1st Transfer!!

Our 1st transfer!

SZIASZTOK!
     Hello! How is everyone?  I am doing fantastic. Okay so some crazy stuff has been going down. I will talk about it in list form because I do well with that and because it helps me to organize my thoughts, even though it is kind of boring.
         
          1. We have moved! Oh my gosh. The West MTC is THE BEST THING EVER. oh my goodness. We have new beds, pillows, I live in AN APARTMENT, there isn't six in one room now. It is amazing. I cried because of its beauty. Also we have a fridge, a couch, a bathroom and cupboards to store our stuff in. It is great. I love it so much over there.We are truly blessed.

          2. Because of this move I do have a new address.
                Elder Levi Neely
                Jun 17 HUN-BUD
                2023 N. 900 E. Unit 818
                Provo, UT 84602

           3. I got to Host! Hosting is where we greet the missionaries and take them around and everything. It was great! I didn't get to host any of our Kisbabak, but it was a great experience nonetheless.
   
           4. We got our New Hungarians! It is the greatest ever! I love them so much.. I don't even know them yet! We got to talk with them a little bit. One is actually from St. George! He is friends with Meredith's friend Shie Chastin. I'm not sure what his name is yet though. Also there is one from Washington State.

     Okay so those are the business items. So far. That I can think of. I love you all so much and I am so thankful for your love and support. I have a couple of things I want to share with your that have touched me over the last week.
      This Monday our Papa and Mama Estonians(Papa and Mama meaning the oldest group in our zone) left for their mission. It was really cool to finally see them go and teach the Gospel, but it was sad to see them leave. The Elders were our zone leaders and they have always taken really good care of us. The Sisters were so dang fun and we all became close fast.
      I'm bad at saying goodbyes. When the Estonians left, I kind of thought about all the goodbyes I have said. I suck at goodbyes. I am really bad at expressing how much people mean to me when I leave them.  However, I think I am really good at reunions. So I think I will make up for it when I reunite with everyone in the family and all my friends and such.
     This week we also talked about teaching others. We discussed how sometimes we have to talk with others about some pretty "difficult" things. Then my teacher told us this,"Think about the blessings and it won't be awkward." If you keep  the blessings that these people will receive if they do learn about and come to understand these things, it won't be awkward anymore. So I offer a challenge. Will you talk to someone?
Right when I say someone, the first person you think of is probably who you should talk to. Share the Gospel with them. Talk to them about it. It will not be awkward if you just keep in mind that these people will be blessed beyond comprehension if you give them this opportunity. Talk to someone.
     My teacher also shared a scripture: Ether 10:22-28. This talks about tools and cloth and weapons and how the people made all of them and used them. My teacher told us that we were all different tools. Some of us were plows, some were sickles, some of us were weapons and some of us were cloth. Whatever we may be though, the Lord knows how to use us. All we have to do is be ourselves, trust in the Lord, and be willing to do what He ask of us.
     Apathy is the opposite of love. As we go throughout our lives, if we find ourselves thinking, "I am so bugged. I am just not going to worry about so and so right now." That is the opposite of love. I hope that you will try to love always and love everyone. It is difficult sometimes to love others and to help them. But I testify that it is what Christ would have us do. He did it. And are we not supposed to be trying to be like Him?
     Lastly, I am so blessed. I am so incredibly, beautifully blessed. I thank you for your prayers and your support and your love. I can feel it all. I love you so much. So much.

     Tudom, hogy Jezus Krisztus Megvaltunk. Tudom, hogy az evangelium az igaz. Tudom, hogy Jezus Krisztus engesztelese, minden dolog lehet.
             O el!

Sok szeretettel,
Neely Elder

The District at the map

Historic move to MTC West

Our new home!

We have cupboards to store our stuff

Our bathroom

We have a couch!

May 23, 2013

Sziasztok!

      Holy cow! Week five! Or is it four? I don't know. Time doesn't really exist in the MTC. It is more like...just...I don't even know. It's weird. But I love it here! Things are going super well. Oh I have so much to tell you!
      Okay so Unit member #3 did arrive safely at the MTC! I got to see Brittany-excuse me, Sister Mecham-at her first dinner. We chatted for a while (in Hungarian..it was another one of my SYL days.  Charades are fun! But really I just broke down into English after a while ha ha) and it was so great to see her!  She will be a great missionary as will Sister Harris and as will Tanner! I love them with my whole heart. And I love you with my whole heart! I am so excited to talk to you guys in a couple of weeks when I get to call you at the airport! It will be great!
     So earlier this week I got a call on the intercom at like 9:45 pm ( that is way late her BTW). They told me to proceed to talk on the red phone. In the hallway we have a legit red phone that looks like only the Prophet should use if he needs to call one of the twelve or something. It is super intense looking. So I picked it up and someone just told me to come to the front desk. So Giacalone Elder and I went to the front desk expecting a note that I was called by the Prophet to part the Atlantic Ocean or something, but instead it was just a note from a Sister that needed an accompanist. HOWEVER this was not just any Sister, this was a Sister that had arrived one day before from Spain.  She had two companions: one from Thailand and one from somewhere like Tonga or Samoa. They all spoke about 40%  English. Let me tell you, it was pretty crazy. The nice thing from this experience? I realized that is exactly how I am going to be in Hungary. Woot! Yay for charades and not very good language proficiency!
     Every week we go to TRC. It is where a bunch of volunteers from around come and act as investigators for us. Us being Hungarian speaking and all, we usually get RM's that went to Hungary. This week though, we got a native Hungarian! She was so nice! And she talked SUPER FAST. It was crazy, but it was so cool at the same time. She was visiting one of the first Sister Missionaries that had ever gone to Hungary when it first opened. We got to talk with both of them. It was such an amazing experience. It was also awesome just to see how excited she was for us to be learning Hungarian. She loved it! It was a real confidence booster and really made me excited for Hungary.
    This week I got to play for a musical number in Relief Society. That was crazy. It was awkward being the only elders among an absolute ocean of sisters. Furcsa. However, the musical number was so cool! I played with Megumi Gas and she did amazing. It was awesome.
    So whenever we do SYL days there are often times words I don't know how to say. So I got into the habit of saying the word and adding a common Hungarian ending "sag". For example:" Szuksegem van mint-sag-re." That translates to: "I need a mint." I didn't know the word for mint so I just tacked that on the end. It isn't the best habit. I have to punch the flag alot for that (BTW We made a little Hungarian flag out of a 3x5 index card and everytime we say something in English on SYL days, we have to hole-punch it. Ergo: punch the flag).
    This is the last week that the Estonians will be with us. They are leaving for their mission in t-minus 4 days. It is weird. The Estonian Elders have been our zone leaders and they have made us feel very welcome and loved. The Estonian Sisters are so dang funny and we have had a great time getting to know them and becoming friends with them. That might be one thing that kind of surprised me about the MTC. I didn't think I would find so many great people and gain so many close friends. It has been a marvelous experience.
     There is a bird nest in the tree outside our class window.
     Okay so you know how the Behunin's have a niece in Hungary? Okay so Giacalone Elder was watching the MTC choir sing Praise To The Man on the Mormon Channel on YouTube and he paused it for something and he saw a name tag for a sister that said Nover. Guess what the name was? Behunin. It was so cool!
     This last week our choir song was Jesus Once of Humble Birth. I love that song. The song talks about Jesus' life and more so how it will be when He returns. We start out very softly and gently as we talk about His birth. The Spirit was so strong when, at the end, we burst into beautiful unison in saying: "Once forsaken, left alone. Now exalted to a throne. Once all pains He meekly bore. But He now will bear no more. But He now will bear no more." I would not have been surprised if He walked in that very second. The Spirit was burning, engulfing, testifying that He lives. He lives! I know He does. I know He loves us all. I know He loves us.
     I hope everything is well and that everyone is doing well!
     Tell everyone that I love them and I pray for each of you everyday! I love you!
            Sok szeretettel!
                 Neely Elder

P.S. On the 23rd of June (my first Sunday in Hungary) President Monson is giving an address to announce something to all missionaries world wide. WOW!

Giacalone Elder and I with the Estonian Elders

Goddridge Elder

Our district plus the Estonians

Giacalone Elder and I with Estonian Sisters

 Vanem Brown 

SZIASZTOK!

    Oh my goodness hello! How is everyone?  Ah! Life at the MTC right now is CRAZY.  In the best way possible.  I did get the package and it was fantastic! Thank you so much. I(and everyone in my district, LOL) love them.  It's also so nice to hear from everyone. Is it hot in STG yet?  At the beginning of May, it was pretty cold here actually (not eve joking, like 50 degrees), but now it's gotten pretty hot.  I'm glad you got your Mother's Day note. My teacher-Grossen Testver-is a phenomenal guy and it was so nice of him to send that to you.  It was hard not being able to call home, but I am way stoked to call you at the airport!
    Speaking of airport, we get our flight plans in TWO WEEKS! HOLY COW!  The MTC has flown by.  It goes so fast. It is only getting  faster too.  Today or tomorrow we will finish learning the basics of Hungarian, which means that from now on, we are just speaking it more and more.  Which is CRAZY.
    So a couple of things from this week as far as business-y items go:
       1.   We get our kisbabak in two weeks! We are so excited to have some kisbaba magyarulok (baby Hungarians) to take care of and help out.

       2.   We move to the new West MTC in two weeks!The closer this gets, the more excited I am for it. It will be pretty cool and I think it will help our district and zone become closer (if that is even possible....seriously.I feel so much love and support from these people. It is amazing. I love them all so much).

       3.   I got to play for Megumi Gas (she's an AMAZING violinist from STG). It has been so long since I've played for a really good legit musician.  It was great.  We went crazy.  That probably makes no sense to anyone. It just felt really good to play some great music with a fantastic musician.

      4.    Giacalone Elder and I made a fun little saying. PREFACE:We like to joke that our goal is to try to have Beyonce moments. A Beyonce moment is when you do something really cool or have a shinning moment of awesomeness.  So this is the sentence: "Dolgozunk Beyoncesaghoz." It translates to: "We work towards Beyonce-hood." We get quite a kick out of it.
   
      5.    I have a new found love for volleyball. Mind you, it's not legit volleyball.  We just try to keep the ball in the air and a lot of funny moments result.  For example: This Sister accidentally kneed the ball and it went flying. It hit this unsuspecting kid right in the face.  The impact was so massive that he FLIPPED WHILE IN THE AIR.  It was crazy, but so dang funny.  He was okay, even though he landed on his face.

      6.    We had another SYL day. It was a lot easier than last time. So that was nice.

     The MTC is a fantastic place, because you learn so much about the Gospel, but you also have so much fun! But now for some of the more spiritual (and just plain cool) experiences of the week:
      A couple of days ago, we had a service assignment.  It went way over the time limit and we didn't get back until 10:30 when we are usually supposed to be asleep.  So we all got into bed real fast to go to sleep. About five minutes later we got a knock on the door.  Our entire zone filed into our room.  One of the Elders  came forward and told us that he would be going home the next morning at 5:00 am. It was sad, but at the same time, I've never felt so proud of someone.  He had a lot of courage and he had the right attitude about it.  He genuinely wanted to respect the Lord and resolve his concerns before he came back to the field.  We all gave him a hug and everyone went to bed.  This is why I love my district and my zone:  After he left, our district had a little discussion and talked about it.  Then- as a district- we all decided to wake up at 4:30 and go with the elder to see him off. Our district woke up and I have never been more inspired by a group of men as our entire zone walked out with that Elder.  We saw him off. We gave him hugs.  He promised to return.  It was a great testimony builder.  I love my companion. I love the elders in my district. I love my zone. I love the Gospel. Repentance is real and if you let Him, the Savior can heal you.
      The other day we had the opportunity to do some more role playing. This time it was with my companion. He was an investigator and I was supposed to commit him to baptism. Our teacher gave each of us a concern.  I prayed for the Spirit before-hand and asked for help. It was such an awesome experience to have the Spirit guide me to scriptures and to say things that perfectly addressed his concern. Holy. Cow. The Spirit is real. He can help us.
      When we were having our SYL day we also had a lesson about why the Plan of Salvation is so important and how we could use it. Then our teacher shared an experience of his. He said that while he was on his mission, he got a call from his grandpa. He was really close to his grandpa and he proceeded to receive the news that his grandpa had cancer.  He was devastated until his grandpa said this: "At least we have The Plan." How true that is! We are SO blessed to have God's Plan with us. It is such a beautiful blessing to know about it and to be filled with that beautiful comfort.
       On Tuesday we had a devotional. Who was the speaker? RUSSEL M. NELSON. I REPEAT. RUSSEL M. NELSON. HOLY COW. WOW. SO COOL. When he walked in, it was so cool to see everyone immediately stand up and the entire room to go completely SILENT. It was amazing and his talk was beautiful. My favorite part was that he was so...happy.  He smiled and he was jumping around and was so...alive. It was beautiful.
       Yesterday Giacalone Elder and I taught. Our investigator, Edit, had a question. She asked why Nephi killed Laban, because God commanded us not to kill. Then Giacalone Elder and I proceeded to answer her question...IN HUNGARIAN. Like, legit Hungarian. Holy cow. The Spirit totally helped us out. The gift of tongues is real. The gift of interpreting tongues is real. Heavenly Father really does help and support us.
       I can feel your prayers every day. If there is one thing that I have learned so far it is that I am not on this mission alone. Whether it is you and your  prayers or my teachers or letters or my ancestors or others from the other side of the veil or the random people that help and influence me everyday.
       The Gospel is true.  Tell people about it! Be happy! Smile! Heavenly Father wants us to be happy and to have joy.  Go to the temple if you have already been. If you haven't, GET THERE. It is a beautiful place and in there we can truly be happy and find complete peace.
       I love you all. I love you all so much. Szeretlek titeket. Nagyon szeretlek titeket
                     Sok szeretettel!
                         Neely Elder

The Mother's Day Picture of the district

May 9, 2013

Szia!                                                                                
   So I have bad news: They don't let us call or skype our mom's on Mother's Day in the MTC :( It's the worst!  But I sent you a card and all my love.  However I do have some good news: I get to call you at the airport (multiple times!) and I get to call you sometime else during the year because I don't get to call you on Mother's Day.
    Thanks for making a blog! That is so cool! I can't wait to get your letter and package.
    A lot has been going on at the MTC and especially in Branch 57 district F. I have a bunch of stories and news updates to tell you about.
    First, earlier in the week one of our teachers(who is a native Hungarian), Svaboda Nover, came in and told us to stop speaking Hungarian for a while.  We had a beautiful lesson on prayer and the importance of it.  We shared our testimonies and stories and it was beautiful. I know that prayer is real. It is so real.  I can feel your prayers and the prayers of countless others.
    Which leads me to the next thing.  Grossen Testver(another one of our teachers) gave a little devotional/spiritual thought the other day that really hit me.  He said (in Hungarian), "I know prayer is real.  If you think that you cannot do it, that you cannot possibly go on, keep going.  I know prayer will sustain you.  Prayer is real.  There are so many people praying for you. Your family. People in the temple.  The prophet prays for you. So always keep going."  Then he told us: "Nem szabad feladni." It means never give up.
     I don't plan on ever giving up :) It's sure been difficult, but it has been worth it and it keeps getting better and better.
    Speaking of difficult things, last Monday, we had our first completely SYL (speak your language) day.  We only spoke Hungarian from when we got up to when we went to bed. IT WAS HARD. Not being able to express yourself sucks. It was difficult, but at the same time, IT WAS COOL!  We were speaking Hungarian!! We were legitimately speaking Hungarian! Wow! The Lord has blessed us copiously.
    And speaking of blessings(this is flowing pretty well today!) I have another story.  So we have two investigators right now-Viktor and Edit(Pronounced eh-deet). Giacalone Elder and I were preparing and it was not going well.  We weren't able to figure out what we wanted to say.  We weren't able to plan what we wanted to talk about. So we went into our lesson and it was BAD. It was so bad. We couldn't understand anything he was saying, we didn't know how to address his concerns, we didn't know what was going on, we couldn't speak Hungarian. It was horrifyingly horrible. So when we finished we left and we went back to our classroom. I was sulking and writing NEM JO. NEM BOLDOGSAG. On my notebook with highlighters(translation: no good. no happiness. LOL.) and I got the impression that Giancalone Elder and I should go and say a prayer in thanks to the Lord. I ignored it twice, but on the third time I decided to listen.  I grabbed Giacalone Elder and we went into this ghetto side room and we knelt down and prayed. I felt the Spirit. I knew in that moment that in order to receive the help I needed, to learn and speak Hungarian, I needed to be humble. It was a beautiful experience that I thank Heavenly Father for everyday.
    Now for the business-y items!
      1. We-our zone- is one of the first zones to move to the new West MTC that is stationed at Raintree and  
           Y-view! I am really excited. In Fast and Testimony meeting President Anderson said that out of 150+        Branches and zones, we were one of 10 to have the opportunity to do this. He said that is because we are   so obedient and they knew we would do well there and set an example for new missionaries coming there. It is awesome!
      2.  Our Ussi (literally 'Ancient'. It means the older Hungarians above us) left for Hungary on Monday. It
           was sad, They have helped us a lot with the language and with getting along at the MTC. Picture will
            sent.
      3. Since the Ussi and gone, we're getting 10 Kisbabak Magyarul (that means baby Hungarians) on the
          29th! They will be the first batch of new people at the West MTC. I'm very excited to have some    kisbabak to help out! It will be cool to do what our Ussi did for us to them. Also, it will definitely be a
confidence booster :)
      4. I have a flipping awesome Branch Presidency. They are seriously the coolest people ever.  Our
          Branch President-President Anderson-is, for lack of a better term, a spiritual giant. He is a very
          eloquent speaker too.
      5. Holy Cow Meredith is graduating?! I got her graduation announcement. That is so weird, but so
          cool!
      6.  Tanner got his call! He hasn't written me, yet. Amanda told me (not because he wrote her, but
           because her little sister did). I asked Amanda not to tell me. I have faith Tanner will write me!
      7.  Did I ask you about a photo album? If not, I am now. Apparently that is something I should bring to
           Hungary. So could you send one to me? That would be GREAT. Just a bunch of pictures of you guys
           and maybe some of my friends?
   I love you all so much! I miss you guys tons, but life is fantastic here! I love you!
                                                           Sok szeretettel!
                                                                     Neely Elder

Flowers outside of our residence.

                                                                 

The Ussi and Noverek and Us! front row L to R
Deinhart Nover, Magda Nover, Moffat Nover, Grigg Nover, Maxfield Nover, and Hinkley Nover

The Elders of our District!  L to R
 Ralph Elder, Gaytan Elder, Godderidge Elder, Richards Elder, Giacalone  Elder  and  Neely  Elder

         

MTC Life

Szervusz!

        I got my package. THANK YOU SO MUCH. Seriously, that was everything I could have asked for. BTW. My district loves you for sending those mints. Hahaha it is interesting what will bring us joy here at the MTC. The kids only have 15 days left? That is bizarre. It is so weird to think that there is a world outside of the MTC. I can't even imagine like...what movies are anymore. I am very good and I am keeping very busy. Seriously I have 0 downtime. Our schedule just changed, so that was weird. Now we wake up earlier and go to sleep at the same time. Who needs sleep? Not this kid! LOL.

         The language is coming great. We just taught two lessons in complete Hungarian. They went so good! I am speaking Hungarian. Like, legit Hungarian! Mi choda! It is crazy. Our district has become really close. There are ten of us (pictures to follow). It has been great. I love them all so much. And my companion is the best! He is so great. Giacalone Elder has become my best friend. We are really close. And we teach really well together.

         I love and miss you all so much! I am so grateful to be able to hear from you.

        I know that this Gospel is true. I know more and more each day. I love this Gospel and I know it changes people's lives. I know the Savior lives. I know he does. I know he payed the price of our sins so that we could live with Him and Heavenly Father again. I know he loves us. I know he loves YOU. I know that through the Book of Mormon is the word of God. I know we can get closer to him through that book.

        I love you all so much!

             Sok szeretettel!

                  Neely Elder

P.S. Long story. Next week.

Giacalone Elder

Neely Elder and Giacalone Elder

Godderidge Elder District Leader

The District

Gaytan Elder and Ralph Elder

First Email

Sziasztok (hello everyone)!                                          4-24-2013
       I got your package! Either address works. Our district shares our mailbox. I think.
       My companion is awesome.  Giacalone Elder and I work fantastically together.  We have become very good friends and it's only been a week!
       Wednesdays are my P-day.  I would love for you to send these to everyone on the list.
        I am so sad to hear about Olivia.  That is a real tradgedy.  This whole week we have been learning a lot about the atonement of Jesus Christ.  I know it is real.  He did die for us and He did pay for our sins.  More than that, He knows how we feel.  He knows how to comfort us and give us solace.  In choir we sang hymn129:
        "Where can I turn for peace? Where is my solace?
          When other sources cease to make me whole...
          Who, who can understand? He. Only one."
       He. Only one. He knows. He knows. He lives and He loves us.  I know He does.  I know that He can heal us and comfort us and help us.  He is the way to eternal live. He. Only one.
                                                      Szeretlek (I love you)!    
                                                             Neely Elder

P.S. MTC life=one of the greatest things. Super fun. Super spiritual.

Next letter

Dear Family,
         I'm going to keep a sort of running log of what is going on down here at the MTC,  Then I'll send that soon-ish.
         So, Day 2!  More language (learned how to pray today!) and we taught our first investigator. Holy Cow! It was awesome!  My compnion-Giacalone Elder-is phenomenal and we work great together.
         Now, Day 3! Today was FANTASTIC!!  Seriously, so much awesome.  We were taught how to teach and it was crazy.  CRAZY.  I'm on a blazing spiritual high.  It is difficult, but worth it.
         My companion keeps getting cooler and we are getting close.  Woah. It's only been three days.  It feels like months. WOW!
         Csal'ad todom, hogy Isten szeret t'eged. Todom, hogy Isten gyermeke uagy. J'ezus Krisztus neveban
'Amen.                      
                                                          Szeretlek!
                                                            Neely Elder

First Letter Home

Dear Familia!                                           4-18-2013
         Sziasztok!  Holy cow.  AH! WOW!  This is crazy.  It is absolutely insane.  Right  from the get-go everything is FAST!  Here, then there, then here, then WHAM!  you're in a class room where they only speak Hungarian.  It was intense!
         My companion is Gracalone Elder (it is pronounced Jack-a-loni sometimes I call him Jackalope Macaroni). He is fantastic and we already get along great.
          I am having a crazy good time and I'll try to write more details soon.
                                                                 Love you all!
                                                                  Neely Elder

Saying Goodbyes

Kyler, Levi, Dad, Mom, Hannah

Kyler and Levi

We had heard so many stories about how fast the drop off is at the MTC, so we went across the street to the Provo UT Temple to say our good-byes.

Levi and Hannah

The brave Missionary ready to serve!

Levi Jordan Neely was called to serve in the Budapest Hungary Mission.  April 17, 2013 to
                April 2015










He was set apart as a Missionary 
the Church of Jesus Christ of 

Latter-day Saints 4-15-2013

 Family and close friends at Levi's setting apart.