Wow it’s already P-day again!  Time goes ridiculously fast.  I looked at the calendar and realized I’m almost at my 5 month mark!  Ummm I think that’s wrong. I just got here... It’s cool but its scary because I still feel like such a baby.  Like I feel really weak in my teaching and my Tagalog skills but I’ve realized more about how faith is an action word.  Because for sure if I pray for the language to come and then I don’t do my language study....it will never come.  Or if I pray to find people and then we don’t OYM (OPEN YOU MOUTH)...we will never get new investigators.    This week has been interesting because it’s been one of those where we worked and walked all day every day and we still had low numbers.  It’s an awful feeling but it really pushes us to try even harder next week. 

  So Baptism this week!  :)  Rosemarie.  The elders taught her but we got transferred so we got to get her baptized.  The amazing thing is that it’s a completed family because her husband became active again and got the Priesthood and so he got to baptize her.  Probably the cutest family ever.  And probably the cutest baptism I’ve ever seen too because they are just so great together.  And she bore her testimony and it was just so strong.  After he baptized her they hugged and me and sister Seleue and elder Seau were all freaking out cause it was just too adorable haha.  Were weird. But guess what!  I played the piano for the baptism!  I had no warning! Our ward mission leader was going to play but he was conducting too so he asked if any of us knew how and I said a little bit...PATAYY!  I thought I was going to only have to play one song but nope turns out I had to play intro/opening/intermediate/and special number/and closing!  Some of them id never played before ever!!! I just played the top hand!  I was super scared and I messed up a little but afterwards it felt pretty good that I knew enough to make it work.  And especially enough to just sit down and read the music.

  Another really cool experience happened the other day.  We were walking trying to find/contact a less active family and so we were asking all over for directions.  A bunch of little kids were surrounding us trying to help us and it was so cute...ok that’s not part of the story.  But it was cute.  Anywayyy but all of a sudden this guy comes up to us and starts saying he’s Mormon and his family is Mormon....And we can totally tell he’s drunk and all his friends are in the house with a giant bottle and they’re just laughing and stuff.  So my kasama started talking to him and invited him to church and then we went on our way and thought nothing of it.  But then yesterday morning in church we were just sitting there and I looked back just in time to see him walk in the door.  It was probably the coolest thing ever.  He came and sat by us and everyone was totally judging him but he stayed the entire 3 hours!  And he was asking questions and stuff.  Gosh it was amazing.  I don’t think you can understand the happiness you get when an investigator comes to church and stays for three hours unless you’ve gone on a mission. 

Anyways I’ve gots to go.  I wish you could all just see all the things that I get to see every day. Some things are just too hard to explain.  But a lot of it comes from just pushing through each new hard experience every day and realizing how you can grow.  And more than that is seeing the growth in others.  It’s pretty cool how much you can love people you just meet and how excited you get when they keep their commitments and how sad you get when they don’t seem to understand the importance of the Gospel.  Keep that in mind in your life.  Remember that even the littlest things can change others for the better.  And also it is the little things that make your testimony either grow or fade.  Always work for growth.  Love you all!  Mahal kita!  Keep on keepin on.  XOXOX from Muntinlupa :)

Sister Van Tassell

ps write me letters :) and send me pictures.  Because hearing from you all is like the best thing ever.  Even if I don’t always write you back I still look forward to hear all your stories :)