Week 13, December 26, 2016 - 3 Weeks later, First Transfer down

Hey everyone! Sorry that it's been like three weeks since I've sent an email out! I literally haven't emailed you guys for half the transfer ha ha. Everything has been so hectic and crazy!

MERRY (belated) CHRISTMAS.

I hope you all were able to celebrate Christmas and have fun with your families. Christmas is the greatest season. It's fun to be able to see people really looking at Jesus Christ, and really trying to become more like Him. :) I wish everyone would do that throughout the rest of the year, too. 

But like my Kabahay said, "Everyday is Christmas as a missionary because we have the greatest gift to give- the message of the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ." 

This Gospel really is the GREATEST, and every single day I am proud and beyond grateful to be a part of it. 

Oh yeah, there was a Typhoon, and we weren't allowed to leave our apartments. It didn't hit the area I'm in though. Just strong winds and rain. I'm also being transferred from my beloved trees into more of a city area. Pray for me that I don't get hit by a jeepney or a trike.. Like I said, people are CRAZY drivers here! Ha ha! 

I'm always praying for you guys.

Thanks for all the emails and for the support- I'm sorry if I can't reply to all- I SUPER TRY!

I love you all. 

 Ps. I wish I could send you guys the pictures from these past two weeks, but we are at the lowest quality computer shop today cause the others are closed (theyre still celebrating christmas). And these computers have mad viruses, so... ;) I dont trust it. Can you blame me? ;)

Be safe, everyone. I'm thinking and praying for you.

-- 

Mahal Kita!

Sister Mosher

Week 11 - December 12, 2016

Week 10 - Adventures To Last A LifeTime (December 4, 2016)

This week has been a blast. The start of the week was a great one. Sister Estrella and I were going to teach our lessons and literally every one fell through, so we were walking back to the apartment to get ready for the night, and so of course it was dark. So as we were walking on the side of the road- because there are no sidewalks here- I was just trying to stay clear of the oncoming traffic, and when I went to take my next step, there was no ground to catch my foot and I literally fell into this deep sewage canal! HAHAH. I couldn't get out because I was laughing so hard! My leg and shoe was covered in this black mud... or whatever it was. Hahah. And so we went home and then we had a balut party with the rest of the sisters. It was a great start to the week. ;) Ps. Balut isn't bad tasting at all... you just have to get over the fact that you're eating a fertalized duck egg. 

 

 

                                                                             Balut

                                                                        Balut

 

The next few days were fun. We taught lots of lessons and we had a lot of Family Home Evenings. Those are the best. REALLY! If you don't do family home evening with your family- DO IT! It brings blessings! Start with a hymn, then a scripture thought, then an object lesson, then games and treats. SO FUN! What a good way to bond and grow closer in the Gospel. :)

 

                                                          Family Home Evening

Another thing, is that when we went to teach this cute lady, she was the sweetest. But she likes to talk a lot, so every time we would try to direct the lesson, she would talk about something completely out of left field. Then we would read a scripture, and she'd go, "Yeah, that's nice, but GUESS WHAT? *gossit gossip*" hahaha the cutest old lady. And then when we were getting ready to go, she really wanted to feed us some food, so we said yeah alright, and when she pulled out the food, there were ANTS and bugs ALL OVER. Didn't even phase her, she didn't

even blink. Just dished us heaps, so of course we ate it, and I had to literally bite my tongue to stop myself from laughing when sister estrella pulled live beetles and flies out of her mouth hahahah! Good times in the Philippines. I really do love it here, and I'm grateful for these kind-hearted people. :)

The church is true

 

                                                                                Cat

                                                                         More Cats

                                                                   Baptism

                                          Sister Estrella and Sister Mosher

 

Mahal Kita!

Sister Mosher

Week 9 (November 27, 2016) - A Whole New World

Hello po!

It's been a super productive week. Unlike any I've ever had before. 2 months out today, and it's a whole new world here. I wash my clothes in a bucket, I also use a bucket for my showers, I manually flush the toilet, mosquito think I taste delicious, I eat rice with literally EVERYTHING, I've never been called "Barbie" so much in my whole life, people stare at me with wide eyes, and kids get nervous to talk to the "Americana", I've walked up and down steep muddy hills in the pouring rain to teach people the message of the Restored Gospel while sitting cross legged on dirt floors, I'm constantly sweating, I walk through trees and bushes and dogs and cats to get to homes, I am 7,000+ miles away from anything remotely familiar to me, I get random men touching my hair when I'm not looking, I ride around in side carts to get from place to place, I can only speak a little bit of Tagalog, and when people try to speak English to me, they tell me that they think their nose is going to bleed, I have taught lessons with kittens sitting on my lap (my favorite part of this whole thing), mothers ask me to marry their sons, and I probably have the worlds most loving man as my Mission President. This life isn't so bad. I've felt the hand of the Lord in my life every single day, and I have no doubt in my mind that this is the true church. I love our Savior. God is good and there are miracles EVERYWHERE. Just look for them because they are there. They're everywhere.

I love you all, and I'm grateful for all the emails, I'm sorry that I can't reply to them all... I have like .2 seconds to email, I swear. Ha ha! Love you all so so much. Here are some fun pictures:

-- 

Mahal Kita!

Sister Mosher

Week 8 - "Hope"

"It isn't as bad as you sometimes think it is. It all works out. Don't worry. I say that to myself every morning. It will all work out. If you do your best, it will all work out. Put your trust in God, move forward with faith and confidence in the future. The Lord will not forsake us. He will not forsake us... If we put our trust in Him, if we pray to Him, if we live worthy of His blessings, He will hear our prayers." President Gordon B. Hinckley

Ether 12:4 "Wherefore, whoso beliveth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand ofGod, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God."

Well, I am in the Philippines, taking bucket showers and all. It's definitely a new world here, and it is going to take some time for me, but that's why we have hope. We have been teaching some fun people, and I think my favorite part of this week was when we held a FHE at the sweetest lady's home, Nanay Herrera. A bunch of the youth came, and we played games and laughed and shared a spiritual thought. That was a tender mercy for me... Just hearing everyone having fun and laughing, and seeing sweet Nanay Herrera cover her face with her Book of Mormon when she laughed at something, and although I can't speak the language very well, if at all... I'm learning to have faith and hope in the gift of tongues. The kids laugh at my tagalog, and the sweetest man, Tatay Del Rosario (a recent convert) teaches me new Tagalog words every time we visit. I am serving in Morong, it's a province area- that's another tender mercy for me, and my companion is Sister Estrella (said like Australia, but with an "e"). She is Filipino and super sweet. A good trainer. 

On Saturday, we had a baptism!! I don't know what else to tell you... It's very pretty here- dirty too. And hot. I'm always sticky with sweat, and Elder Brown, if you're reading this, you would be proud to know that no, I haven't worn any makeup since I've been here. Ha ha...

Definitely going to take some adjusting time... Hence, hope and patience. 

 

                                                    First Baptism for KenKen

                                  Still in the MTC: My fav elders :') (also myMTC district)

                                                     Still in the MTC: Temple trip

                                                Us getting off the plane in Hong Kong

                                                            View. :') 

                                                               Washing clothes

Safe and Sound - November 15, 2016

Family! I made it safely to my mission in Quezon City... It was literally a 10 minute drive to the mission home from the Manila MTC. It would have been faster to walk. ;) Ha ha! Anyway, I just want to let you know that I am in the PHILIPPINES and it is BEAUTIFUL! I absolutely love it here already. Hot and humid, too.

Basta, I am here at the mission home, my Mission Pres and his wife, President and Sister Koster are amazing, and I LOVE them with my whole heart. I'm literally just on to tell you that I made it safe and that my Pday will be on Monday. Love you all, and I will send you pictures and tell you more about it next Monday. Love you all!

-- 

Mahal Kita!

 

Sister Mosher

 

 

                                                                    President Koster, Sister Mosher, Sister Koster

 

                                                                                  Sister Mosher, Sister Estrella

                                          New Missionaries in the Quezon City Mission

PHILIPPINES - I made it 11/11/16

I've made it safe and sound to the Manila MTC. The flights were forever long! Like 16 hours plus two other flights. Pero, I'm finally here and it is BEAUTIFUL! I love the humidity and the heat! Everything is just SO PRETTY! There is an abundance of trees everywhere you look, plus so many smiling Filipino faces! It's a super happy place from what I've seen. :)

It's funny because driving in the Philippines is NUTS! We were on this giant bus, and other giant mga busses would swerve in front of us and cause our driver to slam on his breaks, and then he would do the same to others. There seems to be no real driving system... people just drive. Ha ha! Super funny, because I wasn't worried about crashing- these Filippinos seem to know exactly what they're doing. ;)  I wish I could send pictures right now, but I am literally just on to let you all know that I made it to the Philippines safely. 

So now I am in the Manila MTC, and a lot of the missionaries here are from the Philippines, and of course I thought that I was doing pretty well with the language... UNTIL Filippinos started talking to me. I know NOTHING. This is where I learn patience with myself, and to trust in God and in the Gift of Tongues, right? Plus maraming studies.... 

Anyway, I love you all so much! Stay safe, and remember whose ya are. :') God is good.

---

Week 6 "A More Beautiful Hello" - November 9, 2016

The time has come, and we are finally headed out to basically travel the world for the day! We are first stopping in LA, and then Hong Kong, and finally I will be in the Philippines. Literally the place I've been dreaming of since I decided I wanted to serve a mission for The Lord. I can't believe it. 

Every moment here in the MTC has been a blessing and a tender mercy. My companions have changed my life and taught me life lessons, and the Elders in my district have been anchors to us. I don't think I have words enough to explain the amount of love I have for my zone. 

Everyone always says that when you serve a mission, your capacity to love grows more than you could have expected or imagined. I'm already seeing that, so I can't begin to IMAGINE how much love I'll be able to fit into my heart when I finally meet these people... One thing I have had to learn is that next to every daunting goodbye stands a more beautiful hello. 

That's what I'll look forward to when I have to say my goodbyes to people I've grown so fond of.. A more beautiful hello. 

Thank you all for being a part of my life. Thank you for the lessons each of you have taught me, and for the love you've all shown me. I'm beyond grateful, and I feel that God has blessed me more than I deserve with people who make saying goodbye painful. I love you all. 

Now I'm headed to the Philippines, this is just the start.

-- 

Mahal Kita!

Sister Mosher

Week 5 MTC "Getting Close!"

SIX DAYS AND I'LL BE ON MY WAY TO THE PHILIPPINES! I seriously can't wait. As great as the MTC is, I am excited to be out in the mission field, where I can see more nature than just Squaw Peak (don't get me wrong, I LOVE LOVE LOVE looking at Squaw Peak, pero it'll be nice to see some more greenery and people who aren't missionaries!) 

Ha ha, one of the teachers here said that when he was on his way to the Philippines from the MTC, he sat on the plane next to someone he didn't know who was bilingual, and he said that first he spoke to him in english, and then he spoke to him in Chinese, and while this man was talking, the teacher thought to himself, I'm so glad I don't have to learn Chinese. That would be so hard.. And then the man next to him said a familiar word in Tagalog, and he realized then that that man had been speaking the language he had been learning in the MTC. Totally looking forward to that. ;)

Halloween in the MTC was surprisingly a BLAST! We dressed up... Uh when I say dressed up, I mean we had fake mustaches on during class (including the teacher) and of course I wore cat ears! No brainer! 

I don't even know what happened this week... It went by stinkin fast- parang I swear I just had PDay YESTERDAY. OH! Guess who came and spoke on Tuesday?! Only the HAPPIEST man alive: President Russel M. Nelson! It was seriously humbling to just be in the same room as him. He was all smiles the entire time, with his smile that is wider than the sky! It was amazing to get to hear from him and his wife. They're such sweet souls. :)

Oh, funny story.... This week, we were taking our normal temple walk, and Sister Matheny nudges me and points to this nice car, and I go "Oh, cool" ya know, cause I'm not so into cars. And then my ENTIRE zone gasps, and points in one direction, and I look at where they're pointing, and this little body is just running at me with arms stretched open wide. And as I'm looking at this little body (I guess my mind was moving SO slowly) I think to myself "Awe, that's kind of cute." then my mind starts working again and I realize that this little person running at me is EMEREE! My sister just "happened" to be taking a stroll around the temple, with her baby, and she's running at me full speed! So I literally fell to the ground and cried LOL. Basta, I got to see Emeree and my Sister, and her husband this week! The car Sister Matheny was so intrigued by was Dane's car. Dane, my comp thinks you have a cool car. 

So yeah, I'd say it's been a pretty 10/10 week. ;) I'll send pictures of me crying while hugging the breath out of this little girl. 

Ps. Thanks to those of you who take time to read these emails. Love you all!! :)

-- 

Mahal Kita!

Sister Mosher

 

 

                                                   Elder Brown and Elder Maez

                                                           HALLOWEEN spirit

                                                           Literally sat and cried

                                                        More Emeree and Sister

 Sister and I (PS. this was not planned... well hindi ko alam. I had no clue this was gonna happen)

                                                                     Temple trip ')

Week 4 - MTC "Tender Mercies

It's been pinika maganda week! (the most beautiful week)! I've loved it, and believe it or not, I'm not quite sick of the MTC yet... The food isn't even as bad as everyone made it out to be (it's not 10/10, pero it's not 1/10 either) I love it here. The spirit is so strong, and I've had SO MANY prayers answered, and I've been given tender mercies to last a life time.

STORY TIME: Yesterday, my mga kasamas and I were teaching our lesson to our investigator, Eric. We went into this lesson without a steady lesson plan dahil we wanted to see where he was at in life. We wanted to get to know him so that we could teach him according to his needs. Teach people, not lessons, ya know. 

Anyway, we were in there and the topic of baptism was super present- GOOD! Pero, he didn't understand WHY we needed to be baptized- he just didnt get it. So one specific scripture came to mind, pero (but ) I had absolutely NO idea where it was... I didn't even know if it was in the BoM, all I knew was that I NEEDED to share this scripture. So I said the teeniest prayer in my heart that God would help me find this one scripture... So when I closed my prayer, I took my faith and I opened up my BoM and flipped through a few pages, and when I looked down at the page, there it WAS! The EXACT scripture I was looking for. 

2 Nephi 31:5 And now, if the lamb of God, He being HOLY, should have need to be baptized by water, to fulfil all righteousness, O then, how much more need have we, being UNHOLY, to be baptized, yea, even by water.

GUYS! Tender mercy to the freakin max. :) 

I love it here, pero I'm SOBRANG excited to head out to the field. 13 days until I'm traveling for 30 hours to THE PHILIPPINES! So stoked! I've heard NOTHING but good things about the Filippino people, and I'm so excited to get to meet them for myself. Tonight we will (hopefully) get to Skype with some Filippinos. :) Guys guys guys guys. I've already taken at least 100 pics a week here.. and I'm ONLY at the MTC. Imagine how many pictures I'll have of the Philippines. I'm gonna be that person. ;) 

Grabe, I don't even know what else to tell you guys... The new districts who came in are fun. Still kind of quiet, pero Sister Matheny's mom send us at least 60 more chicken flings.... so we will be entertained for DAYS. ;)

Ps. Will you all go watch the 4 minute video "None Were With Him" by Elder Jeffery R. Holland?!!? I CRIED.

 Since there's really no Halloween at sa MTC we improvised with these killer witch fingers we found in the giveaway bins. WHO would want to give

                                     Sis Whaley and I pigging out in our SUPER clean room

                                                                    Tag Photo

                                                   Temple walk & Harry Potter glasses

Treats!

--                       Our cute teacher, Sister McGrath! Also, try pronouncing that word. ;)

Mahal Kita!

Sister Mosher