no growth in the comfort zone...

hi mama,

kamusta po nay,

it's been a week. said good bye to my tatay and hello to my new companion. didn't actually think it would be so hard and exciting, let me explain.

so on elder Briones' last day we had a good day of visiting the greatest Dupax has to offer. you got to remember elder Briones had been here for 7 and a bit months, 4 of those with me so it was hard to say goodbye. we left our appartment around sunset to stay over night in Aritao bc those 2 were leaving as well. before we made it there tho, the 2 branches had an on the fly farewell fireside for Briones. basically, a huge gush fest, as we all had an opportunity to say why Elder Briones is awesome. it was so heartfelt and lovely with even the burliest filipinos tearing up. he's a legend and will be missed. walking down Del Sur's main street for the last time and later driving through after the fireside to Aritao was full of smiles and great reminiscing. stayed the night at Aritao and Elder Briones and Oredson + Abubo (from Aritao) spent there last night in Bambang. it was weird, but sunny.

THEN the new guys came. 2 brand new guys for Aritao and my new comp Elder Mebulos. Mebulos is my batch, meaning he entered the field the same day as me. he's from Mindanao and specks Cebuano. he has one emotion which is happy and laughs a ton! oh man you should hear his laugh, next level. he doesn't really speak english so we only speak tagalog. it was hard at first, but it's fun and i can't believe how much i'm learning! pretty much you can't hate this guy. oh his first name is JimBoy so that will tell you some things. then that night i showed Aritao missionaries their apartment and it felt so uncomfortable like in my chest without my 3 best friends. like the day after Briones left was pretty hard. can't believe how much i miss him. like i would see things that would remind me of him or the old Aritao elders and just feel so out of place and uncomfortable. haven't really missed anyone like this before. but life keeps moving and i'm adjusting! gotta love suffering! plus the new calling as district leader is overwhelming, but its ultimately good living.

the feels this week hit me hard but i've never noticed Gods hand or blessings in my life before. the language took a huge jump up. my life doesn't really involve english now. so instead of walking i'm now running. it's really cool tho. tagalog is so much fun. yeah, the blessings and growth are flowing like crazy. loving it. no growth in the comfort zone, am i right???

something spiritual. went back to see my indian friend. probably my best friend now. he's really into trying to convert me into the muslim faith but we both love all the religions so there's huge respect for each other. you gotta meet this guy. the best. but i had the opportunity to explain the good book itself in english to this guy in english. oh man, was it a powerful highlight of my mission. hard to explain, so i won't, i'll just tell you the book is true!!!

the weekly scripture is a missionary classic thats my fav to share. the brighter your light, the more people you'll attract to good news (gospel).

3 Nephi 18:24

Therefore, hold up your light that it may shine unto the world. Behold I am the light which ye shall hold up—that which ye have seen me do. Behold ye see that I have prayed unto the Father, and ye all have witnessed

yeah, the light the world is going strong here. super great teaching.  also had a dream about ben barfuss. hyped to see him.

so I have a baptism on saturday, so i'll probs skype around 11:30 on saturday my time. you'll have to figure it out!! i'm hyped tho!!! please have Litchfields mailing address for that. thanks!!! make your own account and see you then.

KEARL