Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Init, lagi?
FAMILY!!!
Hello everyone. Salamat para sa mga emails ninyo!! I am sending lots of pictures this email...so I hope you enjoy ;)
Well, I received basically the saddest news of my life today. SISTER GUMAYAO IS TRANSFERRING ON FRIDAY. Now I didn't cry, I bawled. Usually you are with your trainer for 12 weeks now because of the program but for whatever reason we are going to be separated. She is my best friend, you know. She is SO good to me and I am so afraid to have any other companions because she has just been so wonderful. When we found out I just sat there and cried. So yes, I will be leading the area. It's a scary thought. You see, they don't have addresses in the Philippines. They have a main road that you drive on, then you just recognize the dirt path you are supposed to take to the person's house about a mile away, and then you get off the trisikad. I'm even more worried about the bukid (mtn) because we hike. But it will be okay because hopefully the ward missionaries will be able to help us out. My new companion is an American...this will be her last transfer. Luckily she is the sweetest, her name is Sister Brand. So she speaks Cebuano well and as long as I refuse to speak English to her my Cebuano should improve.
Let's see. We had 21 Less-Actives attend church. Boo ya!!! And it's only going to get better from here on out. I am SO motivated to find those people and bring them back into the fold. We especially have been focusing on the youth and YSA. If they are strong then there will be a stronger, younger generation of church members here. Our investigator is still waiting for her marriage papers. So we will have the privilege of helping with their wedding :) Fun, fun.
Also for Community Service hours I am teaching people how to read music and basic piano. I played the piano on Sunday and let me tell you, these people don't know rhythm.... haha. Anyway we were supposed to start Friday but now it will have to wait until next week as I will be traveling to Cebu City.
So Dad, I am on the same island as Cebu City. I believe we are just on the west side and they are on the east side of the island. We just take vans to the city...but since we will have luggage we have to get on a bus and it will take us just about 3 hours to get there. Yeah everyone PRAY for me. I have to be able to recognize where we are when I am coming back with my new companion so we don't end up walking for miles on dirt paths with her luggage...haha.
I email from internet cafes. AND I GET TO SKYPE for Momma's Day. So plan on it. My apt is quite nice. The CR a bit scary (the bathroom. CR=Comfort Room haha) Don't worry about me. I am taken well care of. Except oh my lanta! Hair product here is soooo expensive...haha it will cost be about $500 pesos every 2 weeks just so I can have not CRAZY hair...we get about 3500 pesos each support. A huge chunk. ANd they say curly hair is a blessing??
Anyway I am doing fine. My Cebuano is getting better. I will just really have to study hard so that I am able to progress while having an American companion. Pray, pray, pray. Please!!
It sounds like things are great back home, Congrats to Josh on graduating!! And Nana and Forrest. So exciting!!!! Keep up the good work, fam!!
Love
Sister Nicole Trayner
Hello everyone. Salamat para sa mga emails ninyo!! I am sending lots of pictures this email...so I hope you enjoy ;)
Well, I received basically the saddest news of my life today. SISTER GUMAYAO IS TRANSFERRING ON FRIDAY. Now I didn't cry, I bawled. Usually you are with your trainer for 12 weeks now because of the program but for whatever reason we are going to be separated. She is my best friend, you know. She is SO good to me and I am so afraid to have any other companions because she has just been so wonderful. When we found out I just sat there and cried. So yes, I will be leading the area. It's a scary thought. You see, they don't have addresses in the Philippines. They have a main road that you drive on, then you just recognize the dirt path you are supposed to take to the person's house about a mile away, and then you get off the trisikad. I'm even more worried about the bukid (mtn) because we hike. But it will be okay because hopefully the ward missionaries will be able to help us out. My new companion is an American...this will be her last transfer. Luckily she is the sweetest, her name is Sister Brand. So she speaks Cebuano well and as long as I refuse to speak English to her my Cebuano should improve.
Let's see. We had 21 Less-Actives attend church. Boo ya!!! And it's only going to get better from here on out. I am SO motivated to find those people and bring them back into the fold. We especially have been focusing on the youth and YSA. If they are strong then there will be a stronger, younger generation of church members here. Our investigator is still waiting for her marriage papers. So we will have the privilege of helping with their wedding :) Fun, fun.
Also for Community Service hours I am teaching people how to read music and basic piano. I played the piano on Sunday and let me tell you, these people don't know rhythm.... haha. Anyway we were supposed to start Friday but now it will have to wait until next week as I will be traveling to Cebu City.
So Dad, I am on the same island as Cebu City. I believe we are just on the west side and they are on the east side of the island. We just take vans to the city...but since we will have luggage we have to get on a bus and it will take us just about 3 hours to get there. Yeah everyone PRAY for me. I have to be able to recognize where we are when I am coming back with my new companion so we don't end up walking for miles on dirt paths with her luggage...haha.
I email from internet cafes. AND I GET TO SKYPE for Momma's Day. So plan on it. My apt is quite nice. The CR a bit scary (the bathroom. CR=Comfort Room haha) Don't worry about me. I am taken well care of. Except oh my lanta! Hair product here is soooo expensive...haha it will cost be about $500 pesos every 2 weeks just so I can have not CRAZY hair...we get about 3500 pesos each support. A huge chunk. ANd they say curly hair is a blessing??
Anyway I am doing fine. My Cebuano is getting better. I will just really have to study hard so that I am able to progress while having an American companion. Pray, pray, pray. Please!!
It sounds like things are great back home, Congrats to Josh on graduating!! And Nana and Forrest. So exciting!!!! Keep up the good work, fam!!
Love
Sister Nicole Trayner
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
The Miracle of Forgiveness
Haha. Joke lang. Even though most of you panicked and sent a short
email, out of the goodness of my heart I forgave you the instant I saw
that I only had one email from my beloved Elder Zachary John. I know you
are all busy so no worries. Just don't do it again ;)
Wow. I have survived more than a month here in the
Philippines! It's been pretty crazy but pretty wonderful. I am learning
to love this work. Yesterday as I rode on the back of the motorcycle
"nagbackride ko" I realized how much I have grown and how much I am
enjoying my time here. Sure, it's not always easy but most of the time
it's pretty entertaining...I mean rewarding! haha.
Our branch is doing alright. We are having a meeting
with the leaders on Saturday about "Becoming a Ward Missionary".
Because we don't tract here we have to find investigators "on the way"
which kind of means through members. But we haven't received any
referrals. So we are going to do a fun little role play and also
schedule FHEs on Mondays with different families in the branch and ask
them to invite their non-member family/friends. We had an FHE this past
week and it was so fun. Peoples hearts are softened when they see that
we are normal people who like to have fun :)
On Sunday we went on splits. Which mean that I was
torn apart from my companion Sister Gumayao. I was with 2 other ward
missionaries so I was okay. One of the families we had to teach about
the Tree of Life vision and yeah...that's hard to teach when you aren't
fluent. Haha, but I did it. We went up into the bukid (mountain) and I
love it up there. While we were teaching one of the families it started
to rain...like buckets of water!! And they all have these tin roofs so
it is SUPER loud...you can't even hear anybody talk! Anyway since they
don't have running water they all panicked and grabbed their big buckets
to collect water. It's Summer season right now so it hasn't rained that
much lately. Anyway the bukid is nindot. And they build fires and
that's how they cook their food. It's awesome. I took lots of pictures
with the animals. Can I just say how awesome it would be to grow up in
the Philippines? Well at least this part? Oh, you'd have the best
stories.
You know what else is funny? The road kill here is
frogs (baki). You will be walking on the road and you will just see all
of these smashed frogs, haha. We have a frog that lives just outside of
our apartment where I wash my clothes. His name is Fred. They have lots
of cockroaches here too. And these NASTY beetles which they all play
with. Also, tons and tons of lizards everywhere.
Our work is great. 32 lessons last week. Our goal is
35 this week. Kaya namo! (we can do it!) My Cebuano is getting better.
My comp says that in a month she thinks I'll be fluent. Haha, that will
take some work and some faith but I NEED to be somewhat fluent before
she leaves me in 7 weeks! We have 2 progressing investigators- one we
are still waiting for them to get their marriage papers. So she probably
won't be baptized until Mayish but she is amazing. She always has the
right answers and is very bright. We are also teaching a 7 year old who
is in a part-member family. She is so fun to teach. I always get to
teach her because she is not intimidating and I LOVE little kids.
Anyway, thanks for all of your emails. It means a
lot to me! I have the best family in the world. I hope you know that I
think about all of you and pray for you in every prayer that I offer :)
Thanks for your support. I am one lucky sister missionary.
I've got to run. We are having lechon baboy (a
roasted pig) and playing volleyball on the beach for P-Day with the
Elders. Boy are we excited :) Love you all!!!
Sister Nicole Trayner
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Kumusta!
Hello my wonderful family!!! Can you believe another week has gone by?
Seriously. I have been out for 3 months already! Isn't that crazy? HAPPY
BIRTHDAY JOSH!!! I hope that you had a great one. You old man, you.
Tigulang. I hope your kids treated you well and that you ate some yummy
food.
I feel like so much is going on at home. I wish I could come party with y'all in Las Vegas! That sounds like fun. When is Josh's graduation?? So many good things are happening for our family right now. I can just feel it from all the way across the Pacific :)
This week was GREAT. Oh my gosh, I l.o.v.e.d General Conference...and it was in English :) We traveled to Toledo for Saturday and Sunday. If Mom or Dad could dearelder me some of the talks I would appreciate it. Pres. Eyring's talk, Pres. Uchtdorf's, Elder Holland, Elder Andersen, and I think Elder Hallstrom?? He's the one who spoke about being active in the church and active in the doctrine. Sat. morning session. The people of the Philippines need to hear that talk :) So yeah, Saturday it was practically all the missionaries from our Zone and then like 10 other members. Sad. Then there was a big turn out for Sunday Morning Session and then an hour later for afternoon session....like HALF of the people left. Just to give you an idea...our Branch President didn't even attend and the RS Pres left after the first session to go swimming. Oh, the joys. Our branch just doesn't seem to get it. They always talk about how they want to help us as missionaries but how can they help if they are setting bad examples? I'm afraid that our Recent Converts will follow in their footsteps. I will keep praying for them. Let's just say we have LOTS of lessons planned for this week about Keeping the Sabbath Day holy!
Right now I am in Cebu City. We just finished our temple session! The Cebu temple is NINDOT. Seriously, beautiful. I love temples. And here the temple just feels even extra special because it is very dirty and loud outside but then you walk in the temple and it is so peaceful and clean. You can feel the spirit so strongly. Amazing. Later we are going to eat at a Mexican restaurant. I have only been gone 3 months so I'm not going crazy with Mexican food cravings, but the American elders are dying!
We have an investigator named Rachel and she is GOLDEN. However, she is not married to her "husband" who is a Less-active member. They have 3 kids and we told her she had to get married before her baptism. They seemed kind of hesitant but she has such an amazing testimony. So I know if we have faith in her she will do it.
I'm trying to think of what else to say. Oh, so we ride in this trisikad things--motorcyles with a little cab attached to the side. So the trisikad drivers all know where we live. It's kind of weird. And they laugh at me everytime a Cebuano word comes out of my mouth. They are just so surprised to hear an Americana speak Visaya. Don't worry, they just drop us off on the side of the road so they don't know exactly what apartment or building we live in. Like the other day. We slightly passed where we usually get dropped off and the driver says, "Oh yeah, I forgot this is where you live!" Haha......weird. And the rest, just you know....either stop completely or slow down as they approach our apt. building....
Anyway life is great. I take showers before bed and then a fan blows right on me on high speed while I sleep. Wala AC= hotness. But it's all great. I am so grateful for this opportunity I have to serve. It's hard but I have learned so much already. Thank you for all of your prayers!! You have all been a strength to me. I think you're pretty great.
Love,
Sister Nicole Trayner
ps. Thanks to Katherine and Spencer for your mail :) I wrote you back!!!
I feel like so much is going on at home. I wish I could come party with y'all in Las Vegas! That sounds like fun. When is Josh's graduation?? So many good things are happening for our family right now. I can just feel it from all the way across the Pacific :)
This week was GREAT. Oh my gosh, I l.o.v.e.d General Conference...and it was in English :) We traveled to Toledo for Saturday and Sunday. If Mom or Dad could dearelder me some of the talks I would appreciate it. Pres. Eyring's talk, Pres. Uchtdorf's, Elder Holland, Elder Andersen, and I think Elder Hallstrom?? He's the one who spoke about being active in the church and active in the doctrine. Sat. morning session. The people of the Philippines need to hear that talk :) So yeah, Saturday it was practically all the missionaries from our Zone and then like 10 other members. Sad. Then there was a big turn out for Sunday Morning Session and then an hour later for afternoon session....like HALF of the people left. Just to give you an idea...our Branch President didn't even attend and the RS Pres left after the first session to go swimming. Oh, the joys. Our branch just doesn't seem to get it. They always talk about how they want to help us as missionaries but how can they help if they are setting bad examples? I'm afraid that our Recent Converts will follow in their footsteps. I will keep praying for them. Let's just say we have LOTS of lessons planned for this week about Keeping the Sabbath Day holy!
Right now I am in Cebu City. We just finished our temple session! The Cebu temple is NINDOT. Seriously, beautiful. I love temples. And here the temple just feels even extra special because it is very dirty and loud outside but then you walk in the temple and it is so peaceful and clean. You can feel the spirit so strongly. Amazing. Later we are going to eat at a Mexican restaurant. I have only been gone 3 months so I'm not going crazy with Mexican food cravings, but the American elders are dying!
We have an investigator named Rachel and she is GOLDEN. However, she is not married to her "husband" who is a Less-active member. They have 3 kids and we told her she had to get married before her baptism. They seemed kind of hesitant but she has such an amazing testimony. So I know if we have faith in her she will do it.
I'm trying to think of what else to say. Oh, so we ride in this trisikad things--motorcyles with a little cab attached to the side. So the trisikad drivers all know where we live. It's kind of weird. And they laugh at me everytime a Cebuano word comes out of my mouth. They are just so surprised to hear an Americana speak Visaya. Don't worry, they just drop us off on the side of the road so they don't know exactly what apartment or building we live in. Like the other day. We slightly passed where we usually get dropped off and the driver says, "Oh yeah, I forgot this is where you live!" Haha......weird. And the rest, just you know....either stop completely or slow down as they approach our apt. building....
Anyway life is great. I take showers before bed and then a fan blows right on me on high speed while I sleep. Wala AC= hotness. But it's all great. I am so grateful for this opportunity I have to serve. It's hard but I have learned so much already. Thank you for all of your prayers!! You have all been a strength to me. I think you're pretty great.
Love,
Sister Nicole Trayner
ps. Thanks to Katherine and Spencer for your mail :) I wrote you back!!!
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Wala'y email gikan ni Rachel
Yes, I am titling this email to make someone in the family feel awful
about themselves. Seriously. This person has only emailed me once
since I've been here. Guess who's at the bottom of the totem pole now?
hahahaha....but seriously.
This week was great! We didn't have as much success with LA attending
church but we have found 2 golden investigators and they have
baptismal dances! They are so awesome.
So the LA (less-actives) here confuse me SO much. We go to their
houses and they have pictures of temples, President Monson, and the
Book of Mormon sitting out but they don't attend church!!
Hmmm.....Anyway...we are teaching this less-active family. The Estrao
family. They are a married couple in their 40's and they weren't able
to have any kids. Anyway they have been endowed but no longer wear the
garment. When I first got here my companion told me about her
frustration with them: how they just kept telling her that they had
too many obstacles and trials and they just ignored her invitation to
go to church time after time. So we taught them last Saturday and I
bore my testimony. The words just came out. I expressed Heavenly
Father's love for them and also my own. I told them that I pray
several times a day for them and that I know that Heavenly Father
wants them to find happiness. Anyway, they came to church!!!!!!!!!!! I
was so happy. Afterwards, the sister came up to me and just said
"Thank you so much sister". I have felt an immediate connection with
this couple and it has made me so happy to see them coming back into
the fold. Lots of work still to do, but I am grateful to a Heavenly
Father who has heard my prayers!
Let's see...what else happened this week. I had several marriage
proposals (don't worry, I said no) and also a drunk man walked in on
one of our lessons demanding to know if I was married or not. There
are A LOT of drunks here.
Also BRITTNEY I MISSED YOUR BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
sorry. HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! I hope Zach got my card before he
left??
All is well. Keep me in your prayers. I'm trying my best to get this
whole Cebuano thing down. It will come!!!!
Enjoy the pictures. I LOVE YOU ALL!! Thanks for your support.
Love
Sister Nicole Trayner
sorry i ran out of time for pictures. next time!!
about themselves. Seriously. This person has only emailed me once
since I've been here. Guess who's at the bottom of the totem pole now?
hahahaha....but seriously.
This week was great! We didn't have as much success with LA attending
church but we have found 2 golden investigators and they have
baptismal dances! They are so awesome.
So the LA (less-actives) here confuse me SO much. We go to their
houses and they have pictures of temples, President Monson, and the
Book of Mormon sitting out but they don't attend church!!
Hmmm.....Anyway...we are teaching this less-active family. The Estrao
family. They are a married couple in their 40's and they weren't able
to have any kids. Anyway they have been endowed but no longer wear the
garment. When I first got here my companion told me about her
frustration with them: how they just kept telling her that they had
too many obstacles and trials and they just ignored her invitation to
go to church time after time. So we taught them last Saturday and I
bore my testimony. The words just came out. I expressed Heavenly
Father's love for them and also my own. I told them that I pray
several times a day for them and that I know that Heavenly Father
wants them to find happiness. Anyway, they came to church!!!!!!!!!!! I
was so happy. Afterwards, the sister came up to me and just said
"Thank you so much sister". I have felt an immediate connection with
this couple and it has made me so happy to see them coming back into
the fold. Lots of work still to do, but I am grateful to a Heavenly
Father who has heard my prayers!
Let's see...what else happened this week. I had several marriage
proposals (don't worry, I said no) and also a drunk man walked in on
one of our lessons demanding to know if I was married or not. There
are A LOT of drunks here.
Also BRITTNEY I MISSED YOUR BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
sorry. HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! I hope Zach got my card before he
left??
All is well. Keep me in your prayers. I'm trying my best to get this
whole Cebuano thing down. It will come!!!!
Enjoy the pictures. I LOVE YOU ALL!! Thanks for your support.
Love
Sister Nicole Trayner
sorry i ran out of time for pictures. next time!!
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