Week 36

Hello family, it's been a good week! New Years Eve. The Sister's in
our house prepared a meal for ourselves. We had Pasta, Fried Chicken,
Rice (of course), Pizza, and Icecream! We ate outside while listening
to the fireworks all around us. The other sisters hardly were able to
sleep at all. I was actually lucky. We went to bed at the normal
10:30, I was able to fall asleep around 11. Woke up at 12 from what
sounded like a battle going on in our front yard (all our neighbors
were setting off fireworks at the same time. I could see the
explosions on the ground from where I was laying in bed) and then was
able to sleep again from 1 until 6:30. It was super loud!! But I was
grateful I was able to sleep.
On Tuesday we had a really good district meeting. I felt enlightened
as we discussed about prayer. We too often get into routines while
praying - especially me as I'm trying to learn this language. It's so
important to realize that when we pray, we really are conversing with
the Lord. We should "speak to the Lord as one man speaketh to
another" -Pres. Hinckley. Elder Scott, one of the couple missionaries
in our area shared an experience when he and his wife were in the
temple and as they listened to one man pray, they really felt that he
was speaking to God and it was so sincere, as though God were really
there. They felt as though if they had opened their eyes, God would
have been standing there in the room right in front of them. When we
pray, we really ARE speaking to God. And he really IS listening.
Elder Scott then gave one of the most sincere prayers I have ever
heard... and it reminded me of the way that Dad always prays. I
testify that God hears and answers our prayers. I am so grateful for
my parents and the wonderful example that they are to me and for all
the things that they taught me without even noticing it at the time.
So Dad asked me to describe a typical day. I will attempt to do so...
On a typical day... I wake up at 6:30 exactly, we pray together as a
companionship and then say our personal prayers. We go outside or in
the front room and exercise for half an hour. I do jumping jacks,
jumprope, sretching, whatever I can think of. Then I take a shower
out of a bucket... It's becoming very routine. I'm beginning to
realize just how much water we waste when we shower back home. I eat
my breakfast... usually a mango and toast. Then at 8, we start our
personal study which begins and ends with prayer. I've been working
on reading the bible all the way through. I prepare and study for my
lessons that day and if I have any extra time, I'll read from the
Liahona. Then at 9 we start our companionship study. We sing and
pray together, read from the handbook, and share what we learned in
personal study. Then we practice teach or study or whatever else if
we have extra time. 10 should be language study, but usually we have
too many lessons and don't get that hour for language :( We eat lunch
together, usually rice and pork or adobo or something like that. Then
we pray and go out. We walk out to the main road and flag down a
tricycle. They drive us to the area where we will be proselyting in
that day... in San Angel, Mala-iba, Comon, Dalipe, or other places.
We don't usually have set appointments... we usually just drop by each
house. If we get punted, we just walk to the next investigator's or
member's house. When they let us in, we teach them a lesson according
to their needs. I'm really starting to enjoy teaching actually.
Especially when you see their understanding and faith growing. We
teach from house to house... sometimes we see someone on the road and
we stop and talk to them, give them a pamphlet, invite them to church
or ask if we can visit them. If we have time we will ask if we can
teach a short lesson right then and there. This continues until 8pm
and we catch a tricycle home... tired... and sometimes very much in
need of the CR (comfort room aka bathroom). I really don't like to
use people's restrooms here... it's scary. Once they guided me to a
small little wall made of leaves out in the open and just told me to
go behind it.... where there were open fields behind the wall. I
couldn't do it. When we get home we pray and talk about the day...
who and what we taught, and plan for the next day and set goals. At
the end of our planning, we pray again and then update our area
book... each person we teach has a record where we update what we
taught them and how they are progressing. Then we eat dinner... and
then have some time to write in journals, wash laundry, whatever...
until 10:30 when we pray and sleep.
It's hard and tiring... but I love it. Not every day is the same...
sometimes we have additional meetings or service projects... but this
is basically my life. It's fun. And it's time to go :D I get to
play FRISBEE today!!!!!! I'm SOOOOO excited!!!!!!! I can't wait. :D
Anyways, love you all. Have a good week. I hope everyone is doing
well. Halong pirme,
Sister McClellan