Ian's first email

FAMIGLIA!!!!! How are you?? Everybody!!???? WOW what a crazy few days!!! So

we get back to our rooms that very first night and I wrote you and then we

were told not to write till P-Day!! Sooo naturally, being my obedient self,

I waited until now!! I hope you had a good Memorial Day Weekend!! Funny

story.... I got that notice of a package on Saturday around 2... Went

straight to get it and they were closed.. No mail comes on Sunday and Monday

was Memorial Day so everything was closed down.. So just now I got that

package and THANK YOU!!! Thanks to everyone that has written to me, please

have Tanner explain how hard it is to write back in here.. There is

absolutely no time and even our P-Day is stacked like a 12-layer wedding

cake.. Well.... Where to begin? Let's go to the beginning.. The absolutely

FIRST missionary I saw when I walked through the door was Elder Garcia!!!

What joy that was, and also what a soothing peace it brought to my heart

that I could see him.. We took a picture and I'll send it home soon. I was

the absolute first person in my entire branch here that day and had alot of

time to just be absolutely confused to no end.. I then met my collega,

Anziano Russell. He's awesome.. He's from Ohio, his family has lived all

over the mid-east (is that the correct term?? He's not from Iraq...!). He

knows the doctrine so well and it's been fun and definitely 'interesting'

finding out more and more about him.. Take that how you will..! The first

few nights I slept like a baby, however; my college Anziano Russel is what

he calls himself a 'social darwinist' and will refuse to use any type of

medications when he's sick... He entered the MTC with a virus and within a

day has past it on to me.. DON'T WORRY MOM!!! I'm fine.. Notice that I say

Anziano... not just Elder.. The term Elder, in Italiano, actually is defined

as "A Young Hot Stud". I thought it defined us quite perfectly, however,

President Thomas S. thought otherwise.. Sundays are amazing here.. I've seen

a few people I know.. I'm rooming with Anziano Perry and Anziano Mickelson..

One's a concert pianist, and the other, Anziano Perry, is way good friends

with Tyler Nelson and went to Union High with him.. He's my outlet.. We talk

about everything, you'll hear much more about him.. Anziano Habrel, from

Snow Canyon, is our District Leader... It was HILARIOUS when he found out

because every other Anziani (plural for Elders) in our district are BYU

religion course die-hards and Anziano Habrel and I are the exact opposite,

so they were all DYING to get DL and he got it, we were so happy.. Anyway,

our district is amazing.. Whatever Tanner says about the Asians owning the

MTC is false... For we are the Roman Empire, conquering the territory like a

swift wind.. Italiano is coming along quite well!! I can carry on

conversations with the Spanish Elders better than the Italiano.. It's kind

of funny, I never really knew how much I knew in Spanish until I'm trying to

forget it!! It's wonderful though.. My teachers are Fratello Silva and

Fratello Calder... Both served in Rome. THEY ARE AWESOME!!! I have learned

so much.. This place is truly a temple of knowledge and the amount that I

have learned about the Gospel, Language, Teaching, and Charity would take

years to learn in the time I've been here a week.. What an amazing place

this is.. I don't even know what you have all asked because I left my

letters back at the room and I have only 13 minutes left so I need to

hurry!! K... So here's my complete immersion into missionary work.. We have

our first 'practice' lesson at the TRC yesterday.. Moments before walking

into the room, after devoting much of our preparation to prayer and study,

Fratello Silva leans over and finds this the most relaxed time to tell us

that we have a real investigator with us today!!! It was unreal... I was SO

EXCITED!!! Most missionaries have to wait weeks and months to sit down in a

real discussion, I was doing it my very first Monday!!! It was amazing

though.. I said everything I wanted to.. My college, hahaha after each and

everytime he talked was so nervous he said In the name of Thy Son, Jesus

Christ, Amen. Like six times during the lesson!! Hahaha we had a good laugh

about it.. The spirit was so strong and the feedback was amazing.. I'll tell

you more about that later.. For now anyway, I just want to express my love

for you and that I am doing very good.. I'm making friends, gaining a

testimony, and becoming leaps and leaps closer to Our Savior each and every

day. This is where I'm supposed to be.. I wanna be in the MTC forever!

(Don't quote me on that in seven and a half weeks) My departure date is July

28th.. So you can look forward to that I guess?? Family, I love you so

much.. The principles I've been taught throughout my entire life is

something that brought me to tears when teaching the importance of families

in our lesson to that Investigator. I love you all. Please express my love

to all of those that came to my farewell and that helped me with

everything.. That last week was such a hectic time I missed quite a bit of

people.. I'll be speaking Italiano before you know it, the Roman Empire is

alive and flourishing.. Our branch is amazing, the Church is true.. Heavenly

Father loves each one of us.. He knows the beginning and the end, and he has

a plan for us.. This is my plan, I'm a representative of Jesus Christ and

have never been this happy in my life. I love you all, keep the letters

rollin'!!! Thank you for everything, the packages are great.. Hahah

Jessica's was absolutely fantastic, we got in trouble with toys and had to

put them away, but fantastic.. I love you all!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ciao!

Your Roman,

Anziano Gatchell