The Name's Lowry. Elder Lowry.: Week 41

Monday, June 27, 2011

Week 41

Hello Family!

How is everyone over there? I am way excited to write you all this week. It is looking like we have two solid baptisms next month. Sister ANalyn Brillo and Sister Linda Batan have both expressed their desires to get baptized. Linda is just little but all of her family are members except for her Dad. I wanted her Dad to get baptized with her, but he is struggling alot with the Word of Wisdom and doesn't seem like he wants to change. So we have started to teach just Sister Linda. All of her family joins in on the teachings and they are all way excited for her. So it is great for both of them. Analyn will be baptized on July 16th and Linda will be baptized the next weekend on the 23th.

The work has gotten tough with school starting again here. We just tract during the days and are way cramped at night time. No one has time during the days now to listen so the work is way one sided to the night appointments. Elder and I are way excited for the work and have been enjoying our time walking in the SCORCHING sun. It is getting more to rainy season and should cool off a degree or two in the next month. It really is HOT here, but the breezes can usually keep me sane throughout the day. Georgia heat has no breeze to cool you off and does get even hotter in the very middle of summer. If I had come here straight from Canada I would have honestly died by now. I have gotten through the hottest time of year they say, so that makes me way excited.

Ilonggo is coming along SO much better. My Tagalog is getting uglier and uglier though. I miss it very much. I had become so familiar with the patterns and the words, that it became way easy to communicate even complex ideas. But, obviously, if you are assigned in a Philippines you are not allowed to become comfortable with communicating. It is a requisite to always be racking your mind over what they are saying to you and how to respond. So that is probably my biggest stress right now. I never thought I could be so thankful that the language is the only thing I stress about. haha. Now I also see how Ilonggo and Aklanon are pretty close too. SO if I get to go back to the Aklan I will be a beast at their language. Man, I hope I get to go back someday!

This week was another way fun week of Primary. I got a video of them singing I am a Child of God and I'm so Glad when Daddy Comes Home! But I can't send it to you until I get to go to Roxas again and go to a nicer computer shop. Sorry. I have got some awesome pics of the area too. I hope I get to send them home soon.

So I have missed home alot lately. It is crazy to think I have been in this country for over half a year. It will be such a movie moment to go home. So make sure that in a year you all have your cameras ready. But for now I am having a great time. I love these crazy people who honestly know nothing about where I am from. It can be weird sometimes to be surrounded by people who don't like football is, have never heard of hockey, and like badminton more than tennis. haha. But they are the nicest people who will feed you even if it means they don't eat that night. They will invite you to eat even if they are wondering if they have enough food for themselves. They have honestly taught me so much on how to truly be happy with what you have. And to also realize that however little you DO have it is from God and should always be shared with others. I love them!

I love you all so much too and miss you more and more every month. It will be so awesome to come home in a year and see how wonderful you all have become!

Elder Lowry

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Need a little clarification?

Feel free to ask any questions you might have in the comment area! Here are a few things I thought might help, in case you need them:

-Iloilo is pronounced "Ee-low-Ee-low"
-MTC stands for Missionary Training Center. All missionaries report to an MTC before going to their assigned mission to be trained to teach by the Spirit, to answer questions and to rely on the Lord in order to serve the people in their missions.
-District Leader (DL) is just what Scott describes in his 1st letter home, while in the MTC at least! In the MTC DL's are definitely the ones to inspire their district to be the best they can be and achieve and keep all their goals, keep everyone motivated and in line and pretty much just be an amazing example for the others to follow. Scott's got this one in the bag ;) In the mission, it's only a bit different; it's an assignment given in which you are responsible for checking in on the other missionaries in your district and assisting them as needed, as well as gathering information and reporting to the Zone Leaders, who then report to the Assistants to the President, who then report to the Mission President!
-P-Day (Preparation Day) is the 1 day they get in the week to do laundry, write home, exercise, play sports, go grocery shopping, whatever they need to do. They get to wear "street clothes" with their name tag on P-Day and it's of course the day we all look forward to because we get e-mail (looks like his P-Day in the MTC is Mondays)! (At least while he's still in the MTC... we don't know what the situation will be when he gets to the Philippines.)