Hey guys :)
I have about 5 minutes to whip this baby out so here it goes!
So yesterday and Saturday we had our district conference! It was so neat because Elder Ardern of the 70 came to preside and because we had 1000 members in attendance at the conference!!!!! Because there were so many more in attendance than expected and the chapel, overflow, and auxilary rooms were stuffed, we even had members sitting and standing in the hallway so that they could hear from a living member of the quourm of the 70. These members are so faithful and I feel so blessed that I get to serve with them :)
Oh, and something else that was really cool! Our neighbors decided to set off this AWESOME firework display! It really could give Disneyland some competition haha and the beauty of it all is that we don't understand why haha maybe because the big "Sandugo" Festival is going on over here in Tag Bi??? I've learned to stop questioning why Filipino's do the things they do and to just go with it lol Regardless, us 4 sisters were running around outside and soaking up those fireworks as a belated 4th of july celebration!
Also, I had a PERFECT day this week! Do you know why? Because none of our appointments fell through, people didn't slam their doors on us when we went tracting and I got to teach my first complete family! You can say I was on cloud 9!!!! Something I've learned in my first area is to have a positive attitude and a spirit of gratitude! It really is such a gift when we can recognize the small and simple things in life and allow them to bring us so much joy :)
All in all, life is great! I love all of these experiences here in the Philippines and especially as a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amping mo!!!!!!! :)
Lots of love,
Sister Lauck <3
For the pics:
Bea & Nico & Jella & me! They really are some phenominal investigators! I think my only investigators that have been consistently doing their commitments. They are some faithful kiddos and I love em to death!
Jesabelle (my fav investigator) and I doing her laundry! She had to get it all done before we could teach her and as my great grandmother said, "Many hands make light work :)"
Malipayon lunes sa inyoha!!!
So this week was sweeeet! Because -
1. I hit my 6 month mark in the mission! I will be home in a year! Time flies sooooo fast, I promise!
2. It was 4th of July! And with transfers 2 weeks ago, instead of me being the only American in my apartment, two other Americans have joined me! We really had high hopes and ambitions to celebrate our country's independence day even if we were thousands of miles away haha but by the time the day actually came, we totally forgot about it, so all we could manage was patriotic clothes and singing the national anthem as we waved the Filipino flag around because it was the only flag we had to wave. Haha we tried our best! But besides that we spent our 4th of July with no power, showering with a bucket, and eating sardines and balut. It was sure one for the books! haha
3. Sis. Meme, my favorite person on this whole entire island, got a calling! Let me tell the Sis.Meme story super fast! So when I first got here back in February, Sis.Meme was inactive. Sis.Tuipulotu and I would visit her all the time, but it was that kind of situation where she didn't want us to be there, and we felt awkward being there, and every time we'd visit we'd commit her to go to church, but knowing full well that she'd never go. So one Sunday, 10 minutes before church started, Sis. T and I realized Sis.Meme was going to be a no-show, and I told Sis. T that we had to do something about this. So what do we do? We hiked our butts over to her house and we tried to get her to go to church. She was just not having it despite our best persuasion powers haha and looking back I realize how desperate Sis.T and I probably looked, 2 frenzy sisters trying to convince her to go to church haha but Sis.Meme put her foot down and was not having it. And I don't know why, but I just started crying. Like legit crying, as in tears and tears. I guess in that moment, the Spirit just flooded over me with the love of the Savior for Sis.Meme. And I was so sad for her because I realized that she was making decisions in her life that were only distancing herself away from Christ and His path to eternal happiness. It's one of those sacred experiences I hold dear to my heart in the mission. And I think Sis.Meme was so freaked out that I was crying, that to get me to stop she said, "Sis. Luck, I'll go to church" And the rest is history. She hasn't missed a week of church since. And it's more than the fact that she's going to church. The miracle is that she's completely changed her life around. She diligently reads the Book of Mormon every day, she does her visiting teaching, she works with the missionaries all the time, she gives referrals, she's grown and developed an actual testimony, she attends every baptism and branch activity and in fact, has become the most active member in our branch. She has really come unto Christ and as a result, her countenance has completely changed, and the quality of her life has become so much more than what it was before. And so yesterday, to be in the congregation and to raise my right hand to sustain her as the Tag Bilaran Branch 1 Relief Society Secretary was just..... beyond words. There is no sweeter feeling than watching the Atonement work in the lives of others and to watch how the Gospel transforms people. I just love this work with all of my heart. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the only true church on this earth that can bring us happiness here on this Earth and for eternity. I'm pretty sure I have the best job EVER right now (: I wouldn't trade this experience for any other. I love life! And I love all of you (: Thanks for helping me, supporting me, and making me one happy sister missionary!!!!!!! Naglaum ko nga naa moy og nindot kaayong semana!!!! (Tr: I hope you all have a fabulous week!)
Lots of love,
Sister Lauck (:
Okay the pics:
1. the first one is of us Americans (Sis. Hatch, me and Sister Johnson) trying our best to embody America in one picture hahaha I know, we're lame
2. Get this, there's like a 1000 of these little stores in my area and they're all named. And I just happened to find one that has my stinkin name!!!! How cool is that!!!! The exact spelling and all! It kinda reminds me of my former life when I had a first name and I wasn't just Sister Lauck (:
