29 Nov 2010

Hey everyone,

Well its been an okay week. Elder Cagayanan is still learning lots and we haven't gotten sick of each other. He decided he wanted to come out of his shell this week. He is sooo funny. Oh my gosh. He's so...Makulit!. I don't know how to describe that in English. Sorry.

We just came from a CSP (community service project) in Abucay and I attached pictures, I got the award for being the dirtiest. ha ha It was great! I usually get that award. ha ha I cleaned out the gutter that they have there for water drainage in the rainy season. Then we just fixed desks that have probably been repaired about 10 times over, but it was fun. I smashed my finger with the hammer and added to the cuts and scrapes I have on my hands. On Friday and Saturday we did service projects where we cleaned the weeds out of places. My hands have gotten really soft here in the mission so I got blisters on my hands, then I hit my foot with a hoe. It hurts when I walk. ha ha

Our work with the members kinda blew this week. We only got to teach 2 lessons the whole week with members. Its because all the SA that usually work with us all had to go back to school this week.

One of our investigators said yesterday morning that he was gonna go to church so we were all excited and flying high that we got him to go to church.  He never came, but he sent his daughter with this next door neighbor. I was a little discouraged but we'll see him again tomorrow and see whats up.

We met a few members this week that I knew by face but not by name. That was nice. This one sister last night she bore her testimony to us in a way and her faith is so dang strong its amazing. I told her don't be surprised if we call on you to have you help us. She was all for it so we'll see what we can do.

We have a baptism on Tuesday night so that will be cool. 3 children of the covenant and 2 convert baptisms but one of the children of covenant we taught.

Next week I'll let you know how it goes.

Love you all

Elder Westwood.

22 November 2010

My my how time flies!

I figured out the secret.  I just don't think about what I'm gonna do, or what I'm gonna say, or what's gonna happen to me. Rather I think about what He's gonna do, what He's gonna say or what will happen to Him if I screw this transfer up! That's what I need to do. Forget myself.  Then the sickness, the worries, the things I don't like, go away. 

Another week in the books and another new companion for me to torture. ha ha.  Just kidding! On Tuesday morning I accompanied Elder Memes to the Bus Station in Olongapo, I shipped him off up north to Iba, then I hung out till about 1 and I went to the mission home. We had trainers training till Thursday when we came back to our areas with our new companions.  During the training we were instructed on how to be better teachers and how to help the new missionaries start off their missions well. 

My new companions name is Elder Cagayanan, he's from Bacolod, that's the same place that Elder Memes was from, but they didn't know each other.  However, he does speak the same language as Elder Memes.  He's kinda shy but I can already see him coming out of his shell.  He's a good kid and I think we did pretty well for only being able to work for a couple days this week.  We are working on getting a good relationship with the bishop.  

We started working on Friday afternoon, because in the morning we had a district leadership training so Elder Cagayanan got to hear about all the problems of the districts in our zone on his first day! Great ha ha.  But he can't quite speak fluent Tagalog so I still have to help him a lil but he is humble and teachable. I know he will adjust right away and have no problems.  He will also start helping me with district leader stuff so he will know what he is doing when he becomes a district leader.

It is really fun being a trainer.  At the training President Aquino said that our trainees will be a carbon copy of us, I commented "oh that's not good." he replied quickly, "well not of your face." It was funny, everyone got a good laugh out of it.  I was suffering from sleep deprivation so I wasn't exactly doing my top notch work; I think President noticed and I think he was a little irritate/worried. He told me as I was walking by him that I needed to "step up." I'm still trying to figure out exactly what he meant but it will come to me. No worries! I'm rested up now and back to 100%.
On a sad note, yesterday morning we were going to one of the members house to get a ride to church and we came upon a wreck on a very busy highway.  It happened in front of a military base so the military were the first on the scene and they knew what they were doing.  I saw a man laying there and I'm pretty sure that he wasn't breathing, or if he was he wasn't for very long after I saw him.  It was a pretty bad sight. When we went back to see what happened, we learned that one of the people was drag racing on the highway when one tried to overtake another and got into a head-on with another motorcycle. I just hope that the innocent one wasn't the one I saw.  Moral of the story:  Don't do anything stupid.  Seek for things that will bring eternal happiness not a momentary thrill; especially when other peoples lives could be at stake as well. 

To end on a good note, we have a baptism next week so that should be really good.  I'm excited and hopefully I can get the kids to let Elder Cagayanan baptize them so I don't have to.  Then Elder Cagayanan can experience it.  ha ha. 

I love you all. 

Elder Westwood

15 Nov 2010

Hey everyone,


Well I'm sad to hear that Paula passed away this week. We actually had a member pass away last week, and it kind of dawned on me that we are really lucky that we have the knowledge of the Plan of Salvation. We know exactly where we are going to go and we can trace a person every step of the way. It is hard to loose our friends and relatives, but we will see them again. Its up to us if we live with them for eternity. When Great Grandma Westwood passed, Mom said, "we can't cry because died, because she is happy now, she's not sick anymore, the reason we cry is because she's not here anymore with us, it is only temporary though."

We just got back from Abucay at the transfer meeting where we found out that my companion will be transferred, one of my old companions, Elder Cuartocruz, and one of my batch mates, Sister Suminguit. Sister S will be training like me but her training will be a lot harder, she is going to be opening a new area for proselyting with her new companion. My trainer will be training again for the 4th time. That is a new record.

I'm a little nervous to be training but it will be fun. I know that I can make the difference in this new missionaries whole mission, and I'll either be the companion that he loves, or the companion that he hates. I'm hoping for first. I will go up to the mission home tomorrow where we will have trainers training, then Thursday, I'll come back here with him, and we'll break him in. I sure hope he's ready ha ha. Don't worry I'll be nice, but I won't baby him.

Honestly not much happened this week, we taught a lot, my companion got sick with LBM so we spent one afternoon in the apartment while he sat on the toilet.

Last night we went to a members and they threw a little party for my companion and for a missionary that goes home. That was fun. well I'm sure I'll have lots to report next week, the new companion, his first experience tracting and stuff like that.

Until next week.

Elder Westwood.

8 Nov 2010

Hello Everyone,


In case you didn't know already, fasting works!!!! Oh my, last week we had 2 investigators come to church, yesterday: 9! Its not a record by any means but its good for this area and we were way excited, especially Elder Memes. He hasn't had a lot of chances to fast here in the mission, so he was flying high yesterday (high on life of course). We had a baptism scheduled for next week but we're gonna have to push it back a little because they are not quite ready, but its alright, I'd rather have them prepared than not.

One of the families that came to church yesterday, has a son that is blind, and he can't walk, he started puking in Sunday school yesterday, so that wasn't very good, but after he did it, he felt fine and it didn't happen again. Then Sister Fe's 2 nieces came too and loved it. When asked if they were gonna come to church again, they replied, "yes, every week" it was really cool.

We actually had a fight yesterday too, ha ha 2 of the pioneer members, got in an argument about doctrine, the base problem was they were both really prideful and didn't want to admit that they were wrong or the other was right, one brother started swearing and stormed out of class and said he wanted his name taken off the records. That is one of the weakness' here and I think everywhere, sometimes we get to the point where, when we've been in the church we get proud of what we know, then we get a little too confident and people start getting offended. I think we all need to remember that we are all converts, all investigators, just at different spots on the conversion path. Neither conversion nor humility will happen over night it is a life long process that we all need to continually strive to do and perfect our ways and attitudes.

Last night and Friday night we were coming in from a place in our area that is really close to the sea, its high tide season right now and both days this week we have walked barefoot home. ha ha With water up to our knees, last night we had a member with us, she walked through the flooded streets in her heels. ha ha I was astounded, but it was cool.

We won't be having specialized training this week, which means that we get to work for the whole week. We are way excited. Hopefully this week will be a memorable one, because Elder Memes is transferring next transfer. Oh yeah, I'm training next transfer. It is pretty crazy, I'm a little nervous, but I've been wanting to try it for a little while now. I'm still nervous though.

Last week, after we went and emailed, we went to this really high mountain, hiked to the top and took pictures, we didn't end up going to the monument, that I think will be next transfer, or possibly next Monday, it was still really pretty where we went, we could see the whole city of Mariveles on one side. On the other side we could see Quezon or Maynila. Ang Ganda Naman!

I went and did exchanges last week with a new missionary, that kid is soo teachable it was crazy. He was a sponge, he sucked in everything I told him.

It was a pretty good week, now for next week and preparation for next transfer. Wish me luck.

Elder Westwood

1 Nov 2010

Hey everyone,


Well I got one more week done and we saw some great things happen, where we were in the right place at the right time. One time, was on Friday, I thought I was just hungry, we had missed lunch and I was really craving this thing called "Fish bowl" they are really good and I sweet talked a member into making the sauce for me. I would just buy it on the street but they just bawal-ed it, or ban it. it really blows! Anyways, so we thought we were going to buy fish bowl and we found squid bowl too! so a double bonus. Then as I was standing in the check-out line, I had this lady start talking to me, come to find out that she was a member, that had been excommunicated. I don't know why she got excommunicated but her husband committed adultery. I only know half the story but she expressed her desire to be baptized and go to church again for her children, then she told me she was an RM.  To make a long story short, I told her that there was still hope, and not to lose hope, she has been told 10 different things from 10 different people, but I gave her the number to the Mission President, and I'll follow-up tomorrow if she called him or not.

In another one, Saturday, we went to get haircuts, the place we usually get our haircuts from was still closed so we were just kind of roaming around.  We walked by this barber-shop in the market and had one of the barbers run after us and asked us if we were Mormons. We replied "yes" then he gave us a Book of mormon that someone had left in the CR across from their little shop. It was cool. We are looking for its owner right now, but it opened a door for us to be able to share and meet those men, and we got good looking haircuts as well! (double bonus again) ha ha.

Well I'm writing you guys from a little place called Mariveles today, it is beautiful. It's just a small little place surrounded by ocean/sea and its all green and mountainous, and stuff, I love it! We are going up to a monument after we get done emailing and stuff so that should be fun. The Elders are getting ready to move apartments and so president sent me and my comp. as well as the ZL's down to clean the apartment, and fix the stuff, it was fun. I let a little blood, sweat, but luckily no swear words. I even got invitations for marriage to 4 different girls ha ha.

Yesterday in church I got assigned to talk. The bishop came up to me and asked, Elder I have something to ask of you, I was like whats up? He said is there anyway you can speak today, I replied, "yeah no problem, how long? 5-10 minutes," he kind of looked away for a second, then was like can you speak for 15 minutes? I was like, hmmm, I'll try, I actually only ended up speaking for 10 minutes but it went by really quickly. Its probably a good thing he didn't tell me sooner, I tried preparing a talk a week before I was supposed to give it, it was soooo BORING! I lost everyone's attention. From that I learned, its easier to just get up and start talking, then let the Spirit take the wheel. ha ha. I talked about missionary work and how we needed to members help. I was bold but not overbearing...I think.

Last week I mentioned an old lady that we had given a blessing to because we were in the right place at the right time, well, I'm happy to report that she is okay now, but she is still in the hospital because her family can't pay the bill yet. I asked her son-in-law yesterday how much it was and he said 100,000 plus! I was like holy cow that's a lot of money, even in US dollars that's expensive, so hopefully they can find a way to pay it or come up with the money soon.

Well thats all I can think about this week, We opened up a new area for proselyting this week and we found a bunch of inactive members so hopefully we can give some projects to the Elders Quorum and the Relief Society.

Until next week

Elder Westwood.