Be Home Soon

We are sitting in our hotel room this evening, having an early wake up call, our mission completed. This has been a week of high and low emotions as we look forward to seeing our family while saying goodbye to dear friends; most who we will never see again. The toughest goodbyes were to President and Sister Clark, with whom we have shared so many experiences and worked with so closely. Although we will always be dear friends and stay in touch, our unique relationship has come to an end.  It has been amazing as we served side by side in the work of the Lord.

We spent the week finishing up transfers, teaching our workshop one last time, and greeting new missionaries.  Mostly we stepped back and guided Elder and Sister Richards through it. Friday, with the help of Elder and Sister Pugh, Elder and Sister Spung, and the office elders, we moved out of our apartment and closed it; and said goodbye to our little neighbors. We pray for them and wish them well. That evening we had dinner with everyone at the mission home, said our goodbyes to the Pugh's and Spung's, and slept at the mission home. Yesterday, we finished up training, and walked out of the mission office for the last time. President and Sister Clark took us to dinner, and we had a great evening. Today, we went to Tarlac 1st Ward, where they had us bear our testimonies. We said our goodbyes there, Sister Clark fed us again, and drove us to the hotel.  We fly to Hong Kong tomorrow, spend a couple of days there, and then we will see our children and grandchildren on Wednesday, or soon there afterwards.

We leave you with 2nd Timothy 4:7 - "I have fought a good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith."

Mahal Kita One More Time
Elder and Sister Whiting

Jeepney of the Week - Transformer!

Brother and Sister Yang, one of the caterers the mission uses

The Garcia Family, the other caterer the mission uses. Elder Whiting holds a gift from them.

Our neighbors Aira, Mary, and Christy

L - R; Elder & Sister Pugh, President & Sister Clark, Elder & Sister Spung, Elder & Sister Richards

With President and Sister Clark

With Elder and Sister Richards

With the Assistants, Elders Bleazard & Sabangan

Leaving the mission office for the last time

With members of the Tarlac 1st Ward, including former missionary Stefany Tumala, 3rd from left,

and Bishop and Sister Arcansalin and daughter Heather Jean.

Final goodbye at the hotel.  Until we meet again!

A Quiet Sunday evening.

Adios Amigos!

Dear Kids,

Can we just say we love you so much! Love you, your spouses, your kids!  Thanks SO much for supporting us on this mission. We think together we all have been doing our part to 'Hasten the Work'.  I guess our next and last post will be from the hotel in Clark next Sunday - our mission over- headed for Hong Kong, then home.

Happy/sad. We're feeling tonight kinda like we used to feel after spending the weekend with family, then heading back to college.  We still remember as the wheels of the aircraft left the ground in Thailand, tears streaming down Deanna's face. We remember saying goodbye to a little boy outside Moron and drinking Mate' with a family inside the 'Death Star' in Argentina.

As we continue to say our goodbyes this week I'm sure there will be more tears. But first, we still have sooo much to do. We've started another busy transfer week, with gathering departing missionaries - our "batch" -  departing workshop, new arrivals orientations, etc.  We think we literally will fall onto the airplane exhausted.

Wednesday, after an arduous, 3 hour early morning drive with two missionaries to the Manila MRC, we attended the Manila Temple - we were the witness couple on an endowment session (it was way cool that Sister Cindy Antonio, a former Angeles missionary was in the session with us); then were asked to do a sealing session.  A great experience.

Today we took the Richards' to Dapdap to church (we will miss those saints a LOT) and stopped at the Capas Bataan Death March Memorials on the way back. Then picked up a departing sister missionary in Lapaz.

We've been reading in Alma. We leave you with Alma 29:1 'O that I were an angel ...'

Mahal Kita,
Elder and Sister Whiting

Jeepney of the Week

The Beautiful Manila Temple

A good day

Temple Selfie

One of the many security guards found in every store

Goodbye photo with Brother Cons Farrales of Church IT.  He kept our computers going.

We got to know him pretty well.

Rockin' and Rollin'

We are coming to the end of the road in the mission.  A couple more posts and that's it!  But before then, there is still sooo much to do....

We have been pushing Elder and Sister Richards hard this past week training them in everything they will do.  They are doing very well, and holding up nicely to the work, the strange culture and the jet lag.  We will leave the mission in good hands.

The highlight of the week was our senior couple trip to Corregidor Island, which was the focal point for many WWII battles--the defense, the fall, and the retaking of the Philippines from the Japanese; and the site of General MacArthur's famous, "I shall return" declaration.  It was so fascinating to hear the history and see first hand the places we have read about.

We drove two hours down the Bataan Peninsula--site of the infamous Bataan Death March--to Manila Bay.  There we boarded a wooden outrigger boat for the two mile journey to the island.  It was very windy and quite a ride over.  The ocean swells reminded us of tour boat wakes on Lake Powell, only they were never ending.  We think the Richards'--still jet lagged and culture shocked--wondered what we had gotten them into! But they were great sports.

We spent the day with a great tour guide seeing all of the sites and learning the history of the island.  We could have spent much more time there; it was so interesting.  We had a picnic lunch on the beach--although it was very windy by then--then headed back to our boat for the return trip across the bay; only to learn that the Coast Guard had suspended travel because of dangerous conditions. Our guide told us there was a possibility we would have to stay the night on the island. Oh. No.

Senior couples, with permission from the mission president, can leave the mission boundaries, but it cannot be for an overnight stay.   What were we going to do?  We and a group of American Protestants, who were also on the tour, said a lot of vocal and silent prayers that the wind would calm and we could leave.  None of us had anything for overnight, and there were no accomodations on the island except for a couple of hammocks.  If the wind didn't cease by 5 pm, we were stuck.  By about 4 pm we got the okay to leave and we hurried onto the boat before they changed their minds. (we had boarded the boat once before only to be hustled back off)  We didn't notice much difference in the wind, but we were not going to question the decision.

The ride back was crazy! Like riding Splash Mountain 100 times in a row!  It was very windy with 10 foot swells that we would ride to the top and plunge down into the trench.  We decided to pretend we were riding Splash Mountain and held our hands in the air as we slid down the swells, praying silently all the while.  But we made it to the other side--salt water soaked and windblown--but home safely, and within the rules!  Prayers are answered!

The rest of the week was spent in training, with early mornings and late nights. Yesterday and today was stake conference, and we greeted many of our dear Filipino friends probably for the last time.  It was a bittersweet day.

We leave you this evening with the first part of Alma 28:14--"And thus we see the great call of diligence of men to labor in the vineyard of the Lord."

Mahal Kita,
Elder and Sister Whiting

Jeepney of the Week

Ready for our adventure. Back to front: Elder and Sister Spung,
 Elder and Sister Richards, Sister Dansie's back, Sister Whiting.

The garbage ...

Just don't fall in!

L-R: Elder and Sister Pugh, Elder and sister Whiting, Sister and Elder Dansie,
Sister and Elder Spung, Sister and Elder Richards.

Bomb damages lateral tunnel within the Malinta Tunnel.

Malinta Tunnel lateral.

Malinta Tunnel

Elder and Sister Whiting

Elder Spung and Elder Whiting

Riflings in one of the big guns.

The guns date back to the 1800's when ariel warfare hadn't yet been invented.
They were ineffective during ariel attacks, as they were designed to defend an attack by sea.

Bomb crater on the left, BIG gun on the right, Sister Whiting in the middle.

Bomb crater

Bomb damaged barracks

Elder Whiting and a big shell.

Sister Whiting and a bigger shell.

Shrapnel

A piece of concrete shrapnel embedded in this tree after all of these years.

The lighthouse dates back to the Spanish occupation of the Philippines.
 It was destroyed during the war, then rebuilt.

A windy lunch. Clockwise from Sister Whiting: Elder Whiting, Sister and Elder Richards,
Elder and Sister Pugh, Elder and Sister Spung, Sister Dansie.
Elder Dansie took the photo.

Manila Bay

The Richards' and the Pugh's waiting for the green light to cross the bay.

Sister and Elder Whiting and Sisters Dansie and Spung wait as well.

Sister Whiting and Sister Dansie

The wet and windblown look.

Elder Whiting is soaked with salt water.

Crazy crew member!

Riding the swells.

Safe and sound and soaked!  L-R: Elder and Sister Dansie, Sister Spung, Sister Pugh,
Elder S;pung, Sister Whiting, Elder Richards, Sister Richards, Elder Pugh, Elder Whiting