First Letter Home

Elder Cody Lybbert is off and running on his two-year mission to Scotland and Ireland! He is currently learning at the Missionary Training Center in Preston, England for three weeks and then he'll be off to the mission home in Edinburgh, Scotland.

This blog is for updates from Elder Lybbert for anyone who would like to follow along.

This is his first letter home from Preston:

I loved flying, for the most part. I love the takeoff (even though it makes me slightly nausious), and I really love window seats. America was absolutely beautiful, and I almost wish San Francisco was my final stop so I could look around the city. The flight to Frankfurt though...the meals were good, but I couldn't sleep, I had to sit between two finicky old ladies (no window seats) and the boredom nearly killed me. 6 hours in San Fran to wait to go to Frankfurt, 10 hours to Frankfurt, and then another 6 hours to wait to go to Manchester. Luckily prayer got me threw it (no joke, I'll tell you the whole story some time). I met another Elder at the Lethbridge airport (Elder Bennett) and I met him again at the MTC. You know what his flight plan was? Calgary-Toronto-Manchester!!

I miss my family very much because there is so much I want to report to you, and sooo much I want to show you about this wonderful place. England is so beautiful; it rains most of the time, and the plantlife is very green and here at the MTC grounds they grow a large variety of flowers that are very colorful, very well kept, and I've already taken many a picture. 

The MTC is awesome. Me and Elder Christiansen don't have a whole lot in common, but we are getting along well, we respect each other a lot and work well together. He's quite athletic and way more ginger than Dallin and Jenna. My district is a colorful one, and I love everyone in it (also many a picture taken). There's Elder Alfonso (Spanish, but quickly learning English), Elder De Mello (23 years old, very happy to be here), Elder Derry (a Texan with no filters between his head and his mouth), Elder Heumos (HOY-moes, a German learning English with the same quirk as his companion Elder Derry, they're very fun to watch), and three Sisters, Geier, Gibson, and Lopez. All very sweet and faithful. I wish you could meet them all. You know, there's people in the MTC here from every continent! And there's only, like, 50 missionaries here!

I also wish you could eat here. For the most part, it's dynamite. But it's strange; everything in England tastes subtly different (or in the case of bacon, way different). They definitely spoil us, and I don't think I'm gonna lose any weight here. But hey, I got really close to doing a pullup!...which is a big deal for me. 

I've definitely felt the spirit here, even in the mock lessons where the teachers pretend to be investigators. Studying is hard--I'm not used to so much of it--but I am motivated. I had a bit of a breakdown, and did a bit of weeping in front of President Bunker, but he's very helpful and very supportive. Everyone is. Oh, and you should tell Aunt Suzanne that I really appreciated her letter, but, try as I might, I can only make out about 25% of it. I'll be here for 3 weeks. 

That's my mass email. Dad, Mom, and the subsequent offspring, I love you all very much and miss you, and I just hope I can remember all of this because I want to tell you absolutely everything. And tell Grandma and Grandpa and Aunt Zanne that I love them too.