He didn't label any of these so next letter I'll ask.
Monday, December 26, 2011
day 68
ok well so im finally adjusting to just how poor it is here. its 300percent different from the states! its extremly humbling to know that little old ladies are spending their weeks wages on bus transport just to get to church every sunday. they live so spread out in the jungle its soo crazy.
we have to take a jeepney to the bukid, the jungle, then we walk forever and get to one persons house. its super funny to see their little hut thats like 10feet by 6feet with rock floors and sheets as walls then to see their HUGE stereo systems and large tvs. its kinda sad to see that but what can i do. the people here love their karaoke. we will be walking along and all of a sudden we will here a journey song or another famous american song just blasting from one of these little huts. its fun. we sing along too :) well my apartment doesnt have rats or mice, it does have ants though. but they are the tiny ones that are super cute that you just dont even notice theyre there till all your food is gone. today we went shopping at the store. its a legit store! they have a check out stand and isles and even a dude standing in front with a shotgun!! whoohoo haha oh and today its raining like wicked crazy!!!!!! holy cow. we walked like 3 blocks and we are sooo super duper soaked!!! i bought some root beer today. it tastes like garbage. ha oh well. now im going to try to attach all my photos and possibly a video. we will see. its only letting me send like 5 at a time. ill send another email.
love you all and hope you all have a very merry christmas!!
elder smith
He didn't end up sending another email.
we have to take a jeepney to the bukid, the jungle, then we walk forever and get to one persons house. its super funny to see their little hut thats like 10feet by 6feet with rock floors and sheets as walls then to see their HUGE stereo systems and large tvs. its kinda sad to see that but what can i do. the people here love their karaoke. we will be walking along and all of a sudden we will here a journey song or another famous american song just blasting from one of these little huts. its fun. we sing along too :) well my apartment doesnt have rats or mice, it does have ants though. but they are the tiny ones that are super cute that you just dont even notice theyre there till all your food is gone. today we went shopping at the store. its a legit store! they have a check out stand and isles and even a dude standing in front with a shotgun!! whoohoo haha oh and today its raining like wicked crazy!!!!!! holy cow. we walked like 3 blocks and we are sooo super duper soaked!!! i bought some root beer today. it tastes like garbage. ha oh well. now im going to try to attach all my photos and possibly a video. we will see. its only letting me send like 5 at a time. ill send another email.
love you all and hope you all have a very merry christmas!!
elder smith
He didn't end up sending another email.
day 68 Questions and Answers
Have you adjusted the time clock in your body?
well not really, its gonna take some time. but its getting better.
Who is your comapanion and where is he from...I'm hoping that you get a native and get the language down even better.
benicia california kevin wood. been out 9mths
Do you have potty paper?
i have one roll left. itll prolly last the week and then.... well we'll find out.
What's the oddest thing you've seen....or make a list.
hmmmm... prolly the 8 grown people crammed on one motorcycle!!! it was flippin crazy!!
What city did you end up in?
Merida
well not really, its gonna take some time. but its getting better.
Who is your comapanion and where is he from...I'm hoping that you get a native and get the language down even better.
benicia california kevin wood. been out 9mths
Do you have potty paper?
i have one roll left. itll prolly last the week and then.... well we'll find out.
What's the oddest thing you've seen....or make a list.
hmmmm... prolly the 8 grown people crammed on one motorcycle!!! it was flippin crazy!!
What city did you end up in?
Merida
Saturday, December 24, 2011
day 66 Christmas day in the Philippines
Around 10 p.m. on Christmas eve (our time) we got a call from Christian saying to call him back. We could hardly hear him when we called him back. It was Christmas day for him around noon. He was at a church about a block away from his apartment. Yes, I said apartment...he doesn't live in a shack or a hut. And he doesn't have mouses. Yay!! He was in his church with air conditioning and loud music in the background. People all around do karaoke in the streets. Little kids give him high fives and ask him if he's an actor...We told him he should say..."yes, my name is Ricky Schroeder". He is doing good and is in a city called Merida with a companion from California. It's the first time their area has had two white elders together. His companions name is Elder Woods. He still didn't know his first name after a couple days together. He likes him well enough.
He has a shower with two buckets and a ladle...he also uses that ladle when he uses the bathroom. No he doesn't have toilet paper. It's kinda like he showers over the toilet too...He uses alcohol for his left hand...enough said. And he seems ok with it... He seemed in pretty good spirits. His pdays will be Mondays same as Jensen, but we'll get his email Sunday sometime. With the 15 hour difference.
At the time we talked he still hadn't opened any presents yet, so I don't know what his thoughts of them were. And hopefully this time we'll get some pictures right away. We got to "talk" and repeat things over and over for about an hour. It was so nice to talk to him again and know he's ok. Best Christmas present ever.
He has a shower with two buckets and a ladle...he also uses that ladle when he uses the bathroom. No he doesn't have toilet paper. It's kinda like he showers over the toilet too...He uses alcohol for his left hand...enough said. And he seems ok with it... He seemed in pretty good spirits. His pdays will be Mondays same as Jensen, but we'll get his email Sunday sometime. With the 15 hour difference.
At the time we talked he still hadn't opened any presents yet, so I don't know what his thoughts of them were. And hopefully this time we'll get some pictures right away. We got to "talk" and repeat things over and over for about an hour. It was so nice to talk to him again and know he's ok. Best Christmas present ever.
Monday, December 19, 2011
day 61 Filipino Missionary trials
I've been reading this sister's blog and thought I would post this link to this particular post. I had heard from someone at the "flag store" to always send toilet paper to a missionary in the Philippines and I brushed it aside. Now hearing this... So send toilet paper even as packing material...
day 61 Twelve minutes is just too short!!!
Here are the things that I wanted to know...
Are you going straight to the MTC in Manilla?
No, going to the field. The MTC in Manilla only teaches English and tagalong. He has to learn a little tagalong, waray waray, and ilonggo.
Did you open your Christmas stuff?
No, it's not Christmas yet.
Was your new suitcase ok? Was it too big?
Yes it was awesome and no it wasn't too big. I've filled both suitcases full already.
What airline are you travelling?
Eva
Are you going straight to the MTC in Manilla?
No, going to the field. The MTC in Manilla only teaches English and tagalong. He has to learn a little tagalong, waray waray, and ilonggo.
Did you open your Christmas stuff?
No, it's not Christmas yet.
Was your new suitcase ok? Was it too big?
Yes it was awesome and no it wasn't too big. I've filled both suitcases full already.
What airline are you travelling?
Eva
He got to the sl airport at 130 p.m. today and flew to la. Then to Taiwan, manila, tacloban
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
day 56 Hosting Pictures
How cool is that? This is Ian, Christian's good good buddie from soccer and high school. Christian was "hosting" and picked up Ian. What a treat!!
Marica Maryott (Ian's mom said this on fb from the comment below this picture) "Can you believe that, he actually told the other Elder he would take care of this Elder."
Marica Maryott (Ian's mom said this on fb from the comment below this picture) "Can you believe that, he actually told the other Elder he would take care of this Elder."
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
day 55 Questions and Answers
Do you wear your nerdy church shoes? Are they so comfy?
Ya i wear em. i get made fun of all the time cuz they make my feet look so dang small. they arent quite as comfy as i would like. i have to take em off when i wear em for extended times.
What would you like for christmas?
HMMMMmmm... i have no idea. something amazing i guess...(name that movie) ok well the best thing for my situation would be money. there are soooo many cool things to buy in the peens. all my teachers have em and it would be cool to get some stuff for my brothers.
How was "hosting"?
hosting was hard. we had a bunch of kids with heavy as crap luggage. i had to carry all of em everywhere and it was a workout for sure!! im doing it again tomorrow. then friday we have infield orientation alllll day!!!
Have you seen Jose' yet?
i have not seen him yet. but i did run into Jessicas ex bf whos father i met at work. he was nice.......
Ya i wear em. i get made fun of all the time cuz they make my feet look so dang small. they arent quite as comfy as i would like. i have to take em off when i wear em for extended times.
What would you like for christmas?
HMMMMmmm... i have no idea. something amazing i guess...(name that movie) ok well the best thing for my situation would be money. there are soooo many cool things to buy in the peens. all my teachers have em and it would be cool to get some stuff for my brothers.
How was "hosting"?
hosting was hard. we had a bunch of kids with heavy as crap luggage. i had to carry all of em everywhere and it was a workout for sure!! im doing it again tomorrow. then friday we have infield orientation alllll day!!!
Have you seen Jose' yet?
i have not seen him yet. but i did run into Jessicas ex bf whos father i met at work. he was nice.......
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
day 48 Questions and Answers
I sent some food to your companion I hope that it didn't get yucky by the time he got to it. Did you get to try any?
oh heck ya!! he and elder ratu freaked out when they saw the meat pies!! it was soooo funny! they were awesome! we took em to the nuker and warmed them up. he was sooo dang happy do get that package! great idea mom :)
I am picking up your contacts today. They are for a years worth...Would you like them all at once or do you want us to send them when you need them? And I will get them to you either today or tomorrow...check your mail.
Whoohoo! just send em all together. thanks yous so much!
Funny story?
oh well we were teaching tthe importance of families, and i was talking about getting married and i accidentally said that we get to marry Lalakis. which means guys. our investigator is a dude so it was really wierd. well i should have said that we can ONLY marry Babaye(which is women). awkward... haha
so another one. well after one of the devotionals, it started to snow. so i was gazing out the window just watching the snow, and i started dancing a bit. nothing to big or nothin but kinda like a snow summoning dance. so all of a sudden it went quiet in the classroom. so i turned around to see a member of our branch presidancy just standing there with a huge smile of his face. it was sooo funny. after he left i was like, "why didnt you guys warn me or something??? they said that they were NOT going to miss that oppertunity. haha pretty darn funny :)
Ummm dude...you said that you'd send some pictures last week....we waited everyday for the mailgirl to deliver some and she didn't...SEND SOME PICTURES!!!
ok so i had the pics and whatnot all printed out and ready to send but then i just didnt. i either forgot to or something happend where is was weird. i dont remember. but ill get em out today.
Can you believe that you're going to be going soon? like less than 2 weeks? Anything you want to stock up on?
well just for the plane ride and what not, gummies might be great. um send some more toothpaste. nuskin stuff is just dandy. OH my electric razor thing broke. the same thing that is broken on tys is broken on mine. so ive been able to make due but it hurts like the dickens.
I've ordered your pants and hopefully they'll be here before you go...
whoohoo:) happy day.
Cebuano word of the week....
Kangitngit. it means darkness. its super hard to say. (kah-ngit-ngit) the ng is like sing a song. try saying it in the back of the throat.
well hope you have just a happy super cold week! :) i am hosting (gather all the newbies that are dropped off at the curb from their families and take them inside and show them around...he will be someone else's "Elder Host") this wednesday. its gonna be cool! then we get our travel plans on thursday! im pumped!! we are almost outta here!!
Love Elder smith
oh heck ya!! he and elder ratu freaked out when they saw the meat pies!! it was soooo funny! they were awesome! we took em to the nuker and warmed them up. he was sooo dang happy do get that package! great idea mom :)
I am picking up your contacts today. They are for a years worth...Would you like them all at once or do you want us to send them when you need them? And I will get them to you either today or tomorrow...check your mail.
Whoohoo! just send em all together. thanks yous so much!
Funny story?
oh well we were teaching tthe importance of families, and i was talking about getting married and i accidentally said that we get to marry Lalakis. which means guys. our investigator is a dude so it was really wierd. well i should have said that we can ONLY marry Babaye(which is women). awkward... haha
so another one. well after one of the devotionals, it started to snow. so i was gazing out the window just watching the snow, and i started dancing a bit. nothing to big or nothin but kinda like a snow summoning dance. so all of a sudden it went quiet in the classroom. so i turned around to see a member of our branch presidancy just standing there with a huge smile of his face. it was sooo funny. after he left i was like, "why didnt you guys warn me or something??? they said that they were NOT going to miss that oppertunity. haha pretty darn funny :)
Ummm dude...you said that you'd send some pictures last week....we waited everyday for the mailgirl to deliver some and she didn't...SEND SOME PICTURES!!!
ok so i had the pics and whatnot all printed out and ready to send but then i just didnt. i either forgot to or something happend where is was weird. i dont remember. but ill get em out today.
Can you believe that you're going to be going soon? like less than 2 weeks? Anything you want to stock up on?
well just for the plane ride and what not, gummies might be great. um send some more toothpaste. nuskin stuff is just dandy. OH my electric razor thing broke. the same thing that is broken on tys is broken on mine. so ive been able to make due but it hurts like the dickens.
I've ordered your pants and hopefully they'll be here before you go...
whoohoo:) happy day.
Cebuano word of the week....
Kangitngit. it means darkness. its super hard to say. (kah-ngit-ngit) the ng is like sing a song. try saying it in the back of the throat.
well hope you have just a happy super cold week! :) i am hosting (gather all the newbies that are dropped off at the curb from their families and take them inside and show them around...he will be someone else's "Elder Host") this wednesday. its gonna be cool! then we get our travel plans on thursday! im pumped!! we are almost outta here!!
Love Elder smith
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
day 41
ok so this week was pretty great. we had tuesday and thursday off so it was a super fun week and went by real quick. We had two apostles speak to us.Elder Christofferson and Elder Nelson. it was epic. so during the devotional on sunday, there was a piano solo and i was right behind the piano so the while the camera was looking at the piano, it had a clear view of me. and i had no idea it was on me.... soooo me and elder stephens were playing in the MFL(simalar to the NFL) missionary football league. it was a piece of paper with yard markers and endzones on it and we created plays and stuff. we also had like little cards with like First down and interception and stuff like that to determine if we were succesful or not with our plays. and on one play, little did i know i was on the camera, and i got a touchdown and i did a fist pump and was like OH Yeah!!! and then every single missionary started laughing. i had no idea what they were laughing at. so yesterday i was in the bookstore and a sister that i know walked up to me and told me that i was on the camera and they saw me spaz out on the camera. everone saw it and laughed soo hard. hahahaha fun times!! well now i dont have anything else to write so
Love elder c smith
Love elder c smith
day 41 Questions and Answers
I just took Fanga home the other day...his mama works as a cook there...have you seen her?
i have not seen her. i dont know what she looks like. i did however see brother valdez. hes a cook. he wears legit stuff.
Remember I told you about a brother of one of the students on my bus? His name is Taylor Chiu...He works in the asian part? Is there such a thing?
ya my cebuano building is my own world.i dont really get to go to any other languages' building. i dont know where the asian part is.
Do you have to speak Cebuano on your pdays during off time or do you revert back to english?
well we really try to syl (speak your language) as much as possible. but most of the time we are talking in english.
Did you get real thanksgiving dinner? Did people actually have to work that day in the cafeteria? What did you eat?
WEll i suppose they did have turkey and taters and stuff of that nature but everything they serve is super under cooked and gross so we did eat but it wasnt thanksgiving. yea they had ppl working and stuff. the meal consisted of turkey, taters, and stuffing and gravy.
Did you have fun putting together those service kits?
it was super fun cuz they brought in super big speakers and played like bom stories and like children songs but they were like the rock version of them its was awesome! it was fun to put em together but hard at the same time. it was sooo dang fast. i was in charge of putting two qtips in the bag and then deflating and closing the ziplock bag. it was fast.
Jensen said that you won't be able to call home on Christmas if you're in the MTC does that count even if you're over there in the MTC?
i will be out of here on the 19th and ill get to the pines on the 21st. we gain a day in the air. and i will be able to call from the airport and also on christmas.
Did you figure out yet how to send pictures? Would LOVE to see some!!!
ya so the comps here have a firewall set up to prohibit the activation of any usb item plugged in. but i printed some pics out and ill send them today. fun times eh.
i have not seen her. i dont know what she looks like. i did however see brother valdez. hes a cook. he wears legit stuff.
Remember I told you about a brother of one of the students on my bus? His name is Taylor Chiu...He works in the asian part? Is there such a thing?
ya my cebuano building is my own world.i dont really get to go to any other languages' building. i dont know where the asian part is.
Do you have to speak Cebuano on your pdays during off time or do you revert back to english?
well we really try to syl (speak your language) as much as possible. but most of the time we are talking in english.
Did you get real thanksgiving dinner? Did people actually have to work that day in the cafeteria? What did you eat?
WEll i suppose they did have turkey and taters and stuff of that nature but everything they serve is super under cooked and gross so we did eat but it wasnt thanksgiving. yea they had ppl working and stuff. the meal consisted of turkey, taters, and stuffing and gravy.
Did you have fun putting together those service kits?
it was super fun cuz they brought in super big speakers and played like bom stories and like children songs but they were like the rock version of them its was awesome! it was fun to put em together but hard at the same time. it was sooo dang fast. i was in charge of putting two qtips in the bag and then deflating and closing the ziplock bag. it was fast.
Jensen said that you won't be able to call home on Christmas if you're in the MTC does that count even if you're over there in the MTC?
i will be out of here on the 19th and ill get to the pines on the 21st. we gain a day in the air. and i will be able to call from the airport and also on christmas.
Did you figure out yet how to send pictures? Would LOVE to see some!!!
ya so the comps here have a firewall set up to prohibit the activation of any usb item plugged in. but i printed some pics out and ill send them today. fun times eh.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
day 34
...this time I wrote in big font asking/telling him..."ok this is where the little tiny letter could go"...and this is what I got.
ok mom here you go. last week went super fast. its super hard to remember what went on. it was a lot like to week before, and the week before that. oh our new roomates moved out and we dont have any till the new cebuano district comes next week. thats nice. umm im doing pretty good. tell gary that im still working on the name for his bird. its hard.. haha
Nasayud ko nga, ang ebanghelyo ni Jesukristo sa tinoud. ug pinaagi Joseph Smith, ni Dios gipahiuli sa tinoud simbahan sa kalibutan.
From google translate...(I knew that the gospel of Jesus Christ tinoud. and by Joseph Smith, restored to God's church on earth tinoud.)
i love everyone and wish them all a happy turykey day.
love you mom.
love Elder Christian Smith
love you mom.
love Elder Christian Smith
day 34 Questions and Answers
What kind of music can you listen to there...christmas music is already on the radio..can you listen to that?
we arent able to listen to any music here. we occationally listen to the hymns that are on the comp.
Got any news on the visa? Are you for sure leaving Dec. 19?
well the philippines is super easy to get visas. so we will get em the week before we leave. thats still the planned departure date. they might make us leave at like 4 in the morning so ill keep you updated on the progress of that.
When you leave to the Philippines, will you go into their MTC for some more training? or straight to the field?
im not sure what there going to do.. on my call it said 12 weeks in the mtc. but no one else thats cebuano is doing more than the 9weeks. we have found out that the majority of our mission will be waray waray speaking... so that might be the reason for the extra month in the other mtc.. not sure yet.
What time does your branch meet? Is it in English?
sacrament starts at 1:45 on sunday and our whole zone is there. its only about like 50ish... no idea.. its all in english. we have priesthood meeting at like 10ish... i dont remember. hah
Do you have culture class?
you know.. i really wish we did cuz its so nice to know all the little surprises ahead of time. like the not shaking hands with the left hand cuz its the hand you wipe with thing... im glad they told us that early. uhhggg..(groan like a wounded sea lion)
What day of the week is your fav? why?
fav. day... hmmmm well i like wednesdays. we have gym right after breaky then we have our service our. its just kinda nice to have a break from the classroom. we do spend almost 14 hours a day in there.
Do you pray in your language now?
ya ive been praying in visayan for some time now. that was one of the first things they taught us to do. its super weird...
Tell us some funny things that have gone on? We LOVE hearing your funny stories.
ok so we were teaching one of our investigators and at the end of the lesson we gave the commitment to our investigator, it was will you come to church with us. anyways you say it in cebuano this way: Buhatan ba nimo sa ADTO sa simbahan con kita. the capped word means "to go". anyways i was having a hard time saying it and i said it like Odto which if you say it wierd sounds like ot-ot. so after i said it my investigator straighted up and was shocked at what he heard. and my comp busted out laughing... they thought i said "Will you FART at church with us on sunday? hahahahah it was sooo dang funny!!
Are you going to have a special Thanksgiving? My bus driver who is not a member asked...do you get to have him come home for thanksgiving? And I kinda laughed inside and thought...how cool would that be!!! That would be soooo nice but would be soo hard to let go again...so you just better stay there...hehe
well they give us the day off to do sevice. so we will be making like care kits all day...
Does Elder Mahoni get very many/any packages from his family?
he hasnt ever recieved anything from anyone. the shipping from new zealand is wicked expensive.
we arent able to listen to any music here. we occationally listen to the hymns that are on the comp.
Got any news on the visa? Are you for sure leaving Dec. 19?
well the philippines is super easy to get visas. so we will get em the week before we leave. thats still the planned departure date. they might make us leave at like 4 in the morning so ill keep you updated on the progress of that.
When you leave to the Philippines, will you go into their MTC for some more training? or straight to the field?
im not sure what there going to do.. on my call it said 12 weeks in the mtc. but no one else thats cebuano is doing more than the 9weeks. we have found out that the majority of our mission will be waray waray speaking... so that might be the reason for the extra month in the other mtc.. not sure yet.
What time does your branch meet? Is it in English?
sacrament starts at 1:45 on sunday and our whole zone is there. its only about like 50ish... no idea.. its all in english. we have priesthood meeting at like 10ish... i dont remember. hah
Do you have culture class?
you know.. i really wish we did cuz its so nice to know all the little surprises ahead of time. like the not shaking hands with the left hand cuz its the hand you wipe with thing... im glad they told us that early. uhhggg..(groan like a wounded sea lion)
What day of the week is your fav? why?
fav. day... hmmmm well i like wednesdays. we have gym right after breaky then we have our service our. its just kinda nice to have a break from the classroom. we do spend almost 14 hours a day in there.
Do you pray in your language now?
ya ive been praying in visayan for some time now. that was one of the first things they taught us to do. its super weird...
Tell us some funny things that have gone on? We LOVE hearing your funny stories.
ok so we were teaching one of our investigators and at the end of the lesson we gave the commitment to our investigator, it was will you come to church with us. anyways you say it in cebuano this way: Buhatan ba nimo sa ADTO sa simbahan con kita. the capped word means "to go". anyways i was having a hard time saying it and i said it like Odto which if you say it wierd sounds like ot-ot. so after i said it my investigator straighted up and was shocked at what he heard. and my comp busted out laughing... they thought i said "Will you FART at church with us on sunday? hahahahah it was sooo dang funny!!
Are you going to have a special Thanksgiving? My bus driver who is not a member asked...do you get to have him come home for thanksgiving? And I kinda laughed inside and thought...how cool would that be!!! That would be soooo nice but would be soo hard to let go again...so you just better stay there...hehe
well they give us the day off to do sevice. so we will be making like care kits all day...
Does Elder Mahoni get very many/any packages from his family?
he hasnt ever recieved anything from anyone. the shipping from new zealand is wicked expensive.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
day 27 Questions and Answers
what city is elder mahoni from?
the big guy is from Auckland. on the north island. there is a north and a south island.
does he have any relatives living in utah?
he thinks so... but he doesnt know em. hahaha funny joka.. thats what he always says. hes got tons of funny things he says. like hey yous, quit muckin around!!
Did your knee swell up? Can you walk on it now? Is it wrapped?
Ya the knee is feeling much better. didnt swell up much ive been able to play volley though. i cant kick at all... haha (not really supposed to anyways in volley)
i didnt ever wrap it or anything.. they just told me not to use it at all. so through series of testing i can now almost perform 100 percent. kneeling is still hard though.
Are you writing Jensen?
no i havnt written him yet. i will it would be super fun.
what's one thing that made you laugh this week?
well one of the elders in our district is from hennifer utah. (up by park cityish) and we were talking about his relationship with his gf and we found out that their favorite smell is...........cow poop!! weird huh?? hahahahah we tease him all the time now.
One new Cebuano word this week? Is anything getting easier about the language?
hmmm... well : Unsa karon sa lalaki nga anak. which translates to WHAT NOW SON!!!! or we got: Unsa ibawbaw sa mga iro which is WHATS UP DOG!! or kinsa sa ot ot- who farted? ahahahahahaha
In one of your last requests for shorts you asked for some shorts that were nike...I couldn't find any at the time but I did find some that were grey...are those the ones? If so I'll send you those too, if you want.
hmmm... its ok.. the ones i have now are good! thanks a bunch. one more request. could you put in an order with mike for the black nike pants? if he asks for the style number you can find it on the tag in the pants.
Um Jens just figured out how to send pictures via email...could you do that too paaaalease? If you don't have enough time to do that, that's fine...you know but it would sure be fun to see you there and your comp. I gotta start the comp picture rolodex on the wall of your shrine.
in just a moment im going to try to upload some photos!! im excited to see if it works.
Favorite discussion to teach investigators...
hmmm.. well we were teaching the importance of babtism to a lady and we asked her to be babtized and she said she was already when she was a baby and asked if it was valid. so me and my comp looked at each other and were like ohhhhh crapp.... so i just jumped up and grabbed the chalk and drew a 30min lesson on the apostosy and how her preist didnt have the authority of god (priesthood).
we got done with the lesson and we go back to our classroom and Elder Mahoni just said "Dang smith, you freaking beat her with the spirit!!" it was soo super funny and amazing.
Could we be your investigatorees? hehe
if you spoke fluent cebuano... than yes!!
good and bad this week?
good week! felt really good. two baptism accepted from our progresive investigators.
oh and im down 6lbs.. wierd?
How many hours a day are you emersed in the language?
ummm we spend about 12hrs in the classroom a day, and about 1.5 is in english. sooo alll day.
Got any questions for me? Need anything? Have any special requests? If you do...I'll send it today or tomorrow (Tues or Wed)
hmmm well contacts. still on the same pair for two.5 months. other than that im pretty much set..thanks.
Did you get the banana bread, butter, and other goodies? Did you kinda chuckle? butter... really mom?
ahhaha yes it was amazing!!! haha butter was funny but not unheard of. some of the other elders get baked bread with butter. packages are soooooooo amazing.. ahaha so its kinda funny to see who gets mail and who doesnt.. we all anxiously wait for our dl to bring the mail and when he shows up with 12 letters we get all excited. then he says that they are all for the sisters... well you could just imagine the dissapointment hahaha.
love you all
Eldersmith
ohhh and Elder mahoni's name it Moltan
and the pictures wouldnt work. sorry. ill print em out and send em to you.
the big guy is from Auckland. on the north island. there is a north and a south island.
does he have any relatives living in utah?
he thinks so... but he doesnt know em. hahaha funny joka.. thats what he always says. hes got tons of funny things he says. like hey yous, quit muckin around!!
Did your knee swell up? Can you walk on it now? Is it wrapped?
Ya the knee is feeling much better. didnt swell up much ive been able to play volley though. i cant kick at all... haha (not really supposed to anyways in volley)
i didnt ever wrap it or anything.. they just told me not to use it at all. so through series of testing i can now almost perform 100 percent. kneeling is still hard though.
Are you writing Jensen?
no i havnt written him yet. i will it would be super fun.
what's one thing that made you laugh this week?
well one of the elders in our district is from hennifer utah. (up by park cityish) and we were talking about his relationship with his gf and we found out that their favorite smell is...........cow poop!! weird huh?? hahahahah we tease him all the time now.
One new Cebuano word this week? Is anything getting easier about the language?
hmmm... well : Unsa karon sa lalaki nga anak. which translates to WHAT NOW SON!!!! or we got: Unsa ibawbaw sa mga iro which is WHATS UP DOG!! or kinsa sa ot ot- who farted? ahahahahahaha
In one of your last requests for shorts you asked for some shorts that were nike...I couldn't find any at the time but I did find some that were grey...are those the ones? If so I'll send you those too, if you want.
hmmm... its ok.. the ones i have now are good! thanks a bunch. one more request. could you put in an order with mike for the black nike pants? if he asks for the style number you can find it on the tag in the pants.
Um Jens just figured out how to send pictures via email...could you do that too paaaalease? If you don't have enough time to do that, that's fine...you know but it would sure be fun to see you there and your comp. I gotta start the comp picture rolodex on the wall of your shrine.
in just a moment im going to try to upload some photos!! im excited to see if it works.
Favorite discussion to teach investigators...
hmmm.. well we were teaching the importance of babtism to a lady and we asked her to be babtized and she said she was already when she was a baby and asked if it was valid. so me and my comp looked at each other and were like ohhhhh crapp.... so i just jumped up and grabbed the chalk and drew a 30min lesson on the apostosy and how her preist didnt have the authority of god (priesthood).
we got done with the lesson and we go back to our classroom and Elder Mahoni just said "Dang smith, you freaking beat her with the spirit!!" it was soo super funny and amazing.
Could we be your investigatorees? hehe
if you spoke fluent cebuano... than yes!!
good and bad this week?
good week! felt really good. two baptism accepted from our progresive investigators.
oh and im down 6lbs.. wierd?
How many hours a day are you emersed in the language?
ummm we spend about 12hrs in the classroom a day, and about 1.5 is in english. sooo alll day.
Got any questions for me? Need anything? Have any special requests? If you do...I'll send it today or tomorrow (Tues or Wed)
hmmm well contacts. still on the same pair for two.5 months. other than that im pretty much set..thanks.
Did you get the banana bread, butter, and other goodies? Did you kinda chuckle? butter... really mom?
ahhaha yes it was amazing!!! haha butter was funny but not unheard of. some of the other elders get baked bread with butter. packages are soooooooo amazing.. ahaha so its kinda funny to see who gets mail and who doesnt.. we all anxiously wait for our dl to bring the mail and when he shows up with 12 letters we get all excited. then he says that they are all for the sisters... well you could just imagine the dissapointment hahaha.
love you all
Eldersmith
ohhh and Elder mahoni's name it Moltan
and the pictures wouldnt work. sorry. ill print em out and send em to you.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
day 20 Questions and Answers
Are your jeans ok? I'm trying to fix the ones with the "special" hole with a patch...I can't just sew them up like I did Jens' it's too big.
yes the jeans are totally ok. its just nice to have them.
How's the language going?
Well the launguage is super duper hard. still. its getting easier, but its still a foreign language. they give us new rules everyday and it just confuses the crap out of everyone. we learn how to say different phrases but the hard part is finding the focus of the sentence and how to congegate the words properly so that it makes sense.
New word for the week? Last time you told us how to pronounce one word...tell us all the words. They're all unfamiliar to us.
Badlongon means punk.
Kuan means whatchamacallit. like if you dont know the word for something
Hinumdum means remember
hunuhunu means to think
Good and Bad this week?
bad week. ill tell you why in my letter.
Did you get the letter I sent with Jens' email in it?
yeah i got it. ill try to give more stuff with my answers.
What do you play for pe? do you always play soccer?
i played soccer the first two gym times but then they closed the field cuz its butt cold. ive been playing volleyball. but saturday, i was playing and i went up to block this kids spike but instead of jumping up to hit the ball, he jumped into me and kicked my knee and hyperextended it in the air, then i landed on it while it was hyperextended. the gym trainer told me that i damaged my miniscus and lcl. they sent me to a real doc and he said it was only sprained. so im only able to lift weights at the moment. it really sucks.
Best thing about Elder Mahoni?
he is suupper nice and always happy. everyone loves him cuz hes big and brown and has an accent. there are three new zealanders in my district.
Are there computers in the laundry area?
ya there are and thats where i use the puter.
Can you write letters only on Pday or when you have a free minute? Or do you not have a free minute?
i can only write letters on pday. last week was so freaking busy i didnt even get a chance to write anyone. im going to try to write a crapload of letters today. so this morning we woke up at 5:30 to do our laundry. and its still not done. and there were soo many more people than i thought would be here that early.
yes the jeans are totally ok. its just nice to have them.
How's the language going?
Well the launguage is super duper hard. still. its getting easier, but its still a foreign language. they give us new rules everyday and it just confuses the crap out of everyone. we learn how to say different phrases but the hard part is finding the focus of the sentence and how to congegate the words properly so that it makes sense.
New word for the week? Last time you told us how to pronounce one word...tell us all the words. They're all unfamiliar to us.
Badlongon means punk.
Kuan means whatchamacallit. like if you dont know the word for something
Hinumdum means remember
hunuhunu means to think
Good and Bad this week?
bad week. ill tell you why in my letter.
Did you get the letter I sent with Jens' email in it?
yeah i got it. ill try to give more stuff with my answers.
What do you play for pe? do you always play soccer?
i played soccer the first two gym times but then they closed the field cuz its butt cold. ive been playing volleyball. but saturday, i was playing and i went up to block this kids spike but instead of jumping up to hit the ball, he jumped into me and kicked my knee and hyperextended it in the air, then i landed on it while it was hyperextended. the gym trainer told me that i damaged my miniscus and lcl. they sent me to a real doc and he said it was only sprained. so im only able to lift weights at the moment. it really sucks.
Best thing about Elder Mahoni?
he is suupper nice and always happy. everyone loves him cuz hes big and brown and has an accent. there are three new zealanders in my district.
Are there computers in the laundry area?
ya there are and thats where i use the puter.
Can you write letters only on Pday or when you have a free minute? Or do you not have a free minute?
i can only write letters on pday. last week was so freaking busy i didnt even get a chance to write anyone. im going to try to write a crapload of letters today. so this morning we woke up at 5:30 to do our laundry. and its still not done. and there were soo many more people than i thought would be here that early.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
day 13 Questions and Answers
What shots did you get?
Well i got two hep shots. and a tetanus.
What were you doing at the temple?
every sunday we get a temple walk for like 45 mins.
Are you getting any packages? The last one I sent...I was worried about the tie for your comapnion...did it fit? did he like it even? I just said to the guy in the store...come pick me a tie and he picked two and I picked the one that I liked from those.
well i havent gotten that package yet but we havent checked mail yet. im sure he will love it. he is the nicest guy in the world!! it makes me sooo happy to get stuff. most days just the sisters get mail.
Favorite food there?
they had some spicy buffalo boneless wings for a couple sundays and those were amazing!!!! also there was a chicken bbq sandwich they served that was amazing. still no corndogs.
Do you have the receipt? (we'll need that...send it home...oh..and maybe a letter with it!)
will do. i will write all yall today.
Best and worst this week?
there hasnt been a bad week, but bad days. just discouraging and dissapointing days. but its been fun overall.
Since your companion is all the way from New Zealand (btw is that where Ian Marryott's mom is from?) does he get very many packages or treats? Maybe dad already told you but we watched a the national rugby team of New Zealand play France and New Zealand won. I think it's been a long time since they did. We wondered if Elder Mahoni was into that or not?
ians mom is from fiji, or the cook islands. i dont remember. he is way into rugby. we also have a fellow in a neighboring district that is from newzealand, he is a Maori warrior. he thinks he tough. even though he could prolly bench the whole world.
Can you believe it's already been 2 weeks almost? wow! Sometimes it seems to fly other times...that seems it goes slow. Remember what I told Jens? The days go by so slow but the weeks fly by! By the time you're ready to email it's already been a week passed.
VERY true. week three already. (I don't know what he's talking about...I guess this is the start of his 3rd week)
How was your Halloween? Anything special there? food different color? scary decorations anywhere?
My roomates moved out so we had a clean room for once. the guys in my district had a get together and compiled our goodies. and had a grand time. decorations arent allowed. the food was awful the week. it was gross and discolored. (not for halloween though). haha gross
Can you go to the temple (a session) any day you want? Or just on Pday?
we get to go once a pday. and we get to walk around it on sundays.
I go by the MTC on the bus around 7:38 a.m. and 2:45 every day...what're you doing during those hours?
ohh im in class or doing personal study during those times!
Will you stay with the same comp the whole time?
ya we gonna stay together the whoooole time.
Give us a new word to learn each week...in Cebuano?
hmmm... good word.... Hugot Nga Pagtuo it means faith. say the Nga like hang but just the last sound. it directly translates: Tight belief.
How old is Elder Mahoni?
he is 19 too. his bday is in july.
Today is a very chilly windy day...Do you need anymore warmer clothing?
im good with warm clothes. my coat is super nice.
Love you all. keep being good people.
Elder Smith
Well i got two hep shots. and a tetanus.
What were you doing at the temple?
every sunday we get a temple walk for like 45 mins.
Are you getting any packages? The last one I sent...I was worried about the tie for your comapnion...did it fit? did he like it even? I just said to the guy in the store...come pick me a tie and he picked two and I picked the one that I liked from those.
well i havent gotten that package yet but we havent checked mail yet. im sure he will love it. he is the nicest guy in the world!! it makes me sooo happy to get stuff. most days just the sisters get mail.
Favorite food there?
they had some spicy buffalo boneless wings for a couple sundays and those were amazing!!!! also there was a chicken bbq sandwich they served that was amazing. still no corndogs.
Do you have the receipt? (we'll need that...send it home...oh..and maybe a letter with it!)
will do. i will write all yall today.
Best and worst this week?
there hasnt been a bad week, but bad days. just discouraging and dissapointing days. but its been fun overall.
Since your companion is all the way from New Zealand (btw is that where Ian Marryott's mom is from?) does he get very many packages or treats? Maybe dad already told you but we watched a the national rugby team of New Zealand play France and New Zealand won. I think it's been a long time since they did. We wondered if Elder Mahoni was into that or not?
ians mom is from fiji, or the cook islands. i dont remember. he is way into rugby. we also have a fellow in a neighboring district that is from newzealand, he is a Maori warrior. he thinks he tough. even though he could prolly bench the whole world.
Can you believe it's already been 2 weeks almost? wow! Sometimes it seems to fly other times...that seems it goes slow. Remember what I told Jens? The days go by so slow but the weeks fly by! By the time you're ready to email it's already been a week passed.
VERY true. week three already. (I don't know what he's talking about...I guess this is the start of his 3rd week)
How was your Halloween? Anything special there? food different color? scary decorations anywhere?
My roomates moved out so we had a clean room for once. the guys in my district had a get together and compiled our goodies. and had a grand time. decorations arent allowed. the food was awful the week. it was gross and discolored. (not for halloween though). haha gross
Can you go to the temple (a session) any day you want? Or just on Pday?
we get to go once a pday. and we get to walk around it on sundays.
I go by the MTC on the bus around 7:38 a.m. and 2:45 every day...what're you doing during those hours?
ohh im in class or doing personal study during those times!
Will you stay with the same comp the whole time?
ya we gonna stay together the whoooole time.
Give us a new word to learn each week...in Cebuano?
hmmm... good word.... Hugot Nga Pagtuo it means faith. say the Nga like hang but just the last sound. it directly translates: Tight belief.
How old is Elder Mahoni?
he is 19 too. his bday is in july.
Today is a very chilly windy day...Do you need anymore warmer clothing?
im good with warm clothes. my coat is super nice.
Love you all. keep being good people.
Elder Smith
Sunday, October 30, 2011
day 11 Sweet story
...as told by Brian
Sister Miller, a very good friend in our ward, stopped by the house Sunday and said she had something for us, was Wendi home? Wendi was at choir practice so she said well, i'll just give it to you, and she gave me a big hug. I said something like "well thank you!" and she said something like "These arms have hugged your missionary and now you have the hug."
Turns out Sister Miller was up at the temple grounds and was sitting on a bench when all of a sudden this Elder plops himself right next to her and gets right in her face... And there he was, Christian! They talked for a bit and she met his companion Elder Mahoni etc... She said he looked so mature. And he looked happy. He was talking with everyone and everyone with him so looked like he got along great with everyone there.
I was very jealous.
But very happy he got to see someone he knew very well. I'm sure that made his day! It was a very fun thing! So hard living in Provo with a missionary right there 5 miles away. But he may as well be 5,000 miles away.
Sister Miller, a very good friend in our ward, stopped by the house Sunday and said she had something for us, was Wendi home? Wendi was at choir practice so she said well, i'll just give it to you, and she gave me a big hug. I said something like "well thank you!" and she said something like "These arms have hugged your missionary and now you have the hug."
Turns out Sister Miller was up at the temple grounds and was sitting on a bench when all of a sudden this Elder plops himself right next to her and gets right in her face... And there he was, Christian! They talked for a bit and she met his companion Elder Mahoni etc... She said he looked so mature. And he looked happy. He was talking with everyone and everyone with him so looked like he got along great with everyone there.
I was very jealous.
But very happy he got to see someone he knew very well. I'm sure that made his day! It was a very fun thing! So hard living in Provo with a missionary right there 5 miles away. But he may as well be 5,000 miles away.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
day 6 Questions and Answers
Tell us what you did right when you got there? 1st...we went....2nd...they he took me to the bano (hehe) 3rd...etc.
Well first, the host fella took me to the bookstore to get my language hud, like bible, bom, pmg, water filter name tags ect. then we went and found my room and dropped my suitcase off.
After that they threw us into a comp lab to listen to rules regs. and other info about the mtc.
After that we went directly to our language class and found our companions. His name is Elder Mahoni, he is 6' 3", 300lbs and from New Zealand. He is the nicest guy ive ever met. He is always putting me before himself. After we met, we were dropped into Cebuano study. Our teachers name is Sister Williams. she is saomoan. She never speaks english, its sooooo crazy.
Do you have to have some more shots? (sorry honey if you do)
OOOOOOHHHHHH MMMYYYYy..... soo the second day we were supposes to give our immun. info to the nurses there to see what we needed. sooooo they told me i needed to get 4 shots. 3 that day and 1 the week i leave. so it was freezing in the shot room to begn with, and i was kinda nervous.. wouldnt you be if you had to get 3 shots??? so they called me up and i ran up there and sat and she was super quick. it still hurt like a mother but it wasnt as long as i thought it would be. so she band-aided me up and sent me to pay. As i was going to pay, i started to feel kinda dizzy so i just started thinking about other things to take my mind off it. It continued to get worse and worse. The lady told me my final price of the shots and it was $164!!! (if i have insurance i can be reimbursed.) sooo at that point the feeling had escalated to the point where i couldnt see or hear anything. i started to wobble and sway and they asked if i was ok and i said "oh ya im oookk"- much like a drunken person would say. then thats the last thing i remember. i woke up on the floor with my shirt almost off and with my feet raised onto a chair. they told me i passed out. it was soooooooooooooo freaking embarassing. so they gave me some oj to get some sugar into my system. (he is totally my child!!!)
Did you see anyone you know? workers or missionaries?
well i saw a guy i knew from school but nobody else really.
Are you immersed right away in the language?
ohhhh heck ya!!
Have you had a million wrinkly corndogs?
To this day, day 7, i have yet to eat a corndog.
Did you forget anything? Would you like us to send anything else?
A collapsable hamper would be nice but not that important. umm contacts Will be needed. other than that i have bought everthing i need from the bookstore. Oh.. its always nice to receive mail. so ANY letters are appreciated.
What is your companion's name? Where's he from?
Elder Mahoni. he is explained in detail in the paragraph above.
What is something that you didn't know/or expect about the MTC?
uhhh well the whole thing is sooo different. i dont have anymore time to type so the answers are gonna be super short from here on.
Good and Bad this week?
Overall, great week. the spirit is soo nice and the Lord is good.
When will your pday be?
pdays will be tuesday and pics will come then
Is your leave date the same as we thought? Dec. 22/23? Did everything work out good with your visas? or is it going to be delayed?
leave date is the 19/20th of dec.visa has yet to arrive. no one has there visa yet so its normal.
Ok I'll be done with the questions...hehe
Love you all and May the Lord be with you
-Elder C-dogg Smith
Well first, the host fella took me to the bookstore to get my language hud, like bible, bom, pmg, water filter name tags ect. then we went and found my room and dropped my suitcase off.
After that they threw us into a comp lab to listen to rules regs. and other info about the mtc.
After that we went directly to our language class and found our companions. His name is Elder Mahoni, he is 6' 3", 300lbs and from New Zealand. He is the nicest guy ive ever met. He is always putting me before himself. After we met, we were dropped into Cebuano study. Our teachers name is Sister Williams. she is saomoan. She never speaks english, its sooooo crazy.
Do you have to have some more shots? (sorry honey if you do)
OOOOOOHHHHHH MMMYYYYy..... soo the second day we were supposes to give our immun. info to the nurses there to see what we needed. sooooo they told me i needed to get 4 shots. 3 that day and 1 the week i leave. so it was freezing in the shot room to begn with, and i was kinda nervous.. wouldnt you be if you had to get 3 shots??? so they called me up and i ran up there and sat and she was super quick. it still hurt like a mother but it wasnt as long as i thought it would be. so she band-aided me up and sent me to pay. As i was going to pay, i started to feel kinda dizzy so i just started thinking about other things to take my mind off it. It continued to get worse and worse. The lady told me my final price of the shots and it was $164!!! (if i have insurance i can be reimbursed.) sooo at that point the feeling had escalated to the point where i couldnt see or hear anything. i started to wobble and sway and they asked if i was ok and i said "oh ya im oookk"- much like a drunken person would say. then thats the last thing i remember. i woke up on the floor with my shirt almost off and with my feet raised onto a chair. they told me i passed out. it was soooooooooooooo freaking embarassing. so they gave me some oj to get some sugar into my system. (he is totally my child!!!)
Did you see anyone you know? workers or missionaries?
well i saw a guy i knew from school but nobody else really.
Are you immersed right away in the language?
ohhhh heck ya!!
Have you had a million wrinkly corndogs?
To this day, day 7, i have yet to eat a corndog.
Did you forget anything? Would you like us to send anything else?
A collapsable hamper would be nice but not that important. umm contacts Will be needed. other than that i have bought everthing i need from the bookstore. Oh.. its always nice to receive mail. so ANY letters are appreciated.
What is your companion's name? Where's he from?
Elder Mahoni. he is explained in detail in the paragraph above.
What is something that you didn't know/or expect about the MTC?
uhhh well the whole thing is sooo different. i dont have anymore time to type so the answers are gonna be super short from here on.
Good and Bad this week?
Overall, great week. the spirit is soo nice and the Lord is good.
When will your pday be?
pdays will be tuesday and pics will come then
Is your leave date the same as we thought? Dec. 22/23? Did everything work out good with your visas? or is it going to be delayed?
leave date is the 19/20th of dec.visa has yet to arrive. no one has there visa yet so its normal.
Ok I'll be done with the questions...hehe
Love you all and May the Lord be with you
-Elder C-dogg Smith
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
How to write to Christian
Best
"The BYU" has a mail service that delivers every day to the MTC for only $1.-$5 for 15 lbs. Need to be there by 3 p.m. Go to the Wilk and park in the little round circly thing and go in the sports/rental door (more south than the main doors), not the main doors (if you do go in there turn left once you get in the hallway)
Better
In addition to the above, DearElder.com is also great, you can type up letters and they'll get them the same day if sent before noon, or they'll get them the next day if sent after. And it's free! Yay! Also they have "pouch mail" too when he's actually in Philippines...And that's also free!
Good
UPS (here in Provo) sends letters for free and packages for a discounted rate of 3$ (up to 5lbs) to the MTC. You need to have it there by 2 p.m. I went to the one on Bulldog Ave. next to McDonalds. The MTC does not allow hand/personal deliveries.
"The BYU" has a mail service that delivers every day to the MTC for only $1.-$5 for 15 lbs. Need to be there by 3 p.m. Go to the Wilk and park in the little round circly thing and go in the sports/rental door (more south than the main doors), not the main doors (if you do go in there turn left once you get in the hallway)
Better
In addition to the above, DearElder.com is also great, you can type up letters and they'll get them the same day if sent before noon, or they'll get them the next day if sent after. And it's free! Yay! Also they have "pouch mail" too when he's actually in Philippines...And that's also free!
Good
UPS (here in Provo) sends letters for free and packages for a discounted rate of 3$ (up to 5lbs) to the MTC. You need to have it there by 2 p.m. I went to the one on Bulldog Ave. next to McDonalds. The MTC does not allow hand/personal deliveries.
Two too many...gone.
Oh it's so hard to say goodbye to two sweet boys in just a few shorts months. Sooo hard. I felt like this would be easier and it was because we knew what to expect but I still sobbed at Sacrament Mtg., the setting apart, and dropping off at the MTC. You kind of go through a mourning with each one. Then it gets easier with each letter. I can't believe the relief you feel when you get that first letter...Now I'm just waiting for that one.
Went to Jdawgs again for the last meal.
This guy was so funny... he told us who to follow and which direction to take...then when I went to take his picture..he said "oh don't take my picture, I feel like wildlife"
We talked about how we could more efficiently take pictures at the MTC. These boys were ready and waiting for the click. I can't help but laugh when I see this. It wasn't very emotional for them.
You feel so good driving through there. It's kinda like the worker people know how hard it is to drop off your boy...Every where we went we were greeted with..."HI!", "Welcome to the MTC!", "Welcome!" It's hard to not be happy there...
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
