oh to be a Zuster!

Goede dag mijn liefling familie!

So after today I have one more p-day left at the MTC.... gek! (crazy!) But life is good and I'm enjoying my time here (really!). The most exciting thing happening lately is our new district of ten Dutchies! They arrived last Wednesday night. It is so weird seeing such a large group (I do not envy their close quarters in class, especially when it comes to the gastrointestinal processes of MTC food...) and I'm really grateful I was a solo with only three elders. But they're great! Some are such nice churchy mormony boys - others are total class clown types. It's quite the spectrum. I will say I don't like awkward flirty elders. On Wednesday night we were giving them the grand tour of the MTC and one of them made some jokingly condescending comment and patted me on the shoulder - much to the audible shock and appallment of his district. "You can't touch a sister!" It was hilarious - but I'm glad they called him out on it. Anyway, it's just funny because I know I would not merit this kind of attention were the ratio not so crazy imbalanced, but they seem to have all adjusted to the MTC now and treat me like just another missionary for the most part, so it's all good. It's just so funny seeing how elders are. There's such a wide range of awesome attributes and traits. Two elders brought their Dutch scriptures to their first gym period so they could practice reading out loud while on the bike machines. Hilarious - but laudable in its own way. =)
I think the most frustrating part of my time here is our role-play investigator Peter, as played by our teacher Brother Bradley. We don't exactly do well, and I know if this were real life there's no way we would get return appointments, but Elder Helton and I are making progress teaching in unity which is wonderful. I really enjoy comp study with him - he's just a super sincere, funny, good elder. He has taken to laughing at me lately because apparently I am "such a sister" - I guess I apologize too much for things that aren't my fault and try too hard to be nice. But it's good for me to be called out on that, I guess. Also Thursday night our companionship inventory turned into a district inventory (since with the Two Danes there's 6 of us total) and Elder DeMass said some really nice things. "I don't know if you think this way, but I really miss teaching with you! It was just really cool how we worked together!" After a frustrating teaching appointment with Peter / Brother Bradley, it was really nice to hear. My district says they have a lot of respect for Sister Missionaries, so I'm glad I've been a good influence at least in that way.
Sister C's doing better and better all the time. Dad, I'm taking your advice and trying hard to remember I can't fix people ever - all I can do is help. The trick with her is just listening and letting her talk through it. And it's been delightful to realize she's ready and willing to do the same when I feel like I have no ability to teach people and can't say anything subtly or well thought out in Dutch. It really is good we're companions.
Sunday night I got to meet up with Beth, my friend from Study Abroad who's going to Philadelphia Spanish speaking, and we watched The Testaments together. There's nothing like an auditorium full of 19 year olds [who've sworn off everything but handshakes for the next two years] watching fictitious Nephites kiss onscreen. The tension is hilarious. Anyway, Beth is really not happy being a solo sister - I'm super thankful I have ridiculously awesome district elders who treat me well and don't mind working with a sister. I'm also realizing being mellow is an exceptionally useful trait when working with other people. Though I'll admit laziness (what? You want me to get mad over that? too much effort!) is a huge part of that particular personality trait.
On Monday we got to teach a Belgian convert in the TRC, so that was fun. Vlams (flemmish) is insane but so pretty! His name was David and he was taught by Broeder Bradley and a ton of other elders as well, so he came to Utah for a couple weeks to see people and America and all that jazz. He was super nice, but there are no sisters in his area so I'll never see him again. It's always fun (and humbling and terrifying) to teach native speakers of Dutch.
Also, Sister Gill flew out Monday for Sweden ! I honestly do miss her. I always hoped we'd become friends but it was a wonderful surprise when it actually happened (even if it was a friendship out of necessity and a common problem) - I really am surrounded by ridiculously cool people here. Good times. She'll be great and enjoy her mission, I'm sure. It was cool learning so much from how different we were from each other.
So I don't think I've ever mentioned this, but there's a reality show-esque miniseries they show missionaries their first week in the MTC called "The District." Basically it shows real missionaries in Texas doing their thing - committing, teaching, contacting, baptising, all that jazz. I think they're trying to make a new called to serve video, because yesterday at gym time a camera man and one of the sister missionaries from the District (she teaches here at the MTC) were walking around the missionary field filming soccer and baseball and all that jazz. There were some elders playing kickball, and since that's the closest to soccer I can get (No co-ed soccer at the MTC.... =( ) I joined them. The film crew came over right as I was up to kick, so that was pretty funny. I represented well and made it to first base, but hopefully that footage won't be used in any subsequent Called To Serve Videos. =) We'll see, I guess.
Another cool thing yesterday was Anne M Dibbs speaking at the Tuesday Devo. She's the second counselor in the YW General presidency and PResident Monson's daughter. She basically gave a huge tribute to her dad as prophet, but it really was good because it gave us a chance to hear some interesting about him (as opposed to all the stories told by him... =) ). The best by far was something that happened after last conference, when he had a few extra minutes to fill in Priesthood (I think) and made some disparaging comments about redheaded boys. She showed a hilarious photo a 14 year old from Idaho had sent Pres. Monson a few days afterwards: his standard GA photo, but with bright red hair photoshopped in. It was so funny! Apparently he caught the joke and loved showing the photo to anyone who came in his office. Good times.
Well, I'm happy. =) I kind of want to panic when I think about flying to the Netherlands - I know I won't understand people all that well (or at all) and the first few weeks will just be a blur of madness. But it's all good - part of the learning experience, right? =) Man, family, I love you all. It's kind of surreal thinking you were all in Ogden and Northern Utah on Saturday, but it's all good - I know we will be together for eternity, thanks to temples and the gospel. It's so good and so real. Thanks for all your examples and letters. I love you all so much and pray for you. Have a geweldig week!

Love,

Zuster Christa Baxter

ik houd van mijn familie!

Dear Everyone,Another week! It's really starting to freak me out how fast this is goingby. Last pday feels like yesterday. Anyway, it's been kind of a crazy week,marr een geweldig een! (but a wonderful one!) After e-mailing you all lastWednesday, I got to go to the temple for our weekly session. It just reallyhit me that I am surrounded by amazing people here. We are all so differentand have such varied paths to our testimonies, with such different reasonsfor being here, but it's wonderful. Thursday was kind of a crazy day. In MPC (my one on one weeklyinterview with a teacher) I finally broke down and cried. I felt kinda badfor my teacher, but he's married so he should understand crazy emotionalwomen, I guess. =) We had a good chat about problem ownership and whatthings with my companions are my responsbility, and what are not. I also gothim to admit he never had a testimony of Sister missionaries until he taughtat the MTC - apparently in the field, the vast majority of them just didn'tget things done. But he said he's loved the sisters he's taught here, andhas every confidence in us. "You're just different!" Maybe he just has adifferent perspective now, but nevertheless it was nice to hear. It was goodto talk to an RM from my mission about the sisters / elders antagonism youalways hear about. I told him I just don't get it - we're all on the sameteam here, and my whole district gets along great. His response was, "That'sbecause you're a good missionary, Sister Baxter." It was the first time atthe MTC I've really cried to someone, but whatev's. That's life! In the ever-entertaining world of elder / sister dynamics, I've nowshifted personas from Elder Berry's sister and "this girl I used to date" tothe Class Hermione. I do what I can, I guess. =) No, we actually all getalong great and our dutch is evening out as a class. We teach in Dutch allthe time now and it's awesome. There was also a weird situation with adistrict leader for an America-bound district everyone hated, and who seemedto hate everyone else - except me. Apparently it's no good to politely askpeople what their majors are and nod and listen, if no one else in theirdistrict can stand to talk to him. The guy wasn't really all that bad - hewas 23 and had done lots of military stuff, so I can see why he was a littlemaladjusted to learning from 19 year olds - but he flew out this morning andI'm glad there will be no more jokes about his supposed crush on ZusterBaxter! Thursday I got Mom's package - thanks so much!!! The dried fruit hasbeen mahvelous and the chocolate is always great. =) (Tho you don't need tosend me any more as a missionary - I'm well stocked for my last couple weekshere, and I'll be well taken care of in Europe as far as chocolate goes, I'msure! =) ) On Saturday I found out Grandpa Stanford had passed away. I washappy he was able to be with Grandma and his parents, but it was just reallyweird being at the MTC and not with family for all of this. Nonetheless,I've been really well taken care of. There's nothing like yourbagpipe-playing, Harley-riding 20 year old Zone Leader saying, "I'm sorry!I'd give you a hug if I could!" The MTC is crazy. But there have been lotsof small miracles, the most notable of which being my good friend Beth. Wedid study abroad in London together and entered the MTC the same day. Turnsout her grandpa also passed away a couple of weeks ago, so I was able tofind her at lunch and get her comfort and advice about whether I should callMom or e-mail. In the end I called on Monday (the district president told meto think about it on the weekend and do what I needed to do on Sunday) andit was really helpful to find out everything and get to talk to Mom. Itdidn't make me trunky at all, and it was nice to have closure witheverything. People are just so great here. And that night, in an effort tolet the Danish missionaries (who are just one sister and one elder) teachwith their own gender, I got to teach two Norwegian elders with Sister C. Wejust taught lesson 2 to them as they are - missionaries. It was so nice notto pretend they were investigators and just get to talk about gospel truths- about why we're here, about challenges and growth in life, how the Saviorreally does help us. It was beautiful. Sunday is one big allergic blur in my mind. My branch leaders weresuper kind and supportive in light of Grandpa's death, tho I was quick toassure them that it was all for the best. But apparently I do have allergiesin Utah after all - I just never lived here in May to find that out. And allof Sunday was pretty much a big blur of ibuprofen and nasal congestion.Sweet! But now I have meds and life is happy. I do remember MoTab playing"As I Went Down to The River To Pray" on Music & The Spoken Word - withbanjo! It totally made my day to hear gospel music with a banjo. I'mdefinitely buying one when I get home from my mission, and I'm gonna playsome sweet front porch folk. But I honestly haven't missed music like Ithought I would. A few minutes ago I saw an elder with a Illinoise t-shirton so we chatted about music and indie and Sufjan Stevens and such. It wasfun, but I honestly don't miss it much - and I really don't miss thesnobbery. It's been really cool getting to know people through theirpersonalities alone here at the MTC - people are so amazing. So our three American sisters left this week for the mission field.It was kind of sad seeing them go. Sister Gillleaves next week, and I am honestly sad. We've really gotten closer in thepast few weeks, and it's been great to learn from her. After the Tuesday Night devo yesterday, we ran across two new Elderswho had just arrived from The Netherlands and Belgium! It was SO fun topractice our Dutch! Their accents are so different! The Dutch Elder was fromUtrecht, and his g's were disgustingly intense! Pray I don't go there andlearn hideous phlegm Dutch. ;) But he was super nice and just so, well,Dutch! A big burly blond, blue-eyed Dutchman with a deep, cheery voice. He'ssuper enthusiastic and headed off for Suriname in three weeks, since he'salready fluent in English. He said my accent in Dutch was almost perfect. Isuspect he was a kind liar, but it was fun to hear. =) The Belgian Elder hadmuch prettier Dutch (the Vlams (Flemmish) accent) and he's going to serve inProvo South. Oh, good times. We also get a whole new district of AmericanElders tonight who will serve with us in The Netherlands, so that'll be fun. Um, I guess all I have left to say is life goes on, and I'm reallyhappy here. Almost everyday I realize this is the best decision I've evermade. When I think about leaving here in two and a half weeks I practicallyfreak (with terror and excitement!) but I think it'll all work out. OnMonday when I talked with Mom briefly, I told her I'm being so well-takencare of here. She reminded me I will be in Holland too - there will beamazing leaders, members, and missionaries. She's so right. I love you all. I've never dreamed about my family so much! I guessyou're all on my mind. =) I pray for you and can't wait to see you soon!Have a geweldig week! Love, Christa

mijn familie!!!

Hello wonderful family! Another exciting week at the MTC has come andgone.... but a lot faster than usual. My last p-day really does feel likeyesterday, but as long as I don't think about how bad my dutch will be whenI get off the plane I don't freak out too much. So we've been working on teaching in Dutch this week. It's kind of abeast, but it's what we'll be doing there full time, right? Tuesday we wereconfused about our schedule and weren't in class for the first 15 minutes ofour teacher's shift, so we got chastised. Then we had to get on with ourday, which involved Elder DeMass and I teaching the first lesson in Dutch.He was already ticked off because of the previous mishap, so when he wasquiet I kind of took over the lesson, which he interpreted as me dominatingintentionally and shutting him out. There's nothing like wathcing your 20year old comp shut down in anger on you during a lesson. Luckily, we wereable to talk it out and explain our communication problems. Basically, I'm awoman and I fill silences. He's a man and waits for his turn. But knowing wehave the same goal has helped us pull through, and we got a chance to redeemourselves later that day as we taught our same teacher in the EvaluationCenter in Dutch. It was entirely different. We made a two sentence turn rulewhich helped us be balanced. Further more, I was totally humbled by thelanguage and our communication frustrations, so that made actually listeningto the Spirit a neccessity... It is the strangest experience to feel thespirit as you are teaching or being taught in another language, but it'sincredible. All stretching experiences tha thelp us grow, right? The wondermous part of Tuesday was that I got TWO packages in one day!You people are amazing! Mom, thank you SO MUCH for the sweater vests! Ireturned the Sister Missionary Mall one, so that should get back on yourcard, but the navy one is such a lifesaver! My roommates joked that Itotally look like a 3rd grade teacher in it, but that's better than a frumpysister missionary with (gasp!) an untucked shirt! So it's all good. =) Andall the stickers were great. And the BREAD! I've never been so excited toeat a peanut butter and jellie sandwich in my life! MTC food really gets toyou, so it was SO exciting to eat something real from home, made with love.It totally turned my day around. =) And ALisa, your package was soawesome!!! I loved the stationary, the belgium and netherlands stuff, andyou totally picked out my favorite kind of pen! You're such a rad sister!The candy was awesome too. I'm sure I'm forgetting things, but trust me,those packages were lifesavers! =) We're able to go exercise out on the field now, so it's fun being ableto juggle a soccer ball and run outside. Sisters can't play soccer with theelders, but sand volleyball is fun, and I enjoy juggling soccer balls on myown. Mother's Day at the MTC was insane. Just nuts. We watched Music & theSpoken Word before RS at ten, which was such a mistake - there was totally aMothering Moment Montage of sap and sentiment. We were all a little teary, Ithink. And then they sang "Come To My Garden" from The Secret Garden! Somany good memories. But I'm glad I have an amazing mother and home to miss,so it's all good. Then in Sacrament Meeting, Sister Creer (wife of one ofthe counselors in our branch presidency) talked about how it feels to be themom of a missionary (her daughter is serving in Mongolia right now) - whichbasically was "I think about her ALL DAY LONG." I felt so bad for the elderswhose first Sunday was today. I've never seen so many boys cry as in theMTC. But it all works out. Incidentally, Elder DeMass and I really do get along, we just hadto work out teaching styles. Every missionary has to prepare a talk onSunday about the Christlike attribute of the week, and then after thesacrament, the Branch Pres. announces which two missionaries will speak. Ourtopic this week was patience, so DeMass and I both cleared it with eachotherto talk about our teaching experiences should we get chosen. That was prettyfunny. =) But neither of us spoke, so no worries. The rest of Sunday was okay, despite not getting to call home. (But Iwill when I fly to Europe!) Sister C and I took a walk to the temple and hada good chat. She's been doing better in lots of ways but still is reallyshaky on her testimony, and sees just how much fo a problem that is here. Ireally feel we were meant to be companions, because so many of her concernsare what I was going through in the months before I reported to the MTC. Shealso had to teach with an Elder, so we had a lot of empathy about thecommunication and teaching style differences. She and I actually taughttogether on Saturday night on the suggestion of her teacher, and she reallyenjoyed it. We had a really amazing devo Sunday night from one of the MTCpresident's counselors and his wife. His wife turned the mike to themissionaries and let people just come up and share their favorite scripturesand how it's helped them, in 90 seconds or less. SO good. Then her husbandtalked about Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing and explained the Hebrew /Biblical etymology of the phrase "Here I raise my Ebenezer." I loved it.This place is so geeky but so good. Monday we had a large group meeting about using the BoM to teachabout Joseph Smith (basically - "The Bible will not give people a testimonyof JS, even if that's the book they accept and believe") and it was almostword for word the conversation I'd had with Sister C the night before. Thisplace is so crazy inspired and blessed with the Spirit. Then Tuesday night,Elder Bruce C. Hafen spoke at the devo all about testimony, and how it'sbased on Reason, Feeling, and Experience. So much of what she needed to her,and by extension me as well. Tuesday Sister C had another breakdown and was gone for several hourstalking to counselors here. During the day I'm generally okay with all therandom arrangements that must be made - staying late in our classroomTuesday nights so she can counsel with our Branch President, having to watchthe devo rebroadcast in another room because she was crying to Brother &Sister Creer all through dinner time and we missed our chance to watch it inthe main meeting hall, waking her up in the mornings because she never gotan alarm clock, doing her laundry so she can go to more counseling - but Inoticed last night I couldn't sleep because I was so stressed out by things.So please pray for me to have patience and love and get things done. I'mhonestly not convinced she should be here if she's so unhappy - but I'mtrying to just love and make things work. Sister Gill helps me keep balanceabout things, and overall I'm very happy here, so no worries, I guess. There are just so many tender mercies. Like being taught in Dutch byElder DeMass and Elder Berry yesterday. I was playing an investigator, andit was so cool to see them following the spirit and teaching me about prayerbecause I (as investigator) needed a testimony of that. I just love thesemoments. Or this morning, outlining and diagramming the chiasmus in Alma 36(something Elder HAfen mentioned in his devotional) and having a fun chatabout Nibley with the other Danish Elder. Or reading the hilarious story ofDad surprising Lauren in the backyard whilst she was fencing. That totallyreminded me of Sense and Sensibility, incidentally. =) There are just so many incredible people here. I truly am happy. Iknow this is where I need to be, and I love watching the gospel change myheart and those of the people around me. I got "transferred" and I now teachwith Elder Helton, who def has the hardest time with the Dutch. Please prayfor me to have more patience and know how to help him out. I think he'd becontent to let me teach the whole lesson, but obviously that's no good. Oh,so much stretching that goes on here! But it's all good. I love it, I'm herefor the right reasons, and I'm being blessed. I love you family! So much. I remember missing friends who'd left onmissions, and know I think it's ludicrous I even cared when I compare to howexcited I am to see you all again someday. If eternal life is living withGod and our families forever, I am so excited! Please keep my companions inyour prayers. I love you all! Your crazy sister, Zuster Baxter

Another Week, Another Letter

Hello family! Well, I think I can safely say this has been the mostchallenging and the BEST week so far in the MTC. I'd been praying for thingsto get better with me and my comp, and lo and behold, nothing strengthens arelationship like having to team up on a common problem. In other words, wegot a new comp, who I'll refer to as Sister C, and helping her adjust to theMTC has been a bit of a challenge, but it's totally helped me and SisterGill appreciate our differences. Wahoo for perspective and growth! Another thing that helped is that I realized Sister Gill is sarcastic,and I am sarcasm-handicapped - I literally do not catch it. So the times ithought she was being a jerkface, she totally was just messing with me, andI simply didn't catch it. Anywho, last Wednesday brought a bunch of new elders and sisters. Wehave 3 new sisters going to various states in the US, and they aredelightful! So down to earth and emotionally stable and normal and fun. Theelders seem fine, and then we got a solo sister and solo elder going toDenmark, who are now in our district. So enter my new comp, Sister C. Thefirst day she was a little teary but seemed to be expecting it, so I figuredshe'd pull through like we all do. Thursday brought on a total meltdown. Herteacher walked her and her solo elder down to my residence hall to get me soI could walk her to the admin building to call our branch president. Thenshe and I went on a walk where she proceeded to weep about how she didn'tknow if she had a testimony, if her call came from God, if she really shouldbe here, etc. Basically she has all the mission anxieties I had, but onacid. Awesome. So we talked and cried a lot and managed to hold theemotional fort down until she was able to talk to our branch president thatnight. A sense of humor has been so crucial for all of this! For example,while Sis. C and I talked for about an hour outside Thursday, I was facingdue west the whole time. That night I realized my forehead - and only myforehead - was bright red with sunburn! Awesome! Let's just say I'm earninghot husband points, eh? ;) The next day Sister Gill pulled me out of comp study (we do comps tudywith the elder we teach with, not with each other) and we had a good talkabout how best to help Sister C. Basically she's not emotionally independentAT ALL. My tendency is to nurture and listen and hug until it's all better.Sister Gill's tendency is to tell her to suck it up and get on with life. Soshe pointed out we really need to combine forces on this one. And she was SOright. Since then I've gotten a lot better with problem ownership, which Ialready knew I needed to fix. So I listen to Sister C. when and how much Ican, but I've learned how to have boundaries and such. For example, duringgym when I felt like she and I were repeating things we'd already said thelast 20 minutes, I told her I needed to go run my next half mile, and it wascool. She's actually progressed a lot in one week, which is a huge testimonyof the power of prayer. That first Thursday she was utterly panicked and hadpainted herself into a tiny solipsistic corner - "I can't go home!!! But Idon't know if I can stay! I don't think I can do this but I can't leave!" -but since then I've heard her actually say things like, "You're mindsetreally does make a difference here. I just have to focus on the good." Thereare still dodgy times - like when she found out we don't get to call home onMother's Day from the MTC (but we do at the airport!) and almost broke downsobbing - but it's getting better. So family - THANK YOU SO MUCH for being emotionally stable. I'velearned it it so important to believe in yourself, and self-fulfillingprophecies are no joke. I've also been super blessed this past week.There've been so many promptings about what to say or how to help that Iknow didn't come from me. For instance, I felt like I should real ElderWorthlin's conference talk; in it there's a line that says, "Let us notforget that those who start slowest often go farthest." I distinctly feltlike I needed to remember that with her, and not be condescending orpatronizing - even in a loving way, even if she wants someone to wake herup every morning and micro-manage her life. In all actually she's doing somuch better now. I'm also glad I can keep Sister Gill from resorting tohomicide as a solution. So you know, we all do what we can. =) Everything else is still pretty awesome. I saw a friend from BYU atthe temple Wednesday, which was kinda weird but good. We weren't super closeso it didn't make me really trunky or anything, but it was fun to have himtell Briana hi for me. =) Also, a girl from my freshman ward came into theMTC this past week, so it was super fun catching up with her. I LOVE thepeople here. Even just today in laundry, I met an Elder who lived in theNEtherlands for 2 years, so I got ot practice my Dutch and learn all aboutthe culture from a normal person's POV (as opposed to missionaries). It wasso great! Also, thanks to Mom and Alisa for each sending me the Elder Hollandtalk! My elders think they should just give me the combo for the mail box.But seriously, I think I've gone maybe 2 days without mail since the firstweek. You guys are AMAZING! We had another English fast Friday and my brain was totally fried bythe end of the day, but it's all part of the learning experience. When I hadan MPC (interview) with my teacher, his message was, "Zuster Baxter, jy bengeweldig!" which means "You're wonderful!" Apparently my perfectionism is,well, apparent. But he told me I teach really well with Elder DeMass and thelanguage is going great, so that was cool. [incidentally, Elder DeMass gotcalled Elder Baxter the other day, so I'm feeling vindicated. I alsorequested that the other two elders stop asking if Elder DeMass and I aremarried when we're practicing tracting. Oh, missions and gender dynamics...=) ] I wonder if my teacher mistook some of my glumness over the SIster C.situation as self criticism. Nevertheless, it's always fun to have peopletell you you're doing great, so that's cool. Sunday was a beautiful day in Provo, and we took fun pictures at the temple.I promise I'll send pictures before I leave the MTC. =) Monday we taught areal Dutch woman in the TRC (in English, but with a Dutch language taskbeforehand) and I realized how impossible it will be the understand peoplethere when I get off the plane. I can usually catch what my teachers aresaying, but her Dutch was so smooth and fluid and fast. Oh well. I'm finallygetting it into my head that only by going through hard things can yourfaith really, really grow. There are so many crazy things going on here, but I love it SO much.I've had so many small confirmations that this is where I need to be, when Ineed to be here, and I am so thankful for a loving heavenly father who knowshow to speak to us. The Spirit here is incredible. Friday will be our onemonth mark, which is ridiculous - only 17 more! I just hope my Dutch comesalong quickly enough that I can actually be effective in the field soon. Family, you're incredible. I had a similar experience getting to knowroommates at college, but here I am especially thankful for how functionaland loving and happy our family is. We're real and we all have our moments,but I feel every good thing in my life has come from the example andteaching of my amazing parents and siblings, both older and younger. I wastalking to the wife of the counselor in our branch presidency about how muchmore I appreciate my parents and family now I'm here, and she laughedsomething about "Isn't it interesting how the older we get, the smarter ourparents become?" It is SO true. Mom, thank you SO much for teaching me abouteffective listening and how powerful wquestions are. With Sister C. I'veseen that one good question accomplishes so much more learning than 20minutes of my advice. I hope I can accomplish the same thing in the fieldwhen I'm teaching people about the gospel. Dad, thank you for teaching abouthow to just love people no matter what. Patience has been so critical inthis past week, but I'm thankful for a family that has taught me so muchabout love and tolerance and kindness. You all rock. Love, Zuster Christa Baxter