Masayang masaya

(Happy happy)

Family!!

Kumusta po kayong lahat?  Ung week na ito ay mahirap ipaliwanag.... lalo na kung gaano masaya and pinagpapala!!!  Gustong gusto ko ang trabaho na ito.  Napakaswerte ako!

This week has been amazing!! Ahhh I am so grateful to be here... it is hard to explain.

This soup is called Ginaatang gulay and it is my favorite.  It has vegetables, squash, and coconut milk.  So good.  I learned how to make it from a packet and spice it up a little bit.  Look it up and make it!  I know you would love it.

But first... a few random facts.  I know this sounds disgusting... but lately I have been doing a fried egg/peanut butter sandwich.  Don't knock it till you try it.  And this sounds even worse but Sister Lero (the philippina living with me) taught me to mix corn beef with an egg and cook it in a pan.  Again sounds absolutely gross... would I have eaten before my mission?  No.  Haha and the color.  BUT.. it actually is good.  And I have eaten it for a few meals.   In Calapan there are like no mangoes.  I am so sad:(  But there are lots of other weird fruits.  And I always buy pineapple. 

 Also... my back is constantly itchy.  I don't know what's going on.  I think it might be the water or maybe sweat haha but I don't have any acne or bites or anything.  But sometimes at night... haha my sweet companion.... she will just itch my back super hard for me.  I know this is weird.  But just an example of how lucky I am.  

My companion is the best dad.  I feel like she is one of my best friends.  I hope that we will be together one more transfer but it all depends on the Lord.  The new mission president is super nice and humble.  Different but great too.  I miss President Peterson. It is a hard adjustment but all apart of life....

Also, if you were to witness the traffic here in the Philippines you would freak out.  No, there aren't really traffic laws.  Well if there are, no one follows them and there are no Policeman to enforce them.  And you might also think that everyone is road raged and ticked off all the time because they are constantly honking but it is more of a courtesy thing.  Like, "excuse me, coming up on your right" or "passing" haha yeah.  

And another New Zealand slang: wagging=sluffing/skipping school.

Sister Tafiti and I had another embarrassing experience.  Let me preface the story by saying that people in the Philippines are very blunt and will tell you your fat or have zits and no one is offended.  In fact a lot of Philippinos like it if they are overweight because it means they are wealthy and well off.  Anyway, we were contacting this woman on the street and Sister Tafiti asked when she was due (because she thought she was pregnant).  And then all I heard was Sister Tafiti say, "oh.. you're not pregnant?"  And I couldn't help it but I started laughing and then Sister Tafiti started laughing.  It was terrible.  Luckily, unlike America, the woman wasn't offended at all but I couldn't control my laughing.  I just had to walk away.  Once again.... I am trying to get control over myself.

 So some sad news:  Sister Temwaaka is going home.  TODAY.  I guess she has been really sick the last 3 weeks and they haven't figured out what is going on so she has to go to the hospital at home.  She was really sad and called me last night to say goodbye.  She has written me a few times and I can't believe how amazing she is at both English and Tagalog.  She has improved so much and she told me how she has learned SO much about the gospel.  She hopes that she will be able to be healed and return.  So we can keep her in our prayers.

   Well Wayne won't be getting baptized this Saturday but the next.... long story short.  We did a practice interview with him on Tuesday and thought that he would need to be interviewed by President, which would mean we would have to wait three more weeks for the President to get out here and interview him (one downside of living on the island).  Anyway, turns out everything is good but because of the mis-communication we have to wait one more week.  Haha so okay.. we're not PERFECT at Tagalog.  Hahaha.  

Sister Jenny Rose is progressing amazingly and we are truly seeing fruits in this area.  We have about 6 VERY POTENTIAL referrals from members.  We taught one couple, and the husband had lots of questions.  He was a sort of intellectual and had basically lost all faith in the bible and religion.  But the spirit was so strong and by the end he was tearing up (a big tough cop) and he ended up praying.

 

We also tracted into this girl named Lovely who loves reading the bible and has been searching for the truth.  She asked if we could come the next day she had read the entire first lesson pamphlet, taught herself to pray, and prayed about the truth.  That NEVER happens.  We went back to teach her and her mom said that she has had a lot of things go through her life.  Suddenly she burst into tears and wouldn't stop crying.  We didn't know what to do!  She ended up coming to church and was fine and then the next second started bawling.  She wants to open up to us but we're not sure how to handle the situation because we're not really supposed to counsel investigators.  But from talking to her father, I think she was previously living with her boyfriend, got pregnant, and was beat up so badly she had to go to the hospital.  As in... almost fatal.  Wow.... so grateful for the gospel in my life and the commandments of Heavenly Father to help us to avoid terrible things like that.  But her mom said that this is her second chance and you can tell her heart is softened and she needs the Atonement so badly.  I feel so grateful to be able to deliver the glad message to her.

Tatay Abas' (an eternal investigator... we have stopped teaching him for now but might go back) grandchildren.  They are so darling.  It's not even posed.  They were all crowding around me like that.  So darling.

And one more family that we tracted into.  The funny thing is... we went to a member's house to try and get a referral but they weren't there so we decided to try and tract their neighbors.  They immediately were interested and ended up coming to church.  The member was SO SURPRISED that they were the ones that were interested and actually came to church.  Apparently the member had been referring missionaries to all of his other neighbors except them.  Haha and the husband I guess has had a really rough past - ex-convict - ex-drug dealer.  Just goes to show that we never know who truly is prepared to hear the gospel and ready to receive it.

But overall we have seen God's hand in our work.  There are so many ready hearts.  The FIELD IS WHITE.  Yesterday, 6 investigators came to church and we expect more next week.  We have been so blessed and I know that it is all the Lord's doing.  I am so grateful for this work and this calling.  My heart is full and I love these people.  I know with a surety that not only God lives, but this is His kingdom on earth.  That even though there have been billions and billions of people.. He truly knows each one.  Something our little human minds can't comprehend.  He knows us and loves us one by one.  And that love is also something that we can't even fathom.  I feel it for me, for you, for our new Jace, and for those I teach.  I love you.

Ingat po.

Sister Rasmussen

Our Bathroom

Our Bedroom