Oh, So By Toilet You Just Mean The Floor.

SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

YES. That is right. I peed in/on my first real Mag-CR. Ya jealous? I have not really said this yet, but Sister Sese's and my area is really nice. Like all our homes have tile or cement floors and they all have furniture. But I went on exchanges this week a little ways north of Vigan to Sto. Domingo, and that is more of a rural area. So I am out with Sister Cabato, and a fellowshipper from her branch, Carmine. So about half way through our visiting appointments, Carmine says that she needs to pee and I am like, |shoot. Me too." So we get to this families house and Carmine starts poking around for their CR and opens a door and is like, "Oh, I found it" goes in does her business and comes out. So I go over and look in the room. Yeah, it is just a floor. I kind of look at Carmine and she just says "just use the water bucket to wash it out side" because there is a little slant to said floor and a little gap in the wall to the outside. So I go in, lift up my skirt and think "it is a good thing I camp." So that happened. And will probably happen again and again. Go Philippines.

Other things that happened this week: we had our first baptism! It was for two young boys named John and Jahydel. They are 12 and 10 respectively and they are so cute. They dont have any contact with their parents and their caretaker is paralyzed and I just so hope that the Church can be a place for them to find people who will love and take care of them. Like the other week, Jahydel did not come to church because he didnt have anything nice to wear. He does his own laundry and here that means squatting over a bucket of soapy water for three hours, and he is only ten years old. My heart broke a little when he told us that.

A little more on exchanges. I went to Sto. Domingo with Sister Cabato and her companion, whose name I do not know how to spell, came to Vigan. It was strange being in their apartment because the two other sister's who usually live there were in Laoag, so it was just the two of us. It was really quiet. But Sister Cabato was really nice and she gave me a nice pep talk during language study, which was something I really needed this week. Sister Keith and I have really hit a wall this week on language study. We both just feel like we are plateauing instead of moving forward and it doesnt help that Sister Sese, our one native, prefers to speak English (people mistake her for American all the time, I think she comes from a pretty well off family in Manila), and Sister Keith's companion, Sister Kenfield, has been here longer than all of us, but speaks the language about as well as me and Sister Keith and Sister Kenfield is now training her second missionary. So she should be better, but she really just has no desire to buckle down and work. Frustrating to say the least. I have hope for better language study this week though. Sister Keith and I have some plans up our sleeve.

So yesterday was my first fast Sunday in the field and I was really nervous. At home I am not the best faster and here, you are working all day, in the heat, teaching lessons etc. So I prayed and prayed all day that I would be able to have the strength to do all the things we had to do and that I would be able to understand and contribute to the lessons with Sister Sese, and ya know, at the end of the day, I was not dead. During the day, I was hungry, but my stomach was not as vocal as it usually is AND I was able to understand the basic concept of what people said and was able to talk coherently as well. So the power of prayer is neat.

Yesterday we also got to teach a bunch of little kids, like six or seven of them, it was awesome. We taught them about the Savior and about prayer and they were really sharp. We would teach them something and then ask them what they should do, like "should you pray every day?" and they would all answer "wen Sister! Wen!" (wen is Ilocano for yes) and they all said that they would pray and read the Book of Mormon for the next time we came. Then one of them gave the closing prayer, she said she was thankful for the missionaries, Jesus and food. Oh children. Adorable.

This week we also ate at a member's house. Sister Mary Ann (she really reminds me of aunt Marianne) and Oh. My. Gosh. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. Her food is so good. She is going to teach me. So much yay.

Love,

Sis Bet

NOTE FROM DEON; No pictures this week :( Megan was in a different place and the internet service was very, very slow. More next time!