Our Manila PhilippinesTemple Mission: We're In The Mission Training Center

View From Our MTC Bedroom Window

So We Will Remember Snow

We have just finished our first week at the MTC. We arrived on Monday morning at ten am thanks to my brother Kim and Pat who drove us down from Salt Lake where we had gathered at Kelly and Valerie’s for a family reunion on Sunday. We spent Saturday with Ruthie who met us at the airport and drove us to Norma’s brother Ralph and Donna’s to visit and then to Daryl and Hank Hoole’s for a short stay.

Last week was filled with last minute cleaning, packing, and visiting. On Friday, we (Norma, me and our children) followed Kitta around the town to various backdrop locations for an ‘immediate family’ photo shoot. We were all coatless though the breeze was cold. Kitta is a “pro” and the photos are great. We had a pizza party with the whole family at Angie’s after the photo shoot.

All Ten Of Us

Saturday morning we all met at the airport to say our “good byes”. After the tears, the flight was short and sweet. The snow-decked Utah Mountains were impressive, and the somewhat snow-decked roads and banks didn’t stop Ruthie from being at the pick-up area as we came out of the luggage claim hall of the airport.

Ralph and Donna live in a beautiful retirement apartment a few blocks from the Temple. Norma, Ralph and Ruthie are the only siblings remaining on Norma’s side of the Family. On my side of the family, we were fortunate enough to have all of my siblings together at Valeries on Sunday. This was the first time in seven years that we had all been together.

Our short stay in Salt Lake was very enjoyable.

Small Sampling Of Misionaries

A week at the MTC is an unforgettable experience. The “moving around the campus” among over three thousand, eighteen and nineteen year-old Elders and Sisters from around the world, is impressive alone, to say nothing about the fact that they are good-looking, well dressed, clean inside and out, and singularly focused. What an experience! Our training sessions have been educational and faith building. The Spirit has continually been testifying to us of the sacred nature of what we are doing.

Our grandson Benjamin is at the MTC now also. It has been a joy to see him among the sea of worthy young people in training. In his letter home a few weeks ago he wrote:

Elder Benjamin Scroggs

“To top off my letter today we had a fireside on Tuesday that was so fantastic. We were privileged to hear from Jeffery R. Holland! He is so amazing! He has been the president of all areas of missionary work for quite some time now so he is super invested in this cause and has such a great testimony to share. I think he is like every missionary’s hero! In some videos I have watched, he is always very direct and passionate in a wonderful way but also in a way that I thought he was going to come and chastise us for something… which I still would have been fine with. But I was so wrong. He had a perfect variety of emotion in his speech that it was captivating! He always speaks so elegantly and testifies so boldly and sincerely. He also had jokes and humor and a love for all of us in the room that was overwhelming! It truly was a once in a lifetime opportunity! I was so grateful to hear from him! I am so happy to be a missionary! There is nothing else in my life that I would rather be doing right now than serving my Lord and Savior.”

Elder Scroggs With Grandparents

We attended Sacrament Meeting and our other meetings prior to lunch and now we are awaiting the Devotional which is tailored toward those who will be arriving at their respective mission fields during the week. I have a few minutes to work on the blog. The next entry should be from the Philippines.