January 10,2011
so- the philippines has continued to be a beautiful place. It rains nearly every day, I've gotten stuck in the mud-literally- several times, and I don't know this language at all, but It has been so much fun regardless of this. we have wonderful investigators, I have a great companion, and the spirit of the lord is with us in all that we do.
It's difficult to give a specific experience that happened this week. The main reason for this is that i don't speak this language so I really never quite know what is going on. Despite this, One of my favorite experiences of this past week has been teaching Sister Jennifer. She told us the other day when we checked if she did the reading that we didn't need to ask any more. She said she would always be more than glad to read whatever we asked her to. We are having FHE with her and her family later tonight, I'm really looking forward to it.
The Philippines in general is filled with daily adventures. I've been chased by a goose, caught in the rain, and called Kana more times than I can count. This is my unofficial nickname from the children, it's short for Americana, a female American (the k is intentional, there is no c in their alphabet). the Filipino people really love white people. For the women of the family, if you ever need a self-confidence boost, come to the Philippines and be aware of the fact that "Gwapa Ka" means you're beautiful. I get it from people of all ages and genders. They are amazed by my pale skin, light curly hair, and especially my freckles. My companion has had several people ask her what happened to my arms to cause them to have spots, and sometimes the little children try to see if they can rub them off.
Well, I'll send you another update next Monday, hopefully by then I'll be able to tell you at least a little of what is going on around me and in our lessons. I really want to learn this language as fast as I can so I can talk to everyone I see. But, alas, I have to have patience with myself. I guess I can't really expect to learn a language in 1 week.
Palangga ko Kamo (I love you all)
Monday, January 10, 2011
A Pile of Rocks
January 10,2011
Just a random thought process I had this week. For the background story, if you are unfamiliar, read Ether chapters 1-3 in the Book of Mormon.
In this story, the Brother of Jared asks the Lord for some sort of light to light the barges made to cross the ocean. In response, the Lord tells him to think of something on his own. I wasn't there, so I'm not sure, but I have a feeling that the Brother of Jared spent a long time trying to think of something that he could do. I believe that when he returned to the Lord he brought with him his very best effort- nothing more than a pile of rocks...
I wonder if he was embarrassed or afraid as he asked the Lord to make the rocks glow by touching them. But he had the faith to give all he had, and as a result Christ touched each stone, causing them to literally radiate with the light of Christ.
What do I have to give... What is in my pile of rocks... a non-existent knowledge of Hiligaynon, a broken ability to speak Tagalog, a heart that wants to serve but feels like it can't...
I have two options, I can hold tight to my pathetic pile of rocks, and they will remain rocks.
Or I can take them to the Lord. Despite inadequacies, the Lord can take what little I have to offer and make it shine. He can make it enough. The Lord has not asked me to do something I am incapable of, I just need to realize that I need his help to make my pile of rocks into the beautiful creation he has in mind.
Halong! (take care)
Just a random thought process I had this week. For the background story, if you are unfamiliar, read Ether chapters 1-3 in the Book of Mormon.
In this story, the Brother of Jared asks the Lord for some sort of light to light the barges made to cross the ocean. In response, the Lord tells him to think of something on his own. I wasn't there, so I'm not sure, but I have a feeling that the Brother of Jared spent a long time trying to think of something that he could do. I believe that when he returned to the Lord he brought with him his very best effort- nothing more than a pile of rocks...
I wonder if he was embarrassed or afraid as he asked the Lord to make the rocks glow by touching them. But he had the faith to give all he had, and as a result Christ touched each stone, causing them to literally radiate with the light of Christ.
What do I have to give... What is in my pile of rocks... a non-existent knowledge of Hiligaynon, a broken ability to speak Tagalog, a heart that wants to serve but feels like it can't...
I have two options, I can hold tight to my pathetic pile of rocks, and they will remain rocks.
Or I can take them to the Lord. Despite inadequacies, the Lord can take what little I have to offer and make it shine. He can make it enough. The Lord has not asked me to do something I am incapable of, I just need to realize that I need his help to make my pile of rocks into the beautiful creation he has in mind.
Halong! (take care)
Sunday, January 9, 2011
I'm in the Philippines!
January 2, 2011
yeah- that about sums it up. I'm here, and here is very very very very different than there. The weather has been great, it rains more than not and we are in the cool season so it's actually pretty nice. My hair has been surprisingly not frizzy and actually looks quite nice most days. My companion is Filipino, super sweet, and an amazing cook- and she speaks enough English I can ask her questions. I have never before felt so pale or so tall- I have so far seen no one whiter than me and only one person that was noticeably taller than me.
A bit about the place- as I said, it rains a lot. I've been told that all the islands of the Philippines could fit in Arizona and that if you took California and placed it over us it would cover nearly every island. It is about a 5 hour drive in a jeepnee to get from one side of the island to the other, and jeepnee's aren't fast. (a jeepnee is like a bus...kinda, but they don't hold as many people and aren't government run.) The people seem really sweet- I'm not sure what they are saying, so I'm not certain. In my area, most of them speak Hiligayon, not Tagalog like I learned in the MTC. So I'm mostly starting over, but this language is supposed to be easier and definitely has fewer rules and conjugations. The area I'm in ranges a lot in lifestyles. Some people live in really nice houses with concrete walls and floors, enough space for a distinct front room with a couch and sometimes a TV, and windows with shutters. Others aren't so well off. We taught two sisters, their mother, and their children yesterday. They lived in a house made of cinder blocks, the walls don't yet reach the roof. The roosters and chickens they own live in the house with them. The floor is just dirt, and on top of that it isn't even close to level. The only bed, which is the first thing you see when you walk in the door and also works as a couch, is made of a wood frame with bamboo slates filling it in. Most of these were broken through, or close to doing so, so you had to make sure to place your weight on the wood beams underneath them. It is strange, to think that what is nice here isn't even seen typically in the states. In contrast, what counts as poor is so very poor.
Teaching has been rough- I can't really do more than bear my testimony. Yet these people are so kind. When I struggle they help me to find the words I need, or tell me that I can speak in Tagalog or English, most of them understand it even if they can't speak it. I'm excited to be here despite the challenges that right now seem so overwhelming.
Palangga ko kamo- I love you all.
oh- PS- Happy New Year!
yeah- that about sums it up. I'm here, and here is very very very very different than there. The weather has been great, it rains more than not and we are in the cool season so it's actually pretty nice. My hair has been surprisingly not frizzy and actually looks quite nice most days. My companion is Filipino, super sweet, and an amazing cook- and she speaks enough English I can ask her questions. I have never before felt so pale or so tall- I have so far seen no one whiter than me and only one person that was noticeably taller than me.
A bit about the place- as I said, it rains a lot. I've been told that all the islands of the Philippines could fit in Arizona and that if you took California and placed it over us it would cover nearly every island. It is about a 5 hour drive in a jeepnee to get from one side of the island to the other, and jeepnee's aren't fast. (a jeepnee is like a bus...kinda, but they don't hold as many people and aren't government run.) The people seem really sweet- I'm not sure what they are saying, so I'm not certain. In my area, most of them speak Hiligayon, not Tagalog like I learned in the MTC. So I'm mostly starting over, but this language is supposed to be easier and definitely has fewer rules and conjugations. The area I'm in ranges a lot in lifestyles. Some people live in really nice houses with concrete walls and floors, enough space for a distinct front room with a couch and sometimes a TV, and windows with shutters. Others aren't so well off. We taught two sisters, their mother, and their children yesterday. They lived in a house made of cinder blocks, the walls don't yet reach the roof. The roosters and chickens they own live in the house with them. The floor is just dirt, and on top of that it isn't even close to level. The only bed, which is the first thing you see when you walk in the door and also works as a couch, is made of a wood frame with bamboo slates filling it in. Most of these were broken through, or close to doing so, so you had to make sure to place your weight on the wood beams underneath them. It is strange, to think that what is nice here isn't even seen typically in the states. In contrast, what counts as poor is so very poor.
Teaching has been rough- I can't really do more than bear my testimony. Yet these people are so kind. When I struggle they help me to find the words I need, or tell me that I can speak in Tagalog or English, most of them understand it even if they can't speak it. I'm excited to be here despite the challenges that right now seem so overwhelming.
Palangga ko kamo- I love you all.
oh- PS- Happy New Year!
Monday, December 27, 2010
Merry Christmas
December 27,2010
Merry Christmas! I hope your Christmas was as wonderful as mine! This Christmas really was amazing. I might have missed being away from home and such, but the MTC made sure to make it great. We had a fireside on Christmas eve which was followed by popcorn and the movie Mr. Kruger's Christmas. Then Christmas morning was a talent show, which ended up taking almost an hour longer than it was supposed to, but three elders in our zone performed and they were all really amazing. Then we had "Christmas dinner" at noon and made sack meals to eat for dinner so that no one had to work in the cafeteria. Following dinner we had an amazing devotional by Elder Nelson. He and his wife actually spent the entire weekend at the MTC, coming to the Christmas fireside that night and talking to us in Relief Society and Priesthood the next day. We then had time that was supposed to be set aside for writing families, but because we leave today we ended up spending it packing our suitcases and trying our hardest to figure out how to make things weigh less than they actually do. Finally- we had the Christmas Night Fireside- a presentation of A Christmas Carol by two performers, one playing scrooge and the other playing everything else. It was really neat!
Merry Christmas! I hope your Christmas was as wonderful as mine! This Christmas really was amazing. I might have missed being away from home and such, but the MTC made sure to make it great. We had a fireside on Christmas eve which was followed by popcorn and the movie Mr. Kruger's Christmas. Then Christmas morning was a talent show, which ended up taking almost an hour longer than it was supposed to, but three elders in our zone performed and they were all really amazing. Then we had "Christmas dinner" at noon and made sack meals to eat for dinner so that no one had to work in the cafeteria. Following dinner we had an amazing devotional by Elder Nelson. He and his wife actually spent the entire weekend at the MTC, coming to the Christmas fireside that night and talking to us in Relief Society and Priesthood the next day. We then had time that was supposed to be set aside for writing families, but because we leave today we ended up spending it packing our suitcases and trying our hardest to figure out how to make things weigh less than they actually do. Finally- we had the Christmas Night Fireside- a presentation of A Christmas Carol by two performers, one playing scrooge and the other playing everything else. It was really neat!
My Christmas Miracle
December 27,2010
This Christmas was a little different from normal. I didn't get to spend it with my immediate family, I didn't open a million presents, I didn't sit around the house being unproductive. Instead I spent it with 5 sisters who have come to be my friends, with my district who I will miss greatly when we go our separate ways and get started on our own missions, and with Christ as I spent a Christmas truly focusing on him and on what this day represents.
Though I loved Christmas this year, I won't pretend it was easy. The differences, though wonderful, were difficult to deal with. The differences of the past nine weeks have been difficult to deal with. I've missed the freedom of my old life, especially the staying up late and staring at the night sky till the sun rays once again burst over the horizon and wash away the stars. I've really missed the stars. Through my whole life, the stars have always been one of those places that I felt at peace. When life got to hectic down on earth and I just didn't understand anything that was going on, I turned to the sky. The stars are understandable, peaceful, and still. The stars are always waiting for me, eternal celestial friends.
These past nine weeks have been particularly difficult, and the fact that I couldn't just turn to the sky made it more so. Even if I got a chance to step outside and glance up, the sky has been covered in clouds for nearly nine weeks straight. Even Christmas Day was mostly grey and cloudy. But miracles do happen...
Christmas night, after the last fireside ended and we were allowed to head back to our rooms for the night, I looked up. I didn't expect to see much other than clouds, but I was wrong. As I glanced up I saw Jupiter, hanging in the night sky like a diamond with the stars of heaven spread out around it. There were my stars, watching me like always. The clouds were gone, answering a silent prayer that had resided in my heart for days. I only had a few seconds before I was back in another building, but I got to see them anyways.
The next morning was once again clouded over, hardly a scrap of blue all day.
This Christmas was a little different from normal. I didn't get to spend it with my immediate family, I didn't open a million presents, I didn't sit around the house being unproductive. Instead I spent it with 5 sisters who have come to be my friends, with my district who I will miss greatly when we go our separate ways and get started on our own missions, and with Christ as I spent a Christmas truly focusing on him and on what this day represents.
Though I loved Christmas this year, I won't pretend it was easy. The differences, though wonderful, were difficult to deal with. The differences of the past nine weeks have been difficult to deal with. I've missed the freedom of my old life, especially the staying up late and staring at the night sky till the sun rays once again burst over the horizon and wash away the stars. I've really missed the stars. Through my whole life, the stars have always been one of those places that I felt at peace. When life got to hectic down on earth and I just didn't understand anything that was going on, I turned to the sky. The stars are understandable, peaceful, and still. The stars are always waiting for me, eternal celestial friends.
These past nine weeks have been particularly difficult, and the fact that I couldn't just turn to the sky made it more so. Even if I got a chance to step outside and glance up, the sky has been covered in clouds for nearly nine weeks straight. Even Christmas Day was mostly grey and cloudy. But miracles do happen...
Christmas night, after the last fireside ended and we were allowed to head back to our rooms for the night, I looked up. I didn't expect to see much other than clouds, but I was wrong. As I glanced up I saw Jupiter, hanging in the night sky like a diamond with the stars of heaven spread out around it. There were my stars, watching me like always. The clouds were gone, answering a silent prayer that had resided in my heart for days. I only had a few seconds before I was back in another building, but I got to see them anyways.
The next morning was once again clouded over, hardly a scrap of blue all day.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Last Week!
December 20,2010
Hey!
This past week has been so much fun, I've definitely been super busy. We only have one week left in the MTC, by this time next week I'll be in a shuttle driving to the airport to leave the country for the next 16 months- isn't that soooooo cool.
A few exciting things that happened this week- one of our teachers has already had his last day with us and is home for the Christmas season, so we are going to have a lot of subs in this next week. I have a feeling this will worsen the effects of declining focus as we prepare to leave. We took pictures and listened to him tell stories (in Tagalog) about his mission, it was really neat to realize just how much we were capable of understanding.
We've received a good bit of rain this week, and it finally resumed snowing today- so I'll be able to have a White Christmas before jumping in to a Filipino summer with temperatures in the high 90's and humidity levels in the same range (95%-99%). Speaking of Christmas, we are allowed to write home for Christmas day, though I won't be allowed to email. I might not be allowed to email next Monday either, sometimes the email program doesn't work on the very last p-day, it thinks you've left already. So- there is a chance that my next email will be from the Philippines, it might be really long.
Love you all! Miss you bunches! I'm soooooooooo excited!
Hey!
This past week has been so much fun, I've definitely been super busy. We only have one week left in the MTC, by this time next week I'll be in a shuttle driving to the airport to leave the country for the next 16 months- isn't that soooooo cool.
A few exciting things that happened this week- one of our teachers has already had his last day with us and is home for the Christmas season, so we are going to have a lot of subs in this next week. I have a feeling this will worsen the effects of declining focus as we prepare to leave. We took pictures and listened to him tell stories (in Tagalog) about his mission, it was really neat to realize just how much we were capable of understanding.
We've received a good bit of rain this week, and it finally resumed snowing today- so I'll be able to have a White Christmas before jumping in to a Filipino summer with temperatures in the high 90's and humidity levels in the same range (95%-99%). Speaking of Christmas, we are allowed to write home for Christmas day, though I won't be allowed to email. I might not be allowed to email next Monday either, sometimes the email program doesn't work on the very last p-day, it thinks you've left already. So- there is a chance that my next email will be from the Philippines, it might be really long.
Love you all! Miss you bunches! I'm soooooooooo excited!
Two Weeks Left
December 13, 2010
I would first like to apologize, this weeks blog post won't be very long. The weeks have become incredibly routine and I'm running out of things to talk about. I only have two weeks left here at the MTC and I'm definitely excited to leave, though I will miss the safety and control of the MTC lifestyle. Later this week I will receive my flight plans and begin to sort through the stuff I have to figure out what I'm going to send home and what I'm going to bring with me to the Philippines.
I almost feel bad that I have so little to talk about, but the days have become so similar that they begin to blur together and I feel like it was just yesterday that I last had the opportunity to email. The weeks are so quick, yet each day feels so long.
Oh and another quick fact about the Philippines that I forgot to mention in my last post- the total land area of the Philippines is about the same as Arizona. It has the same number of people as 1/3 of the total people in the US. Small, crowded, and consisting of 16 missions. I'm so excited!
Mahal Kita!
I would first like to apologize, this weeks blog post won't be very long. The weeks have become incredibly routine and I'm running out of things to talk about. I only have two weeks left here at the MTC and I'm definitely excited to leave, though I will miss the safety and control of the MTC lifestyle. Later this week I will receive my flight plans and begin to sort through the stuff I have to figure out what I'm going to send home and what I'm going to bring with me to the Philippines.
I almost feel bad that I have so little to talk about, but the days have become so similar that they begin to blur together and I feel like it was just yesterday that I last had the opportunity to email. The weeks are so quick, yet each day feels so long.
Oh and another quick fact about the Philippines that I forgot to mention in my last post- the total land area of the Philippines is about the same as Arizona. It has the same number of people as 1/3 of the total people in the US. Small, crowded, and consisting of 16 missions. I'm so excited!
Mahal Kita!
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