Week 77: Christmas with LAs

Merry late Christmas, and early happy New Year, from the man celebrating it all the day before you do. This week was a bona fide good week. Last monday, I tried my hand at graphic design and crafted this masterpiece:

We took it to a print shop and got a bunch of these printed on nice paper, and most of our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day was spent handing out Christmas cards from the Elders to different members, including less-actives, recent converts, and some people that we're teaching. It was super cool to see the looks on peoples faces when they realized that the Elders stepped up their game, and spent five minutes in Google Drawings making a Christmas card.

On Christmas Eve we had district council, so a lot of missionaries from the surrounding areas were at the chapel. Our District all decided to spring for a McDonalds lunch, just to feel a little closer to home. I got a triple cheeseburger, which is pretty much exactly as good as it sounds, and just to complete the homesickness, we stopped by 7-11 to get slurpees on the way back from McDo. It was good, clean, American dining. It was interesting to see all the missionaries there who were all far away from home (to varying degrees) and celebrating Christmas with people most of them didn't even know 6 months ago. They were all happy, singing Christmas songs, and loving their Philippine Christmas.

The members sure helped quite a bit. They've been really good about helping us feel at home this Christmas. After we called home Christmas Morning, we went over to these members who are coming back to church and they made us a nice American breakfast for Christmas, which was much appreciated.

That is hashbrowns, eggs, spam, a hotdog and french toast. It was very good. Sitting across from me there is Westley. He's been a really good help. He's 11, and he's been letting me see his memes that he's got. He's a good boy and they're good memes.

I found Mrs. Nesbitt during our christmas travels:

and I also found this notebook that made me laugh quite a bit:

I didn't know Jose Rizal was into masonry, but I guess that's just some information I've got at my disposal now.

I don't really know where I was going with that one, but hey, it's Christmas.

A virgin conceived, and her son was the son of God.

6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Jesus Christ was born, and he will return. He suffered, died and he lives. He loves all of us with an everlasting love, and he is the Mediator, the Prince of Peace, the Good Shepherd, the Bridegroom, and all other titles he has been given. I'm grateful I have the opportunity to share these good tidings to the people around me, and to help them come closer to him.

Love,
Elder Menzie

Tagalog for a dime:
namamasko po! -- what little kids say when they carol to us and want money

Week 76: Ngyaon ay Pasko

I'm going to start this email off with a picture of what my companion and I saw in a filipino department store last monday:

I'm not the craziest fan of Lilo and Stitch, but this looks like cruel and unusual punishment for a blue alien-dog. We got out of the store pretty soon after this picture was taken, and I don't have any plans to go back.

This week was a pretty fun week. We had CHr1stMaS C0nfErENcE! Half the mission got together on Tuesday and we heard messages from President and Sister Craig about the Savior. President Craig gave a description of the last day of Christ's life though the resurrection, which was really powerful. Sister Craig recited "the Living Christ" which was pretty darn cool.

After that there was a cultural dancing bit where some youth from the area did some cool filipino dances. My favorite was this one called tinikling, which is where these two guys bang bamboo on the ground and then together rhythmically, and then other people dance between the bamboo and hope they don't get their ankles smashed. It was really funny when President and Sister Criag got in and gave it a try. They sure gave it a good try, but I guess it's harder than it looks, because they were struggling. After that we watched "It's a Wonderful Life, and I think my companion was cutting onions or something. After that, they gathered us all together, gave us stockings, snapped a picture, and sent us on our merry way.

That's some of us who were on the bus back. Those blue ties that some of us are wearing are actually mission ties they put in the stocking. it's got a cute lil' mission logo embroidered on it and everything. All things considered, this Christmas Conference was better than last year, because last year, all the senior couples did a dance routine to Jingle Bell Rock, which I still have not been able to erase from my brain.

Sunday was cool because it was a special sacrament meeting centered on Jesus Christ (which you'd think they all should be, but I guess just moreso this time) where everyone was supposed to bring a friend. I don't think anyone actually brought a friend, but oh well. The actual cool bit happened a little bit later, when we found a little group of members standing outside the chapel. we thought they were waiting for an interview or something, but actually, they were getting ready to go caroling and give away a few packages with groceries in them to some people who were struggling. So naturally, we were like: "Can we come?" to which they were like: "Yes,"

So we went caroling.

We didn't get figgy pudding, or even ask for any, but going caroling was super darn fun. It was so good to see the looks on the faces of the people, some of whom knew nothing about the church, when we arrived and started singing. Also we got to ride in this:

...and that was fun.

I'm looking forward to Christmas #2 in the Philippines. President Craig made a really good point in Christmas Conference when he said that we (the missionaries) will never have another time in our lives to focus so much on the Saviour during this time of year. We don't have to worry about getting the best present for somebody, or about anything besides the work that we've been called to. I intend to try and make the most of that, during the last Christmas of my mission.

Love,
Elder Menzie

Seasonal Tagalog:
ngayon ay pasko -- Now is Christmas

Week 75: Master Bush Pruner

TUGUEGARAO UPDATE: Last week I talked about one of my past areas that was flooded , and from what I hear, the flood waters have gone down, and the missionaries are back in the area. END OF TUGUEGARAO UPDATE

This week was a little bit of a slower week than last week. I've just been chillin' like a villain, trying to get some work done, trying to teach some people. Nothing crazy, nothing to knock your socks off. However, we did have a service project at our recent convert's work, and it was pretty darn impressive.

That's Maribel, she works at SICAT, which is a college in our area where she works. We swept a lot of leaves, and I pruned a bush.

This is my bush that I pruned. I also pruned another one, but I forgot to take a picture of that one. All things considered, I think I'm pretty much a master bush pruner.

It was a fun little service project, and she got us some really good soup afterwards called lomi. It was yummy.

We also had the ward Christmas party this week, which makes sense, because it's getting pretty darn chilly here. I might buy a sweater, it's like 27 degrees here! Degrees Celcius, that is. It was a fun Christmas party. There was a lot of food, dancing and all the stuff you'd expect out of a filipino church Christmas party.

Speaking of stuff you'd expect to see at a filipino church Christmas party, in the above picture, I am holding in my hand a hotdog on a skewer with marshmallows, just so all y'all know that it exists and is real.

We also had a nice 'ole baptism this week!

Dominador got baptized this week, and it's about time, because he's been taught the entire time I've been in this area. He's living with his Aunt and Uncle (the other guy who's wearing a white jumpsuit) who are members. He's been super excited to get baptized, because he's been going to church since 'nam. He's baptized now, and has the priesthood, and some really good support at home. The Quistoria family (his Aunt and Uncle) are one of the most humble and goofy families I've ever met. That little girl standing in front of Brother Quistoria is named Aloha, and she is crazy. One time we went over to teach Dominador, and she just kept saying "Hindi, tae!" over and over again. This is funny because that means "No, poop!" It was pretty silly. Dominador is cool. The Quistoria family is cool. And this has been another week of "Elder Menzie, Lost in the Philippines" see you next week, same bat-time, same bat-place.

--
Love,
Elder Menzie

Week 74: The Rains Came Down and the Floods Came Up

To quote my mother, "This week has been a doozy." I don't even know where to start, because this week was like a big 'ole rollercoaster with ups and downs, and if I'm being honest, I want off, because i'm getting kinda nauseous.

I guess Thursday is a good place to start. We had meetings in Cauayan on Thursday, and the missionaries from Tuguegarao and Ilagan (the northernmost zones in the mission) weren't there. They said something about flooding, but it was sort of an in one ear out the other sort of thing, because I saw Elder Pino! He was my companion a while ago when I was in Gosi, which just so happens to be part of Tuguegarao. He's been one of my favorite companions, and Gosi has probably been my favorite area, so it was a super happy reunion.

It was really cool to meet up with him again, and eventually the Tugue missionaries got there, and they brought pictures of the flood.

To those who don't really know what they're looking at, that's the biggest city in my mission, and it's usually not that wet. The Buntun Bridge stands 121 feet (37 meters, for the one communist who reads these) in the air. The water made it impassable. In the middle of the meeting, President craig got the update that some of the Elders in Tugue might be trapped in their house, not able to evacuate because of the flood, and the amount of genuine concern he showed for their situation was really touching. They're safe now, but Tugue is still under water.

We got to a teaching appointment on Friday, and they had a TV on showing the news. I heard them say something about Gosi Norte, which is the Barangy I used to live in, so I started paying attention, and I just saw so much water. And then, I saw my old landlord, who just so happened to be the 2nd counselor in the bishopric, and a super nice guy who fed us a lot, on the news! That just made it surreal for me. I saw on the news houses that I had walked by for almost 6 months, halfway submerged in water. It didn't even sink in what I was seeing until I was able to call up Elder Adams, who was another one of my companions in Gosi. I talked to him a little bit, and it just hit me that all the people in Gosi Ward who had shown me such kindness were in such danger, and were experiencing so much destruction. People that I know, who I had the privilege of serving, who served me so well, were underwater, and those feelings are hard to describe well.

One of my favorite chapters in the Old Testemant is Isaiah 54. In this chapter, the Lord reminds Israel of his covenant with them. He reminds them that he has promised to gather them, and nothing will stop that.
9 For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.
10 For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.
It seems almost like dry humor on the Lord's part that this verse references Noah and the flood, and then compares his promise never to flood the earth to "the covenant of [his] peace". My testimony to all that read, even in the midst of all the trials that constantly seem to encompass you is the promise that the Lord made to Israel anciently: "my kindness shall not depart from thee," I believe that wholeheartedly, especially now, when it's really hard to. The Lord is mindful of us. He's mindful of me, he's mindful of you, and I feel in my heart that he is mindful of his humble disciples in Gosi, and no matter what, his tender mercies and kindness will continue to be showered upon us all.

Here are some happy pictures to make you happy:

Me eating a fried cricket (this was actually super good)

the bus home from Cauayan

Baptism

Love,

Elder Menzie

Tagalog too deep:

baha -- flood

MLC pics

Week 73: Live in Thanksgiving Daily

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all! I hope you all had a good time celebrating with a big meal in a country that actually recognizes the holiday. We were feeling kinda low this Thanksgiving, so we got together with some other missionaries and got the most American meal we could get our hands on:

No, your eyes do not deceive you, that is the one, the only, Kenny Rogers Roasters. There wasn't any sweet potato casserole or pie, but y'know, fried chicken with mashed potatoes and mac n' cheese is pretty good.

I'm thankful for Kenny's chicken and his chimichurri sauce.

I'm also thankful for the Barrientos Family.

Like I said in my last email, they got baptized and confirmed this week! It was so cool to see them all get baptized. When they were giving their testimonies, Sister Rosemarie was testifying, and I felt the spirit so hard when she all but quoted D&C 123:12 when referring to their search for the Gospel:
"12 For there are many yet on the earth among all sects, parties, and denominations, who are . . . only kept from the truth because they know not where to find it."

Brother Arnold shared to us all the times that Arian (their 11 year old daughter) was supposed to be baptized into all these different churches, but for one reason or another they didn't work out. Their testimonies are so pure and strong. When Arian got into the font, a mixture of cold water, nervousness and excitement had her quaking like she was about to move to Pennsylvania. Their pure joy at having found the truth fills my heart with thanks to my Heavenly Father who knows them perfectly and is happier than I could ever be that they are on the covenant path.

This week it seems pretty fitting to share a family favorite verse from the Book of Mormon:
"38 That ye contend no more against the Holy Ghost, but that ye receive it, and take upon you the name of Christ; that ye humble yourselves even to the dust, and worship God, in whatsoever place ye may be in, in spirit and in truth; and that ye live in thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you." (Alma 34:38)

That idea of constantly remembering "the many mercies and blessings," that the Lord gives to us is to me one of the signs of a true disciple of Jesus Christ. Being humble and in tune enough with the Spirit to be thankful for your daily bread is hard! Some days are hard to be thankful for! Sometimes entire years or more seem to not have anything good in them, but this is a commandment for us to be thankful daily. I know that the hard days can be better as we look for  "the MANY mercies and blessings," that we have been promised. God is constantly blessing us, and through our thankfulness, we will see the hand of the Living God in our lives.

Finally, a going away party for Elder Walker (who isn't transferring [they got 3 cakes])...

Love,
Elder Menzie

Tagalog of Plenty:
Pagpapasalamat -- Thanksgiving

Week 72: There (in Cabarroguis) and Back Again (to Santiago)

This week was pretty hectic. We went on splits with the Elders in Cabarrougis again on Tuesday, because they needed to have some baptismal interviews done, so we made that trip again, and I hope you'll all be proud to know that I did not misplace my camera case even once. it was great. We got fed dinner by a really nice family. Here is a picture of that:

That girl in pink in the background is a return missionary from the Philippines, Davao mission, which is cool, because her mission president is from my 2nd area, back in Tuguegarao, and his brother was in the bishopric and our landlord. Small world.

We also went on splits with Elders Hansen and Moser in Cordon (which is a LOT closer than Cabarroguis) because we had a baptismal interview that needed to get done, and it was super fun, because it was Elder Hansen's 20th birthday!!🎉🎉🎉 Happy birthday, Elder Hansen. We also got fed by some really nice members in Cordon for his birthday. There was cake and it was yummy.

After lunch Elder Hansen interviewed Barrientos family!

The Philippines is full of some of the most humble and kind people on the planet, but if I'm being honest, I think the Barrientos family just might take the cake (not Elder Hansen's birthday cake, I ate that). The first time we even talked to them, we hadn't even taught them and they gave us a bag FULL of bananas, almost too many bananas for 2 elders (which is a lot of bananas). They sell bananas and pineapples on the side of the highway so for the past month, we've had a lot of fresh fruit around the apartment, so you don't have to worry Mom. They're super great, and they're getting baptized this Saturday, which I am super excited for.

Love,
Elder Menzie

Tagalog NXS:
Masyong maraming saging -- An excessive amount of bananas

Week 71: Quirino Miracle

This week was pretty darn cool. I'm not really someone who is good at seeing the "tender mercies of the Lord," in fact, I feel like the Lord has to slap me upside the head sometimes to get me to notice. This week, I got slapped upside the head, and it was super duper cool.

This week I went on splits with the Elders in Cabarrougis, which is also in the Santiago South Zone, but it's in Quirino province, which just means that my leather proselyting sandals have been in 1 more province than before. We took a nice white van that looked like it was going to kidnap us from Santiago to Cabarrougis, and while we were on the van, I was showing Elder Mills, one of my companions for the day, some pictures from my camera, as you do.

The van ride was long and not very comfortable, but finally we got to Cabarrougis, which is a very pretty place, by the way.

Cabarrougis is super cool,and I'm not just saying that because it was overcast. Anyway, we got back to the Cabarrougis apartment, and got ready to go to District Council, when I realize, to my dismay, that while I had been showing Elder Mills pictures from my camera on the van, the case I keep my camera in fell onto the floor of the van. And I know what all of you are thinking: "who cares about a stupid camera case?" I DO. That camera case had a cute little knit pouch in it that Elder Pino gave to me, which is where I kept my card reader and USB drive, both of which were not things I wanted to replace. I had my camera though, which was the most important thing, I guess.

I was pretty bummed for the rest of the day, and I felt silly for losing it, but we just kept working and taught some lessons. We taught these girls and their uncle (who lives an hour away, it was pretty weird for him to be there) and they were super cool. They had this little plush egg hobo that Christina really likes:

After that, we went to a birthday party for dinner, and ate some chocolate ice cream with toffee bits in it, which isn't something I knew existed in the Philippines. That was delicious, but it was even more delicious when the guy who we taught at the house with the egg plushie comes to the door and is like "Elder Menzie, is this yours?" and he's holding my flippin camera case!!!

I was in complete shock. I thought I might've not actually left it on the van, but had it in my bag the whole time and dropped it at their house, but this man tells me that he owns a van, and at the end of the day, he found this little camera case on the van with a USB on it that when plugged in has the name MENZIEJUMBO, and has folders like missionDocuments and BookOfMormonVideos.

Some people might dispute whether or not this was literal divine intervention, but a quick list of the things that needed to happen for me to get my camera case back are pretty crazy:

• We got on that specific van. If we had left like 20 minutes earlier we would've been on a different van and my case would still be gone
• I was going to Cabarrougis specifically. If I had been going on splits in Madela or Cordon, my case would still be gone
• We taught these girls with their uncle. I've never met them before, and if we hadn't taught them they never would have known that there was even such a thing as an Elder Menzie, and my case would still be gone
• Their uncle was there, in Cabarrougis, instead of in Madela, where he lives, which is an hour away. If he was in madela, my case would still be gone
• They just so happened to check the USB right after we left, and just happened to remember my name. If they hadn't, my case would still be gone
• They asked us where we were going to dinner. If they didn't know where we were going, they would have had no way to get it back to me before I had to travel back to Santiago the next morning, and ... I'd probably have the case at this point, but it would've been a lot more annoying for me.

I believe that it was a literal miracle that I got that case back. not trying to be dramatic, but my case was lost, and there was none that could deliver it except  it was the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and he surely did.
2 I would that ye should do as I have done, in remembering the captivity of our fathers; for they were in bondage, and none could deliver them except it was the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and he surely did deliver them in their afflictions.  (Alma 36:2)

a picture

Love,
Elder Menzie

Tagalog time:
himala -- miracle

Pics from MLC

Lunch provided by Sister Rosy

Week 70: Stone of Help

This week has been a pretty good week. Recently, Elder Walker and I have been seeing the fruits of some of our labors, which is super nice, especially because I'm in the Philippines, so the fruit is super delicious, and it's literal fruit:

If you were thinking to yourself "that pineapple needs a haircut" I'd have to agree with you. so I gave it a haircut:

In unrelated news, we found out that the knives in our apartment are REALLY dull.

In even more unrelated news, we found out that it takes less than a minute for 2 missionaries to eat a pineapple, but much, much more time than that to peel one.

Here's a cool bridge we found:

I've been thinking a little bit recently about joy. In life, as well as on the mission, sometimes we think that certain things are going to bring us joy. I know at least in the mission, sometimes I get in the mindset that if I get certain numbers I'll be happy. If I get this many people to church, if I can find this many new people, if I can get so many baptisms, etc. Which makes it hard when you're having "success" on your mission, in terms of numbers, but you still feel sad. I was thinking one day, and absentmindedly whistling Come, thou Fount of Every Blessing, and I thought about the lyrics to the second verse:

Here I raise my Ebenezer
Hither by thy help I come
And I hope by thy good pleasure
Safely to arrive at home 

Jesus sought me when a stranger
Wandering from the fold of God
He, to rescue me from danger
Interposed His precious blood

In Hebrew,  אבן העזר, or Eben-Ezer, translated means: The Stone of Help, and refers to 1 Samuel 7:12, where the Isralites erect a big 'ole stone to commemorate the Lord helping them to win a battle. I think that this idea of remembering the Lord's help is key to finding joy in life; remembering the blessings he's given you, and remembering that by the grace of Christ alone we will be able "safely to arrive at home." That idea fills me with joy. Jesus Christ loves us so much that he rescued us all from the danger of sin and death through his own blood, and I love him for it. Even though I wander all the time, reminding myself that there's someone who cares so much about my personal salvation that he would take upon himself all of the pains he knew would keep me from returning home [brings joy].

Love,
Elder Menzie

Tagalog like ya just don't care:
kung gusto mo, may paraan; kung iyaw, maraming dahilan -- If there's a will, there's a way; if you don't want, there's a lot of reasons

Santiago Zone Conference pics

Week 69: Runaway Bride!

This week has been long, and not without trials. We've been teaching this super cool guy named Vincent for a while now, and he's actually been taught by the missionaries before, but didn't feel like he was ready for baptism, so he didn't get baptized, and he moved to Santiago, where, a few weeks before I got here, he walked into sacrament meeting and told the missionaries he wanted to get baptized, to which they said yes.

So I come into the picture during his teaching, and he's cool! he understood all the doctrine, asked really good questions, and was super eager to get baptized. We wrapped up his teaching and then his interview was on Wednesday. We get to the interview, and the District Leader starts interviewing him, only to find out pretty quickly that Vincent is moving to Ilagan (different city in the mission) later that day. That was really annoying, and not gonna lie I was kinda peeved at Vincent for moving so suddenly. Then I just thought about it for a hot minute, and it sounds really cheezy, but way before the missionaries taught him, Vincent was a child of God. God's got a plan for Vincent, and if it's not part of that plan for him to get baptized in Santiago, that's okay, because there are blessings on blessings in store for him wherever he's going.

This is a nice pass along card I found taped to the inside of a tricy, right inside the rosary:

This good, good boy:

This flattening machine looks like it's got a face, and reminds me of the red one from Bob the Builder, which makes me realize, of all the Bob the Builder construction machines, this one is probably the one I've seen least. I like what it's about though:

Love,
Elder Menzie

Tagalog like you're running out of time:
Lumitat siya bigla -- he moved (houses) suddenly

Week 68: The Nightmare Bridge Before Christmas

So  it's been a week of thrills and chills. Elder Moser and Elder Powell left this week, so it's back to just Elder Walker and I. We've technically been companions for 6 weeks already, but just because of the way the cookie crumbled it feels like a brand new companionship.
This week has been a much more normal week than the past few, which is nice for me, because it means I can catch my breath for once. And by catch my breath, I mean get back to doing missionary work instead of living in an apartment full of sick people. It's been great.

I walked on a scary bridge this week:

We were walking to an appointment and I saw this scary bridge and said to Elder Walker:
"Hey, that's a scary bridge," to which he replied:
"Yeah, it's pretty spooky," and then somehow I convinced him that the one shack on the other side of the scary bridge had some people who REALLY wanted to hear a quick message about Jesus. So we crossed the scary bridge, only to find, lo and behold, the only person home was sleeping really hard and did not, in fact REALLY want to hear a message about Jesus.

So we crossed the scary bridge again.

It was less spooky the second time, but I still was not interested in falling into that water.

speaking of sPo0Ky: It's Christmas!

They've been playing Christmas songs in the malls for a month now, and my companion has us sing Christmas songs in all the lessons, but I think we're breaking some sort of international law or some sort of Geneva convention by doing that.

Maybe I'm just some sort of Ebeneezer Scrooge and don't understand the culture as well as I should, and maybe I should just remember the reason for the season and all that jazz, but maybe, just maybe, this country is full of crazy people who don't know how to properly separate their holidays and the celebration thereof. But it's probably just me. All I know is that is altogether too hot in this country to properly celebrate Christmas right now.

Alright I'm pretty sure I am just a grumpy ole scrooge, but I think some of the original point still stands.

Here's another picture of me doing a dangerous Philippines thing:

That's me chillin like a villan on a roof with some nice foliage in the background. Not a whole lot of explanation needed there, just Elder Menzie contemplating the proper celebration of Christmas.

Love,
Elder Menzie

Tagalog, in a manner of speaking:
Amok ... Manok? -- I know(Ilokano) ... Chicken(tagalog)? Someone was tring to teach me some Ilokano, and they said amok, so I said "manok?" because the two words sound alike, and trust me, it was hilarious.

Dropped by the mission office

Santiago's Fearsome Foursome: Elder Menzie, Elder Walker, Elder Moser and Elder Powell

Week 67: Like a Straw Toque

This week has been a sick week. The Celestial Tatlohan was still in full force, and Elder Powell was sick. We didn't want him to have to go back to Manila again, so we took it easy and did not overwork him, while still trying to visit all the people we could. So we were doing that, and when he was getting better, Elder Moser went and got sick. Why he would go and do such a silly thing is beyond me, because he was out of commission for like a day, and that's right about when my bowels declared war against me.

We got home on Tuesday and I did not feel good, so, like a normal adult, I laid on the tile floor of the apartment because it was the coldest part of the house, and fell asleep there for like 20 minutes until I was persuaded to go to my big boy bed and sleep, which I did, except I was awoken several times by my bowels, even though I tried to quiet them with Pepto Bismol. I went back a few times to my spot on the tile floor, but always found myself back in the bathroom after a bit. It was a vicious cycle, and it eventually just ran its course, but I got very familiar with one spot on the floor.

On Friday, some of the Young Single Adults got us to set up a devotional with president Craig for them, we obliged, and he obliged, and the devotional was really cool, except for  the bit where on Friday morning, President Craig told the three of us we would be presenting a small message as well, so we hurried and prepared a message for all the YSA about why missions are actually really fun. At the end of the whole thing, the people who were actually in charge of setting the whole thing up presented President Craig with this hat:

It was great, he loved it, here's a picture of everyone:

On Saturday, We had a baptism, and just like every baptism, filling up the font was a great big adventure. Here is a picture of me doing my part to fill it up:

My job was to turn the faucet on and off, which doesn't seem like a  job worthy of my talents, but the faucet was locked behind that gate, so I had to spider monkey my way up and over the fence and just stay back there for a few hours. It's okay though, because I had cardboard to sit on. The baptism happened though, and this is that:

That is Daisy right in the middle. She's really great. She got us burgers and pizza for the after-baptism snack. Daisy has some of the most interesting questions I've ever heard on my whole mission. It was really fun to teach her, and learn from her as well, about being a missionary, and about humility. Those people around us in the picture is her family, none of them are members, and Daisy is doing a super good job living the gospel and showing them how happy it makes her. I'm thankful for this opportunity I've had to see her learn more about her Saviour and decide to join His church.

Love,
Elder Menzie

Tagalog, Simply:
Simple (pronounced simpl-aye) lang -- just simple

Week 66: The Celestial Tatlohan

This week is even crazier than the last, and it feels like I use that preface a lot, but I promise it's true this time. The mission is like the United States' political landscape in that way. That was just a little political humor from a man who has been isolated from politics for over a year now. gotim.

So when last we spoke, Elder Walker was gone and I was with Elder Powell for the week. it was fun. we had a fun pday with the Zone Leaders from the other Zone in Santiago

It was fun. we wore sunglasses and got a nice saleslady to take a picture for us.

Then we get a call that Elder Blazzard (another missionary in the zone) is having troubles with his hibiscus meniscus, so he had to go to Mainila, and then America to fix that up, so his companion, Elder Moser has been with us for the week. he's great.

We had a lot of fun trying to work 2 areas with 3 missionaries, and also Elder Moser and I were/are trying to nurse Elder Powell back to health with his fevers and such. He'll be okay, but we've had to take it kinda easy so he can make it back to 100%.

Here is us on a Jeepney:

Here is Elder Powell and I holding firearms worth more than most filipino homes:

Here is us at a 2-zone zone activity:

Your eyes do not decieve you, we did throw around that disc I'm holding right there, and it was great.

This next week will probably be even crazier than the last, so stay tuned for another episode of ...

Elder Menzie emails

Love,
Elder Menzie

Tagalog for the restless:
Cuya -- older brother (Elder Moser is our Cuya)