All good Food Plus Holes in Eardrums (May 14, 2017)

All Good Food Plus Holes in Eardrums

Hello family.
This is an email.
I was told to write that I like vegetables here in the Philippines.
I also had cravings for balut the other night, so I got one, but it was very, very old balut, and that duck was on the verge of hatching, so it was something of an experience to crunch through it's little bones, and feel it's little feathers on my tongue. I haven't ever had one that old before. I guess you just get lucky...

I am in a new area. It is Bonifacio 1st ward. It is technically still Makati city, but it is in the area around Bonifacio Global City, or Fort Bonifacio. I am in the barangays Comembo, and East Rembo.

If I ever talked about the Tubig family, whose house burned down, they moved here, so that's kind of cool. I just followed them from my last area to here. 
Vegetables here are really tasty. Either that, or my appetite changed. 
I really like some of the local vegetables though. By the Filipino names they are: Ampalaya, upo, kangkong, laing, and puso ng saging. Those are just the ones I'm a big fan of. If I tried to make an English translation for that it would be: Bittermelon, bottle gourd, swamp cabbage, taro leaves, and banana heart.
And then of course, the fish is good. Especially tilapia, fried or grilled. Super good. But bangus is nice as well when grilled. Here they cook fish with the head on and everything, and I find the tail and fins to be the tastiest, because they are crunchy and salty, like chips. But the part of the head that I'm assuming had the brain also has a unique and somewhat pleasant taste. I don't know if that is healthy though. Then there is the soft part near the bottom which is really tasty, and you can get some good meat in the cheeks. The only problem is your hands are all sticky afterwards, because to try to eat it with a fork and spoon would be very difficult. So congratulations. We have the food section of the emails of Elder Streeter.

Not terribly spiritual, but that's all right.

Oh, and my companion: Elder Harmer.
Tennis player, really good. American, from Utah, near Syracuse Daw. I would say he's white, but ever since he came to the Philippines, he's been nothing but red. 
And he's been torn apart by the Philippines. All sorts of problems. Recently, they solved his ear problem, where there was fluid inside that wasn't draining, and so they poked holes in his eardrums, sucked it all out, and put tubes into his eardrums, so if anything else comes, it'll drain out. The weird thing is his brain had been compensating before for the fluid, so high pitched noises were harder to hear, and so his brain turned up sensitivity to those noises. Now that he is free to hear, all those high-pitched noises are extremely loud to him, and extremely piercing, and will overpower lower sounds even if the lower sounds are really louder than the higher. 

So anyways, we didn't work at all last week, because I had a two-day fever, and right afterwards was the series of hospital visits and staying at the hospital for his ear thing, until our whole week was used up... so I'm excited for this week. 
That's all folks....

Buhbye!

Ingat kayo lagi!

From,

Elder Streeter

Earthquakes and Terrorism (June 6, 2017)

Earthquakes and Terrorism

Okay, so we went to the temple.
That explains why this is a day late.
It was good.
No, it was great.
No, it was excellent.
No, it was amazing.
No, it was...
Yup, that's the one. You just can't express it...

Thanks so much for the family pictures and stories. They are all great!
I'll get what I can, but my day is kind of whacked because of the temple trip. It takes a lot of time out of the day...

Anyways...
Life is good...
There is not much to say. It's the same thing every day every week.
Which isn't a bad thing! Miracles are still miracles, no matter how many times they happen. 

A member referred an entire family to us, and they are all the definition of shy... but also really nice! They seem like they are really potentially interested in our message. We're going to show them the restoration video this Saturday, and see how they enjoy it. We'll see what happens.

As far as the rest of life goes:
Kids run around naked.
Some make fun of you, others call you pogi.
The girls giggle when they see my companion.
The guys say, "What's up," and, "Hey, nigga!" when they see us... I don't really think they understand the second one. They just think it's what cool people say. We don't say it back.
We usually respond with a couple of sentences in Tagalog and it knocks them off their feet. 
Either that, or they start running away...

Speaking of which, one of our investigators, who struggles hard with the word of wisdom, totally walked away from us the other night, without saying anything. We called after him, seeing as how we were hoping to share with him, but he didn't turn around or anything. He seemed really upset. It wasn't so great... we'll see how he's doing, but he might not want our lessons anymore. 

There have been some earthquakes too, recently. We didn't feel them, but some of the other elders did. Nothing has been on top of us, but it still seems somewhat worrisome. We'll see what happens. I'm not too worried. 
Also, it seems that Palawan is getting tighter on what missionaries can be sent there. The upper half of the island still has foreigners, but the lower half is starting to be only Filipinos. I believe there have been some dangers of terrorism, and white people are easy targets here in the Philippines. That being said, I'm nowhere near Palawan, so I should be fine. 

That's all I've got right now... maybe specific questions would help. I don't know. The reason it's so hard to come up with stuff to write is because it's all just normal life to me now... unless something crazy happens, but even some crazy things come and go and I just forget about them because they aren't so ridiculous anymore.

I love seeing butterflies though. Every time I do it lifts my mood, even when sweat is literally dripping off my head from how hot it is...

We're coming close to rainy season now (hopefully...) and it might cool down.

From, 

Elder Streeter

How many knocks does it take? (April 30, 2017)

How many knocks does it take?

So how is everybody?
I can't hear you! I said: 
How is everybody?
I still can't hear you!
(Why can't I hear you?)
Oh, right, I'm on the other side of the planet.
You would have to shout pretty loud for me to hear you. Either that, or somehow get on Philippines t.v.

That was my feeble attempt at a joke.

Yes this is transfer week,
No I have no idea what's going to happen...
Yes I could transfer, I could get a new companion, and I could just be here. 
And I won't know until tomorrow... sooo....

My opinion however, is that the likelihood of me getting a new companion while staying in this area is low. The likelihood that I transfer is high, and the likelihood that I stay is only slightly lower than the likelihood that I transfer.
And all of that doesn't matter because I'm always in the same place:
Right where my Heavenly Father wants me.

I hope everyone is doing all right though. I really do want the best for everyone.
Our area is looking like usual. I've learned something about Makati, at least for me. I'm not a terribly smart missionary. I can't look at a situation or area, see the previous baptisms, find the strengths of the area, look at previously effective methods of finding the people who want to be taught, come up with a plan that wins the trust of the members and changes the whole mode of work in the area and suddenly have a teaching pool absolutely filled with people ready and working towards baptism. It just isn't my strength. It would be cool if it was, but I don't think I'm cut out for it. 

On the contrary, I just do what I know, and what I know is to knock. If I tried all that other stuff I would probably collapse under the stress of just thinking about it. So instead I just pray, and hope, and keep knocking, facing door after door of rejection, although in the kind Filipino way more often than not.
And this is what I've learned:

God will bless me with willing people as long as I keep knocking on those doors. 
When I have knocked on 300 doors, someone will be found who is willing to listen;
When I have knocked on 800, someone will come to church;
When I've gotten 1500, someone will enter the waters of baptism;
And the miracle of it is that the person who does so will live behind not one of those 1500 doors. It will come when suddenly a family member of a member moves to the city from the province, or a friend of a member actually joins him at an activity, or somebody living at a member's house begins listening to the lessons even when not invited. 

And none of those were in those 1500 houses or apartments that we knocked on. 

Wow!

The atheist I talked about last time, I went back to him while on exchanges. There wasn't much change in the result. He continues to hold to his beliefs, and is not really willing to change. But this time I felt a lot better. 
I feel that I made a much better effort to understand. I actually did very little sharing, but I did a whole lot of listening. 

I asked a question to him several times: Would you like to know whether or not there is a God? 
I wasn't telling him there was, or that there wasn't, though I of myself know there is. I simply needed to know if he wanted to make an honest effort to find out. And the third time I asked the question (he was beating around the bush) he simply said: I don't really want to talk about it anymore. 
And I told him: Sige!
And he said: But if you want to come over sometime and watch Star Wars or something together, we could do that.
And I said: Well...probably some other time. 
Because of course, it's against our rules as missionaries...
But it made me feel that he felt my efforts to reach out. To be a friend.

That's all for now...

‘Til next week.

Elder Streeter

Knock! Knock! Who's there? (April 23, 2017)

Knock! Knock! Who's there?

Hello again, everybody! 
Another week gone by; pretty uneventful.

We knocked on doors.
We got rejected.
We knocked on more doors.
We got rejected worse.
We talked to some people on the street.
They were nice, but they lived in a different city...
We knocked on some more doors.
They weren't so nice.
And then we got home, and I read a comic that I thought was hilarious. It showed two missionaries, they were standing in a doorway. One of them was already through, the other was behind him. The one behind said:
"Hey, at least we got into a door today!"
The one in front, with a weary look said:
"The missionary apartment doesn't count, elder."
Heheheh....
And then I cry because it's true...
Just kidding, I didn't cry. I only cry when I go to the temple.
Oh wait, that means I did cry this week. 

Anyways, there's not much to say. I'm just trying to solve a mystery, because I need to know who the culprit is. 
Considering how wet I am when I get home every night, and yet the fact that there are no clouds in the sky, it seems to me that someone is holding a gigantic magnifying glass over the Philippines. I just need to figure out who...
IT IS HOT! So hot. And the fact that nobody is really interested in letting us into their home means we're in it all day. 
But there's no such thing as TOO hot when it comes to the work of the Lord...
But I'm still praying that there will be an extra breeze when we go out to work later...

This week we found out, unexpectedly, that one of our investigators is an atheist. What's more, he did a book review of the Book of Mormon. He handed it to us when we came to him.
I read it.
He gave it 2 stars and a 4/10.
I handed the book back and told him that I knew that he needed to read it. He looked confused, and said: "Again?"
I looked at him and said: "No. For the first time. You haven't read this book."
And he sheepishly admitted that he had only skimmed it and read a couple of passages. 
Then he launched into a series of questions to try to prove that what religion teaches cannot be true. Remember that at this point we didn't know his religion.
He asked, "Why would a loving God make a hell to throw his children into?"
He stated, "I read the Bible twice. The second time I read it, I noticed there were a lot of mistakes."
He asked about baptism, and why a baby who was not baptized would be any different from a baby that was baptized, because they both acted the same way. He also stated that it wasn't fair for children to pay for the sins of their parents.

We told him that he was right, those things didn't make sense. We thought that our message would really help, and would make it clear why those beliefs were held, but also show that those concerns can be answered through the Book of Mormon, and the teachings of prophets in our day and time. 
We let him know that as for ourselves, we didn't believe there was a fiery inferno where the souls of wicked men burn for all eternity, because of the very reason that he gave. We did, however, believe that the anguish of the guilt of a wicked man would be like a fire within him. God would not be the cause of his suffering, but his guilt while being in the presence of someone who loved him so much would.

But he seemed to take what we said and simply file it into a repository. "Oh," he said, "okay, so you're like Jehovah's witnesses. Don't believe in a hell."

I was confused. Was he really asking the questions? What was going on?
I tried to explain why many mistakes can be found in the Bible. I started by testifying that I knew the Bible was true, and then explained especially that the New Testament was of importance. I noted how Jesus Christ came, taught, established a church, and was rejected of men. He agreed. I spoke about how, after he was resurrected, he ascended into heaven, leaving his apostles to guide his church and keep the doctrine pure. I was going to lead into how there were false ideas and doctrines, dissensions and philosophies, and doctrinal questions which crept into the church, and we can see in the epistles of the apostles that that was happening, but he stopped me when I mentioned the resurrection. 

He let us know he didn't believe in a resurrection.
My companion shared a scripture that talked about the resurrection.
He responded by telling us he believed that somebody said and wrote that scripture, but that they didn't speak the truth.

To make a long story short, he's gone almost to the point of atheism. He can't bring himself to say there is no God, but he doesn't believe in any God we believe in. He was simply trying to make us doubt...

We testified, and left.

It made me sad that I couldn't do more to help.

Oh well.

From,

Elder Streeter

4 Years of Fees, Plus Termites (March 26, 2017)

4 Years of Fees, Plus Termites

Transfers happened, and yes, transfers happened. 

Answering Papa's question, yes, 3 months is a "short" time to be in an area. The average is between 5 and 6 months, or 3 to 4 transfers as we say here in the mission. 

Last week was chaos. After transfers, we had to move houses. I don't know if I told you, but the landlord died about 8 weeks ago, or so, and the question of ownership has become something the mission doesn't want to deal with, so we are getting out. This became something of a nightmare as it turned out to be a longer process than just taking stuff from one house to another. We still haven't finished, and will need to clean the house today so that we can leave it in as good a condition as possible. Among other things we have had to: 

Pay extra money for billing refunds that should have been refunded to the owner but was simply discounted from our bills FOR THE LAST FOUR YEARS!

Have papers signed by several different people (whose schedules were all different) to be able to proceed with the move-out.

Agree with the owner(?) and her "friend" (She has a somewhat more instrumental role than friend, I think. She seemed to be running things.) what things would stay and what things would go. (Consequently, some things which I know must have been provided by the mission, because they are the same make and model as they are in every apartment, are being left because the owner (or her friend) is claiming them...)

Emails, as I understand it, have been shot all over the place for verification from other people who claim ownership of the apartment.

We found out, when Elder Stowers opened a drawer that I thought was sealed shut, that there is a termite infestation in the apartment...

We watched in amazement as Brother Base somehow fit EVERYTHING onto one tiny truck (truly an artist!).

And after all that, we somehow worked in some small amount of proselytising. 

Our Sunday was pitiful. We went to church, taught one person who came to church, and then went home and made up all the studies we missed the previous days... including weekly planning.

So....
Transfer-wise, I did not transfer. Surprisingly enough, my companion transferred. He's not too happy about it because his plate just got really full: he is now a zone leader in Para(enye)aque, and they are fresh starting their area, i.e. neither of them have ever been there before...

My new companion is a Samoan named Elder Stowers. He's still somewhat new in the mission, as he is 9 months, but that's not really very new. I just feel like it is because I am at 18 months...oh no....

He is the district leader here, so it will be fun during district meetings. He's never been district leader before, so he's a little nervous, but mostly he's a really fun guy who loves making jokes. He really misses Palawan, which is where he just came from, so he has been kind of sad the last several days, and the chaos of moving apartments seems to him to be so unfair, because he had nothing to do with it, and if he hadn't transferred here, and Elder Freese had still been here, it would be Elder Freese's problem. 

Whatever the situation is, I still love him. He likes singing and he likes praying and he loves his mom...a great combination.

Sorry I don't have much more to say. Hope this will satisfy this week.
And for Mama, I will give spiritual thoughts all the time when I get home from my mission, but I will try to squeeze some in here too. You think that I wrote those words to my mission president and then as a last thought added it to your email, but honestly I was writing it to everybody, and it just ended up that I wrote his email first, which we are supposed to do. Many missionaries end up writing to their family for too long, and then don't get to write to him, and he needs to know how we are doing. He also told me that what usually happens is that the emails we send to him will all be printed out at the end of the mission and given to us as a sort of journal...so you will get to see all of those (if I share them with you!!)

With love,

Elder Streeter

Predicting a Move, Then Predicting He's Wrong (March 19, 2017)

Predicting a Move, Then Predicting He's Wrong

I'll be honest, I have no idea what will happen. 

This week is, indeed, transfer week. So next week, I could be anywhere...
Or I could just be here. My companion and I think I will be here. Logically speaking, there is no reason for me to leave, and I haven't been here very long, so why not...

My heart feels like I'll transfer. I have a 100% fail rate on the feelings of my heart and transfers however, so, I'm probably staying here. Whatever I feel is going to happen, never does... Hehehe...

I wish, so hard, that I had some wild stuff to talk about, but I don't. 

I think I told you how the Tubig family's house burned down, and I also spoke about how we found them, maybe. 

Now they moved. They are no longer in our area. We are going to refer them to the other missionaries where they live, and hope that they discover the light of the gospel and partake of the fruit of the tree of life.

That's all I got. 

From, 

Elder Streeter

Just Turned 20!!! (March 13, 2017)

Just Turned 20!!!

Hello family...

Kind of recovering, one of our investigators houses almost got burned down this week...

And basically, they have to move anyways, because it got destroyed by the water hoses and such...so that was a shocker. 

I bought a voice recorder and am sending those recordings for you to save. It's basically going to be my version of a journal. Sorry everyone who reads my emails...You don't get to listen to those. Strictly close family only, i.e. Mama, Papa, and Nikolai.

I don't really have much to say this week, I'll try to get more next week. Sorry about that.


From,

Elder Streeter

The Impossible Dream (March 6, 2017)

The Impossible Dream

I suppose I'll include a segment of my spiritual learning that I sent to the mission president this week. Perhaps you'll just say you already knew this, but that just means that you've been blessed!

"Now, on to success...

If you are familiar with the story of Don Quixote, which you have to be, it's about an old man who gets so caught up in the ideas of chivalry in the stories he reads that he decides to live it, to become a knight, to find enemies to fight against and to raise the standard of honor. But the fact of the matter is he's a little crazy from how old he is, and to the people around him, he is downright disturbed. 

But I've always looked at that and considered the fact that we must look like that sometimes. We say to be good when the world says there is no such thing. We say to love purely, when the world thinks that's only in fantasy books. We say to follow God, and the world calls it blindness, and ignorant obedience, and even being brainwashed!

Is there not a parallel? 

Though I would not say that I know very much about this fictitious character, nor that I wish to become exactly like him, I do admire him. 

In the musical rendition of the story, titled the Man of La Mancha, if I'm not mistaken, there is a song, that says:

'To dream the impossible dream,
to fight the unbeatable foe,
to bear with unbearable sorrow, 
to run where the brave dare not go, 
to right the unrightable wrong, 
to love pure and chaste from afar, 
to try when your arms are too weary, 
to reach the unreachable star:
This is my quest! to follow that star! 
no matter how hopeless, no matter how far!
to fight for the right, without question or pause, 
to be willing to march into hell for a heavenly cause!
And I know, if I'll only be true to this glorious quest, 
that my heart will be peaceful and calm when I'm laid to my rest.
And the world will be better for this: 
that one man, scorned, and covered with scars, 
still strove, with the last ounce of courage, 
to reach the unreachable star!'

And I realized that what he said is profound, that if he is only true to his quest, his heart will have peace at the end.

He can't possibly achieve it! It says the star is unreachable for a reason! Yet he will feel peace for having tried his whole life for something so noble.
Success is not in the achieving of goals! It's in the setting of CORRECT, HONORABLE, and IMPORTANT goals, and then striving, ceaselessly to achieve them WHETHER OR NOT YOU ULTIMATELY DO, or even can! How could I have been so blind to this? I am successful if I set the right goals, and try my hardest. 

Then bring it to a more spiritual perspective:

'I'm trying to be like Jesus.
I'm following in his ways.
I'm trying to love, as he did,
In all that I do, and say.
At times I am tempted to make a wrong choice,
but the Holy Spirit, in a still small voice, whispers:
love one another as Jesus loves you.
Try to show kindness in all that you do.
Be gentle and loving in deed and in thought,
for these are, the things Jesus taught.'

It would be impossible to be like Jesus, to be perfect, so I got scared away from trying.

But I am a success just by setting the goal, just by trying to be like Jesus. 

So I will read tons of books about Him! And as I do, I will go on the impossible quest to become like him. 

The world will laugh me to scorn, think I'm crazy, or not actually true. In their eyes I will be some poor young man with a mental illness.

But my heart will have peace if I am only true to that quest. And the world will be better for it whether or not I ever achieve anything!

My father always tells me: I only ever hoped that you would be a good person. I didn't care if you were smart or strong or attractive. I just wanted you to be a good person.

I have only ever wanted to do what's right. I've just been bad at it sometimes, or a lot of the times. But that is my quest, so I already am a success if I continue to strive."

I'm sorry I don't have much to write today...and that I still haven't finished that poem.

But I hope you can gain something from what I've found out.

Oh, and happy belated birthday, Papa! I totally remembered the moment I closed out of the email last week, but of course, it was too late. 

Sorry about that!

From,

Elder Streeter

A Continuation of Kris-Tyan's Poem (February 27, 2017)

A Continuation of Kris-Tyan's Poem

How do I like my area?

It's good. It's very uniform in that it's almost all residential, and almost all the same economic level. Not terribly rich, not very poor. 

There are definitely poorer places and richer places, but it's like it all got put in a blender, so there aren't any large chunks of anything, but it's literally several larger houses all next to each other with several smaller ones right in between. There is only one small segment of my area where it is not allowed to proselyte at night time, just because it is extremely poor and reportedly dangerous. 

I did do a little more of my poem, but it's not finished yet. Here you go...

"I thank you that you've chosen to cease, 
and provide us with a moment of peace.
I'd like to speak now, and address some concerns,
But it's up to each one on his own to learn.
My first friend recognizes the value of strength
He had rolled up his sleeve its entire length.
He showed us that to him, God has given a gift
God hoped he would use it; not to knock down, but to lift!
Oh my friend! What power you have to help!
Even those you derisively classify as 'whelp'
As for your guns and bombs, they are certainly a force,
And protecting your country is definitely a noble course,
But a question is begged: which holds more power:
The bomb, or the house that still stands in that hour
When dust settles from the explosion, and the earth has been shaken
And human life itself so horrifically taken?
That house is the man who keeps his head,
when everyone around him is spiritually dead.
The body is a temple of God, out and in
You've taken good care of it, now begin,
To clean it from the red of the blood you've spilt,
The people you've hurt, and the weight of your guilt.
Then you'll be free, then you can stand
Wielding the sword of the spirit in your hand.
Yes! Again, I say:
Though you're red as scarlet, you can be white as snow
and at that time you will fight the fight with the real foe
Then in your heart and soul you'll have peace,
and your love for others will then increase,
Then will you learn true power, my brother
When you learn how to rescue the soul of another.

As for the second...


Yeah, it's still not finished
And I'm not even sure if the addition I've made is really how I want it to look...

So, anyhooo

Next week


From,
Elder Streeter

Big City Life (February 20, 2017)

Big City Life

Hello everyone:

Big start:
SOORYYRYRYYRYRY!!!!
I definitely have not finished that poem yet.


So. I suppose I haven't told you about my new companion yet. His name is Elder Freese. He actually got into the mission at the same time as I did, so we knew each other already. Being with a missionary that has been in the mission as long as you have makes missionary work easier (if it's been a long time, that is, since you started) you don't get the impression or the danger of one of you taking the "I'm better because I've been in the field longer" stand, and you both understand what to do as a missionary, so you don't have as many mistakes, or struggles. 

That being said, we are two very different people. I enjoyed computers, he did not...

I wasn't into sports, he was your average kid, not overly into sports, but still interested. 

He actually is the only one among his siblings who is a member. His parents, however, are members. 

He wasn't terribly close with his siblings. I was very close with mine. 

He also had a lot more exposure than I did. I'm beginning to see that I did have a VERY different childhood from a lot of people...

He tried band. He couldn't get into the spit valve. 

He was in choir until there weren't enough guys in the choir anymore, and the school just decided to make it an all girls choir. 

His previous area was a poorer one, and the change coming to this area took it's toll. Seeing all the good stuff he could never get before, he spent way too much money on P-day! Heheheh....

Actually, I did want to mention that. Currently I am in Makati. Except for Cola Cao, I can get almost anything I could miss from the stores here, it's just a matter of money. So If I'm still here and you get the crazy idea to send another package, it would actually probably be easier for you to just put some money on my card, and then I can almost certainly buy it myself. 

Yes, they have olives, butter, cheese, mac n' cheese, and every once in a while, butterfingers!

So I've got access to anything I could want, but it doesn't really fit in a missionary budget. Money wise, that means that if you wanted me to have a treat (which I DON'T NEED A TREAT) but if you wanted me to have one, it would likely be less expensive for you to put money on my card than for you to send it to me. But Papa's better at math than I am, so if he calculates it out and it's less expensive to send a package, then that's fine too.

(For papa's math: the peso is about 50 to a dollar, last I checked, and there is a 200 peso + 1% fee to pull money off of the card. American foods and other such things here cost generally in the 200 peso range, i.e. a block of cheese (190), Hershey's strawberry syrup (220), two boxes of Kraft mac n' cheese(180), a filling meal at McDonalds(185), etc. If you really felt the need to treat me, that might be the better option. But I don't need treats. Loving the people is a treat, and Filipino sweets are growing on me)

Anyway. The area here in Makati is pretty big, and it's almost all residential, so it won't get boring. There will always be houses to knock on. 

It's a little confusing sometimes, because all the streets look the same. But that's all right. 

All the kids here seem to think I look like Harry Potter. But that's not as bad as my companion:

He's told he looks like Mr. Bean! Hehehe...


That's all I got...

Not very exciting, is it?

From,

Elder Streeter

A Hard Week (February 5, 2017)

A Hard Week

So I might have forgotten to...finish the poem. Whoops! It'll come, don't worry. 

Not much happened this week. I got sick, taught very few lessons, went on exchanges, and planned for lots of baptisms that may or may not happen (probably most will not, but hey! Some will!)

It was somewhat of a harder week. We didn't get to teach very much, most people were busy or not home for some reason. We also didn't get much time to work because there were lots of things that messed with our schedule. That being said, next week will be great. I'm sure of it!

This week is transfer week. If something happens, it will happen this week. I do not know, however, if something will happen. I will find out tomorrow, and you will find out next week. Sorry, that's just how it works!

That's all I've got to offer. Sorry, not much happened this week.
Next week there will be more news. I'm sure of it. 

An Epic Poem (January 30, 2017)

An Epic Poem

Sitting around a table were five great men
A peculiar gathering happened then
They had all been friends a long time ago
But then, each their own path did go.
Now they came back together to see what they learned
So they sat round that table, and each in turn
Spoke on the meaning of power.

The first was a man of great physical strength
He rolled up his sleeve it's entire length,
Then flexing his muscle, he began to speak:
"This is true power, and what you should seek.
With a single punch, I can knock out a man,
Want me to throw him? Even that, I can
When it comes to war, I take care of you whelps
But to fight off enemies, it's a gun that helps
You can kill someone from 100 yards out
You can hit ten men before they can shout
But the best of all is a massive bomb!
That'll blow you away no matter where you're from
Just drop in on the field, a little spark, then BOOM!
When the dust clears you've got a whole lot more room
That's true power! And beauty, too.
In an instant your enemies are gone to the great big blue."

Then the next man stood, with a perfect smile
He wore a suit of expensive style
His sculpted face was an actor's dream
He began his speech to win to his team:
"I admire your strength, my unrefined friend,
But your reasoning, as ever, is flawed once again
Where do you get the right to carry out that war? 
The funding? The research? That's what I'm here for.
Without fine leaders, such as myself,
All would be in danger, even our health!
True power is in people, the hearts of man,
They're so easy to sway, that's why I ran.
You commanded maybe 20, 50 at most?
I have thousands in my hand, from coast to coast!
Though your piddly bomb might kill 100 men,
The amount I can send may seem to never end.
With a flick of the wrist, I sign words into laws
My fans will fight for my smokescreen cause
Under "rights" the people feel that they're safe
They don't realize I have power to give, and to take
My very whims may affect where you end!
The pen is mightier than the sword, my friend"

Then the third guy stood in his jeans and plaid shirt
He looked at his solid gold watch with a smirk
Though he wasn't portly, and had good health
He was still full enough you could see his wealth
He flick off what had once been a large cigar,
That must have been imported from somewhere far
Among other business he was a loan shark
And began his spiel with a scalding remark:
"Thank you gentlemen, for that waste of time.
Which I consider a precious resource of mine
You see, time is money, and money is power.
Which is why I'm sad that I've lost this hour.
I understand power; I worked hard to get it
Unlike this buffoon who just sort of met it
You know where I started? 12 dollars, that's all!
Now with what I've got, I could buy my own mall.
Money makes the world go round, you see
True power is the power to buy, that's the key
Everything in this world has it's price,
Your armies and campaigns could be mine, but I'm nice
If you can be bought, I'm making the laws
If I break them, no problem, my lawyer's on call.
You rely on your words to make people happy 
I just throw out some green and they all start clapping
True power all starts in this little dime.
Here, have it, but remember...
*Flick*
I'll take what's rightfully mine"

The fourth man, following, took the stand
He had glasses on, and a book in hand
Though he had a goatee, his hair was a mop
Then he slammed open the book on the table top
It’s pages were old, they were worn and torn
He began to speak with a look of scorn:
"This was written by a man who, though he is dead
Knew that true power is found in the head
'Knowledge is power, it will set you free'
So it says right here, so can we all see
Your theories are invalid, because they're all flawed
I will prove this to you, so prepare to be awed
Who made that bomb? A scientist, that's who!
If he didn't leave instruction, you wouldn't know what to do
What's more, give us time to study it out
We can create a perfect defense, no doubt.
And who made the country, the original laws?
Some of the greatest thinkers, who had a real cause!
What have you learned to do? To create an applause?
How to lie, how to swindle, how to steal with your claws?
Every advancement in Econ has been made through math.
Stocks and bonds, banking, computers, all followed that same path
Money itself was invented! It was through using a brain.
You can pay for an education, but you can't buy mental gain
Through theories, and postulates, we push the boundaries of science,
That helps your soldiers, your voters, and your clients
You can't measure the power of knowledge, my friends
It's limitless! For the slower among us, that means without end.

The room then erupted, as tempers flared,
Not a tongue was held back, not an insult spared
The four in a struggle of words were contending,
Their opposing opinions showed no sign of ending.
Then stood the last man with a stern, but calm look
He had on a plain white shirt, his head, he shook.
He was older than each of his friends, and yet
He let each one go first, as he sat quiet
He continued this peculiarly silent trend of his,
Till the fighting calmed down to a gentle fizz
Then with his piercing blue eyes, and his clean-shaven face
He looked directly at each till they sat in their place
"Oh look, ----, the priest wants to speak." said the first,
With look of disgust, and a mild curse.
"I suppose," spoke the second, with a voice of disdain
"There is freedom of religion, though to me that's a pain"
"Prepare to be bored!" said the third, wryly smiling
"As we hear again about money defiling."
Spoke the fourth "Oh, great!" (sarcastically so)
"The master of myths wants to give it a go."
These they each spoke as a last attack,
Then were pricked by his gaze, and could not look back. 

When the room was then in a state of silence,
And the men were no longer on the verge of violence,
The last closed his eyes, and took a deep breath,
Then with calm he began, and thus he saith:


Oops...
I haven't finished yet...
Hehehe...
But it'll come.

news:

We are nearing the end of transfers... that's scary!

I feel much better this week, I was kind of not happy last week, sorry.

There have been changes to our work as missionaries. For one, the focus is now completely on baptism. I suppose it always was, but now it's refocused. We have more flexible schedules so we can proselyte earlier. We get to choose when we fit our studies in. 

And Elder Bednar will be visiting our mission on the 25th of February!

!!!!!!!!!

(That's excitement spelled with exclamation marks)

I love you, I am soooo sorry, and I'm doing fine. We had three baptisms last week, and it would have been four, but there is no divorce in the Philippines, so the dad is going to have to wait a long time to be baptized.

Thanks for missing me. Thanks for praying for me. Thanks for loving me.

Next week,

From, 

Elder Streeter

A Note to Say, "No Note!" (January 22, 2017)

A Note to Say, "No Note!"

Hi, I'm alive, I'm happy, and I'm really sorry that I am doing to you what you did to me, but I'm not going to get much email to you this week, i.e. this is it, but next week I'll make it up by sending a poem which is a lot of fun.

I LOVE YOU ALL

Elder Streeter

A Lot of Pun (January 15, 2017)

A Lot of Pun

What!

There's snow!

YAY!!!!

Sorry, that's just me. Of course, better if we get to Spain, but Italy is looking cooler and cooler (puns of damage!).

You can let grandma know that the snails here also suck. (Editor’s note: Grandma had just complained that snow sucks…) Literally. Hehehe... (isn't this pun!)

I DID get the donuts from the Guys. (Editor’s note: The Guys are a couple that we met in Gibraltar, who recently visited the Philippines because the wife is Filipino.) I knew they weren't Americans because they wrote: "Gutted we missed you today." It was like cleaning out the inside of my brain, and pulling out most of the stuff, to remember them (like gutting a fish! see! Punny, right?).

I'll be honest: I forgot their last name was Guy. I thought of just the word guys, so I was kind of confused who left it. Then the Office Elder started describing them to me, and I remembered them. 

The donuts were very good. It was so sweet of them to leave them (did you catch that? I'm just PUNting these at you (that was a pun too (catch/punt)!)). 

I'm glad that mama remembers stuff. I can't seem to recall (hehe, get it?) the last time that happened. (Not really, I'm just making a joke. It's what PUNks do.)
Sorry, I guess I'm getting carried away. It just hits me like lightning (which is always followed by PUNder!). I hope your head isn't spinning from my brainstorm. I'm kind of torn(ado) about whether or not this is a good email...

On a more serious note:

That sounds awful about Doni. I hope she gets better. 

Our investigator can't get baptized for the next three years 'cause he can't get married to his wife. A little disappointing, but he's told us that he will stay strong. So we're going to baptize his kids. 

Have a nice week!

The $64,000 Question (January 8, 2017)

The $64,000 Question

Why is there no email for me today?

(We were slow at getting his email's out...oops)

Back to the "Mainland" (January 1, 2017)

So, there's not much to say.

I'm back in the city!

I'm actually relieved to some extent. I feel a lot more at home in the city, actually, like I know what I'm doing. In the province, it's a whole different place. It's beautiful, and would be lovely for vacation...but I'm not here for vacation. I'm here to work!

I'm feeling a little blue today, not sure why. So my email might be slightly lacking.

My companion is Elder Ulat. He just got out of training, so I am following him up. He's older than me, I think he said he is 24. He is a Filipino. He's been through a lot in his life, but he is the nicest person. It blows me away. He is also very clean, which is super cool.

He is a little sad because this is the first time he's had a new companion. What's more, you get close to your trainer, and now his trainer is very far away. We, strangely enough, swapped places. His trainer went to Taytay, and I came here.
Makati is somewhat nicer than much of my area in Pasay, if you remember those days, but a little more confusing, because there aren't very many landmarks (that I've noticed) and many of the streets look exactly the same. That being said, there are still those who live in poverty.

This actually, a long time ago, was the AP's area. The members still haven't forgotten Elder Wilson, who was AP right around the time I entered the mission. 

It looks like there are people here prepared for baptism. I certainly hope we can help them to come unto Christ. 

There we are. I have complete access to McDonald’s again. I think I'll celebrate today. Hehehe...

From,
Elder Streeter

Planning a Christmas Call (December 12, 2016)

Planning a Christmas Call

I can call on the 24th, 25th, or 26th. Look at the time difference, and remember, I wake up at 6:30 here, and go home at 9:00 here. You can set a time accordingly. 

I will probably be in a computer shop. There may not be a webcam. Because of the fact that I will be in a computer shop, it would be best if you don't choose the 25th, because I would have to pay for a computer. If there is no other way, I'm sure it would be fine. On the 24th there is a Christmas party for Taytay branch. But that's not more important than my family, and it's a very small portion of the day, so likely they wouldn't interfere if you chose the 24th. 

Send me a time, and my Skype details again, and I will get on at that time. If Skype doesn't work at that time, I'll send our phone number for you if you want to do that again. Internet in Taytay is fast, so that shouldn't be a problem. The only issue is that computer shops may be full, so I could be late to it, depending on vacancies. 

I did get the package. The food is amazing, but I don't know why you sent toilet paper ;). The letters...well, yeah. 

I received two awesome letters from mama that were not in the package, and 2 letters from her that were not as great in the package. I received one pretty cool letter from papa in the package, and one very hard to read letter from Nikolai in the package. 

Mac and cheese is amazing, and Cola Cao is bliss. The olives are pretty good too. Big thank you to Lala, who I'm sure coordinated most of the buying of those things...

Sorry I've run out of time. I wanted to give Nikolai something to laugh at. You guys are welcome to look at it too if you want, but you probably wouldn't understand it. 

With love,

Elder Streeter

Bamboo Buildings Abound (November 28, 2016)

Bamboo Buildings Abound

November 28, 2016

Nothing really happened so far...

I'm not sure when I will email you again. There is a mission tour on Monday next week, so I will be in Puerto all day. We will see when the next week email gets to you. It may not happen until Wednesday, depending on the circumstances...
Or it may not be at all, but I doubt that outcome.

Mostly, I'm just doing missionary work in Taytay. It's a beautiful place. We've got mountains, the sea, a bay, beaches, rice fields, forests, and so on. Quite the combination of natural scenery. Yes, I have some pictures, no, I have no way to upload them.

I also have not received any packages or letters. Probably will at the Christmas party, though.

Most every house, bridge, and structure we teach in is made of bamboo and wood. Very few are finished cement houses.

There is an old Spanish fort here. We've gone a couple of times. 

(stock photo)

There is also a sign, like the Hollywood sign, that says Taytay. We hiked up to it today. The path is super overgrown, but the view is great. 

(stock photo)

We've had an opportunity to do some chess in the Bahay. I've gotten better at it. But I'm still pretty bad. Hehehe.

And that is it...

Sorry, not much to say. Next week, depending on when I email, I'll have more to say. There is a Christmas party here.

From,

Elder Streeter

Saturated in Livestock (November 21, 2016)

Saturated in Livestock

I have a new companion! I didn't even expect it, but transfers brought surprises. 

First of all:
I have not received anything. I'm so sorry Mama, I'm not sure what has happened.

In the district, two people transferred. My companion: Elder Enano, and the district leader: Elder Fiesta. Elder Enano is now currently serving in a portion of the mission close to Brookes Point. It's called Cabar, and there are so few people that whereas the mission goal for OYMs is 105 (they lowered it recently) Cabar's goal is 28. 

There is probably twice as much livestock as people....

My companion came up from Brookes Point. He is 6 months in the mission. His name is Elder Marquez. He is an easygoing, obedient missionary, with great English skills from Baguio. He is very smart. He, after his training, trained a missionary, so this is his first experience out of training. 

Taytay, by the way, is not an Island. It is on Palawan, and a long time ago, was the first capital of Palawan. It has a Spanish fort as well. It's a paradise. There are mountains, forests, a bay with beaches, and just enough progress for everything you need, including fast internet.

What else happened? Taytay, and Roxas, the bigger town south of it, became their own zone. There are only two district leaders, and the zone leaders live in Roxas. The funny thing is that both of the zone leaders, myself and Elder Arninio, were trained by Elder McQuarrie. In addition, Elder Arninio's anak, Elder Crowder, is in Roxas, and Elder Crowder's anak, Elder Beltran, is here in Taytay. As far as I know, that makes the majority of Elder McQuarrie's "posterity" all in one zone! Funny. 

The Christmas party is coming up... We'll see how that goes. Travel is always expensive...

That's all I can think of right now. 

From,

Elder Streeter 

November 14, 2016 (District Leader)

District Leader

Wow...

My entire family forgot to email me this week? Either that or they are having internet problems...or they don't like me... or they are all dead!

They descended rapidly! I suppose it's also possible that the world will explode in 30 minutes...

Sometimes, though we have those distressing slides into distressing thoughts. Sometimes good things happen, and we interpret them as bad. For instance, you might receive a gift from someone. Things you might think are:

They really care about me!
That was so nice!
I wonder why they did that?
I should do the same for them.

These are all great thoughts, but sometimes, that doesn't happen. Sometimes it's a little more sour:

They just gave it to me to cheer me up
I can't believe they think they can help me with material things
They are shallow, and don't really care, because if they really cared, they'd talk with me or spend time with me

Or perhaps:

Oh, great, now they will expect me to give them a gift! How am I going to pull the funds together to do that? I don't even know what they like! I can't get them just anything, it has to be as good as or better than their gift…It wasn't given out of a sincere desire...Gosh, they are so selfish. 

Maybe even, if it turns out you don't like, or can't use the gift:

Wow, they just wanted to make me upset! 
They give a gift and don't even take time to find out what I like? 
It doesn't even work, (or maybe) it doesn't taste good (or maybe) I'm allergic to that! 
What an idiot! 

Leaping Lizards! what kinds of thoughts are those?

It's true, sometimes we are wronged, but let's consider a different situation:

Walking through a mall, and someone bumps into you. 3 different thoughts might come:

1. Wow! how rude! that selfish oaf just thinks he owns the world!
2. Oh dear, I am so clumsy! I have such a problem with that, I shouldn't even be here...
3. What an idiot...has no awareness...grumble...mumble...why I oughtta teach him a lesson.

Or perhaps we could not have these thoughts. I mean, they bumped into us, so what? Did that cause you to lose your job, or get a deadly illness? Perhaps you could just say:

Whoops! 

And then go on your way. Don't let it bother you. 

Sometimes we make connections that just aren't there. 

In high school, my band teacher showed us an interesting concept:

There is a band named Pink Floyd, and they have an album I believe called Dark Side of the Moon. If you play it directly from the correct time on a muted copy of the old Wizard of Oz, there are many parts of their songs and sounds which seem to fit exactly with the things that happen in it. But it isn't an exact science. Mostly it demonstrated a principle, where we like to make connections, even when there are none.

So perhaps, you walked into a room, and a group of people laughed. Maybe they laughed at you...But maybe they just finished a joke as you walked in. 

I guess what I am trying to get to is that sometimes, we have destructive patterns of thought. This leads to being angry, or sad, or frustrated, or upset, or depressed an inordinate amount of time. This can sometimes even lead to being suicidal.

This can cause you to close yourself off to outside help, by constantly thinking of a negative response to every effort to aid, by becoming frustrated with well-meaning action, and sometimes discounting what might be key to your happiness, or even the salvation of your soul.

And that is why we study the gospel.

But we also need to work on our thoughts. Sometimes these destructive patterns will cause us to misinterpret the scriptures, and become frustrated, discouraged, or confused with the things the scriptures say. These patterns lead guilty souls to focus on God's anger, and frustrated souls to focus on the narrowness of the path, or everything that doesn't (yet) make sense. And so we turn away.

But it came from our thinking. 

Our minds are powerful tools. We must learn to program them. We must learn to fight negative thinking, and often that means to think more. 

When you get a negative thought, recognize that, and take a step back. Then, when your head clears, talk back to that thought. Think of a better way to look at or think of a situation. And repeat. And repeat. And repeat. And repeat. 

This is how repentance occurs. 

This is how Despair is turned into Hope

This is how Doubt is turned into Faith

This is how Fear is turned into Courage

This is how Frustration is turned into Patience

This is how Unhappiness is turned into Gratitude

This is how Selfishness is turned into Love

As we build better patterns of thought, life begins to brighten. It becomes easier to forgive, we become calmer in trial and confusion, we begin to see something so very important:

What we can become.

By using good patterns of thought, the scriptures become a source of pleasure, joy, and reassurance. By developing patterns of patience, all that does not make sense at first finds its proper place in due time. By developing patterns of Hope, and Love, and Gratitude, we focus on the sweetness of the gospel, and even God's seemingly harsh condemnation becomes a just recompense and a reward for righteousness, and a merciful and loving act to stop the pain and sadness that comes to others because of the wicked. But we don't focus on those scriptures. Instead we think of how God lengthened the days of man so they could repent, gave them prophets and scriptures to teach them the manner of happiness, Shed the blood of his perfect innocent Son because he felt you were worth it, and will always be worth it. 

WE SEE WE ARE SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF GOD. And so is everyone else.


Let us build, and not tear down. Let us practice better patterns of thought.

We over here are approaching transfers. The district leader is transferring to manila to become a Zone Leader. I have been called as District Leader here in Taytay, so I will not be going anywhere.

With Love,

Elder Streeter

October 24, 2016 (The Laundry and the Crab)

The Laundry and the Crab

Over here, I am learning a whole new way of life... It's kind of a pain, for instance, that I have to wash all my clothes by hand...

Which is why I'm wearing this shirt for the third time...

But it's also cool to see all the interesting things here. There was a baptism recently. Baptisms are done at the beach here, so I got to see some interesting things... 

You would have laughed a little, because we found a crab that looked like a brown Mr. Krabs with six legs. It was really big. The kids put it on the ground and it skedaddled super-fast. It literally looked like it was dancing across the sand, because the feet were going crazy and it was moving sideways. Here's the funny part though:

The kids that put it down didn't want it to run away. 

So a little girl picked up this huge piece of wood. 

Then she ran after it.

Swoosh...miss

Swoosh...miss

Swoosh...SMACK---DIRECT HIT.

She destroyed it. She just brought her arm down and bang! Right smack dab between the eyes. 

There was pink goop all over one side. It wasn't moving...

And since it stopped moving, the children said: that's boring...

They came back. They said: it died...

I whispered under my breath: it got killed!

I also saw a sea slug and picked up a starfish. Not a starfish like in Sponge Bob, but one of those with the skinny black spiny legs. It's weird because they move. While you are holding it they move. I couldn't find the mouth or eyes or face, but it was moving...

And of course, I've taught people…

But you know that already. I could go on and on about old Tays that interrupt me over and over to crazy ladies who tell me to be quiet when I'm not talking, but there...

Also, tell mama that as desperately as I want her written letters, I have not received a single one, so she might want to hold off on sending another.