriend, so we did a lot of talking about how amazing and helpful our missions will be for the rest of our lives. We became really close, and had a lot of tender experiences feeling the Spirit and receiving revelation for our companionship together.

However, last Friday, I tested out of beginning Spanish and was placed into Intermediate Spanish. Another one of my roomates did the same, but neither of us found out what was going to happen until Monday. And so on Monday, they pulled us out of our normal class and then took us straight to the intermediate. The other roomate that tested out of beginning with me is Elder Hercules (I know awesome huh?). He is going to my mission, and we are really becoming close friends (he is now my new companion). He is 22 and is a wonderful Elder with a sweet yet strong testimony. We have been sharing a lot of our testimonies with different principles of the Gospel together these past few days, and have really created a strong bond. So, I got him as my companion on Monday, and it was in some ways sad leaving Elder Erickson and the other roomate, our district, and our teachers, but I am sure that intermediate Spanish is where we need to be to progress and that it is where the Lord wants us. In beginner, I knew almost every vocab word and grammar principle they taught, so I wasn't progressing at all but I was able to help others in our district. But now, from the first second in intermediate, we are speaking Spanish all day every day, except P-day, gym time, and after 945 PM. So in two days I have learned tons! Our companionship in some ways is a threesome. Me, Elder Hercules, and my Spanish dictionary haha. The Lord is really helping me out with Spanish, and I feel like at this rate my companion and I will be able to say anything we want to in Spanish in any tense or conjugation in but a couple of weeks. So, I barely know my new district, but I am so excited to get to know them. One of them is a REALLY strong convert of two years, and I LOVE talking with him. I am so grateful to be here.

This first letter I am sure is all over the place. I will get better about organizing my thoughts before hand with this limited time I have. But, I don't have time to write a seperate email, so if you could show this to Dad and Chels that would be awesome!

So a ton has happened. I am now (as of two days) in a new district and in a new companionship. But, now I will be set in one place for 8 weeks at least. Hurrah! But anyway, I just want you and Dad and anyone else in our family you forward this to know that I love you. I want you all to know that I have a burning testimony and burning witness that Jesus Christ is my Savior, and every day I am feeling closer to Him. Despite any opposing arguments or evidence, I know that this church we are a part of is true. I have had countless pricks from the Holy Spirit telling me and testifying to me that these things are true. Every day, more tender mercies of the Lord are manifest around me. I am ecstatic, enthralled, yet humbled to have this sacred responsibility to be a missionary. I am having so much fun, but even more spiritual growth while I am immersed in the language, scriptures, and missionary life here at the MTC. I went to the Temple today, and I am reminded of the beautiful and real plan that our Father in Heaven has set for us. I am so glad and grateful that He loves us so much.

So quick recap:
Language--going amazing! I knnow way more than I though, and am learning more than i thought was possible in this short abmount of time
Spiritual--some of the most tender and amazing expereiences in my life so far
Comapanion--old and new amazing!!!!!

I love you dearly,
Elder Palmer

P.S. I will write a lot more, and try to do more detail next time, but the timer is on like under a minute so I need to go now!!!

Please dearelder me!