End of March

March 25, 2012

Since I've transferred to Kalibo, I've told every one that I have three months left of my mission. Last night someone asked me again, then asked specifically what months. I told them March, April, and May. They laughed at me and pointed out that March is over. I say it's still March so I still have three months left of my mission. I know- I'm kinda stubborn.

Anyways- It's been another great week.  One of the members invited us over for "Language Study" and we had a great time learning Aklanon.  It's fun stuff. It doesn't feel as hard as everyone says it is, the only difficult thing is remembering to us it. It so much easier to not think and speak Hiligaynon.  We also spent a morning helping our Bishop (the local church leader) and his family pull weeds in their front yard.  I love doing service work, it's just very relaxing.

Last night, we had a chance to go over to the home of the Couple missionaries (an older couple who is also serving in Kalibo, typical missionaries are individuals in their early 20's).   We had a short spiritual message and delicious food.  The message was about noticing the tender mercies of the Lord.  Tender Mercies are different from typical blessings in their timing.  Blessings are given to us every day, the food we eat, the homes we live in, etc.  Tender mercies are those special blessings that come to us just at the right time.  It is the way we really feel the Lord's love for us.  They are not just random or mere coincidence, these are the little things that make our day and lift our spirits when we feel warn out.  The opportunity to eat with the older missionaries was, for me, a tender mercy.  Sunday morning started at a rushed pace and from there I never felt like I really had a chance to relax.  Like most Sundays, I had a retched headache and it wasn't helped by one of the members children deciding to be extra load throughout Sunday school class.  I had already known about the dinner appointment, so it wasn't a huge surprise.  The blessing came from walking into their house and being greeted with the smell of fresh muffins, chicken soup, and warm smiles.  It was a very simple meal, a very simple lesson, but it's timing touched my spirit, calmed my nerves, and left me with the reminder that Heavenly Father knows when I will have bad days and has already planned how to help me through them.

Kilala Niya ikaw kag palangga Niya ikaw. Importanta ka Kana.

Sick Again!

March 18, 2012

I've managed to get sick again.  It seems to be a regular part of my life as a missionary.  It's just a cough, but it's interesting how much a simple cough can wear one out when they are trying to go out and walk all over Kalibo every day.  

Anyways- this week was really great. we had a few days where we had basically no lessons the whole day. The funny thing about it is that all of our investigators were busy for the same reason. On Wednesday, all of our investigators were at a meeting at the near by school that didn't get out till 5. So, we had lessons after 5, but until then we were going from house to house trying to find anyone who was home.  Friday, for some reason beyond my understanding, they all decided to go to Iloilo.  I asked around to see what was going on in Iloilo, there must be something exciting because everyone was there, but I couldn't figure out what it was.  Yesterday (sunday) they just all weren't home.  My companion has a theory for this one.  While at church, many of the members who heard me speak in my lovely raspy voice offered their advice on how I can most quickly get better.  Most of them told me to not worry about appointments but to go home and rest and visit them today.  Today is Preparation Day- the only day we don't visit investigators- so that wasn't really an option. I felt like I was doing okay so I told my companion that we would head out and work anyways.  No one was home. We thought of a few other people we could visit, like members who hadn't been at church.  None of them were home either.  My companion turned to me and told me it was a sign from Heavenly Father that I really ought to be resting so I can get better.  So we went home, ate spaghetti, and enjoyed the evening resting. It was probably a good thing, I'm feeling significantly better now, but I'm still on mission-presidents orders to visit a doctor.  That's really all for the week, so I'm going to head off now and get healthy, hopefully.

bukon kamo masakit man, palihog!

500

March 11, 2012

Guess What! I've been a missionary for 500 days as of today. Isn't that weird.

sorry- that's really all I have time for today. I promise- you'll have a better email next week.

Dahan!

No P

March 4, 2012

...and no mouse either. Both the P key on the keyboard and the left click on the mouse of the computer I'm on don't really want to work. If I want to use either I have to push them really hard two or three (or four) times. It's kinda driving my crazy, so my email might not be as long as normal because I want to stop typing.

Anyways. This week has been pretty good. One of the biggest highlights of the week was the free food! I like free food. But more than the free food, it was the feeling of belonging that really lifted me up. Earlier in the week I met one of the recent converts, Brother Gumban, and his wife who is also a member. I could tell within minutes that they really loved the missionaries who baptized Brother. At the end of the lesson, they invited us to come over for lunch on Sunday after church. The lunch was fun and simple. I know that I will never replace those missionaries who initially started teaching brother, but I felt like the family really has a desire to make me a part of their lives too. They are so sweet and loveable.

The next was later Sunday evening. It was really an answered prayer. I've been praying and trying to get to know all the members in the ward. A few nights ago, after an appointment cancelled on us, I felt like I should have my companion take me to the nearest member, not even knowing who it was. I was introduced to Sister Jasmine. Sunday afternoon, Sister Jasmine called and invited us to dinner with them and a few other members in the ward. We went to the restaurant of Jasmine's sister-in-law, sister Annie. It was closed, so I felt super special that we were the only ones there. Just one table was still set up and it was completely covered in Sister Annie's specialties. She made me mashed potatoes and Filet Mignon wrapped in bacon, it was amazing. Best of all, I had the opportunity to meet and really get to know more of the members.

I've been struggling a little the past week. I know I don't have much time left and I see that there is lots of work to do in this area. I've been feeling like I need to completely set aside who I am (someone who prefers not to talk much and enjoys just being by herself most of the time) in order to do what I feel needs to be done. I've gotten to know most members as I've had companions who are good at talking to members and I can just come along and listen to them talk. I don't have enough time to do that. I've been wondering and even doubting if I could do all I need to do in the short time I have. I've been wondering if I could spend three months NOT being myself. In church, however, I was reminded that Heavenly Father doesn't ask us not to be ourselves. He asks us to be our best selves. I realized that the person I am may not typically talk to very many people, but I do talk a lot to those I love and am close to. I don't have to learn how to be someone else, all I have to do is learn how to love the members as our Father in Heaven does and I'll be able to be myself around them- the talkative version of myself.

Kaya Ko!

Broken Eggs

February 26, 2012

Friday was transfer day! This means lots of things changed. My former companion is now training (I'm so excited for her!) and I'm now in a new area! Kalibo 2nd Ward! My journey to Kalibo was interesting. I woke up Friday morning for a 2 hour ride into the city for the transfer meeting and then took a 4.5 hour bus ride out to Kalibo. It was so long. In addition, the road was too bumpy and curvy to read, so it felt even longer. But, despite the long ride, I survived and am now in Kalibo.

Kalibo is the northern-most part of the island, quite a distance away from Iloilo. This means (because we are in the Philippines) that they speak a different language! Isn't it so nice how you can drive for days across America and get out of the car and still understand people. I'm serious- I sat in a bus for four hours and it's a completely different language. Fortunately, they mostly understand Hiligaynon, so I can still teach, I just can't understand them. Either way, I've lost track of how many languages I've learned on my mission, so for those of you who remember, just +1 to my current number. I'm excited to learn Aklanon. The missionaries say it's way hard to learn, but the members tell me it is easy. I'm not sure if I'll speak it very well by the time I leave, but I hope I can at least understand it completely. The grammar structure seems the same, it's just another change of vocab. As a child, I always wanted to be bilingual, thought it would be sooooo cool to be tri-lingual, never imagined more than that. I feel so blessed for this opportunity to learn so many languages. Hopefully I can continue to keep them all separate in my head so and not forget any of them. It's really hard to speak just one language now, I can't do it at all with English, I'll start a sentence in English and finish it in something else. My sincerest (advanced) apologies for all of you who won't understand half of what I say when I get home.

Anyways, something interesting I learned the other day during my studies:

The past few weeks, I've been trying to develop more patience. The more I work on this, the more I realize that it will take much longer than a few weeks. I came across a conference talk that really helped me to see how I can be more patient. The talk is from October 2010 conference and is titled Rest Unto Your Souls by Per G. Malm. Near the end of the talk, he shares a story about his grandmother. She sent one of her kids to the store to buy eggs. The child walked to the store, bought the eggs, and walked home. With the neglect children typically show towards eggs, many of the eggs were broken by the time the return trip was completed. A visiting neighbor advised the grandmother to scold the child for not being more careful. But, responding as wise grandmothers typically do, she said, "No, that will not make the eggs whole again."

That line really hit me as I read it. As I looked back on moments that I felt I was being very impatient, I realized that my reaction did nothing to make the situation better. My attitude wasn't making the eggs whole again. I've decided to make that phrase- "No, that will not make the eggs whole again"- a part of my life. Hopefully, through remembering it, I can better control my reactions, only reacting in ways that can actually improve the situation.

Bukon, bukon imaw obrahon nga manging bilog ro itlog liwan.
isang pang wika bago umuwi ko!

Refflesia

February 19, 2012

The missionaries in the Antique district have been working very hard for the past several months to make sure that our area books (binders containing information about the area we are serving in and the people we are visiting) are always updated and that our apartments are kept to the highest standard of cleanliness. As a reward, our mission president approved a zone activity for this p-day. We decided that we wanted to go on a hike to see many of the beauties of nature that are we are surrounded with. With this thought in mind, many did research and the resulting activity was taking a hike to see the Refflesia flower.

The Refflesia genus is the largest species of flowers in the world, though it is more technically a parasite than a flower. It grows on vines in remote jungles. There are several species of the Refflesia, one of which is found only in Sibalom, Antique, and this is the one we visited. The plants smell horrible to attract insects and small animals which they supposedly eat (I'm not sure, the poster says they eat rats but the local guides say that they don't). The smell is strong enough that you can smell the plants before seeing them, though not so bad that you can't stand around and get a million pictures. The flowers get much bigger in rainier seasons, and other species are known to get as large as 5 feet in diameter. The ones we saw were maybe a foot and a half, but that doesn't change the fact that I can now say I've seen the largest type of flower in the world.

The hike in general was just wonderful. Like I said before, it was mostly just a great chance to see the beauty of the Philippines. The hike was gorgeous. We walked through a forest of coconut, banana, and bamboo, along with a million other plants that I can't even describe. We actually got high enough in altitude to see a few pine-type-trees. I feel so blessed that I've been given the opportunity to serve in paradise. Sorry I can't include all the pictures I took, but I hope you enjoy these 5. And now you can say you've seen a picture of the largest flowers in the world.

Just an update on life- still breathing.

Sorry, I know it's kinda lame. This past week has been wonderful, and I would love to tell you about it all, but at the same time, those things which make it most wonderful are those little things that happen nearly every week and every day. They are those things you really have to experience. Moments of laughter, surprise, and joy that comes from serving the Lord. How I wish I could share every day with you, yet you wouldn't understand. I can't put it into words, and if I try, it's Hiligaynon.

Next time I email you, I might not be in Antique any more. Transfers occur this Friday. I've been here for 6 months now and this Wednesday I might be told to leave. It's going to be hard. I've been in the Philippines for 13 months now and in just 3 months I will be told to leave. It's going to be really really hard. It's strange to think how just over a year ago I knew nearly nothing about this country, yet now so much of my life is here. I haven't just lived here for a random year, but a year in which I've changed and grown so much. This place is filled with memories. Things from bamboo to rocks to tricycles to babies with black hair and flat noses. It all means so much. I want to share it all with you, but there just aren't words. There really just aren't words.

Ambay kun paano makapanaw ako. Ayaw ko.

Successes of the Week

February 12, 2012

This week was really fun, but it was also really hard. Nearly all of our investigators were "on vacation". For some reason or another, they weren't able to meet with us. Despite this, we pressed forward for many successful experience.

The first was Monday afternoon, not long after emailing all of you. The week before, while flossing my teeth, one of my fillings fell out. Unfortunately, I couldn't leave it in such a condition till I go home, so the result was going to a dentist in the Philippines. Now- the Philippines is a wonderful place, but since I hate going to the dentist at home, going in the Philippines was a rather unappealing p-day activity. But I went, and all is well. The hole in my tooth is refilled and no new ones have formed yet.

The next big success was Wednesday when we had Zone Conference. I suppose it wasn't really a success on my part, I didn't do much to make it amazing, but it was a really good zone conference none-the-less. We learned about making sure to always be focused on our Purpose as missionaries, which is to help others to come closer to Christ by receiving the Restored Gospel. It was just a wonderful day.

The last big success was a compiled success through the whole week. As missionaries, we like to work with the members from the ward or branch we are assigned to. This helps those we are teaching to realize that the church isn't just a bunch of Americans. It also helps us to become more familiar with the area. This week, many of the people who normally work with us were really busy. I really felt Heavenly Father's help throughout the week, however, as those who were able to work with us were also those people who best helped the people we are teaching. It was just a good week, I like good weeks.

Palangga kita kang Dios.