Another week has gone by here in Santa Monica! The days are fast yet slow. I'm not quite sure that I can fully wrap my head around the concept of time quite yet. One year ago this time I was in Utah. Fast forward a year later and here I am in the Philippines! On Palawan! On an island! Two years ago I was still in high school. Eleven years ago I was an eight-year old in Singapore. Where does all the time go?
This week was interesting on so many levels! Sister Lockwood and I did alot of walking for the most part, mainly because everyone was either hiding from us or not telling us the truth (.......) or busy and not at home. It was so bizarre! No kidding - so many people would see us coming and then run away. I can't even! It was so funny! At one point I couldn't even open my mouth to speak because I knew that if I did, I would burst out laughing. Sister Lockwood and I are harmless, we promise! Maybe just the words of God would hurt them. Or pierce their souls. We don't know! Either way there was alot of hiding! Alot of people would tell us they were going for a walk in five minutes and so we couldn't teach them. To believe, or not to believe? That was our big question this week........So in short- we got turned away alot. But that's okay! We are trying our best. As long as I know that I've put in MY effort, I know that God will be pleased.
Some other funny experiences - since I don't think I tell you guys about mission life enough:
1) Sis. Lockwood and I were walking to a less-active's house one night, up this big hill/roadside, when all of a sudden this motorcycle with two guys comes up from the other direction, passes us, and then the driver puts his fists in the air and says "Sisters, sisters!" In a CHANT. He was chanting "Sisters! Sisters" while he was driving by. Sis. Lockwood and I just burst out laughing. We had no idea who he was or how he knew that we were sisters. Maybe he has seen us before since we go to that area frequently. But STILL! People chanting "Sisters! Sisters!" out of nowhere? It was hilarious.
2) Another night when Sis. Lockwood and I were walking to another less-active's home, a group of boys (kids) were walking right by us and all of a sudden they ALL burst into an applause. A full-out applause. Clapping. HAHA. What?!?! The Philippines is so fun! Clapping and chanting? Hopefully they were helping God show us that He is cheering for us too. Those two moments were definitely much needed moments of comic relief. It was hard being turned away by so many (more than usual! Because usually people let us teach them! But like I said, this week was so weird.) and so having some moral support from complete strangers boosted our morale!
3) So...you have to understand that Sis. Lockwood and I are two REALLY young missionaries (young in age and young in the mission) who have been put together on Palawan island. Even though I am technically half-Filipino, Mom, I have no idea about most of the Filipino traditions here. And so here's where the story begins.
This week we "kind of" attended a funeral. Well, all we did was say hi and offer condolences, but! Sis. Lockwood and I were at such a loss about what to do! The first time we went into the house (we were looking for this one brother that we had contacted on the street one day and he had told us that his mom had passed away) we were as awkward as it could get! Should we share a message about the Plan of Salvation? Would that be kind of rude to interrupt their "mourning period"? What do Filipinos usually expect from visitors at funerals? We didn't know! And so we just shook hands and exchanged a couple of words and left. And as we walked away, Sis. Lockwood and I just looked at each other and said, "Was that rude? They offered us drinks and had opened up bottles of Coke and we had said no. Is that considered rude in the Filipino culture??" We had no clue. No clue at all. Two foreigners. Trying to figure out Filipino people.
So....WE WENT BACK!!!!! And brought with us bananas, a bag of bread, four tiny packets of cookies, and...a Plan of Salvation pamphlet. To this day Sis. Lockwood and I still aren't sure which meeting was more awkward. The first one, or the second one where we went BACK and handed them the foods and the pamphlet and still didn't teach. It was...confusing. Luckily he invited us to come back AFTER the actual funeral. And luckily we also bore quick testimonies about where his Mom is right now. So maybe it wasn't that bad. BUT EITHER WAY! This funeral thing was another one of our neat experiences this week. (I promise this story is way more interesting than it sounds!)
ANYWAYS! As you can see, the title of my email is "Do I trust God above everything else?" This was a question that stuck with me throughout this entire week. Being on the mission has really tested my obedience and my humility and willingness to submit to the will of God as well as President Ostler. Much of this thinking caused alot of internal discomfort/emotional distress- Ether knows how much thinking goes on in my head when I dwell on an issue for too long- as I tried to battle it out in my head if I should/should not obey/disobey certain rules. Don't worry- I'm not talking about anything major! It was just something REALLY small. We were told that we aren't actually supposed to chat with people during our emailing time..........which...........is...........hard.............but......I will do it. I will obey. Even though a million reasons exist for why I could probably continue even if I wanted to...........for example, I know of other people who do, whether it be parent-child communication or friend-friend communication..........I WILL NOT COMPARE MY SITUATION TO THEIRS! I. will. obey. And I know this sounds like something really small, really minute, but....it was a big thing I struggled with internally. The days leading up to today, leading up emailing today, were hard! But luckily I have built up enough resolve since then, since five days ago when the rule was officially laid down. So: I will obey.
I trust God above everything else. I know that He has a plan for me and I know that exact obedience brings miracles. I believe that exact obedience WILL bring miracles. Yesterday I had the sweet opportunity to receive a blessing, and the words said during the blessing gave me greater strength to believe that everything will be okay. Everything will work out. This week didn't see alot of lessons taught but next week will. I mean, the blessings HAVE to come! God promises us blessings when we are obedient. And so obedient I will be. (As hard as this rule is.) I trust in God. I trust Him above everything else.
I am so excited to Skype home next week! Mom/Dad, you guys should have seen the email by President Ostler by now. I'll get to skype you two for 30 minutes each individually. Yay! That's better than just the 40 minutes that most people will get. I can't wait! As of right now we still don't have alot of information about what will happen, but I'm sure you guys will be
notified!
ALSO, BIG SHOUT-OUT TO GAETANA!!!! Gaetana Wilson! I love you!!!!! Mariana is SO beautiful. Also I have a letter coming for you, so watch out for it! You and Kyle are going to be the BEST parents!!!!!!!
Here's to another week of being in the refiner's fire! Let's all do this together!
With love,
Sister Teo
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