Animals All Around

We see lots of animals in the Philippines.

 Here's a Philippine water buffalo, called a caribao, plodding down this main highway, (which only has one lane going each way) at about 3 miles per hour.

 At a house just outside our gates they have a hard with small black pigs and ducks and geese.

 There are roosters running all around the area around our houses.

 A hen with her chicks.

We saw this huge pig in his pen at a house we were visiting when we were helping deliver some relief supplies after the typhoon.

 There is a weekly animal market across the main highway (from Camella where we live)  Here you see a pen of the small pigs for sale.

 They also had goats and chickens.

 Turkeys for sale.

 They even had dogs and cats for sale.

 A fighting rooster.

 A goat with two babies.

  Every six weeks there is a transfer announcement day.  This is a picture of our zone.  Two days later some missionaries were transferred to different areas, a couple of them completed their mission and went home and new missionaries arrived.  The first 4 missionary elders that were here when we arrived are now all trainers.  Two are training in different areas now.

 Elders Salisbury, Articulo, and Gumban.  These were the three Elders  assigned to San Ildefonso with us before transfer day; the all stayed and Elder Articulo is training a new elder.  Elder Salisbury is Elder Gumban's trainer (he has only been here about 7 weeks)  They are a great set of  Elders and are very hard working.  We go out on visits with them on occassion.

 All the Sisters at the meeting.

One day we went bowling with the San Ildefonso Elder's Quorum on an quorum activity.  They have American bowling but also Duck Pin, which is more popular.  The balls are real small and don't have holes in them.  The pins are smaller and squattier.  You get three rolls per turn.  And it's scored the same.  It's a lot harder.

Roadshow

Sister Swift has been busy helping the Youth organize and practice and perform in a District Roadshow.

Here are three of the youth in Lamanite costumes at practice in our building: Trinie, Camille, and Hazelle.

 Waiting for our turn at the Branch Road Show.  Trinie, Hazelle, Buti, Trinie, Jeroh, Camille,  Andrew, Chiqui, Ninio, and Sister Swift.

 One of our youth leaders, Chiqui, was conducting.

 Joseph Smith translating the gold plates.  This was in a different Branch performance, but was interesting.

 Cheeki with John William.  She played a mom and he was a boy that liked Super Heroes in comic books.

 A Lamanite mom with her daughter.

 Trinnie.

 Lamanite 2,000 stripling warriors.

 Notice how Sister Swift had their parts taped to the back of their props so they could read their lines.  They didn't get a lot of time to practice.

 Captain Heleman talking to one of the stripling warriors.

 Closing song.  Two others that weren't mentioned before, Joyce on the far right and Micalyn on the far left.

 Sister Swift  got a pedicure and they painted her cuticles with red stuff which did not come off.  It looked really odd.

Temple Trip and Branch Activities

We have been in the Philippines for two months now and we qre getting use to life here.  For me it's beginning to feel like this is our home for now and we are fitting in.  We are part of our branch and not just an oddity.  We had a busy week as usual with Branch activities and projects.  We survived the typhoon just fine.  All we had was heavy rain and some wind.  The northern part of our branch did have some damage and we will deliver relief packages to about 20 families this upcoming week.

Here is Sister Alma with two of her five children.  The branch had a service project at her home one day putting in a door so she can have some privacy and be safer. (problems not from the typhoon)  They made the opening larger, put in the frame, and added cement around the frame.  We have to wait for another day to put in the door and then work on the roof.

 Here's a cart we saw along the road to San Ildefonso.  It's really loaded down with household items for sale. We see these regularly.  It is pulled by a horse who is grazing just out of the picture

Here is a frog we found in our back kitchen.  You can see how tiny it is by the name-tag.  It is pretty small and we do see larger ones.  See the yellow in it's coloring.

 At the church building the neighborhood kids often come in to play when the gates are open.  They have a string put up between two trees that they were jumping over.

 Birthday for Trinnie, one of the young women in the branch.  She is the one in pink and was turning 16.

 Branch President's son Jethro at a Branch Social.

 Genealogy training at the Mission Home. 

The mission president couple and the senior missionary couples had a temple trip the same day we did genealogy training.  The Manila Temple is actually in Quezon City.  It is about a two hour drive from where we live.

Elder Swift and I are home teachers for 4 families in our branch.  We are assigned to visit them twice per month.  I am his partner in the beginning until the branch learns how to do regular home and visiting teaching.  When a couple is assigned home teaching in a small branch it will count for both home and visiting teaching.  Today I got a visiting teaching companion and we were given the four furthest barangay (neighborhoods).  This is because I have a car to drive and I don't think there is a another sister in the branch with a license to drive a car except me.  I don't think most of the men have car driving licenses either, but many have motorcycle driving licenses.

P.S. We are singing Christmas songs in church now since the Christmas season started Sept. 1st. This was the first Sunday our branch sang them, but I think I heard some other branches may have started earlier.

Zone Conference and YSA Social

We are home from church today because of a typhoon.  It's hitting north of us so there's no danger but because of the rain the roads may be unsafe in some places.  So they cancelled church in the district.

 Here's a little lizzard we found in the middle of the chapel at church.  I guess she wanted to come to church.  It has two eggs you can see.  A couple of times we have seen one in our house.

 We went to a FHE at the Vitongkol's home being held in honor of Elder Barcarse who is transferring out of our Branch to a new assignment.  We had good food and played some games.  They are a fun family.

On a p-day some of the sister missionaries got together to eat, ply games, and make these Pioneer handkerchief dolls.

 Elder's Coombs and Salisbury.  This picture was taken at the big Zone Conference held down in Quezon City.  They were both in our branch, but Elder Coombs has transferred to another area.

 Afterwards the Senior Missionaries went out to eat at Chili's in the Fairview Mall in Quezon City.  Left to right:  Rodgers, Swifts, Broadheads, Jones', Harringtons, and Bertins.

 A picture of our chapel in San Ildefonso Branch all set up for Sacrament the next day.  Which didn't happen because of the typhoon.

 Half the room at a YSA social.

 Other half of the group.

Sister Jones running the game.  Everyone had a lot of fun.

Temple Trip and General Conference

We went to the Manila Temple

 It was very beautiful there.  We went to a session with some local members of the San Ildefonso Branch and then to the sealing for a couple in the Branch.

 Apolinario and Jenny Mangalabnan.  It was so sunny the picture was washed out.

They have karaoke at the stores trying to sell you music or electronics.  Sister Swift singing at the SM Department Store with Elder and Sister Jones and Elder Rodgers.  All the nearby store clerks stopped to watch.

 On Tuesday we had zone training.  The two Elders in the middle are the Zone Leaders.

 Afterwards we all went to MacDonalds for lunch.  A lot of the Philipino Elders had umbrellas to shade the sun but the American Elders did not.

 Sister Swift with two Sisters in our Zone.  The first is from Pakistan the second is from the Mariana Islands.  They are companions now serving in the Philippines.

 This weekend we watched five sessions of General Conference.  They show it a week later here.

 A group of people after the end of Conference.  Elder Barcarse in the middle is leaving us on an  transfer.

 Elder Salisbury and Gumban.

Goodbye from me and my buddy Aaron.