weekly...weakly??

All is well with me. I've been having a good week and no brown outs either! Last week we went to the Bishop's house. His daughter actually took us to their farm to ride their caribou and we had fun playing
around there too. Respectfully of course. We got back inside right in time for a nasty storm to start. We had dinner with them and taught FHE. Super fun day!

Every Tuesday we start the day off with a district meeting. Afterwards we got to teach the nephew of a member family for the first time and we could just tell how excited he was for the gospel. We left him
with an assignment to read the next part in the pamphlet and before we even left, he was reading it. So awesome!

Wednesday Sister Lamac and I went to the mission home for a new missionary and trainers meeting. It was a super good meeting, and definitely recharged me for the work. The rest of the week was pretty normal. Go out and teach for hours in the hot hot sun, but I love it. We have been trying to find service opportunities, but it is hard. Whenever someone is just doing something, you kind of have to jump in before they say no. The other day we went to visit a family, and the Nanay was stripping the leaves off of dead palm tree branches to make a broom, so we just started picking off leaves and doing it with her. It was fun, and then we got to teach her less-active son.

We have our weekly dinner appointments every Friday with the Busania Family, and every Sunday with the Fernandez family. But other than that, we don't have any scheduled, but almost always someone invites us to eat with them after teaching. People are so sweet. We have been asking for referrals from everyone we talk to, but we don't get very many.

Today for our zone activity, we got to explore some caves and then we ended up having lunch at a beautiful waterfall. It was a good hike but I am so sore! All four of us in our apartment are working out as much as possible. I was a little achy while we were hiking, but it is all good. As Dad would say, pain is just weakness leaving the body, right? I have a lot of motivation to work out, apparently it isn't rude to call someone fat. So I hear that more often than I'd like. In the last 2 days, 2 different people said something about it. We walk and I swear I sweat off two pounds a day off, why am I not getting thinner?? Last week, one Nanay told me I am looking fatter. My clothes all still fit and actually feel a bit looser so it's all good. Filipino's are TINY so anything more is "fat" I guess. I really get called all sorts of names though. I don't take it too personally. I'm fat, beautiful, barbie, snow white, milky just to name a few... whatevs!

My dad sent this quote this week;

"The tree that never had to fight

For sun and sky and air and light,

But stood out in the open plain

And always got its share of rain,

Never became a forest king

But lived and died a scrubby thing.

The man who never had to toil

To gain and farm his patch of soil,

Who never had to win his share

Of sun and sky and light and air,

Never became a manly man

But lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow with ease:

The stronger wind, the stronger trees."

-Douglas Malloch a favorite of JW Marriott

 
It was just so appropriate this week...This IS the hardest thing I have ever done. I am always tired. I work all day in the heat. I am constantly sweating and the hardest thing is that I barely know the language. Most of the time I sit there clueless, until there is a break and I ask Sister Lamac what is going on. I am trying my best to teach parts of the lessons, but I can only do a little introduction into the topic and then Sister Lamac needs to do the rest. It is so hard. But with all of that, I know that I am in the right place, doing the right thing. I am learning and growing, and by the end, I know that I will be stronger. Besides, I have the Lord on my side...how can I fail?

Mom (via Sis Stucki) sent this quote as well this week.

"Pure Christ-like love flowing from true righteousness can change the world. Travel the path of Christian discipleship-it is straight and it is narrow without a great amount of latitude at some points, but it can be thrillingly and successfully travelled with steadfastness in Christ, a perfect brightness of hope, and love of God and of all men. In courageously pursuing such a course, you will forge unshakable faith, you will find safety against winds that blow, even shafts in the whirlwind, and you will feel the rock-like strength of our Redeemer, upon who you build your unflagging discipleship, you cannot fail"
-Elder Jeffrey Holland

Stay strong everyone!  

Love,

Sister Koncurat

(note from mom--Can't wait to Skype with my sweet girl this weekend for Mother's Day.  Also, she had a bunch of pictures to add but couldn't get them to load and she was running out of time so, next week we will hopefully get to see those beautiful waterfalls and her riding a caribou!  crazy to think!)