The Older You Get.

Maligayang Pasko at Bagong Taon! The season is truly a bit different here in the Philippines. First, of course, it's hot and well... just different. On Christmas eve we had a pleasant surprise with a Christmas Conference put on by our mission president for the mission. It was a great meeting and it really helped us all to remember the true meaning and sacrifices of Christmas. They also set up a really nice, catered lunch and we had a gift exchange as well. It was great to be able to see other missionaries and have a little of a break to celebrate. Christmas here was a humbling experience. We have little kids come to our house singing carols every day for money. We try our best to feed them though and give them crackers and fruit. It breaks my heart to see them, the same kids that dig through...

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The Best Gift.

Maligayang Pasko sa inyong lahat! 'Di ko makapaniwala na Christmas time ngayon! It really doesn't seem like I've been away from home for almost six months. Anyway, this past week hasn't been very eventful and I forgot my camera so I won't be able to send pictures either. I've been pretty sick so we've been spending a lot of time in the house together studying, cleaning, and well... playing games (what else can you do?). It's been good though. I think the only person that takes care of me better than Elder Tengelsen is mom. He is seriously probably going to end up being my favorite companion. Last week we went to the palengke for the first time which was crazy! It's an open fish market and I've walked past them but never been through one. The fish are literally still alive... as in still...

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Change.

Hey mom! I only have three minutes so I'll have to make this really fast. I'm still here in Bago Bantay and Quezon City for this next transfer and I'm really happy. I've really grown to love this area and the people. My new companion is the best companion ever! Can't even explain. We've been having the best time. Most importantly, he's extremely obedient and I've been able to see the changes I've wanted to see in the work here because of his obedience. He's truly helped me to see the mission in a different light and I've had the best days so far with him. His name is Elder Tengelsen, and this is unfortunately his last transfer. He's from Montana and attends BYU. He loves people so easy and is a great example to me. I'm sure I'll have lots of more stories to tell you in the future. Well the...

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Not Dependent on Outcomes.

Dear Mom, This week has been crazy! It's felt like forever since I was able to write even though it's only been an extra two days. Anyway, not time to waste on fluff, let's get to it! Had some funny experiences this past week. One of the people we're teaching's kid threw up on me after a lesson which was not very pleasant. All I could do was laugh and rush home and change. Luckily we have a person that comes to wash our clothes so I won't have to deal with that and she does a really good job. I also had some people come up to me while tracting the other day and ask for my autograph because they thought I was some Filipino superstar named "Jericho Rosales." Funny right? Anyway, my week was well, long. It started with a slightly depressing note being at church. This past Sunday was pretty...

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