Helloooo Family!!!!!!
Wow my mind is just a tad scrambled right now because I am transferring today! This will probably be my last area. I am going to Talisay Ward in Bacolod North Stake. My first area was 5th ward also in Bacolod North Stake! I am excited because I've heard really great things about Talisay! I reallllllly wish that I could have taken my companion with me to this area. I love Sister Silos so much and I will miss her like crazy!!! My new companion's name is Sister Respicio (I don't know if that's the right spelling because I can't currently see her name tag.. haha) but she is sooooooo sweet!! I am seriously SO BLESSED with companions. SERIOUSLY!!She is also Filipina and she is a new-ish missionary and this is her first area still. This is a weird transfer for me because I am going to be an STL (Sister Training Leader) with a JR companion.. it will be interesting because I don't know how to be a Sister Training Leader... it's like Zone Leaders but for the Sisters.. and there's only one of me for a zone of sisters. But I'm excited for the challenge and opportunity. Sister Snow is in the same boat except she will be training a brand new missionary. GO Sister Snow!! :)
It was sooo good to see missionaries that I haven't seen in a long time! Like Sister Snow (can't wait to be at BYU with her!), and Sister Arcinas (my companion in Cadiz.. she is going home this week and I was so grateful to give her a hug before she went home). I have made so many close friends here and it is hard to say goodbye when there's a small chance that we will see each other again. But I am so grateful for these friendships and memories!!!
So a lot of great things happened this week. I have so many pictures that I want to send home but I can't send pictures here in this computer shop... I'm hoping I can next week. We were spoiled with the best computer shop ever in my last area so I don't know how often I can send pictures home now but I will just try my best. It's not worth all my pictures getting lost.. but we'll see!!
I received my "trunky letter" (that's what we call it here but I refuse to be trunky) telling me to finish strong until the end of my mission and with information about coming home. Then today I got my itinerary for my flight to come home. It's all becoming pretty real and it's kind of freaking me out. But I know that there are still many many things for me to experience here:) I'm so excited for my next area and can't wait to get to work!
This week we had a baptism! I am so sad I can't send pictures. This baptism meant soooo much!! Sister Mira is the daughter of a long time less active. I think I've told you about their family before- the Abesar family. Bro. Abesar and his wife and his children were sealed to them in the Manila temple about 6 years ago.. soon after that Sis. Abesar passed away. She had a lot of medical problems and had been confined to a wheel chair for years. Mira was not yet 8 years old when her mother passed away and that was her wish to her husband that Mira gets baptized when she turns 8. Well, I met the Abesar family because for years and years missionaries have been visiting them. Bro. Abesar is now active and through him we met Mira. She is 15 years old and just the sweetest. She started coming to church and brought her 2 cousins with her. They all 3 were baptized yesterday :) It was such a spiritual experience!!! Emilio Abesar is Mira's older brother and is preparing to serve a mission. He was also less active when I first got to this area. Now he is our Ward Assistant Mission Leader and almost done with his mission papers!!! He was able to baptize his younger sister and 2 cousins. I just know that Sister Abesar is so happy in the Spirit World because her family is really doing their best to prepare to return to be with her again. I know that they will someday be reunited again as an eternal family and I am so grateful for the blessing to have met this amazing family.
This work is just so amazing. I have seen so many tender mercies.. more than I can even count!! I think that that is one of the biggest lessons that I have learned here on my mission.. obedience, prayer, fasting, scripture study and a desire to serve the Lord is the way to TRUE happiness and peace and more blessings than ever imagined! I have seen Heavenly Father immediately and directly answer my prayers not only these past couple of weeks but throughout my mission. I KNOW that He is close and aware of each and every one of us.
Oh we also had Zone conference this week. I learned SO MUCH! We have such awesome Assistants to the President!! They were so inspired in their trainings and it was really refreshing to be with such focused and dedicated missionaries.
I also got my package from Grandma Barbara!! THANK YOU SO MUCH GRANDMA!!!! The dried mangoes are almost gone.. OOPS! haha SO YUMMY! And the train mix and dried fruits are the best! I made the mistake (not really mistake) of sharing with a member the trail mix at church and they all raided me and went a little crazy eating my food haha they looooved the dried fruit and trail mix.. almost as much as I love it! :) But I was happy to share. Everything in the package was perfect. THANK YOU AGAIN!!!!
This week I ate pig feet. It was seriously so good. The members are so good at cooking. They made it with jack fruit (langka) and I don't know what else but I was just in heaven.
I also ate a lot of sea food this week. It's so awesome you just pull whatever you can out of the water and cook it up and it's like the best tasting food ever. Shells and clams cooked and uncooked, crabs (lots and lots of crab), shells (the little tiny shells that kids play with because they move... turns out they taste super good!!!) and of course lots of fish. Pictures to come next week.
I love you all so so so so much!!!!!!!
Until next week!
Sister Judd
No comments:
Post a Comment