Christmas Pictures & Lots of Laundry!

The one that lost her baby and has asthma, we gave them a BoM for Christmas and gave them a scripture about the spirit world and told them that they can see their baby again and that families are so important. She cried I cried we all cried we then asked them to read the pamphlet about the Plan of Salvation. After that she told us she enjoys when we come by. (We have dropped by a couple of times to see if she is ok) and she really wanted to be the one to pray before we left. 

Friday: we taught 2 women that we found when trying to find their mom, but their mom is busy all the time so we teach them. One of them was just listening to our lesson so intently last time and she reads the pamphlets and everything. It’s pretty cool when they show an interest in the Gospel and it is really frustrating when they don't hahah. Because you are like I KNOW WITH ALL MY HEART THAT THIS WILL HELP YOUR LIFE PLEASE ACCEPT IT! and they are like eh.... maybe. haha of course it is just an interest at first but if they pray it will be a testimony. 

                  

Sunday: Less active family came; even though they wanted to leave right after sacrament we directed them to the gospel principles class. They stayed but left right after that. 

Monday: LAUNDRY a lot of LAUNDRY aw man. When I get home I will fall in love with the Washer and the dryer. haha but it's ok. It was good. It is a sunny day to day so it should dry fast. 

Tomorrow we have a lockdown. New years we are having a lock down, but we live in the same house as our branch president so it is a lock down but a party lock down. We paid sister Travino (our branch president’s wife) and she wanted to cook for us and then we will watch the fireworks!!!!!! (they have no restrictions on fire works here it is going to be crazy fun. and we are allowed to watch Narnia as long as we tell the president how it is like the Atonement. What is a bummer is I can't light off any fireworks. Maybe when I return I will return at new years and just light off a bunch of fireworks and then go home ahaha.

          

The play and branch party

Yay letters!

Sister Pavino's Christmas

Characters at the Christmas party

Opening presents

A lot of food

The missionary party at our branch president's house.  There was a lot of food!

Our stable at the branch Christmas party

Bamboo star decoration

The Christmas story from the Nephrites perspective;

our DL is reading and the other DL's acted the rest out. 

I Ate Balute!

hahah so this week hardly any work haha. Monday is Monday we shopped and then did laundry. Tuesday missionary Christmas party at Cauyan. It was super fun we played a game where we were in lines of 5 and the last person has a balloon on their feet and the first person is out to pop the other balloons, and we had another game called Bahay (house) Baboy (pig) and Baguio (storm) where there is two people that are a house and 1 person is the pig and when the person says bahay we have to find a new pig and whoever is last loses and whenever they say Baboy the person that is the pig has to find a new house quickly and Baguio we all switch and change. It was super crazy.  There was food cooked by Brother Pete (a white guy that goes around the whole mission selling and buying sovereigns and nick knacks, he is a member and cooks the best American food) Then we had a devotional about all the different characters in the Nativity and about what is fact and what others were made up and also about how they must have felt Joseph, Mary, Elisabeth, and John the Baptist and his Father. Harod, the Kings (nope we don't know if there was only 3) the shepherds, and the Nephites in the Americas.     What I thought was cool is that they think the star is a convergence of 2 planets and 1 star. It reminded me of how amazing it is when the moon is super bright that there are shadows and it is a clear sky and it is just peaceful and how thoughtful Mary was all the time and how devoted John the Baptist father was. He was slain on the steps of the temple because he didn't give out the location of Jesus. It was amazing. I loved it.  Then the next day EVERYONE AT THE CHRISTMAS PARTY GOT LBM (diarrhea) hahah we all stayed home and just ate anti-lbm pills and bread. hahahah ya and then Thursday we had a Christmas party with all the branches in our district and then Friday was weekly planning and then work but no fellow shippers so we went and visited all the Less actives that we have. 

                           Saturday work again. We visited a huge Family that is all less active they live in this huge compound kind of thing and they are all related. So we had 2 lessons. The reason they went less active is they didn't go on missions and got married. We told them that was ridiculous and that they need the church more than ever now to bless their families. A lot of people don't go on missions and are still active.  Then we visited 3 sisters the oldest loves the lessons, the middle loved the friends and the youngest is shy. They don't go to church because their family got offended; we told them that they can enjoy the things in church still. They just need that faith and boost to go in spite of their parents choice not to come to church. another less active family the girl is 19 and she has an online business but because of that she doesn't go to church, and then the oldest is handsome young man he did work with the missionaries before and was really active, but now he is in college and doesn't have time for that. Their dad is this sweet x-marine that learned to cook in his service. (He has a classic Marine tattoo.) There are a lot of Marines and sea men here. 

                            We also have an investigator that is totally prepared because they read the pamphlets and they ask questions and they promised to go to church (they didn't go but we are hoping it was out of their control, because they were so looking forward to it.) they are a cute couple. They live in the middle of a corn field, and he works all day in the corn and rice fields, and when he comes home he plays with his 2 kids and nephews and nieces and giggles with his wife. They are just super cute! I love them. 

                        Oh also I ATE BALUTE! AT THE DISTRICT CHRISTMAS PARTY ON THURSDAY. It was epic! We were waiting for the bus and there was a vender there. It tasted like egg. There was just some cartilage but I pulled that out and continued and then there was the fur but it was wet so it didn't bother me that much. I have pictures.    

                             :) I am excited for Christmas; we have our branch Christmas party on Christmas and so many lunch and dinner appointments! IT is cool to be a missionary and to represent Christ, when it is his day, and my lifetime. We have such great knowledge about Christ that is amazing to share with others. No one else knows as much about Christ than we do. We don't just get that knowledge from books, or just from people. It’s from OUR HEAVENLY FATHER. We have the Knowledge about how to talk to our Heavenly Father to get that knowledge and we know that our Heavenly Father is the one to give us the gift of Christ.   

Mahal ko Kayo Lahat (I love you all.) Love sister Perkins

That is a baby Chick from the egg with all its fur. ignore the hair it was a windy night.

One Year Left

I am so excited for Christmas, what is weird is I now only have a year left on my mission. like really. next Christmas I will be home freezing. It really doesn't feel like Christmas no snow... it actually feels like Halloween, the kids here spend all night long going from house to house singing carols for money, and they won’t stop I mean WON"T STOP until you give them money, so we have to keep our gate lock. or we give them Cents so that they feel success. 

in this new area we have had a lot of just service and it is amazing. like one investigator we visited two times. the first time she was pregnant and the second time she had lost her baby, She was really weak so we did her laundry and we cleaned her whole house and we taught her husband to pray. then we painted the fence of this nice rich house of this less active and next Sunday she came to church. Woot for service. We walk a lot. 

Pictures!

The counting game where the punishment is powder

Our Zone

Baptism of Melvin and Martin

Mini Christmas tree!

Family home eveing with bunsay. We played a game where the punishment is to put baby powder on your face

Thanksgiving with all the solano sisters

(the next three pictures)

Nanay Vasquez.  She is so cute.

Elder Lapian, our district leader.  He is helping us with the branch solano to reactivate their LA branch. He is cool and that is an amazing picure of a trycie

Luciano Family, Reactivation time! ya the kids are so cool .

me and my Kids hahah i baptized them and it is cool.

our Branch mission leader and his family hahah they are so funny

My family history leader and her husband ya we are cool saluting the camera.

At transfer-meeting and in our area 

These are our zone leaders and they are in our same branch

Opening a New Area and Loving the Challenge!

I am training and I am going to open a new area. WooooT ! All I can think of is Bring it hahahah I got a call from Prez Rahlf saying heads up. YEps Crazy I now have 1 more day in Solano. (I am so in the dark about where I am going it could be in the country or in a city or ya.)

Monday: Saw Inglasian Missionaries and thought "oh that’s what we look like."

Tues: got a call saying you leave to night to get to Santiago, and then you will be in Cauayan in the morning. Ate at our newly baptized's home. Split with Sister Manukilea and sis Clyde, Got to Santiago and slept on the floor. 

Wed: Woke up got on bus. Had the trainers meeting teaching us how to train.  Got home and then slept sobrong tired. But woke up really early in the morning and exercised, (we play badminton on the tennis court next to the Catholic church, we play to the sounds of early morning mass. it is fun. )
Thurs: Punted (no one was home) and prez villaran almost got into a motor accident because he saw us sitting on the ground and was going to ask us why. (resting na lang) We lit 2 cotton balls on fire to explain why we need to go to church and read the scriptures and pray. The kids thought it was cool. Then we played game. We also made them spaghetti, after that we made some for our fellow sister missionaries (we had Thanksgiving with all the sister missionaries in Solano)

Friday: Thanksgiving at Brother and Sister Allen's house, (he is the one white guy in the branch) it was good

Saturday: we helped branch 2 because they have a branch in their area that became all less active so we split with them and visited the old members.

Sunday: Last Sunday, Taught Julius for the last time, he was sad because his family is not able to be baptized with him and that I won't be there. We taught him how the Holy Ghost works and the Word of Wisdom, and that even though I am going to be gone he needs to continue. He is so strong he told us that his friends tempted him with alcohol but he drank water the whole night though until he could slip out and go home. (That is before we taught him the WOW). We worked with the youth and Marellie my first baptism came with us. It was fun.  Then we got a call from Pres Ralhf saying that I am opening a new area with a new missionary and that I need to be prepared. 

Instead of feeling sad or not ready for this assignment I am feeling like BRING IT! Like this new challenge is going to be fun and I am loving it.

Q&A with Sister Perkins

We were asking Katrina questions here are her answers.

How do you feel about maybe becoming a Trainer?

I am ok with Training but i wish it was here in this area, because I know the people and the area and I am ok with being transferred. I am a little frustrated that i will be missing a baptism, but it is ok  and yes it has happened that people train and get transferred actually it happens a lot in this mission because we are getting so many new people. So we open new areas.

Have you seen the stress management books yet?  

No we haven't even seen the booklets. They have them and they were going to distribute them but the area 70 Elder Neilson was here so we couldn't. So ya. That is what president Ralhf told me. So nope. Transfers are on Dec 5 next week I will know by tomorrow if I am going to train or not and Wednesday is the new trainers training. We will see what happens. When you focus on Heavenly Father things just fall into place. It’s subtle but it’s oh surprise life is just a little better than before. 

What are you doing about Thanksgiving, do they have Turkeys there?

I have a Thanksgiving at a member’s house that married a white guy from America they wanted to invite all the missionaries to have thanksgiving even though they don't celebrate it here. That was nice. YES they do have turkeys here! People raise them with their Chickens haha they are not natural here though like they are in America but they are still here as farm animals.   

Who got baptized?

Melvin he is 13 and martin he is 9 we activated their mom and their grandma is our best friend (she reminds me of Denise so outgoing) they are sweet kids. Martin was afraid to get baptized because he was worried that would mean the missionaries would be done being his friends. hahah he’s cute 

Have you got your Christmas package yet?

Yep can you believe that it is almost Christmas? And no i haven't gotten that package but i might on Wednesday or tomorrow. We have to go to Cauayan to get it and sometimes our zone leaders don't want to lug around big packages. 

Taught a LA(less active) family (there drunk uncle interrupted with his loud testimony "I belong to the true one CHRURCH I know that God WATCHES ME) it was funny and we handled it well. They came to church on Sunday. The kids think i am cool. We worked with the members more.  One of our investigators feels guilty he did not go to church but we said it was ok and try again. We have so many diner appointments this week because people know that i am leaving hahah. I was scared on Friday because a lesson went long and our phone died and we had no ride back to town and we were in the fields but a trycie came along that was delivering food and saved us.

Had a part member baptism Saturday and Sunday I realized how much I love these people and cried a little because this was my last baptism and I had to tell my other investigator that I would be transferring and that I couldn't see his baptism. He gave me the most distraught face ever. :I  but he also gathered up all his English to tell me that "i have decided to Be a member of this simbahan(church) i don't know ano (what) my pamillia is doing pero I have decided" and then he jumped on his motorcycle and drove away to teach is sister in law how to drive a motorcycle. His baptism is on the 21 as well. 

We had a family come that my last kasama gave up on but my new one loves them so much and they came. I was so happy the mom cried and i cried so i made her feel welcome by saying "hey we are in the same boat nanay" and their daughter told me she thought i was pretty cool. I think it was because their dunk uncle interrupted our lesson last time and i just went with the flow and we got him to bare his testimony and we told him that he can repent (i don't think he will remember that but still) and i think she expected me to be weirded out by him but i was like na if he wants to join the lesson he can. So that made me happy. 

Have you adjusted to not using toilet paper?

hahah I still use toilet paper. I carry it around though everyday and I am smart to keep in memory all the places that have TP. hahah

Let you know what happens with training and transfers on Monday.

Splits with the Sister Training Leaders

Tuesday: had interviews with President Ralhf, hinted that I would be training next cycle and with training that I would be transferred. Other than that it was really good. I told him that our area is huge and that we need it to be split but then I realized that others have bigger areas soooo... ya. A lot of peoples aunts have died this week so people where gone like Mellowyn and tatay Tayag. We found out that our zone leader elder Amio (Fijian his picture is in one of the PCC adds) is going to transfer early and we are all bummed because he really "put the team on his back"

Wednesday: CRAZY hahah. Splits with the Sister Training leaders I got sister Janda (handa) it was amazing we got 4 new investigators (from less active families) and we got Brother Stantana to confess that he is so lost and need the spirit in his life, and commit to come back to church after his house is done being renovated, also told his wife to invite the construction workers to church and then they could all go back and continue working on it.  Tatay Liwanag and his Jeepny drove us out to our farthest area and when we were teaching someone stole his pouch full of the money he had collected that day driving back and forth from Bongbang and Solano. We promised him blessings for his sacrifice.

Thursday: worked with Pres. Villaran, went out to our farthest area again. Good day, I love just the drive up to our farthest area because it is so beautiful especially after it has rained, with the clouds and the mountains and man we just need a video of the whole drive it is like out of a nature video.

Friday: Sister Tibungs daughter’s birthday we bought her a cake and afterwards we found out it was Coffee cake. hahahaha it was so funny we thought it was just chocolate. hahah oopps

Today we had a zone activity playing volleyball in Bongbang they had grass there so it was nice.

Artsin, or something like that.  It is a fruit.

I found some things that fit.  Woot!

Sister Training Leaders Splits Day

I Am Safe. Don't Worry.

Our area is so big! and so when I focus on the ones far away the ones close don't get visited Grrr I am so unorganized!

We visited sister Ang, she is a less active and she usually knows everything we teach her really well. But this time we taught her tithing and she asked us like what is the difference between fast offerings and tithing. She didn't know. So we got all her questions clear it was good.

Gave Hazel and Mellowyn baptism dates. but that might have to be extended. We need for them to have friends first so that they have an extra motivation to get to church. They are so willing to have a family home evening so we are going to organize that (sometime) and invite members or have it at a member’s house.

Wed: had my clothes held hostage at the Laundry shop. hahah this laundry shop had weird hours so it would be closed then we would call them if they were open and they said yes and then we got there and it would be closed again. hahah We taught the Bunsay family asked her if she could do my laundry and they asked us to come to their Family home Evening today. I am excited.

Also taught a 13 year old and a 9 year old the Law of Chastity. It was ok actually only in Tagalog I told them that if they keep the law of Chastity their wives would be beautiful. hahah its true though haha.

Thurs: Lunch at the Reyes family I love them; they take so much care for the missionaries. Their daughter gave us a referral, Jhona and we taught her on Sunday she really wants to go to church but works that day. 

Friday: Zone conference had to wake up at 2 in the morning to get to the mission home by 7 then we got home at 11 it was a long day but it was really good. One of the area 70 was there teaching us and his cool wife. She is so real like she says thinks how they are. It was Elder and Sister Nelson they talked about the revelatory process, about the Doctrines of Christ, about strengthening companionships, and obedience. It was amazing. They also had us kneel down as he prayed over the people that where being affected by the Typhoon. I love leaders that care so much for their people.

Saturday: found out that sister K and sister Perlas and sister Watson and sister Tolo (they all live in the same house) got robbed. Scary but they just laughed what’s money when you are on a mission. It rained really hard.

Sunday; Taught the full family of Mendaros, Tatay Rumaldo( I blessed him (In the Philippine culture if a young person puts their forehead on the hand of an older person it is blessing them with their youth to the older person.)) He is such a happy righteous man, and can't read or move his left hand and foot but he still loves to bless the lives of others and for that I blessed him. Then Jhona that lesson went well. Then Dinner at Nanny Paguio house with all the missionaries in Solano. It was fun and a blessing because the Robber took the food of sisters, and we didn't have any gas in our stove. hahah so it worked out.

Does your companion know English very good how do you two communicate with so many different languages????  Oh she knows English like super good she is amazing there are a few things that get lost in translation though but that is about it we communicate really well. But learning Tagalog though English books; where you have to translate the English explaining the Tagalog into Kitabati 

I am using Tagolag more because I have to but I got a little cocky about how well the language was going and I lost it for a little bit. We both don't really know the language so I had to use it so I learned a lot. I am a little more far ahead of sister Newere but that is just because she is learning two languages and it is amazing!!!! I can hardly learn one. I have to rely on the spirit.

We taught a guy and his dad was just a random street contact. But as soon as he read the pamphlet he stopped drinking. It was amazing and then we taught his family because he wanted us to. And we can't teach him because he is always out working. But this week we did and he read and they have been talking as a family about the gospel. It is amazing!

 The other day I was called an Angel. This guy has stopped drinking and now reads the scriptures regularly and he always goes to church and sits in the back and cries because he just feels uplifted. He has stopped drinking and smoking.

 There have been A lot of natural disasters. Like last month there was a earthquake and the Cebu Temple angle Moroni turned, and there was a tornado down there just before the Typhoon hit. some people here believe the second coming is happening to the Philippines.

Good night and sweet dreams. don't worry. 

A Message from President Rahlf

Dear Parents, Families and Friends--this is just to let you know that the Cauayan Mission is NOT in the path of the typhoon.  We will receive rain and some wind, but we are not in danger from this storm.  Many, many others are, though, and we ask that you keep in your prayers the beautiful people of the Philippines, along with the members and missionaries--for their safety and protection.  Our missionaries have been in constant prayer as well.  Thank you-- President and Sister Rahlf

More Info About the Typhoon

- All of the Missionaries have been found and are safe and accounted for.  As far as we know, all of the families of the missionaries serving in the Cauayan Mission who are from that area are safe, although many have lost their homes and belongings.

- The Tacloban Mission has been closed.  All of the missionaries have been evacuated to Manila and treated for wounds and illnesses caused by the typhoon.

- All of the missionaries from the Tacloban Mission have been reassigned to 11 of the 21 other Missions in the Philippines.  To make room for all of the reassignments, many missionaries who were in the 11 Missions that took in Missionaries who were going home in the next two months have been asked to go home early, and are now home or on their way home.

-  The Cauayan Mission was not asked to receive any of the reassigned missionaries from the Tacloban Mission, I assume because of distance and the fact that those missionaries spoke Cebuano, not Tagalog.

-  The Tacloban Mission home was flooded and damaged during the typhoon and storm surge but will now be quickly cleaned, repaired, and used for a command center for disaster relief operations for the members and communities in the mission.

-  A total of 43 Church buildings were damaged by the storm in that area, 12 with major damage and 31 with minor damage.
-  Seven trucks with supplies for members have reached stakes and districts in the Tacloban area. Tens of Thousands of food boxes and hygiene kits have been prepared by church members and and sent to those effected.

This Is My Neighborhood

NO not really and I will never achieve that dream but I feel really really close. I am the one missionary that has been in the Solano branch 1 for the longest and they all know me. They all share with me how they are feeling and their lives and dreams. (Maybe they did that before but now I can understand them) I am just blown away by how much I feel a part of their family here in Solano. I even bore my testimony on it last Sunday.  I looked down my street this week and thought "this is my neighborhood." 

I worked with Nanay Gatan (our RS Pres) and Nanay Reyes this Sunday and it just felt like I was taking a Sunday walk with my mom or aunts with my best friend( sister Newere) they talked about different plants they use in their soups and were picking them off the side of the road (like Chris would). Also last Friday I conducted Tax Business with our landlord! yep I live in the Philippines ahaha (I was just asking him to sign a thing for the housing elder and sister) I have and inside Joke with Nanay Paguio about her English. (That’s my fish, that’s my bag that’s my KAWN <-- word used like Umm for us) 

It is an answer to a prayer I had when I first got here. I asked to become comfortable here in the Philippines and now I am. I am a Missionary! hahah 

Because I now don't have a crutch to lean on and I have to help Sister Newere get to know others I am speaking more Tagalog than I have ever and it just kinda clicks. Shempray (of course) I still can't say all that I want to, and I still use English when I really can't express what I need to say, but I am more comfortable with using it. I really can't hide behind Sister Diola anymore. I am so great fully for the little things she has taught me like how to teach the Gospel to others simply and without using too many words. And the little lessons like how to teach Pagsisi (repentance) and the Word of Wisdom.

Thursday we finally got out to our farthest area with our Pres Villaran. It was fun and then we taught sister Tibung and she gave me Cough drops yay! Our investigator sister Fe was sick so we prayed with her and then left. That night no one was up late they were all sleeping getting ready for all souls day it was like the calm before the storm.                                                                

All souls day like an all nighter Memorial Day. They go and hang out at the cemetery all night long until breakfast the next morning. It is to honor those that have died. For a lack of a better term a Halloween party+Memorital day= all souls day. Our landlord thought we were poor kids with no friends because we weren't invited to go to the Cemetery that next morning to have breakfast. 

Saturday we taught Jorick our new investigator he his 10 years old and his mom wanted us to come for him to keep on learning. That happens a lot actually. But it is good because she is less active and getting a refresher too. There was a baptism that day for Solano branch 1b sisters. It was Brother Pats Pamumkin (like pumkin it means Niece or Nephew) we help set it up. 

Fast Sunday: I love fast Sundays the testimonies and all. But because it was fast Sunday we didn't have a coordination meeting but we worked with the members anyway. We taught Galasinoa and then we were punted every less active we tried to go to. (Punted the act of showing up at a house and no one is there or they are there but they don't answer.) it was still good. 

that is all I love you all . mahal ko kayo.

Weird plant, like a flower?

 Milk here doesn't expire until April 2014

Sweeping on P Day

A Wedding and a New Kasama

We had a wedding this week we went to the Reception and the Pilipino culture is to drape the dancing couple with money as they dance. It was fun. The wedding of the Sibling of our investigator Julios Mendaros! 

So Transfer day was looooong because there was a nationwide brown out that made the plane late so they extended the meeting until the new ones arrived. It was good though. So I am taking over Solano with a Kasama from Kitabati and she has only been out for 6 months and I have only been out 3 hahah so it is like we are in the MTC all over again but it is good she is an answer to my prayers.
She is super chill and I know that once we get her to know everyone that we teach that she will be amazing!  It is slow going getting Sister Newere out to meet all the ones that we teach but we are getting there. Solano area is big!!! People here in the branch always ask where you are.  

I think this new Kasama is just for me just to pull thru and actually study language instead of have a trainer to lean on. I love it.

My Kasama told me that this week that she felt the spirit teaching Nanay Vasquez and she spoke pure Tagalog. she is super willing to speak Tagalog to any one and it helps me because I use English once I know they understand it. 

I have this responsibility now to get sister Newere comfortable in our apartment and to get to know all those that we teach and I am taking that step by step. I love you all!! Mahal ko kayo sister Perkins

Good-bye to Sister Diola

Hello Sister Newere

Running on the rock quary? Why, yes I am. Haha

I WIN! I found honey in the Philippines (which is impossible)!

Wedding in the PH