Sister Varias, Sister Mendoza, ME, Sister Canar.
Kamusta mo!? Kamusta ang inyong semana? (How is your guys' week?) Whelp.
Transfer day came and went, and I am now in my new area, Carmen, Cebu with my new companion Sister Canar! My area is kind of weird. It's a mix of the city and my 1st area- lots of hills/trees. It's a pretty cool area, but it definitely needs some help. Well, here's my week so far!
On August 12th, Wednesday, I had P-day with Sister Sumiran in Valencia and then we went back to her house and everyone packed their bags and got ready to travel to Tagbilaran to spend the night with the sisters in Tagbilaran. Sister Sumiran, Sister Mangompit, Sister Bolo and I were traveling to Tagbilaran, so there was a ton of luggage. So instead of taking a bus, the Bishop of Sister Bolo's ward gave us a ride in his big truck, and we all just packed our bags in the back and rode all the way to Tagbilaran like that. It was such a fun ride! It was awesome being able to look up at the stars and just feel the breeze. After about 2 hours of travel, we finally made it to Tagbilaran and grabbed our bags and took some little relas over to the Tagbilaran sister's house and spent the night because the next day, some of us had to wake up early and take a ship to Cebu island (which is so tiring).
On August 13th, Thursday, I woke up pretty early and got ready to travel to Cebu island. I had to say goodbye to all of the sisters staying behind, (Sister Nalawas, Sister Bolo, Sister Sumiran) and I took a rela over to the port and met more missionaries leaving with me and dropping off their previous companions. It was sad saying 'goodbye' to Elder Mendoza and Elder Conolly from Bohol as well, but that's part of the missionary life. You have to go from area to area and have a new companion...learn more; but I got to travel with Elder Robanakadavu which was good!
After travelling to Cebu island, we all grabbed our bags and took a car over to the mission office to meet our new companions. At the mission office I got to see Sister Tauteoli, Sister Tatarata-Maheahea, and Sister Lagan again! It was so awesome being able to see them again! I hadn't seen Sister Tauteoli and Sister Tatarata-Maheahea in about 5 months, and my trainer, Sister Lagan in about 2 months. When Sister Tauteoli and Sister Lagan saw me, they just ran over and gave me a hug and we all just cried like babies; I missed them all so much. I'm grateful for that small moment of being able to see them once again, especially Sister Lagan since she goes home this year in September!
After meeting my old companions, I then went over and met my new companion, Sister Canar. She is from Manila, Tagalog speaking (all of my companions so far have been Tagalog, so I've been learning that language too), and super loud and funny. After taking pictures and socializing with everyone, Sister Canar and I got in a car and traveled to Danao, which is where we're living for now. Sister Canar said that something was wrong with our contract for the apartment, so the previous sisters moved out and have been living with the Danao sisters for now. It's been fun living with other sisters and getting to know them, every day is a new adventure with them. At the same time it's very tiring because Sister Canar and I have to travel back and forth from Danao to Carmen (which takes about 30 minutes there and back). We have to do that every day so it can get pretty tiring. But our zone leaders told us that by the end of this week we'll get our own apartment. It'll be close to our area which is good, but sad we'll have to say goodbye to the sisters we've become really close with lately. This day was pretty tiring. I dropped my bags off and then Sister Canar and I traveled to Carmen and started working. Kapoy kaajo ko kanunay! (I am always really tired).
On August 14th, Friday, my zone had a CSP in Danao. It was a lot of fun, but SO HOT! I forgot to put on sunscreen, so guess what I got? A really bad sunburn . . . which eventually turned into a tan. It was actually the first sunburn I've gotten since I've been here, which is very surprising. For the CSP, we dug this hole and put up a fence made of tin. The hard part about the CSP was the heat (of course), but also that we did it on a hill which was slanted and steep. So a lot of the missionaries almost fell every time they started walking. All in all, it was a fun CSP, especially with my new zone!
On Sunday, August 16th it was my first Sunday in my new area with my new companion. I got to meet all of the members. The President also wanted met to bare my testimony, which was scary. I'm still nervous getting in front of people and speaking Bisaya. But the members are really nice and patient with me. They understand that even though this is my 2nd area, it's still hard for me to understand everything and speak the language. But I know that this area will really, really help me to grow. It's kind of a 'make it or break it' area for me. I know that the Lord sent me to Carmen for a reason, I just need to find that reason and act on it.
So far this week has been crazy. I'm a little nervous about a new area, new members, learning the language more, but I know that with the Lord, everything is possible.
I love you all and hope you have an awesome week!
Amping kanunay! (Take care always)
Love,
Sister Johnson