What a week it has been!

Kumusta Family?
I cannot believe what a long week and a half it has been since I last wrote home. Saturday night I just got off the phone with Elder Poulsen (from Bountiful as well!) he is out District Leader and was checking up on our day, then our Zone Leaders called to do some coordination and confirm our meetings that next day. When I got off the phone with them I called an investigator and had just put down the phone when President Jones called. What a night!!! He told us that he got our presidents letters and wanted to more fully explain how we were to work with Elder Adams and Elder Hunter, we were to meet over lunch on Tuesday. What an awesome President!!
Well on our way to go to the restaurant we stopped by to see a former investigator, well they were not home and it was a call pad button thing, our FI was in E and randomly I found myself pushing H. Well a man in his late 20's named Rich came out and talked to us and I invited him to learn more, we set up a time to return that night and went to lunch. President told me that he has prayed hard about it and that he feels that I am in the MLM for the Filipino people that need to hear the gospel. Wow. I guess this would be my niche and it is opening up to me bit by bit. We went back to Rich's that night and he was very interested in our message, it was more like a gospel conversation than a lesson and we left with a soft baptismal commitment. He also loves to flyfish so we had a fun conversation about that. We are preparing to pass him to the Elders this week, I found out that Elder Adams is an avid fly fisher from Idaho, that commonality should help the transition. Also President had us go on splits after District meeting, it was Elder Adams, Elder Poulsen and I, then Elder Hunter, Elder Davis and Sister Wright. We did an hour blitz of CMU campus so that we could learn how to personal contact and what is where on this campus. I learned so much and had a so much fun learning from these Elders, I grew a lot in that short hour. There is nothing like learning from the pro's Elder Adams has worked on college campus' for 9 months of his mission so he is very used to walking up to people and talking to them. Sister Wright and I agree that it helped both of us understand what we are doing here on campus, our first time doing it alone went really well we flowed back and forth allowing each other to speak yet both working as one. It was awesome!!!
We had dinner with the Hammer family this past week as well, most of them are out at BYU, which is awesome. They were asking for the brief life story and mine ended up the extended version but they all fly fish and the Brother Hammer and his son Adam both studied Exercise Science while at BYU and there was a lot to talk about. Sister Hammer also made me a special dinner casserole in its own tiny dish so that I could eat with everyone else. This ward is just amazing, I am astounded by how many professors we have living in our ward.
Also I have been able to meet with and talk with the 4 different families in our ward that speak Tagalog. It feels so good to use it again, but it takes me a lot longer to respond and understand what they are saying. That makes me a little sad, it just means that I need more time around them talking to them listening to them, which can be painful at times but it will be worth it to get my skills back to where they were or even better. Sister Wright is still progressing well in her Tagalog lessons, we are learning how to bear short testimonies in Tagalog at the moment.
We went up to Petoskey this weekend. We had beautiful weather on Friday for our trainings and it rained on Saturday for our games. Well it was a miracle that the rain stopped while we were out playing and once we were done it started back up. The faith of 70+ missionaries was evident with that. I really loved these trainings, we are finally using the 8 fundamentals of PMG that we started to use in the PQCM last fall, there is power in these principles and the way we practice teaching. What happens is one companionship teaches one member of the other companionship and the one that is not being taught evaluates. I used to be uncomfortable with this in the Philippines like all they would correct was my Tagalog but this time we really got into the lessons and while teaching a real investigators concerns revelation is received. I left that meeting to excited to go work it was amazing. Oh at the lunch appointment President looked at me and told me that I was the one driving the entire weekend. Woot for me driving. I really appreciated that, we also drove up the Caro sisters, that was interesting. Sister King has a sister that is assigned to serve in Medford Oregon right now. We had 6 sisters sleeping in Gaylord for the night, I somehow got the small love seat and didn't sleep much. With all of the talking and moving around of other sisters I just gave up sleeping and did a lot of thinking. I am also glad that we rarely have that many sisters in one place at a time the emotions are just way too high for me. I did have a chance to talk with Sister Miner a lot, we did some crying and laughing. It is odd how I am the youngest in this mission yet I still have the tendency to play counselor and mentor and lead these sisters.
We got new mattresses this week, that was a big bonus, I went from a very comfortable mattress that left me smelling like mold so one that I can feel just about every spring but is not moldy. I am just glad that I no longer have to smell that horrible moldy smell all over me and that I at least have a mattress to sleep on.
While we have been sitting here we have had 3 phone calls one returned letter and 2 cancelled appointments for today. We even had a YSA coming for those appointments. Sigh. Agency and the holiday weekend are not good combinations while serving a mission. It is starting to warm up, yesterday it was almost 90's, I keep having all of these Philippines flashbacks, it is weird to describe but a lot of the things that I had forgotten are coming back with this heat and humidity. Needless to say we have started to sing as we walk (Sister Wright does as well) just to keep our minds occupied. I am grateful that I don't mind the heat anymore, Sister Wright was not having fun yesterday and it honestly felt good to me. I am so weird.
I know that this gospel is true and that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ all things are made right. I know that this work is hard because salvation is not cheap or easy. I am so grateful to be out here serving the Lord and helping others understand this gospel. I pray for you all daily and know that you are being watched over.
Mahal ko po kayo.
Sister-Rebecca Jensen