BAMBOO IS SURPRISINGLY STRONG, A BOOK OF MORMON FROM 1985 & HEY JOE!

July 14, 2014

Bamboo is surprisingly strong, haha!

Howdy there!

I promised more details this week, so you shall receive!

So, President changed his mind and rather than my companion being transferred, I was the one transferred! I am now in the lowlands, in a small town named Aringay! The low lands are verrry different than the highlands! It's much more Filipino, it's super hot, people speak much more Tagolog/Ilokano than English, and there are a LOT of members here! The church has been here since the eighties, and I actually found a Book of Mormon in our apartment with a note in it from a missionary to an investigator from 1985, haha.

Other than that, my companion and I are doing great! There's a lot of carbow (water buffalo), bamboo bridges and very friendly people! It's a joke here in the Philippines to call Americans "Joe", so I get a lot of people yelling across from the street, "Hey, Joe! What's your name!" or "Hey, Joe! Where are you going?" They are VERY surprised when I respond to them in Tagalog or Ilokano, hahahaha.

My area is relatively new, but doing well! I don't have any investigators that stick out in my mind at the moment, but I will soon! Thank you everyone!

Feed your fire!

The Philippines sea! My area goes right up to the ocean!

More of my area

TRANSFERRED TO NEW AREA ARINGAY & NEW COMPANION ELDER TOLENTINO

This is going to be short because I'm out of time, I was the one who ended up transferring, I left Baguio where it is cold and American and lovely, and I got transferred to a placed called Aringay where it is hot and very Filipino! I got a new Filipino companion who is fresh from the Manila MTC, and I love it here! I will give you more details in the next letter! I love you all! Feed your fire! Ingat!

This is a bit more of what my new area looks like, haha... a little different from the overpopulated Americanized cold mountain city I just came from... it's pretty much the exact opposite of those adjectives, haha.

My new companion, Elder Tolentino!

Me with the ragamuffins in Purok Beleng!

NICE COOL WEATHER, RIZALS, PINOYS & MAGALINGS DOING GRAND & ACHIEVING STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE

June 30, 2014

Hello, Las Vegas-ites!

This week has been just peachy! The weather is nice and cool, fog or rain all the time, and this week we found out... my companion is transferring! Haha, it looks like I'll be in Tuding my whole mission! And I'm so okay with that. I've been told the mission president likes to keep people in their area around three or four transfers maximum (each transfer is 6 weeks), but he can move you WHENEVER he feels prompted to.

The Rizals, Pinoys and Magalings are all doing grand! The ward is being super helpful. We were actually going over to the Rizal families house and found four members from the ward just visiting with them! Clear out of the blue! Not even their calling! I love Pacdal Ward.

This week me and Elder Done decided we were going to work twice as hard as we have ever done and get all the standards of excellence! (Standards of Excellence are galas that the mission president sets to be achieved in one week. They are meant to make us push ourselves and really proclaim the gospel!) We achieved all of them but one. It's a good feeling to go home exhausted because you knew you tried your best to serve Christ!

Justin is AP?!! That means he is super good. Assistants aren't more important that other missionaries... but no assistant is ever a lazy missionary, haha. I'm so proud of him! I'm telling it to everyone now. Also, sorry! I didn't even send you the good pictures from the sambaw! I'll send them this week!

Also, I got letters from Kayla and Brandon!!!!!! I'm not exaggerating when I say that they made my week. I love those ragamuffins! Please please please send me more! They make the other missionaries think people care about me! :P haha (joke lang :P)

I love you all!
Feed your fire!
Elder Mikesell III