The miracles of the mission

This is going to be a pretty detailed pretty great blog, so read closely. (it's detailed because I didn't have any time this week to write in my journal, so now you get the FULL story:)

 

When we last left off I was feeling a little bit down about my baptisms being cancelled and moved until after I leave. So let's continue from there. So on Monday we went to an FHE at the Sengson Family's house. I love that family they are so great! It's a single mother with 15 children!! Holy Smokes she is so great.... and they are all active. Anyways we were playing games and Sister Cabato kept getting texts during the lesson. I tried to read her emotion to see what was happening and I couldn't really tell.... then we leave the fhe and all that she says to me is, "Sister you have to jump up and down okay?" me being the obedient missionary that I am just started jumping up and down and then I said, "Wait, why am I jumping up and down?" And then she said that Rubelita can still get baptized!!! she's the one who said that her parents thought that she was investigating a different church and so she couldn't get baptized.... it turns out that her parents were just kidding.... actually they are members, and she really could get baptized:) I was so happy!!!

Tuesday: I had exchanges with Sister Storey-who I love by the way- she is from Kaysville and she is just soo funny. Anyways we had a really great day of teaching and came home from lunch. While I was cooking lunch, we got a phone call. It was President Barrientos, I'll just write you a little bit of how the conversation went.

Me: Hello Po President!

Pres: Hello Sister Schultz! How are you? Are you on exchanges right now?

 

Me: Opo (yes) President.

P: Do you have exchanges tomorrow?

Me: Hindi po (no) President

 

P: Okay that's good. So, Sister Schultz, tomorrow, you will need to come to Laoag. You will be flying out tomorrow.

 

Me: (Automatic tears) What?

P:Yes, we have a problem with the visas and so you will travel here early in the morning tomorrow.

Me. No.... (bawling) president... no,,,,

P: Sister Schultz listen; okay you will take the bus tomorrow to Laoag and then you will meet Sister Woahn, Elder Taukei, and Elder KNowles and you will all be flying out of Laoag to Manilla tomorrow.

me: (Still crying) But president... we have baptisms... 

 

President: Listen Sister I'm not done yet. You will be flying to Manilla, but you will only be staying for two days and then you will return here to Laoag. Don't worry you're not going home yet.

Me: Alah! (there's no translation for that) President!

President: Laughing- you're okay Sister Schultz okay? I'll call you later.

 

WORST. FEELING. EVER!!!

It was at that moment that i am really grateful for my real release date:) And that I'm not going home yet:)

 

Needless to say, it wasn't the best day for exchanges that I have had. Then that night I packed really quick and in the morning I took the early bus traveling to Laoag (5:30 AM) I had to travel by myself which at first I was like Aw! Sweet! I'm traveling by myself! By then after like 5 minutes I got really really bored.... and I had no one to talk to. couldn't sleep, even though I was way tired. We made one stop about an hour away from Laoag (it's a five hour bus ride) and when we started again I Was out! The bus driver had to wake me up in Laoag. I got off of the bus and was very disoriented... and I had no companion. I have been to Laoag very few times in my mission, so I was really unfamiliar with everything. Luckily you can just jump in a tryce and tell them where you want to go and they will take you there. I went to the mission office and then just waited and waited and waited for 3 hours! Until they finally told me to go and meet Sister Woahn at some taco place in Laoag. Meanwhile Sister Woahn has been waiting at the taco place for a while now and decides to come to the mission home. We missed each other. Haha 

    Turns out that my tryce driver didn't know where the taco place was, so he just stopped at a tryce terminal. The other drivers swarmed my tryce and I was surrounded by a bunch of men talking to me.... uh... help! I called the office and they told me how to get to the taco place and then the driver took me to.... not the taco place. I was done being with him though, so i just got out. 

   I walked to a security guard and just ask him "uh... do you know where the tacos are?" Stupid question in English, it sounds a lot less dumb in Tagalog, but it was effective:) He took me to the taco place! only... no Sister Woahn. I decided to just wait. I waited for about 15 minutes when sister Woahn came:) I love Sister Woahn. We ate and then just talked for ever, and finally at 6:30 we all met up at the office.

No one seemed to know what we were supposed to do so they just said. Here's your ticket just take a tryce to the airport.... by ourselves again! Get to the airport. Get on the airplane and it's off to Manilla! Go off the airplane, and.... no one was waiting for us (what? What are we even doing here) Sat around for like 20 minutes and then finally found our driver. He took us to the hotel airport (which is where I stayed when we came in) and had a really nice dinner at like 11PM and then took hot showers (that was nice) and slept on real mattresses in an aircon room:) (that was also nice:)) in the morning we got up really early and took a van to the embassy. We got there.... no one was waiting for us again. (what is this?) haha so we just grabbed some forms that we thought looked right and filled out the paper work and got our pictures taken and stuff. Then we called President and we were like.... uh.... is this what we are supposed to be doing? There is no one here. He called his people and someone came over. Turns out that we never had to do any of that stuff.... just get fingerprinted and sign some forms.... then we were done. 7 hours before our flight was supposed to leave!!!

The driver didn't want to take us to the temple, but it's closed when we actually go home, so we bribed him to take us... as in.... we paid him a lot to take us.... then we couldn't stay long, but we took some pictures and then left, stopping to get some krispy kreme donuts:) Gotta love Manilla! got to the airport....waited....flew back to laoag:) no one was waiting for us.... so we took a sketchy bus to the mission home.... no one was there. At this point we have no money at all because it's close to the end of the month and since we were all leaving, our support got cut. So we couldn't even afford to go home. SO we found a mango tree and had mangos for dinner:) Elder Knowles sat down to eat his mango and completely ripped his pants! It was hilarious!!! Sister Woahn and I saw the whole thing happen and we were just dying with laughter! About five seconds after they ripped, in pulls President Barrientos:) Oh priceless:) Stayed the night over in laoag (Another Hot Shower) and in the morning had interviews. 

I told President Barrientos about the Juan Family and how we had to move their baptismal date to the week after I leave because of word of wisdom problems... I may have cried... and he said, "Sister Schultz are they ready?' "opo President."

"Okay" He said, "they can get baptized right before you go home:)" I was sooo happy! And thus we see that the Lord works in mysterious but marvelous ways!!!

Rode back home by myself:) It was freezing cold and my window was broken:) Got home and now we are back in business:) 

 

This week... TIN TIN came to church! Tin Tin is our investigator that is in a wheelchair, she has hypocephalus and NEVER leaves the house. We have been trying to pick her up for the last month and she finally was able to come today!!! I was so happy! The branch basically attacked her with hugs and love!!!:) I'm so happy:) We had 20 investigators at church today:) if one bad week can bring that many blessings then I guess that enduring is definitely worth it!

Love you all! I will see you all in 17 days!

 

I forgot to bring my camera today.... so no pictures. Maybe next week... or you can just look at Sister Woahn's Blog.