BASICALLY AT A NEW HAPPINESS LEVEL

hi mama

oh man,  a lot has been going on by the sounds of it. as long as no ones dead it'll just be a good story + scars someday. pain is temporary, stories are foreve.

super proud of you mom for yet again going to school!! i hope you enjoy it.  i know you will kill it and it will be a blessing in your life one day. i talk about you and dad quite a bit over here, super proud of you two for overcoming challenges and staying strong in the faith. your influence mom has made me who i am.  hymn 309.

uhm some random funny things this week. saw a random naked 9 y/o back flip into this strangely warm river. a kid peed on my shoes. and the sunsets have been unbeatable this week, for like 30 mins the whole world around me was a nice bright orange. i don't think ill ever get sick of the beauty and my surroundings. when i'm discouraged i just look around and get super hyped!!! after another crazy scrub sesh today, the apartment is feeling like home. i'm getting real comfortable here and more efficient at even the nastiest tasks!! i'm becoming more flilipino each day and the language is starting to improve!!

on tuesday i'm heading back to Cauayan for some follow up training and i'm super excited. i remembered my first day and i forget to tell you about it. so the Cauayan missionaries woke at 420 and left Manilla MTC at 530 for the airport. we chilled in airport for like 3 hours, taught a rando. then caught a 30 minute flight that landed in the middle of nowhere. aka my mission. super hyped, crazy small and dainty airport. then drove to mission home. got acquainted with the mission crew and interviewed with mission prez and wife.  basiclly went like this. (oh and the whole time i wanted to try to impress prez so he would send me to bambang bc i heard bambang is hard and mountianous, the dream)

Prez: "not much of an interview bc we met in provo already, do you feel ready?"

me: "yeah i guess (didn't want to sound cocky)"

Prez:  "can i trust you?"

me: "yeah!"

from that interview till announcement of areas and comps, i could not get bambang out of my head. then he announced i'll be going to bambang!!! so hyped, couldn't help but smile very big. then hopped in a rando van for a 6 hour drive to my apartment. got to my apartment, freaked out a bit and now i'm here. this tuesday and wednesday i have 6 hour drives ahead of me.

this week i went on splits twice!!! lead my area which was fun. i love splits so much, great guys here. super fun.

2 huge blessings this week. in shack church i met a woman who will be living in this area with family for the next 6 months (likely the duration i'll be here). she speaks english!!! shes= lived in london and san diago and loves the temple. throughout my additional studies i have come to an understanding how much greater unity and temple attendance will be for this lovely branch. she went to the temple every week in CA and after becoming best friends with her we started talking about the huge blessings of the temple. nobody can really afford to go the temple here but she said she is going to try to get the relief society to go once a month!!! she's pretty wealthy by the looks of it and i cant even tell you the miracle this is. also she wants to get the branch together for a family home evening!!! she wants to work closely with my special and i.  she is doing some of the only, yet necessary, things that me as a missionary can not do. words cant even explain my excitement. and she's acting immediately. and she is a great person to talk to!!!

blessing 2: were getting bikes next week!!!!! 2nd area of like 100 in the mission to get bikes. missionaries on bikes is unheard of down here, its going to be such a thrill ride!!!! not to mention about half my money goes towards daily travel so more money for treats!!!

basicaly i'm at a new happiness level and things are going fantasticly. mad hyped. the works going great and things are turning up.

hey mom could you send me Tims MTC address and joels email adress?? thanks!!

also a package is pretty doable and if you have the time i would like some special things from home:

candy would be cool,
my retainer would be nice for my smile so i can marry quick and get you grandchildren asap
a photo book of classic church/scripture art. the smaller the better
if you could load up a usb with like a million photos that would be amazing. i can look at it in the apartment. just like pics from all my adventures, my beloved family, and friends etc.
oh my green touque thats in my bin
some little canadian flags
dads pocket hymn book with his and danny's mission addresses, i wish i had that like everyday
and a set of tiny pocket scrips for my comp. too expensive to get here and so appreciated in the field.

i kinda hate asking so much of you but these would help a  bit over here. if its too much work i understand and hope i'm not too much of a bother!!!!

love you so much mom and cant wait to talk to you at christmas and hug you in 2018.

i understand it was your birthday month and don't worry i didnt forget!! wish i could get you a gift.... but your gift will be i will work extra hard for this you week. i cant seem to stop thinking about you an the amazing woman you are mom. HBD!!  keep changing  lives.

i love you so much,
your baby,
elder kearl

HAPPY IN THE HERE AND NOW

HEY MOM! 

the weeks are getting better because im letting myself be happier. i read the talk "Of Regrets and Resolutions" by Dieter F. Uchtdorf. i recommend any living person who wants a happy life to read that. pretty much just reminded me that i didn’t come on a mission to be excited to go home and that i’m on my mission right now so enjoy it and find the beauty in the day. if your still worrying about me, nows a good time to stop. i’m doing great. 

so since ive been out i’ve extended 2 invitations to be baptized sa tagalog and both said yes!! they both seem pretty promising but there are trials there so stay posted. i’ve really fallen in love w the Collantes, the 199 yearold couple who own the shack where church is held. i gave Bro Collantes a blessing and right before we left he broke down in tears saying how much he loves the priesthood. and he’s a hoot in sunday school, he will make a comment and then get really into it, he will even stand up and get louder. man he loves the church. never fails to mention the importance of prayer and everytime he offers one he’s a little teary, an example to me. he is so frail and old but loves this church, just look at his face in the pic. also missing a toe. 

the day to day is getting more natural and im starting to feel more at home. we wake (6:30), jog, then 100 pushups, then bicep kearls, then i cook breakfast/chill. personal study (8), companion (9), language, (10), lunch at like 11 and we are typically out the door by 12:30. all day we run around to our appointments (most flake on us) and so we do some contacting and at 7 we return for dinnner and unwind. we return early bc of the this tiny farm town. everyone goes to bed at like 8 and wakes up way early and has like a 2 hour nap from 12-2. hard to teach then, kinda frustrating. oh and since i’m in a rain forest you can probably guess there is plenty of rain. which makes everyhting nice and cool. one night i was cold. good times. i wish i could gopro a day in the life to give you the full inside scoop bc its hard to explain the magic here.

i’ve been getting so hyped on the snacks here. such good treats everywhere i go, tons of like cooked food to buy and like candy in shops. i’ve been so into snacking here. also i’ve been hyped on my habits!! im actually jogging. wow. who am i?? i’m reading tons of cool church things (fav being "Teachings of Presidents of the Church).  i’ve been cleaning every inch of the apartment, i'm scrubbing so hard, every single surface you can see. any mom would be proud. one time i went into a dark crevesse w a flashlight in my mouth just scrubbing. i’ve been getting organized. and im taking an interest in cooking!!! im growing up mom (its about time). alma 56:47. you have taught me well. oh and record keeping i do hard. like journal and stuff. 

one day i went to put my foot in my shoe and felt something and there was a massive frog in there, super suspect. he was friendly tho. oh and some people have litterly thought i was harry styles! so thats funny. and people ask if i have a gf and i tell them yes to be safe or else maybe accidental marriage agreement.

i realized a mission is literaly just becoming as opposite of the natural man as possible. and thats so hard, but im excited to finally be fighting that handsome devil. mosiah 3:19.

if you ever get lonely you should start a "moms w boys on missions club" to help cope from crippling depression from losing your baby boy. ha. also apparently china and philippines might go to war. oh man what a gong show. 

lifes still going on for me way over here. it’s not that bad. still can’t understand what people say but i’m becoming better at talking!! the accents coming along. its funny ill ask them a question and then just nod and i hope it wasn’t false doctrine and keep going. Tagalogs killing me, but i got this. 

i’ve summited 2 summits so far and its been a thrill ride!! hopefully next time we see each other i will be ripped w muscles and trilingual (Llocano, Tagalog, English) 

much love,
your special boy

EMAIL FROM MISSION PRESIDENTS WIFE

Hi Julie, 

President Hiatt and I were prompted the other day to visit Elder Kearl and his trainer, Elder Briones and see how our new missionary is doing.

We are pleased to tell you something you probably already know...he is AWESOME!  He was so happy we came.  He is doing great.  His trainer is wonderful and they have what we call a 'model apartment'.  Mostly because of Elder Kearl's efforts to make the  home like his.  He showed us how he is cleaning and organizing each P-day.  He said every time he does this he feels more comfortable about his new home for at least 12 weeks.

We will schedule a time in the future to work with him.  IN the meantime, rest assured that is his adjusting well.  It takes about 6 weeks to really get over the homesickness, but he is so humble and teachable and willing to do all he can to be the best missionary he possible can.  We feel he will continue to be exactly obedient and look forward to having him in our mission for the next -now less than two years. 

To conclude we saw him in the MTC while we were there and had a delightful visit as we were able to meet with our missionaries who were there at the time.  They have all safely arrived and are doing well too.
     
Love you much and thank you for preparing such a wonderful missionary that can bless our life and the life of many in the Cauayan mission.

Have a great week.
Sister Hiatt

I FEEL LIKE A SOLDIER...IMPORTANT WORK TO DO

MOM!!
i’m a missionary. didn't set in till this week. ive been putting on that name tag for 63 days and just now it hits me. also today marks 2 months!!!! i thought for the longest time it was 3 months, man what a slap to the face. hopefully i can send more photos this time. 22 to more months to go....

all these mission calls are constantly getting me so hyped. we will have a tuscany ward young man on every continent w some exeptions. North America (joel), South America (jake, w honurable mention to dave), Asia (tim and i), Africa (seth), Europe (Ben and kyle.) all we need is connor or boston to get a call to the pacific islands or australia/new zealand and we are set!!!! also ben V in columbia. we need missionaries.

this area is pretty epic. good times this past week. i’ve been really into holding animals, ive managed to score pics holding; cats, kittens, puppys, chickens, ducks, a water buffalo. good times. theres like infinate dogs and cats and chickens here. also tons of weird cows, massive pigs and water buffalo. at shack church its hard to pay attention bc of the lack of tagalog on my end so i find myself looking through the bamboo walls at chickens and stuff, good times there. i often forget i’m the only white person in my area but i get reminded with the constant stares from just about everyone. oh we have a pet dog! not actually, but after every meal we throw our scraps outside to this dog and he is constantly on our porch so we became good buddies. i practice tagalog w him, his name is brownie. we are exploring new towns and going deeper into the mountains, getting me so hyped!! unreal beauty here which gets me excited. on thursday we will try to visit Banila which is an hour or so walk away into the boonies, cant wait!!

oh also, i truly am in asia. its super werid here and i cant explain it but im in this weird warehouse that has probably 500 vendor shops w anything you can name. so many items. the transportation is super fun. we go in motorcycles w a side car and i enjoy to hang out of the side car or the back of the motorcycle and take in the view. the lack of laws is a hoot too. weridest things down here. i see the canadian flag just about eveywhere which is cool. almost everyone has a relative in Toronto so i might have to stop by once i’m home. packages are super doable so maybe get into that if you want. tons of elders get them. use julie hess or the classic post. fedex and ups is way to expensive for you and me. also the atm isnt working and there is none in my area so that will be interesting. stay posted. i still find a chances to have fun, and see white people (once a week at district meeting) i did a splits in del norte and was able to bike!!! the best day of my life probably. met great people and interesting fruits that day. also went on a really neat cable suspension bridge thing, super springy.

the Shack church lifestyle is interesting. one of the most motivating things for me out here is the responsibilty i have for this branch. i spend any additional time in the apartment researching and studying on how to improve this branch. good times. this church really needs every body to go on missions. its hard to see this tiny branch of 30ish people meet under a tin roof, w very new and inexperienced leadership. the thing i miss the most from home is the dedicated leaders and strong churches we have back home. seth will have a very interesting experince w that in africa. i will probably be here 6 months and i am committed to make a difference here!! i know i can, i just have to figure it out. its also werid to hear chickens at church and for cats to run through sacrament meeting. i give a talk next sunday and i this will be a great oppourtunity to build the kingdom!!!

although these past 2 weeks have been the hardest and loneliest of my life, i feel determined to serve the Lord. i feel like a soldier everyday because i love this church so much and it is my responsibility to dedicate this challenging service to help build the kingdom that has meant so much to me and who helps other people around the world so much. 22 more months at times sounds incredibly discouraging but i got this. no need to worry about me. its going well, im adgusting and figuring it out. this work is more important than i ever thought back home and i am excited to work.

so hyped on the boys and hope everything is going well!!!! if you feel lonely just feed the missionaries, i think it will benefit both parties more then each other understand. member meals turn hard days into bearable days. things are picking up, im becoming less of a butt head. trying to make you and dad proud and serve these people.

              study hard, pray hard
              elder kurd

KEARL IS IN THE HOUSE

Some random person from the Philippines sent me this pic and caption. 

"Kearl is in the house....hello auntie don't worry Kearl is very fine here he is friendly many filipino like him....just because of her personality and he is confidently speak Filipino he is good....he said how are you he miss you so much"

FIRST AREA IN THE PHILIPPINES

oh it is so nice to write you!!! your update about dans wedding cheered my discourged soul right up!!! what a joyous occasion. i noticed Siegried right away and couldn't belevie it. glad the cabin is operating smoothly and see that caleb is killing it. what a kid. 

those mission calls are blowing me away!!! i deffs thought like europe for tim and USA for sethicka. unbeleviable. theres a girl from calgs (actually taber) going to zambia. english speaking which is nice. ive honestly been vibing on someone getting a Cauayan call but Tacloban is ok to...joke lang!!!! wow africa, good luck seth. about Tacloban, the MTC prez oh philippines mission prez'd there and im pretty sure its the highest baptizing mission in the world. double check that tho. Cebuan (pronouinced say-buwano) is interesting as well. thats so rad to have a Philli friend even tho we speak differnt tounges. 

so about the philippines MTC. super interesting and very nice. its brand new. filipino to white ratio being 20:1. pretty high masigla. you should hear the hymns. so loud. litterly all the flipinos go 100% hymn singing. probably bc of their rich history in kareoke. high masigla and good eats. manilla temple is rad but it closed before i went it. (side note: right now this lil filipino kid is sitting righ beside me and will not stop staring) ah the MTC prez, President Trask probly gave the most painfull devotionals ever given to man kind. one was scheduled for 2.5 hours which went a half hour over, another for 1.5 hours again half hour over and a third being and hour and half. those were all in a row as well. huge respect to the guy tho, he turned one of the lowest baptizing missions in the world into one of the highest. but 6.5 hours of devos in 3 days is excessive. guess he had alot to say. ultimatly great guy. made me miss the PROVO MTC.

oh when i left provo there were 3 missionaries coming in the the tagalog program but serving canada edmonton!!! how exciting!!!! also there was a tree there that smelt like orange cremesicle so i miss that a bit. but ever since that MTC the fight w the natural man has become alot easier. also heard from my harvard buddy that the MTC is harder than harvard. oh and idk why but everyone in the MTC just thinks they can beat box and sing, super strange. 

when i was in the Phillippines MTC i had the oppurtunity to proselatye in Manilla. oh man mom it was insane. the slums were like nothing ive seen before. super small and dingy and awfull sanitation. tons of naked kids and really poor people. Sean Freiberg would lose his mind b/c i never saw a smile not missing teeth or white. super depressing. my companionss later said "if my mom saw where i was...." very cool tho. i stoped by bishops tiny house and helped his wife kill a chicken and taught that reacently converted family about the Book of Mormon. good times. 

dad youd love the Philippines. well actually caleb would. no driving laws what so ever and everyone is either in a bus (jeepney), cargo van or truck or a little 150, 125, or 50 cc scooter. and those scooters know how to cut traffic!!!! super terriffying to be in and also a thrill ride, would reccomend. also the funniest adds. my fav being "look up young man! -God" they never make sense. 

hi mom,

ok its been 6 days in the field and what a roller coaster, you should read my journal. so my first area is Dupax del sur, Nueva Vizcaya. my tatay (father) is Elder Briones from Laguna in the San Pablo mission here in the PHI. i should really call him my Nanay (mother) hes teaching me how to talk, how to wipe my butt (w my left), how to shower (w a bucket and scoop), how to hand wash my clothes, how to eat and he even cooks for me!!! he says he loves to and hes good at it. wont shut up about how much he loves rice. ive had some major ups and some major downs this far but im holding on and growing w much paitence and long suffering. alma 7:23. the sanitation in our apartment would destroy you mom but im not sick yet and could only imagine how much stronger my immune system is becoming!!! no running water really, all we have is a dripping faucet and we collect that water to shower and wash our hands w. haven't seen a white person in a while and i go to church in this 180 y/o couples shack. it really is the jungle. its nice out in the province tho. people have decent sized houses for the most part and they are either made of brick or bamboo walls w a tin roof. decent tho. 

everyone stares at me and calls me "harry styles" anyone who has seen your photo says you look like a movie star. apparently this is the hardest area in the mission and also the most beautiful. cant wait for you to see the photos. its insane pretty. the heats not a big deal. but our apartments super hot all the time. but if u have a fan on you you are fine. i dont complain or critizie but im super bad at comparing. how nice does the provo utah mission sound rn. i miss the suburbs and wards but i know im here for a reason and am hyped to serve this branch. 

the foods all good, no one understands me really, and i certanly dont understand them but im really learning and adgusting quickly so dont worry. im doing just fine. this is certaninly is a test tho. even though church is in a shack the branch is strong and there is a great community. this one lady Nanay Nori feeds the missionaries every wensday, friday and sunday and such big nice meals w candy!! shes pretty wealthy and the crew there is the best. she has seriously been such an answer to my prayers. idk if theres much more to say other then im really starting to figure out what everyone means by "hardest and best time of my life" im sending like 110 pictures or something so bear w me. 

work hard, pray hard,

elder kearl 

ELDER KEARL HAS ARRIVED

PHILIPPINES CAUAYAN MISSION

78 Burgos Street

3306 Cauayan City

Isabela, Philippines

August 3, 2016

Dear Family of Elder Kearl,

We are happy to let you know that your son arrived safely today as a missionary in the Philippines Cauayan Mission.  After his arrival we had a welcome luncheon and orientation meeting.  I also had the opportunity to have a wonderful interview with him before he met his prayerfully selected companion and trainer.

Elder Kearl will be serving in the Bambang  Zone.  Enclosed is a map on which we have marked the zone of his first proselyting area.  He will be working with Elder Briones who will carefully train and introduce Elder Kearl to missionary work in the field.  We encourage you to write your son every week.  Please share positive, uplifting messages that will support and help him stay focused on this sacred work.  Such contact from home can build a great foundation for a successful mission.

This is a wonderful mission and we are grateful to have Elder Kearl here.  The new missionaries always bring with them an exciting and special spirit.  Please know that we will watch over him with great concern.  We have been praying for him for several months now and have looked forward to serving together.  We know that with your support and encouragement, he will progress and strengthen beyond your expectations and develop a great love for his fellow missionaries and the precious people he will serve, teach, and bless.

May the Lord bless you for all you have done to help Elder Kearl prepare for this mission.  If you have any concerns, please do not hesitate to email me at carlton.hiatt@ldschurch.org.

With warmest regards,

President C Russell Hiatt

Sister   Sulet Hiatt