This is the last letter I will be sending from the MTC. What a crazy thought!
Infield orientation lasted ALL DAY. And I think this is why we had heard
from other missionaries about how they didn't like it. At one point, while we were waiting for
the next portion of the orientation to begin, Elder M suggested we go to the
bathroom and also get a drink of water before it started up again and we got
stuck there for another straight three hours.
It was a great idea!
So, we got up to leave. The
only problem was that we were in the very middle of the row of chairs. So, we had to squeeze past everyone on
the way out, and when I say squeeze, I really mean it. They had those chairs packed in
there. There was very little
legroom so squeezing our way out was definitely a trick.
I only had two or maybe three more people to politely squeeze past when I was yanked to a halt right in the middle of one of my fancy sidesteps/skips, which was the method I was using to shuffle my way to clear without intruding too much on people's personal space.
I looked back to see who it was that had stopped me and was
shocked, horrified might be a better word, to realize that my rear button had
somehow snagged the Polynesian hair of the sister missionary sitting in the row
in front of the one I was trying to squeeze through (her hair, I assume, had
been hanging over the back of the chair)!
I quickly stepped back to this poor sister missionary could
sit upright again rather than draped over her companion. It was a very awkward but very funny
situation. Everyone sitting in the
vicinity had a good laugh at the situation...or maybe they were laughing at
me...who knows. And I was having a
hard time getting my button untangled from her hair. I tried, without success for what felt like the longest 15
seconds of my life.
The problem was solved though when two sister missionaries
(the ones I was stuck in front of) got a hold of their laughing enough to help
us out. So, there I was, holding
my slacks as far away from my rear end as possible so they could help me out in
the most appropriate way possible.
It was definitely an awkward situation, but it was when we
walked back into the room, to squeeze back to our seats, I made sure to walk
much more carefully, and with my hand on my rear button to avoid another freak
accident hair tangle. I think the
sister missionaries who had helped me get untangled noticed my extra care to
make sure it didn't happen again because they started laughing again when I
passed by them with my hand shielding that rear button.
Later that night, for our last portion of the infield
orientation, Elder M and I walked into our assigned classroom and sat
down. When I noticed who I had
already sat down next to, my first thought was, "Crap...this is definitely
an interesting and horrible coincidence." My next thought was, "Maybe she won't recognize
me."
If you haven't guessed yet, the sister missionary I had
accidently sat down next to was the same Polynesian sister I had gotten tangled
up with earlier.
Realizing how stupid it was of me to hope that maybe she
wouldn't recognize me, I decided to introduce myself. "Hi, I'm Elder Ostler. Remember me?"
I'm happy to report we are friends now.
Well, I hope that this story was described clearly enough to
understand. Definitely another fun
story for the record books of Ben Ostler!
By the time you get this letter, there will be less than 24
hours before I am talking to my family on the phone! And that's an exciting thought! Woot Woot!
Love you!
Your Missionary/Son/Brother,
Elder Ostler
