One thing I've been writing in letters and emails today that I'm pretty excited about, is the fact that I washed my clothes in a bucket this week! Pangit pa ang aking pagtitiis ng pilipino squatting. (something about the endurance of Philippino's squatting) It's amazing how long they can squat! Some time test your self. That labendera nanay (laundry lady) is expensive, and I kinda want to see how much money I can save.
I found out last week how much $9,000 dollars (what missionaries pay now days) is in pesos. It's like 300,000 pesos! That's a lot of pesos. Philippino Elders (since everyone is dang-poor here) only need to pay 2,500 pesos. It's been interesting for me to watch how the support money is spent. And it's making me dang frugal like heck!
This week we got really into oym-ing opening our mouths and tracting people! I've found my nationality and konteng tagalog conversational abilitties to be helpful in starting conversations. And just smiling with people has been great this week. Today expecially. This morning we went to Paco Roman, (the second area of the Rizal Ward 2 Elders) to have our ddm and to play ping pong. That was fun to see another branch meeting house and some more faithful saints hanging around. After that we went to the palengke to buy delicious things, and I was wearing the big black glasses and all the tinderas (ladies running the stores) were so happy to see me! They would tell me that I am pogi (handsome) and then ask me to buy vegetables or meat from them! They deceive. But anyways! I really am liking the public market!
On a food note (and explanation of the subject of this sentence) This week I have eaten a lot of squid! It's delicious. Everytime I open the fridge and see the squid balls sitting in the freezer I chuckle a bit and usually say "Squid balls!" I know dad will probably remember the wisconsin cheese curds from A & W, but that's what the taste reminds me of when you fry them!
Also on Thursday at our zone training meeting in San Jose, we got pouch (mail) and I recieved a duct-taped cd container from Elder Conger! With delicious cowtails inside! Then Elder Pang got a package as well from his parents who deal dried fishy things and there were dried squids inside! They're just like jerky and you can bite off the tenticles but the suckers have little sharp things inside! They kinda hurt your tongue of you chew wrong. ..squid!
We've got another family home evening tonight with the Paras family, or rather at their house. Elder Daquipil has a rocking object lesson planned I'm exited to see. Lesson plans are pretty great when you're teaching, I've realized. People just like objects! But yeah, the sun is about to go down here, I can see out the window. It must be over Europe or the Atlantic sea!
This week with our investigators we have seen some come and some go. I had a kind of fun time talking to one, sister Gulietta in Portal, she was really progressing a while back then expressed some concern about her husband not liking the church and then she dropped off the face of the planet. We went back to her this week and she just kept telling me over and over how busy she is! i just sat and smiled with her and she would tell us to come back next time, so I would set a date and she would say no next time, come back next time and anyways! The work is rolling forward!, and we're on our way to victory!!! But yeah!
I love you fam keep the saint faith rollin!
-Elder Hill
Dennison's (Elder conger's) contraption -I received in the mail
A giant spider, a be-headed ipis (coachroach) and me!
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Oh my, the spider & cockroach give me the shivers.
ReplyDeleteIt is so sweet that he is trying what he can to cut costs. I think it would be hard to see how poor the people are and make you grateful for what you have.