November 25th

This week was one of those times that you get a look at everyone else's trails and you are suddenly so thankful for your own trials.  We have 4 new missionaries in our Zone who were reassigned here from the Tacloban mission.  16 missionaries total came to the Angeles Mission.  And one of the new missionaries in our zone is actually from Uncle Greg and Aunt Sue's ward! Crazy little world we live in.  They really witnessed some serious miracles during that huge typhoon.  I really didn't understand how massive that storm was until this week.  Wow.  All I know is we really are living in the last days.  The LAST ones.  I don't know when, but I know Christ is coming soon! 

One of my major accomplishments this week was sharing Joseph Smith's First Vision in Tagalog.  I may sound like a very white American when I speak, but as I shared the words from Joseph Smith himself, I knew that was I was saying was true.  I love the times that the Holy Ghost witnesses to me that the message I am sharing is really true.  

And I have been called fat more times than I would like to count.  Yesterday at church two ladies in Relief Society took me by the hands and said something to the effect of "We've noticed that you've lost a few pounds! How wonderful! Now just keep eating vegetables, no meat, and only 1 cup of rice a day, during lunch ok? And then pretty soon you'll really be thin! When you go home you can get fat again." That really happened.  And as offensive as that would have been in America.  Not even a big deal here.  They were just stating facts according to them. And I really wasn't offended, I just smiled and said "Ok, Thank you" I think that's a sign that I'm learning to love the people and adjust to the culture.  

 I really love missionary work.  I have a LOT to learn, but I love it.  I love the Philippines.  The other day we were riding in a tricycle and thought to myself, "I could just ride in a trike all day!"  But then sometimes I have to admit I miss America.  Especially this time of year.  But who needs hot showers and mashed potatoes anyways.  16 months na lang! I love you all and miss you so much! But I wouldn't trade my experiences for anything.  Remember, Jesus loves each one of us and knows us each by name! 

Sister Larson 

Sisters that came from Tacloban where the typhoon caused the most devastation. A warm welcome by our mission.

November 18 letter from Sister Larson

Sounds like it's been a busy week like always.  Things have been pretty busy over here too.  Time is really starting to speed up.  As we've visited the members and investigators here we have been able to catch glimpses of the news here and there.  And wow.  I can't even imagine what it must be like over there in Tacloban.  And because of the circumstances in the Tacloban mission those missionaries have been (I think temporarily) reassigned.  Some of them have been reassigned here! So we have a few news missionaries in our zone.  

Thanks for being concerned about me over here, I feel loved.  Every once in a while I think to myself, hey I'm in a different country right now.  And it really is a totally different world over here.  But I really love it.  During our lessons we get all kinds of exciting visitors.  Like cockroaches, geckos, stray dogs and cats, chickens, and even the occasional goat.  It's a party.  Most of our investigators rights now are kids whose parents are members of the Church but are less active and so these kids haven't been baptized yet.  At first things were going really well and they were really receptive and would listen attentively during the lessons.  Now however,  some of them run away when they see us coming.  I don't really know what changed.  But it's just kind of funny to me.  I never really thought that would be one of the challenges of missionary work.  Some kids here really are genuinely afraid of me.  The little gang of boys that are always around our house crack me up.  There's one little boy who when he sees me will scream '' 'Cano, 'Cano 'Cano!!!'  to warn his friends that the Americano is coming and then once I get close he gets scared and runs away.  I never thought I would be able to invoke so much fear.  

One of my other favorite people in our area is this little old lady who rides around on her bike attached to a cart selling chicken nuggets.  She wears these big purple rain boots and I really can't help but smile when she calls out, "chicken nuggets!" Its like all of my favorite things combined into one person! I want to be like her when I grow up. 

I was never a huge spaghetti fan, but wow.  The spaghetti sauce here is great! It's like sweet but spicy at the same time and I love it.  Who knew?! I am so glad my kasama and I decided to broaden our horizons.  We usually eat random weird things.  Like weirder than the food I normally make for myself.  But we're always so hungry we don't really care.  Another thing that I really love here is ube.  Its some kind of sweet potato that is purple but they make it sweeter and put it with different things.  I had some ube-filled bread the other day that was DIVINE.  

The work here is different than I was expecting.  I figured I'd be out trying to share the message of the restored gospel with random people on the streets and walking from house to house to find people to listen to our message.  Turns out that most of our work is focused on the ward here.  Because if the ward isn't strong there is really no point in bringing new members in because they're not going to stay.  I don't know why I never understood that before.  Maybe because I had never seen a ward that didn't have basically all of the positions filled.  But I've realized that the members and the missionaries have to work together to accomplish anything.  

In PMG pg 220 President Hinkley says, "It will be a great day when our people not only pray for the missionaries throughout the world but ask the Lord to help them to assist the missionaries who are laboring in their own ward."  I really have gained a great testimony of the responsibility that we all have as members of this Church.  I want to be a missionary who when I come home I don't want to take a break, but a RM who comes home and wants to continue to help build up this kingdom.  Brother Yambot is a recently returned missionary here in Cabanatuan who the Sunday he got back, accepted a calling as the Young Men's president.  He has already been so helpful in this work.  He is a great example of what missionary work really is.  Being a missionary definitely doesn't mean you have to leave your home town for a year and a half or two years.  But I am very grateful for the opportunity and privilege that I have to be here in the Philippines.  I know that the message I share is true and I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer and it is only through Him that we will ever be able to return to our Heavenly Home.  MAHAL KITA!!! -Sister Larson 

Mission interview time with Pres. Martino

Interviews-Cabanauan

Rachael's "little sisters" on the 2013 Division I State Championship Volleyball team

November 11 letter. She's safe:)

I'm ALIVE!!! I'm sorry you had to worry about me, but I promise I'm okay.  The "super typhoon" or Baguio Yolanda, as we call her, didn't really reach us in Central Luzon.  There was a lot of wind and a lot of rain on Saturday and so Sis Lazan and I had to go back to our apartment a little early, but that's about it.  However, I know that there are many, many people who were not so lucky.  It was a Signal 4 storm, which is the highest level of storm that they have here.  I don't know very many of the details, sorry.

 Um but I don't really know where to start.  I still haven't learned how to walk in the rain without getting all muddy, and my kasama is always perplexed as to how my feet get so dirty.  Well. Walking is hard okay. I still don't really understand what goes on most of the time, but I've gotten really good at reading other people's facial expressions so I know when to smile and when to look concerned and so on.  We've had some really special experiences with this ward already. It amazes me every time how quickly people let us into their homes, their lives, and their hearts.  I definitely have found a very special place in my heart for them.  

One family here has been less active for a while because they were offended.  I didn't really understand the whole story behind it.  Still don't, even though my kasama has tried to explain it many times.  She's really patient with me.  Anyways the part that I did understand was when the daughter spoke up about her dream to serve a mission.  She had seen the sister missionaries in the other wards in the stake and wanted to have sister missionaries that she could work with here in Ward 1.  Well she prayed and asked Heavenly Father to send some sister missionaries to Ward 1 and she would come back to church if there were sister missionaries here.  Well.  Ta-da!! Here we are! and guess who came to church on Sunday! It was a very cool experience.  I know that there are many reasons that Sister Lazan and I needed to come to Ward 1, but this young girl is one of the reasons.  

It's hard to not get frustrated when I can't understand what's going on, especially when I ask our investigators a question but then can't understand their answer.  But I have found that it's okay because the Spirit speaks to everyone in a way that they can understand. My kasama and I ran out of propane for our little stove the other night and so we had to be creative.  Turns out you can cook just about anything with a rice cooker! Who knew?! We eat kind of weird things.  Like ramen noodles on bread.  And mystery meats out of a can.  But I think that Reo can rest at ease.  I have really been able to overcome my pickiness.  I didn't use to like tuna, but we eat it at least 2 or 3 times a week.  I'll eat anything.  Well, almost anything.  We do have guidelines for what not to eat.  Like avoid street food. Bummer, really because some of this street food looks masarap! (delicious) 

We walk a lot.  And when we don't walk we ride a tricycle.  It's like a motorcycle with a little sidecar attached.  They call Cabanatuan the tricycle capital of the Philippines.  We may or may not have fit 8 sister missionaries in one trike.  Don't ask me how.  It's more fun in the Philippines! 

Tell the Volleyball girls that I am so proud of them!!! That's awesome!! (The St. David Tigers Volleyball team won State this year!!!)

Oh and I've decided that I'm not going to miss out on Christmas this year because Christmas doesn't exist in the Philippines.  There's just this holiday that they celebrate for about 4 months and they call it Pasko. It's different than Christmas.  The weather doesn't get colder here and there's not any real pine trees so... (Pasko=Christmas, if you didn't catch my sarcasm) There is a store here in the mall called National Book Store and it is beautiful.  It reminds me of the store in the movie Elf and I have to stop myself from screaming "SANTA!!!!! Santa's coming!!!!"  every time we go in.  It's glorious.  

I'm so happy to hear about the happy times at home! Keep it coming! I recently re-read Elder Christofferson's talk about the honey bees and how each honey bee only contributes about 1/12 of a teaspoon of honey.  But each bee's contribution is vital.  I've been thinking about what my contribution is.  What will be my gift for my Savior this Christmas season? I think it's a good question for all of us to think about. 

Well this week I'll hit my two month mark! Pretty crazy to think that there's only 16 more months of my mission left. Gotta make it count! 

I love you!! Mahal Kita!! -Sister Larson 

Letter to Dad...

I knew that I was coming to a third world country but it wasn't until I saw it with my own eyes that I realized how tremendously blessed we are.  Even my comp who I can tell comes from a pretty wealthy family, according to Flipino standards, has always washed her clothes by hand. And there are six kids in her family too! I will never never never complain about having to do laundry again.  Right now we have a "nanay" that does our laundry for us, but I won't be surprised if later down the road I will have to start doing my own laundry.  We had a very special experience last night.  One of the ward members told us that she needed us to come help her husband.  I didn't really understand what she was saying but later my comp informed me that their daughter had been killed 3 months ago and they didn't know who killed her.  The husband had a lot of anger in his heart and had stopped coming to church.  When my comp told me that it was a very surreal moment for me.  I had heard stories of terrible things like that happening to people but I didn't feel like I had ever seen it first hand.  As we began our lesson with him, I had an ah-ha moment.  I had been praying to know what I could say to this man and his family.  What could I possibly say when I had never know that kind of heartache? And I realized that each time that we experience sorrow, or pain, or trials we are getting a little tiny taste of what our Savior felt in the Garden of Gethsemane.  I think that I understood that concept before on an intellectual level, but it wasn't before I was sitting in their humble home tesifing that Christ really does know how they feel that I really understood.  I am so grateful for parents that aren't afraid of sacrifice and who have sacrificed so much for me.  I know that the sacrificies you have made and are making aren't just for me.  It's for that family.  And for the many more people that I will be able to teach and hopefully help.  So thank you Dad.  I love you!! 

Sister Larson 

So you asked how I got to my area- I rode in a van with about 10 other missionaries from the MTC to our Mission Office.  It was about 2 hours.  And I thought I was used to the crazy driving here in the Philippines, but I still got a little motion sick.  There are no such things as traffic laws here.  Well if there is no one knows about them.  When I arrived we met up with the Zone Leaders at the Stake Center because neither my kasama or I had ever been to the area before and didn't know where our apartment was so they showed us.  At the Stake Center there were some teenagers, they laughed and made fun of me for not knowing the language.  I don't think they meant it unkindly but I may or may not have cried a little bit.  Embarrassing I know.  But it was just so overwhelming.  A place I had never been before with people I have never met before and everyone was speaking so fast, I couldn't understand anything. It was pretty rough.  But my kasama has been so patient.  This is her second time training a new missionary but her first time opening a new area.  It's just us two in our apt because this used to be an elder's area. Everyone told us that our apartment is one of the nicer apartments so I feel blessed for that.  And really it is a mansion compared to some of our neighbors homes.  I wish I could send some pictures, maybe next time.  I am trying my best to learn the language as fast as I can but I guess it really is true that Rome wasn't built in a day.  Sometimes the little kids laugh at me or can't understand what I say because of my "accent" and I'm learning that that is normal and I laugh along with them.  This weekend we helped the Cabanatuan Stake with a Mini MTC and I saw those teenagers that laughed at me when I first arrived.  We are good friends now :) I had been told that Filipinos are mirrors, what you show them is what you get.  So I'm trying to accept that people are just going to stare at the Amerikana and I smile and wave. President and Sister Martino are great.  They love you as soon as they meet you and really I felt Sister Martinos love before I even met her.  They are loud, kind Texans and I am so glad to be in this mission, "where only the finest serve" I'll be sad to see them go in July.  So you really shouldn't worry about me.  Also don't worry because the people here are the nicest people I have ever met.  There is a family here that is sooo kind to us.  The father is less active and so we have been stopping by to visit him. So far it's been pretty difficult to talk about the gospel with him because he is always feeding us and asking us about our lives and telling us crazy stories.  He'll even repeat parts of the conversation in Taglish for me to make sure I understand. His wife and daughter came to church yesterday but not him.  So I guess we'll keep working on that.  It still blows my mind how many less actives there are in our ward alone.  Last week our church attendance was about 50 and yesterday we had 82 people there!!! Huzzah for Israel!! There is a group of about 5 little boys that follow me and my kasama whenever we go in and out of our apartment.  One day there was a new boy in the group that hadn't seen me before and when he saw the white girl he got really scared and his first reaction was to strike a "hu-yah!" ninja pose.  It was so cute! Let's just say, they are my new best friends.  I am glad to hear that all is well back home.  I am learning more and more each day how important it is to be humble and wow do I have a lot of pride.  So I'm working on that.  It's frustrating to not be able to say what you really want to say but I have found that it's better to just open your mouth.  Words will come.  Sometimes they make sense, most of the time people turn to my companion so that she can translate.  But I know that the Lord knows I'm trying and hopefully through my clumsy efforts He can use me to help some of His struggling children.  I wish I could tell you guys every detail but there are really no words.  I love you all and you are in  my prayers!! Mahal kita!

Sis Larson