Hello from the Philippines!
I will now proceed to tell short stories that happened the past few weeks. Disclaimer: may have little spiritual value for some of the stories.
1. We recieved a request from the ward to contact a new member that moved in. So Elder Jones gave him a call and spoke with him on speaker. And man, this guy couldn't speak it very well. He tried to set up an appointment but had no idea if it worked, and ended the call without knowing. We looked the guy up on Facebook and guess where he is from? I'll give you 2 guesses, and it's not Africa. The Philippines! So we called him right back and smacked him with some mad Tagalog, them boom! Set the appointment up! When we called him, I proceeded to share to him in his native tongue. Super cool experience.
2. We went to the Beach! So we have to film clips for this Facebook video and so we were scouting out the scene we wanted to do it at. It was about 9:00 and a storm was rolling in, but we went anyways and got all sandy running in the sand and out to a light house at the end of the dock. Totally worth it. Then on the way back, we got closed in by a gate because apparently it closed at 9. But it was okay because there was a sensor. (Whew)
3. Elder Jones went on an exchange leaving Elder Sloan and I to work the area. We had another cool experience with a Filipino. The part member family we are teaching, the Woods, know someone from the Philippines! So Sister Woods called her up and she said we can come over! We go and boom, we meet her, her husband, and her 4 kids. I speak to the mom in Tagalog and it blows her mind. They feed us and we get to know them better and even say we can come back. Did someone say miracle? Yeah, you better believe it's a miracle! Super awesome.
4. At the end of said exchange we were driving back to the apartment and you know what happened? Another miracle! We drive by one of the dumpsters and theres a PIANO for goodness sakes! WHAT? We stop and this thing is in great shape, wayyy better than the one at my house back home. So we grab this poppy and throw it in the Tacoma! We now have a piano in the apartment, just call me Picasso. (I know He was an artist, it's a joke.)
5. One of my favorite families ever made us tacos for dinner on Sunday. They gave us 3 different kinds of meat, homemade salsa, jalapenos, horchata, and grilled vegetables. Holy cow, talk about a feast.
6. I was teaching Gary, someone who will be baptized soon, the other day. It's hard to understand sometimes over the phone, and there was a time when we were talking about his baptism and he said "my Hopes are up" and I heard him way wrong, because I proceeded to ask "Your mom threw up?" Elder Sloan and Elder Jones then simultaneously lost it and died on the floor laughing while I tried to keep it in and stepped outside. It certainly is the little moments like that that make the days easier.
7. I had my first "I'm not in the Philippines anymore" moment yesterday while meeting with Gerald and Keron for the first time in person. Man, probably one of the most dysfunctional couples ever, the whole time was a blast, and I was constantly being roasted by them haha. Reminded me of the first few weeks in the Philippines. At least I could mostly understand what they were saying though.
8. Today we went to this amazing place called Bass pro Shop, it was really cool. Then we got food where you have to eat apparently if you serve here, its called portillo's, it was pretty dang good. Also got a cake shake, which was new and I felt my heart getting clogged, but nothing a little jogging can't fix.
Well, that is the past few weeks in a nutshell. Every day is a new and wonderful experience. I'm glad to be here and know that Heavenly Father knew long before that this is where I would end up. We have to stay faithful, continue to repent, and trust in Him. ENDURE! Also shout out to my father, Happy Father's Day! Your present is in the back, took me about 2 weeks to do, and cost you a bunch of money, but there you go! Thank you all for your love and support!
Elder Banister
