When I was your age plete was 6 pesos.

Dear Friends and Family,

Dad, thanks for the update, it sounds like America is doing things their style. I'm not anxious to go home, politics here in the Philippines is all in Tagalog so I don't understand any of it. I miss watching sports a bunch. As we walked out of the house this morning our Landlord (our houses are next to each other separated only by a concrete wall.) was watching game 4 [NBA Champoionship], the temptation to ask how it was going was kind of nasty. But we didn't, I'm sure I'll find out later today, probably while I get a haircut. I'm also WAYYYYYY jealous that you get to go to Boston. Maybe you'll see Tagg (as made famous by The Yaks). His family moved back over there last summer. Keep an eye out. Also Fenway Park, are you kidding me? Did Colton ever get his call, or at least open it? I'm pumped for him. Also, we totally are getting a new mission president this July. President Schmutz. Hehehe, can you believe that name? He seems like a stud. Although President Hansen is kind of the man. I gained sooooo much respect for him this last Monday at Zone Conference. He was given an offer to pitch for the Padres, Dad, I don't know why he turned it down, I think he wanted to focus on his career in education. But he could have been Trevor Hoffman! Also, he gave a way amazing workshop about John 21, the part where Jesus feeds his apostles fish and bread on the shore. Talk about your obscure verses, but he made it crystal clear that that is the way the spirit teaches. So, that is the way we should teach. Then we watched a segment of an MTC devotional by Jeffrey R. Holland (probably my favorite apostle. Is it ok to have favorites? He is tied with L. Tom Perry.) about the "If you love me, feed my sheep" segment of the same chapter. You guys should check it out and show it to the priests quorum. It will make you want to be a missionary soo bad. That’s why I'm totally living the dream – right - now.

Anyway, this last week was about 5000X better than last. I shouldn't say that. Last week was ok, but this one is going pretty well. We picked up a neat new family, and they made us lunch before we even taught them the first time. Also, we visited JR and it seems like if we play our cards right, we can convince him to continue on the path to baptism. That was a boost. Zone Conference went well in just about every aspect. We found a guy who is a cousin of our branch president, and wants us to visit him because he wants to stop drinking. We can do that. So things are really beginning to look up for us here. I also found a wayyyyy sweet tie (100% wool, hand-woven in Scotland) at the Oki-oki (Philippines version of a Deseret Industries, except you can barter the prices way down) last p-day.

We are feeling the gas price hike here in the Philippines. Plete (is that an english word? [No, it means fare.] I don't know but even President and Sister Hansen use it so I'm not sure) is 8 pesos now which bites. It was 7 when I got here, and when my District Leader got here it was only 6. Sometimes the drivers even have the gall to give me 2 pesos back when I give them a 20. Also yesterday we visited a member, and we saw the last 10 minutes of Space Jam, in Tagalog! So that was a blast. I miss that movie, I miss Michael Jordan, I really miss Bill Murray (I forgot he was in that), he was funny even though I didn't know what he was saying.

I think this is everything I was planning on saying. I can't really think of any other way cool things that happened to us. Except of course that we preached the gospel by the power and authority of God. That was pretty awesome!

I love every last one of you. I miss you. I've had a lot of Grandaddy songs stuck in my head. [Grandaddy was an American indie rock band, formed in 1992, from Modesto, California.] I forgot most of the words to A.M. 180 [one of Grandaddy’s songs, used for a while in 2008 to advertise the Dodge Journey], which is too bad, but it’s for the best. Be good. Stay Crazy.
Gugma Elder Abbott

Mongoes and cheap Sprite

Dear friends and family!

This was a little bit of a slower week, and we are pretty much re-vamping our investigator pool. It’s all good. We have tracted Satan out of one half of the island last transfer, so Elder Rebojo and I will tract Satan out of the other half this transfer. And, if I'm here next transfer, I'll track Satan out of Panglao, too! One of the biggest blessings this last week was that we finally found a Karnenderia! Or in English, a cheap place to eat! The best things about Karnenderia's is that they are soooo cheap and so fast that we don't have to waste a bunch of time cooking. Unfortunately, its kind of far away from the house (really far) so we can only eat there when we are working in that area. The best part is I've eaten Mongoes (second favorite dish here in the Philippines. It’s like peas I guess, but this recipe has some other vegetables and entire fishes, little fishes, but I still just stare at their beady little eyes and then slurp them up in one bite.) and this way boss Lumpyia 2 times in a row now.  Which reminds me that we may be moving this transfer (hopefully). Every missionary in Dauis for the last few years has been looking for an apartment or house in the part of Dauis where the church and almost all the members are. We finally did it! So hopefully that goes through, it would save so much money on our nightly motorcycle ride home.

Also, last Monday we were going to a service project and I guess I stepped in some animal pooh outside the ZL's house, and as I reached down to take off my sandal I got it on my hand. It didn't phase me even a little bit. My district leader pointed out that it probably would have bothered me a lot more a year ago. Which is probably true.

Also last week I hit my 1 year mark of me turning in my papers to President Wilkinson. Where did all that time go? That summer felt like forever, then I hit the mission and it has just soared. Does this mean Josh is getting his call in a week or two. I'm so excited for him I could pee. I'm throwing down my guesses. If he goes stateside (I don't think he will), he's headed to Riverside California. If he goes foreign its gonna be somewhere cold, like an Argentina mission down at the bottom of the world. He will see penguins down there. So good luck with that, Josh. 

That’s pretty much all I got. I got way hungry for pork ribs when you guys mentioned Memorial Day. Barbecue here isn't the same because its usually chicken or fish, never beef and occasionally (if you’re rich) pork. But the first thing I do when I get home is eating a nice juicy steak. Then I'm headed to Porters Place. But that’s a while away. 

I love you guys a ton. Be good. Stay Crazy.

gugma Elder Abbott

p.s. I'm sending a bunch of pictures because the connection is strong here, I really hope Mom is making a scrapbook. 

 

PICTURES: 

this is a nice little view of Bohol (thats the more bukid side of Tagbilaran city, its a pretty small city) from my area.

  Elder Rebojo and I at our last activity at the white sandy beaches of Panglao.

Our last zone service Project at an Elementary school in Tagbilaran.

Me and Elder Rebojo after the 50th year jubilee celebration.

Me and Elder Rebojo with the Telmo Family after the jubilee.

 

 

 

 

 

I think this is all the Elders in Bohol (2 zones).

     Nanay Vicky and Bro. Boboy Caldoro, they are the first members from Dauis (2nd from Bohol) and are super nice (Nanay Vicky loves me). 

Doin' the Cockroach

Dear friends and family, 

Big news! I'm not getting transferred and neither is Elder Rebojo, which means he will be my longest running companion so far - 2 whole months! I'm very OK with it since he's a good guy. I'm still in Bohol, which  is still hard, but its for the best.... probably.

Dad sounds way skinny. That sounds great, I hope he is still into eating In-n-Out burger with me. I really miss In-n-Out. 

So I promised a cool letter right? So I'll write about the cool stuff that happened to me this week. I'll start with the most gross. After the baptism this Saturday (just a little kid), we went back to the house and right before we went back out Elder Rebojo used "the little elders room." He started shouting and I came downstairs to see what happened and inside the bathroom I saw a dead cockroach and another getting sprayed with permethrin (cockroach killer). Let me tell you about the cockroaches (uk-uk sa bisayan) here in the Philippines. They are massive, they fly, and they bite. I hate them. Anyway so there were 2, and I was like yuck. Then a baby one ran across by the door so we sprayed it, then another on came running into view, then another and another. Until we had doused about a dozen massive cockroaches. The permethrin doesn't kill them on contact (nothing does) they just slow down and struggle for life. So we closed the door to the bathroom and went out to work and then when we came home at night they were all belly up and the bathroom smelled sooooooo bad, we had dropped so much chemicals in there. It was way gross. I hate cockroaches. Elder Rebojo was going to take a picture but didn't because he didn't want nightmares. 

So, in other cool news, we did a cool CSP for an elementary school, a ton of walking, a ton of people rejecting us, and not a lot of teaching. These last few weeks have been undoubtedly the hardest of my mission, but every time the world/satan kick my butt and I come home at night feeling like poop, God does something to pick me up. 

So tell me about America. Josh will probably get his call this June! Just like me! He might come to Cebu. I heard 15 Americans are coming in this September. How is the ward? I think going to church after the mission is going to be way different. First, not everyone is going to want to shake my hand. Second I'm not going to have to wait for sacrament to start with my stomach in knots hoping my investigators come to church. It will be kind of weird. 

But the Philippines is still a blast, and I like being a missionary a bunch, I miss you guys, but you all probably miss me way more, because, let's get real, I'm in Asia.  :)

Be good. Stay Crazy. 

Gugma Elder Abbott

Wala'y Lami

Dear Friends and Family,

My Padres better pick it up before I get home. The NBA is a hot topic with the elders in the mission. I heard the Lakers are out, which is the best thing in the world. We play basketball every Wednesday morning at the church. It’s a blast and tons of members show up. Usually I'm pretty bad, but today I had one way sweet swat, and at least 2 steals. So I feel great, a little tired. 

So, the missionary work continues to rock and roll here in Dauis. We have a baptism this Saturday, and we picked up a new committed investigator. He's great. It’s that Simbahan nato guy, who finally "promised" for June 11. He is super nice. The funny part of the story is that the couple that came to the lesson with us (they are great, more on them later), the husband literally fell asleep as we committed him to  baptism. That probably speaks volumes of our teaching, but the point is he's committed and I'm pumped. 

Also, this past Saturday was the jubilee celebration of 50 years of the church in the Philippines.  It was a blast. The funny story is back in 70's they almost closed down Bohol because they hadn't had a baptism yet. And when the baptism finally came through, the mission president came to witness it. But its all good, Bohol isn't so bad its just hot. After the jubilee we went to the first couple to be baptized in Bohol (for dinner). It was a blast. They really like us and last night she made banana bread and gave us some. It was so good. I miss banana bread. 

I'm kind of out of cool stories to tell so this email will be way short sorry. I'm kind of tired. 

I love you guys a ton. I haven't gotten a lot of letters lately "hint hint", I really shouldn't have to beg like this. Because if you write me I write you right back and usually put in a way cool picture. So think about it. 

Be good. Stay Crazy

Gugma Elder Abbott

p.s. sorry I know this is an awful letter, next week will be way better.  

God loves me

He sure does.

Dear friends and family,

He loves you all a bunch, too.
So this last Monday was fantastic - Skyping home. Baby Britta is super cute. So is Josh, hehehe. I loved hearing your sweet voices. I loved speaking English for a while. Monday was a pretty trunky day because after Skyping, at district meeting I got the package (Daghan Salamat!) and like 15 letters. Because I got emergency transferred all the people in the mission that write me (new converts, other missionaries) sent them to Negroes, then they had to get sent back to Cebu and then to Bohol, so they all showed up and I finally got a letter from Joey! It was tops! First one since the MTC. He comes home in October, you all should invite him to dinner.

So, a couple of experiences this last week have proven to me without a doubt that God loves me. To be honest, I was always pretty sure. We'll start with Saturday. On Saturday our first two appointments fell through just minutes after we left the house, and our dinner appointment fell through, (that’s the worst!) so it was looking like we had a few of hours of tracting ahead of us, and just minutes after we had headed down the road, feeling pretty discouraged (very, very discouraged, everyday was seeming like this) we got a phone call. The person calling asked when and where church was on Sunday (this never happens, especially not in Bohol). We gave her instructions and she said she was excited to come. It was totally a surprise and lifted our spirits alot. We were in really good moods and we found two other new families to teach (our good moods affect tracting a ton). Then, Sunday morning the people that called came to church, and the branch did an incredible job of fellow-shipping and making them feel very comfortable (admittedly Dauis branch is boss, maybe the best in Bohol). They are a slightly elderly couple about 50+ (last name: Brina). They own a resort on the island (I'm hoping for white sands and a tarsier - Google tarsier – they are fantastic) and their co-partners have been members since the 60's. The couple is very excited and had a lot of really good questions. So that was huge, one of the biggest blessings in my mission so far.

Then, slightly smaller but also neat, last night. Yesterday was a lot like Saturday. We got dropped by everything in the afternoon, so, after hours of walking and talking to people with limited success (their aren't that many people on this island), we headed to a member family to pick up some invitations to the 50 year Jubilee. While we were there, we chatted and got to know them, and they started giving us a ton of referrals, and offering to come work with us, then invited us to dinner on Thursday night. Then we bought some dinner and headed home for the night. I was exhausted and I still had a ton of laundry to do (I really REALLY miss washing machines). While we were eating, Bro. Flores came by. He kind of scared us actually. He is totally nice though and only speaks Tagalog. (I'm learning a little bit of Tagalog now by the way.) He brought a ton of really delicious food and drinks from a birthday party in the branch. He didn't really say much else, offered to come work with us on Friday and dissipated into the night (I meant to write disappeared but that’s what Mozilla spell check came up with. J). It was very nice and the branch loves us, even though we are both new. I feel like we have finally earned their trust.

So enough about me, how are all you?
I'm out of things to write and we just Skyped. How are my Padres?

I guess thats all I wanted to say, thanks again for the package. I aint' usin' the toilet paper.

Be good. Stay Crazy
Gugma Elder Abbott  

Ang simbahan nato

Dear Friends and Family, 

So Osama bin Ladin got killed, that’s pretty crazy news. Also, Emily and Michael [Nik’s niece and nephew in Idaho] are HUGE!!!! That kind of freaked me out. Kaleb's letters are great, I am a little shy because his letters are really well written and I talked about chicken butts last week. I should talk more about the work I do. 

So, I'll start with Saturday because Saturday morning was pretty good. We were tracting (YEAH!) and I read the Preach My Gospel section on talking to everyone (again) and I made a personal commitment to not pass anyone on the street or any house that looked like there were people there. We had a lot more success than usual. We talked to a very nice lady that seemed crazy interested and told us that she was moving back to Samar. (That is the Tachloban mission, so hopefully Elder Johnson will teach her.) Then this lady we talked to was methodically ripping off fish heads and making kinilaw (its a delicious raw fish thing). Then another lady like 45 minutes later was walking past us on the street and we gave her the regular greetings and then I felt like I shouldn't let her go, so I sort of half shouted at her "Where are you going?" It worked because she stopped. and we talked. and we set up a return appointment. YES!  Then Saturday afternoon we had district conference, and they showed the Cultural festival for 50 years of the church in the Philippines. It was fantastic - a combined effort of 19 stakes in Manila. 50 years ago this year 4 missionaries from the Southern Far East mission showed up in the Philippines. (10 years later the first family in Bohol was baptized. She is in Dauis branch! [This is where Nik is now stationed.]) Also, I found out that the Philippines has the highest number of convert baptisms in the shortest amount of time in the whole world! Then Sunday they had a special Philippines-only conference, where John Michael Teh, spoke and Julie Beck and Quentin L. Cook, and Boyd K. Packer all spoke. It was good. Boyd K. Packer's talk was a little rambling. It reminded me of his talk at the Provo conference a few years ago. Just with a more asian flair. 

Then Sunday night, we visited Junior, who Elder Rebojo and I weren't sure if he was really progressing and we thought about dropping him, but we visited him and before we shared we asked if he had any questions for us. He said: "Ang simbahan nato, wala tay crus o rebulto di' ba?" Sorry I'm a jerk but I'm just pumped that I finally can speak this language, so I had to write it, but translation is he said: In our church we don't cross ourselves or have (I really don't really know what rebulto is in english it just means all the graven images the catholics here use, like little rosaries and statues of saints.) So, first, it was an acute observation on his part, but the sweetest part was that he said “OUR church.” Up until then he had always said “you guys” or “at your church” but he now included himself in the statement and began to explain how he had waited so long for the missionaries to show up and even though it hurts to read the  Book of Mormon (he doesn't have any glasses because its expensive to get an eye test) he still tries to read every morning. (we had no idea) So, he has rapidly become our most progressing investigator. In the heart of the Bohol, the most dreaded and Catholic island in the Philippines we have managed to find someone who will accept the gospel. (he is totally committed for baptism now). 

So that was a blast. Also on the fun side I rode on top of a jipney last night coming home from a service project. 

Also, the Philippines Cebu mission finally caught up with the rest of the world and got Cell Phones! So we can finally text and call people. Next step: cars! Probably not though. 

I love you all. Be good. Stay Crazy. 

Gugma Elder Abbott.