Manila MTC week 4?

The days are beginning to blend together here I can't even remember what went on last week!  BUT, we got to go proselyting for the first time last week with the manila missionaries.  It was the coolest experience ever and I'm so excited to get out to Naga to finally get started.  We went to their mission home and set some goals, then immediately got in a jeepney (small taxi like truck) and started working!  We got out and started walking in these tiny alleyways where people's houses are, and the first person we said "Kumusta po kayo!" to, totally talked to us for like 20 minutes outside his little tiny house. His name was Jae, and he opened up to us really quickly and we gave him a pamphlet, talked about the restoration and got his info for a return appointment!  My very first missionary experience was somehow a success!  I don't know what will happen to any of the 6 people we talked to that day, but they were so receptive of our message!  I'm insanely grateful to be here because some of these people are basically aching to hear our message.  

and they like to stare at my white skin and orange hair.

In other news,  I arranged the MTC anthem that our president and his wife wrote, and we sang it as an MTC for Elder Bangeter.  It was loads of beans cool and I saw president shed a tear so I was cheesin.

We had cheese flavored ice cream and that was a regrettable experience.  Then we had chocolate ice cream yesterday and I think I ate ~12 cones.  There's these candies here called pochi's and they are super addicting.  I promise to take more pictures of all this stuff.

My district has decided to invest in rubber bands recently, so now we spend lots of time making rubber band balls and bouncing them all over the place.  Loads of fun to say the least. 

pics:  

-mamba mentality

-view from our district room

more next week sorry

MTC week 4

Kumusta kayo! 

This week has been great!  We spend lots of time in class which can be extremely boring and I get a headache every day which doesn't help.  However, the Elders in my district are awesome.  I adore them especially Elder Sheppard, Pitcher, and Olsen.  They make everything a lot more fun and happy rather than overly serious and sensitive. 

I'm not supposed to go into it (according to the missionary handbook) but I have to admit, I have a hard time with my companions.  I've decided to Elder up and deal with some of their shenanigans, but they study all night and wake up really early to study, and unfortunately my sleep suffers as a result.  I don't know how they do it!  

Tagalog is still sobrang mahirap! very hard!  I've decided to try a new studying method though.  My new plan is to read the BoM in tagalog and i'll just write down all the words I don't know!  It actually works really well too!  I've written down almost every word in 1 Nephi 1!   

Constantly thinking of everyone at home 

love you all! 

-Elder Harris

no pictures this week cause we didn't do anything worth taking a picture of.   

Kumusta Kayo! 

I've missed everyone loads this week, but it's been the most fulfilling week so far here at the MTC!  Sister Muir, a senior missionary here asked me to play the piano and coordinate a special musical number for sacrament meeting!  She asked me out of the blue and I was very thrown off cause I had no idea she knew I played!  I'm still not sure how she knew but apparently some elders talked me up to her so she asked me.  My district sang my own arrangement of "A Child's Prayer"  and it was really flippin cool.  We practiced it all week and that meant I had lots of piano time (not actually a lot but better than nothing)  and we came a lot closer as a district through practicing the song.  The performance of it went really well and it invited the spirit.  Everyone in sacrament meeting was thrown off when I played the hymns for sacrament cause I don't play them how they're written, but I watched the whole congregation (only like 60 people)  all start smiling as we got into the songs and they started singing louder and louder.  The spirit was incredibly strong.  Afterwards everyone thanked me for playing and admired my skill and Sister Muir is gonna have me play more now HAHA.  

Before I get sounding way to cocky or boastful, the reason I tell this story:  Many of you know that music is one of the most important things in my life.  I've found in the last few weeks here at the MTC that music also brings me closer and closer to the spirit, so I challenge everyone to listen to some tabernacle choir or your favorite hymns this week in your homes.  It brings such a peaceful and serene spirit.   I dunno that's just what's been on my mind.

All that was also prevalent when we watched President Nelson's birthday celebration.  My only words were "hoooooly crap" after watching that broadcast with everyone at the MTC.  If you haven't seen it I encourage you to asap.

In other news:  The senior LTM's and RTM's left this morning and that wasn't fun cause I really looked up to and admired some of them.  Awesome examples to me.  I'll put pictures below.

Language is still sobrang mahirap!  Pero, mataas ang aking pag-asa.

I can recite stuff and know what it means, but grammar is very difficult.  I know lots of offensive words though! 

Lastly: Everyone keep the Kirk family in your prayers.  My mission president President Kirk, passed away this last week unexpectedly.  It's been quite heartbreaking to hear of his death and find out that we don't get to meet him.  His family is doing well as far as I know but pray for them! thank you.

Mahal ko kayong lahat palagi!

-Elder Harris

Kumusta Kayo! 

I wish I could say this week was awesome but it was pretty monotonous.  We spend most of our day in a little classroom studying tagalog words and phrases, and my head is exploding almost the whole day hahaha!  The Tagalog is actually starting to come but still very slowly.   We moved on to Intermediate core this week, and in Intermediate core our goal is to learn 2,500 tagalog words, 500 tagalog phrases, and 9 scriptures in tagalog.  It will be an awesome challenge!  We started making LOADS of flash cards for ourselves and they help lots!  

As for spiritual news, one of our teachers Brother Rondilla, a short skinny Filipino man, told us a  little bit more about himself.  He told us that he met with the missionaries when he was 16 years old, and he knew it was the right path for him so he got baptized very quickly I think.  Shortly after, he decided to serve a full time mission.  In making this decision his mother and father (nanay at tatay)  stopped speaking with him.  He decided to serve regardless.  He left on a mission for two years and he didn't get to email his family or facetime.  I personally can't imagine such a sacrifice - it would crush me.  Brother Rondilla now works as a teacher and administrator at the MTC here in Manila, and as a volunteer institute teacher.  He is an insane example to me as I battle with homesickness and learning tagalog.  No matter how lonely we feel-  1. someone has always got it worse.  and  2. our savior Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father ( Ama sa Langit)  will never leave us truly alone. 

Mahal Ka Kayong Lahat!

Kumusta everyone! 

     The Manila MTC so far has been pretty crazy!  I can't say it has been awesome cause I've had a really hard time missing home and studying the language, but it continues to get better and better each and every day!  It has been a consistent pattern of emotions every day - the day starts off super happy and optimistic, then after 6 hours of language study and a few hours of gospel study the optimism wears off pretty hard.  

     However!

     All of the guys here (except a notable few) are SUPER solid missionaries.  The senior language training missionaries like Elder Darrington have been super welcoming and helpful and those guys are great role models!  They've only been here for three weeks so that lifts my spirits to know that we're all going through it together. 

      I haven't felt too much of the spirit these last 5 days but I know that It will come with faith, prayer, and time, just like all things.  

     One of the most powerful things we have learned here is that the Lord is waiting to shower us with blessings like the Gift of Tongues, but we have to ask to receive them.  Along with that, we learned that nothing is accomplished without faith!

     I encourage everyone to read ETHER 12 : 6,7,12   From those verses we learn that everything Christ did was through faith.  Not only must we ask of God to receive his blessings and his mercy, but we also have to have faith to know that he will bless us, and if he doesn't it is for good reason!

     Elder Smoot, the Phillipines area 70 came yesterday and he gave a great talk, but more notably - after the meeting we all shook his and his wife's hands' and it was cool to meet him, but his wife's only words were, "Elder Harris!  You need a razor!"   I was definitely annoyed, but it was pretty funny.  From now on, I shave every day.

I love and miss everyone that is reading this email and I appreciate your prayers!

Mahal ko kayong lahat!

Kita kits!