December 28, 2010

Elder Dean on Christmas morning.

Dear Family,
     Merry Christmas! It's good to hear that you got to spend it with our cousins, I'm sure that was great! I wasn't too homesick though, because the Lord is taking care of me here. He gave me a great district to spend Christmas with; we really had a blast. and I have a great and supportive family to back me up. Thanks for that.
     Here's how christmas went down. on christmas eve we had the mtc presidency speak to us, and we watched mr. krueger's christmas with jimmy stewart. i love jimmy stewart! it was a nice christmas eve. on christmas day, we opened presents! lots of people sent me food, grandma and grandpa sent me a hat and scarf and more slippers, and a check that i'll mail home to you, since i can't cash it here. thank you so much for the hoodie, the awesome gloves, the sweet ties, the candy, the calendar, and everything else you've sent me so far! It really made me feel loved, more than you know. after we opened presents, we had an mtc talent show! It was three hours long, and there were performances that were funny and performances that were really good, and some that were both funny and good. it was really enjoyable; there's a lot of talent here. then we had a christmas devotional with russell m. nelson and his wife, which was pretty cool. after that, our district had a white elephant gift exchange, which was really fun! We all laughed a lot and had some good bonding time. one of the elders went around to each person and said what he liked about them. that was the best part of christmas, i think--being with my awesome district on christmas, which is almost as good as being with you. (but not quite. :D) we had another devotional that night, where two actors played out an abridged version of A Christmas Carol by charles dickens! I was so happy! One was scrooge, the other was the narrator and everyone else. As soon as he said, "marley was dead..." i almost jumped out of my seat! it was really great. i loved it. It reminded me of a muppet christmas carol. :D we read scriptures about christ and then went to bed. it was a good christmas, and even though i wasn't with you, i will always remember it as a special christmas that i got to spend in the mtc.
     other news....my chest is perfectly fine now. i got a blessing, and it was gone the next day. trust not in the arm of flesh, eh? we are getting new elders tomorrow, so we'll be the older district. it's pretty crazy! it seems like i got here just last week. we'll know our travel plans a week before, so i'll get them in late january. I'll use a calling card to call you at the airport. it's so cool that aaron's going to russia! I'm so excited for him!  god takes care of His missionaries. the 100 dollar charge to my account was me withdrawing cash to travel with because I ran out. I saw all the missionaries you said were going out, it's been great to see them again. i'll write more in letters when i can think. I love you all, keep being amazing! have a happy new year!!
Love, Elder Matt Dean