Hello, Everyone!

Cige so before I forget momma:
Philippines, Tacloban Mission
Fatima Vlg, Tacloban City
6500 Leyte
Philippines

So we only get mail through the mission home. It gets sent there then
we get our mail like once a transfer.. Haha. It's pretty awesome. Also
I guess packages are super duper slow so they take like 3 months and I
think it's three weeks to a month for letters also. I'm not sure if I
told you already but if you get like Jesus stickers and put them on
the mail it will keep it from being stolen.
So anyway!!
This week we had a training down in Tacloban so instead of getting to
work very much we just got to take a very very long 7 hour bus ride
and then home again.. Haha so fun. But it was awesome because I got to
see my batch! Elder Lowe looks so good! I missed him so much. He is
already such an awesome missionary. I have pictures with him and
Sister K and Sister G and Dial but it's really hard to send pictures
here cuz they easily get corrupted and I really don't want to lose any
of these pictures from this beautiful place! So I can probably print
and send some, we will see.
I am excited to get back to work this week. Sister Perdida went to
church again! She is so good. Like seriously a golden investigator. We
taught her sons too and they are so so good! Sister Bessy was out of
town so no church for her.. We are really grateful though because she
is not as shy as she used to be. She is ten and she used to cover her
face with her hands every single time we asked her a question. But she
came with us to FHE and she was super talkative and cute. We are
hoping to have her baptised soon but she keeps missing church.
So besides that I guess there's not a whole lot to say. Oh yeah!
Brother Nickko! I am so so happy that he talked to Jamie. He is
seriously my favorite ever. He was inactive last year and he came
back, and ever since then he has worked with the missionaries EVERY
SINGLE DAY. He is leaving soon and I am so sad. He was really excited
that he talked with Jamie also. I asked him if he was leaving the
other day and he said "Of course not! I promised Jamie Sprouse that I
could protect you!" Haha so funny. He is the best guy ever in the
world.
My language is still not good but I can get my point across and
understand a little.lt is helpful that almost every single Philippino
knows English.
There are so many inactives in our community because it seems that
some missionaries a while back taught everyone only like the first
lesson, baptized them, and never came back. That's the reason that
Bro. Nickko was inactive. It is super sad. We try to visit everyone as
much as we can and pray that they will have the desire to come to
church.
Well that's all for now! Love you all so so much!
Sister Sprouse

First Week in Philly(pines)

Oh my goodness I just knew that you all would be anxious when I didn't write as soon as I arrived. Haha. I am writing you as soon as I possibly could though! I love you all! All the emails that I received made me feel so loved. 

The Philippines are amazing! I love it here! There are so many new sights and (interesting) smells! Haha I'm trying so many things that I never have before. I keep having the wish that I could just snapshot every moment so that you could enjoy it with me. 

The mangoes here seriously taste like candy! Haha I love it. There's also this really interesting fruit that I have no idea what it's called but it's so so so good. I actually like the humidity which is so interesting but yeah. Haha. The Filipinos are so kind! They all are really loving to me. Everywhere I go I feel like a champ because everyone stares at Sister Woodruff and I and yell "Americanos!" Haha so I am basically famous. 

I am going to be speaking Waray Waray S. That has been a challenge because I was so good at Cebuano! All the Filipinos would tell me how good I was at it and I felt really confident speaking it. I guess I needed to be humbled. Waray waray has a lot of the same gospel words but the conversational words are not even close. Also I have an American accent so that's interesting. Thank you for fasting for me. That really means a lot to me because I was SO overwhelmed with the language on Saturday. Like really. I felt like I was going to die. But on Sunday I felt so much better about it. I still don't understand a lot but I'm overcoming it. 

We have no apartment yet, but we are staying with some sisters in this area and we went to teach nonactives with some members yesterday. All those that we were teaching bailed, but I have learning the language time so that was really helpful.

I just looked over my shoulder and 3 filipino boys were looking over my shoulder at the screen transfixed. Haha. I told you. Famous. (I'm in an internet cafe)

We did laundry today and I will never again complain about laundry in America. We have it so good here.

MAN. This place is built for me. I have seen over and over again the reasons that I have been called here and why they work perfectly for me. I am so happy. The Lord knows what he is doing. I'd better go, but I am safe and sound! I love you! Have a good week! 

Sister Sprouse

P.s please tell Jeff and Tiff how wonderful I thought their package was! I was so happy to get it! I felt like the most loved gal in the MTC. Thank them for me please! 

Sister Sprouse with her roommates from Fiji and New Zealand

 

 

 

Sister Sprouse with Sister Sprouse except one of the Sister Sprouses' name tag is not showing

 

 

Sister Sprouse with her companion Sister Laub from Idaho



Month Mark!

Comosta akong pamilya! 

Gugma nako kamo!! Kaayo!

Wow. This week has been AMAZING. So good. Like for reals. (Can't believe I just typed that.) Salamat para tanan sa mga letters! I was so excited to get them all and here from all of you. 

So Sister Laub is from Idaho, but she went to BYU here for the past two years. She hates that she can see the pretty mountains but is not able to hike on them. She loves to run like me. We're opposites, but the same too. She's so much quieter, but besides that we are both very quirky and our catch phrase is salikwa-ut (awkward.) She loves poetry, and nice glass of byu cookies and cream milk, and of course her companion, me, here. 

 

What an eventful week. Sister Laub and I found a picture of this man whom we are not familiar with under our bunk bed. In the photo, he is enjoying a nice tall swirl of cotton candy. We decided that we love him and that he is our boyfriend, so we placed him on our residence door. But the next day he was gone! The Tongan sisters were very upset that someone stole our boyfriend. (He apparently was their boyfriend too.) And blamed Sister T (The figian) for stealing it. Sister T said, "An eye single to the glory of God. No boyfriend!" She is the funniest girl I have met, possibly ever. My love for her is great! 

The other day we were talking, and all the sudden she asks me, "Sister Sprouse, can you give me your pants?" Hahaha. I told her that I could not, in fact, give them to her, to which she replied, "Pelihog?" (please) Apparently we Americans are not good at sharing. "Fijians are much better." 

Oh, so I slept talked again in Cebuano. Sister Lolesi said that I was going at it pretty hard; it was like I was having a conversation with myself. I can remember my dream. It was when I was home from my mission, and Kait and Brisa could both speak Cebuano. Actually Brisa spoke elongo, but they're pretty similar. Sister Laub said that at one point she heard me say, "salikwa-ut". Haha. I don't even know.

This Sunday I got to listen to a talk by Elder Bednar about teaching through the spirit. It was incredible! I learned that success on a mission is a gift from God, and I need to live to be worthy of it. I need to become a missionary, not just go on a mission. It was so wonderful! Read D&C 100:5-8. Such a cool promise! 

But that's not even the best part. On Tuesday, an apostle came to speak to us! It was Richard G. Scott. I love him! He is so adorable. I also love how he always talks about his wife. This time he said, "I am emotional tonight... Because my wife has been gone for a long time, but I feel strongly that she has been permitted to be here tonight." WOW! So cool! He said a really awesome quote, "To reach a goal you have not yet obtained, you must do things you have never done before." He said so much, and I just felt to lucky to be able to hear him and know his message was true. He also blessed all the language learning missionaries that we would be able to learn the language as long as we tried! So exciting!

It was funny because we all knew that an apostle was speaking to us, so it was pretty hectic going to the Marriot Center. Elder Vander Vloidt called it "The running of the bulls." Pretty accurate. That guy is the funniest guy I have ever met. The other day he picked up the fan and pretended that he was a snake charmer and his tie was the snake. I have a few pictures of it. He's so hilarious! The other day at lunch, Elder Hughes was trying to get a rhyme for purple. He said not nurple. So he asked for the second best. Elder Lowe said whirlpool. So Elder Hughes says okay, third best. Without even pausing, Elder Vander Vloidt says, "Third best? Turd Vest!" Okay, so I don't know if it sounds funny over email, but I was almost crying. To put sa pag in front of a word makes it a verb (sa pagampo is "to pray") so they turned him into a verb. Every time he says something like "Your mom" to you, you know that you've been sa pag-Vander Vloidt-ed. 

Well, I'm going to go, but I love you all so much! I love being here and feeling the spirit and knowing that if you ask for something from God, He will help you. 

Love you!

Sister Sprouse 

(Dang it, I forgot my converter. I'll send pictures next week.)

Called to Serve!

Hey everyone! I have been called to serve in the Tacloban, Philippines mission, leaving July 17th! I am so excited! A lot has gone on since I got my call, but for my first post I just want to say that I know that this gospel is true! I can't wait to share that with the beautiful people of the Philippines. I know that the atonement provides a way for them to be with their families forever! I also know that, because of the atonement, I am able to be forgiven of my many sins. I know that I am incredibly imperfect, but my dear Brother and Father help me make the difference daily. I am humbled by this opportunity to help spread the gospel for my Heavenly Father, and I count myself as very lucky! That's all for today! Love you all!
-Sister Sprouse

I love my sisters!

We wish Kaitlyn were here! But she has a higher calling right now. (: