Hey again!

Buna Ziua Familia mea si pretieni mei!

It's been another great week at the MTC and I think days are going a lot faster now. It seems like days are blurring together a lot more now and time is actually moving at a normal rate once again. It's almost hard to believe that I've been here for three weeks. Still, it's awesome here and I love it.

It was great hearing from everyone and learning stuff about what's happening at home! Tell Mike (Marriott) congrats on his mission call for me if he's not getting these emails. I must admit when I read that Caroline got her learners permit I was extremely relieved to know that she'll have 2 years of practice before she'll get the opportunity to put my life in danger on the road (just kidding Caroline:D ).

I hope graduation went well and Katie enjoyed singing there (I still can't believe I'm going to miss her graduation). I also hope girls' camp is going/went well (I don't know for sure when you'll read this) and that Camp Helaman goes well if it's this week, or went well if it was last week (I'm laughing at how out of the loop I am). Mom, I was happy (just so you know) that you got Blue Danube flowers for the flower bed. Maybe you can send me pictures and I'll tell you if they're the flowers that really grow by the Danube! :)

Probably the highlight of this week was the devotional last night (again). Elder Yoshihiko Kikuchi of the Quorum of the Seventy came and spoke to us. He talked about what we should do each day to invite the spirit and what we can do for investigators to help them feel the spirit. He shared his conversion story with us which was amazing. He was a young boy, about 10 years old in Japan at the end of WW2 and he was on board a fishing boat which was attacked by an American Submarine within 2 or 3 days of the end of the war (after the atomic bombs, but before the official end). Everyone on board died (including his father) except for him, and he held on to debris for a day before it washed back to shore and he found his way home. 3 years later he was selling tofu to keep his family alive when he got extremely sick with an illness that no one could diagnose. He prayed to be healed, and went to his grandma's to recuperate, because the hospital wouldn't keep him while he was undiagnosed. 2 missionaries knocked on his door and asked if they could speak to them. He knew that they were American and said that he wasn't interested in anything they had to say because he held their people responsible for his father's death. He then remembered that he had prayed for healing a few days earlier, and said that he would give them 10 minutes, and then they would need to leave his house. The missionaries told him the Joseph Smith story and he immediately believed. He let the missionaries back and was converted. He told us how strong the spirit is in that story, and that by knowing that story by heart and believing it we can help others to know that we believe it. He was such a good speaker and the feeling in the room was amazing.

I can't wait for the next devotionals we'll be having in the next month. In the next few weeks the new mission presidents are supposed to be arriving, and then we'll be able to hear from the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve (we hope) because they will be coming to teach the mission presidents. I can't wait to meet President Hill and the general authorities who will come with him and the other mission presidents.

I loved hearing from everyone this week and I wish you all a good week for this next week!

Va iubesc!

Elder Abbott

P.S. Congratulations David and Caroline on your getting voted funniest and loudest (hehe :)) at Canyon View!

P.P.S. I'm sending my memory card home so you should be getting it in the next few days. Also, it's okay about the book I can wait until I get to Romania to get one. :) Also, I don't remember who cleaned the office. Sorry!