July 21, 2009 "Look! Missionaries!"

Where do I even begin!? I love being a missionary! I had a funny experience the first day - I was sitting in the meeting for new missionaries and I turned around and saw a bunch of sisters with missionary tags on and I thought "look! missionaries!" Obviously, it takes some getting used to -- the new title and new calling.
I am just excited and I love every day! I will start with my companion -- Like I told you, her name is Sister Erin Meyers. I really like her a lot. We have a similar personality -- we didn't do a lot of talking at first but as we have gotten to know each other, we have really hit it off - we get along really well. She is fun and slightly sarcastic, which is good - because she wouldn't be able to stand me if she wasn't. She is from Oregon, and we are the only new Thai sisters. We are the smallest district in the MTC with the two of us and one elder. (His companion has already gone home.) It creates a strange situation with the Elder - he is a solo Elder so he hangs out with my companion and me. He is a really fun guy - he is half Thai, so the little bit of Thai he speaks has a really good accent - which makes him a great resource. However, he leaves in three weeks, and I have no idea what that means for our district. For me, it is a testimony to me that I am supposed to be in Thailand at a specific time and for a specific purpose. I am excited to find out what that is.
I live with five sisters. Four of them are going to Thailand (in three weeks) and one is going to Cambodia. They are really fun and willing to help with the language, which is awesome.
So a little bit about the Thai language - - it is INSANE. I got excited on the first day because they said that verbs are the same word no matter what - there are no tenses and there are no conjugations. There are also no plurals or articles. So I thought to myself, this might not be too bad. Oh was I wrong! That makes it so you have to say three times as many words to get out what you want to. The grammar is very different from ours. For example, the sentence for Our Heavenly Father (as in prayer), literally translated is Heavenly Father, of us and I (humbly). The word for Savior literally translated means royal person who helps to save us. Most of their words are a lot of little words put together. It is interesting but difficult. And it is very hard to learn the vocabulary - I have to use a word at least 10 times before it will stick - they are just so different and strange sounding. We are one-on-one / three teachers with three of us. And I love all of them. One, Brother Sakhaa, is a native Thai - he is a convert to the church and he loves the gospel. Obviously he is a great resource. And he is sweet and hilarious. Then we have a sister, Sister Knudson. She went on her mission to Thailand. She is new and teaching both Thai and "script" - (the written Thai language) - very fast. We can already pray in Thai, testify in Thai, teach about the atonement in Thai, and say a whole bunch of other things, like "I like to... or Where is" ... and a whole bunch of phrases like that. I counted the other day and we already know about 200 words in Thai! That is pretty impressive for four days of class! We have only had the third teacher once, - he is very goal oriented and serious - and he only speaks Thai in class. That is difficult, but I am really excited about that because I think that will help us learn a lot faster. Our first lesson with him was on the first two principles of lesson one - God is our loving Heavenly Father and the Gospel blesses families. I love talking about how the gospel blesses families because of how much it has blessed mine.
I have seen Sister Williams and Sister Lund all over the place - it is great to see familiar faces, although they will be gone in a couple of weeks and I will be here until the end of time. Twelve weeks is definitely going to be a long time when I'm anxious to go to Thailand.
I just want you to know that I love the gospel and I love the opportunity to serve a mission. I am excited about the work and the message we have to share. I have felt the Spirit so strong while I have been here. I love being surrounded by missionaries and surrounded by the gospel. I love you all so much! Think of me often!
Sister Webb

Double your pleasure, Double your fun -- learning TWO Thai languages is better than One!!

Wednesday, July 15 -- day 1 at the MTC.
After you guys dropped me off, I went and got my name tag. . .
(She writes out in Thai what it looks like because I told her I wanted to see it. I'm looking forward to the photo of it! -- I can't put it in here for you because there are no Thai letters on my keyboard.)
Apparently, there are TWO ways to write Thai -- a Romanized version, and an original Thai version. We have two Preach My Gospels -- one in each! (Plus an English one, so we have three!) Thai is also the only language where you have to obtain TWO bags of books -- so everyone knows where you are going because we carry around TWO bags. When I got here, I had to get TWO more shots -- a polio (apparently there is a different kind of Polio in Thailand) and a Japanese Encephalitis. That one hurt. Still does, actually.
We went to an orientation where we had two missionaries teach an "investigator" while we all watched on a TV. The teacher told us to try and feel what our Heavenly Father feels for this investigator. It was cool because I got a spiritual witness that Heavenly Father loves us -- ALL of us -- and that is why we are here.
We had an orientation by the MTC President. He told us that we are now different people -- we have been set apart and are special witnesses of Christ. Everything we do, whether for good or for bad, represents Christ. That really motivates me to make the most of every second I am out here.
My companion is Sister Erin Meyers. As far as we know, we are the only Thai sister missionaries that came in today. I am the senior companion, although I really don't know what that means. (Sara's cousin Greg knows her companion - and she explains that here.)
We have class tomorrow at 7AM where I am told we will learn to pray in Thai.
I love you all so much! I am feeling pretty overwhelmed right now, but very excited -- I don't know what to expect, but I am sure it will be amazing!
Sister Webb

Sara's MTC mailbox number is: 164-0928

And she's off!!

We had a beautiful time seeing this very ready and very happy missionary off to the MTC. Having Taylor in from Virginia was such a treat, and we partied around the clock and filled in every minute with something fun and memorable. It was so great to not have school to worry about, and to have everyone available for all the fun. She was set apart on the night of the 14th and was dropped off curbside at the MTC before 1:00 the next day. It was a delightful experience right through to the end. She was beautiful and sweet -- loving to us, yet focused on her dreams. Those dreams are big, sweet, and becoming reality. She'll make sure of it. Our house will be quiet without her laughter, but we're planning to enjoy her good humor through letters. We love you, Sara!

Sister Webb's Addresses

From July 15 - Mid October(ish)
Sister Sara Webb
Thailand, Bangkok Mission
Provo Missionary Training Center
2005 N 900 E
Provo, UT 84604

Mid October - January 2011
Sister Sara Webb
Thailand Bangkok Mission
50/829-832 Muang Thong Thani
Chaengwatana Road,
T. BanMai A. Pakkret
Nonthaburi 11120 Thailand

Only family can email me, but if you email my mom she can forward it to me - her email address is melodie@webbtours.com

My mom will post my MTC box number and departure date when I get to the MTC.