Hi!!! Life is happy :)

Hello! Thanks for the photos! I loved them. Wow, no I didn't hear about the big earthquake in Haiti. That's scary. What a blessing that all of the missionaries there are ok. I heard that there was one in Manila last week, but I don't think it was very big (we didn't feel it at all here).

Guess what? While proselyting, we met a couple from Rexburg Idaho! Brother and Sister Larson. The husband is American and served in the Baguio mission many years ago, and his wife is Filipino! They just retired and bought a house in our area. They visit Utah often and he knows where Mount Pleasant is. Crazy, eh??! It was fun to be able to talk to another American :)

Last week on Monday my zone officially "initiated" me (and Sister Broadhead and Lapana) into the Dagupan Zone by doing this ridiculously funny "ritual" that they call "BoogaBooga!" It reminded me of that part in Finding Nemo where they do all the chanting. My zone can be quite silly sometimes. But it's fun. One thing I've learned is that Filipinos LOVE to play games and joke around. I thought I was goofy and full of energy before I came here, but sometimes they wear me out! ;)
Oh, just to straighten things out - the address I gave you last week was just for kicks and giggles - don't send mail there. I doubt you'd be able to find it on googleearth. And it's actually Bonuan Boquig (not Gueset--whoops).
Hehehe, here they have a superstition that if you have big ears, you'll live a long life. :)

We live very close to the ocean. On Wednesday after a service project (clearing land for a garden), we got to see the Ocean! It was windy. It's is in Sis. Tobias and Sister Jover's area (my roommates). Sister Tobias has been here a month longer than me and she is being trained by sister Jover as well. Sister Garma has been here for 8 months.

This week was great. It's still very hot, but some days it is cloudy and feels quite nice. Funny thing is that all the Filipinos think it is "Malamig" (cold). It's interesting to see the different circumstances in which the people live here. Some houses are cement, some just made of bamboo and sticks, and others are like those you'd find in America. Some neat experiences have been when I've felt the spirit testify through me in lessons. We've been visiting a less-active sister who is struggling in her testimony, and I felt to remind her of the wonderful gift of the Holy Ghost that she received at baptism and how important it is to retain it through enduring to the end. My Tagalog is still a little rocky, and sometimes I feel like I'm trying to climb an impossible mountain, but I then I just think of how far I've come since entering the MTC and how much Heavenly Father has helped me already. Lately, I've grown in so much appreciation for the hymns. We have such beautiful enriching lyrics in the LDS hymnbook! It seems that when facing difficulties, singing those powerful lyrics really touch my heart and cause me to tear up, because I'm singing a testimony about my feelings about the Savior's Atonement, which we all need, and which I'm so grateful is available to us all. Without it, we'd be nothing.
I love you, and I love your emails! Thank you for your prayers!