HELLOOOOOOOO!

Kumusta kayong lahat?? How excited I am to read your sweet words yet again!

I am so sorry... I have a confession. i realized i received your emails just after i sent mine.. and it was definitely time for me to get off email. and i should have. but i read them first.. i'm sorry. i'm sorry i didn't just wait or let you know i had received them. i was over time. and i've resolved to be more exactly obedient. it's so important in this work. i should have waited, even though i was so anxious to read what you had said, because we have a time limit. it's for our good and i need to trust in that. but i'm so thankful that Heavenly Father blessed you with peace. I'm so sorry that you had to deal with that worry. but don't you worry! i'm okay! the week before, i didn't receive an email from Pres. Stucki. he still doesn't know... bc i'm positive it was due to computer problems. he sent a text to sis. gupta about her unfinished email. so at least they didn't happen at once, di ba? :) haha i got them, so it's totally okay! you can breathe easy! and i'm sorry.

mom, you're kickin booty! you're doing such a great job handling the changes. i know it's crazy and time flies when you don't want it to, but you should know that it's only because you're finding joy in the journey. because of your gratitude, you will be blessed even more abundantly--and be more aware of the blessings you have. how great is that!!! you're living "after the manner of happiness"--in obedience and gratitude. sweeet stuffs, babe! plus, i brag about you all the time. i'm sure sis gupta is so sick of hearing about how incredible my family is.. but i'm not sick of telling her! so too bad! muahhahahhahhhahahh!!!! (this was an attempted megamind laugh..) but seriously. i'm so proud of you all. and you inspire me to be healthy and active and full of love for people and for life. thank you, mom. it's truly and honor to call you my mother. i say that with a heart full of reverence and respect for the eternal blessing of family. i don't know what i ever did you get you, but i thank Him for you every day.
thank you for the spiritual uplift! wow, pres. rees is so smart! hehee what a guy. he's so right. we need to experiment upon the word and exercise a particle of faith and plant the seed! it makes perfect sense! and if it's really wrong, we can know right away, according to the scriptures.. if it teaches us to good and believe in Christ, it is of God, and if it persuadeth to do evil and not to believe in Him, it is of the devil. so if we're just deciding if something okay that has come to mind is of ourselves or of God, we have to try it out to know! and i firmly feel that as we do so, our spiritual senses will be sharpened and we will come to better discern promptings of the Spirit. we just need to exercise the faith to give it a whirl!
also, the torch carrier is so sweet! thank you for sharing that with me :) those souls are so blessed. they are here, in this way, for so many reasons. they teach us--through their examples, their spirits, and the experiences we have with them. we can learn patience, selfless love, service, understanding, and so much more by their examples and by caring for them. what a beautiful gift!

in sacrament meeting and relief society, the main theme seemed to be challenges as blessings. in rs, we discussed E. Eyring's mountain climbing (?) talk from conference. i loved that one so much. i drew a little bit of understanding from worldly wisdom and the words of a prophet... in one of my math classes, there was a quote on the wall that said "life's the toughest teacher; it gives the tests first and the lessons after." and then in relief society, the words --paraphrased-- were shared, "through our challenges we gain the education we are here to obtain." only it was surely better than that. but it's so true! we are here to learn to be like our Heavenly Father. How can we possibly do that without an education? the experiences of this life are for our education and growth. we are in training. we are preparing. and with that knowledge, are we study every day out of the books by which we will be judged-- the best manuals we could be given?

family, i need to improve my prayers. i need to improve them in sincerity and specificity. what counsel have you on this subject? dad, what wisdom have you gained through your personal experiences with prayer? aaron, how did you learn to really pray on your mission? has it changed the way you pray today? maree, alyssa, joseph, and becca, how do you feel about your prayers to Heavenly Father? what does He want to hear from you?

my time's nearly up and i need to address your correspondences! daddy, thank you for your sweet apology :) lol i was not the least offended! i laughed lots, as per usual :) dad, thank you for trying to be like your father before you :) in all his humility and quiet strength.i love it. and i am so amazed at the bold and loving missionary he was and is. i feel it with all my heart--he's one of the best missionaries on the other side of the veil. he has to be! he loves the Lord and all God's children with all his heart! what an example!

tell the richardsons i'm thinking of them and will be responding to their awesome notes soon. jory doesn't need to worry. he's totally a ladies' man.

aaron, how the heck are ya??? smile, buddy! your smile warms everyone's heart! you have a letter on the way. sorry, i know it's been a while. i have a lot of ppl to catch up on, but i made a lengthy letter just for you!

keep on keepin on loved ones! I know our Father is watching over you.

all my love, sis r

Hello, dear ones :)

HEY, WAZZUP??? I hope everyone's doing well! I've got lots of time to respond 'cause I didn't have much to read this time. And I've got lots to say, as usual! Is everyone okay? I didn't hear from you this week, so I hope all is well.

Everything's fine here! Because of a great suggestion from our SUPER AWESOME A.P.s, we hope to really get the work turned around in our area. We're excited to establish the Church through simple means--starting with a testimony of the BoM. How simple, but how sublime that testimony is! And mine is growing every day, especially in my highlighting study. (Pres. gave us a BoM and 4 colors to highlight: 1. any use of Jesus Christ's names. 2. essential, eternal truths--doctrines and principles of the gospel. 3. words of Christ, whether by Him or through prophets. 4. Christlike attributes. Not the right order, but you get the idea.) it's super amazing! and i might be like sis. gupta and just carry that copy around with me everywhere when i'm done and mark it up like crazy and tape in quotes and references and use it as my ultimate teaching tool! she's good. but i also want to use well the set i got before i left, so we'll see what i decide to do. it's so nice to receive revelation and then have it reaffirmed by inspired leaders. it makes me feel so super good! it just lets me know that Heavenly Father is helping me be on the right track. it's comforting and reassuring.

some of the hardest moments i've ever experienced have been when i've realized i had a prompting, but i ignored it. i'm sure you know what i'm talking about. every time, i'm instantly repenting, and i never want to make the mistake again. Heavenly Father is so patient with us. He knows the desires and intents of our hearts. i know He is willing to help us in our constant striving to change and be better disciples of Christ. Satan knows our weaknesses. the jerk uses mine all the time. and sometimes it's so hard, but it feels so good not to let him win! :) no wonder Christ said, "...my yoke is easy and my burden is light.." (where?) because when we are following Him and yoked with Him, we are free of the weight of guilt and shame, filled with the joy and hope and peace of eternity. it is an inexpressible joy that i wish all would be willing to sacrifice anything to have! it grieves me to think of the people who don't know what they're missing out on when they choose another way.
but there is still hope for them! there is hope for us all! for our God is a just God. I know that's true.

k so let's get down to the nitty gritty... who is this encarnacion? :) lol jokelang. i need ashlynn's address! pretty please?? i got another adorable and wonderful dearelder from her and i've already begun her letter. just need to finish it soon. ash, you are so wonderful and i'm so proud of you and the way you are seeking the Lord's help in raising your family! and don't you worry about a thing, love! i know that as long as you're being obedient and loving your Heavenly Father, He's taking care of you! I know it, i know it, i know it! you will receive exactly what you need and it will all work out :) i wouldn't say that if i didn't feel it with all my heart. it's easier said than done, but i know you know it's true, too. you're in my prayers :) you're so great!!!

mommy dear, have you heard anything about my journal that i left at the mtc?? i can't write any of my dear friends going to japan without their addresses. and i finally heard from sis. wight! her letter was a miracle. uplifting in every way, even though i know she's struggling. how does she do it??? make me feel so good even though she's having a hard time. bless her soul. she could use a good letter or two ;)

can i also get keri bloxham's address? or should i email you and you can forward it to her? whatever's easiest for you. i'll try to finish my letter to her today so it can be ready to be mailed or typed next week either way. let her know she's great and i appreciate her! she's gonna rock! i hope i'm so fortunate as to be her companion!

i don't know if i told you this, but i thought i'd never survive without sleeping with heavy blankets in a cold room like i enjoy so much at home. but honestly, i sleep just fine with a fan on me and absolutely no sheets or blanket of any sort. it's lovely. and when it rains, then it's a little cooler and i can use a sheet in the early hours of the morning and still keep the fan on :) haha paradise. sister gupta hates the heat. she's a winter person. i am actually dealing with the heat in some miraculous way. i thought i'd die. it's hot, i tell ya. but we survive. and it actually feels good to sweat my guts out as i jog back and forth across our apt each morning. i'll be sad to not have much to show for my exercise when i come home and my arms don't bead with sweat in the first 10 minutes. and the cold shower always feels so good, even if it's 4 in the morning and you're getting ready to take the schedule-wrecking sisters to the mission office for transfer day :) haha. good times. i will really miss the humidity. i shave my legs and then i don't use lotion! it's too beautiful for words! but i have to wear nylons by about wednesday bc i can still only shave once a week (my skin still hates razors) and that once is oddviously :) going to be sunday morning. or saturday when we have temple tour, maybe. at temple tour, we get to either bring investigators ( when it's the city missionaries' turn) or teach at stations for the province missionaries' investigators. fun stuffs!

another thing, i'm not sure if i'll make much phillipino food for you when i get home. it's.. interesting. acquired, perhaps. but indian food is fantastic and i'll make it for sure! i'll have to spend a fortune on spices, but it will be worth it! actually, there are some super yummy foods here... mostly a couple desserts that are common. halo-halo was too weird my first time, but super familiar. and the second time was from a different place and it was super good!!! very strange, but delicious, nonetheless. the street vendor was the good one (i know, it's totally bawal, but an investigator bought it for us and it was expensive and it has no meat, so it was fairly safe, di ba?)

oh, yes. aaron, how is priscila doing? i hope she's doing well. is she about at the point to turn in mission papers and stuff? i forgot when she'll be able to do that... there is a little boy here. his name is A. J. ( Andrew James) and he is the most adorable thing you'll ever see in all your life. he is so proper in his speech and manner and he knows SOOO MUCH! oh my word. he is a friend of two kids we have visited many times, so he's been there a few times and we've bumped into him twice nearby their home. one time he ran to catch up to us to say hi and ask when we were coming to teach again. when we were teaching about the 10 commandments, we got to thou shalt not commit adultery and just mentioned having only one spouse. he went off about how you should be faithful and kind to your spouse and stuff! he is about 6 yrs old. can you believe it??? this kid knows so much about spiritual things-- he was telling us how the church he attends has no sign of the cross or santos or anything. and he is SOOOO CUTE!!! you would be in love with him, which is why i'm telling you this. he would be a sure favorite. instantly. so cute. ah. don't worry, i'll get a picture very soon. thanks for yours btw :) and for your dearelder. i got it yesterday from the office and read it again :)

i love you, family!!!! please know i think of and pray for you always and i'm so proud of you! i brag about you to sis g whenever i get the chance! you're the stinking crazy bestest in all the world! i hope to serve in a way that makes you proud, too, and qualifies us for lots of blessings. you're so wonderful!!!!!!!!!!!!!

please pray for us to be able to find people already prepared and to help other ppl prepare to receive the good news! and please pray for those ppl! those who know it's true and who will know it's true! we all need help. anything you need me to pray for?

all my love,

sis r

Mothers Day

Dearest Mom and family and friends,

Thank you for that wonderful conversation!!! I wish I could have seen more of you! Are both grandmas good? Did they have a good Mother's Day? I am thankful, too, mom for the chance i got to talk to you! SO THANKFUL! I did not want it to end. i was afraid it would make me more homesick, but really i feel like it helped so much. i feel so grateful and good. i still wish teleporting were my superpower, but i guess i'll survive until all my dreams come true on Resurrection day or something :D

Speaking of Easter, I know our Savior lives! He has to. For all my hope is in Him. Everything I am and desire and love and hope to become are in Him. He is our Way back to the Father. He is our chance for Life. He is the source of Truth and Light. What comfort this sweet sentence gives, "I know that my Redeemer lives!!!"

Thank you for telling me about Anthony and Cade and their families. I love them. I will keep them in my prayers. When does Bradley come home? I'm a big fat jerk for not writing him. I've thought of him a million times and I hope he's super happy. I know that because of what's going on in their family, it must be a challenge, but I also know they are rooted in the gospel of Jesus Christ and they have hope and assurance in Him. Bless them!

Aaron, thank you for helping my family! It means so much to me! And your letters are a treasure! I read and reread my beautiful messages, especially handwritten letters from the ones I love so dearly. THank you for being there for me :) and i gave my family crap for you about your hair, but it actually doesn't look bad. "i thought [it] looked kinda dashing" lol hercules. golden, bro. gotta love it.
haven't seen sis jael for a while. or her fiance. hope they're okay. she's super cool. just don't ask about my tagalog. i am actually pretty self-conscious about it. that's one of my biggest struggles right now--making myself speak. i don't wanna talk bc it's easier to listen most of the time and i feel bad bc when i speak it's broken and scattered and probably half incorrect. but sometimes i don't worry about it and when I speak with the Spirit it's all okay. the only way for me to understand them and for them to understand me is really through the Spirit. so that's the focus. the language of the Spirit. it's the most important.

becca, you're beautiful! holy crazy and your letter was so sweet :) joseph, you are just as funny as you were 3 months ago! haha you're so fun :) lyssa, i miss your stinkin face. stop being so cool. jeesss. :) rae, stop growing. and for goodness sake, would you buy a boy repellent or something?? how's colton, btw? :)

dad, i'm so golldern proud of you!!! thank you for your humor :) love love love. you are a superb example of the kind of work i should be doing every day= with all i've got.

the only thing i need is prayers and love :) and you're giving it! I sure do love letters. they're great. and i think they don't have deodorant without antiperspirant here... that's a problem. that's all i would need since i can't get it here. everyone wants to not sweat... go figure. oh! and recipes would be good! but my qualifications are high: pretty basic ingredients, pretty cheap, can be made on a stove top or in toaster oven without a microwave... yeah. that's about it.

YOU"RE THE BEST BEST BEST!


mahal na mahal ko kayong lahat! xoxoxo!

sis r

You have to stop being so awesome!!! only don't. 'cause it's great!

Sigh. Where to begin... this is the only issue.

FAMILY AND FRIENDS, I LOVE YOU!!!!

THANK you for your correspondence and love! i'm grateful from the bottom of my heart. i can't express it. hearing from you gives me great joy. it's miraculous, really.

i wish i had more time to give more detail this time, but i spent most of the time carefully reading your beautiful words :) you know how i have to read so slowly and carefully and treasure every little bit--it's even more so with your letters than in any great novel i've ever read. you mean so much to me!!!

dad, thanks a bunch. and i would say that with all the sarcasm with which you praised scamper except that i really am grateful :) you big bully. including becca's insanely adorable letter like that. i stand out enough here in the Philippines, i don't need to sit bawling and laughing out loud in the internet cafe on the corner to do that. so thanks. lol but really, thanks!!! you make me laugh so much :) and i love scamper, so you be nice! i am so happy for you, dad. i want you to live your dreams. i want you to achieve your goals. i'm so proud of you. you are the greatest dad ever. i'm so glad i can call you dad. i met someone here in the bishopric who is like the Philippino version of you. he's shorter, though. and it's not so much in humor, but really in sweet and humble nature. i really love his family. they're so great. he's a good guy and i really respect and admire the way he loves his family and does his calling.

mom, you were so right! i had the song pop in my head right away! lol! i've thought of linda a few times lately as i was trying to remember the spanish word for beautiful bc her name means pretty or beautiful. and she's so right! i love that! and tagalog is replacing most of the spanish i used to know :( i miss my little bit of espanol. but its otay bc there are random words that are the same every now and then, or similar with diff. spelling.
thank you for the quote! that's soooo good! i love it. it's very true. and it's a challenge for me as a missionary to act on those revelations when i'm a trainee and less experienced, but i need to learn bc what Pres. told me is right: we are all missionaries and all entitled to revelation for the people in our stewardship.

aaron, thank you for the recipes!!! and the letter i just received :) i'm trying to write ppl back and still write you, too, since i've received loads of handwritten ones from you. i don't want to jip you at all. i'm getting caught up, i promise :) and i'm so excited for you and your experiences and your plans! you're doing so well :) don't worry. i know you. i know you're capable of every challenge you come up against. you're so awesome! thanks for tellin lou you love her. keep reminding them! they're so great! and your dad's letter is done, now i gotta send it. in case i can't find your address on that recent letter i have somewhere... can you email it to me?

ashlynn! you're next, sista! i love hearing about your babe and seeing the pics aaron sent from fb. so cute! you're a great mommy! i knew you would be! thank you for being so super supportive. you're so awesome! i've told my companions about you lots of times, in the mtc and here in the field. i love you so much. i know you'll find an internship that's best for you. Heavenly Father will take care of you as you put HIm first. you're a great family :)

tell boo of course i remember her!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and i'm excited to talk to you all! how was the temple joseph! i can't believe you're all so big!

Pres said we can skype. if worst comes to worst, i'll email you next week before calling or skyping, but i hope to be able to skype from here at about 10:30 am monday the 14, which should be 7:30 pm sunday the 13 for you. i hope. you may want to check the internet for that. i don't want it to be too late for you and i want you to be home. if there are any probs, please email me or pres. i can check email before we skype and give you a heads up. deal? don't panic if it's not til almost 8. if it's after 8, start panicking. haha... jk? :) i love you bestestestest!!!

can't wait.

oopsh. forgot to tell you that angry birds are huge here. crazy. and aaron, the bag is great and all the missionaries ask about where i got it. and mom, were you able to talk to anyone about my journal at the mtc? did you get all my clothes and stuffs i sent?

i wanted to tell you that isabel is an awesome girl we're teaching and sister gupta and i taught the word of wisdom when we realized she drank ice tea. she said no matter how delicious it was, she wanted to obey the commandments and wouldn't drink it anymore. and when sis. gupta asked if she had any other concerns with the wow, she said " yes. i'm concerned for all the people who don't know about the commandments and who aren't doing good things." WOWOWOOWW! she's amazing. 17 and determined to serve a mission. sis g has never seen anyone else quite like her. so cool.

more later!

love sis r

MY DEAR LOVED ONES!!!

OH, how I love you!!!!!!! I am so grateful for you! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for your emails and love! It means everything to me. 

You know, Mom, I surely noticed this morning as I ironed my shirt that another week had gone by and only one more til our next fast sunday! Time keeps marching. i feel that. and sometimes minutes drag, but the days really fly. some mornings i wake up and feel like there's no way i got enough sleep for that day, but once i start jogging back and forth across our apartment, i know i'm gonna make it :) lol it's funny how 8 hrs never seems like enough. i'm sorry each time i feel that way bc i know you're running on 5 most of the time. mom... please sleep, okay? you are fantastic and you deserve it! i know there's lots to do, but take care of yourself and it'll get done, babestum! :) you are wise. i know you're doing all you can, as usual. thank you for your sweet stories. i love your emails. they are full. full of everything good--the Spirit, visual feasts and tender mommy love that is so precious to my heart. oh, mom. how i've inherited tears from you! i cried only a little in the mtc. one night it was just 'cause i was terrified of coming to the P, but most of the time it was good crying. but dang, mom. i keep crying all the dang time and i think sis g is scared for me :) lol. i keep thinking it's time for something to come, but... it hasn't. it's just the mission. of course i miss you and stuffs, but i also cry about happy things and mostly it's just a mix. i'm so grateful. i've been protected emotionally from feeling the weight of most ppls' poverty here, but i've been so openly aware to the blessings of the Spirit poured out upon us. it is miraculous, this missionary work. and i have so much to do to be better. and i love what you shared about pres. rees and hope. lol! i can hear his voice! thank you for your insight. i totally needed that. if i think of eternity daily, then i will be a more focused, more selfless, more obedient, and more effective and loving missionary. and i will never regret giving all i could give every day.

you are such a good example to me. you praise me and say so little of you. let me clear this up now. YOU are MY mom for a reason!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)

don't worry, i survived the mtc language representative working with us all day saturday. he interviewed us and observed our comp. and language studies and went to lessons with us. i sighed real big when he left. but he was super nice. his wife's gonna have a baby today or tomorrow and i was his second to last missionary to observe, so he was praying to get back so they could start her. so cool! their third child and first daughter. anywho, a sister, ward missionary and rm, worked with us that day. she cracks me up. she's stinking gorgeous and it's hard to not be jealous (but i'm learning how important it is to be thankful instead :) ), and her attitude is hilarious. her english is superb, too. she said to br. stephenson, the mtc rep, "you're wife is going to give birth in 2 days and you're not there??" lol. i like her. 

dad, your emails make me laugh out loud-- a lot!!!! holy cow, man, you're like always on a complete roll when you write them! jeez! i could reread them every day :) mom's and aaron's too. i always wanna read them 50 times, but i can't. you are a genius! hahah i'm glad you soaked up the educational nutrients of the galaxy quest 3d adventure! opposition really is in all things, isn't it? especially missionary work--i see it every day! but opposition is such a blessing ! it teaches us and stretches and and causes us to grow if we learn from it. there is so much to be learned. i feel like 18 months is too long to not see you, but too short to learn to be a good missionary. how will i do it?!?! there is SO MUCH to improve!!! and often, i think of how my siblings would view the work i do and i feel like there's so much more i can do to make them proud--to be a good example for them. we are examples in all we do. we are always being recognized. we have to be at our best all the time! and we can be! because we're on the Lord's side. He will bless us in every need we have so we can bless His children. and i mean we, like all of us. isn't that great!?!?! I wish i would have been a bolder member missionary. but i know how to be now. i'm learning. and that's the point of life, isn't it? you're a genius dad! bc you use what you know and you learn more every day! i so admire you.

shoot a mile! this can't be over! i gots lots more to tell ya! 

aaron, your email was grand! i'm glad to read it :) i have so little time and so much to write, so i want to get you info as quickly as possible. i still need to write your dad. i'm thinking of and praying for him. he's awesome. bless him. what did you mean about your 90 days? you mean there at your internship? have you been keeping track of all your info? i love Filipino families, too! they're bombin! soooo cute, eh??? i'm sorry you had that frighteningly gross experience. i'm glad you survived :) you're so strong! how's josh adjusting? when will you leave for sure to go home? what will you do there? what are your plans for the year? your efforts to help ppl not be socially awkward are funny :) hehehe you're awesome.

can i ask you a favor? can you look up some simple, cheap (for the fixins and ingredients) recipes for sis gupta and i to try? if you'll do that, i will make you some delicious indian food when i get home! deal? well, i'll do it anyway, but ya know. 

i have so much to tell yall, but i gotta go :( tell ashlynn i'm gonna write her, too! i love her so dang much! she's been waiting for a long time for a response now. and tell lou i wanna hear all about her events! and rae that i'm jealous of how all the little kids love her so much! she's such a sweet heart. she has so much energy and they love her always. keep an eye on joph. he's too cute for words. don't let anyone snatch his heart up! he's too lil! and booty, i've told sis gupta how stinkin cool you are, so keep it up! we'll have her come visit us and see for herself! you're so fun!

BIG HUGS AND KISSES!!!!! and a song just for you ;) love sis r

oh... that song should be... hmm.... hymn 300.

ps they love american music here. is it possible to be trunky already??? hahah but pretty soon i won't recognize any of them, anyway. the styles change. love ya tons!

oh, and here they call older sisters (or close friends, respectfully and endearingly) ate (ah-teh) and brothers kuya (coo-yeh). so joph is our kuya! i love these terms. 

Yahoo!

HAPPPPYY BIRTHDAY, LYSSA MA LOU, LADY BUGGY POO! I'M SO STINKIN PROUD OF YOU!

YOU'RE 16, YA OLD FART!! ;) I could never marry a 99 year old man...
you have a little note on the way :) i'm sorry it's not much. i'll do better, i promise! i just don't know how to yet, from here!



Thank you, everyone! especially mom, dad, and aaron for your correspondence! you are super bomb!!!



how is everything?? it sounds like you're so busy! aaron, i loved the sea turtle! so cool! and the photo, thank you! dad, i'm praying for you and your test. you will do so well! i'm glad you're receiving comfort in your studies. you are sooo so smart and diligent. you will be blessed for all you're doing and i know the Lord will help you in everything you need. thank you for your funny letter! i got one via dear elder and just grinned all the way :) it was fantabulous! thank you for making me smile! laughter is the best medicine and we all totally need a good laugh every single day. sister gupta makes me laugh quite a bit. just her manner and opinions and straightforwardness about matters when she expresses things to me is hysterical. i love her! you will love her too. somehow i'll kidnap her from india and make her visit us. she's great.
mom, i pray for you too in all you do. SO much! you really are supermom! but no matter how busy life gets, your first priority is to your Heavenly Father and then to your family--which makes you even more incredible. that's how it lays it down for us in the white handbook: first to the Lord, then to Pres., then to missionaries. good priorities. and of course the ppl we serve :) i think it's in the leadership section. thank you mom for sharing your insights. again, i can't thank you enough for the spiritual uplift. you always know just what to say. it's so incredibly nice. i can't believe it. it's insane how well our Father knows His children. it makes sense, of course, but its still crazy amazing. he is so aware. i testify of this. there are so many tender mercies each day, and they are clearer to me here in the field than they've been for me before. and i know there are so many i miss along the way. how spoiled we are!

sunday, on our way to our quick lesson before church, i was telling sis gupta how i was concerned for br. candido, a less active member who had come to church last week, but whom we hadn't visited this week. i didn't want him to think we'd only visit if he wasn't coming. that's certainly not how we feel about him. after our brief but sweet lesson--big blessings!--we got on the jeepney for church, hoping to make it barely in time. i've become the temporary pianist, we discovered, as bishop texted us, hoping we'd be there right then. aaah! wish we could hurry traffic along. then, out of nowhere, br. candido climbs in the jeepney!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SWEET! i know, right?!?!!?! yeah. pretty great. and he came to church again :) wow! love it!

then yesterday i didn't get to write bc we met with Pres. for quarterly interviews. they are individual. and you know what?!?! he emails us individually each week in response to our emails to him. how great is he?!!?!? wow he is amazing. and we had great meetings with our AP and ZLs, all of whom are so good. love every missionary here. they rock. and i learned so much about using the area book!!!! it's so important to keep track of the ppl we're teaching and the details--bc in the details, we show our love. we keep track so we can meet their needs and help other ppl to continue to build on inspired teaching once we are transferred elsewhere. i thought of how i love to know you care about the details of my mission and my life and how knowing these things about those we teach come through in our teaching--to make the gospel personal BECAUSE IT IS! great stuffs.

so mother's day call! woo hoo! there's a card i can buy and use, i believe, from my cell phone to call you. mom's phone is best, right? and would around 6 pm that day work for you? cause i can prob call about 9 am here on monday, the following day for me, and it's my pday, so we can work that out easily. gimme your opinion. sis gupta prob won't need the phone til later, so that would be rockin! or i can go for earlier if you need. later? sup to you, babestum!!!!! lemme know.

tonight, i am going to extend the baptismal commitment to a family! wooooo! holy karazzzzy. can you belieb it??? pray for me, if you can! that'd be sweet! i love you so much!!!!

i can't believe you're all getting so big, my siblings! i hope you're being so sweet and patient to each other and helping out at home! i feel your love from here, and i send mine. i'd be lying if i said i didn't miss you. of course i do!!!!!! but the harder i work, the easier it is and the more i love it! time will fly and i'll be missing this beautiful place with heavy air and heat like a blanket and crazy, honking drivers and ppl that say Hey, whashur name? and little kids that follow us around and sweet, humble people with barely enough to survive day to day, and ... well. no. i won't miss cockroaches. ever. i tell sis g all the time that they're the spawn of satan. sorry to ruin the mood :) hahaha

but know that all is well and you are SO VERY LOVED!!!!! please let me know how i can help you.

mom, i'm sorry i didn't say much about journal, but i'll keep thinking and share what i come up with. you are all SUPERB!

xoxoxxooxxoXXooOOOXxoxolxo

sis r :)

P.S.
to answer mom's qs in a dear elder i got... the jet lag is pretty gone by now! prob by about the end of the first week it was mostly gone. of course now you know i love sis gupta! sis w is in the angeles mission... i don't have the exact address, but i can pouch mail her here for free. did you all go to slc for our tradish? how was it/ when are you going??? the food is pretty good, actually. i've eaten plenty of things i wouldn't normally like, but liked. strange. like tuna sandwich with tomatoes and spaghetti with only sauce and noodles. odd. but i liked it. and tang is a big deal here. very popular. way too much soda! i can't take it! but ppl are so sweet to give us things when we visit them.
the weirdest things i've eaten were chicken liver in our pansit ( pansit is actually very good. i think that's the stuff sis crump gave us. member?) and pig feet... i think. but i didn't actually eat that. it's all fat. all fat and bone and spiny pig hair. so i spit it out discreetly and prayed that the wealthy americanized family would forgive the poor american. they didn't seem to care :)

Wow!

Hello po!

Thank you so much for the correspondence! I haven't wrapped my mind around the time diff yet and there's a lot else to think about, but i think yesterday when i was looking at the clocks in the mission office, the one for salt lake time was three hours behind our time. and i was confused. so i asked someone about it and he confirmed that when it's 6 pm here, it's 3 am there... i think. how's that for crazy? yes! super duper, indeed.

wow.. days here. sundays are good. we had no comp study yesterday bc we left early for an appointment before church. church starts at noon, but we're there very early to greet--hopefully--our investigators and returning LA members. we had an investigator with a baptismal date come! she's the house help of a family who is LA. she rocks! she's a mother of 5, single, and her 18yr old daughter is going to be baptized too! she rocks too! the only sad part is that she was just hired as house help too and didn't come bc she was taking care of little ones at home. her children live out in one of the provinces and she only sees them once a month when she goes home. but the family is very good to her, which i love.

oh so sundays. we have a couple meetings after church, so we don't get done til late.. like around dinner time. this is not a favorite bc i really would prefer to be out teaching, but it's just how things roll. we didnt have coordination meeting this week, though we need it so that we can have the ward missionaries come with us. the hope is to always have members present in our lessons so that these people have fellowshippers. it's hard bc these ppl are often busy with work or school and they need that money, of course. but they're great! the bishop is very sincere about his calling and works very hard to meet the needs of this ward.

i keep waiting for a "normal" this and a "normal" that... i don't know if there is a normal. like last week was general conference here, so sat and sun weren't normal... but this sunday there was a sister with mumps... so sis gupta and i sat with her in the office for a long time bc the assistants to the pres. --AP is easier, though the white handbook says... whatever. i'm writing, not speaking. the APs :) had a baptism and they took her to the hospital, so we kept her company in the office until they could take her. they said she's doing fine. poor girl. she got it from a member--and they didn't even touch! they just visited outside for a second! strange.

teaching is good. it's different. it's not exactly cookie-cutter like in the mtc. you have to be more flexible. it's trickier. but it's all good :) we love the ppl we teach. we found this awesome girl while looking for someone else on the records we have. she's only 18 and insanely full of faith. she loves God so much and wants to do what He wants her to do. Her mom is devout Catholic and wasn't super interested in our message, though they sure like a good "bible study" 'round here. we always have to make it clear that our intention isn't just to study with them. bless their hearts. basta (anyway/whatever). she wanted to come to church, but to our dismay, her mother was against it. dagnabbit. it was so sad. but i have high hopes for her. she's fantastic.

there are lots of members that need to come back to church--and also lots who have never even heard our message. it was amazing, our blessings this week. when i got here, we had 4 pending BDs. sweet! but due to various circumstances and exercise of agency--what a tremendous gift--our dear souls may not be able to get baptized soon. it's out of the hands of one of them, it's the choices together of 2 others, and it's the apprehensions about circumstances and requirements for another. but we won't lose hope! no one is beyond hope. each soul is so important.
when we went to an appointment with the sister and her daughter before extending the baptismal invitation, we ran into a member in the same apartment building! she has a niece and nephew whom we are now preparing for baptism! so the four we had before were reassured by four more BDs in just 2 hours time!!!! how amazing is that?!?!?

i realize that the whole mission won't be this way and that most things are not this easy. there is so much work to be done! but this was a great blessing from the Lord. and i didn't do a dang thing to deserve it. and i honestly don't. i think this is mostly for S. Gupta. Bc she's so selfless and loving and serious about this work. And i can't believe she's going home after our 2 transfers together :( dang flabbit.

dear family, i write my letters to you and to my friends all week in my head and then i get so frustrated when i can't remember half of what i was going to say. i have forgotten my towel so many times when i take a shower. in the mtc, 2 or 3 times. here in the field, already 2 or 3 more. poor s. gupta. bless her. how will i ever remember all of these ppl and their backgrounds and information!? there are SO MANY! and they need me to remember them and about them.

maree, i have thought about you and missing your graduation a lot. i wish i could be there. but i want you to know how proud i am of you and how excited i am for you to go out and explore. you will love it! and you are so capable! you're ready, girl! go out and get em! this will prepare you for a mission like nothing else i can think of.

alyssa, i played the piano in sacrament meeting yesterday and i so wished i'd spent more time practicing hymns. at an appointment last night, the family brought out a little keyboard and sat it on the floor for me to play. i fumbled through one of my favorites as i tried to sing alto, too, and i cursed how poorly i adapt to different keyboards. then i made Twinkle play for us. she's so pretty and she has a cute baby and we're teaching her husband.. kinda. long story, but they're great. and she played---guess! there's only ten seconds left in my bwain... guess! river flows in you! i missed you so! and sis gupta's cd has the My Redeemer song we love to hear you play. every time it makes me so happy. every morning. and i saw a cool david archuleta mix here in a store! and i heard 2 or 3 of his songs in diff places. love it!

joseph, so many ppl play street ball here. there are always groups of kids from down the street playing in a small hoop they set up somehow. it's funny to walk by and see them all stare bc we're foreigners. they love white ppl lol. i don't know why bc everyone in america just wants to be tan. we're never satisfied, are we? but i think of you often, especially when we teach this great family with 13 and 14 yr old boys. i wish you were here to bring them to church. you'd be a great friend to them.

becca, you crazy awesome girl, how is choir? is it fun to sing with everyone? are you excited? how is your class? you know, you are such a lucky girl! you are so loved! do you know that? we are teaching a boy who is 9 and we want him to get baptized so badly. he's so nice!!!! he has an allergy to sun and dust, so his skin has strange spots all over and it makes him embarrassed to go outside. but he's so cute! he has a beautiful smile and he's so sweet! thank you for being a good friend who would not make fun of someone like him. you are such a good girl!

dad, i keep hearing The Promise when we go in the grocery store!!! how crazy random is that! i love it! and mom, you have no idea how perfectly-timed your words of wisdom are. they are so great. i always need them.

i need to go, but i love you all! i'm not supposed to miss you, but i surely do! i need to work harder :) i need to figure out how to get my letters to my fam and friends in the states. tell aaron i was SO excited to hear about sis. jael knowing him! did she tell you how bad my tagalog is?? yeesh. scary.

xoxoxxo!

sis r