Monday, March 3, 2014

2 March 2014 -- the Testifier

HI MOM!! Sorry my computer is super slow again )= internet hates me
Yes mom I got my shoes and I think this pair is already helping my back. Mom I only have 8 months left...don't send any shoes, this pair will be fine. Thanks though.
    My companion is pretty quiet and a bit of a people pleaser... So I have lots to learn and lots to teach her, hahah. She is a sweetheart. I love her and I am excited for us to get to work
   I have pictures but the computer won't let me send them.... I really have no idea why technology and me are just incompatible. 
   Ok... sooo here is the news, yet again it will be short. I woke up the day after emailing you and texted Sister Andaya because I had a really hard time breathing that night and I just knew that this soreness and exhaustion was not normal exhaustion. So she got advice from the doctor and told me to go to get a checkup. The first thing was just that I had low blood pressure, says the nurse, "80 over 60". Then I go in two and a half hours later to see the doctor and he looks into my mouth...bam! tonsillitis.... I don't know why I did not look before because it would have been obvious.. I could see myself after I finally looked that I had pus flowing out of my tonsils. It was disgusting. He didn't touch my neck but my neck hurt super bad and before I went into the office... my observation as a professional doctor.... was that they were super swollen (lymph nodes).
   So I am currently on tons of pills and feel 100% better.  (=  Mom I feel great now... really I do. I want to show you a picture of what the doctor gave me, hahahahaha. I was in bed all day on Friday and most of Saturday.  The doctor told me to be on bed rest for three days. I had tonsillitis is all he said. But I also had a HUGE headache and my whole body just killed and I was exhausted and I don't know what it was...but he said rest 3 days and the medicine will fix it all up. So I took the meds, and stayed in bed almost 2 days and I'm good.
   We are in a branch... all 8 of us missionaries. We have met some people but I am directionally challenged so learning the area is going to take time, haha. It's humbling for sure because here we are missionaries back in Tacloban and I was in an area that was affected by the storm and so I got to work with people that were humbled and ready. But here there was no real damage and so it's back to the "Hard Heads" hahah, excited ako!
   WOW!! that took forever... computers HATE me! Really. I'm on my 5th computer... see if this works. I did not know dad worked in the mission office as an elder.
   So here we go, opening up a new area or "white washing" for my 4th time in the mission, haha. I am not nearly as stressed this time so that's a huge positive. We do have one incredible investigator. Her name is Noema Delmonte, 20 years old and teacher in the making. She is absolutely prepared and thirsting for the truth. We have only taught her twice and because the language here is so different its a fairly entertaining scene. This is Waray area but its not really anything like the two other Waray languages I learned. Obviously there are similarities but its VERY unique- so I am excited to learn this language. Any way we taught her the first time about the Plan of Salvation and she was eating it up and loved how we could answer her questions so simple. Then the last time we wanted to make sure we had a good feel for where she was at spiritually and her understanding (because ward missionaries had already taught her the Restoration) and so we asked her about the Holy Ghost and tied that into Faith. It was incredible! The lesson was completely led by the spirit. We set her baptismal date for March 22 and she was slightly nervous and worried about getting baptized and the lesson was exactly what she needed to hear. I asked her to read Alma 32:26-30 and you could see this light just come into her eyes. We watched and literally could see her faith increase and rather than being full of fear she became excited and was so thankful, she then understood, that she did not have to have a perfect knowledge but slowly it would come. She is incredible and we are so excited for her to have the spirit to always be with her.
   Something that has hit me personally the hardest this week has been the Holy Ghost! I'm sorry if I already shared this with you but I just LOVE the Holy Ghost and boy have I taken Him for granted. He has been my constant companion my whole life and I didn't even notice it. But now, for some reason he is in my thoughts constantly because I am sooo happy! Its hard to explain but think about this ... the Holy Ghost testifies of truth right? He testifies of Jesus Christ. He comforts and uplifts. I cannot think of a single moment in my life that I have doubted that my Savior lives and that He loves me, that He suffered so that I can be clean and live with my family. That knowledge has always been a part of who I am... which IS the SPIRIT!! That is the spirit! I feel so silly that I never gave credit to the spirit for that knowledge, but its truth! And I LOVE the Holy Ghost... I cannot image a life where I am constantly questioning whether those things are true or not. How I love this Gospel! These last few days I have just been soo happy- to the point where I want to scream to the world! I love the Holy Ghost and I am so happy to be a missionary! We are in the RIGHT PLACE!!
 Love,
   Sister Ralph

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