Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Pictures of Jackie in the Philippines





Jacksons Letter...January 28th

Jacksons email...January 28th

Answering Questions!!
1.The chicken intestines were.... SO good!! haha they look so gross and sound gross but they are so delicious!! They have this nice smokey flavor to them and they put this way good sauce stuff on them and it makes it so masarap!!(delicious)
2. HAHAHA the first picture is me with a lighter and some bug spray, and one night I decided to put the two together and make a nice little flamethrower and then to have elder Guard take pictures of me while doing it!
3.SEE EMAIL
4.YES, but i did not get the call this week): they just called elders who were older in the mission(Elder Murdock) and they have 20 missionary's there but my mission president says I will go there just nobody knows when I will go there, I hope soon, I was so jealous to hear the missionary's that were going back!! And the 20 are going back tomorrow!! and the temple is the Manila temple also let me know who what you think of Pam haha i am really curious!!

That sucks that everyone has been sick, I guess one thing good about the warm climate of the Philippines is that there isnt really a cold or flu season haha, I hope everyone can heal quickly!! Thats crazy that people have already started walking through the house!! How long has it been on the market?? How much are you selling it for!! I wanna see pictures of the houses you are looking at, cause you need my approval to right?! I will be living in it for a short time, and maybe me and court will just live there after we are married haha(; I love the fall and the opportunity which it gives us, because with out it then we wouldn't be here and we wouldn't have gotten this opportunity to come to earth and gain all of the experiences which we have, the fall of Adam has been one of the greatest blessing we have been given! Any news on them Dodgers?? Are they being projected to win the world series?? Doesn't spring training start in the last week of Feb?! Freak thats crazy I miss baseball haha. I have not yet received the package, but I am hoping that I will get it soon!! 



This week was a pretty solid week for me we taught a lot of lessons this week which is really good, teaching is soooo much better than trackting or OYMing!! On Thursday we taught 2 new investigators who are 9 year old kids who are really smart and always do what we ask and always do their assignments we give them! Elder Guard and I love teaching these little kids cause its so awesome having kids willing to learn and apply the gospel in their lives!!(: Also that day we went to a LA member who doesn't even care about anything we are teaching him and its really sad to see someone that doesn't give a crap about any thing and someone who is so lazy and wont even attempt to go back to church or read his scriptures!! Then on Tuesday we went and taught 2 more inv back to back and we taught really good lessons to both of them and they both seem really interested so we will be hopefully giving them a baptismal date soon so we are really excited for these two INV! Also we had two lessons and active members, because we are trying to get as many referrals as possible and we haven't really been succeeding at that so elder Guard and I came up with the idea to make a member visit calendar and then we would go to their house and show them the Work Of Salvation DVDs and then ask them to find someone who is willing to hear the gospel and we hopefully will get referrals out of that! So we had two of these in one night!! And the families we went to seemed really excited and willing to share the gospel with coworkers, friends, and family members!! So we were really stoked to have people in our ward willing to share!! and give us referrals too!!(: Sunday was again another very good day for us!! First off we got a lot of our Inv and LA to come to church!! It was our best week for people attending church for us!! I was so happy when we were at church and we kept seeing all of them come in the door, I literally got a huge smile on my face and was just ecstatic that they had the desire to come to church and to also return to church!! But after church we taught the two 9 year old INV right at the church with their grandma, it was a really good lesson, and it was especially good to have their grandma there who is an active member who could be there to help them and to also testify of truths so it was just a solid lesson!! Then after church we went home and we had chicken adoboe which is my favorite food ever!!  after we ate we did our studies and then we went out and taught our most progressing INV and we taught her about the Plan of Salvation and I just love teaching this because people find there sense of belonging in this world and they also find out where they go after this, It was such a awesome lesson and she understood it so well!! Then it came down for the part for me to extend to Bap invitation to her(this would be the second time) and I delivered it so well and she told us that she believed it was all true!! But she said she cannot do it right now cause she needs to talk to her family first and make sure that they approve of it! I really hope she can do it soon so that I will be able to get a baptism before I get transferred or something so we are constantly praying for her that she will talk with her family!!! And then today we went and played basketball with our whole zone like we do every pday!! Its so much fun playing with these elders! There are some that could honestly play in college if they wanted too!! Its crazy haha!! I love you all so much and love hearing from you all!! I hope all is well wherever you are in this beautiful world which the lord has given us!! Have an awesome week!!

With love from the Philippines;

Elder Howell

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Yummy Chicken Intestines..No wonder he has lost about 15 pounds...YUCK!




 Here are some pictures we also received last night.  I don't know what he is doing with the fire??




Mom it felt just like the "Saratov Approach" but real life to me!

Here is Jacksons letter we received last night.  It was very unsettling to me as his mom.  His dad says he will be fine!  I have to know that he is being watched over and prayed for!


Hello family and loved ones!! What another interesting week here in the Philippines!! 
  We had a normal day on Monday, nothing to spectacular happened But we OYM alot because it is our new Zone goal to OYM 10 people a day and to give out at least one Book Of Mormon a day, so thats what a lot of this day consisted of was OYMs and Trackting. Also we had a few lessens towards the end of the day. But nothing to special happened on Monday, just a regular non  pday monday haha

So Tuesday was a very very interesting day ton so the least hahaha!! So I am going to skip ahead to around like 6oclock in the evening, Elder Guard and I were going to teach one of our LA that we usually go to a few times a week, but her husband is usually always gone so we can never really teach here so we planned a lesson but also kind of just planned to stop by and see how her and her family were doing. So we go up to her house(which isnt really a house more of a tin roof shack with concrete walls) And we were talking to here outside cause we cannot go in unless there is someone thats a male who is 18 or older so we were just asking her how she was doing and then all of a sudden out of nowhere this 70 year old man comes out from the shadows and is just smoking a cig and staring out us so I look at his and said "kumusta"(hello how are you) and he walked up closer to come and talk to us and as he got closer I noticed he had no teeth and as he started talking I also noticed he had half a tongue!! So just picture a 70 man with no teeth basically no tongue and a cig in his mouth, So elder Guard is talking to him asking him if he would like to join us so we can teach our LA so he says sure and the LA says that we can, so we go inside to teach this lesson. And the whole time we are teaching her elder Guard and I are on this Couch and he is sitting on the floor, and while elder Guard is teaching her, he is rubbing my leg and just doing a bunch of weird things like that. Also the whole time elder Guard is teaching he keeps interrupting us and asking us if we want some alcohol or some smokes and we were like Tatay(old man) its bawal(forbidden) but he didnt care he just kept on asking while we were teaching, also in the middle of the lesson he stands up and lights up a cig in the middle of this families house!!! Like what in the world is going on in this guys mind?!?! And so he is just chillen in the corner smoking it up then eventually he comes back and sits on the couch right next to me and puts his arm around me with his cig in his hand and he is basically cuddling with me while smoking in my face and the LA family was weirded out and they also thought that it was pretty funny so they were all laughing. And keep in mind this is all happening while we are "trying" to teach this family. So the lesson goes on and we are about to finish and he interupts again!! This time he was like lets go i want you to meet my wife! And we were like just a second we are almost done, so we continue with the lesson and again he says the same thing come on lets go i want to show you my wife!! So this time we were like chill Tatay we are almost done just 5 more minutes and the family also tells him to just chill. So we eventually finish this lesson and we were saying the closing prayer, and while we were kneeling on the floor saying the prayer I left my bag on the couch and the whole time this guy was going through my bag!!! And I was watching him the whole time out of the corner of my eye! So as soon as we finished praying i went and pried my bag from his hands!! So we are leaving the house and he was just so excited to show us to his wife she he grabbed elder Guard by the hand and was holding his hand the whole time we were walking to his house!! So we get to his house and we come to this room that looks like a broken down house with a bunch of ruble and bricks and broken glass and prob a dead body in there! So we go through this room to get to this old sketchy stairs that creek when you walk on them like in a haunted house! So we walk up these stairs and we are like what are we getting our selfs into?!? So we go up and its actually a really nice house(for the area) it had nice couches, a ref, a nice ish tv. So elder Guard and I were way surprised so we go and we are just sitting down and he gets up and he goes and checks to make sure that all the doors in the house were locked... But we didnt really think any thing of it. So we are just chillen and he is giving us food and drinks and were just chillen there with this guy, and while we are sitting there he asks a really random question.. He was like do you guys wanna shower? and we were like no.. We will do that at our house. Weird question right?? But we just shake it off, so we are just sitting here eating some food, and then he decides to take off his shirt and light up a smoke at the same time! And this whole time we were at his house we were like hey we have an appointment we need to go and he just was like No! stay! so we were a little worried to leave! So he kept going down these stairs to get us more and more food, and after he took off his shirt he went down stairs to get get some water for us, so while he was downstairs elder Guard and I were like how are we going to get out of here?! Should we just leave or what?! But we didnt know what to do, so this bro was coming back up the stairs and he was carrying a pitcher of water, and when he was coming up we couldnt see his full body, only his torso, which we knew that his shirt was off, so he was walking up the stairs and when he came back where we were he was BUTT NAKED!!! he wasnt wearing an ounce of clothes!!! It was the nastiest thing in the world a 70 man butt naked right in front of my face!! I was in complete shock when it happened too!! So elder Guard asked him hey are you going to shower or something?... and he said no.. so we both got way scared at this point!! And he turned around to go back down stairs to get something and the moment he turned the corner downstairs elder Guard and I booked it out of his house and ran down the street, we ran and ran and ran!! We were so scared!! I was so scared and so scarred that I threw up!! Like they do in movies!! It was the scariest moment of my life!! I honestly thought I was going to get raped that day!! And it still haunts me to this day!!

The rest of the week was just a normal day for us we committed our Inv to a bap date on Feb 8,2014 so we are both hoping that he will continue following the WoW!! Also I could be leaving the QCNM sooner than expected! They are bringing missionarys back to Tacloban Jan 28th!! But I am not sure if I will be one to go then or not! I guess only time will tell! Also we have 2 new Inv who are 9 year old kids are really smart with like the gospel and stuff so we love teaching them!! Also my Tagalog is still struggling for those of you who want to know but i speak what I know when I can! Also my pneumonia is gone!! What a relief for my mother hahaha! But thanks to everyone for keeping me in your prayers while I was sick, and the way I got it was we live in a very highly polluted area so it was just my body acclimatizing to the humidity and also the dirty nasty air that is here! But i really hope I can go to Tacloban on the 28th!! I really wanna go there cause thats the language I learned and i feel like they need me now more than ever!! But I am really happy to be here where I am with the companion I have!! I am loving every minute of it!! Me and some other elders who are from the Tacloban mission call it the "Motherland" so lets hope I get to go back to the motherland soon!! I love you all and thanks so much for all the love and support I get from you all!! Have and awesome day and week!!


Mom, with this new found info on Tacloban i need some money to buy some last minute items just in case I go there on the 28th, so could you let me know right when you get this? thanks love ya!!

Love Elder Howell

Monday, January 6, 2014

So far away..yet so close!  We love these two cute kids!
Here is Jacksons letter for the first week of the New Year!  He sounds great, but had no pictures because they came straight from playing basketball.  I guess the elbows are holding up!!


Hello!
This week was a pretty solid week cause me and elder Guard posted our best numbers this week, we are so happy all of our hard work is paying off! The numbers we got arent that good for any other area but for us and opening up and area they are pretty good, so we were pretty stoked about it! Also one of our Inv we gave here a Bap date, she said no, but there is a twist she says not now cause she wants to tell her family(who are devoted Catholics)about her becoming LDS, but she said within the near future she will be baptized, I just hope it happens while I am still here, cause she is an awesome Inv the ones that you would find in a training manual for a missionary so its been really good teaching here! Another problem with here is her boyfriend is a member and an RM, so you would think oh good example right? No he is a rebellious member who is returning back to church and isn't a good influence on her so that kind of sucks! No new info on Tacloban missionary's but like i have said before January is the month that i hear they will start taking missionary there. The language is coming along okay, I can understand a lot more than I can say so there is still a language barrier but at least I can understand what they are saying for the most part! But elder Guard is helping me a ton! American food, like instant mashed potatoes, mac and cheese 5 pairs of mesh G's Doritos, and any other snack foods you can think of ahhaha! I want pics from you guys as well I love seeing the family!! Yeah I am the same way here, like they LOVE american music here so they play songs I know and they always take me back to old memories. I miss being at home and with the family, Its weird I have almost been out for another month! It is crazy how fast it is already going!! I Love getting familys emails they make me miss the little things about home! But I know that these people need me here and I am ready to Endure this long journey ahead of me but I am ready to enjoy it as well, I already love it here so much and no way want to leave, so I am ready to take the "bull by the horns" cause if i do i know i will be blessed my family will be blessed and also my own future family will be blessed! I love all of you so much and I have really gained a testimony of the truthfulness of this gospel and how much it can bless peoples lives and i love testifying of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, all the people we teach know how much i believe they are true!

Remember there are always opportunity for us as members to be missionary's! Take on this task and do all that you can to bring as many people unto Jesus Christ!

I love you all and hope you have an amazing week and day!!

Elder Howell

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Jack with a family at Christmas!



Happy New Year...2014

Here is Jackson's letter we got New Years Eve

Hello fam!! It was so good to hear from you and see all of your faces!!(: It looks like you all had fun snowboarding/skiing? I was pretty jealous when I got the pictures! I miss doing things with the fam and also I miss snowboarding!! But they don't have snow here so i cannot really go and do that! haha oh well! How are you guys doing? What is everyone doing for new years?! Its absolutely crazy here!! You wouldn't believe how nuts people go over new years and how many fireworks people use!! It was pretty awesome tho!! But let me know how you guys are doing!! 

But my week has been pretty solid, the work wasn't that great during the start of the week cause of Christmas Eve,Christmas,and Christmas calls, but at the end of the week our work really started to pick up! Also this weeks work is going solid so far! We have already beat our numbers from last week and its only Wednesday!! We have this one Investigator who lives right next door to us who has been really receptive to our message and seems accepting of it and she told me and Elder Guard that she already considers us family, its so nice to know that I have family here and I have a family back home as well!  So me and elder Guard are pretty stoked about that!! Also we have 3 solid Inv who will have Bap dates hopefully by the end of the week! So we are really excited about that!! But I really love this place, and I love the people. Its already been such a humbling experience and I have only been here for a month and a half! But I am still curious how much longer I am going to be here cause President Sperry told me January as well but he doesn't know how many missionary's are are leaving and he doesn't know who yet either so nobody really knows exactly when people are leaving or staying, but I really want to go back to Tacloban cause that's where I was originally assigned and also I miss my comps from there and want to see them really bad especially elder Oakes. But I am going to enjoy my time here while I am in QCNM and while I am with Elder Guard cause we love our area and we love being comps! Its crazy that I have already been here for 1 transfer!! 15 more to go haha, but I excited to serve and know i am here for a reason! I love getting your emails they make me so happy and i get so inspired when I read them! Love and miss you all!!

What are your plans for New Years tan and ty? Are you going to party party? haha How was snowboarding and skiing? how did you do tanner? Were you struggling and being A-Gone on the Mtn? haha Ty how was your new board? The pics looked way dope! and me and elder Guard said that you looked way legit with your long hair and all of your snowboarding gear! I am surprised a 15 year old want hitting on you, thats usually the type that digs the dew haha just kidding! What are you doing tan to get ready for baseball? are you practicing? Just work your butt off and you will be rewarded I promise! Let me know how you two are doing love and miss ya so much, I really miss playing wiffle ball in the back yard with our intense 3 inning games and the tournaments we would do that usually ended in a fight haha but I miss that, I miss that a lot!

I loved hearing from you this week and cannot wait to hear from you all again love you all so much!  

Love Elder Howell