HELLO my sweet family! I am loving life and my 4th transfer. The heavens poored down their mercy and allowed Sister Flores and I to stay for a 3rd transfer together!!! We thought the zone leaders were joking when they announced it at our zone meeting. We all got really quiet and I said, "ok..funny elders...where are we going?" to which Elder Pullicar replied, "No, I'm serious. You are both staying." Then we just started jumping up and down and hugging each other like little 5 year old school girls. hahaha! We sat down and have set some awesome goals for us to stretch ourselves. The language it starting to pick up quickly now. I'm definitely being blessed. I still have a ton to learn, but I'm definitely improving and I can see the improvement. A couple days ago we left an appointment and Sister Flores turned to me and said, "Who are you??? Where is my companion who doesn't know Ilonggo?" haha! She's too kind. But then she said, "No, I'm serious. You have improved so much over these last two transfers! It's amazing and everyone is noticing it. They keep talking to me about it." So it makes me feel good, not about my abilities by all means, but because I'm finally able to carry on conversations with people and to comfortably walk up to someone on the street and start testifying plainly and beautifully about the gospel..and the greatest thing is, I KNOW IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WTH ME! haha! I love the gospel! Our Heavenly Father is so willing to bless us if we just do ALL we can do. It's funny now. People don't expect a white girl to know what they are saying..and I still only pick up about half of the conversation when they are talking full speed. BUT...last week a girl was on a jeepnie with us and Sister Flores and I got on the Jeepnie. She was sitting with her little friend from college. She was probably about...18 or so. Well Sister Flores was on the phone with our zone leaders and I could hear her making fun of me in the jeep. Well I understood everything she was saying, but she had no idea. I don't get upset with stuff like that because it's hilarious to me. So I waited and let her talk and giggle with her friend for about 5 minutes or so, then she started making fun of the name tags and I heard her say something about Jesus Christ and I thought.." AND....here we go!" So I turned to her and I started speaking in Ilonggo. I asked her simply where she was from and where she was currently living. I asked her name and if she had a family near there. She got absolutely silent and her eyes were huge. The guy sitting next to me started laughing and said, "OH!!!! Sagad siya sa Ilonggo! She thought you didn't understand her!" It was hilarious! So I invited her to church and testified simply that I knew this was the true church of Jesus Christ on the earth. She smiled and covered her mouth, grabbed her friends hand and got off the jeepnie. hahahahaha! I love it! Sister Flores was laughing so hard! Things like that happen all the time to us Americans over here. Usually people are really nice to the sisters though and they just rag on the elders.
As for this week though, we were able to extend 3 invitations for baptism and we hope to do one more this next week, Skyler wasn't able to meet with us this week because she went home for the holiday. Speaking of which....HOLY! Easter here is insanity! Amanda, in your email you talked about how people nail themselves to crosses and stuff here...yep. They do that mainly in Manila though, but they are mainly a Catholic country. They have these huge parades with floats that are all lit up and HUGE statues of Christ on the cross all bloody. It's just sad. So we were returning home friday night and we had the trik driver drop off our ward missionary first. Then he went to drive to our apartment and the whole street was blocked off, so I directed him another way and we had to walk a little ways to get to our apartment because of the parade. The whole street was packed with people walking. We were like salmon going upstream. Sister Flores said to me earlier in the day, "One of these days I'm just gonna scream, 'REPENT OH YE WICKED AND PERVERSE GENERATION!" So as we're walking up the street and their are huge idols everywhere and people praying to them I said, "If you're gonna scream repent, now is the time" haha! So she yells, "Repent!! Obey the 10 commandments- especially the 2nd one! NO GRAVEN IMAGES!" haha...I was dying. Not many people could hear her over the music and chanting and all that jazz, but I was laughing really hard. It was a moment I don't think I will ever forget. She said in Manila they have something called the Black Nazarene where people literally die each year. They have the belief that if they touch their hankercheifs to it their greatest desire will come true. People kill others by climbing on them trying to get up to the top of the float. Here is my question, #1: Why is the Nazarene black? When I'm pretty sure Jesus Christ was not black. #2: Why would your righteous desires be granted when you just trampled another children of God under your feet. #3: HOW? HOW is the statue going to grant your desires???????? USE YOUR HEAD PEOPLE! Anyway. Now that I'm over that..This week we had one of our investigators hit by a jeepnie here. He has a 50/50 chance of surviving. AND..they are pretty sure they are going to have to amputate his leg. He was hit by the jeepnie and then dragged for about 80 feet or so. His leg has no flesh on it, just the bone. We went to visit him in the hospital and the family asked for a priesthood blessing. (his older brother is a member). So we called the elders and they came into the ward and lets just say...it definitely caught everyone's attention. At that moment, as I was praying for Jayboy and his family and the elders were giving the blessing I had the thought come to mind, how beautiful the priesthood power is. Our Heavenly Father loves us so much to bless us with His power here on the earth. My goodness. I'll let you know how he's doing. Sister Flores and I were going back to our apartment after we visited him and she said, "What would you do if that was us? That could have easily been us. We are at that stop all the time waiting for triks." We could have easily been there that day too, but we planned to visit some less actives instead that day. I'm not saying that we would have been there instead of him and it was a huge miraculous event, however, I know that if you plan- the Lord blesses you. I know the Lord protects his missionaries. This whole event has reminded me of how incredible fragile life is. We saw him the night before the accident and talked to him. Any one of us could be moments away from ending our time here in this life. What have we done with our time here?
Get this, they just lowered the price of a triple combination here at the Philippines distribution center because a lot of the saints here didn't have the standard works because it was just WAY too pricey for them. The triple is now 64 pesos. Thats roughly...$1.30! Garments are way way way barato man! Er...cheap too! But they only have one type. Let me see...OH! Funny thing just happened. I was playing pool in the bowling ally that we always go to and I saw these 2 men in the place who were staring me down. So they slowly made their way over the table right next to the table I was playing at. Well Sister Ball, (no..not my MTC companion, another sister here in the mission) said :" WOAH! That guy is totally just staring right at you....I hate that. It's so awkward. Ew...he definitely just winked" So my amazing little Sister Flores comes over and goes, "That's it...there is only one way to solve this...OYM him" HAHA! So I said...cge! I grabbed a lesson one pamphlet and went and talked to them about the restored gospel and invited them to church. One of the men wouldn't even make eye contact with me and the other one got really quiet and listened and asked directions to the church. So..that's hopeful! THEN...another guy kept holding up his phone and winking at me and I was just ignoring him. Well...the elders are playing pool with us right? haha...Paul and Sean, you would be so happy with these elders. They definitely look after us as sisters. So Elder Foulds walks over to the guy and very very nicely says, "Did you want to speak with her brother?" and the man didnt respond, so he said one more time, "Huh? Would you like to speak with her?" The man said no and just walked away. We get hit on hourly here in the Philippines. Most of the men will back off if you share the gospel message with them, but once in awhile they get a little touchy feely. We're good though. No worries mom. We're safe. We've got the 3 nephites with us as body guards. I'm pretty sure of it. If not the 3 nephites, Grandpa Bernie is behind me at least...and lets be honest...Grandpa never took bunk from anyone. haha!
Well, life is so good. I love my mission with all of my heart. I love our recent converts and our investigators. Brother Froilan passed the sacrament for the first time sunday. We get to watch conference this weekend!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOOOOOHOOOOOO! I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am for that! to those of you who keep writing me, thank you! I'm sorry if i haven't written for awhile. It is so busy here! I wrote another song though, last night in like 10 minutes. It's pretty good. Not gonna lie. Sister Flores sings harmony too. It's cute! Oh, Taylor, I don't have your new address so...there isn't any way I can write you until I have it. Um..Sister Lundin, your one lined email made me laugh really hard. My waist is definitely becoming slimmer. How is Cameron doing for preparing? Ariel, if you can get Moe (Melissa Bankhead)'s address for me I would love you forever! She should be off her mission by now. Maybe on facebook...not sure. Britt, are you almost done with school now? I haven't heard from you in forevers...but I'm sure it's because you're blissfully happy in marriage and terribly busy with school! WOOHOO!! You're almost done now! Then you and Dave can adopt me and fund the remainder of my schooling. haha! joke! Mom, I loved your general conference summaries for me. Keep being amazing! I love you and I look foreward to your tiny box you are sending me. I love you all! I have 30 seconds! LOVE YOU!!!!!! :)
~Sister Stadler