Lost and Found

So we found an investigator, and to get to their house you walk into this tunnel.  And as you walk into the tunnel, the ceiling gets lower... and lower... and lower... until you're all the way bent over and you pass through this arched opening.  Then, when you're through, you enter in bent over and see "comfort room" (which means bathroom) and these tiny doors where they shower and use the bathroom.  So we took a picture; dunno if you can tell how low the ceiling is. Pretty sure I was trying to explain to Sister Grant in that picture how to make the camera flash.  Definitely an Alice in Wonderland moment.

Last week we got to go to a special luncheon, just the Sister Training Leaders, with President and Sister Stucki.  I can definitely tell they're sad to leave the mission.... we're gonna be super sad to see them go, but I know President and Sister Ostler will be an amazing addition to the Manila Mission when they come on the 29th.

One interesting though brought up at our stake conference this week.  Let's imagine, for a second, that someone in your Young Women class, Priesthood Quorum, or Relief Society or Primary got lost one night in the woods and no one was able to find them.  There would be sudden panic.  Everyone would frantically start looking for them and call in the police and everyone would be on the hour, every hour, tracking down that person. 

But, now, let's think about what happens when someone starts... not going to church sometimes.  Starts hanging out with a bad crowd and being places they probably shouldn't on weekends.  Starts making other things the priority in their lives.  Eventually goes less active.  In the talk of the person who made this comparison, she said that most often when that happens we just say "bahalaga dyan" which means essentially "their choice."  If we'd frantically search until we found someone who actually got lost in the woods, how much more so should we for someone who is or is becoming spiritually lost and will have no idea how to return to the safety of their loving Heavenly Father?  I know that as we seek to reach out and help everyone... regardless of if they're members of the Church or not... to feel uplifted and happy spiritually, we're gonna see miracles and feel greater love and hope in the world.

Also at stake conference, the pianist is super, super amazing.  However, she also likes to play things SO SO SO SO FAST.  I've never heard anything played that fast on the piano in my life!  We were trying to sing "Let us all press on" but I couldn't stop laughing because it was so fast no one could catch their breath and she was adding quadruple time chords underneath that made it sound like one of those 1920's background music to a black and white video of a horse race.  That definitely made my night.

We went to the really big Manila hospital here, Saint Luke's this week (don't worry about it, I"m totally fine and my companion is now fine too) and there they have a lot of cool art.  Some really cool art there.  The hospital kinda feels like an art gallery at times.  And then I realized... I miss going to art galleries and admiring art.  Thanks Mom for internalizing in me an appreciation for those finer things.  That's definitely something I'll want to do at a future date... go to an art gallery again.

Our ward mission leader said on Sunday that my hair was looking particularly golden and that I should watch out or someone might try and rob us, haha, funny joke.

Also, we taught a couple this week that's from the southern islands of the Philippines.  They speak Tagalog, but as we talked with them I started to notice it was kind of a different lilt and usage of Tagalog.  Eventually he used the word "prueba" which Sister Grant just looked at me for because she didn't know it.  I actually did know it, because that's the spanish word for "test" or "try" and I still remembered it from all the times my family would study scriptures in Spanish.  That almost never happens (Sister Grant is waaaay better at Tagalog than I am) that she looks to me for a word, but I can tell my Spanish background will come in handy when teaching people whose first language is Cebuano.  Cebuano is one of the hundreds of dialects in the Philippines and has a lot higher percentage of Spanish in it... I am soooo learning Spanish when I eventually get back home.

Hey, love you all!  Have a great week.  We'll be on Palawan next week and I"m not sure exactly what's going to happen with our emailing, so if you don't hear from me don't worry, I'm just living the life on a paradise island (and helping Sisters realize their full potential!)

Love,

Sister Larsen

When You Run Out of Food . . . 

Sometimes you try and save money and don't really buy enough food for the week. So you take some mango, and rice, and tortillas, and make a... mango breakfast taco?  Not too bad, since mangos here will always taste amazing.