Week 7

Hey Family!

Thanks for the updates on everything. I will receive my travel plans tomorrow night. I can't believe it. Just 12 more days and today is almost over. Elder Mark Frost came in today and I saw him literally within the first ten minutes of him being here. It was so neat.  I got the Buffalo Jerky you sent from Gatlinburg so far... It was awesome! I think that's the best jerky I have had yet. If they don't have anything like that in Europe, that may be something wonderful to send in care packages :).  Elder Daniel Frost has one more week before he heads to Boise. I think it's really neat that He'll be in here with his cousin for a little bit before leaving. They are both awesome, awesome people.  This week has been great! I'm so excited to leave and I think everyone is getting pretty antsy about it. We remain focused but the thought of leaving soon is definitely in the back of our minds.  One of our Elders, Elder Pedersen, is still waiting on his visa to Suriname to go through. He is so cool. He is my new companion for the rest of the time here. He is technically in the West Indies mission (dutch speaking) which includes, Trinidad, Suriname, French Guinea, etc. He learns Dutch Here but  when he gets to Suriname he'll have to learn Suriname-tongo which is an unwritten language. Otherwise they would teach it here. It is a mix of Indian, Dutch, English, and African Creole. It is the weirdest sounding language and he'll be literally in the rain forests of the Amazon. It's like one of those fantasy missions where you carry around a machete and whatnot.  The other day during our walk up to the Temple I ran into a few people from my old BYU ward. it was really weird/cool seeing them! Later that day, we had a fireside from the BYU Men's Chorus and I saw some more friends from my old ward! It was just a really neat day!  I feel really blessed to receive so many letters. I'm so thankful for all the support; it is a definite blessing from the Lord. One of the things I have really tried to focus on this week is recognizing the Spirit. It is so important to have that when teaching. Definitely would recommend scripture study every day. I cannot get enough of it! It's the greatest thing in the world and I'll be so sad for when I come back and won't have as much time to sit, study and ponder. Hope all is going well. I love you all and thank you so much for your letters. Can't wait to give you a call in a few weeks. Tell Paige I said hi and give the dogs a hug for me. I actually really miss them haha.

Love,

Elder Michael Schulte