First Christmas

This last week the branch had a christmas party at Roma beach.  We got to go with them and it was fun.  We loaded a ton of people into a giant truck and drove about 30 minutes to get there.  The scenery was beautiful.  The food was also pretty good. 

     On christmas we got up and opened some presents then went to church.  After we went out and tried to teach some lessons.  We have some really promising investigators and should see some more baptisms in January.  

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Trek to Panitian

This last week was really good with getting new investigators and people coming to church.   

     We had a zone meeting this past week so back to Narra.  After a good meeting we came back to the house.  After we got back to the house we still had 45 minutes to go out and try to teach.  It wasn't successful but we did find some of our investigators and recent converts walking home from seminary.

     Wednesday we got 4 referrals from an excited drunk guy we met on the street.  He called all his friends over and told them to listen to us.  The drunk people here are so nice.  I also bought a bunch of bananas.  There are 3 main kinds of bananas here.  A thick kind, a small kind, and a long skinny kind.  I don't know the names so that is what I will call them.  The long skinny kind comes in green and yellow and it is my favorite but is also the most rare.  The bananas here are practically free.  The average is one piso per banana or about two cents.

     Thursday was somewhat of an adventure.  We have known about two families with inactive members that live in an area about 20 minutes away by trike in an area called Panitian.  We assumed that we would take a trike out there, somehow find the families, and then walk all the way back because we didn't think there would be any trikes out that far.

     We grabbed a trike and started heading out to Panitian.  I started to get a little worried about having to walk back because we just kept going farther and farther.  Eventually we went far enough that I started getting really concerned about having to walk back so we just told the trike driver to let us out there.  We were out in seemingly the middle of nowhere with just a few houses and a lot of rice fields.  We talked to a lady that was out in front of her house and she gave us a few directions.  We started walking in the direction she told us to go and then asked some other people if they knew the families we were looking for.  One of them told us to walk ten minutes the way we were going and that they would be near a high school.  I had some doubts that there was a high school anywhere near but we kept walking.  After probably an hour and a half of walking, searching, and asking we found a boy who took us to the house of one of the families we were looking for.  When we got to the house there was a 14 year old girl who recognized us.  She told us that she had been going to church but I really doubted that because I swear I have never seen her in my life.  We asked her some questions about the branch to see if she was lying and she wasn't.  We weren't able to find the other family but know the area that they live in so I guess we pretty much went out all that way for nothing.  The good news is that we were able to find a trike to take us back.  It was a good adventure though.

     Friday I had a cool experience talking to some people.  Elder Ramos and I came to a house with four people out front so we both decided to each talk to two.  I began talking to a man about the church.  He was nice and friendly and I was actually able to have a five minute conversation with him.  I understood almost everything he said and was able to speak back to him.  It was great.  He kind of wanted to bible bash but nicely.  He asked me about what day the Sabbath is on and I came to find out that he was a seventh day adventist.  I feel like that is the only thing adventists ever talk about is how saturday is the sabath.  It is probably because if they are wrong (which is true) it would destroy their religion.  I don't know how anyone could know that Saturday is really the seventh day.  I just told him that the only thing that matters is that we chose one day of the week to worship.

     Saturday we continued reteaching the Gerarmans and afterwards they fed us dinner.  I really like the Gerarmans.  They are really nice and love to feed us.  I tried chicken liver for the first time.  It was definitely interesting. 

     Yesterday we had 6 investigators show up at church which was really good for us.  One of them was Angelito Lepalam, the guy who has had all the lessons but his leg is hurt.  I think it is getting better slowly.  I just hope he will continue coming to church so he can be baptized.

     That is pretty much all for the week.  A few people just came over to watch me type without looking at the screen or keyboard.  I think they are impressed.

--

Love, Elder Harkness

We also have a mouse/rat infestation in our house.  We set out some sticky pads and caught one the other day. The only problem is that the sticky pads don't kill the mice. 

     Thanks for the email and the pictures.  

P.S.  I really need the skype address.  I will be skyping christmas evening for you.  Around 8:00 am for me.  I don't know what time that is for you guys.

Our adventure to Panitian in the middle of nowhere.  There was great scenery.

A turtle we caught in our yard.

muddy pants.

Mission Tour

 I am afraid this week will also be a short email.  But hopefully next week will make up for it.   

     Monday we were in Puerto Princessa for mission tour.  We had Elder Haynie, an area seventy, speak to us.  It was pretty good.  Tuesday we had our christmas party.  It was really fun. We played some games and sang songs and had a christmas play.  I also got a tie pin and socks.  After the Christmas party we took the 3 hour drive back to Quezon.  Elder Ramos was so carsick he threw up multiple times.  I felt bad for him.  I was surprisingly not carsick at all.

     The rest of the week has been pretty ordinary but still pretty good.  We realized that some of our best investigating families actually are related.  We will probably try to find all of the extended family members and see if they will be interested.  It is a little crazy to find out that they are all related and are all pretty good investigators.

     We got a new investigator this week just in time for the rain to start pouring down.  We were walking around trying to find new people when we saw this man sitting in the doorway of his house.  He told us to come in and really wanted to listen to us.  After the lesson it was still raining and there were rivers and streams popping up all over the place.  It was pretty fun to attempt to stay dry.  

     Last night Elder Ramos and I were out talking to people when we came across a semi-drunk guy who was pretty friendly.  He said that me and my old companion, Elder Beltran talked to him on the street and set an appointment with him and then never showed up.  I honestly can't remember that but he does look familiar.  Since we see and talk to so many people each day I can't always remember them and they are sometimes surprised when I don't remember them.  This happens especially with trike drivers.  Anyway, we told him we will come back and we will see how it goes.

     

--

Love, Elder Harkness

I will skype you all for christmas.  We don't have an official time but It will probably happen on monday morning for me or sunday evening (Christmas evening) for you.  Can you guys send me the skype address?  I think I might need you guys to make me a skype account and then send me the username and password when you email me next. 

     I am doing pretty well but I am still worried to skype you all.  Even though I have almost been on my mission 6 months I still sometimes get homesick.  It isn't as bad as before though.

     Thanks for the email.  I got the christmas package last monday.  Thanks so much.

Love, Matthew  

Out working in the rain.  I had to get a picture.  Notice the stream and the soaked pant bottoms and the good attitude.

A recent convert moved up onto this hill that overlooks the land. 

This is how they do the power lines in some places here.

We came across this snake that was at least 6 feet long on the side of the road!  Luckily it was dead.

While walking through the market I saw some red bananas and so I bought them to try.

 This is how we get to houses over muddy areas and over the ocean.  It is kind of dangerous and once a piece of the wood I was standing on broke off and I dropped a few inches.

​

Puerto Princessa

This email will probably be short because I don't have my journal on me right now so I can't really remember everything that happened this past week so I will do my best  I also probably won't have all the time I normally have to email so I will write fast. 

     Right now I am in Puerto Princessa for mission tour and for the christmas party.  It has been pretty good so far.  We got to stay in a hotel here and they had HOT SHOWERS!!!  I will never take a hot shower for granted for the rest of my life.  Last night I took a shower for about 20 minutes.  It was awesome.  Never take things like that for granted.  In my first apartment we took bucket showers where you take a half gallon ladle and scoop water up and dump it on yourself.  I am lucky to have an apartment that has a shower head.  

     It is a little weird being in a more modern society in Puerto.  There are a lot of cars and restaurants.  There is also some traffic and I actually saw an airplane flying which I never see in my area.  

     This past week we have been focusing more on finding "lost investigators" or people we find in the area book who we don't know but have a teaching record.  It is kind of a fun way to find people.  We are working with some great investigators and families.  The only problem is getting them to church because they either have to walk about a mile or take a trike with is expensive for them.

      One cool thing this past week was I tried sugar cane.  We were out trying to find people and teach lessons when we saw a man holding a plant stock shaving off the outside.  We decided to talk to him.  He wan't that interested but he shared some sugar cane with us.  It is very fibrous like soft wood.  You bite off a little bit and chew it.  It just tastes like sugar water.  Then you spit it out.  It gave me a little bit of a sugar headache but it was cool to try.

Sorry no pictures this week.  I don't have my camera on me because I left it at the hotel.  The hardest thing to get used to is probably just missionary life.  I think that is the same for anywhere in the world.  I am actually comfortable with the area.  I thought I would feel really bad for the people because of how poor they are but I don't think they think of themselves as as poor as we see them.  They just think we are super rich.  They seem content and have what they need.  Missionary life is a little difficult at times because of how regulated our schedule is and all the rules.   

     My favorite thing about living in the Philippines is that the people are generally nicer and more friendly than in the united states.  It makes being a missionary a lot easier.

     Thanks for the email

Love, Matthew

      

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Fruit

Last Monday was a pretty regular P day.  After it ended we went and did some reteaching for the family we baptized a while ago.  After that they fed us dinner.

     We also taught another lesson to two investigators named Jinky and Jun Jun.  They are really good and read the Book of Mormon but they often don't have enough money to get a ride to church and live probably a mile away.  I hope we can get them to walk or figure out something else.

     Wednesday we paid the bills.  I tried a cacao fruit for the first time.  It tasted like a mellon but much more flavorful.  There are so many fruits here that I didn't know even existed.  They have lots of citruses and other strange fruits.

     We also had a really weird lesson.  We tried teaching this one lady who is probably a little over 50.  When we were talking with her she got up and walked over to her bag.  She pulled out two pink plastic stars and some red and white cut pieces of paper.  She set them on the ground in front of us.  I was just wondering what on earth was going on.  The lady asked us to interpret the meaning.  We weren't sure what to do and I was trying not to laugh.  The lady was completely stone faced serious and was pacing in front of us.  My companion tried asking what all this was for and she told him that I knew the meaning and then waited for my response.  For a second I thought of maybe coming up with some crazy interpretation just for fun or maybe tell her it means that the church is true but that wouldn't be a good thing to do. I just said I didn't know what it means.  The whole time I was just thinking "this is the weirdest thing I have ever experienced"  and "Wow, this is definitely going in my journal."  We asked the lady to give the closing prayer and then she said some other crazy stuff.  It was the weirdest lesson I have ever been.

     Thursday was so hot it was almost unbearable.  Sweat was running down our faces as we walked around.  Eventually we came to the ocean and were able to cool down with the wind.  

     Saturday we had four baptisms for some of our investigators.  The spirit was really strong.  I baptized two of them and Elder Ramos baptized the other two.  The parents should follow in the next two months.  The parents are supportive but the problem is that the dad has a hurt foot.  This has been a blessing and a curse.  A blessing because he is home a lot and we have been able to teach him all the lessons.  But it has also been bad because it is hard for him to come to church because of it.  I hope it will get better soon because he is a good investigator and one day he just decided to read the book of moroni.

     Sunday we confirmed the four baptized investigators in sacrament meeting.  Two asked me to confirm them and the other two asked Elder Ramos to confirm them.  It was a little stressful doing it in front of the whole congregation but it was good.

     It has been a great week.

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Transfers and finally done training

This has been an unusual week with transfers.  I have a new companion.  It took about two days for my new companion to get here because he had to take a 1.5 hour flight from Manila to Palawan and then take a 3 hour shuttle ride to quezon.  My new companion is Elder Ramos.  He is from somewhere in the Philippines I have never heard of and speaks a language that I have never heard of and can't remember the name whenever I ask.  He speaks Tagalog and English though luckily.  There are a lot of languages in the philippines.  Last transfer Elder Beltran and I were teaching a lesson to a native palawan couple and I realized that none of us were speaking our native language.  My companion was Cebuano, I was English, and the people we were teaching were some strange palawan language (palawano or something).   

My new companion is good.  He has been on his mission for about seven months so he knows what he is doing.  I still feel like I am figuring things out.

     I didn't get to write in my journal a few nights last week so I can't really tell you all everything I did.  For the first part of the week I was with Elder Nakalaban because both of our companions were transfered.  We took turns working in eachother's areas.

     On Friday Elder Ramos and I worked really hard to find new investigators to get our numbers up (they were low because of transfers and working in Elder Nakalaban's area)  One new investigator we taught had a baby that wouldn't stop crying and as a result the lesson wasn't going well.  No matter what the mother did she couldn't get the baby to stop crying.  She asked us to put our spit on the baby's feet to get it to stop crying.  We ended up not having to do that but they did rub some weird liquid on the baby's tummy.  It just goes to show how superstitious these people can be.

     Saturday we worked really hard again and found a couple who seemed interested in the Book of Mormon.  We haven't been able to go back but they seem like really good investigators.  We also had a baptismal interview for some of our investigators that are supposed to be baptized next week if everything works out.

     Sunday Elder Ramos and I gave the lesson in gospel principles.  It was a little hard because we didn't know we were teaching until the class was supposed to start.  I really felt the gift of tongues helping me speak during the lesson.  It really boosted my confidence with the language.  After church we went out and talked to people and were able to get a lesson.  

     It has been a good week this past week and I have grown a lot in my abilities with the language and being a missionary.

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Spaghetti is for Birthday's

 Last Monday we had our apartment checked by the senior couple.  We were able to get the apartment clean before they got there.  The senior elder said something like  "you are either fast or you keep it pretty clean."  We had our district activity and we watched How to Train your Dragon.  It was so weird watching a movie.  Later that day we had a dinner appointment and went out to another area to teach that one family that had a death recently.  When we returned to the apartment I made french toast because the Philippino elders have never had it before.  It didn't quite taste right because the bread here is different and I had to use milk powder.  I thought it still tasted good but the other elders weren't that impressed (probably because it isn't fried or have rice in it).   

     Tuesday we wen to Narra for zone meeting.  On the way back from the meeting Elder Beltran and I got really car sick.  Elder Beltran threw up but he was lucky because the shuttle was at a stop and he was able to jump out just in time.

     Wednesday was a pretty normal day.  

     Thursday we worked hard.  The weather has been sunny but cool with a little wind so it has been nice.

     Friday we had lunch with the family of the parents we just baptized.  They were celebrating a birthday party.  They a lot of food and also spaghetti.  In the Philippines they only eat spaghetti on special occasions like birthdays.  The spaghetti is also a lot more sweet.  That is why when I make spaghetti for a meal the other elders think it is kind of weird.

     On Saturday we helped a part member family make a cement floor in their house.  It was pretty fun.

     That is pretty much everything for the week so I guess I will tell more about life and other things here:  In Quezon there are a lot of churches here in Quezon and I assume all of the  Philippines.  There is one church in particular called the Iglesia ni cristo.  It is next door to  our church.  The rumor is that it was started by an apostate member from our church who claimed to be a prophet.  They have a lot of members and we refer to their chapel as the "great and spacious building"  They believe in the Book of Mormon but only their leaders have copies.  I think they try to keep their members ignorant.

     Also in the Philippines it seems like people have a lot more superstition.  If I were to tell someone that their baby is cute they would want me to put my spit on the baby or else it might get sick or something.  It might be fun to try.  Also in some places they think that if a stranger taps you you need to tap them back or you will get sick.

Transfers are this Wednesday so I still don't know what will happen.  I think my companion will be transferred and I will stay because you usually stay in one area for 6 months and I have been here for 3.  For Christmas I just see decorations up in people's houses and some lights on people's houses.  It is still the rainy season but it has been more dry lately.  It usually rains every other day or less.  I thought it would be more rainy in the rainy season. 

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Lizards

Last p-day we were tight on money because we weren't able to get our fund for November.  The banks were closed for a few days or something.  We taught a young couple who have a baby who is about 1.  We have taught them for a while.  The wife goes to church but the husband never goes.  When we went to teach them we found that the man has suddenly started reading the Book of Mormon.  It is probably because he went to the baptism last Saturday. 

     At district meeting on Tuesday we were listening to our district leader giving his lesson when he suddenly looked out the window and said something like "what in the world?"  We all turned around and looked out the window and we saw two boys chasing a giant lizard with a broom and a bucket.  The lizard was huge and at first I thought it was a comodo dragon.  It was probably at least five feet long.  The boys were able to catch it but it escaped before we were able to finish district meeting and go out to see it.  

     On Wednesday since people have been celebrating "all saints day"  by going to their family's graves and having a picnic we decided to go try talking to people at the cemetery.  We were able to talk to a lot of people.

     Thursday was just the regular day.  Lately there has been a pond in our yard from all the rain.  There are a lot of frogs here.  There is one type of frog here that makes a noise like a motorcycle speeding up.  That is the best way I can describe it.   

     Friday we refilled the gas tank for the stove.  Later in the day we took a trike out to a place in our area that is a little farther away.  We visited a family that had a family member die.  We were able to share a short message and then left.  They were having the viewing that night and I saw the corpse.  It was really waxy looking with a lot of make up.

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Playing basketball in a short persons world

Last p day we played basketball at the church.  It is a lot more fun here because I don't have people towering over me.  We only had two lessons but they were really good.  The second one was with some people that do funerals.  The house was really nice for here.

     Tuesday we had district meeting.  It rained so hard that half of our yard turned into a pond.  the other elders' flip flops were out floating around in the water.  We also did companion exchanges today and I went to the other Quezon area.  We taught some lessons to people that have houses really close to the ocean.

     Wednesday we just taught lessons.  We went to an area with a big field with coconut trees and karabaw roaming around.  It is one of my favorite places in my area.  

     Thursday we had interviews with president Ostler.  We got up and left early to get to Narra in time.  Whenever we need to go to Narra we call a shuttle service and they come and pick us up.  There are always shuttles going up and down Palawan.

     Friday we had a really good lesson with a new investigator.  I was able to understand the general idea of everything and was able to answer her questions.  It was a really good lesson and she seems really interested in the church.  It was raining that day  and the zone leaders told us to go home early because of the water in the streets.  I think it must have been a lot worse where the zone leaders live because we have had worse days than that and still stayed out.

     Saturday we had three baptisms.  Two of our own and one of the other Quezon elders.  The baptismal service was packed and there were a lot of people.  The two investigators that got baptized that were mine and my companion's  are  in their 50s.  They have a pretty big family and I think all of their kids are members so now that they are baptized their family all belongs to the church.  One of their daughters received her mission call a few weeks ago and I think that helped with converting the parents.  President Ostler came to the baptism because he was recently on Palawan for interviews.
   

The baptism we had this last saturday.  The man on the right did the baptizing.  This family is now complete.  (some of the little kids actually aren't part of the family they just wanted to be in the picture)  

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Rats

Last Monday someone came to cut the weeds in the yard.  He used a big weed wacker.  It took him a long time because we live on probably 1/3 of an acre.  The weeds were above my knees but now it is nice and short. 

     Tuesday we had zone meeting so we all went to Narra.  For lunch we ate at a place called Jollibee.  It is a really popular fast food restaurant in the Philippines.  There is no Jollibee in Quezon so it was my first time trying it.  There wasn't much on the menu besides rice and chicken but it was good.

     We had a ton of lessons on wednesday.  We gave a blessing of healing to a little who was struggling with a fever and pain.  The spirit was really strong.

     Thursday we had a busy day.  We paid the electric bills for the house and traveled all over our area.  We got 6 new investigators.  Later in the day it rained.  I actually enjoyed it.  Sometimes I like to be out doing missionary work in the rain.

     One thing that has been going on at the apartment is we seem to have won the war with the rats.  My companion bought rat poison and we set it out.  The next morning it was gone.  The one problem is that the rat died in one of the walls in the bedroom so it stinks pretty bad.  The smell seems to be going away slowly.

     Friday We redid our whiteboard that helps us know what our investigators need and what lessons they have had.  For lunch we went out and grabbed some food that people sell at their houses.  We got different foods to go on the rice.  One of the foods was pig intestines which I tried thinking it was just strips of meat.  It tasted just like the meat market smells.  All of the other food was really good.

     Saturday we went around teaching with Rodel.  That night I tried something called "salted egg".  It is a chicken egg that they put in mud.  I assume they put salt in the mud with the egg.  It had a weird texture but it was good with other food.  

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Lots of lessons

 This has been a pretty usual week.  The only big difference was that my companion and I were able to get a ton of lessons.  On one day we got 9 lessons. 

     Monday was the first day of the new transfer.  I am still in Quezon with Elder Beltran.  He is a good companion and works hard.

     Tuesday we had district meeting.  We had our 72 hour kits checked and had them completed.  One of our investigators who goes to church every week and is a great investigator had her baptismal interview.  She "passed" but she said that she wants to be baptized with her husband so no baptism this past Saturday.  It is kind of unfortunate because her husband is often gone and doesn't keep commitments.  We will see if we can get her husband to progress or have her baptized without him.  We do have some other investigators progressing to baptism that I believe will go through so we are still hopeful.     

     Wednesday we had 9 lessons!  We were going all over.  It was awesome.  Earlier in the day when we finished our studies and were about to go out it was raining super hard.  There were small rivers running through the streets.  We still went out because we are obedient missionaries.  My pants got soaked at the bottom.  It was fun though and I like doing missionary work in different circumstances.

     Thursday not much happened.  I saw the zombie dog again.  It was a lot worse and I can't imagine it will live much longer with its insides exposed through a gaping hole.  I won't give a more detailed description.  I just wonder what it would look like to shine a light inside the dog?  Sorry if that grosses any of you out.

   Not much else happened the rest of the week so I guess I will talk about life in the Philippines.  It seems like the months really have no meaning here.  Back at home when I think of October I think of 70 degree weather with the leaves changing colors and Halloween.  I think of the months relative to the weather  and the season back at home but here it is always summer.  It is weird to think that back at home it is getting cold and there will soon be snow.

     One funny thing here that I have forgotten to mention in previous emails is how they celebrate Christmas.  The start celebrating on September 1 and go until the end of December.  People have put up Christmas lights and Christmas trees and people often want to sing Christmas hymns.  As my companion and I walk around we can sometimes hear Christmas music playing from people's homes and in the trikes in the streets.  

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Eating on the beach

This past week we had out zone activity.  It was in Narra.  We went to the beach and had food and games.  It was really fun.  I found some cool shells and a few small sand dollars.  The ocean here is warm just like in Belize.  We cooked the food on the beach over coals.  We roasted chickens over coals by turning them on a stick.  When all the food was cooked we ate in the traditional philippino way.  We laid banana leaves on the table and dumped the rice and all the food on it.  Everyone ate with their hands.  One thing that I don't understand is why philippinos still eat with their hands.  For meals in the appartment sometimes the elders eat with their hands.  I can't stand having food on my hands.  Anyway, the zone activity was fun and it was a nice break from missionary work. 

I have still been adjusting to the food here.  Sometimes I get sick of eating rice for every meal.  Occasionaly I will make something else for a meal.  sometimes the other elders think the food I make is weird.  I jokingly tell them that they can't think my food is weird because they eat intestines, pure fat, balut (duck egg with a duck inside), and a lot of other weird things.  For the most part the food here is really good.  There is a lot of rice but there is also a lot of good stuff to go with the rice.

On Wednesday it rained almost all day.  There was so much water in the streets my pants got soaked near the bottom.  For the first time I was actually a little cold.  It was pretty surprising.  We taught a lot of lessons.

On Thursday I had been on my mission for three months.  It seems like it was really long and really short at the same time.  It is weird to think that time is still passing at home.  It is also weird to think that it is getting colder at home and will always be warm here.

Friday was and awesome day.  When we went out we taught a great lesson to an investigator who will be baptized this Saturday.  After that we had a dinner appointment with another two investigators that are progressing very well.  The lesson went well and at the end the two investigators' daughter opened her mission call.  There have been four mission call openings while I have been here.  They are all to the Philippines.  

Saturday and Sunday we were able to watch general conference.  I was so happy that I got to watch it in English.  It was really good.  It did make me a little homesick but it was really motivating.

This past week I saw a really scary looking zombie dog.  When Elder Beltran and I were walking I noticed it.  As we got closer I could see sores and open wounds on its head and on its body.  On the side of the dog there was a gaping hole that when I looked into it I could clearly see one of the dog's ribs.  The dog was just standing there like nothing at all was wrong.  It was an image that took a while to get out of my head.  Some of the dogs here are really freaky.  The other week I saw one that was half skinned.  The dogs get in vicious fights.  There truly is a zombie dog apocalypse here.

This past week was good and I am really liking this area.  The members and people are nice and my Tagalog is coming along.  I am starting to understand bits and pieces of what people say.

--

Love, Elder Harkness

The life of a missionary

   On monday we had a district activity.  We went to a waterfall in the jungle.  It was fun.  We cooked chicken and rice and took it with us.  We ate it there at the watterfall.  To get there we hiked through the jungle for about a third of  a mile.  We also passed by someones farm with karabw and lots of coconut trees. 

     Later that day we taught lessons.  There was one lesson to one man about the word of wisdom.  He has been having a hard time quitting so we gave him a a blessing.  The spirit was strong.

     On tuesday my companion and I went to the dentist to get his tooth fixed.  The dentist was surprisingly qualified and modern.  I was expecting a sketchy dentist and old fashioned dentist tools.  Later that day we had one lesson that was going very well.  Then I noticed a child that was holding a chick.  The chick was obviously hurting the chick and by the end of the lesson it was dead.  The parents were very dissapointed in the kid.  I have noticed in almost every lesson we teach when we get to a good part or the investigator seems to be progressing that is when something weird happens or the animals all around the house start acting up.  I guess that is how satan works here.

     Wednesday we were out trying to find more investigators.  We came to a hill and decided to see what was on the other side.   There was a bamboo house with a college student living there.  We taught him and he was really receptive.  Later that day we had a leson with another one of our families that is progressing to baptism.  The parents are just working on their marriage papers.

     Thursday was companion exchanges.  I was with an elder who has been out for a year and a half.  We went to one house with two older people living in it.  The wife hasn't been able to speak for the past six months after having a stroke.  We felt like we should give her a blessing.  The spirit was strong.  She wasn't healed immediately but we will see what happens.

     Friday we worked super hard.  We contacted one referral and the lesson went pretty well.  The lady was kind of weird though.  At the end of the lesson when she said the prayer she prayed really weird.  At the beginning she kept saying "Squopous" It doesn't mean anything in tagalog so my companion and I weren't sure what to think.

     We also taught a guy named Raffy.  He is 24 and is living with his girlfriend.  He wants to get married but in the Philippines you have to get parental permission until you are 25 and his parents won't approve.  He will turn 25 in the next few months so he can get married.

     Saturday was a really fun day.  We had family home evening with the Lipalams.  Elder Beltran and I cooked and brought food.  We showed the restoration film to them.  The spirit was really strong and they showed up to church the next day.

     After, we attended dinner with a lot of the ward members at the house of a girl who got her mission call to Davao, Philippines.  We were all gathered on an open platform that was stilted above the ocean.  While we were sitting and talking all of a sudden the floor suddenly dropped about 6 inches.  It was pretty scary.  It startled everyone.

     Sunday was a regular day.  After church we went and tried to teach lessons.  Recently, in our appartment we have been having a rat/mouse problem.  The night before we set out sticky pads to catch the mice.  When I got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom I noticed that a rat had gotten stuck in the trap and then excaped.  Then I heard a squeak.  The rat was in the crack between mine and my companion's desk.  I smashed the desks together and left the rat there until morning.  The rat was still stuck but was unharmed the next morning.  It also escaped.  We have caught three rats so far and I know there are more to catch because I can hear them running around in the ceiling sometimes.

     One funny thing I have noticed here is how out of place I look to all of the people.  I never see any white people except the senior missionary couple.  Sometimes people come up to me to shake my hand which makes me feel like I'm famous.  they have no interest in shaking my companions hand because he is a Philippino.  People say hi to me a lot and sometimes the little kids follow me around.  I do magic tricks for the kids and give them high fives.  It is really fun.

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Love, Elder Harkness

Zone conference and missionary work

Tuesday we went teahing with Rodel again.  We taught a few lessons here and there.  It is hard for me to remember details.  Whenever we get back to the appartment at night and sit down to write in my journal sometimes I can't even remember what we did that day (unless something cool or unusual happened) but I try my best.  After dinner we went to teach the Lipalams, a newly investigating family.  We taught the plan of salvation.  We taught by the light of an oil candle which happens pretty often here.  I think it is fun.  When we told the family about the kingdoms of glory the father pointed to the Celestial kingdom and said he had a dream about it.  When he was sick a long time ago he had a dream where he saw angels singing in heaven wearing white robes.  He related that to the picture of the sun representing the Celestial kingdom.  It seems like their family will progress very well but I try not to get my hopes up because sometimes they don't keep commitments as well as they should.   

     We also taught jerson.  It had been almost three weeks since we last taught him because he is always either gone or drunk when we come to visit.  He accepts what we teach but he isn't keeping commitments.  I don't think he will progress but I don't want to drop him yet.

     On Wednesday we traveled to Malatgao but all the people we were planning on teaching were gone.  It was fun to see the country as we rode there.  There are jungled mountains, rice fields, workers, and people plowing using karabaw.  It is cool to see people do things the old fashioned way.  We also picked guavas from a wild guava tree.  They were pretty sour and hard but that is the way the people like them here.

     On Thursday we traveled to Puerto Princessa for zone conference.  It was great.  We traveled by shuttle for three hours to get there but when we got there we found that we would be staying in a nice hotel.  I was super excited.  The rooms had air conditioning, and I actually got cold during the night.  They also had hot showers which I haven't had in a month.  One elder told me it had been a year before he got a hot shower.  

     Friday was zone conference and I really enjoyed it.  There were a lot of great talks.  I was also asked to give a three minute talk on part of Alma 5.  They served us lunch and it was great.  There were lots of different Philippino foods.  After, we traveled by shuttle back to Quezon.

     Saturday we celebrated family with the branch.  For the past week we had been inviting people to attend.  There were tours of the chapel and activities, singing, and devotionals.  Some investigators came.  It was a good opportunity to introduce people to the church.  They also did dinner which was super good.  I learned that coconuts are meant to be soft on the inside and the ones we have in the U.S. are hard because they are a little older.

     Yesterday we went teaching after church with some people from the ward.  It was a lot funner to do it that way.

     Well, that is pretty much everything that happened in this past week.

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Love, Elder Harkness

Looking at chores from a different perspective

Last p-day I got really disoraged.  It seemed like just a chore day with shopping and then doing laundry by hand for a few hours.  I thought "how can I ever do anything fun if I just do shopping and laundry every p-day all day?"  Later that night we taught an investigator who does laundry as a job.  She was telling us how hard it is for her to do laundry all day.  She is a little older and her work is physically demanding.  It made me think that I can't complain that I have to to my laundry by hand for a few hours one day a week when other people have to do so much more. 

     On Tuesday we had a zone meeting in Narra.  It is a 45 minute bus ride from where I am now.  The vans drive so fast going freeway speeds on a road that I can't imagine being more than 50 in the U.S.  I got so sick because the road was windy.

     We played basketball for exercise on Wednesday.  It was good because philippinos are short.  I didn't have anyone towering over me while I was trying to shoot or pass the ball.

     On Thursday we traveled to a place in our area called Malatgao.  It was about 50 minutes by tricie (a motorcycle with a big sidecar).  I love riding the tricies around.  In Malatgao there are a lot of woodworkers who make doors and benches, chairs and cabinets.  It seems like for work a lot of people do things the old fashioned way.  Cutting grass with a sickle and things like that.  A lot of their work would be a lot easier if they had all the machines and stuff we have.  We visited a few families and taught them.  It is hard for these people because they live so far away from the church.  About once a month we do a special sacrament meeting for them in their area.      

     Saturday we went around trying to teach.  It can be unfulfilling a lot of the time when the people we are trying to teach are either not home or they are hiding (common problem for missionaries in the Philippines).  We did teach one lesson to a family that I think might progress.  After the lesson we gave a blessing to one of the boys in the family who I guess is struggling with his asthma.  We give a lot of blessings here.  I have already participated in two blessings for comfort and two for healing.  I haven't given any of the blessings because they wouldn't understand me very well.

     We went around teaching with a 19 year old recent convert named Rodel.  He is mentally slow but is such a nice person.  We are working on getting his whole family in the church but his mom is kind of weird and his sister doesn't take it seriously.  

     Walking around every day my pants get so muddy.  Palawan is the booneys for the philippines.  People are very poor but they have enough to live.  The weird thing is that they have some electricity, cell phones, and maybe a tv in their bamboo house.  The power lines here are strung up in a lot of places on no more than a long stick.  As missionaries, we don't live in a bamboo house.  We live in a pretty nice appartment with running water all the time and a flush toilet and a shower (cold water though).  At night we sleep with fans blowing on us to keep us cool and keep the mosquitoes off as we sleep.  The power goes out pretty often here.  They call it a brown out.

     That is pretty much everything that happened this week.  

--

Love, Elder Harkness

Life in the Philipines

I haven't been able to email in the past week and a half.  That is because my p day is on monday and we weren't allowed to email.  I am glad to be out of the MTC.  I was able to go to the manila temple which is right across the street from the MTC.  There is a cool underground tunnel that leads to the temle grounds.  The temple was under construction so we weren't able to do a session. 

   Part of one of the last meals I ate at the MTC was fish head soup.  It was sour and tasted pretty bad.  I have never had anything like it. Interesting flavor.  I have eaten so much rice.  I think there was only one meal at the MTC that there wasn't rice.  While at the MTC we went on splits with the missionaries in the Manila mission.  The person I went with was from Australia.  There are actually a few missionaries here from new  zealand and australia.  We visited different people's houses.  In the first house we walked in and I saw the lady that lived there eating a plate full of chicken feet.  The other lessons were good.  We got one less active lady to feel the spirit.  The people are so short here.  They know I am short for an American but I am still taller than a lot of them.  

     This past week I have been in my first area.  I have been assigned to the village of Quezon on Palawan.  It is a lot different from Manila city.  A lot of the people live in bamboo houses and fishing is a common job here.  I live in a house with my trainer, Elder Beltran and two other elders.  There is no shower so we use a bucket full of water and a big ladel to shower.  It is a little cold.  I am the only one from America.  The others are all from around the Philippines.  They are all nice and speak English.  One thing about Palawan is that a lot of people don't speak English.  In Manila most people speak English.  This will help my Tagalog come along.  I feel bad for some of the poor people here an wish that I could just give them everything they need but I can't.  I can only give them the gospel and that will bless them more than any material I could give them.

     I still don't speak this language well but I can pick out a few words here and there.  It is coming along.  In lessons my companion tells me what is going on and then I am able to teach.

     On Sunday we had a baptism for two girls in the area.  My companion let me baptize.  It was cool.  I hope they will stay active in the church.  The biggest problem in this area is inactivity.  There are a lot of members but a lot of them are inactive.  The members here all say that I look like Joseph Smith.  The people here also make other observations about me such as "your nose in pointed" and "you have fangs".

     One family we are trying to work on in the almoguera family.  The dad and the brother are members but the mom and the two sisters aren't.  They are so poor.  Their bamboo house burned down before I got there and so they are working on their house.  They cook all their meals over a fire.  This is the family that I wish I could help the most.  

     On Sunday we had a meeting with the branch president before church.  I don't know what they talked about but the room was nice and air conditioned so I was fine with not understanding because I was comfortable.  In sacrament meeting I was asked to bear my testimony.  The members only laughed a little about my tagalog.  

     Last night we taught a family of new investigators.  This was the second time missionaries have taught them.  We talked about receiving answers through prayer.  I asked them to be baptised and the said yes.  I don't know how committed they are though.  The spirit was strong.

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Love, Elder Harkness

Life in the Philippines

This past week was good and I have been adjusting.  Last P-day I got a haircut for 40 pesos or about 90 cents.  Things are so cheap here.  Any American could move here and be rich.  After P day we went to an area called bliss and taught a new investigator named Jerson.  The first time I met him was when he was drunk in the street one night.  He was really upset.  He comes from a broken family and seems to have a lot of problems.  He is really receptive to the gospel.  We asked him to be baptised and he said yes.  I don't know how committed he is though.  He didn't show up at church this past week but I can understand how it would be scary for an investigator to go to church.

     On Tuesday we had a district meeting.  It was in English so I could understand what was going on.  Elder Beltran and I paid the water and electric bills for the house.  We went out and found and taught some investigators and asked them to be baptized.  They said yes.  I know it might seem early but as missionaries we are supposed to ask people to be baptized no later than the second lesson.  It makes me worried that even though they have a baptismal date they might not be completely converted.  I am just doing my job and following the mission rules and will see what happens.  I just don't want to baptize a bunch of people and  then have them all go inactive.  Inactivity is a huge problem here and I try not to get frustrated with these members.  Later that day we went to a new house (or bamboo wood structure) and taught the people there.  It was a young father and mother and a young baby.  We taught them the first lesson and asked them to be baptized.  The father said yes but the mother is a member and has been less active for years.  

     Wednesday we went around teaching.  We got two new investigators.  the first one said he would be baptized if he received an answer.  The other one said yes.  Again, I am worried that everyone we baptize will just go inactive soon after.

     Thursday we did a service project for a branch president in a different area.  We cut the grass in his yard.  People here don't have lawn mowers.  To cut the grass we used machete type knives and used them like a sickle.  It was fun and a new experience but I could have gotten the whole thing done in 15 minutes with just a weed whacker.  After, the branch president fed us.  We had rice, meat and Shrimp.  We taught Jerson again.  He said that whenever he saw the missionaries he had a good feeling.

     On Saturday we moved apartments.  Our old house was huge.  There were a lot of rooms and an upstairs.  I like the new apartment better.  For one, we now have running water all the time and two, if there is a blackout (which happens about every other day) there is solar power.  It is much better and I like it a lot.

There are a lot of things to get used to in the Philippines.  One cool thing is that at night I can see the galaxy like a cloud stretching across the sky.  The stars are pretty cool here.  One freaky thing is the bats.  In the evening when I look up in the sky I see giant bats flying around.  They are HUGE.  They are at least the size of a hawk.  The plants and animals here sure are different.

     Well, that is pretty much everything that happened this past week.

Love, Elder Harkness

The Manila MTC

 I made it to the MTC in Manila.  Everything has been good so far.  I am super tired though.  We will be going to bed at 7:00 tonight so I am excited for that.  We had lunch and that was a little different.  A lot of the food tasted strange but we had rice so there was one thing that I was familiar with.  About three weeks ago when the other missionaries got here they had fish head soup so I guess I got lucky.   

     I didn't get any pictures in Hong Kong because we only had a one hour layover and with how long it took to get off the plane we were in a huge hurry.  We got onto the plane with ten minutes to spare.  It was really exciting.  After landing in Manila we took a bus to the MTC.  The driving here is crazy.  It is hard to describe.  People drive so close to each other and there seems to be almost no rules on lane changes and right of way.  I don't know how they don't get in accidents all the time.  Here there are the tallest skyscrapers I have ever seen and there are a lot of them in certain areas.  I am not sure what to think of this place yet.  

     I will be in the MTC for five days and then will go out and into the world.  I am really excited for that.  Sorry I don't have pictures now but I will next week.

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Love, Elder Harkness