Yep, this week has been crazy. holy week--ughh it was the worst. Before I get into that- guess what!! I'M GETTING TRANSFEREEDDDD!!!!!! I am so excited!!! I've been here in Goa for 4 months, I feel sad to leave the people but SO ready to go. It's weird, mixed emotions. Tomorrow is transfer point and by next Monday I will tell you all about my new kasama and area and everything. Sis Gregs is training!!! An american sister! There are 3 coming here! I'm so excited!!!! I can't believe she will have an aki! I pray for her new kasama and worry, this is going to be the hardest part of her life :O I am giving her welcome to Goa gifts with shampoo and crackers and a coconut drink thing. Poor girl. I don't know where I will be to watch conference next week, I hope it has good connection! I crave it so much! I could cry I'm so happy for it!
In the typhoon curfew time I had some time so I sewed some barbie clothes for the Daco girls, they have naked barbies and it's sad. I made them some skirts and shirts and sis g made a bed for them (haha its nicer than their own "bed" which is the floor) Anyways, if i can't save the world, at least I can make there be 2 less naked barbies. woop de woop. They loved it, we took it to them and they were so excited :) cute
Can you see my pic? The one of the people in the doorway? We walked around the corner to their home and our 2 investigators were standing in the doorway, the mama holding a rooster upside down and the papa sawing its nails with a saw. It was such a sight, one thousand times better than that one time I came into the kitchen and mom and dad were both trimming their nails standing around the trash can. It was too good I needed a picture. Hopefully you can see it haha!
This week was. rough. I felt so pressed to my breaking point all week. I can't describe it all to you in this short time but I don't think I have ever felt so close to lying in the middle of the road and waiting for something to run me over. I really really was feeling so down and terrible and weak. I pulled my umbrella over my head so the people wouldn't see me and cried and prayed in my heart to have the strength to take one more step. It was so hot outside I felt like my body was boiling on the inside! It always is extremely hot before a storm- and we had typhoon signal one for half the week after that. We had curfew at 6 due to the storm and holy week. It then turned super rainy and cold and I felt like I was blowing away with every step, my umbrella couldn't handle the pressure of the wind. Bipolar seasons for sure. But good thing it was only signal one and passed Bicol by! phwew!
Part of the reason this week was so hard was because of holy week. This place is INSANE about holy week, they had processions in the evenings and everyone in the whole entire town went and marched with candles behind these huge floats with saints on them and flowers and stuff. We went out to proselyte but every single one of our investigators was at the processions. It was so hard, we just stood on the side of the road with literally nothing to do, and watched all our investigators march on. noooooooooo.
Because it was literally pointless to tract and find new ones (all were there) we went to visit some less-actives instead. We went to this member Tatay, he is the sweetest man I have ever met! I love him so much! he took us on a tour of his "garden" which extends for miles and miles as the processions went by. We helped him plant papaya trees, it felt good to get dirt in my nails and plant stuff. Tatay took us on his tour and pointed out all of these fruits and things growing- it was like the garden of eden! Check out that huge flower thing! he hacked it off for us and we got to take it home :) we sat near his house and watched the processions go by.
There were no people who whip themselves here, but they have them in other processions. Terrible terrible holy week. They whip themselves with whips with tiny rocks and glass in them and bleed all over the place as they march to suffer like Jesus did. In other places in the ppines people actually nail themselves to crosses. Uh its so terrible! They are so confused. The atonement is infinite, it is complete, and Jesus lives!
We went down a back way through the jungle to avoid the crowds but ended up getting trapped, they were coming from the front and the back with candles, we were in the middle getting eaten by mosquitos, hhhhhhhh so frustrating. I felt like such a terrible missionary this week, I don't know what I'm doing wrong :| i guess it is due to the holiday but still, I felt my emotions hit a new low. It really feels like I am making no difference sometimes. The article in the Liahona was so perfect, it made me tear up when I saw it, the one about being weak isn't a sin. Just what the doctor ordered! Anyways, thats a snippet of what's been going on. Wish I could say more.
Because it was literally pointless to tract and find new ones (all were there) we went to visit some less-actives instead. We went to this member Tatay, he is the sweetest man I have ever met! I love him so much! he took us on a tour of his "garden" which extends for miles and miles as the processions went by. We helped him plant papaya trees, it felt good to get dirt in my nails and plant stuff. Tatay took us on his tour and pointed out all of these fruits and things growing- it was like the garden of eden! Check out that huge flower thing! he hacked it off for us and we got to take it home :) we sat near his house and watched the processions go by.There were no people who whip themselves here, but they have them in other processions. Terrible terrible holy week. They whip themselves with whips with tiny rocks and glass in them and bleed all over the place as they march to suffer like Jesus did. In other places in the ppines people actually nail themselves to crosses. Uh its so terrible! They are so confused. The atonement is infinite, it is complete, and Jesus lives!
We went down a back way through the jungle to avoid the crowds but ended up getting trapped, they were coming from the front and the back with candles, we were in the middle getting eaten by mosquitos, hhhhhhhh so frustrating. I felt like such a terrible missionary this week, I don't know what I'm doing wrong :| i guess it is due to the holiday but still, I felt my emotions hit a new low. It really feels like I am making no difference sometimes. The article in the Liahona was so perfect, it made me tear up when I saw it, the one about being weak isn't a sin. Just what the doctor ordered! Anyways, thats a snippet of what's been going on. Wish I could say more.
Hmm good things of the week, my ppinas have trained me in the art of cooking sinagang and kare kare and lumpia fresh! I am an expert now!!! Oh my GOODNEss this food is so good. I can't wait to make it for you and you can taste it. mm it is sooo heavenly!!!
Sis G's tooth she got removed before her mish had a piece left over, so we made a venture to the "dentist" to get the rest out. First of all, he wasn't there because he was working in the rice field, they said come back tomorrow., uhh okk? Is this guy profesh? We came back the next day, he was done with harvesting his rice I guess cause he was in his flip flops. She sat down in the chair, he looked at her and then 2 seconds later shot a huge needle in her gums like it's nothing (not even telling her what was going on....) then yanked it out with these plier things. the whole thing was literally 2 mins. I was so in shock and set out to find this guy's degree on the wall somewhere to verify his credibility. All I saw were 80's posters about dental care and old versions of braces. Man, so different from my experiences when i have 2-3 kind ladies lead me to my chair and afterwards give me tokens for the machine and they have our insurance in the computer and schedule us for 6 months in the future. It's really a different world! Anyways, we dropped 200 pesos on his table and that was that! The whole thing felt so sketchy like a drug deal or something. I hope I never have to go there again on my mish.
In the typhoon curfew time I had some time so I sewed some barbie clothes for the Daco girls, they have naked barbies and it's sad. I made them some skirts and shirts and sis g made a bed for them (haha its nicer than their own "bed" which is the floor) Anyways, if i can't save the world, at least I can make there be 2 less naked barbies. woop de woop. They loved it, we took it to them and they were so excited :) cute
Hmm another funny thing, we were reading the Book of Mormon with a less active but her neighbors were singing their hearts out at videoke. They were gay and were quite talented, but very very loud. "and so as we see, Nephi says....IF I WERE A BOOOOOOYYYYYYY!!!!!" it was too much, just the lyrics because of who was singing it, all in falsetto, oh man this place. bakla bakla bakla.
Got to go, wish me luck tomorrow when I meet my new life! nervous! exciting! scary! I can do it though. Thank you mama and papa for all the love and support, I am so so grateful for my family. You are the best in all the world and I feel like every day I am away I love you all even more! Miss you so much, pray for me hard, I love love love love love you!!
love sis mcgrath
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