Typhoon season SHOULD be ending, but the Philippines has been hit hard this season. Roy and I are serving in the “central Visayas” region of the islands and have been lucky enough to avoid most of the damage so far. BUT... the bad news is that we are on our sixth typhoon in just tue past 2-3 weeks! At least two have been super typhoons with really high winds and flooding. Lives have been lost and entire villages evacuated and flooded with tsunami type storm surges. The names so far for the season are Butchoy, Carina, Dindo, Enteng, Ferdie, Gener, Helen, Igme, Julian, Kristine, Leon, Marce, Nika, Ofel, Pepito. Kristine through Pepito have happened just in recent weeks and Pepito is the first one that is impacting us in any real way. Nothing scary, just extra rain etc. Most of this season’s storms have gone through the northern part of the island of Luzon and into China. Small islands in the storm paths however have been especially devasted. There are so many villages without strong housing against these types of storms and it is heartbreaking to hear about the devastation.
We had a health scare with President Fernandez that ended up with a hospital stay and an important procedure. Scared us all to death but ended up being a treatable heart issue that they caught early so they were lucky. He is on the mend, and we are all thankful for the prayers throughout the mission!
Honest statement: people like us that are trying hard to do the Lord’s work in the mission field are NOT immune to discouragement. We are experiencing changes because of our new and very different assignment. It has impacted our schedule, and we have had a few “down” days that have had an odd impact on us. With holidays approaching and trying to learn different things has been challenging for us this week. I am ashamed to admit that I need an attitude adjustment and trying hard to avoid being negative but have had moments where all I want to do is to COME HOME! I would like to say that I am a perfect missionary and never feel discouraged or too tired to do the Lord’s work… BUT…. That would not be honest. There are times I miss my home and my kitchen; especially when I try to make a meal for a bunch of missionaries with 2 ft. of counter space, a hot plate, and a CRAPPY oven! I miss my big, beautiful, fluffy cat who got sick this week. I miss my children and sometimes it is hard to try to keep up without face to face, in person conversations… because the telephone just doesn’t always cut it; it is like trying to live my life via ZOOM! Not seeing my family and being able to gather and see my grandchildren is just downright depressing! I miss my sisters and brothers and family gatherings. I miss having a dog and going for hikes in the NM mountains …. I miss fall and winter and the snow! AND…. I miss my 93+ year old father and his wisdom and experience! I miss sitting and visiting with him and talking about his latest book or political opinions! OK enough whining…. But an honest assessment of how I’ve been feeling this week. I’ll include pictures below and will pray to have a happier entry next week.
BELOW: Elder and Sister Millard run a program called "English Connect" which is dedicated to teaching any of our missionaries with English as a second language. It is a very official program that really helps by conducting conversations groups along with other training and ends in certifications. This is a picture of our biggest class of "graduates" so far with their great & goofy cardboard graduation hats! It actually helps the missionaries after their missions as they seek professional careers.
BELOW: This is a picture of a large zone conference we had this week - lucky because the picture includes President & Sister Fernandez. This picture only includes half of our missionaries but does amazing things for my heart to know that there are this many beautiful & wonderful young people between the ages of 18-27 that will leave the comfort of their homes & go to strange places and customs and serve our Lord and Savior by serving His people. Our future is going to be safe in their hands!!
BELOW: Below are more of our favorites; left to right Sisters Osovale, Lampayan, and Brooks (our doctor's wife)
BELOW: This is a common Filipino 'just married" vehicle. We didn't even know this couple but one of our senior sisters (Sister Damstedt) helped this couple and then after they got out of their Temple marriage ceremony, helped them prepare their motorcycle. Pretty cute!
BELOW: The holidays are getting into gear, and this is a picture of our senior family home evening where we played the chimes. We had a LOT of fun that night! Sister Wendy Beesley was leading and then left to right are Sister and Elder Lim, & Roy and I.
BELOW: I saved the best picture for last...... and Ohhh Myyy Gosh we love this Elder! Elder Toetu'u Tatafu a Tongan elder from California. We fed the elders dinner that night and Roy and he were comparing dako tiyans (big bellies) after their meal! I absolutely love feeding him and got to meet his Mamma on the phone this week. Roy told her we were sending her a bill for feeding her son! Unless we are dead, we WILL go to his wedding!
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