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.

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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.

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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. 

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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.

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Love, Elder Harkness