Week 80: Ducky and an Angry Cow

Two soon-to-be missionaries with Elder Griffin and newly baptized Sis. Fema.

Email conversation between AJ and his dad through ldsmail.net:

AJ: Hey, waszup?

DAD: Glad you made it -- I'm fading fast. It's after midnight.

AJ: Cool, OK, so next week I am going on splits with Elder Nay and we will be Skyping at the Shaners' house. They want you to use Facetime, I think, though. Anyway, they said on Skype and Facetime their user name is Randy Shaner. Also, this is Sister Shaner's email mailto:www.utahmeemaw@hotmail.com. So you can get it set up or something. We are planning on being at the Shaners' place about 8:30 or 9 in the morning our time.

DAD: OK, just sent you some pix. We will email Shaners tomorrow, but it sounds like it should be no problem. Here are a couple of pix from the Girl Scout event Saturday and the Pioneer Trek.

AJ: Wow, Katie might be already be taller than most of the Filipina sister missionaries.

DAD: Yep, she's getting a little teenager sass about her, too.
AJ: Elder Daquioug came to Roxas this week. He is marrying a girl from our branch. He also worked with us on Thursday. I love that guy. He is a class act.

DAD: Ducky's back!! Cool!
AJ: Here are some pix.

DAD: Mmmm, sloppy tacos all over the place. So I am gonna go to bed. I'm hammered. It is 1:20 and I never had a nap today after early meetings. We'll plan on seeing you at 6:30 or 7 p.m. here next Sunday night (We are at 14 hours apart, right, so it is 3:20 p.m. right now over there?).
AJ: Yep, that's right, it is 3:20-ish here. Love you!!!! Sleep tight, don't let the dengue fever mosquitoes bite.

DAD: K, think up some good questions for us next week and we will do the same ;-{) Looooooooooove u!
AJ: LUV U TOO!

WEEKLY LETTER

Dear Family,
Well, I can't believe its Monday again. So we had a great week here and especially we had a couple of really amazing days of really great things happening to us. Time does something weird in the mission. Anyways, I also can't believe we get to talk again next week. It honestly doesn't feel like that long since we Skyped last time. I am so excited, too. It will be my last call in the mission.

Ducky's back!!

So we had some cool stuff happen to us this week. We have really felt like we have been guided by spirit, especially in knowing where to go, who to talk to, what to say, etc.

On Tuesday after district meeting and lunch we got out to work and our first 2 hours of plans all fell through. So we thought of some other things we could do and follow up. And after going to those places nobody was home either. We were really stumped as to where to go next. As we were walking to the area we planned to work in the afternoon on the way was a compound that I remembered had members there but that were not there when we tried to find them a few months ago. I shrugged off the idea and we kept walking. As we were going down an alley there was a man about 40ish sitting on a bench. We felt like talking to him. As it turns out, he was the brother of the member we had been looking for and he was a member, too. He was really nice and we were able to teach him. He said that he became inactive when he had to go work in Tabuk and was too far from the church to attend, but that he wants to come back. We were able to teach him again that week and he is solid.

Later that evening the same thing happened again. All our appointments fell through and we didn't know what to do. So we just started to talking to whoever we could find. After talking to quite a few people we were about to go to our 7 o'clock appointment at the Tan family. We were really close to their house, just one house was in between the Tans house and were we were. And in between that was a cow that was acting kind of angry. So we were like “Hmm, maybe we should go around.” Finally we just decided we'd run past and hopefully he wouldn't get too mad. So we did and as we did so the next door neighbor of the Tan family called us and asked if we were giving away stuff to read. She is a young mother with 1 child. So we talked to her and gave a pamphlet and set a return appointment. We also didn't get bucked by an angry cow. When we came a few days later we brought Brian and Fema Tan. Sister Leann (the young mother) was super cool and we taught her about the Book of Mormon and gave her a BoM and then on Sunday she came to church with Fema! She is super awesome and she seems golden!

So this week also, Brother (formerly Elder) Daquioug came to Roxas. He is marrying a girl from our branch. :) Brother Daqs also worked with us most of the day on Thursday and he is so awesome. He is one of my favorite companions and I still use stuff and do stuff that I learned from him over a year ago. He helped me so much on my mission. He helped me to learn the importance of obedience and I love him so much. He said he has been working on the grounds of the Manila temple and he plans on marrying that girl in December.
The weather has been really weird lately. Three or four days in a row were really, really hot until about 6 o clock at night and then it rained cats and dogs for about an hours (a few times enough to kill the power) and then stops before bedtime – then it gets fairly hot all over again.

This Sunday was really cool as 3 or 4 less active families that we have been teaching for months ca 

me to church and seemed to enjoy things and see old friends and stuff.

This last Wednesday we also had Zone Leader Conference and it was really good. President said one of the things he would always teach employees when he was a businessman was this motto about problems: "See it, Own it, Solve it." Also, one thing I've learned in the last few months is that the investigators and people you teach aren't the only ones that need help, but that we can really help out other missionaries and stuff. I just remember going on splits with Elder Pincock back in the day when I was struggling. I just remember E. Pincock was just super nice and helped me out when I was having a hard time and now we can look for others in our lives that need lifting and just be a friend to them. Sometimes I see other missionaries and think “Yeah, I remember when I had that kind of a trial or when I was struggling,” and then I know how they feel and how I can help, even if it's just being a friend or serving them or whatever.

l know the mission is the best thing around. I am so grateful to our Savior, Jesus Christ, for what he did for us. I love the hymn, 193, "I Stand All Amazed," and I really feel that way for him. I know the Lord works in small and simple things and through the weak and unlearned as well.

I still can't comprehend how fast time has gone by or how much has changed in my life and how I've completely lost track of sports and video games and all that stuff. The mission is so amazing and I've seen so many miracles.

I Love you so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
See ya next week! :)
A.J.