I'm safe and alive..

As I sit here and ponder on what I should write about this week... I feel like I should inform all of you that I have felt all of your prayers, thank you. Thank you for praying for my investigators, my ward, my companion and I... everyone here in the Philippines. We all needed it.

You know, us as missionaries live under a shell.... for example, we had no idea that this was a SUPER typhoon.... we were just told to stay inside for 2 almost 3 days. The first day, it was so hard, there was not alot of rain, and not much wind. I complained to my companion that I just wanted to go out and teach...

We live across the street from some of the Couple missionaries. They came over to visit and deliver some cookies (a tender mercy) that is when Elder Anderson got the text from President telling him what was going on... plus he had been watching it on tv. So he told us a little bit about it. Thats when I complained to my companion that our parents and family were probably praying for our safety but they should be really praying for our sanity, cause I had no idea how bad it really was. ...

That night we went to sleep and there was still not a lot of difference, it has rained harder that this before. The next morning we woke up and did our weekly planning, at about 8 ish the rain started. and the wind started. I wasn't scared at all....infact I was dissapointed. I expected MORE I WANTED more.... Well, I got more. My companion and I sad at our beds and watched the wind bend trees, the tin on our roof was getting blown off... there was so much rain.. our road was a river.

It was a lot, but I still complained to my companion that that was a lame storm... I wanted it to be scary. There were times when I was spooked.... so I played a borrowed violin. I played through the hymns.... it was soothing.

The power went out, and the water then shut off. I think we were the most prepared missionaries.  Remember when I had to buy fresh water all the time? we had saved all those 6liter bottles and filled them up so we had plenty of water. And its a good thing too, cause we still don't have water...

On saturday we got to go out and help people with the damages.... But when we went out... you could tell that there was alot of wind and stuff, but nothing was really torn to shreds... it was so weird. So, I complained to my companion again. (are you catching on yet?)

We got to our area and one of our investigators, Rowel, lives in a tarp house. literally. he has no walls... they are just tarps. they were torn to shreds. like there was hardly anyghing left. as we started helping him clean up he and his family were trying to put the tattered tarps back up to make walls... they have no money to get new tarps... it BROKE MY HEART. We can't do anything financially to help them. its against the rules. There were babies that live there... I can't imagine what it was like for them. they were probebly screaming and crying, soaking wet, and cold. And when it was all over, they couldn't really FIX anything. it was so heart breaking.

Then we went to another investigator that we were really worried about. Emelita, sho was actually baptized last month. Her house was okay, a little flooding, but not too bad. We went to Maribel, another RC. The back of her house, where there were two walls made of cement.... gone. I have no idea where they went. Her house was flooded.

Then we went to a less active. They... barely had a house to start with.....

Down by the river, there is a house in a tree... it was gone, the river had flooded.... heart breaking. it is so hard for me to talk about it. I feel so bad for all these beautiful people. what have they done to deserve this?

That was all for the destruction here. Not too bad. Other than we have no running water or electricity.

Yesterday it was fast sunday. I was touched so deeply as members got up to bear their testimonies of prayer, and the hand of the lord in their lives. Thats where I started to realize just how bad this Yolanda had been to the philippines. But there was one testimony that really stuck out to me. She was talking about Tithing and how she knew that she would be okay because she pays her tithng faithfully. and she said this, "I would rather SUFFER for a MOMENT while my body aches for food, or while I worry about if I can pay my bills, than SUFFER FOR A LIFETIME because I didn't TRUST my heavenly father and his blessings." I think everyone can learn from what she said. Think about that again.

Yesterday in sacrament THe four of us sisters sang/played a musical number. I of course played the violin cause i sing terribly, we sang/played lead kindly light. as we were doing it I was looking out to the members, and I could see the PHYSICAL presence of the holy ghost as he comforted their pained hearts, and their worried minds.

Later, we went to an appointemt, and thats where I found out a little bit more of the destruction.... That people in cebu had died. that the flooding was so huge. ANd how much of a miricle it was that it basically split right over bacolod. On our walk home, I cried. Tears ran down my face as i remembered how much I had complained. "why isn't this more scary?" "why should my family be worried about my safetly?" "why isn't the desctrution worse?"  How stupid could I be. Why was I just worried about myself? Just because I wanted to have the glory of living through the biggest typhoon in the whole wide world. I'm so stupid.

My heart goes out to all the families that lost loved ones. This is just another reason why everyone NEEDS the gospel. Everyone. It doesn't matter if you are mad at someone or don't like someone, they DESERVE to hear the gospel, to experience the joy that we receive from knowing the Plan of salvation, about the atonement, families are forever. Don't deny someone of learning about the gospel.

Now I'll tell you about the missionaries here... The other sisters that are in my ward live with two other sisters from another ward. SO 4 in their apartment. They thought they were prepared... but soon enough they realized that they werent... they didn't have nearly as much water as they needed and they didnt' have candles... or food. When Sister Sanders bore her testimony she said that another of the sisters said that they were like the 5 virgins that weren't prepared. - how does that realate to our life? From the (i forgot the english word) but like the top... it looks like we are prepared. but when it gets to the middle we find out that we really arent but its aloready too late to do anything about it. . . and then today in personal study I read in 2nephi 28 about how if you think you don't need anymore goeple that is when you are dumb.. you can never get enough knowledge... or in other words you can never be too prepared for anything. you will always need somehting. So, kinahanglan kita dapat repent NOW, just start now, and try your best and IF you have done your best, the savior will make up the difference. You dont want to get to the other side and try to repent... cause I gaurentee that it will be 4444444444400000008888 times harder because NOW this thime NOIW is the time of our probation.

This not is only applicable to repentance, but to your knowledge of the Savior, or of the book of mormon. Prepare now and continue preparing for the rest of your life.

I am so glad that the people that I love so much here only experienced just a little bit of damage, but i still feel so bad for them... but I feel more pain in my heart for the people in tacloban.

I am so thankful for this gospel. I hope that You all find that same love that I have as you continue to prepare for eternal life.

Love, your sister missionary,
Sister Young