Dear Family,
Best things first:
On Saturday, June 19th, Brother Rueben Meliton Ayeras was baptized. For a week now he's been telling us that nothing is going to get in the way of his baptism or becoming faithful to the church. His testimony was short and sure, he said that he knew the church was true, that he'd be faithful all his life, and that he'd do everything in his power to influence his family to become active in the church. His wife is a long time member and is overjoyed at the conversion of her husband. It really is a moving conversion, Sister Ayeras' prayers for her husband have finally been answered. The branch council is very aware of Brother Ayeras and so many are willing to visit and fellowship. I'm really impressed with this branch, both the effeciency of the meetings and how things get carried out. Before the baptism, we were getting all the last-minute things ready, and printing programs when Sister Ayeras exclaimed: "Elders! The couple missionaries are here!" At the same time I heard President Puzey's voice in the lobby. Boy were we surprised! President and Sister Puzey joined in our picture taking with the ward members and then President Puzey presided at the baptism and gave some remarks. The branch members were very, very excited that the Puzeys were there. The Puzeys came back from Cebu this week where they spent time with President Monson, Eyering, Bishop Burton, and the new Cebu CIty Philippines Temple president. He gave a powerful witness that we have a living prophet, and on Sunday the branch president said that in President Puzey he'd seen a true love for the members of the church. Very uplifting experience.
A family we are teaching, the Patricio family, came to two hours of church yesterday, to everyone's excitement. They also have many willing to fellowship them. I'm surprised because this family is so eager to listen and to read and learn about the church. They have a lot of questions but that's a good thing and the lessons have been very spiritual. Hopefully they'll be baptized this July. They have one daughter that is 3 years old.
We taught 28 lessons all together this week, 20 with member, 1 other lesson, and 7 to less actives/new members. We felt good about it considering we had zone conference and a baptism. My companion is really good at talking to people -- trike drivers, shop owners, anybody and it seems like we always have people to teach. Our area is very large and we do a lot of walking, but it's just fields as far as the eye can see. Mangoes and rice, corn and sugar cane. And in this kind of farming community. . .
Everyone has a Water Buffalo! This one is our landlords, and it's also our lawn mower! No joke. That's in front of our house, and there are two white, Filipino cows working on the grass as well from time to time. Why waste the grass by mowing it (chopping it down with a machete)? That's good Calabaw feed.
Okay, on to the other things that happened this week:
Everyone and their dog has a dog here in the Philippines. There are so many! The best thing about dogs is that if they are healthy, when they get fat you can eat em' as well. They serve two purposes. I've learned that most of the time, these dog's bark is worse than their bite -- even the most vicious looking ones dissapear when you stoop to pick up a rock. I've been scared a few times when barking dog's will bump their noses against our legs as we walk past. Last night we taught the Patricio family. Their house is way out in the fields, where there are clusters of houses every so often as you cross fields and through orchards. Last night when we finished it was 8 o'clock, and very dark. We decided that for our last appointment, we'd take a different route in order to swing by a members house, a young man that lives near the Patricios and helped us teach the lesson. There were 5 of us, and I was the last one. I had my umbrella in hand because it had rained earlier. Only Elder Paler had a flash-light, and he was up at the front. There were a lot of dogs as we entered the group of houses around this particular member's home. I'm used to them raising a racket and running up around us, teeth bared, as we walk by, so I just kept walking. Of course the thought that this time you might get bit is always at the back of your mind, there's nothing to do but pray . . . I guess this time one of the "angels round about" let down his gaurd and a dog got through and got a good chomp on my left calf. ARAY! (in other words, ouch). You can tell uncle Bryan that my shout of ARAY was a model of manliness in pitch and intensity.
When we got to the member's home, we discovered that I had 3 neat teeth puncture marks in my leg, bleeding. The best part of the story is the reactions of my companions. Suddenly everyone was a doctor with medical remedies for me. "Don't wash it! Hang on, who's going to suck the blood out of it? Have we got any garlic to put on that?" I wasn't about to let anybody try and suck rabies viruses out of my leg, so I told them to hang on a sec while I texted Sister Puzey. Sister Puzey called right away and the first thing she said was not to let anybody suck me and not to put garlic on it. I guess she's heard a lot of the "witch doctor" tricks as well. We made arrangements to find a clinic offering shots tomorrow, because there were about 5 dogs in a group still barking at us, all with different owners and in the darkness I had no way of knowing which one was to blame. Hopefully we'd observe the scoundrel for 10 days to see if he went crazy or what, but that seemed to be out of the question. So, the safe route is 5 rabies shots. As I hung up the phone they asked me what I was going to do. I told them I was going to go home, wash the wound good with soap, and get shots tomorrow. To my surprise, they all, my companion included, gave me a really hard time. According to superstition, if it gets wet it will hurry the "poison" to my brain, and they said that the shots were good but I HAD to have it sucked first. They said they knew are really good sucker, he had high tech tools, in fact, he used a goat horn to suck the blood out. Yeah. . . thanks for the help. . .
In the end we caught a ride home where I cleaned it (Yes, I got it wet) and earlier today we traveled to Tarlac to get the first in a four shot series. It took almost the whole day becuase we were led to the wrong hospital and just had a hard time getting to the right place and right people, for the right price. Hospitals are really different here, especially public ones, but that's another story. On the 24th I'll get another shot, and on the 28th and July 21st.
So it's been a full week! But it sounds like your week was full as well.
Good news! I heard this week from the Elders in Capas, Tarlac that Noel Bosotros is about to leave on his mission, and that the Zamora family is still active and preparing to go to the temple. The Elders there are relatively new to the area, so it was good to see their faces light up when I asked about the Zamora family and say: "Yeah, they're a great family!" They really are, but the best news is this: Sister Zamora is expecting! Their 7 year old son passed away, leaving them with one child, but now they are very excited to be blessed with another. I am happy for them, and look forward to writing them a letter next week. I think their conversion will impact their children and many others. The mission is great!
Hope you enjoy the pictures -- yes, I've got the new Liahonas and I don't think I need very much in the way of packages yet. My shoes are showing a little wear and tear. Oh, if you look in the water-buffalo picture, that's one of the 5 shirts I had made here. Those five shirts cost me less than 15 dollars all together. I hope I answered all the questions, I feel like I forgot something. Thanks for all the love, Dad! Happy Father's Day! I'll write a letter, hope you have a great week.
Love ya'll lots!
Love, Elder Loren Peck
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