Hello again!!
I am officially back at the MTC and loving it! For those of you who are not aware, I had an interesting week this last week which included a fun trip to the hospital to get my appendix removed. So that was exciting! On thursday of last week I was playing soccer and we were killing it but I just felt really out of it and attributed that to being dehyrdated or something. So the rest of that night I didn't feel too good but then that night I wasn't able to sleep at all and so in the morning I went to the health center here where I was able to see the doctor. He took some blood for testing and then told me to go take a nap. I was woken up by security knocking on my door and they told me to go to the health center immediately without eating any food! While i was waiting in the doctor's office by myself I was wondering what was going on and I looked around me and above my head on the wall was a framed scripture. It was Joshua 1:9 which is "Be strong and of a good courage, be not afraid neither be thou dismayed for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest." That is one of ym all time favorite scriptures and it is also the scripture I chose as my mission scripture before I left. I knew that was not a coincidenec and also then that everything would work out for the best. I had a great feeling of peace come over me and I just knew that whatever happened, God was in it and would be with me. I was told by the doctor I had a high white blood cell count and be3cause the pain was where my appendix is they wante me to get a ct scan immediately. So my companion and I went on a field trip and I got a ct scan which was very interesting! Haha it is just a different procedure and i had to drink this contrast stuff which was NASTY, but then I waited for another half hour for the results and the doctor from the MTC called and told me I had appendicitis and would need surgery immediately. Haha so that was interesting!! They sent a shuttle to take me to the hospital here in Provo and I was in surgery a couple hours later. From this the MTC told me I could talk to my family and my brother Kyle and his wife Taylor were able to see me, as well as my Aunt Bonnie and my little brother Booboo (bradley) when he flew in the next morning for EFY! So I went into surgery and they got that little booger out without any problems and soon after that I was sipping on chicken broth (I hadn't eaten since breakfast so it tasted so good!) and just chillling in my new hospital room! It was great to see and talk with my family but it was also so weird because I feel so focused right now and didn't like the feeling of being normal or anything again! Haha but don't get me wrong it was nice to get into contact with everyone again! The next day I worked back up to normal food, got to walk around, and made friends with all my nurses (Ron and Megan were my favorites, they were my night nurses and were super nice and fun to talk to when they woke me up throughout the night for vitals). I was told if I was home I would have been able to leave the hospital the next day but because the MTC is so intense and bad for recovery I had to stay until Sunday Morning. So overall I had a nice little trip to the hospital, got to eat some good broth and eventually other foods, was able to talk to my family a bunch, and made friends with Ron and Megan. Haha that is about a nice summary of the experience. I have three nice little incisions now and i actually am hurting now more than before but I know that it is for the better! Also, I was told I could play soccer and run on Monday but I would have to go SUPER easy... which as most of you know is difficult for me to do, especially when our soccer team is undefeated. So on monday morning I instead walked a couple laps on the track (going insane in the process) and then got out in 4 square by a bunch of sisters beacuse my movement is really restricted right now (gym time was a humbling experience for me). Overall I am so glad to be back here and studying again and being abel to be in this atmosphere and with this district! I love the elders and sisters in my district and I am so grateful that I have them with me as we are all trying to learn the language. Oh also I don't htink I made it clear how AMAZING my family is and how kind and supportive they were as I was in the hospital, even my dear Aunt Bonnie was doing everything she possible could to make me comfortable! Also, I am wincing right now as I type because it is so hard not to correct myself, but once again there is limited time so I won't be goign back! Sorry!
Most of this alst week wasn't super interesting beacuse of my surgery so unfortunately I don't have a ton to write about so that kind of stinks but it definitely was good that I was here in Provo instead of at the MTC in Brazil for this whole experience. I heard the medical resources in Sao Paulo are fantastic and that I would have been totally fine if this happened there, but I know if anything it would hav been harder on my mom and family if I were there, because basically I am their everything... right? Haha no I am glad they caught it here and it shows yet another tender mercy in my life from God. I love being back here with the great atmosphere and already on Sunday night and yesterday I felt so lifted up by various talks and quotes. I have also come to have a greater testimony of prayer since I have come here. I have made it a goal to pray each night by name for each elder and sister in my district and it has brought so much more love and charity in my life for them. I love each of them dearly and I have done that for my friends and family as well. Many of you don't even know, but I have found so much power and peace in praying for those who I love and genuinely wanting blessings to come upon them. It has enabled me to feel slightly more what Heavenly Father and Christ feel for me and all of us, and their infinite love for us. It truly has been humbling to try to contemplate how much love they have for us, which makes you want to love everyone else all the more.
My brother shared a FANTASTIC quote with me while I was in the hospital, and it was from his mission president. It goes something like this: (Also, sorry Kyle if I butcher it slightly)
"We do not go on missions to be the people we were when we left our hometowns, we go on missions to be the people we were when we left the presence of our Heavenly Father."
I'll let that sink in.
I absolutely LOVE that quote. I am here to become what my Heavenly Father wants me to be. I am here to become better, to become more Christ-like, and to be his servant. I loved that and it really helped lift me up while I was bored to death in the hospital room. I know that I am a son of God and that He loves me more than I can comprehend. I know that I lived with him as a spirit before this life and that He wants me to return to live with Him again. This truth is so helpful as we go through struggles, to realize and think that we are of divine nature and have God as the father of our spirits. I hope I can do a good job helping teach others in Brazil this.
Also, Portuguese is so awesome. I am growing to love it so much and i am picking it up a lot faster now. I still have complete blanks often, thanks Elder Thomas for saving me yesterday during our lesson, but I love being able to communicate in such a fascinating and beautiful language.
Also, I am doing choir again (we had practice on Sunda and I realized that my breathing capacity is a little limited right now that was probably painful/amusing for htose around me) but we are singing Nearer My God to Thee in the devotional tonight and it is so cool to be a part of that. I am singing tenor which is hard but there are seriously like 1,000 people in our choir so it is not too vital that I sing perfectly. Haha I lvoe it though and I love that song, if you have time you should look up the meanign of that song, it made it all the better for me as I had never heard that before.
Unfortunately, like I said, I don't have a ton of info right now, my appendix kind of took out a raelly large chunk from my week (and my abdomen... haha sorry, bad puns are a lot of the humor we get to have around here) and so I don't havbe a lot of new information.
OH!! Also, I have absolutely loved getting dear elders and letters and emails from you all!!!! It is so nice and it brings such an incredbile lift to my day!! Thank you to everyone who has done that so far, it has been so helpful!!! I am really bad at writing back, but I also don;'t have like any time, so I am working on it and I apologize for being so bad at that, just know it really is appreciated!!!! Also, feel free to email me on here that way I have your email, I basically don't have anyones, but I also don't have a lot of time to write anyways so if not I understand!
Well I love you all, thanks for being so great! Tchau!
Com Amor,
Elder Carney
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