Of Cementery's, Zone Conferences, and Native Tribes

Last Sunday, we drove a missionary to Manila, and when we got to the Area Offices, what a surprise awaited us. Our fellow missionaries and travel companions, Elder and Sister Armstrong, were there to greet us.  We were delighted to see them.  They are the office couple for the Cauayan Mission just north of us and were in Manila for checkups.  What a pleasant surprise.

While in Manila, we went with Sister Kasteller of the MRC, the Armstrongs, and two young missionaries to the American Cemetery in Manila, where there are more than 17,000 soldiers buried, victims of the battle for the Philippines during World War II.  In addition to that, there is a massive memorial to the more than 37,000 missing soldiers of many nationalities there.  It was a beautiful, sobering, truly amazing place with a wonderful spirit.  Our gratitude for those who have died for our freedom grew by leaps and bounds that day.

This past Thursday, we had Zone Conference, and that is always a feast, both spiritually and temporally.  The lunch was great!  We attended all of the workshops, and although they are geared to the missionary in the field, we learned a lot as well and got a better feel for what is going on throughout the mission.  It was a great day.

Friday evening, we rode north an hour and a half with the Clark's  to a dinner the mission hosted for the leadership of the Cabanatuan Stake.  The stake presidency, bishops and branch presidents, and their wives, and the mission presidency were there.  After a very Filipino dinner, President Clark addressed the leaders about having better coordination between the mission and the stake.  He also held a question and answer/discussion session which helped us all to "get on the same page" so to speak with our missionaries and the members.  It was a good relationship-building evening.

Sunday was quite an amazing day.  As we have said, we have been splitting our time between the Burgos and Dapdap branches.  Today was Burgos's turn.  The elders assigned to that branch have been teaching the chief of the Pisaponga tribe that lives way back in the mountains. The chief is friends with a member of the stake presidency and has been wanting the lessons for a while now.  So after the regular block of meetings in the branch,  the missionaries, many of the branch members, and us traveled in vans, jeepneys,  trikes, and motorbikes several miles--the last two miles on a single lane dirt road to Pisaponga.  There, under the chief's covered porch, with a hardpacked dirt floor, and a dog that looked like Dobby the house elf, we held sacrament meeting and Sunday school for the tribe.  All total, there were at least 100 people there. About two minutes before the meeting started, the counselor in the branch presidency informed us that we would be speaking.  Well, we don't speak Tagalog or Ilacano, and they didn't speak English.  We had one of the elders translate for us and it turned out okay.  At the end, the chief spoke to the group, and the only word we understood was "Americano". No one could tell us  what he said, but we're pretty sure we were the first white people to visit the village.  When the meeting was over, the chief took us to see a bridge project his village had just completed that will link another village of about 500 who live further back in the mountains.

The chief has a baptism date of March 26th, and the elders are teaching about 15 other people there right now.  We have started calling them Elders Ammon and Aaron; and actually Elder Sam is a full blooded Navajo, so it is very fitting.  We expect lots of baptisms to come from this area.

We close with what we think is a fitting scripture from the Book of Mormon.  These are the words of Lamoni's father to Aaron found in Alma 22:15:

"And it came to pass that after Aaron had expounded these things unto him, the king said: What shall I do that I may have this eternal life of which thou hast spoken?  Yea, what shall I do that I may be born of God, having this wicked spirit rooted out of my breast, and receive his Spirit, that I may be filled with joy, that I may not be cast off at the last day?  Behold, said he, I will give up all that I possess, yea, I will forsake my kingdom, that I may receive this great joy."

Mahal Kita,
Elder and Sister Whiting

Jeepney of the Week ;)

A wonderful reunion. Elder and Sister Armstrong, Elder and Sister Whiting

American Cemetery Memorial to the Missing

A mural of the battle of the Solomon Islands.  Every battle in the Pacific is represented by these murals

More names of the Missing who
"Lie in graves known only to God"

At the American Cemetery in Manila
L-R: Sister Smith from Georgia, Sisters Armstrong, Whiting, Kasteller,
 Elder Armstrong (no relation) from Idaho, and Elder Armstrong

The road to Pisaponga

Caribaou in their harnesses

Members  of the Burgos Branch and Pisapanga investigators.  The chief is in the green t-shirt, the Branch President
 and one of his counselors are in front with Elder Bartolome on the left and Elder Sam on the right. This is about
half of the group that was there.

Elder Whiting on the motorbike going to the bridge

L-R:  Elder Sam, Elder and Sister Whiting, Brother Ramos of the
 branch presidency, the Chief, a member of the Burgos Branch, Elder Bartolome