Oh my goodness. This week has FLOWN by. I just asked my companion what happened this week so I could have some material to write this and she said "Um... we woke up and it was already Monday again?" Yeah, that's how this feels right now. Time is going by at an astronomical rate and I can't handle it. It literally feels like I was just emailing yesterday. I can't believe how fast the time is going. When this transfer started Sis. Vaipulu and didn't feel like we were getting anywhere near the end. Now we're getting x-rays, itineraries and it's all just way too much! I still feel like I just got here. I mean, I can still remember this time of year, last year with perfect clarity. By the way, Happy Halloween! I was still with my trainer a year ago. Crazy!
Okay, so now that I've had enough of a breakdown, I'll try and remember something about this week to share.
It was SOOOOOOO hot! Like the hottest I think I've ever felt on my mission. Ironically it's rainy season here but no rain... only hot. It's funny, in the morning while we are having studies a lot of big clouds will roll in and make this awesome shade, and then as soon as we step outside in the morning to go work all the clouds are sitting on one end of the sky opposite of the sun doing absolutely nothing. So then we just melt our way to our appointments, Sis. Vaipulu drips along as we walk. I just turn red. It's awesome. And still, not matter how much of a radish I become the call of "gwapa!" still follows me wherever I go... Oh the Philippines.Today though, of course P-day (when we are not working) there is a nice breeze and a cloudy sky. Let's hope it continues this week because I am getting black! Seriously, I have the craziest tan lines and it's not pretty. Hahaha. I'm going to be a bit of a freak when I get home, sorry family and friends.
So despite the heat it was still a pretty good week. On Monday we had an FHE with the Tiva family. They are one of my FAVORITE families here, I love them all. Anyway, brother Tiva is the only one who is not a member because he as a smoking problem that he cannot get over. It's been years and a lot of missionaries. We are determined to help him. His family is AWESOME! Anyway, we didn't expect him to come to the FHE (he drives a pedicab and so he is always busy) and neither did his wife, but he came! He was late, but Sister told me later she was so shocked and she was so happy. We also had made a plan with Sister that we would come every day to see if he was home so we could teach him (he hadn't been giving us any real time). So that's what we did until finally he was home. We started from the beginning with Lesson 1 and focused on the word of wisdom again. It was a great lesson. Then we came back again. They weren't there, so we tried the other house. He wasn't there but just before we were about to leave, he showed up! He thought he could run away or hide. We joked about that. He laughed. He is a wonderful man. Shy, but so nice and we just want him to have an eternal family. He wants it so much too, but he just can't seem to kick the smoking. Any ideas? It's like 20+ sticks a day. Anyway, he came to church on Sunday and so we took a family photo of them and we are going to give him a laminated copy so that when he feels the urge to smoke he can look at his family and remember why he needs to quit. Hopefully it works. I love them.
Our other investigators are doing great. We started teaching Cheryl about the Plan of Salvation. I've never seen anyone get so excited about The Fall of Adam and Eve. It was awesome. She was SO interested. She told us she might not be at church because a family member died and she needed to go to the funeral. But she came anyway and stayed thought gospel essentials and it was awesome. We're still trying to get our Law of Chastity men on track to get married. It's hard when they don't have jobs. We're praying hard for that.
Anyway, the work is going forth. We still have plenty of hiccups. We lost some investigators this week. They were formers and we had high hopes for them, but after a few times we realized it was going NO WHERE. Brother just argued with us the whole time about how could our church be true if the Catholic church was older, and "I was born Catholic and I'll die Catholic". I would add that I don't actually think he really even believes his own religion all that much, but he was a stubborn old man. It was sad. But that's how it works. Sister Vaipulu and I have been talking a lot about what it is going to be like to see all these people again who have rejected us. What will they say to us? What will we say to them? Hopefully they will all accept the gospel before they die and it will be a happy reunion. Sad. It wasn't something I really understood until I came on a mission.
Well, we have lots to do this wonderful P-day and time is a tickin! I love you all. I can't believe I will see most of you really soon. Crazy! Don't be surprised if the minute I get off the plane I just try to turn around and go right back. I can't imagine leaving this place. Every day Sis. Vaipulu and I have the "that's something I won't miss" conversation. Usually it's things like the constant smell of pee, creepy men calling after us, seeing horrible poverty, etc. But mostly everything I won't miss is far outweighed by everything I WILL miss. But that's how the mission is. Every one warned me. It's too fast and when it's over you don't want to leave... if you did it right. Well it has been WAY too fast and basically I feel like this place is my home, so I guess that's how I should feel... sigh... Love you all!!!
Sister Jackson
Okay, so now that I've had enough of a breakdown, I'll try and remember something about this week to share.
It was SOOOOOOO hot! Like the hottest I think I've ever felt on my mission. Ironically it's rainy season here but no rain... only hot. It's funny, in the morning while we are having studies a lot of big clouds will roll in and make this awesome shade, and then as soon as we step outside in the morning to go work all the clouds are sitting on one end of the sky opposite of the sun doing absolutely nothing. So then we just melt our way to our appointments, Sis. Vaipulu drips along as we walk. I just turn red. It's awesome. And still, not matter how much of a radish I become the call of "gwapa!" still follows me wherever I go... Oh the Philippines.Today though, of course P-day (when we are not working) there is a nice breeze and a cloudy sky. Let's hope it continues this week because I am getting black! Seriously, I have the craziest tan lines and it's not pretty. Hahaha. I'm going to be a bit of a freak when I get home, sorry family and friends.
So despite the heat it was still a pretty good week. On Monday we had an FHE with the Tiva family. They are one of my FAVORITE families here, I love them all. Anyway, brother Tiva is the only one who is not a member because he as a smoking problem that he cannot get over. It's been years and a lot of missionaries. We are determined to help him. His family is AWESOME! Anyway, we didn't expect him to come to the FHE (he drives a pedicab and so he is always busy) and neither did his wife, but he came! He was late, but Sister told me later she was so shocked and she was so happy. We also had made a plan with Sister that we would come every day to see if he was home so we could teach him (he hadn't been giving us any real time). So that's what we did until finally he was home. We started from the beginning with Lesson 1 and focused on the word of wisdom again. It was a great lesson. Then we came back again. They weren't there, so we tried the other house. He wasn't there but just before we were about to leave, he showed up! He thought he could run away or hide. We joked about that. He laughed. He is a wonderful man. Shy, but so nice and we just want him to have an eternal family. He wants it so much too, but he just can't seem to kick the smoking. Any ideas? It's like 20+ sticks a day. Anyway, he came to church on Sunday and so we took a family photo of them and we are going to give him a laminated copy so that when he feels the urge to smoke he can look at his family and remember why he needs to quit. Hopefully it works. I love them.
Our other investigators are doing great. We started teaching Cheryl about the Plan of Salvation. I've never seen anyone get so excited about The Fall of Adam and Eve. It was awesome. She was SO interested. She told us she might not be at church because a family member died and she needed to go to the funeral. But she came anyway and stayed thought gospel essentials and it was awesome. We're still trying to get our Law of Chastity men on track to get married. It's hard when they don't have jobs. We're praying hard for that.
Anyway, the work is going forth. We still have plenty of hiccups. We lost some investigators this week. They were formers and we had high hopes for them, but after a few times we realized it was going NO WHERE. Brother just argued with us the whole time about how could our church be true if the Catholic church was older, and "I was born Catholic and I'll die Catholic". I would add that I don't actually think he really even believes his own religion all that much, but he was a stubborn old man. It was sad. But that's how it works. Sister Vaipulu and I have been talking a lot about what it is going to be like to see all these people again who have rejected us. What will they say to us? What will we say to them? Hopefully they will all accept the gospel before they die and it will be a happy reunion. Sad. It wasn't something I really understood until I came on a mission.
Well, we have lots to do this wonderful P-day and time is a tickin! I love you all. I can't believe I will see most of you really soon. Crazy! Don't be surprised if the minute I get off the plane I just try to turn around and go right back. I can't imagine leaving this place. Every day Sis. Vaipulu and I have the "that's something I won't miss" conversation. Usually it's things like the constant smell of pee, creepy men calling after us, seeing horrible poverty, etc. But mostly everything I won't miss is far outweighed by everything I WILL miss. But that's how the mission is. Every one warned me. It's too fast and when it's over you don't want to leave... if you did it right. Well it has been WAY too fast and basically I feel like this place is my home, so I guess that's how I should feel... sigh... Love you all!!!
Sister Jackson
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