What did your mother tell you...

June 11, 2012

Epistle from the Philippines #7 - What did your mother tell you...

Salutations everyone! Thanks Mom and Dad for writing me about your trip to Maui! You're to only ones who wrote me this week... but that's okay! I forgive you all. Except you. Why aren't you writing to me?

This week was TRANFERS! On Monday night we the four Sisters of Sagay took the bus to Bacolod and had a slumber party at the apartment of my MTC companion, Sister Arnold & her companion, Sister Molino. The next morning we went to the chapel by the mission office and we received our new assignments. I am still in Sagay, but I have a new companion. Her name is Sister Rondina. Yes. You got that right. I went from a Rosina to a Rondina. Want to know what's even funnier? Sister Rondina's last companion was Sister Aquino (pronounced a-KEEN-o). So King & Rosina and Aquino & Rondina became King & Rondina. Sister Rosina has successfully completed her mission, and she is home now.

This week has been fun because I have had the opportunity to teach Sister Rondina about Sagay! She's never served in Sagay before, so she doesn't know the people or the places or anything. She is 11 months into her mission, so she is still lively, unlike Sister Rosina who was slowly dying as the last 6 weeks went by.

Okay, so here's a story for you. On Wednesday when I was cleaning out my ears with a Q-Tip, I twitched while the Q-Tip was in my ear, and I accidentally pushed it in really far and it hurt. And there was a little bit of blood in my ear.  And I was sad. I did my best to keep it clean and dry for the next couple of days. I cleaned the wound with alcohol and cleaned out the ear canal regularly. It didn't hurt too bad, so I knew that I didn't puncture the eardrum. But I worried about infection, so we told the mission Mom, Sister Tobias, and she made an appointment for me to go to the doctor. Today. We went to Bacolod today. The doctor said I scratched the ear canal only, and he prescribed some ear drops for me to help the healing. It's already doing much better. No more blood. What have I learned? Don't accidentally scratch your ear canal with a Q-Tip.

I am not serving what many of you might think of when you think of a typical LDS mission. I know that my parents, relatives and friends who have served missions have fond memories of walking or biking around, knocking on doors, and trying to get invited in to the homes of complete strangers. Well, I have never done that in my life. Here the church is like a skinny tree with too many branches and leaves for its britches. The majority of the members of the church here (80%) are inactive or not practicing their LDS faith regularly. I have never entered the home of someone whose name we didn't already know. We have our contact list. It's called the Ward Directory. The Ward Directory and Referrals. We go around to people who don't go to church anymore, and invite them back. From these intercourses (teehee) we also come into contact with part-member families. That is one way we get investigators, potential members of the church.

This week we had Stake Conference. All the wards and branches in the area met together on Sunday to hear our special speaker, Elder Ian S. Ardern on the 1st Quorum of the Seventy. His picture is in the Ensign magazine, check for yourself. He and his wife are from New Zealand, and they were very nice. It was Elder Ardern who actually first compared the Philippines to a tree. That imagery has truly inspired  me in my mission. My job here is not merely to make more branches and leaves (members). We have those. What we need here are a strong trunk (more priesthood holders) and stronger roots (deep conversion of the members to the doctrine of Christ).

Serving a mission is such an amazing experience. In my own daily scripture study and experiences my faith is becoming so strong. When we visit these inactive members of the church, I just want to give them all my faith so that they'll understand how wonderful and crucial the gospel is to a happy life and an eternally happy afterlife. But I can't. I can't force anyone to read the Book of Mormon. I can't make them pray. I can't  make them come to church. It is their choice. For one reason or another they joined the fold, and for one reason or another they left it. It just breaks my heart thinking about it. Struggles can and very well may arise from joining the church, but guess what? It's worth it. The gospel of Jesus Christ is worth the effort and worth whatever persecutions may rage. This is His work and His glory: to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of men.

Life is good. It was really hot this week. Oh! While I was at the doctor today I got to weigh myself! I have lost approximately 10 pounds since the MTC. Not bad, Potter! I told Sister Rondina, and she was worried for me. "You need to eat more food!" I urged her, "No! This is good! I was fat before. In fact, I want to lose MORE weight!" Strangely enough, I actually have to watch what I eat here. The members of the ward love to feed me. So do the house mates.

Gotta go. Much love. Write me!

Love,
Sister Kelli King