Called to Serve in the Philippines Quezon City Mission
Speaking the Tagalog language
January 2013 to July 2014

Monday, April 29, 2013

I really am loving it but I tell ya it's hard EVERYDAY

Tao po??
 Which means "People?"
This is what we say instead of knocking on doors here in the Philippines. We stand outside of the houses and just say Tao Po?? and wait for someone to say we can come inside. Most people don't have doors, just metal pieces of some kind that are fastened with a hinge or two. They almost always leave them wide open because it's so hot and they want the breezes to come through their little homes.
Sister Sabiano and myself sporting our new t-shirts that say "It's more fun in Antipolo Philippines". Ha ha.. This is a saying we enjoy a lot around here. Gotta have a good sense of humor for sure.
 
 
Our District Trip - The place where the whole Sis. Taupale situation went down.
 
I get to talk to you all exactly two weeks from today ahhh!!!! I'm so stinkin excited talaga! but ayos long maging patient ako hah.
 
Andelyn good luck with Pom tryouts this week I'll be thinking of you and also Amelia good luck in your dance concert I know you will do great, break a leg kiddo;)
 
haha I laughed about the story of Hunter (Ammah's cousin who is staying with us while he goes through school) in phlebotomy  school because that happened to me all the time! It never ends either... even in the hospital I'd have old men who would pretend scream and jerk and scare me to death and then I'd threaten to poke them and miss next time on purpose ha-ha.  How fun that  Uncle Rick and  Aunt Coco could come visit and you all do a temple trip together, sounds so great:) I'm so proud of you guys for having your own missionary experiences there and sharing the gospel with those you come in contact, I look back at all the opportunities that came my way that I didn't jump on before the mish and I wish I could go back and smack myself ha-ha. This missionary spirit will forever be with me for the rest of my life and I look forward to being better about sharing the gospel after my mission.  But for now I will focus on the investigators and less actives we have here because we have oh so many. 
 
After I emailed last week we actually went to some of our investigators house down in the Borgy in Tagisan and we shared the Restoration video about Joseph Smith and the 1st vision.  In this little hut we had 36 people stuffed in watching this video. Crazaay. 20 of them were little kids from the neighborhood.  It was so great and the spirit was strong.  Our investigators started crying afterwards while we were discussing the video together.  I love watching people feel the spirit because some of them haven't truly felt it before and it's a new experience for them. 
 
We had a lot of opportunities to serve this week, we had the "national day of service" on Saturday and our stake got together and we cleaned up the streets of Antipolo.  On Tuesday our district went to a less actives house and helped get all this tall weed/grass stuff off her property.  I got real sunburned ha-ha but it felt good to help someone and boy it was a hard job. We all borrowed machetes from the neighbors and just started hacking away at the stuff .  It really feels great to serve the people here though, I love them all so much and just really feel like a part of them now. 
 
 It's been raining a lot this week lately, we were in the middle of a lesson with an investigator of ours and it just starts pouring rain out of nowhere and her house is real tiny and dark because she has no electricity, and  it's not made well so the rain was just pouring through the roof ha-ha.  We were sitting on the floor teaching her with water just pouring down on us and using a flashlight to read scriptures with her, I wanted to hurry up and end the lesson but Sister Sabiano being the example that she is encouraged me to keep teaching so we did and we finished the lesson.  That was a great lesson to me that no matter what circumstance, these people need to hear our message.  Whether it be pouring rain  or out in the burning sun, or we are so exhausted but need to visit an investigator on top of the mountain. No matter what it is we need to keep going because they need to receive this knowledge in their lives that we have these wonderful true doctrines on the earth today and we are the ones who are ordained to share these truths with them.  
 
Our investigator Tatay Nemejio is doing so great we taught him about the word of wisdom and invited him to keep it.  And we came back a few days later to follow up on how it was going and he shared with us experiences with co-workers that had offered him some tea and coffee and how he had rejected it and than even explained to them why he was doing so. He is so awesome and I'm so excited for the day that he will act upon the faith that he has and follow our savior into the waters of baptism. 
 
 I have yet to have a baptism in this area but we have some scheduled in the next 3 weeks so sobre excited ako to see our investigators progressing and hopefully before sister Sabiano and I are separated so that we can share the experience of watching our investigators be baptized together. 
 
I really am loving it but I tell ya it's hard EVERYDAY.  I feel like a bad missionary cause sometimes I just want to go home and get in my bed ha! but I just keep pushing myself and by the end of the day I'm so glad I did.  I really love these people and our investigators so much.     
 
I miss my puppy so  much. There are tons of wild dogs here but they are definitely not the kind you want to cuddle and pet, they are nasty and gross and just bark at you as you pass. And Mom we do actually have toilet paper here, they sell it in the stores only though.  They never have any in the bathrooms at restaurants or at the church  though and nothing not even water to rinse off sooo yep ya just gotta pull up your pants haha! but I've started carrying toilet paper with me so that fixed that problem.  
Well Family I love you all so so much good luck in all your endeavors this coming week.  You are always in my prayers and in my heart throughout the days.  Take Care until I can hear from you again next week.  Ingat na long po kayo! 
 
 Another temple pic ;)
 
Brother Enderle, the housing couple, they are leaving their missions this week.

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