Hangin kaayo sa Negros

Family!

Well another week has come and gone! The time is going by so fast I can hardly believe it.

First, before I forget- we can Skype for Christmas!! Either on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day---of course Filipino time....so can y'all figure out when you want me to call? Also if someone can remind me what in the world my skype sign-in thing is? I totally forgot. Haha not good for when I get home. I've forgotten all of my passwords!!

So I arrived here in Negros safe and sound. This is a beautiful place! The missionaries told me that our area would be city- but it's not! It's super quiet and peaceful here. Our area is MASSIVE---not as big as our area in Bohol--- so we walk a lot (which is so great!), the air is so clean (bye bye pimples!!! hallelujah!) and we are right next to the ocean so there is always a breeze (my subject line means: so windy in Negros!), the people are so nice, and my companion IS GREAT! When I got here I just felt so much lighter. Everything: my companion, the area, the branch is so wonderful. No wonder the APs were so excited for my new assignment- like one of them said, I do have a 'package deal'!

My companion is Sister Abundo from Bicol, Philippines- up in the northern part. Her first language is Bicol then Tagalog and now she is fluent in Visaya ;) She is actually an amazing English speaker and my first Filipina companion to not be afraid of speaking English. She is 4'11 and so so so so cute. She is one transfer younger than me in the mission and she is so great!! She is super hard working and it's so nice to have someone as your companion that pushes you to work even harder. She is a great teacher (she was a teacher before her mission) and I know I will learn so much from her!

Our area is so beautiful and clean :) It is so different from Cebu! It's similar to my area in Bohol except there are more people here. The branch seems pretty functional which is great and all of the members are super super nice. We have many investigators and SO SO SO many Less Actives- just like Balamban, my first area. 

We got here Friday night (it takes about 7 or so hours to travel to Negros---the drive in southern Cebu is amazing! wow!) and then Saturday morning while we were studying someone knocked on our door. They started to sing Christmas carols---but they had American accents! Haha, turns out President and Sister Schmutz and the APs had just arrived in Dumaguete and had a half hour or so to spare so they wanted to come visit us. My companion was a little bit shocked! It was so fun to see them, even though I just came from the city where I saw them quite a bit. They are so great.

Right now I am feeling great about the area and hoping that I am here for a long time (we'll see what happens....) I really like my companion and it's such a relief to have someone help me in the work so much! This will be a great transfer. I am feeling very positive about everything right now!

Our favorite thing to do is to tell people that I am from Davao- a part of the Philippines. The funny part is that they all believe it! Haha we laugh every time. It's not very often the people come across an American lady who can speak their language. We've had some good laughs.

Well family. I love you all! Thanks to those of you who wrote me!! I am so grateful to be here on my mission and to be learning the things I am. Missions are miracles. I can't believe that my one year mark is so near. Time has gone by so fast and I feel that there is still so much more for me to do here and so much more for me to learn. I am so thankful to have been raised in such a wonderful family and to have parents who taught me the principle of sacrifice. I know that this is the true church of Jesus Christ and that we are led by a true and living prophet, Thomas S. Monson.  I know that Jesus Christ died for our sins and no matter what trials we may face here, we can overcome all with the enabling power of the Atonement.

I love you! Email me next week! Thanks!
Sister Trayner

SNOW!?!

That beautiful, white, fluffy, straight-from-the-heaven material. As nice those words make snow sound, I do not miss it one bit! But I hope you are all enjoying it over there in Utah! 

Another week has come and gone here in the Philippines and it's been great. Here are some highlights:

-We found an inactive RM last last Sunday while talking to his wife on the street. Random. We went back and taught them for the first time last Sunday. Brother Jobey isn't quite yet ready to let us know why exactly he left the Church but he was offended by a bishop after his mission. The lesson went great and his wife is super nice, but of course they aren't married and we are pretty sure he was married before to another woman which makes things COMPLICATED because there is no divorce here in the Philippines unless you have thousands of pesos to spare.

-We taught one of my best and memorable lessons yesterday to a less-active and her mom about prophets. Sister Josephine was baptized as a child and now all of her extended family who were also baptized are inactive. We visited them for the first time last week and we didn't think they would be super interested but we were surprised when we went back yesterday and taught. The Spirit was so strong and was teaching them as we spoke. I have never had someone understand so clearly- especially 2 people who are basically investigators. At the end of the lesson they basically bore their testimonies to us about the importance of prophets and how the living prophet can help them in their lives.

-Sister Prasad is doing great and learning the language so well. I am so happy for her! She is able to teach parts of the lessons.

-Christmas is so close! yay! They've been listening to Christmas music here since September! love it!! 

I can't really think of anything else that happened this past week. I'm just always trying to find ways to help those people we are teaching to progress. Satan is strong here in Mabolo. City life is crazy. So many temptations for the people we teach. But I am so grateful to serve in an area just by the temple. Each day we invite people to go to temple tours every Thursday and I feel so blessed as member of the Church to know that families are forever. That no matter what happens I will see all of you on the other side of life. I know that this gospel is true. There is such a difference in the lives of active members- those who read, pray, and go to church from others who are stuck in the things of the world. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and just like Joseph Smith once said, we will get closer to God from reading the Book of Mormon more than any other book. Here on my mission I've learned what is really important in life. I have learned the things that will keep me going forever no matter what trials may come. I know that we are all children of our Heavenly Father and that He loves us. We have so much potential and we forget that sometimes! But He loves us. If we do our part, He will do His.

Thank you for all of your love and support. I am always happy to see emails from my family in my inbox :) thanks to those of you who emailed this week. Others of you---namely all of my siblings except Zach...I hope you find 5 minutes to write this sister missionary next week :). (Chastised!!)

Love all of you,

Sister Trayner

November na....unsa?!

Hello pamilya nako!

I loved getting your emails this week! So once again thank you to all who emailed me! It was great hearing from you! 

It has been quite the week here in Mabolo. These past 2 or so weeks Satan has been working HARD on the members of Mabolo. We have had many frustrating days but we have had some great success this past week as well. We were able to find some new less-actives who are likely to return back to the Church. Now that Rescue Mission (finding and teaching Less-actives) has been in place for almost a year, it's only getting harder! It seems as those people who were ready and willing to return to the Church already have and now we are left with the people who have no desire, are too old to walk to the church, or people are just plain hard headed! But we have found 3 great less-actives this week and I know they will come back! We started teaching two sisters, Sister Mary Joy and Sister Mary Jane who grew up in the Church but then one married a non-member and the other was offended by church leaders. We have had some great lessons with them when the Spirit has been very strong. This Sunday is Ward Conference and so we've had members working with us a lot which has been great and MUCH more effective. I hope when I get back I can work with the missionaries a lot. Members make SUCH a difference.

Our investigator Charles will be interviewed this Saturday and I am so happy. He is learning the doctrine so fast and so quickly so we are looking forward to his baptism- the last Saturday before transfer day- so for sure the 2 of us will be able to attend! We are focusing on finding part-member families right now so hopefully we will be able to find more investigators and complete families.

One thing I thought of telling you about this week- this is seriously one of my favorite parts of the Philippines- is that the children "bless you". They take your hand and place it on their forehead. They usually just do this for old people and their parents to show respect. BUT they do it to me ALL OF THE TIME as I am just walking down the street. Little kids will come out of the middle of nowhere and take my hand! It's so cute. I just laugh every time! Especially when 12 year old boys randomly do it. Hey, at least I know they respect me, haha!

How is the election? Will we have a new president when I get home? People here love Mitt Romney. Who is his vice president? Supposedly he's young and handsome. Haha.

Don't forget to send me pictures of my nieces and nephews in their Halloween costumes!

So I don't know what else to say but that I am doing great. I really like being assigned here in Mabolo even though there are some hard times! We have such a small area to work with 
but I have faith that it will progress and we will bring souls back into the fold. Missionary work isn't easy. But it's worth it!

I love you all a lot, thanks for everything you do!
Sister Trayner