Holli - July 27, 2015

Hello everyone!

So it's been a pretty awesome week! Sister Duncan and I are still alive so we are counting our blessings! I was going to make up a story about what happened during the earthquake - something about us clinging to the doorframe while the whole house shook and screaming our heads off, but really it just sounded like a huge dump truck roaring by. We didn't feel anything :) Sister Zylstra gave us a whole run down on what to do during an earthquake so now we are better
informed!

Yesterday evening we found out Sister Duncan had been riding her bike up and down this incline all day on a flat tire with like 50 water bottles in her bag :) We were at a less active's house when we figured this out and the husband who isn't active totally fixed it for her - super nice!

I absolutely love Sister Duncan. She is like the best companion ever. We have so much fun but we are working hard. We have to do a lot of work on our street contacting though - we can say hi, but we need to work to actually get in front of them - awkward stuff but it must be done!

Our first day we had been out and about visiting people in our area book and we came home a bit after dinner and saw we had a referral. Her name is Brandy and she is awesome! She is very open to learning about our religion and she has 4 sweet nephews that she lives with along with her sister and brother in law and father who all encourage her to "get saved". The sister loves ancestry.com and found some
Mormons in their genealogy so she took this as a sign for Brandy to become LDS :) hopefully!

We met this awesome lady named Sally the other day. She's less active but super sweet. She grew up in the church but never gained a testimony of the Book of Mormon - so without the iron rod she kind of fell away which is super sad because she's awesome. We'll keep going over there, hopefully bring a bit of the Spirit with us :)

We met this guy named G in a trailer park. He stopped us and said we were super awesome because we were the only ones who did the hand signals for riding a bike properly. He said that he gets all his information about Mormons from Southpark and the musical. After we internally face palmed he said that he would go on a "Southpark fast" so he would be ready to talk with us when we come by next week. He
said he might come to church but it would take baby steps. G said I look like Taylor Swift - even though we were both super hot, sweaty, and had bike helmets on . . . I guess I'll take it! 

This week has been chalk full of testimony building experiences. Really I've just been thinking about how vital it is to study the Book of Mormon each day. People who do so, even if they have lots of doctrinal issues or questions, put their trust in the Lord rather than in themselves. They know they will receive answers some day and have faith that they will receive them, even if things don't make sense now. By holding to that iron rod, we can look forward with faith and
determination, not letting go of what we know to be true and receiving strength to resist the voices swirling like the dark mists around us. We can find true happiness by reading the Book of Mormon and following the principles taught there. This great gospel is the only way to true and lasting happiness.

Thank you so much for the pictures and the letters. Love you all!

Love, Sister Dunn

Taylor - July 27, 2015

Ok so  I got transferred to an area called Lake Worth! It's near Palm Beach and is a super boss area and there is a mix of Black, White, and Latins! I'm the District Leader now so that's definitely interesting and nerve racking but also super awesome! My comp is Elder Wilhite, he's from Eugene, Oregon and he's super boss. He's been out for a bit more than six months! He is super hard working and obedient which is awesome! We speak Spanish all day every day and his Spanish is pretty good! I have two companionships in my district, they are both sisters. There is Palm Beach North... English... Sisters Morrow and Erickson. Sister Morrow is training sister Erickson! Then in West Palm North.. Spanish.. there is sister Endemano who is training sister Hatch! They are super good as well! 

I actually had my first District Training meeting the day after transfers which was scary but it worked out! I taught it on Unity and Love. I even did an object lesson where I gave each companionship a minute to get as many skittles from one plate to another across the room. They both had straws and they had to link arms and use the straws to move the skittles! The prize was a big bag of skittles! Elder Wilhite and I won though haha! ;) 

This week we were really trying to get to know the area and find places where there are Latinos. It's different than Hialeah where everywhere there are Latinos! The ward really likes missionary work and they want to come out with us a lot this week and we want to gain their trust so that should work out nice! The Zone Leaders are elder Kwon and elder Mason, they're creole and they're pretty cool! 

Phillip Stafford is engaged? That's crazy! Mackenzie Kerr is going on a mish, that's super cool! Haha sounds like it was kinda an emotional week for you guys... well at least you mom, dad seems like he's doing pretty good ;) How was your trip, sounds like fun, thanks for the pics! I'll make sure to pray for Val and the fam! And ya don't worry I'm reading the girl’s emails, they're super good! Well I have to go, I will send pics next week! 

Oh the address to my house is

2359 Caroma Lane

West Palm Beach, Florida  33415

Love you guys!

Elder Dunn

Chelsea - July 27, 2015

Sister Mariano and me

Heyyyyy...Okay so this week has been a busy week! We have so many people to teach, it's crazy! We also commited 5 people to baptism this week and four came to church! Sister Mariano and I almost cried when we saw all of them. One of them is a 9 year old boy named CJ and he is the cutest! The other one is Joy and she has two kids and her husband is less active. She has totally given up coffee too which has been a miracle! We also have a family of 6 preparing for baptism! The situation is really sad though! So the family lives in Maria Clara-my favorite area to teach in! This family has next to nothing. They can barely afford to come to church because they have to take a tricy. But they are such a great family! They said that they love the church's concept on families and they know that the gospel will bless their life. The only thing is that they aren't married!! Haha after Sister Mariano and I found that out we screamed to the heavens, why?!?!?!?! Haha. Marriage is really expensive for some people so this is gonna be hard. So it broke our hearts to tell them that they have to get married before they are baptized. I am praying to the Lord that it will all work out!!

So on Wednesday this week we got to go to Cauayan to get immunizations. And I saw Sister Turley! It was so great to see her!! I felt like it had been forever! I also got to see Sister Peart and Sister Baker which was really good! So I found a favorite food in the Philippines! For FHE last Monday, we went over to the Gonzales and they made this fried milk fish. It was amazing.. oh man, mom you would love it. Oh but also, they made me try avocado and it was nasty!!! 

So we had dinner at the Busania's again and she wanted me to play the piano and sing. So she pulled out her sheet music for lds arrangements and we played the piano and sang. It was so fun!! She also has a beautiful voice! Definitely my most favorite person in the ward. She is such a sweetheart! Oh and mom, she said she is going to try to friend you on facebook haha. 

So we had such a huge rainstorm this week! It was pretty much like a typhoon. We had a brownout and then our water stopped working! It was the worst! Oh haha and also we forgot to shut all of our windows so the whole house was flooded. oh man hahah. 

Haha what's really funny is the karaoke that is here. So we will be walking somewhere random, and you will hear a karaoke machine and someone singing. and you can probably hear it from a 10 mile radius cause they  just blast it. Haha so we were in our apartment and you could just hear someone belting to karaoke and what's funny is that everyone is a horrible singer so I just laugh and laugh haha. 

So really funny, yet sad story. On Saturday morning, Sister Mariano was clipping her nails and one flew right in her eye and cut it. So we had to go to the hospital and get it checked out. The hospital was super sketchy! Like half of it was pitch black, and the room that we were in was filled with spiders,,, uhhhh gross. Anyway, her eye was super red and she couldn't even move it. So all of Saturday and Sunday she had to rest! Haha it was kinda nice, not gonna lie. I got a ton more study time! However, I felt super lazy haha. 

So definitely the language is still getting at me. Yesterday in church, I couldn't understand anything again! In fact, I felt like I could understand LESS! Haha. It's definitely irritating. Also, because I have to memorize the lessons-which takes a ton of time! And its frustrating, because I can't say what I want to say. uhhh dad, how did you teach at first?! Did you just memorize the lines in Japanese and then didn't know what you were saying when you taught it? 

Oh haha funny story. So we have a new investigator and she came to all three hours of church. We were talking to her during relief society and she was looking at the gospel principles book and was like I want to read this! And we were like, sure go ahead and take it! And she was like, Oh my gosh I love you! Haha then she was looking through it and she said, "How can I get baptized? When?" Haha we found the golden investigator! She was so happy when we told her that we can come and teach her. So that was funny! Sister Mariano and I were laughing after because she was just so enthusiastic!

Oh and mom I can find peanut butter here, the american kind! The filipino kind is nasty! Haha I literally live off peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They are the delicacy here. Haha literally the only thing they have from America is jiffy peanut butter. There is no campbell soup anywhere! But they do have this weird cup of noodle thing and it is pretty good. I also get apples and oranges and some mixed fruit thing. Oh and I can’t take pictures at the grocery store. You can only have your wallet with you. They take your bags before you go in. Kinda weird haha. 

So, about my companion's story. So she’s done with college and she’s a pharmacist. She didn't feel like she was doing anything with her life so she really prayed about it and felt like she should go on a mission. Oh and she went to college up in Baguio. She has been a member her whole life and the only member of her family who is less active is her sister. Her dad works in Saudi Arabia I think. So ya that’s about it from here!  Love you all!

Sister Dunn

The Manila Temple

Our sketch shower

Fried White Fish

The Philippines is so beautiful!

Chelsea - July 20, 2015

Yay!  Our luggage arrived!!

Teaching in Quezon City

My companion Sister Mariano

AHHHH I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M HERE! This mission has been crazy! Okay, so Manila was just crazy. We actually proselyted in Quezon City North. Sister Turley and I got assigned to one of the sisters out in the mission field and we actually had a lesson. It was straight in the slums. There was mud everywhere and a ton of stray animals. We climbed up these sketchy stairs to the house and sat on the dirt floor. The other sister then talked about the Sabbath Day and she had Sister Turley and I testify. Ahhhh it was super powerful and I think they understood me! Haha. Our luggage finally arrived on Sunday Afternoon. It seemed like a lifetime they were gone. Also, I was sick the whole time in the Manila MTC. It started with the bus ride into Manila. Driving here is crazy. There are no rules here. Haha if our whole family was on a bus to Manila, I can tell you right now, everyone would be throwing up. It's like the mouse trap, super jerky every second haha. So I got super sick and it never really went away. Then I got this terrible cough! I've never had a cough like that and it was so bad. It was really embarresing, cause I had a coughing attack during our temple session, so embarressing.... 

Oh, so mom, I became a true Filipino.... hahaha. So we were in immigration and I really had to go the bathroom so we went. And there was no toilet paper and no paper towels! Hahaha I can say that it wasn't that bad though! We also got to go the Manila Memorial. It's all the people who died in WW2. I'll send you some pictures! Saying goodbye to the district was really hard. I was definitely crying. HAHA Elder Kofe was like, "I'm about to break the mission rules and give you all a hug." Haha so he did! I was crying like a baby haha. 

So the plane ride to Cauayan was super sketchy. Worst turbulence ever. I thought I was going to die haha. And then I almost threw up. We ate lunch in the mission home and then did some orientation. My new companion is Sister Mariano. She is such a sweetheart! And she's such a hardworker! She is from Urdaneta. I learn so much from her every day and she is such an amazing teacher.

So it's been kind of hard getting used to Filipino culture. So I was throwing up in the van to my new area and a member that drove us was feeding us dinner that night. He asked me if I wanted soup. I was like sure! He then went and bought me some. Super annoying! Haha. Most awkwardest thing in the lessons: When the women breast feed right in front of you. That was definitely a shocker at first haha. Now I'm kinda used to it. There are so many distractions during the lessons though. This is a typical lesson: we are buy the road so there are a ton of motorcycles and tricies so we can't hear anything, children are running around screaming, mosquitos are biting our faces off, other people walking by that stare, breast feeding, dogs and cats running around everywhere. So many distractions!!! It's hard for them to concentrate haha. 

So my area is Diffun! It's about 45 minutes from Santiago. Oh also, my companion and I are the only missionaries in Diffun. And it's a big area. Haha I was meeting with President Ralph and he was like what do I need to know about you. And I was like, I'm a hard worker and I don't back down from a challenge. I shouldnt have said that! haha cause he put me in the area where there are no missionaries! Haha  We spend our P Days in Santiago because there are restaurants here and malls and grocery stores. THERE IS NO AMERICAN FOOD HERE. I AM DYING.  Definitely the hardest thing is the food. Every time we eat at a members house, we have chicken and rice. Except the chicken is kinda gross. And they get really offended if you don't eat everything. And then they always offer more! Haha so I took a tiny bit of chicken and rice and then I was done. The sister was like, take more and I was like no, I'm full and she was like, you didn't take enough to be full! Darn it those filipinos. They are observant! haha. I got to eat squid and pig liver this week! Squid is gross! The texture is like a stale twinky.... so gross. Pig liver was nasty too. When we go to the Bishops house for a dinner appointment, he said that he is gonna cook bat, dog, and balut. Yay.... 

So yes, I was sick my first week here. I didn't go to any class in the Manila MTC cause I was having these horrible migraines like I've never felt before and I was still throwing up. Also, getting in the field, I've thrown up like 4 times. Pretty much every time we ride in the bus. It's the worst! However, I think I'm getting used to it cause I didn't throw up today! Haha

So the people here are really great! A lot of them are super shy. Sister Mariano says its because you have to gain their trust and talk to them and also because I'm American. I can't even speak in Tagalog so it's super hard to build that relationship! Oh well, I'm trying! So we went to one lesson and I was the first American the kids have seen. I'll send you a picture of it. All the kids sat down on the lesson cause they wanted to hear me speak. haha. I don't like it though cause they just laugh and I hate it! Also, a lot of people honk at me. Sister Mariano said that they honk when they see pretty girls hahaha. Sister Mariano said that I was her best asset hahahaha. She said that everyone wants to listen to the white girl speak! haha. 

Oh, so Elder Sirata is in my district!!! So I get to see him every Tuesday! All the other girls are split up. I was two hours away from Cauayan and Sister turley is about 3 hours. Sister Porter is in Cauayan so she didn't have to travel which was super lucky! Sister Peart is in the Banaue Rice Terraces Zone! Super lucky! Last thing I heard was that they are doing great! 

Filipinos are pretty nice. Even if they aren't interested, they will talk to you which is super nice! The only thing that frustrates me is that Filipinos are lazy! They never come to church or read or pray no matter how many times you tell them. I don't know how we ever get baptisms! Whenever we set a baptism date, it will never go through because they will miss church or have a problem with something else like the Word of Wisdom or the Law of Chastity. Most of the time, the problem is that they can't go to church because they don't have money to get there. And it's only about 20 cents. I'm telling you everyone, we are all so blessed to live in America. People have nothing out here. They sleep in dirt huts and make a couple a dollars a day. A marriage license is only about 20 bucks, however, no one can even afford that here. So its super sad. 

Our ward is great! My favorite one is the Stake President's wife! She is so talkative and loving and I just love her! However, she runs a music school and she wants me to play the piano so her son doesn't have to, so he can pass the Sacrament. Haha oh well! However, in relief Society, Sister Mariano volunteered me to lead the song. So I did. However, in the Philippines, before you lead, you have to sing the first line. So that was not fun. Now Sister Mariano wants to volunteer me to sing a musical number in sacrament meeting. Oh I just love her!

The Philippines is beautiful and so is Diffun! It's super mountainous! And when it rains, its not even that hot. Like, I don't even mind it! Haha but yesterday though.. it wasn't raining and we stepped outside and it was so hot!! Sister Mariano's last area was the hottest place in the Philippines and she said that she cried when they would proselyte every day. And she's a native Filipino! hahahahah I'm scared. 

So the shower is freezing! We just use buckets because the shower is too cold. It's not that bad. However, it's bad when the cockroaches come out. I was shaving my legs and then I saw one behind me and I freaked out and then I stepped on it like a thousand times! I hate them!!! They are so scary. Sleeping here isn't bad at all. It's hot but we have fans so I'm fine! Plus, I konk out so fast. Haha Sister Mariano was saying the prayer last night and she had to say amen like three times because I had fallen asleep haha. 

So we had to speak in church yesterday! Not fun! I can't even speak! So I just shared a scripture and my testimony. I don't know if the people understood, but I did know I spoke with the power of the Lord cause it definitely was not me! 

Something that has been hard is that I don't really enjoy proselyting. In fact, I dread going out and teaching. I think the biggest part is the language. I can't say anything and when I do, they don't understand so it's really frustrating. Hopefully it will get better. Dad, did you enjoy proseltying and teaching at first?! 

Okay, well that's about it! Haha mom, if you send anything, please send like mac and cheese, chili, bean soup, and american food. I am dying! Oh and its okay to send packages. My companion gets some from her mom. Also, dont use fedex or ups because they will charge me a lot when they get here. 

I love you all! I have learned so much this week! I could definitely not be doing this without my Heavenly Father! The Spirit is so real here! Be safe! 

Sister Dunn