You're Speaking Chinese?!

So since I received the shocking, yet exciting, news that I would be speaking Mandarin Chinese on my mission I have gone through a series of emotions. First, it was complete and utter bewilderment. Did God really think I could speak Chinese, what was He thinking? There was no way. I was scared of the future and was uncomfortable thinking about the difficulty that would come with my language assignment. Much anxiety and fear filled my mind and I struggled for a long time with this, but I soon realized that my call is so inspired. Chinese really is the perfect language for me.
    Since that anxiety-filled time, I have learned quite a bit of Mandarin. I started with a free app on my phone that taught me numbers 1-20 then I was blessed with a neat opportunity. Two friends of mine, a married couple in my home ward, are taking a Mandarin Chinese class over the summer at ASU. They know the teacher, a return missionary who served in Australia speaking Mandarin, and they asked him if I could come and sit in on the class and he was fine with it. I was a little hesitant with this offer since ASU is forbidden territory (BEAR DOWN!!!) but I did my best to see past that and I am currently in the class. I am able to take the class free of charge but still do all the work and have been learning so much!
    It crazy to think that the gift of tongues is a real thing until you actually see it happening. The first day of class I was really overwhelmed. I sat there hearing all these sounds and repeating them back to the teacher and my mind wanted to explode. You can imagine how I felt the second day when we added tones to all these words! It was so foreign. I couldn't believe that in a few short months I would be in Vancouver teaching people in this odd language. But as the days went by I started to feel more comfortable with what was happening and what was being said. I did surprisingly well on the first two quizzes and even when I didn't think I got the right answer or said the right thing, I did! It's crazy how much I am able to retain already and how much I have in class as I learn.
    I know it seems crazy to take a Chinese class from 4:30-6:30pm Monday through Friday voluntarily but it is helping. I know that I'll learn all of that in the MTC in no time but it's comforting to be exposed to the language and learn so much about the people and the culture before I go. It's been such a blessing in my life being able to take this class and I can't wait to take it all through June. Now that I am speaking and reading and writing this language it doesn't seem so scary anymore. I am getting more and more excited to serve a mission. Only 67 more days till I report! Can't wait!