May 17, 2010

Hey Family,

It was really glad to hear from you last week and I really loved talking to you over Skype that was fun. I'm glad you enjoyed missionary night that sounds so awesome! So by the time you get this tiffany will be in China, that's an interesting thought or I suppose she'll be leaving soon. The time is kind of weird for me ha. That's excited tell her she'll have to email me and give me weekly updates since we will both be in Asia! I hope you had a wonderful mothers day, I wish I could have written a better letter to be read in Sacrament but I really had no time, I apologize for it if it was weak! But anyways in other news. I'm at the mainland now! Yet it's Zone Conference again so we'll be here till Tuesday and head back to the Island Tuesday night. Everything is alright with my companionship, however I'm beginning to feel like you Mom. So now I'd like to take the time and apologizing for never cleaning the house and really taking you for granted. I suppose my companion was just like me before my mission, he never cleaned...which is the way he still is. So I'm fighting with that I'm trying to be humble, I get really angry somedays, however I just keep myself quiet and put on music. Other than that I love Zone con because we get to get off the Island so thats way nice! This week has been rough for us. We only got 9 lessons this week. But we worked very hard. I had an idea that we were going to tract our neighbors, because in the Philippines it's impossible to be rude to your neighbor! Well, I was wrong. We spent a whole afternoon going to our neighbors and we got no lessons. This one named Carole. She was getting a manicure, didn't even look at us. She turned her head and said "Ayoko" which translate literally "I hate it"--but really means "I don't want to." So it's always funny to continue talking to them when they are extremely rude like that. Nothing came out of it, but it's just interesting not to be treated as human beings sometimes because we wear Jesus Christ on our chest and have to face persecution for his sake, that's fine...they think we want them to buy things. They often surprised when we tell them our Pamphlets and Book of Mormons are NO CHARGE. I usually say, The only reason we are here is because this message has changed my life and helped me find happiness. To no avail they still don't listen. Which is fine. I often think of a line in one of the hymns in the church it's called "We Thank Thee of God For a Prophet" it says "Thus unto eternal perfection the faithful and honest will go, but those who reject this glad message, will never such happiness know" I can't tell you how many times I've hummed this hymn this week. But the work goes on! We have found some really good people who actually listen so that's good. I'm excited to teach and my tagalog gets better every single day. I won't lie, I'm excited to get another Filipino Companion. Other than that we've been teaching English and I realize I don't know english that well, haha some of their questions are really hard. For example did you know when you use the Articles The (Thee or The) you say The(Thee) when it starts with a vowel. Weird stuff. Other than that not much going on here. I met a really cool gal from Las Vegas here, her name is Jessy, she's in the peace corps and her family is visiting this week. So we get together some times and we talk, I've yet to introduce the Gospel but, We'll see the works still moving slowly in Boac.

Other that that you're Son is still alive and well. I'm still figuring out this mission thing and I am continually amazed at how good the Lord is to me. One of our members doesn't have a leg and had a really good conversation with him about Gratitude, needless to say later that night I fell on my knees and thank the Lord will all my heart.It reminds me of a quote I heard once.

"I once was blue, because I had no shoes.
Until I met a man on the street who had no feet."

I love you all and am incredible grateful for my life and all you've done for me.

Faithfully,

Josh