I made it to St. Louis

Letter Dated August 19, 2013

I made it!!  But just barely.  As I was leaving the MTC, I might have overslept.  We were supposed to be on the bus for the airport at 3:30 am.  Me and my companion didn't wake up until 3:30 am.  I have never moved so fast in my life!  But we made it in time with only a little heckling from the other missionaries (all in good fun, of course).  The plane ride was uneventful.  I wrote letters home and read my scriptures and enjoyed my first Dr Pepper since entering the MTC.  It was delicious.

When we got to St Louis, I was surprised at how cool it was!  Turns out this whole past week has been a bit of an oddity.  It's been pretty cool with little humidity.  They new I was coming and turned down the thermostat for me.  One thing that's bizarre is that when there's a breeze, it's a cool breeze.  That doesn't happen in Utah.  If there's a wind during the summer, it feels like a blow dryer is pointed at you.  And it is so green here!!  I'll try and figure out how to get pictures on the library computer next week to share with you all.

The first day was pretty relaxed.  We went and walked around the temple, which is gorgeous by the way, then went to the mission home and had dinner.  It was so nice to sit on a comfy couch and relax.  Especially knowing that I won't be doing to much of that for the next year and a half.  Then the sisters stayed there and slept downstairs and the elders went to a hotel.  The next day we had transfer meeting where I would meet my new companion.  It was hard to say goodbye to Sis Mortensen.  We had gotten to know each other pretty well in the 13 days we were in the MTC.  Maybe we will be companions again further down the road.

My new companion is Sister Felt.  She's from California and is one of those who were affected by the age change.  She is super optimistic and her catchphrase (or what I've dubbed as her catchphrase) is, "Love it!"  She says it probably 20 times a day.  She makes me sing for her all the time.  Sometimes she even has me sing her to sleep.  I think she is hysterical.

So my area.  I'm in Edwardsville, Illinois.  It's about 30-45 minutes away from St Louis.  We passed by the arch on our way here.  I'm excited to go in there one day.  Edwardsville is considered a college town.  It housed Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) but still has quite a bit of suburb.  We went over to campus housing when all the students were moving in and helped a few people.  Most people were a little hesitant to let to strangers in skirts help them move in.  We're planning on going over there when they have they're club fair.  We'll actually have our own booth and be able to pass out pamphlets and videos and other things.  I'm really excited for that.  It's funny, Edwardsville is considered a small town and SIUE is considered a small school, but compared to St George and Dixie, it's huge!

The people here are great.  They are super friendly but a lot of them aren't to eager to talk to Mormon missionaries.  A lot of people are very content with their lives and see no need to switch churches.  If they only know how much better their lives would be with the gospel!!  Oh well, we found a girl named Epiphany and I'm so excited to go back and teach her.  She's sixteen and doesn't really have any opinions, but thinks she should start getting some.  We also met a couple named LaShante and Jabere.  We keep running into them wherever we go.  It's totally a sign that they are ready to hear about the gospel.  We invited them to church this past sunday, but they already had plans.  We invited them again for this Sunday and we got a phone number so we'll check with them later this week.

I've had dinner with a few ward members last week and so far so good!  I love the members here, they really are fantastic.  The Van Leisouts are both theater people so I had fun talking to them.  And they're really good cooks.  They made an alfredo sauce that was pretty much the best thing ever.  The Nolans remind me of the Watsons, especially Brother Nolan.  He's a carbon copy of Scott Watson.  The Armstrongs used to live in Utah and have two little kids who are WILD!!  They are super fun and I had a blast playing with them.  They had me, my companion, and the two elders in my area line up and took a picture of us to send home to our parents to make sure that we are alive and well.

I am pretty alive, the well part, the verdict is still out.  I ended up getting a lot of bug bites on my legs and they started to blister and ooze.  It's super disgusting and everybody started freaking out that it might be bed bugs.  I checked my mattress and there are no signs of them anywhere.  I'm thinking it's an allergic reaction to the mosquitos out here.  Or it could be a bug called chiggers.  I've never heard of them before but they are tiny and live in grass.  They look like mosquito bites when they bite you so there's no way to differentiate.  But I've got some neosporin and bug spray so I should be good.

That's all I've got for this week.  I'm having a blast being a missionary and I love Edwardsville, Illinois!!

-Sister Trop

                                                               The chiggers like me

 
                                                        Greenies at the St. Louis Temple
                                                         with President and Sister Morgan

                                                             A typical Missouri road

Pictures from the MTC

     
             Sister Diehl and Sister Newman.  Roommates in the MTC but they went to Mississippi

                                                  Devon's companion Sister Mortensen
                             

                                                  Provo Temple with Sis Mortensen

                                                MTC District 66C at the Provo Temple

Sunday Dinner with the Armstrong Family

The Armstrong family text messaged this picture of 4 missionaries they had over for dinner.   All I know at this point is Devon's companion is Sister Felt.  The Armstrongs report that Devon is very sweet and seems to be doing great.  She is in Edwardsville, IL about 30 miles northeast of St. Louis.

Email dated August 7, 2013

IT'S P-DAY!!!  I have been looking forward to this day since Saturday.  My big plans are to email people and to take a nap!!  I expected you'd send the photo album to Missouri.  I got my travel itinerary.  I leave the MTC next Tuesday at 3:30 in the morning.  Gah!  My plane leaves at like 8 or 9.  I'll call you before then at the airport.  So make sure you have your cell phone on you.  I got your letter.  Thanks for the envelopes and stamps.  I went and bought envelopes at the bookstore but only a few stamps cause they're kind of expensive (well, expensive for someone who only gets $8 a week to spend.  And yes, I can just use my own money, but I'm never carrying it around when I go to the bookstore).

 

I love my district.  It's a good thing the elders have sisters or they'd never get anything done, and it's a good thing the sisters have elders or we'd never let loose and laugh.  Sister Mortensen and I have gotten really close to Elders Austin and Van Tassell.  I actually haven't been feeling well and asked for them to give me a blessing last night.  Of course I'm the one who gets sick in the MTC.  Elder Van Tassell reminds me of Britney Speirs.  They are exactly alike. 

 

Elder Dingman is our district leader and is awesome.  If I had a little sister, I would want him to marry her. Elder Payne is his companion.

 

Brenda Speirs sent me cookies!!  Please tell her thank you for me, I don't have her email.  Tell her I shared them with my district and they were very appreciative.  It was funny because on Sunday night we watched a video called The Character of Christ (life changing).  It was Elder Bednar's Christmas Day Devotional at the MTC.  But he was talking about how we are like Cookie Monster.  When he gets a cookie he shoves it in his mouth and demands more, "Me want cookies!"  He went on to say, we need to stop focusing inward and start focusing outward.  When I first got the cookies, I wasn't going to share but then after class I said I'd share my cookies so I wouldn't be Cookie Monster.  It's not as funny writing it now, but it was hilarious then.  I feel like that's how it goes in general, we laugh at the stupidest things because we're being serious so much of the time.

 

Turns out one of my teachers, Sister Gibson, is friends with Kristen Metzger!!  Tell Debbie that for me.  I'll make sure to look for Elder Snow today and Elder Davenport.  My big P-Day plans consist of napping, painting my nails, and sitting outside yelling "Welcome to the MTC!!!!"  at all the new elders and sisters.  That was definitely interesting my first day.  You have an orange sticker on your badge so people know you're new.  I was having stuff yelled at me in so many different languages.  It's definitely entertaining wandering around and hearing snippets of conversations in other languages.  The MTC really is it's own little world. 

 

We had Tuesday Night Devotional.  They broadcast that one on the BYU channel, I highly recommend watching them, you can learn a lot from them.  I realize more and more each day, how little I know, and how much I need to rely on the Holy Ghost to teach and testify to investigators.  I give them the mind knowledge and the spirit gives them the heart knowledge.

 

Because my P-Days in the MTC are on Wednesdays, but on Mondays in the field I won't be able to write you an email for about a week and a half.  I'll write you a letter on the plane though.  You might get another email with pictures later today.  I just forgot to bring my camera and cord to the computer lab.

 

Love,

Devon

 

P.S.  I almost wrote Sister Trop

Letter dated August 1, 2013

So its the end of the second day (first full day). Not as bad as everybody warns.  There was definitely a moment after lunch in class that was really difficult to keep my eyes open.  I really hope I adjust to this new schedule....and fast.

So my first companion is Sister Mortensen from Logandale, Nevada.  She's awesome.  She goes to Utah State and is going to be a dietitian.  And she has a brother named Devon...not sure how he spells it though.  We have a lot in common, chich is wonderful.

The two other sisters in my room are Sister Diehl and Sister Newman.  they too are amazing and we all get along smashingly!

Our first night, our sister training leaders and their roommates (they're in the same zone as us) came over to our room and we all talked about why we decided to go on missions.  It was so cool to hear all the sisters' stories and the spirit was so strong!  The spirit is always strong here though.  I love it!

The elder in my district are hilarious.  Me and Elder Payne geeked out over our love of Top Gear and Doctor Who.  At lunch the elders told me and Sister Mortinsen how they were involved in some harmless dork dot hazing last night.  And from that comes the quote of the week:  Elder Dagman:  "I can't pray to Joseph Smith!  I pray to God!!"  Yah, that's one where you kind of had to be there.  By the way a dork dot is a little orange sticker you wear on your name tag on your first day.  It helps the other missionaries know that if you look lost, it's because you are and they should help.  It also helps to let the other missionaries know who to yell out things in other languages to.  (It was always Welcome and small warnings like, "Don't drink the orange juice!")

I've only been here a little bit but I feel like my knowledge of the gospel and my testimony have grown leaps and bounds.  

I miss you all, but try not to think about it.  "Talk" to you Wednesday!  (that's my P-day here at the MTC.)

Love 

Sister Trop (say what?!!)

It's official. Devon is a missionary.

On Tuesday July 30 at 9:00 PM, Devon was set apart as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Stake President Douglas and Bishop King shown here with Sister Devon Trop.

                                           One happy missionary.

                                              Goodbyes at the MTC.

What an experience to drop off a missionary at the MTC.  There is barely time to get a hug, take a picture and say goodbye.  I've spent more time at the drop-off curb at the airport.  I understand why they hurry though.  Devon said there were 700 new missionaries that came in on Wednesday July 31, 2013!