1-29-12

Elder Williams  and Elder Basilan

So I’m on right now, but my emails will be sporadic while I’m on because I have tons of 'paperwork' to do for reporting to the mission president and zone leaders and things about our work this month. Sorry about last week, we put a limit on our computer time instead of just open time, and it ran out before I could say goodbye. But right now we have open time so it’s no problem. How are things in America?

p.s.... parang.. kakaiba ung tagalog n'yo ah. kasi pag 'direct' translation, siempre naiintindihan klayo, pero ngyaon naiintindihan ako ng tagalog. ibig-sabihin, ang hirap ng tagalog n'yo kasi. i-aapreciate ko ung efforts n'yo na magtagalog. mahal kita. 

(p.s. ... like .. different Tagalog cheating. Because  the 'direct' translation, of course klayo understand, but I understand Tagalog now. meaning, the difficulty of cheating Taglalog because. I appreciate efforts to speak tagalong that which is here now. I love you)

also, can you have kenzie or kelsie do me a favor?

What would you like Kenz and Kelsie to do?  TELL US ABOUT YOUR WEEK! and your companion.

cge pasentya po talaga. Kasi sa miyerkoles sa feb 1 so ibig-sabihin kinakailangan namin na i-report kila pres at mga AP ung work nmin sa month na ito. pero medyo okay na. ayos talaga ang noong linggo. noong lunes ng gabi, pumunta kmi sa isang pamilya for FHE, at medyo ayaw nila na mag-FHE pero kapag nagsimula tau na kumanta, ang lakas ng espirit sa bahay nila. tapos martes may lesson kmi sa isang investigator, at isang miyembro, (ang pinsan ng investigator) ay nag-share about sa pamilya. sobrang lakas ung spirit talaga.

may tanong po ako sa inyo. pangit ang face ko kasi red palaga. talagang wala na ung acne, pero red pa rin. ano'ong dapat kong gawin?

cge (indicates respect or politeness) please patient actually. Because on Wednesday Feb 1 meaning so we needed to press reports and the AP kila i nmin to work this month. but pretty okay. Actually settled in the week. on Monday night, go kmi a family for FHE, and they do little to FHE but when stalking began to sing, the strength of their home Espirit. Tuesday lessons kmi done with an investigator, and a member, (the cousin of the investigators) have been shared about the family. i really super strength spirit.

Sorry about the late email. its the end of the month so I had to do a bunch of paper work for President Martino and my zone leaders about our work this month. this was a good week. Yesterday we had family home evening with the senior couple, E and S Roberts (Elder Roberts is from Ontario. cool, right?) and he shared a story about his dad walking around the farm and looking at dirt while he and his brothers moved pipe all day long. I don’t want to write the whole story, but thanks. I know the decisions you've made for me in the past were the right ones, even if I wasn't happy about them.

I got an email from Rowland today, his mission is almost over, and that scares me. I also never ever want to leave San Clemente. If I could live in San Clemente I totally would. If you and dad come to the Philippines when my mission is over, we are definitely traveling to San Clemente. Sorry about the Tagalog, it’s a lot of misspelled slang, hopefully you know someone who can translate for you. 

The Tagalog is sometimes hard to translate but we manage.  We know you well enough to kind of get what you are saying.  We would like you to elaborate more on Elder Roberts and the decisions because that does not make sense.

hahaha google translate! pangit ftw! (ugly; not good) I said its weird when you send me things in tagalog because it’s how they would be said in English, so when I read with the Tagalog part of my brain it sounds weird.

Anyway, E Roberts told a story about him and his brothers moving pipe on their farm, and his dad would walk around looking at dirt all day, and he was mad because his dad never did any work. But now he realizes his dad was looking at the dirt and studying it so he'd know when they should move the pipe again.

His point was parents made very calculated decisions about important things, like whether or not I can hang out with Rowland and Brycen on Saturday night even though we have church in the morning and I just got back from a cross country race that weekend. What I’m trying to say is thank you for keeping me safe and making the right choices for me my entire life.

 oh sorry again about the late email!

 mahal na mahal ko kayo

SO CUTE!!

ang week ko ay mas maganda kaysa noong lingo

This week our email came in all Tagalog.  I have tried to translate it.  Much of it does not translate very good but you can understand what he is trying to say.   I was able to ask him a few questions to get some of the words or what he was meaning.  Enjoy....  
 
ang week ko ay mas maganda kaysa noong lingo. kumain ako ng balut. okay lang ang lasa niya. Si E. Basilan ang bagong kasama ko. Astig siya talaga.

Ang isang babae, si sister reno, ay nagalalaba. Ka-branch kami. Ayoko magbayad 300 pesos bawat linggo para sa aking paglalaba, pero ang hirap ng buhay nila. Sa pangkain, minsan 800 pesos bawat linggo, minsan 1200 pesos. mahirap na magsabi kasi.

okay lang this week. may primary activity kami noong saturday, nag-games kami tapos nag-chastize nila kami kasi makulit sila at  ayow nila maging reverent sa sacrament hall. nag-games kami tapos, may candi ako sa kanila tapos nahulog ako kasi nag-attack ko sila. sakit 'yan talaga! Pero masaya ako kasi. Ayow na ayoko malipat! ayow na ayoko umiwa! gusto ko mag-asawa dito (Joke!)

pasentya po talaga kasi. Gusto ko ipadala ang package sa inyo, pero hindi siya ang priority ko.

ito ay ang listahan ng priorities ko:

1. mga investigators

2. mga less actives

3. gawaing misyonero

4. mga meetings

5. p-day

6. ipinipadala ang mga bagay sa inyo.

Basta. tatanggapin ninyo ang lahat bago uumiwi ako. pasentya sa inyo talago

P.S. kung magpopost ka ito sa blog po ninyo, sabin mo: sorry about all the bag tagalog

mahal ko kayo,

Elder Williams

 

The week is better than last week. I eat Balut. okay just taste him. 

and well the new Elder Basilan with me He truley is cool.

A woman, sister Reno, does laundry. You we branch. (She is in their Branch) i do not pay 300 pesos per week for my laundry, but the difficulty of their lives. In Pangkain, sometimes 800 pesos per week, once in 1200 pesos. Because hard to say. ( he is charged 300 pesos per week for laundry but pays 800 to 1200 due to the difficulty in their lives)
okay this week. primary activity we have on Saturday, when we finished games they chastise us who because they annoying ayow they become reverent in sacrament hall. who we finished games, I have them done candy fell because they attack them.  

 

patients really po because. I would send the package to you, but it is not my priority.
This is my list of priorities:
1. investigators
2. the less actives
3. missionary
4. meetings
5. p-day
6. ipinipadala matters to you.

Just. You will receive everything before I went home. Patients with you talago
P.S. If you post this to the  blog Please, you sabin: sorry about all the bad Tagalog
I love you,
Elder Williams 

 

 

Transfers

Transfers were… the worst. I thought for sure I'd be leaving; Elder Abuan was here for only one transfer. But he's gone now. He went to Guimba zone. I have a new companion. He's new, very new. I'm training him. I’m still in San Clemente. I will spend seven and a half months here in the best branch in the mission. My companion is super great. I taught him how to use an area book and weekly planning, and he has taken care of me ever since. And he can teach like a seasoned Filipino. I also haven't slept since Wednesday, it’s been.... Interesting.  I ate balut last night. We went to a funeral, they are so strange here. They keep the bodies in a casket with a glass case over it. Elder Bell is really cool, I like him a lot. This means nothing to you but he lives only a 50 peso tricycle ride away from me. That’s like a 7 peso bus ride. We have roughly 190 missionaries right now; President Martino wants to get over 200 within a few transfers.

 Sorry transfers were so bad, are you glad you stayed or hoped you would leave?  So now you will be there for another 2 transfers right? Because you are training?  What is your new companion’s name? Why are you not sleeping? How was the Balut? What made you try it?

I'm so glad I stayed. I never want to leave San Clemente. But I just don’t feel ready to train. My new companion is Elder Basilan. The balut wasn’t actually that bad. Just the fact that it is an underdeveloped duck is the bad part. I haven't slept because being a trainer is a lot of work. What made me try it is a kid on a bike was yelling "BALUT! BALUT!"

 Is he a flilpino and is he a brand new missionary?  You are ready to train because you were finally getting comfortable in your mission.  It is now time for you to grow.  Did you have a baptism on Saturday? Are you sending any pictures this week? 

He is filipino, and has been in the mission 5 days. We had a baptism but I forgot the SD card with the pictures on it. I don’t have any pictures to send this week. I will send the SD card sometime this week.

  Tell us about your week...Where do you go to pick up the new companion and how was the baptism?  We want to know more...

 We went to Angeles City, had some training, and then ate food with all the trainers and trainees, then came back to San Clemente. The baptism was awesome; he wants to go on a mission in 2 years. Three of my last four converts want to serve missions.

Last night I played chess with Elder Revillio (our new district leader) and he beat me in three moves. It’s been a really stressful week. I've had to lead the area for the last 2 months, and i still can't speak tagalog that well. It's getting better, but sometimes I don’t know certain words or don’t understand what people say to me.
My time here is up. I'll talk to you again next week! Love you!

Elder Williams loves and misses his cousins. All of them are at least 3 years younger than him.   He was always so good to play with them and make sure they felt important.  We decided to send a monthly craft from his cousins.

Fun crafts from his cousins

6 months

 

hello po

You are very early! How was your week? What happened to you this week?

Well I think I’m leaving San Clemente this week, transfers are coming up on thursday. To be honest, I’m distraught about it. Yesterday as we were leaving the church building, I felt that same feeling in my stomach that I felt when I left for college a year and a half ago. And the idea of going to a new area is frightening. We have a baptism on Saturday, I might not be here to see it.

I also rode on the back of a tricycle. Easily the scariest thing I've ever done. Other than that, nothing else is worth writing that I can think of. IT's been another awesome week of missionary work.   Actually I harvested rice filipino style, that was pretty cool.

That will be very difficult to leave you have done so well there and love the people. That makes it really hard to leave others behind especially when you have so invested so much time.  You will do well anywhere you go?  Tell us about harvesting rice? Kenz wants to know if we should count this baptism on her chart? Do you still like your companion as much as you have in the past?What has been your favorite experience so far on your mission? How do you cook rice? Do you have a rice cooker?

Harvesting rice was cool, i actually enjoyed it because it was in the late afternoon so it wasn’t super hot.  I'll tell you next week if you should count the baptism. Ask me again next Monday.My companion is still great, I wish him and I could just serve in San Clemente until he goes home. We have a rice cooker, but we generally just cook it over a fire. As far as my favorite experience goes, that’s a loaded question. I’m not sure I could think of one. If it makes you feel any better, I have a lot of traumatizing experiences, and twice I have said to myself I was going to die.  We have cooked it outside before, usually just at members homes. at our house we have a gas stove and a rice cooker.

Traumatizing experiences?  Do tell...and we would love to hear how you almost died

1. Well one time on September 9, 2011 I was on a bus headed to my area. When we got off the bus, elder casilac threw my luggage on top of a trike and told me to get in. My first time in a tricycle and we were in the middle of town. A big scary, dirty, polluted town with nothing but trikes, and no stoplights. Everyone just governs themselves.I think you saw the video of the traffic here. That was scary.

2. About three weeks later, we were going with the bamban elders to camiling to play basketball. To get from san clemente to camiling, we take a bus, and it costs 10 pesos. One morning as we're walking to the bakery, a scary guy in a stoner van pulls up next to us. He's playing loud music, has a beanie on, and tells us to get in "Camiling! Camiling! 8 pesos lang!" I looked at my trainer with a look of disgust and said "Anong gagawin natin??"

He and the other elders got in the van, and i reluctantly followed them. That was the second time I told myself I was going to die

We did think the trike video was a little scary especially the one where you see the traffic.  What city is your companion from? Where do you get your tagolog book of mormon? We have been trying to find one, did they give you one in the MTC?

They give us boxes and boxes of books of mormon. You could probably order one on the LDS website.

Did you get a chance to send the maps back?

nope i haven't. MAybe next week.

tatay just wants them back.  We will let you get back to missionary work.  Good luck this week.  We will pray for you and your comfort this week no matter what the outcome is.
Love you
That sounds weird when you say tatay. Technically it does mean dad, but they use tatay when they walk past an old guy and want to say hi. a more appropriate use in this situation would be papa.But I appreciate your attempt at Tagalog :)

Love you,

Elder Williams

Elder Williams with his current companion Elder Aubon

I learned three things

We love the Planking pictures.  We send him ours and he sends his it has been a fun tradition.

How was your week? What kind of things happened to you this week?   Are you teaching anyone specific?

 This week I learned three things:

1. Spiders have a knowledge of triangles at a level that humans could never even imagine to achieve. We cleaned out our back porch area (which hasn't been cleaned in probably 10 years) and made it look nice, so we aren't stuck in the house all the time. I saw some of the most impressive spiderwebs that exist anywhere in the world. I also hear spiders are not poisonous here and they make great "pets" for children.

2. College was great. I learned a lot from it. In comparison to my mission, I didn't learn a thing. At college, I learned to separate clothes by color and boil water for food. As of this week, I know how to actually cook real food. I can make maraming ulam. (which I will show you in some pictures later). I can also wash my clothes by hand. We have a member in our ward who does it for us, but she charges 300 pesos per week. If I do it myself, it will cost about 40 pesos per week. hopefully by my next area I will be able to do it well without any help.

3. Except for thanksgiving, I have not celebrated a holiday in 6 months. There is literally nothing in the Philippines that is the same as in America, and New Years Eve was no different.

Today on the hike, we ate ulam at kanin off banana leaves. I took a video of it, and you'll probably die when you see it.

How is your companion?

My companion is so great. I loved elder casilac, but I could be with my companion until he goes home and not have a problem. Me and him get along so well. 

 What did you do for New Years?

This is what happened on new years:

New Years Eve we taught one investigator, he comes to institute all the time and actually works with us sometimes. He's great. The first visit (after he came to church with a friend) we asked him to pray about what we're teaching. his response was "Hindi." we couldn't understand why he wouldn't pray about it, and then he explained he already knows its true.

After we taught him we had ice cream on our front porch (people aren't allowed inside missionaries homes) and then I went to bed.

New years day we went to church, I took a nap, then we had family home evening at a members home with elder and sister Roberts. They;re great.

Matt  wants to know if are you wearing your mission goggles and do you remember the story about the oats and barley?

You tell Matt of course I remember the oats and barley, but its good to remind me every few months. Tell him to remind me again in March. Ask him if the superhero is still on the corner of the library bookshelf.