Hello
family!! How are you all? It was so nice to talk to you on skype. I
loved seeing your faces and hearing your voices. I felt like I had just
seen you, yet when I thought I wouldn't see you again until Christmas it felt
really far away.
This
week hasn't been AS great as last week, but still good. So first off
earlier this week, I had this little spot on the top of my foot/ankle which I
thought was just a bug bite. It sort of itched so I itched it for a
second and then I stopped. Later that day I looked at it again and it
seemed sort of swollen and I was asking the people we were visiting what it was
from and they weren't sure. Then, later that night I looked at my foot
and it was starting to really swell and was hot and I couldn't really flex my
ankle. So I called Sister Peterson and she thought I was having an
allergic reaction so I got some benadryl (sorry if I spelled it wrong). I
took that night and slept great haha but it didn't really help. Half way
through that day my foot just hurt so bad and it was really red and swollen.
We went to go teach one of our part member families and all of a sudden
my stomach was hurting really bad. As we were sitting talking to the
members they asked me what was wrong and I started tearing up haha I was SO
EMBARRASSED and I felt like I was just being a baby but I just wanted to keep
going. I showed them my foot and you could see a red streak coming from
my knee and wrapping around to my ankle because of the blood supply. I
was basically crying and they kept saying oh it's a "pigsa!!"
But they didn't know what that was in English. Anyway, as I was
sitting there a little bit miserable, the mom of the family just started
dancing like a crazy person trying to make me laugh and I couldn't help but just
laugh. Haha I started laughing my loud cackle, Rasmussen laugh like I
know you all know. Haha I was just grateful for her and helping me to not
take it so seriously. Anyway, I found out it was a boil!!! So weird.
I honestly don't even know exactly what that is or what causes it but now
I am just taking an antibiotic and advil and it is slowly going away haha.
Luckily
it has gone down enough today because we had our zone pday where we went to the
1500 steps at cuenca. SO BEAUTIFUL. Oh my goodness. I forget
that I am actually here in the Philippines in the middle of Asia and there are
some beautiful sights. It is this big gorgeous turqoise lake and you have
to go down
One
food that I ate this week which I thought you would think is interesting was
just a boiled banana. Haha they have these really fat big bananas that
taste kind of different and she just stuck it in boiling water with the skin
still on. It was good though!!
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| Classic Haley Face
So,
I am sure you are all wondering what happened with Mac and it didn't end well, Unfortunately.
But it was a good learning experience. We followed up with him and
he had only read one page of the Book of Mormon but was doing a lot of research
online. Of the bible and of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. When we
met with him he was talking and talking and wouldn't let us get a word in.
He offered a lot of false information about the church, but Sister
Hingano and I both felt very impressed to not say anything. He said that
he prayed, not to know if the Book of Mormon was true, but just prayed in
general about the truth. He said that he received a very direct answer
from God that said, "I have already given you what you need.... why are
you still searching?" I respect him and his interpretation, yet that
answer doesn't sound at all like God. He always encourages us to keep
searching for truth, keep learning, keep progressing. I was looking at
him and listening as he was giving all of his reasons, almost getting red in
the face, and I just felt two things. Love for him and sadness. I
was so sad for him. I was sad about all of the blessings that I have that
he won't know. I was sad about his future. I wished that he could
have heard all of the contradictions that he made while he was explaining.
I just realized that you have to just respect others' agency and love.
That's all you can do. You do your best, but we all have our
agency, which is a beautiful gift from God. We left that lesson sad, but
grateful at the same time. It was a good learning experience.
We
felt better later that night when we went to teach Ronnie and Hellen. Unfortunately,
Ronnie was gone, but you can see the HUGE change that has been made in Hellen's
life. If we ever pass by their house, she is inevitably outside reading,
and studying her Book of Mormon. She told us how she has seen so much
more peace, love, and happiness in her life as she has been praying morning and
night and reading every day. She says that feels so wonderful and she
doesn't ever want the feelings to leave her home. She loves to go to
church and says that she wishes she could go to church every day and she always
hungers for the scriptures. It was so great to hear. I teared up as
she just thanked us so sincerely for bringing this truth into her life and into
her family. I am so grateful to be here and help bring some light to the
lives of my brothers and sisters in the Philippines. Her husband Ronnie
however is a different person when we are there, or at church, but apparently
he has anger issues and a hot head. Hellen says that she tries to remind
him to read the Book of Mormon and pray but he just won't apply these things in
his life. He is not yet convinced of the truth, but we know it is because
he is not acting. So we are really trying to work with him to humble
himself and just experiment - just TRY and act. Because once again, no
matter how long he'll never know the truth through us or anyone else.
Only through himself and his own actions. We love both of them so much.
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AND Sister Estellita. Well, almost all of her siblings and
her parents are members but she has a very hard head. One of her sons has
served a mission, and one is preparing right now. Missionaries have
visited her for first time visits only because before, she was so hard.
But the change that is happening with her is also incredible. It is
all about timing. The first few visits with her were a struggle, but we
finally convinced her to read the Book of Mormon. We explained that it is
the key and evidence to our entire message. She finally said, ok, I
haven't read the thing yet so I will. When we went back the first time
she had read way more than any of our investigators have and she has continued.
The Book of Mormon has really helped her to feel of the truth. She
says she wants to read a book (like 1 Nephi or 2 Nephi) every week so she can
finish as soon as possible. She wants to read the whole thing for herself
and make a decision for herself, which is great. It is super important.
Her son also told us how she used to drink coffee all the time but now
she has stopped. Last night, we had a testimony meeting with all of her
siblings and it was so spiritual. Sister Estellita teared up multiple
times. She will be baptized soon, and I am grateful that I could help her
in that journey.
Her family, the Austria family.
I love them so much and I will visit them all again at the end of my
mission. They are the pioneers of the area which means they were the
first baptisms in Rosario. For a second there, with all of them together,
it made me really miss my family and extended family. But I am so glad to
be here, I wouldn't be anywhere else.
I love all of you so much!! I know I
say it every week but I do. Whether you think so or not I miss you but I
know I am in the right place. I am so grateful for the things that I am
learning. Invaluable. I love you all!!!
Love, Sister Rasmussen
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There was a ward pool party and that was the nicest pool ever. I never expected to see anything like that here in the Philippines. Just in a super rich nice subdivision. There are some really poor areas but also some really rich areas too.
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