October 8 -- A Giant Spider And An 8-Hour Bus Ride

This last week has been pretty good. You want to hear something cool? So, I knew that I would be running out of pages in my journal, but I didn't realize how close it was until about Tuesday last week when I was writing in my journal, and suddenly I was on the last page. "Uh oh!" I thought. "How will I make it until I can get another one?" But I just finished the page, and decided to think on it. Then the next day when I came home from working, I saw a package on my desk that the AP's had delivered earlier that day. And what do you suppose was inside? A journal--among other things. I was astounded. I couldn't have timed that journal's arrival better if I had planned it. I guess it just goes to show that Heavenly Father really does know and care about what we need, even if it seems insignificant, and also that I guess journal-writing is important to Him, and He didn't want me to miss more days than necessary.

Anyway, thank you so much for sending me that package! The chocolate, and gummy bears, and pictures, and yummy things inside excited me greatly!

Haha...funny you should ask about giant spiders...the other day, we walked into our apartment after working, and there was a huge one above the doorway to the kitchen. All of us freaked out, especially when it fell on the floor, and we hopped on top of our desks and chairs, but then I thought, "there is no way I'll be able to sleep tonight if we don't take care of this." So I got the broom, and Sister Walker (one of the other sisters in the apartment) got some bug spray, and together we shooed the spider out the door into the backyard. It was an adventure.

I am happy to be serving here. My area is one of the farthest areas from the mission home -- about an 8-hour bus ride from Laoag. I've heard  some missionaries refer to it as the promised land. And it's a good area. A lot of the people are very receptive. I think it is kind of by the ocean, but there isn't a beach in my area that I am aware of. But we are right by a big river, and it's pretty. I love sister Woahn. She is super nice. My Ilokano is fine. I found an Ilokano dictionary at the national bookstore a couple weeks ago. Sister Woahn saw my Ilokano grammar book, and now she is excited to learn Ilokano too. But we still get along just fine with our Tagalog.

We are still serving as sister leaders together...in fact, we just had MLC yesterday, so I got to take that 8-hour bus ride twice in the last three days. Earlier today, on the bus ride home, a policeman guy was sitting in the isle by where we were sitting, and he started talking to her. I think he was bored and just kind of wanted to make conversation, but he was curious about what we do as missionaries. I just opened my scriptures to look for something because I wasn't really part of the conversation, and he looked over and said "I want you to tell me about that book." So we told him. And Sister Woahn pulled out the lesson 1 pamphlet, and he wanted her to tell him about it. It was a cool experience. We got his information to forward to the missionaries where he is from. It's possible that he was just interested in talking to two American girls, but even so, maybe he's really prepared for the gospel and just doesn't know it yet.

Anyway, that's about all I have time for at the moment. I'm so happy to be a missionary!

Sister Boekweg