Weeks 25 through... Oh my, we have lost count.

May

. . .participated in several wonderful baptisms.

 . . . gave many piano lessons to advancing and beginning students.

. . . enjoyed a renewal of spirit and dedication at a wonderful mission conference with Elder Russell M. Nelson

. . . have made it through our first Filipino summer -  the 2012-2013 school year has just begun for Filipino children

. . . attended a session in the Cebu Temple

. . . are prayerfully visiting in homes to support and encourage newly converted members of the church and to bring back inactive and less active members

. . . working with the District clerk and Branch clerks to bring branch membership records up to date

. . . continuing to give English lessons to one youth group and one adult group

. . . have felt the tender mercies of God as we have quite specifically prayed for inspiration in several matters

. . . look forward to our morning hours of scripture and Preach My Gospel study

. . . open email every morning hoping for a message from family and friends.

. . .  celebrate our 46^th wedding anniversary! June 3^rd!

June

It has been hard to prepare something to share.  It seems like we have had a routine and just keep trying to move forward praying for inspiration in our work but it’s almost like we are waiting for something to happen before we can really accomplish our purpose here. We also had two weeks where either Elder Dover or Sister Dover didn’t feel really good. Fortunately that has passed. We are feeling good and are back to full energy and grateful for that blessing.

We have completed another round of apartment inspection to see if the younger Elders and Sisters have all that they need. We were asked to share messages at the first conference for return missionaries from the Toledo district.  What a wonderful group of faithful members of the church.  Their dedication is an inspiration to us.

A challenge for men in the Philippines is to find work.  Many faithful Priesthood holders must go abroad for close to a year at a time for employment opportunities. This is understandably hard on families and takes very needed Priesthood out of the Branches.  We have been so grateful for the employment opportunities the opening of a new radio station here in Toledo has offered to several church members including a priesthood holder whose prayers have been that the Lord would open up a way for him to work in Toledo and continue to serve in his District Priesthood calling here.  Several of our English students have been hired as part time DJs at the station. It has been fun to have them thank us for English classes they say helped them speak English well enough to get a job there. We feel the inspiration of the Elder Dallin H. Oaks direction a few years ago saying that it would benefit the people of the church in the Philippians to try and use English with the Couple Missionaries, rather than have the Senior couples try to learn Cebuano.  English is taught in the schools as a second language.

Last general conference, Elder Paul Koelliker of the Seventy described the missionary experience as a “minilife packaged in 18 to 24 month”. It is a fitting description.  One aspect of life are the many hello’s and good-byes it brings.  They seem to happen often in a mission.  We just bid Elder John Bornea good-bye as he left for the Manila MTC to serve in the Philippine Davao Mission.  He has served as a faithful branch mission leader in the Toldedo II Branch.  He also has been a capable and determined piano student.  In just a few months he has gained the keyboard skills to begin playing the easier hymns. His mother has agreed to let us visit her and teach what is so important to her son.  We are excited for this opportunity.

July

Our mission President, President Evan Schmutz,  asked us to attend the Pinamungajon Branch last Sunday. He and Sister Schmutz with the District Priesthood Leadership were all there for the calling of a new Branch Presidency.  Elder Dover met with President Schmutz and the District President, President Cojocson, briefly before sacrament meeting to talk about the new branch presidency. It was a sacred and memorable experience for Elder Dover as President Schmutz explained that he was doing something that was new to him and a little unusual.  As he had been praying about the new branch presidency, the Spirit kept directing him to a young man who had only been a member of the church for two months and did not hold the Melchizedek Priesthood.  Words came to his mind - Not many of the wise and great are called, but the small and meek.”  These words with  Nephi’s words in 1 Nephi 16:29 . . . “And thus we see that by small means the Lord can bring about great things,” confirmed for him the Lord’s will in this calling. As President Schmutz explained his experience in making the decision, Elder Dover testified that he had an almost overwhelming witness of the Spirit that what President Schmutz was explaining was indeed the Lord’s will.

This new branch president will need training, much of which will be offered by the missionaries: the two outstanding younger missionaries who will be serving a 2^nd counselor in the Branch Presidency and Branch clerk and Elder Dover as the MIS (Member & Leader Support) missionary in the District.  A new assistant branch clerk will be preparing for his future calling as Branch clerk. It is also exciting also to see the reactivation of an older brother from England.  He has been called as executive secretary. 

There were many people at this meeting.  The spirit was very strong.  President Schmutz told the congregation of his inspiration in making this calling and urged their whole hearted support.  He reminded them that whom the Lord calls, “He qualifies”. He said that when called the new branch President had been called, he had humbly stated his lack of experience and ability. President Schmutz said simply, “The Lord has called you.  Will you serve?” The reply was made with humility and great faith.  “I have been called.  I will serve.” 

One sister stood to bear her testimony stating that she had planned to raise her hand in opposition to the call, but as Brother Johnny Kyenko’s name was read and the sustaining vote called for, the spirit bore witness to her that this calling was being made under the Lord’s direction.  She had raised her hand in support.

Our hearts were deeply touched in this meeting and our testimonies strengthened. As the words to the sacrament hymn, “I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me” were sung, the thought came to me that the Lord has greatly blessed us to bring us here in missionary service at this time. Interestingly the same sacrament hymn was sung in church the last Sunday we attended a sacrament meeting in Augusta, Georgia.  Those same words brought a similar confirmation then that we had been greatly blessed by the Lord to have had the privilege of living and serving there.

PICTURES!

Following an English lesson, children from the neighborhood gatherat the Sabroso’s for a “Don’t Eat Pete” game.

Baptisms are always special events. Missionaries and branchmembers at the baptism of Star Montebon, three members of the Mendoza Familyand Johnny Sepata.

We are blessed to be one of two of the fourteen Filipino missions with a temple.  Another temple for the Philippines is planned. I particularly like these shots taken early one morning after spending the night in the mission home. Branches from outlaying areas plan group trips with members spending two or three days at the patron’s house on the temple complex. It is a welcoming place for entire families.  Food can be purchased or prepared on site. This shot shows a group leaving the complex after spending several days doing temple work.

Elder Dover

Ride with me.

Visiting with the Elders.

Open air TV Karaoke is a popular pastime in the Philippines. Elder Dover gets into it with “The Impossible Dream.” Sister Dover joins in for the final bars.

Jessa Mae and Yves Magbago are cousins with very nice voices.  We were at their home to celebrate the 11th birthdayof Yves.

Weeks 19 through 24

Let’s begin this 5^th blog, approximately weeks 19 through 24 – or more exactly March 13 through April 18, 2012 - with the best and greatest news of all!  WE ARE GREAT GRANDPARENTS!     Little Eden Naomi Wayment, with beautiful red hair, made her long awaited entrance into this life on March 18^th weighing in at 8 lb 9 oz.  She was welcomed by our wonderful oldest granddaughter, Kylee, and Kylee’s equally wonderful husband, Ryan.  They live in Houston, Texas.  Heads will turn – and who could help but smile - when people catch a glimpse of this red-haired trio.  It will be many months before we hold this little one in our arms, but we will watch her grow through pictures and Skype.  What a joy she is!

Before we have a chance to hold Eden in our arms, there will be another precious little one to hold.  Our second oldest- and also wonderful- granddaughter, Auna, has announced that she and her - also wonderful- husband, Ron, are expecting in October.  Ron’s heritage is Filipino.  This will be a beautiful dark haired baby. We are so happy for them!  It is amazing how as new members enter a family, love multiplies rather than divides.  

The dry season – April through June - got off to a slow start beginning with a couple of weeks of frequent rain. We had been invited the first of April to a member’s birthday party in her home which is located in the center of a rice paddy.  The home, however, was flooded the day of the party (and for a week thereafter).  She asked if the party could be held at our place. 

For her home to be flooded is not unusual, even though the house is built on stilts. The water comes in and later recedes through half inch spaces between each of the narrow bamboo strips that make up the floor. Incidentally, she told us that her kitties were very happy.  They love being able to catch fish in the house.

At the party a game was played where everyone told something interesting about themselves – something others may not know. One young sister said that she had had a dream in which she saw the Savior. He embraced her.

Another young sister told of a dream she had had about a year after her family had joined the church. In the dream, she was with the Savior. She was an angel and he taught her how to fly. There were some other angels standing close by, watching. She recognized these other angels as some of her friends. The Savior asked if since she now knew how to fly, would she teach them? She said that she was able to teach some of them how, but not all..  The ones who learned to fly in the dream were those who have now joined the church.

Another young sister told of a dream she had before being taught by the missionaries.  In her dream, two young men in white shirts and ties showed her a large attractive building that she had never seen before.  Later two young missionaries taught her the gospel and invited her to attend church with them.  When she saw the Toledo chapel for the first time, she recognized it as the building from her dream. (And yes, she was one of the angels who learned to fly.)

We held our 4^th transfer, 6^th pancake breakfast.

We tried walking several mornings but did not enjoy it and felt rather obvious.  We are back to exercising in the larger room we have here at our place.  I have actually begun doing “The Bunny Hop” as part of my daily routine.  I can hop much better now that when I first started.

We spent a few days on the north end of the Island last month consulting with Elder and Sister Bailey, the Senior Missionary couple in Bogo.  They will be returning home to Manti, Utah soon just in time to help with the annual pageant. We went there with the hope they could help us better learn how to use Power Point in creating some auxiliary training seminars and share from their experiences information about how Senior Missionaries can effectively offer support to members and leaders.  They were wonderful hosts and became new friends.  Using ideas from our discussion and what we trust is inspiration; we have made some personal goals based on the 2012 Goals set by the Philippine Area Presidency.

They introduced us to Annie’s amazing basket weaving shop and pointed out three-and-four-foot-high termite mounds in fields of sugar cane.

Note by Elder Dover:

After discussions with Elder and Sister Bailey, I have decided to try and help branches bring membership records up to date and to teach how to use information from reports that can be generated.  If this proves to be a realistic project, it may very well keep me busy for the rest of my mission. I would like that. We are told that much of the quarterly report information sent to Salt Lake is a “best guess”.  I hope to be able to get into the computer system of each branch in the Toledo District, and work with the district and branch clerks to clean this all up, and to teach the branch clerks how to do it, get them fired up to work hard at it and keep it up to date.

We will work with Individual Ordinance Summaries for members of the branches. We want to review each summary with the members to bring it up to date. This will give us the opportunity to visit branch members – we will go with the young missionaries or with other branch members who know the people and know where they live. We will get any unrecorded information and then work with the branch clerks to get it recorded. This will work very well with the Area Presidencies’ goals for the Philippines for the missionaries to focus their labors on the less active church members. Hopefully, this will all coordinate well together and will be a worthwhile project. We will start with the 2 branches in Toledo, and then work our way through the other branches in the district. There are a total of 8 branches in the district. The District President is very supportive.

We are hopeful that helping to establish and teach the use of and the importance of the record keeping system of the church, as Elder Dover has explained, will be a solid step in more firmly  establishing the church here in Cebu. It would help us feel that our time here will have been of lasting value. I do know that Priesthood leaders value Elder Dover’s counsel and I have heard him give excellent counsel touched with that optimism and sense of humor that is one of his wonderful qualities.  

I will soon begin a project to increase interest in family history. I need to complete some work on the auxiliary training Power Point Presentations before I begin work with family history. 

Summer vacation has begun in the Philippines.  The private school, Saint John, across the street from our place had three different graduation exercises- lower, middle and high school. A graduating class here is known as a “Batch”. So this year’s class was Batch 2012. Because the exercises were held outside, in English and WELL amplified, we could clearly understand all the speakers. Do not view this as a complaint. I found it very interesting and well done. I was impressed with the values urged by each speaker. The songs sung by the youngest children were delightful including “You are my Sunshine”. My mother used to sing this to me all the when I was little and I had almost forgotten that. Interesting isn’t it, to be reminded of such a tender memory in the Philippines.

On a recent trip to Cebu, we were excited to pick up 7 packages from the states. They held some items we requested, plus some surprises.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Using some of the things in one of the packages, Elder Dover was able to satisfy his craving for a good home-baked chocolate cake.  He figured out how to use our propane heated oven and baked a perfect one.  “Dad is great, he still bakes chocolate cakes.”  

Included in the packages were a total of 8 sets of UNO cards.  We had wanted just a couple of sets for gifts and to have on hand for missionaries on P Day.  When we received so many, we thought about having an Uno night in the Branches, but gave up the idea us impractical.  However, a couple of members we had mentioned it too were really disappointed and urged us to move forward with UNO nights.  They offered to help. So, with the Branch Presidents of Toledo I and of Toledo II approving, we invited just the Young Single Adults in both branches to an UNO night at the church. They came – so did the Branch Presidents. They all seemed to have a great time and now are ready to teach the game to other members.  They will serve as “UNO Masters” at a combined Toledo Branch I and Branch II UNO night this Friday.  Several told us that it has been a long time since the branches have done anything together.

How will many players play with only eight sets of cards?  We’ll see how our plan actually works, but basically the winner of a hand wins the right to remain at the table for the next hand.  Other players count their cards. The person holding the most cards will be the first to give up his/her seat to the person who has been waiting for a seat at the table the longest.  If there is more than one person waiting to play, the player holding the next highest number of cards will give up his/her seat to the 2^nd waiting person.  And so on until each person waiting gets a seat or until all of the players with losing hands are replaced. We hope that these nights of fellowshipping will help recently baptized members and returning less actives make new friends and enjoy an evening of socializing.

Last Saturday we visited the home of a recently baptized family. They are a wonderful family.  The father had to quit smoking and give up social drinking in order to join the church.  We would like him to find new friends in the church, so we took Uno cards to them and asked their delightful Single Adult daughter if she would like to teach her family how to play UNO. She had attended the UNO night for SA.  We asked if she could be one of the Uno Masters and perhaps bring her family to the Branches UNO night.  She seemed genuinely pleased.  We then asked if there were anything we could do for them.  She got a cute expression on her face and said “play uno now”?  It was funny.  So we did and taught her mother how to play.  Many children from the neighborhood gathered to watch.

Before we left, we mentioned English lessons we are beginning to teach. Her mother asked if we could teach her. We will go to their home once a week now to teach her, her husband, and some of their children.  She told another member later that her family is very excited to study English with us because they do not have money for private lessons or to attend an English class at a school; however,   they have long wanted to speak better English.  Right now and they are very hesitant to speak in English, but they do have a limited understanding of it.

We will teach some basic grammer and conversational English, then read from the book of Mormon. Sister Ernstrom, the mission office secretary, gave us a valuable tool that we will use.  It is the first half of the Book of Mormon with one line in English followed by the translation of that line in Cebuano.  It is perfect to teach English to those who have limited command of the language. The following is an example:

1    I, NEPHI, having been born of goodly parents,

1    AKO, si Nephi, natawo sa mga matarung nga ginikanan,

therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father;
busa ako gitudloan sa tanan nga nakat-unan sa akong amahan;

and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days,
ug nakasinati sa daghan nga mga kasakit sa akong panahon,

nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days;
bisan pa, gipangga sa Ginoo sa tanan ko nga mga panahon;

yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God,
oo, nakabaton sa dako nga kasayuran sa kaayo ug sa mga misteryo sa Dios,

therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.
busa ako naghimo og usa ka talaan sa panghitabo sa akong mga panahon.

2    Yea, I make a record in the language of my father,

2    Oo, naghimo ako og talaan sa pinulongan sa akong amahan,

which consists of the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians.
nga naglakip sa kinaadman sa mga Judeo ug sa pinulongan sa mga Ehiptohanon.

We just started an English class of about 10 students who meet with us at the church on Saturdays. They seem excited about the class and we love teaching it.

As a side note, we gave Elder Dover’s “learning Cebuano” materials from the MTC to a young woman who came here as a bride. She speaks English and Tagalog. She has been struggling to learn Cebuano and felt that we gave her the tools she needs to do so.

We have been able to reach out in many small ways to help individuals. We went to the hospital recently to help two of the younger missionaries give a blessing to the baby of an inactive mother with a non-member husband. We returned the next day with some food and things for the baby and to learn how the baby was doing.  The baby was doing much better than expected.  The husband wants to have the missionary discussions now. They want us to be part of those discussions.  This sister’s mother and brother are also interested in taking the discussions.

Today is Thursday, piano day. And as Winnie-the-Pooh - a bear who is given to hums and poetry - would say of finding good hums - “They just come, sometimes, and they can’t be fetched.”  - so I say of today – “May good hums come to us all.  Happy Thursday or whatever day it may be for you!”  Teaching piano always brings good hums to me. Thanks for reading!

A summer sunset over Kanlaon.

I decided to look up Negros volcanoes on the internet. Negros has a chain of them with the tallest being Kanlaon. It is listed as restless- being 2 on a 1 to 5 scale. This summer sunset over Kanlaon was taken from the waterfront by our place. The view is across Tenon Strait. I have been told that whales and dolpins frequently pass through this strait. They aren’t observable from here though. It is off the south part of the Strait of Negros in Dumaguete that they can be observed. That is the point where Cebu comes closest to Negros. Kanlaon reminds me of Bali High in South Pacific.  It is generally at least partially covered by clouds.

Weeks 15 through 18

. . .approximately weeks 15 through 18 or more exactly February 17 through March 13.

Feb. 26, 2012

A special experience recalled by Elder Dover

We spent the last couple of days at the little town of Lamac ( Lah-mahk).  Lamac is located up in the mountains between Cebu City and Toledo.  Either of two unpaved roads in are too rough for our car.   The missionaries in Lamac are Elder Herbst, an Idaho farm boy, and Elder Basagas, a Filipino , who is the only member of the Church in his family.  They are both very good missionaries – hard workers and dedicated rule keepers.  They had 11 baptisms scheduled Saturday, Feb. 25. Elder Herbst asked us what would be involved in providing a pancake supper for the branch after the baptismal service.  As we got to talking to him about it, what he really wanted was for us to come up to Lamac to the baptismal service and then provide an all you can eat pancake supper for the branch.  Well, needless to say we agreed to do it.  To make a long story short, we ended up with President & Sister Schmutz, Elder & Sister Ernstrom (the mission office couple), Sister Dover and I, the APs and the Zone leaders all going up to Lamac for the baptism and for the pancake supper.  The couples spent the night at a nice little resort called Hidden Valley that is in Lamac.  The APs spend the night with Elders Herbst and Basaga, and the Zone leaders came back to Toledo because they were talking in Sacrament meeting Sunday morning. 

Lamac is pretty high up in a little mountain valley.  It is a very beautiful location centered in a tropical forest.  The chapel is a converted house, and does not have a font.  The baptismal service was held at the chapel, with the normal speakers and such.  I got my first idea of what we were going to see when I noticed on the printed program that the baptisms would be performed at the “Waters of Mormon”.  A chill went down my spine when I read that.  I couldn’t help but wonder where this place was.  When the opening portion of the service was completed, we all left the building and walked up into the mountains.  We probably walked about 25 – 30 minutes.  I’m guessing we went nearly a mile – most of it on level ground, but the last part probably about 100 yards up the mountain.   

We walked by a stream with a pond where people were swimming and playing, and then went up the mountain about 20 or 30 more yards and came to another pool.  There was nobody at this pool.  There were two streams running into the pool, and another stream running out down to the pool below.  It was surrounded by tropical jungle with tall mountains rising up behind it.  It was as beautiful a place as you can imagine.  Elder Basaga waded into the pond, the water came up to a little above his waist.  The baptisms of Belen and Cyril Pangan and their three children, Cesar and Felepa Cavalida and their four children and that of a young man, Bobby Niez, were performed.  Elder Herbst performed the last 6 baptisms.  This was one of the most spiritual experiences I have ever encountered, mostly because of the similarity to the baptisms performed in the Waters of Mormon in the Book of Mormon.  Except for being on a different continent, this could have been the very spot where Alma baptized all of the converts among King Limhi’s people.  I was totally amazed at the feelings I had.

We walked back to the chapel.  Those who had been baptized bore their testimonies, President Schmutz offered some remarks, and the Branch President Abarquez did the same.  All 11 were confirmed in Sacrament Meeting on Sunday.  Once again, it was such a special spiritual experience for everybody that was there. 

Saturday evening with the help of Sister Schmutz, Sister Ernstrom and several of the Elders, we served a pancake supper to about 165 people.  Everybody had a lot of fun.  We left to return to Toledo after Sacrament Meeting Sunday morning. The members of the Lamac Branch were so grateful for their “special guests” and had enjoyed the pancake supper.  Everybody had a wonderful and spiritual experience.  We all agreed that we will never forget this wonderful experience.

March 4

Last week began with Zone Conference in Cebu.  We picked up the Sister Missionaries in Balamban around 6:00 am and made the hour and a half drive over  the TransCentral highway to Cebu.  Missionaries needed to be in their seats by 8:00 and our zone had the musical number so we needed to arrive by 7:30 to practice.  The meeting didn’t start until 8:30.  President Schmutz spoke on the atonement.  The spirit was powerful in confirmation that Jesus is our Savior and that it is him whose message we share. As President Schmutz spoke, I decided that I would begin a renewed study of our Savior’s life by reading the Gospels in the New Testament using the Harmony of the Gospels chart in the Bible Dictionary.  I am very much enjoying this approach.  These are sacred records of truth and importance. 

Before dropping the Sisters off at their apartment when we returned to Balamban, we stopped at the sewing shop of Sister Rojas, a seamstress member from one of the Balamban Branches.  She does not speak much English so we needed the Sister missionaries to translate for us.  I left material with her and my favorite skirt for her to use as a pattern to make another skirt like it. Hope it turns out well.  She did an excellent job with the pants she made for Elder Dover.

With the approval of President Schmutz, I sent the following letter to Sister Benson of the Church music committee who approves Keyboard grants through the Harman Music Fund. It may be interesting because it details a few of the things we have been doing.

Letter to Sister Benson:

 We had the great pleasure yesterday of placing two of the four keyboards granted the Toledo Branches  in homes of two very excited students. Using only the paper keyboards for practice both of these students are reading notes and comfortably into Section Three of the Course Material, Playing with Two Hands. One of the remaining two keyboards will be used at our place and the fourth will go to the home of two single adult sisters who serve in leadership positions in their Branch. These keyboards allowed us to place an older keyboard with a missionary District Leader in Lamac, a mountain town on the Island. He has made rapid progress on the paper keyboard and is also playing in section three of the course material.

We are also teaching a missionary in Aloguinson, a branch about a 45 minute drive from Toledo. He is doing very well but using only the paper keyboard for practice. He mentioned his lessons to Aloguinson’s Branch President, President Gallardo. President Gallardo has asked if we could teach piano in their Branch. There is currently no one who plays there.

Thursday night we attended a Home Evening in Aloguinson put together by Elders serving in that Branch. We loved it! They had invited about five families and several single adults from the Branch to meet together with an inactive/non-member couple and their children. The members came and we could not have been more impressed with their love, easy ability to have fun together, capabilities and dedication to the gospel. At the end of the home evening, five people surrounded us and asked when they could begin lessons. We are therefore making a request for three keyboards and instruction materials to be used in the Aloguinson Branch.

We have nineteen months left on our mission. I am confident we can teach these wonderful Filipino members to play well before we leave. We are attaching the letter we give to each student who is entrusted with a keyboard and also a record of Grant resources currently available to us.

By the end of the day, we had gratefully received notice that our request for keyboards for the Aloguinson Branch had been approved.

On Saturday, we attended another Home Evening for a large inactive family in Aloguinson and we were so happy to tell the members that keyboards were coming.  We will have three keyboards and three sets of instructional materials.  There are five or six who want to learn.  We will experiment with a team approach where the students share a keyboard, instructional materials and the paper keyboard during the week.  We will need to think about the best approach for this, but it should work. 

The Aloguinson (Ah-loh-geen-sohn) members had to walk a long way to Saturday’s Home Evening.  It was held outside a small two room house.  We drove to the path leading to the house, walked up and waited while Elder’s Narona and Manlicmot drove the car back to pick up some of the sisters and children who were walking.

It was interesting to try and carry on a conversation with the family’s very limited English and our totally lacking Cebuano.  Elder Dover was trying to explain about Wyoming and its Cowboy tradition.  I could tell they did not understand.

I remembered once watching our oldest granddaughter, Kylee, entertain Meghan and Jeff’s twins, Reese and Bodee, with a great galloping sound made by clapping her hands together and then slapping each knee in rapid succession. Before I knew it, I was off my seat galloping around with appropriate “Yahoos”.  I don’t know if they got the idea of the horses, but they loved the fun and learning how to make the galloping sound themselves.

Alonguinson Home Evening

Home Evening Refreshments

Today we will shop for paper to use in teaching Youth Conference Committee members how to make the accordion scrapbooks Karla Standage was so excited to teach me and Maryl how to make during one of Maryl’s visits to Georgia.  Later we taught Kylee how to make them on her Georgia visit. Whoever would have thought they would become the craft for a District Youth Conference in the Philippines!  

Weeks 8 through 14

. . .approximately weeks 8 through 14 or more exactly January 5 through Feb 16.

I feel like we are now into the second stage of our mission. We will call Settling In the first stage and this new stage, Expanding our Circle.

We have found a reliable internet server. No more staying at the Marriott just to contact family back home - too bad, because we enjoyed the warm water there. It was a little expensive though.

We bought our own new air-conditioner for the bedroom to replace the mildew filled one that we felt was a health hazard.

We have been to Lamac, a mountain town not accessible by car.

We have been stuck in the mud -  in a truck -  with the zone leaders and Elder Ernstrom from the mission office  - while driving down the mountain from Lamac -   after a rainstorm – just after Elder Dover finished telling the story about our getting stuck – in the mud – on a mountain road in Cody, Wyoming – after a rainstorm.

I have to admit we got stuck because Elder Ernstrom pulled to the side of the road to stop so I could take a picture. That wasn’t why we got stuck in Cody.  Our brother-in-law, Don Jensen, helped us in Cody.  Kind Filipino men living in the mountains near Lamac helped us that day.

We have received several packages from home including ant bait stakes and Uno games. 

We have shared the ant bait stakes with a good friend here who has had a problem with ants by her bed. We were happy to receive the following text: “The ants all gone. Totally!  Amazing!”

Elder Dover has introduced Uno to the Magbago children while I have been teaching piano to the family.  Their seven-year-old son loves coming now that he has fun Elder Dover to play Uno with while he waits.

We look forward to introducing the game to others at Branch gatherings.

We have appreciated the generosity of the Filippino members in wanting to share their traditional foods. Twice we have enjoyed Lechon - roast pig - at special gatherings.

We have enjoyed a Branch Aaronic Priesthood outing on the Rago’s beautiful water front property. I have held a blue starfish and one of a more prickly, squiggly nature.

We have inspected all the Elders apartments and helped upgrade them with necessary household items.

We experienced our first earthquake while living in this area known as “The Ring of Fire.”

I felt a definite calming influence as two young Elders, Elder Dover and I ran from the Elders shaking Aloguinson apartment where we were delivering some requested household items.

We were told by one long time resident that he would not evacuate in fear of a tsunami from the earthquake, but if the restless volcano, Canlaon, just across the Strait on Negros island should erupt, THEN he would evacuate.  We found that thought quite consoling. Our view of Canlaon reminds me of Bali Hi in the movie South Pacific.

Elder Dover has had three pair of great looking pants made for him by a member, Sister Rojas, in Balamban.  We took good but inexpensive material to her. She was going to charge him 200 pesos each, but in the end asked for 250 each because they were “large”. I have some material for her to sew a couple of things for me, but we haven’t been able to get back over there.

We tried the TransCentral highway for getting to Cebu.  It is not traveled by the buses and trucks because it is so steep.  It is beautiful and reminds us of a tropical Big Horn Mountain drive. We love going that way. It enters Cebu very close to the Temple Complex. We see very little traffic on the drive.

We now have Philippine driver licenses.  That was an interesting experience and a bit of an ordeal. One of my goals is to never need mine for personal driving.  Elder Dover does great and safety driving continues to be part of daily prayers.  I still think a great video game could be created called “Driving in the Philippines.” Levels could move up from walking, to a bike, to a trisikad, to a tricycle, to a jeepny, to a bigger jeepny, to a car to a truck, to a dump truck, to a bus and at that point - based on the way bus drivers drive - all advancement would end. 

Mark is serving as a counselor to President Rago in the Toledo Branch II Presidency. I have been called as a counselor in the Toledo Branch II Primary Presidency.  There are two classes.  President Joanne Rago, President Rago’s wife, teaches the younger ones.  I teach the older ones. They understand English fairly well. There is also a Sunbeam class. Sister Rago wanted help to make Primary function as it does in the States with singing and gospel instruction time during sharing time.  She is a wonderful teacher.  Reverence greatly improved last week.

I am teaching two single adults how to teach children Primary songs.  They do great and the children love singing for them.

We have two Philippine missionary piano students reading notes and playing simplified hymns from books provided through the church by the Harman Music Fund. Elder Dover helps teach the missionaries.

I have two single adult piano students beginning to read notes and two reading melody lines in both clefs.  

Toledo Branch I and Toledo Branch II each received a grant of two keyboards from the Harman Music Fund.  They were delivered to the Temple Complex in Cebu just today.  Can’t wait to get them into students hands.

The last Sunday in January, we attended the first Couples Conference at the mission home under the direction of President Schmutz.  It was fun to meet the other three Member and Leader Support couple missionaries. It was refreshing and inspiring. President and Sister Schmutz are inspired and inspiring leaders.

We spent the night before the conference with the Mission Office Couple, Brother and Sister Ernstrom in their home.  They were wonderful and gracious.  We enjoy their friendship. They went out of their way to make us comfortable, but Sister Ernstrom was winning Phase 10 when we had to quit and head to bed.

In consultation with President Schmutz and later with a couple serving in Bogo on the north end of the island, we have completed updating and enhancing of a Power Point Presentation Training District Presidents.  The  PPP was given to us by a missionary couple who completed a Philippine mission about six years ago.

 Our District President is very happy to have the presentation as a tool to use in his monthly Branch President Training meeting.  We were very pleased that he has trusted us with our own remote control to the air-conditioners in the Toledo LDS Chapel Meeting House. I have wished to have one of those on several occasions.  He said he wanted us to be comfortable as we worked in the chapel.

We have had our fourth all you can eat pancake breakfast for the missionaries in our Zone.  It is really fun to do this for them.  They let us know that they appreciate it.  In a very short time it has become a tradition. These are missionaries from the third transfer since we have been here.  They are serious about their work.  We love association with them.

We have placed 10 Mga Sugilanon  sa ang Basahon mi Mormon (Illustrated Books of Mormon for Children) with less active member families. We gave a copy to a branch mission leader to take to a recently activated family with a little girl. They live far out and on rocky roads so we can't take the car to their home. It is a rough ride in a jeepny. This little girl has been so excited to come to church. The mission leader, Brother John Bornea, asked little Saira if she liked the Book of Mormon. She said that she didn't understand it when it was read. He then gave her the illustrated children's book we had sent. She looked at some of the pages and then said, "I think this will be an important book in helping me understand the Book of Mormon.” We hope to get one of these books into the home of every Primary child.

We hope the books will be a tool renewing families interest in reading the Book of Mormon together. Which in turn will strengthen their testimony of our Savior Jesus Christ’s atoning mission and sacrifice.

We have attended a temple sealing and a civil wedding where me met the Mayor of Toledo. How marvelous that the beauty of a temple wedding is available as close as Cebu.  The Cebu temple was dedicated June 13, 2010 by President Thomas S. Monson.

We have attended two baptisms in Toledo.  There will be seven this Saturday in Toledo and another 12 next Saturday in Lamac.  We are going to help with a branch all you can eat pancake dinner after the baptisms in Lamac.

We are participating with the missionaries and Branch leaders in an area mission wide effort to bring the less active and inactive members back to the church and firmly establish the gospel here in these islands.  We especially enjoyed a recent Single Adults Search and Rescue Activity.  Several single adults have returned to church activity because of the visits made that day.  It was fun that as I was sharing my testimony in one home, a light hanging in the middle of the ceiling suddenly came on.  The young man we were visiting exclaimed that that light had been broken for three months.  He joked that it was a miracle and must be a sign that he must come back to church.  He did and continues to come.

Well, we had been promised by people who have served here earlier that we would see miracles in the Philippines.

The Lacang2x family has been coming to church and built steps to their porch just for us.

Oh, yes, we missed a nearly-all-the-family Disney Cruise.  Great timing on our family’s part! There were other family members besides ourselves, however, who couldn’t make it. Except for a flu epidemic that hit toward the last of the week, they had a great time.

Happy Valentines Day from Cebu

This free digital greeting card made with Smilebox