Packing
I know you are all worried about this, but seriously don't.
My biggest advice is to bring everything in your mission packet.
EVERYTHING.
&& a little more haha.
Here is a quick list for some things that won't be on your list.
-BAG: for my mission they told me not to bring a bag because they give you one in the Santiago West Mission. Well you will need one for the MTC. So bring one anyway that can carry A LOT of books.
-MINI HYMN BOOK IN SPANISH: You sing every day multiple times a day, plus they often ask your district to do musical numbers. On your mission you will often sing with investigators out on the street, in their homes, EVERY WHERE. I cannot tell you how nice it was to have one of these little guys.
-JOURNAL: Okay maybe its because I am a journalism major, but I love to write. When you have your going away party you will get like TONS of journals. Seriously. Everyone loves to give you those. I had a small journal for quotes and vocab. I had an every day journal that I would write in every night. I had a meeting journal that I would bring to all my district & zone meetings. And I had a journal that everyone could write me a message in, this was awesome. All of my friends in the MTC and investigators and people in my wards sign this so I could read it later and never forget them. THE BEST.
-FIRST AID KIT: Seriously this saved my life like 100 times. Bring some really good vitamins too.
-YOUR FAVORITE PERFUME & NAIL POLISH: Its just nice to smell and look pretty.
-HOODIES & COATS & BLAZERS: Seriously it gets cold in Chile sometimes. Especially in the
mornings when you work out. I would have done anything to have brought more comfy hoodies to sleep in a work out in. Coats are cute and if you are like me and cold all the time, you need them in the MTC. Blazers were perfect for windy days. Its windy there a lot.
-UMBRELLA: It rains there.
-2 PAIRS OF BOOTS, 2 PAIRS OF WALKING SHOES, 2 PAIRS OF CUTE SHOES: I loved having boots on my mission for the cold days, bring some long socks to go with. Seriously AMAZING. You are going to walk ALL DAY EVERY DAY. Seriously invest in comfortable missionary shoes. So many sisters had serious foot problems by the end of their missions because they wore crappy shoes. You're going to want some cute shoes for Sundays, baptisms, and special meetings.
-PICTURES: Seriously bring as many as you can. Members love it & its fun to share when you are in the MTC. Plus it helps when you are home sick. Which you will be at least once. Also it helps a lot to bring pictures of your baptism, especially if you are a convert. It shows investigators it is possible.
-SCRIPTURE TAB MARKERS: You're going to need like 100.
Other clothes check out this PACKING LIST
La Experiencia de la CCM
Alright so first off forget the term MTC. It no longer applies to you.
You are going to the (se se emme) CCM.
AND OH MY WORD IS IT AMAZING.
First of all, just cry your first day. Literally if you don't cry it all out, it will build up and you'll explode in the middle of your 6 weeks. TRUST ME.
You have two options: You can live in the CCM or in a mansion close by called ALCANTARA (and that's really where you want to go, its the best).
The CCM is really just an old institute building that they turned into an MTC.
The temple is right next door and you get to go inside every other week.
You're first three days will be the longest days of your life.
You will learn Spanish like really. You will your first day.
Decide from your first day on, to ALWAYS say your prayer in Spanish. Get to know all the Latinos. They will help you so much with learning because they don't speak English.
Every day in the CCM feels like eternity.
Your favorite time will be TALL time. (A program the church uses to learn a new language)
Seriously when you are on TALL practice everything you have learned in class.
Oh and you will teach every single lesson in Spanish. No exceptions.
SUNDAYS
Are the best days for your first 4 weeks because they are in ENGLISH.
Once you hit 5 weeks every day is in Spanish.
YOUR FIRST PDAY
Its going to be stressful, you'll probably get lost, and you won't know how to buy things.
But its okay because your American and your new. People expect it from you.
Word of advice, your first Pday go to the ghetto mall, ask some Americans they will tell you what I am talking about. The Liders (basically Walmart) there is HUGE and they have some cute thrift stores that sell clothes for 2000 pesos (5 bucks).
Second Pday go to the Big Mall, its farther away, and you'll probably get lost but that the whole experience. Oh and buy an empanada. SO FREAKING GOOD.
BRING CASH. They will exchange it for you so you can have pesos. Using your card STINKS because they charge you extra fees.
Buy treats to get you through the week.
YOUR FIRST EMAIL HOME
Okay get ready to have the most stressful hour of your life.
My biggest advice for every P-day you have is to write down highlights of your day every day. And write all that down when you get to email. Seriously by the time your Pday comes you will have forgotten everything. Oh and you won't have time to really read all the emails you get. SO TAKE PICTURES of all of them to read during the week. This really helped me keep enduring to the next Pday.
THE FOOD
Okay. I don't even want to tell you because you just have to get use to it.
Its just very salty, you WILL become addicted to bread. They serve it at every meal.
*Word of Caution* stay FAR AWAY from the bean soup spaghetti.
Keep an eye out for the nutella filled pastries. I ran over some elders once for those.
THE SPANISH
Just face it. You aren't going to be able to speak Spanish at all until like your last week in the CCM. BUT you have to try your hardest every day. And you need to be patient with yourself.
Its OKAY to cry. Every teacher has seen way worse from me and my companions, so you're fine. The best thing you can do is practice all the time. MEMORIZE. Take TALL seriously.
Don't be afraid to fail. People will help you.
Oh and NEVER compare yourself to other people success.
Of course there is going to be an elder or sister who studying Spanish all through out their life.
Just deal with it.
Pronunciation is much more important than grammar.
Write down every single word you hear and ask your teachers what it means.
YOUR DISTRICT
Say hello to your new family. The elders WILL ignore you at first.
But call them out and become close. Become a family and a support system.
I love my CCM district so much and it was so fun to see them during my mission.
PICTURES
Seriously take TONS.
What you should know
*There is no central heating in Chile, say hello to freezing cold nights
*All the Spanish you learn in the CCM will only be a tiny foundations
*Some places don't have hot water including the CCM
*EVERY ONE is Catholic
*People will call you Elder
*Lots of people smoke
*People are VERY friendly to sisters, it is customary in Chile to kiss EVERY ONE you meet on the cheek. Obviously you can't kiss guys, but they will try to kiss you. Beware.
*Don't wear maxis, they are considered gipsy skirts and men will think you are a hooker.
*Never speak in English out on the street. You don't speak English anymore. You are now a Latina.
*The church system isn't perfect.
*Members gossip, its the leading reason why people become inactive
*People treat you like their family and will love you unconditionally
*The meals go a little something like this: a light breakfast, A HUGE LUNCH, a light dinner.
Seriously the towns shut down from like 2-5 that is the time every one eats lunch. Seriously stores close. The town is DEAD during those hours.
*The best time to contact is at night
*People sell bread, food, drug store items, juices, clothes, etc from their houses. Its awesome.
*The buses are the BEST.
*They treat sisters like angels.
Spiritual Preparation
More important than ANY of this is your realtionship with God.
You have to be spiritually ready.
Missions are hard.
And sometimes things don't go the way you want to.
I was sent home early because I needed surgery, and now I need more surgery.
You have to have the faith to do what God asks you.
You have to have a sound testimony of what you are teaching if you expect anyone to listen to you & follow your counsel.
When you get up in the morning you are going to be less concerned about what you are wearing and more concerned about what you are going to be teaching. You're going to be praying for people and thinking about them every second for every day of your mission.
You spiritual conversion and commitment to the Savior is THE MOST important thing.
So read the Book of Mormon. Search it.
Gain a testimony of those doubts you have.
Ask God questions.
Pray to Him. Gain a relationship with Him.
Study the Savior. You are in His place doing His work.
Being a missionary is about helping people leave their old life behind and start a new life dedicated to following and becoming like the Savior.
Do you do that? Are you committed?
Because I Love You
Hermanas your faith will be tried.
You will want to give up
You will cry
But your mission will be the greatest experience of your entire life
The day you have to take your name tag off will be the hardest day of your life
You are going to be amazing.
Stop worrying and trust in God
Work hard and miracles will come
Your success is not measured on numbers, but on how well you follow the Spirit.
The Spirit is going to become your best friend.
I love you all and PLEASE message me and email me anytime you need a friend to talk to
carlycorrine@yahoo.com
I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH
You are going to love Chile!!!!
Yo se que Jesucristo es mi Salvador. Esta evangelio es la clave para ser feliz.
Yo se que Dios nos ama. Jesucristo murio para nosotros. El nos conoce perfectamente.
Esta obra, la obra misional es la obra de Jesucristo. Y esta iglesia es la iglesia de El.
Yo amo mi Salvador. Estoy muy agradecido para la oportunidad yo tenia a servir una mision en Chile. Le extrano mucho. Y yo amo la gente de Chile. Este tiempo es sus vidas va a ser la mejor tiempo.
Buena suerte mis hermosas. Les amo muchisimo!
xoxo
Hermana Upton
