This week was quite a bit better. It's still kinda hard, but I've been praying a ton and Heavenly father has helped me so much day by day.
Thanks so much for all the dear elders! It made me so happy to hear from you guys, I was SO excited everytime I got one. Thanks so much for the (wool haha) blanket too mom, I've been alot warmer! Also grandma Cammy and Grandma and Grandpa both sent me some AWESOME packages-my whole district was like, "woah your family really loves you." Thanks so so much! I wrote you all letters, so let me know when you get them!! Also PLEASE feel free to dear elder me anything awesome, newsy, funny, inspiring..whatever and whenever! I LOVE getting them. 
There are 12 of us going to Thailand in the neung Thai (younger Thai) group. We have 2 districts, so that basically means there are 6 people in 2 different freezing classrooms (the AC doesn't turn off) learning Thai and doing a lot of studying! There is the Phii Thai (older Thai) group too who are in our zone so they have classrooms in the same hall as us, and we all hang out a bunch. I have become really good friends with lots of them, so I am sad that they leave for Thailand next monday!
Every day basically goes like this. Wake up at 630, go outside and get a sack breakfast of gross hardboiled eggs and a bagel/donut..those are the only options, then go to gym time. At gym time I usually run like 10 laps (a mile) and then do some pushups, I will then go to the lower part of the Gym and play four square... yes you heard me...four square, Haha its actually pretty fun though, and there is always a long line and all the elders and sisters are super competitive! By the end of my 9 weeks (which is basically the longest anyone is in the MTC), I plan to be champion.
After that, we shower, get dressed (all within 30 minutes) so suffice it to say my hair is usually wet, and then we head to class where we have one of our sweet RM teachers teach us Thai for a couple of hours. The teachers are honestly awesome, and my Thai has gotten SO much better this week. I actually can understand and know a lot of what they are saying, and words to reply, which is a big blessing because some of the elders in my district are having a really hard time with it. However, my teacher makes fun of me that my accent is decidedly French...hahah.
After this, we go to lunch...it's usually pretty gross #CannnonCentergoneBad I usually get salad, and have already lost like 5 pounds since being here ahahahah
After this, we come back and will either do personal study, companion study, and extra language study- and then have another Thai class. This order switches day by day. We also usually teach an "investigator", who is really one of our teachers. I usually just sit there and look kinda confused as they ramble about something in Thai and all I can say is "Prapupenjow rak khun" (God loves you) like 10 billion times. It is getting better day by day though.
We also have this computer program thing called "TALL", that we do language practice on-its basically like rosetta stone and has allowed me to come to the conclusion that Thai has like 500 words that if you say them with a different tone- they mean 5 different things. Oh and that like every word starts with a K or a P.
Its actually really fun learning Thai though! I learned the word for cake and is kaangnomekeg. This was so when the "Investigators" asked me what i like to do, I could simply say I like cake (shoutout to my roommate Destiny).
The only things that usually change between the couple things I've mentioned are that on mondays we go to the temple, and sundays we have a bunch of devotionals, as well as one by a general authority on tuesdays. Man I love the devotionals. I also joined the choir! I suck at singing, but the choir director tells the best stories. Its cool being in the Choir because we get to sing for the general authority/apostle tuesdays!
Some funny things are:
I've started this thing called story time with lots of the elders in my zone and me and my companion. We basically will all get together the last 20 minutes of the night, and tell funny/awkward/embarassing stories. It's so funny- and also really fun to reminisce with some BYU people!
Some elders in my zone had an "Investigator", that when they asked him what he likes to do, said he liked to "Watch fish". They thought this was hilarious, so one of the elders who was from Utah, got his grandpa to overnight mail them some LIVE goldfish!! The goldfish then get there in the mail next day, half dead, and then when they teach the "investigator", they give him some half dead goldfish as a gift. He broke character and was laughing so hard, saying like, "what the heck, what even"... because you can never leave the MTC for like any reason except to go to the temple, so he was AMAZED they'd been able to get goldfish! So funny.
Okay, now for the big things I learned this week.
Firstly, I just want to tell you all how much I miss and LOVE you. Being at the MTC gives lots of time for reflection- and I think I may have said this before-but I have been so lucky to have such awesome family and friends-who I miss and love so much. However, I know that everyone deserves this opportunity, and I know sharing the gospel with the people of Thailand will help them so much!
At the beginning of the week, I was questioning a bit being here on a mission. But during personal study, I read in 1 ne 21:23. There is one part of it that really stuck out to me... its that, "Ye shall not be ashamed that wait for the lord." I was just thinking of all the things I am waiting on by being on a mission, school, friends, family etc... but it really hit me that i will never regret waiting on these things by serving the Lord for 18 months, and this is the best thing I could be doing in helping others to receive the wonderful knowledge that I have. I am so grateful that I know that Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers, and that the Book of Mormon is oh so true and can bring great light and knowledge of the truth into anyone's life that reads it. I am also grateful that as missionaries we don't just push our beliefs on others, we invite them to pray and to act and to find out for themselves if these things are true. With all that said I would like to challenge you all to read the book of Mormon and pray to find out if its true. I know that if you do you will be blessed.
I also came to the conclusion this week, after doing some reading, and seeing an awesome devotional called, "the character of christ", that the only way to find joy in the journey is by helping and serving others. I need to realize that this is all not about me, it is about others, and if I serve and help them it will all work out. I need to do as christ does, and "turn outward, when you would usually turn inward."
I hope all of this random stuff made sense, I love you all and would like to leave you with a bit of my testimony in Thai, but before I do, I want to share with you some awesome words of a hymn that really help me.
"Don't let opportunities pass by, saying sometime I'll try."
Anyways,
Sidteee ruu waa prayessukreed pen prabud khon prapupenjow,
Prapupenjow le prayesukhrid rak khun
Prayessukrid pen prapuchuayhayrod khon loog.
sitdee ruu waa pra waa sidtee aan prakhimpi moomon le suadanwan le sitdee ruusig pen khwamjing. (p.s. this is all the romanized, we learn thai script soon!)
Love you all!!
Sister Remington... a.k.a Auburn
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