Mission Visa Status Update

August 16, 2013

Missionary Department
50 E North Temple ST 3WW
Salt Lake City, UT 84150-5400


Sister Rebecca Jane Withers
5242 Lyngate Ct
Burke VA 22015
United States


Dear Sister Withers:

Visa Status

By now you are aware that your visa to Argentina has not yet been approved. While this is undoubtedly
a disappointment, please know that we are doing everything possible to secure your visa. We will notify
you immediately when it is received. We ask that you and your family members not do anything, such as
call or e-mail the consulate, to try to secure your visa more quickly. Such actions may actually slow
down the visa process already in place.
While you are waiting, your mission experience in the United States will prove to be a great blessing in
your preparation to serve in Argentina. We encourage you to work hard, remain focused, and be
involved in all aspects of missionary work. As you serve the people in the Washington DC South
Mission, your testimony and ability to teach will increase, you will set the pattern of study and hard
work for the rest of your mission, and you will come to love the people.
May the Lord continue to bless you and your family as you dedicate yourself to preaching the gospel to
those who are seeking and ready to accept your invitation to come unto Christ.
Sincerely,
Eduardo Gavarret
Assistant Executive Director

Hi

Hey Dad!!!

Thanks for the information about DC.  The pictures are awesome, and I CANNOT WAIT TO GO! Also I I am okay with all of the touristy stuff staying across the river, tourists seem like they would be difficult people to teach.  And hopefully I can go to the temple there at least once, that would be sweet!  

I cannot believe that Uncle Alan has cancer in so many places....are they going to go through with chemo and treat it or is it terminal?  That is so cool that the community is rallying to help them out and help relocate some of the farm.  I will keep him in my prayers.  And please keep me updated.

I really wish I could have seen this Rainy Lake orchestra....it sounds like spectacular people watching (:  Are Valerie and Lauren quitting now that they have finished up one concert?

How are things going at the mill?  Fabulous?  Soon to be fabulous?  What else is happening in I. Falls?  Any major current events that I should be aware of before heading to DC? 

Thanks for the email and for all of your love and support.  Keep me posted on all that is going on, and I will be a good missionary!

I love you more than all the miracles that happen every day around the world,

Hermana Withers

Almost out of here!!

Dear Family,

I finally have a ticket out of the MTC!  Our district has felt anything but wanted this last week.  The mail people almost gave away our mailbox, the Elders beds were almost given to new missionaries, and one of our teachers went on vacation to California.  BUT, this week was also really great.  On Sunday, we went to Music and the Spoken Word, and one of the songs the choir sang was "You are Never Alone" from the Broadway musical "Carousel" which is the song that says..."
When you walk through a storm, hold your head up high, and don't be afraid of the dark..." I don't remember the rest of the words, but I loved hearing that song :) and it reminded me of Dad :)

Also last Sunday our district sang "How Great Thou Art" acapella, and in Spanish for Sacrament meeting.  It was cool!  And after Sunday devotional, the Elders gave each other and us Hermanas priesthood blessings before some of them left.  It was cool. 

Something cool I learned this week is that my mission experience is like and MTC for the rest of my life, and the next.  Everything I learn while serving is a lesson for my whole life.  And also missionary work is like gardening.  If you are worthy, the Lord lets you serve in His garden.  Some missionaries pull weeds, others pull out rocks, some fertilize, some plant seeds, and some pick the fruit....but it doesn't matter at which point a missionary finds themselves serving...BECAUSE IT IS ALL THE SAME WORK.  I just think it is cool to think about.

This last week, while teachers were fumbling for things to teach our district, we practiced door contacts.  And it was so fun!  Our teacher took on the role of a very bitter ex-member and getting in was difficult.  She slammed the door a couple of times, but just like Thomas Edison found all the ways to not make a light bulb....during this experience I found all the ways to not door contact.  What works best for my companion and I is to knock on the door, look them squarely in the eye for the ENTIRE CONTACT and with power, confidence, boldness, and sincere belief in what we are teaching...have one of us say, "We are representatives of Jesus Christ....can we come in?"  Less is most often more, and if Christ were knocking on these doors, he would probably be let in nearly every time.  I can be let every time too, but I need to make the first impression good.

On Tuesday we had choir practice and it was sweet.  We sang Jesus Once of Humble Birth.  We all knew someone important was coming because the floor was decorated to the nines.  When the leaders were starting to walk in, I think every missionary was sitting on the edge of their seat, anxious to see who it is...like kids waiting for Santa to come around the corner.  And who was speaking?  ELDER RICHARD G. SCOTT.  It was so awesome.  He had an awesome message about prayer, and I made sure to take good notes.  At every devotional, the opening hymn is always Called to Serve, and it is so fun to sing that with so many other missionaries in the Marriott Center.  After the devotional was over, it was dead silent and no one seemed to move a muscle.  Elder Scott yelled out, "Be Good" and all the missionaries incredibly in unison, yelled back "We Love You!"  It was cool :)

So I am eventually headed to Washington DC South for a while and I am super excited!  I am starting to wonder if my Spanish is sufficient for the outside world and not just the MTC.  Here, we have like "special MTC Spanish" meaning we say things like "como un jefe" which means "what a boss" and "soulamente vive una ves" which means "you only live once" and "pues pues pues, que tenemos aqui"  which is suppose to mean "well well well, what do we have here"  and the most random and stupidest of them all is "oh mi gato" which translates into "oh my cat."  I am fairly certain that our MTC Spanish doesn't exist or directly translate into anything in the outside world.

This week I learned that the senior couples live at the Marriott hotel and shuttle over for class and meals.  Crazy!  

Thanks for the phone numbers and for forwarding President Giuliani's letter, I couldn't read all of it but I think I got the main points

One of my favorite things my companion and I do is sit on the benches outside after lunch and dinner and soak up some sun.  We get in some interesting "missionary watching" and it is way fun.  I love it

Okay, so here is something that is funny.  The MTC lets people volunteer to help with stuff, like conduct the gathering hymns and hymns during the meeting for the devotionals.  There is one particular volunteer who is so funny...and by funny I think she is so frustrated with how we sing.  There are almost 3000 people in one room trying to follow her command, and its hard to stay together all the time, especially because she sometimes picks the weird hymns that no one knows.  She tries so hard to get us to stay together, and then during the parts you would have a natural tendency to sing loud during...she always wants us to sing above a whisper.  So during Onward Christian Soldiers, we sing normal, and then at the chorus she tries to force a whisper....and it fails every time.  The idea of leading a bunch of missionaries to sing quietly has the world fail written over it already...but guess what?  She doesn't just keep going, she stops the whole show.  She says, "ohp, ohp"  I think we can do better than that.  She makes the organist stop, makes us start over, and its crazy.  We never get to hear music, so when we get to sing its so awesome and we don't really care what we sound like, but this lady is so determined to make us sound good.  Maybe one day she can leave this place happy.

Glad to hear Girls Camp was fun!

The story of Curtis breaking the Frack's satellite again has kept me laughing all week (:

Thanks for the package, I got it on Wednesday!  I will send your watch back once I find myself a good one.

Some of the branch presidency people and teachers want my email, but I just want to give them the blog...and I can't remember the link, can you get that for me?

I CAN'T BELIEVE CHAD IS IN CHILE!  AND YOU GOT TO TALK TO HIM.  SO COOL!

I will call too :)  The house first, then mom's phone, then Dad's

Sad to hear about Ginger, but excited for Carmen!

Where is Cody living?  Has he found a job?

Sad to hear the Stetzers are moving too.

And your bracelets!  Excited that those are coming together!  Good luck!

Have fun this weekend outside of I. Falls eating Taco Bell, watching Planes, and shopping in real stores.  

I get to go to the temple today, I am so excited!

Keep me posted on everything!

I love you all more than the number of hours I have spent studying these last 7 weeks,

Hermana Withers

Drum roll.... Please!!!

"Sister Withers,

At this time, we have not received your visa to travel to your mission.  You will be serving a temporary assignment in the WASHINGTON DC SOUTH MISSION until your visa arrives.  Please email your family as soon as possible to give them all travel information"

Ahhhhh!!!!!!  I am so excited!!!! I leave the MTC on Wednesday morning at 2:30am (!).  My first flight is out of SLC, 6:00am, to MSP (ironic huh? :)  And my next flight leaves at 10:20am, arriving in DC at 1:42pm.  

I am the only one from my district going to DC, my companion is going to Independence Missouri, and the other Elders are going to Houston Texas, Cleveland Ohio, Ogden Utah, and LA California.  I am flying Delta; my first flight number is 1440 and my second number is 1764.  I am traveling with 4 other missionaries who have been called to Washington DC South on a reassignment, and I am so excited.  I don't know anything about this mission though, so can you research it for me?  Do I have the temple in my mission?  Does the mission go outside of DC?  Am I in touristy stuff or in suburbs or both?  

I have a calling card and should be able to call you sometime between 4 and 5 in the morning, MST time...so I think that is 5 or 6 for you guys?

I am beyond excited.  I will probably start packing tomorrow, since its P-Day...and I also get to go to the temple because the Provo temple finally opened!  I am so excited to see the new video.  

Also, Elder Zackrey Monson is in my district, and he is awesome.  He is the Elder going to Ogden.  I don't know any of the other Elders you listed.

Thanks so much for everything and for all of your support!

I love you more than all the liberals in DC,

Hermana Withers  

One more week

Dear Family,

 

Thank you so much for writing me and keeping me updated on stuff.  I love hearing from everyone.  This has been another terrific week.  Sorry in advance for the unorganized condition of the letter.  So, yes!  I am here for one more week.  I confess I was a little bummed to get one letter that said, "Hey, we have a reassignment coming for you this week, will keep you posted" to "Actually sorry about that...we need you to stay one more week and eat our ice cream and learn more Spanish."  It's all for a reason, but Thursday was a little long as I kept letting myself fantasize what next week will be like....and I must not have a very good imagination.  There are 3 missionaries leaving from our district next week.  On Monday we have one going to Paraguay and one going to Chile, and one more going to Eugene Oregon.  There is one missionary staying for visitors center training, and then there are us 6 Rosarioites who  have been chosen to stay one more week. I got rid of the original disappointment and am ready to take on this next week.  It is going to be soooo fun and I get to learn cool stuff for one more week. 

 

On Friday, the MTC has what is called In-Field Orientation, which is like a last hurrah meeting thing for all of the missionaries getting ready to leave the following week.  Everyone  in there was leaving except for like 12 of us (as far as I could tell).  I kept getting asked when and where I was going...and I was just like "Oh, hey yep...so there were too many of you who are leaving, that they had to pick some of us to stay and party without you...I don't know when I am leaving, but Bye!"  Truthfully I felt like an idiot telling people I didn't know when I was leaving...it looked as though I was a new missionary who didn't know anything and ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time.  So that made yesterday long and hard too.  Over 450 missionaries leaving, and all I heard about all day was every one's flight plans.  Ahhh....life never goes like you think it will.  Even when you think you have everything figured out, there is never a guarantee and often the Lord has a bigger and better plan, we just have to let Him give it to us, and then follow it faithfully. 

 

I hosted again this last Wednesday, and it was crazy.  Over 850 missionaries entered that day, and I'm willing to bet that way more than 1/2 were Elders.  THERE WERE SO MANY ELDERS.  It was AWESOME!  But it also meant that I only got to host one Sister (who was going to France) because there just weren't that many Sisters entering this week.  I think the graduation effect is in full swing, and all of the Elders who just got out of High School are starting to come in at full speed. 

 

I keep hearing people say this line, "Are you going to make excuses, or are you going to make it happen?"  I LOVE THAT QUOTE.  It can be really easy to justify laziness.  And laziness is not the way of the Lord.  The more time I have spent serving my mission the more I have learned... that time is going to pass no matter how you serve, so it might as well be done right.  Not everything is going to be sunshine and rainbows...but having faith that the work can get done, instead of making excuses to not do it will result in so many blessings. 

 

Last Monday morning, we were getting ready to start class and our teacher said, "Lets have a power walking contest around this floor."  So we did!  And it was so fun!  I'm sure we all looked ridiculous with our grandma arms going as fast as we could swing them, but it was so fun.  And of course the 6 foot Elders won...but we should all just agree that they cheated with their genetic advantage because they have much longer legs.   

And the other night (not sure which specifically) my companion and I and the other Hermanas built a blanket fort with extra blankets and the two unoccupied beds.  We shoved all the junk food from packages in their and at the end of each day, we spend roughly 10 minutes just eating, talking and decompressing from the day.  It is so much fun and I love to go from that to writing in my journal, to prayers, to bedtime...to starting fresh the next day.  It is an excellent system :)

 

Last Saturday, I learned what missionary work is all about.  There is a HUGE painting of Christ, teaching the disciples in the main building.  And the whole time, all I could do was stare at Jesus feet.  Thinking about what He did, where He went, who He taught...and the thought hit me like a bus, I AM FILLING CHRISTS SHOES.  I wear his  name on my heart along with mine, and together we are serving.  I am doing what He would do if He were here, and quite literally filling his shoes.  I don't know, it is just a cool thought for me to think about, and now every time I see paintings of Christ here I can't help but look at His feet, smile, and get super excited to be in the field finding and teaching real people.

 

On Sunday, we had a devotional...and the speaker was JENNY OAKS BAKER.  My MTC experience has been incredible, but that really but the cherry on top of the whole deal.  She would talk for like 3 or 4 minutes, and then play beautiful arrangements of hymns (I know that My Redeemer Lives, Amazing Grace, A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief, and more).  It was the best devotional yet.  Her kids also played I am a Child of God together and it was so good and super cute.   

 

I just think it should be documented that the Elders in my district are such gentleman.  They have always held the doors open and offer seats all the time, but lately they have been taking our trays after meals for us, so that we don't have to go into the disgusting dish room that smells SO BAD.  The cafeteria people can never be paid enough money, because it smells awful in there, and lately we haven't had to go in!  It's so awesome!

 

Another thing I keep hearing around here at the MTC is, "autograph your work with excellence."  Good one, huh?  I love it.  At the MTC we are all serving and doing the Lord's work full time, but there is something to be said of doing right, and "autographing it with excellence."  And also I hear "Your future is as bright as your faith."  Which has been so awesome for me to hear so often.  Sometimes I let myself freak out about potentially difficult companions, areas, etc...and I have learned that thinking that way is garbage.  Everything will be just fine, THE HARD PART IS HAVING FAITH. 

 

On Friday, we got to talk to the real Luis, investigator that our teacher has been acting as.  It was so cool!  He is from Puerto Rico, and I couldn't understand anything he was saying, but it was still cool to listen to him. 

 

Thanks for ordering the pills for me.  A definite advantage to the small town package, thanks!

 

Also, I have already taken apart an empty deodorant container and will use that to put hidden money in a buried part of my luggage. 

 

They sell passport holders that can attach to your person at the bookstore, do you think I need one?  I have the one we already got that I use as a wallet, and its awesome, but if you think I need the other one for traveling I can go get it no problem.  Let me know. 

 

I actually do need 2 things.  I didn't bring any sports bras, which is fine but it would make gym time much better if I had a couple.  And also, my watch is the enemy.  The little strap thing has scratched my wrist and I can't get it to stay situated or comfortable.  I have resorted to just keeping it in my bag, because I can't stand to wear it.  I think the reason is because it has cute little stitching things and the thread isn't sewed good.  I hate to ask for another watch, but could you take the girls to KMart or somewhere and see if you can find one?  A $10 one would be perfect.  The perfect one would be a simple, and non black/gray/blue/any color that isn't white actually.  A white, non ceramic, even athletic looking watch would be the best thing ever.  It doesn't need to look super professional, I just need reliability and comfort.  I know you can all pick out a good one.  Thank you so much!  Sorry the first one was such a bust :(

 

Thanks for the pictures of Chad, they are awesome!

 

Thanks for the letters from the cousins, it is good to hear from them.  they all sound good!  I love hearing about the Mexico MTC and comparing it to here!

 

Good luck with the bracelet adventure, it sounds exciting and you can totally do it, hopefully it works out!

 

So is Cody's family in a tight spot with no job?  Were they able to sell their house?

 

Sorry to hear about Ginger, that is so sad :(

 

My passport should be in your email and Dad's email too.  Keep looking?  Sorry, not much help.

 

Thanks for all of your love and support, I love you more than all of the sand in the seas,

 

Hermana Withers

 

Surprise

I have been told to quickly send an email to my family because I received the following letter in my mailbox today.

 

"Dear Sister Withers,

 

At this time, we have not received your visa to travel to your mission and becuase of the large number of names that were submitted for temporarty assignment this week, we were unable to place everyone on the list.  Unfortunately, you did not receive a temporart assignment this week, but your name will be turned in again next week and you should receive that information in your mailbox by next Friday.  Please email your family as soon as possible to let them know you will remain at the MTC for another week.

 

Thank You

 

MTC Travel Office."

 

I don't have any time to write now, but I will on Saturday.  I love you all!

 

Hermana Withers

One More Week

Dear Family,

 

It's been another terriffic week!  Last Sunday during Relief Society, they mentioned that there were 1300 sisters gathering together each Sunday here at the MTC.  Cool huh?!  Each time we meet we always sing As Sisters in Zion, and its always so incredible to sing with that many sister missionaries...it brings such a powerful and lasting Spirit. 

 

Crazy thing happened earlier this week, I ran into an Elder Withers......and it wasn't Chad.  Apparently Dad's Uncle Russell has a grandkid named James Withers headed for Australia on his mission.  Ha, it was so weird.  I was eating dinner with  my zone, and this Elder just kept staring at my tag....and I was like,m "uh do I konw you?"  And then a whole conversation ensued as we tried to figure out if we were related.  He knows Grandma Withers very well, and says that she is his great Aunt, so that makes him my second cousin.  Small world.  Also last Sunday, the cafeteria got so full that they had to block the doors shut to hungry missonaries becuase there literally wasn't a single spot to sit.  It was the first time I had seen them do it, and I haven't seen it since...which is good because those missionaries had to wait about 15 minutes until it cleared out a bit.  Good thing I was already in!

 

It really feels like I have been in the MTC for ages...and its only been a month (to the day actually!).  A person's sense of time is sort of warped here, but somehow the weeks are flying by.  Also, I didn't mean to make it sound like I didn't appreciate Pioneer Day in my last email....it really was a great day (:

 

Glad to hear the temple trip was fun.....Sam may go down in history as the most spoiled child ever....9 mnew cars???  That's crazy! 

 

How is "operation save the mill" going?  Sorry Dad has to work so much....

 

On Monday we had a TRC lesson, and our investigator was an immigrant from Chile Concepcion!  And......her Spanish was also lightning fast.  I did my best to understand but all I could pick up was the basic point of her comments each time she spoke.  She dropped all of her "s" but was also the kindest lady ever.  Chad is going to be able to speak some pretty sweet Spanish when he gets back. 

 

Every Tuesday morning we play volleyball as a district and it is so fun.  We go out to the field and play in the volleyball pits and it feels like we are all at a beach digging our feet into the sand.  It's so fun!  Tuesday night, we all walk to the Marriott center for the devotional, and it is hilarious.  People come out of their office buildings, from Campus, and the parking lot...and all stare at the thousands of missionaries marching like Helaman's army.  A lot of them wave, in one particular window is a group of people who wheel over a white board and write messages and put against the window.  As missionaries we all just laugh, wave back, and under our breath say how it makes us feel like societal aliens.  If we were anyone else, no one would care; but becuase we are missionaries (!) people get excited, and its fun to feel like we are the star of some parade each week.  In the devotional this week, the speaker said that as of July 25th, there ar 73522 missionaries.  AWESOME.

 

On Wednesday I got to host!  And it was SO MUCH FUN.  I hosted one sister from Minneapolis going to Brazil, a sister from Provo going to Chile Concepcion (Chad's mission), and another sister from California going to Mississippi.  It was fun to welcome each of them and be one of thier first friends here.  You would meet them at the curb, wait for them to quickly say goodbye, ask if they had any keys or a cell phone they needed to get rid of, make sure they had their immunizations record, take their luggage, and take them all over campus...to drop off their stuff, get their books, and take them to their class.  It was fun, and also made me grateful that a missionary only has to say goodbye once.  One of the best things about hosting though, was waiting on the curb for anohter sister to need a host...you just get to watch as SO MANY MISSIONARIES COME.  (Sidenote:  Every 15 minutes about 100 missionaries would check in!)  At one point while on the curb, my companion and I were just talking and saying "hi" to new missionaries, when a big, yellow bus pulls in.  It was packed to the brim with people (and it wasn't a short bus, we are talking a real live school bus).  The letters "sc" were scratched out and replaced with the letter "k" to say "kool bus."  It was definitely classy, trashy, and so awesome all at the same time.  I don't know how many missionaries were getting dropped off, but there were a lot of supportive people on that bus (:

 

Thanks for the package, I got it on Wednesday.  Another sister in my district got a costco sized box of cheezits from her mom (36 individual packages) with nothing else.  It is so awesome and I love having a little snack before bedtime (I'm still not used to the 4:00 dinner thing). 

 

Sort of interesting, apparently the number of Spanish speaking missions has decreased, and English speaking has almost tripled.  There are SO MANY SPANISH TEACHERS.  They just don't have a district to teach, and also the Mexico MTC has absorbed a lot of the spanish speaking missionaries.  This means that most districts have 2 teachers, and we have 9.  NINE I TELL YOU.  It's really helpful because there is almost always a teacher available to help a compaionship one on one, but it also feels like there are way too many chiefs and not enough indians.

 

Earlier this week I heard someone say, that dilligence means still working hard even when you are tired.  I love that!  It's so true.  By 7:30 or8:00 my body and mind really start to become tired, but there is still so much to learn, and I couldn't live with myself if I slept mty mission away.  5-10 minutes each day could add up to a substantial chunk of time wasted, that should have been spent serving or learning.  Some days I am more tired than others, but somehow I also have enough energy to get things done.  It's like the time going fast but I feel like I have been here forever thing....sometimes I feel tired but I always have enough energy to keep going.  Don't know how it works, but it's a miracle and I am so grateful. 

 

So.............travel updates.   Drumroll....................my visa didn't come.  My name will be submitted on Monday for a reassignment, and I should have my stateside call by Thursday or Friday, and then I will leave the next Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday.  I saw it coming, so I am not disappointed.  The only people getting visas to Argentina right away are the Australians because they have a relationship similar to the U.S. and Canada.  I am excited for my next assignment and will be sure to record with my voice recorder thingy me opening and reading it.  All 6 of us Argentina Rosario missionaries are getting reassigned, so some of us might go to the same place!  We will see, and I can't wait to give you the update next week! 

 

So about the blog...your letter management sounds perfect!  Thanks so much for doing that.  How do you know who is following the blog?  Do you know them?  Any blog abuse from wierdies?

 

I'm glad you could bask in Target's glory the other day (:  why did you have to drive all the way out there for USBank?  Isn't there online banking.....?

 

And the more I hear about the house, the more and more it is starting to sound like a dump.  Ha, good luck. 

 

To Valerie and Lauren:  I now understand completely, that orchestra sounds awful and you are completely justified.  Make sure to write in your journals about all of these hilarious experiences (:

 

About Wells Fargo, I will just send the card back.  You can use the account as you please, I'm not sure the requirements for the account upkeep but as a token of my undyin affliction for you....it's yours.  I never liked them anyway.  I don't have access to a phone, don't know when I will be leaving the country, etc.  Sorry.

 

I didn't see the Hobson's on Wednesday, but I ran into Elder Hobson this morning.  He looked good, and its so awesome that Elder Dial got to be his host!

 

I am so glad Chad is doing well!  He is back to his oldself of mixing weird foods, and I am so glad he got to see Dallin.  What a blessing! 

 

Also to Valerie and Lauren, have fun at camp!  The more I hear about it, the more I realize how intense those people are about camping.  Good luck!

 

Thanks for all of your love and support.  It means so much, and I know I have the best family in the whole world.  I know the church is true and that the Book of Mormon is true and also one of the greatest blessings Heavenly Father has ever given to the world.  I know every prayer is heard, that families are together forever when sealed in a temple, and that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world.

 

I love you all more than the number of people waiting to hear the truth,

 

Hermana Withers