Sister Abbey Hafen // Week Twenty-Eight // "SO MUCH FOOD"

Okay first things first... this week ROCKED. Seriously, we had members and our investigators inviting us over left and right to eat food and visit with them. 23, 24, 25, and 26th we had dinners, lunches, meryenda (snack time), everything. It was so awesome. We shared Mosiah 3:1-12 with everyone, and used it as our Christmas Story. This is when King Benjamin is speaking, and in the beginning he's saying to wake up! arise! listen up! he has great tidings of great joy. The great joy, the good news, is that there is a SAVIOR coming. To fulfill everything we need. Man. I won't give the whole lesson here in this email even though I want to, it was such a cool message. We had a great experience sharing it. We read verses 1-12 and each took turns reading the verse and then whoever read the verse, explained. It was so fun to see our less actives and investigators pull this story apart piece by piece and watching them discover the real christmas message. The real reason the Savior came to earth. 

We visited Sister Raquel (less active 14 yrs old) and we haven't seen her in a while, she's always been gone or busy when we drop by but finally on christmas eve, she was home. When we started this day, I was really doubtful of people actually letting us come in a teach because its Christmas Eve. Boy was I wrong. Everyone was soo happy to see us this week. SO happy. So anyway, Sister Raquel. We go in and she just is so happy we are there. She then says "its been so long since you've been here, why?" haha we told her we'd been coming by but she hasn't been here! Anyway, so we share the Christmas Story in Mosiah 3 and it was so awesome. She really just gets the gospel and it was a great lesson. She goes to a catholic school (like the rest of the people in the philippines) and so always has a lot of questions that her friends ask her at school. She asks a ton of questions, and sometimes she feels bad, but we just told her it is good to ask questions. It's good to ask questions and search out answers- it builds your testimony a ton. Just remember what Pres. Uchtdorf said and "doubt your DOUBTS before you doubt your FAITH." But Elder Holland also said we've all questioned what we believed, we've all "thought twice". It's healthy. We always need to re-charge our testimony. Anyway, so she then said the closing prayer and in her prayer just thanked heavenly father for us and expressed how happy she was that we were there. It was such a cool lesson.

Christmas Eve night, we shared the Mosiah 3 Christmas Story to our investigator family Dela Pena, and it once again was so cool. Completely centered on Christ, and his purpose for coming to earth. Why he was born. After the lesson, we headed over to the member's house who referred this family, and we all had Christmas Eve Dinner together. It was SO fun. We had such a good time and I was just so happy. All week I've been so happy. This time of year is the best. 

Christmas Day Skype was SO fun. Seriously, so fun. Short, but perfect amount of time, right? I was so happy to see you guys in real life, (ha real life) and so fun to just TALK. I loved it so much, it was perf.

We also had splits this week, which always rock. I split again with the american, Sister Stabenow. It was so fun. She is so sweet and we had a blast. It's so helpful and I learned a TON. We did a house make over and cleaned a members house from top to bottom for a CSP. It was fun and who doesn't love wearing pday clothes?! 

One last story- we recieved an OYM referral from some missionaries (they just randomly talk to someone on the street and then find out they aren't in their area, so they giv eyou their information, and then youcontact them.) so we contacted him. Sister Stabenow and I stopped by kind of late that night, and as we were talking to his wife, he pulled up in his tricee. We talked to them, his wife went inside, and then he talked to us for a little. We set up another day to come by, and he asked if there was any more things we had for him to read becuase "he was done with the restoration one and knows all about the prophets and how the great apostasy happened and then joseph smith came.." haha he is so awesome. We gave him a plan of salvation pamphlet and then set up another time to come over. What a champ. Sister Atienza and I returned a different night, but his wife was already asleep so we told him we can't teach him without another sister. Anyway, so then he says "I already read the pamphlets, and because my wife is going to be going abroad in february, I'll probably be the only one to become a member of the church. Also, I have read a lot from a book of mormon before but I don't have one now, can I get one?" 

... I honestly just was in awe. I looked at him and said "Yes. Yes you can" and gave him a book of mormon. We see him and his family later tonight. We are so excited. What the humble-searching-for-truth-triceedriver?! I love it. Pray for our lesson to Jovito later.

Thats all. I love my life, I love my mission, I love the language, I love the Savior, I love everything. I love you, I love every one of you. I love learning new things every day and I love this gospel. God is good and Jesus is the CHRIST. Sharing the message in Mosiah all week was so special, especially in the tagalog language, using the tagalog book of mormon, preaching it to the tagalog speaking people. Even the random people I talked to on the street during this season were receptive. I'm so lucky that although I came into the mission field so unprepared, Heavenly Father still trusted me to come here and be with these people. Every day is hard but every day is 100% so good.

Love,

Sister Hafen

The irrigation behind the Dela Pena family's house (investigators)

Hello kids.

The view from the top balcony of a members house. Those two tricee's are the EQ president's, and when you enter right after that black tricee, that's the RS and EQ's family compound.

Nasty. Splits with Sister Stabenow.

Oh hey John and Mikelle, what are you guys doin' in the Philippines?

I love my fam! THANK YOU.

My cute companion with the gifts I gave her :)

The Cailer family. Their house is so cool. Christmas night!  (branch presidency counselor fam, primary president si sister cailer)

Carig Family- investigators. Snack time- spaghetti and agar agar.

Oh my goodness nay mesa is the best. This was all for just us 4 missionaries.

Christmas Eve!

Christmas Eve in Alicia!!!

She ate over 30 sticks of intestines, me, only 9 i think. Tongans eat SO MUCH.

Typical christmas eve/christmas celebration meal. hotdogs, pancit, bread with mayo or PB, and coke.

Typical house here, i love it.

DAGUPAN DISTRICT. Allred, Daelo, Funaki, Palomo, Loto, Stabenow, Atienza, Hafen, Young, Datario.

Sister Abbey Hafen // Week Twenty-Seven // "Low KI's, but they always say it's not about the numbers"

So this week was great. Our numbers were low, like number of lessons and stuff, but the week was so fulfilling. We had some really awesome lessons.

One Nay (mom) in the ward who was just baptized in 2009, introduced us to her son who is inactive and his wife who isn't a member, in sacrament a few weeks ago. We set up a time to see them, and that time was this week. We scheduled on Sunday that we would come Thursday night so Thursday night rolled around, and like, we had worked so hard all day and usually we take dinner at 8pm-9pm because everyone here wants to be taught from 5-8 after work. Anyway, so 8pm rolls around and we head on over the Nay Rumbaoa's house, pretty dang tired but excited to get to know Brother Herlucks wife. I had a feeling maybe it would be one of those like mother in law's who want their kids to be active, and so against their will the mom invites the missionaries over and its awkward, but for some reason I felt pretty okay as we were walking over. We get there and literally... I was so far off the mark. They were so excited we were there. We sit down in one of the smallest houses I've been to here, all 5 of us squished around this little table in the corner, and begin just talking. It was so fun! We talk talk talk, and Nay shares a little of her conversion story, and then we start getting Angilyn (the wife of the less active son, herluck) to open up more. She starts telling us about her past religious experiences and we kind of get a feel for where she's at. Her mother in law then says "angilyn knows how to pray" and angilyn says "yeah, i've been practicing". So great! She says the prayer and then we just gave a short over view of Lesson One, the Restoration. Usually after an overview, we usually just teach them how to pray and leave them with that commitment,  but she's got that one in the bag. A thought entered my mind to just teach principles 1 and 2, God is our Loving Heavenly Father and the Gospel blesses families. We get teaching and asking questions, and we find outso much about her family background and Herluck too, and how herluck was adopted randomly off the street by nay rumbaoa as a single mom, etc. angilyn then just starts crying and explains how grateful she is for Nay Rumbaoa and Herluck for taking her in and being her family because she comes from a broken family and how grateful she's been for nay's example, seeing her kneel every night in prayer and being faithful in church attendance. It was so awesome. I explained to her that even if you come from a broken family, that one day, she and herluck with have their own family, and that if they build their family on this gospel, they can start over with their OWN family. sister atienza and i just follwed the spirit and the lesson was so good. We asked her to say the closing prayer, and in her prayer she just straight up said how happy she was that we came by the night we promised we would and that she knows this is the true church. it was SUCH a cool experience, and we saw them yesterday again at church. She is so stellar and has such great faith. Herluck is becoming active again and it's so awesome. 

RJ got baptized Saturday! despite all the piece of crap, unlucky, stupid, and dumb things that happenend in preparation, his baptism was beautiful. he really has changed and his family is 100% active again. They are so awesome and I know leaving this area is going to be so tough, i've become so attatched. After the training of S. Atienza, I will have been here almost 7 months. AH! I love this place and am so happy for RJ. He is so humble and is a different kid than he was before. 

Some fun/random things:

-we as missionaries from the alicia zone, sang the mission song at our district christmas party and i accompanied us on the violin. we put it together in about 6 minutes. i'm pretty grateful for my mom for starting me on violin, cause i just played the whole song by ear and it turned out awesome. i also played an efy song to accompany another couple singing at the dist.christmas program and again was grateful i can just play by ear and accompany people here. ah i'm so glad i have my violin!

-its been raining like crazy

-now that i understand more, i understand what people are saying to me as we walk by. example: hey i know you have a cell phone, just add my number to your phone, eh? hahaha earlier this morning i about died when i realized that i totally understood him as we walked by

-people yell to me that i'm sexy. such a confidence booster

-christmas devotional at the mission home was sooo awesome. i saw all of my companions. it was a "half mission" get together. the only crappy part was we all had LBM that night, haha i went to the bathroom 6 times

-i was so sick this week, a nasty cold and super bad sinus pain. i finally gave in and called the mission presidents wife, she told me what medicine to get, and now i'm fit as a fiddle. 

-i have less than a year left here. what the

-sister ateinza's one month mark was yesterday

-i heard a little girl in the church say WTH (but the real phrase haha) and i couldnt stop laughing

-a lady in our ward had a shirt that had the f word on it, but like, she had no idea it was bad

-i love receving revelation here on the mission for my life after the mission

-i love my mission

Merry Christmas. I am so excited for Wednesday! AH! Life is good and God is good. 3rd Nephi 13 "god knows that we have need of everything...." ah he really does know exactly what we need, he really does. and if we're doing what we should be, we have no need to worry about tomrorow. merry christmas

-Sister Hafen

Haha the elders giving me a hard time, and me being a loser haha.

haha the "baklah"

The Dela Pena Family. Sister Atienza, Josephine, Justine, Sarah, me.

Gumbauan with Blessie Mae.

All of my companions!!!!! I was so lucky that we all had the same christmas devotional, because the mission was split in half randomly. I love them, so good to reunite.

Christmas Devotional!

MACDO! So dang good. I spent a lot of pesos here but it was worth it.

Sister Abbey Hafen // Week Twenty-Six // "Let it be"

I'm in this computer shop and of course right outside is a huge videoke/kareoke dealio and i think we're comin' up on round 3 of "Let it Be", sung by a really terrible sounding filipino...maybe i'll take the hit of getting sent home from my mission and just go knock him out so it will stop. Hahah. Ha.

oh no..I am almost to the point where I can't say, "ay, mayroon po akong one year pa po dito sa philippines!" (ah, I still have one year left here in the philippines!). My 6 month mark or "only one year left" mark of the mission comes the 19th. Holy cow. Time is seriously the weirdest thing ever. It's so weird to think 2 years ago this january I was in my senior year. TIME IS SO WEIRD.

This week was so great, as always. I seem to always get sick every saturday/sunday (just like a nasty cough and runny nose) but then pday (blessed p-day) comes around and I usually feel fine after. This is like the 3rd week in a row, oh well. 

So oh my HECK we are being so blessed here. We have some awesome investigators, and the Branch Christmas party was a SUCCESS. Although dang long (1-8pm but filipinos love to just do stuff like that, and just party and chill and play game after game after game), it was a BLAST. I used to dread parties because I had no idea what was going on, but now that I get what's going on, it's so fun. We had 6 of our investigators attend, and several less active families, and then members brought friends that aren't members but that want to be taught! We are seeing so many blessings here in our area I want to just cry every day.

One cool story- so we received (i hate the word received because i spell it wrong every single time) a referral from the other alicia sisters, just an OYM of theirs. (they just saw her and talked to her, and got her info, found out she was in our area, and gave us the info). Their directions of her house were sooo confusing. Anytime we got panted (a word that means like they aren't home) we looked for "Jennie". We spent probably a total of almost 7-8 hours over the past 3 weeks looking for her. We would joke about her and pray for her every day, and like, if we saw a volcanizing shop or green gate (those were the directions we were given about her house) we would just like go try that house to see if she was there. Haha. We asked everyone we saw "pwde po kaming magtanog?" (can we ask a question) and then asked if they knew her. I think we asked every living filipino here in the Philippines. Finally, last wednesday, we had a feeling we were close and we asked the owner of this street restaurant if she knew jennie. She pointed to a house and said "dyan" (there).We saw this man there at this tiny little house that has a volcanizing space in front (where they fix tires and oil changes of tricee's and motor cycles) maybe the space the size of our front porch, and behind that was their house maybe the size of our laundry room. I asked if he was Edwin (the name the sisters gave us of her husband) and he said yes. It was a little awkward just like HI we're here at your business/house asking if you are you. HA. anyway, after a few words, he totally loosened up and said to come back the next day. We came back the next day, got to know Jennie, and invited her to the christmas party. we for sure thought she'd say she couldn't come, but low and behold, she accepted and just said yeah she'll come. I honestly was taken back. We offered to come stop by the day of the party and she said yeah! So Saturday, we stop by around 12:50 and she's all ready. I honestly was ASTONISHED. We walked to the party, stopped at the palengke (market) on the way and then got to the party. She was such a champ and brought her 2 yr old baby. She stayed the entire time from 1pm-7:30. She made some friends and was so sad she couldn't come to church because her baby had a fever. She wants to be a mormon, she wants religion for her family and wants to be married to her husband. SHE IS GOLDEN. I am not sure what will happen, but she was such an answer to my prayers. That yeah, some people really are prepared. Some people really will do what they say they will. Some people really do want to change. Some people really want a better life and are willing to act. Thank you Jennie, for answering my prayer.

RJ is getting baptized on Saturday!!!! I literally am SO EXCITED. The Visperas Family is ON FIRE. Honestly, when I think about them, my heart burns (get it, cause like I used the analogy of "on fire" so my heart is burning? ..get it? HA) and I just become sooo happy. I was really worried inside about him, that maybe he wasn't really keeping our commitments or really changing inside, and i have been praying so hard for him lately. I was really doubting that he was going to be ready. But of course, Heavenly Father always takes my doubts and slaps me across the face (okay maybe not that harsh) and proves to me that my doubts are stupid. This is what I wrote to my mission president this week about RJ: I was really worried about RJ, our investigator, I didn’t know if he really was keeping our commitments, but last night our lesson was really beautiful. He has changed and is truly repentant. I can’t wait for his baptism this saturday. His family, the Visperas Family, has honestly changed, President. Michael, the boy who hid from the missionaries  just this last february, now wants to serve a mission, comes to church every week, and just received a calling as assistant BML. RJ, the INV, is attending the YSA overnight activity and wants to invite his nonmember friends, Sister Marie (their sister) is fellowshipping our other investigators at activities without even being asked, Marie, Elena, Michael, and RJ all attended the christmas devo, and their family is working towards attending the temple. I love them and they truly have caught the light of this gospel. They are reading the BOM everyday, and its so awesome.

I seriously love this family and love the people here so much. Sometimes I let the old Abbey come in and get all stressed out/freaked out inside about planning and trying to make sure things work out, and fulfilling my duty as a trainer even when we have few lessons, and blah blah blah but it seems to be that every time I just relax, do what I'm supposed to, pray hard, and do my best... everything works out. Every single time. I love this work and am realizing how every single thing I learn here is going to help me be a much better member when i get home, a much more aware and grounded person. I am so grateful that heavenly father trusted me in coming here, honestly he's got a lot of faith in me. 

Happy happy holiday season. We've been celebrating it here since September 1 so yeah.

-Sister Abbey Hafen 

 I love the Philippines, I love Tagalog, I love Christmas. So I guess I just love life. 

Me and the Marlyn Policarpio family. They are THE BEST. They gave me a purple towel and card for christmas- it was the cutest thing. Marlyn loves that both of our favorite colors are purple.

At the Christmas party. Me and Milene Visperas, and Brother Abuan (Anak Ni Shori)

Sister Abbey Hafen // Week Twenty-Five // "How is Justin Bieber doing these days?"

So all week Justin Bieber has been playing every where here. And they are new songs. Does he have like 40 new albums, featuring every artist on planet earth? Honestly..

So on to more important matters..... labor went well, and I'm proud to introduce you to my child. Sister Atienza. She is 23, turning twenty four in February (feb 4. holler for feb!), and she is the best person ever. I love her so much. It has been such a good past few days, and I seriously am happy we have 12 weeks (2 cycles) together. It's so weird that she was in the normal world just two weeks ago. Like, I didn't put that together until last night. I've really tried to be so aware of the way I felt those first few days, and weeks, as a brand new missionary. And really, these past few days, we have just worked really hard. And then, last night, we were walking home, talking, and she said (in tagalog), "There really just hasn't even been time to be homesick. Just work work work, ya know?" and I smiled at her and said in tagalog, "Sister. I promise you, that is the secret to missionary work. WORK. There won't be time for homesick if you're working hard" (that actually comes from PMG I can't really take the credit, ha) We then just had a really good talk the rest of the way home. I love my anak, and I have really come to appreciate my trainer. I can't imagine training me, haha. We opened an area (double transfer), I am an american, and a million other reasons to make training twelve times harder than it already is, haha. My anak (trainee) came pre-trained I swear. I think the hardest thing I've had to tell her so far is that we wear proselyting clothes on pday in town if we don't have an activity. Haha. 

Anyway. So the work really is going good. It's been so hard to schedule, because all of our investigators want to be taught anytime from 5:30-8. But we can't teach all of them at the same time! So we've really had to figure out planning. It's been rough. But we are grateful we have so many people to teach, honestly, such a blessing. I honestly have grown such love for these people this week for some reason. I don't know why, but I love my area so much and after I am done training Sister A, I will have been here for 7 months. Leaving will be so hard, but they say that's the mission life. 

So I wish I could express what I am feeling right now, but it's so hard. I am just so happy. I am just so happy. I love my calling right now, and even though sometimes there is just this sick feeling in my stomach because I am not sure what we're supposed to do, where to go, or what, and I still sometimes just take a step back and realize I am an american 19yr old girl, in the philippines... but every time, things just work out. I realize that I can't fix everything here, or expect every single investigator to gain a burning testimony on my time frame, or my desires. I know that even now, as a trainer, I still am not fluent in tagalog, so I have to rely on other people. But honestly, everything that has happened the past few days, has almost been handpicked and placed in my path. Heavenly Father is SO aware of us, and knows what we need. He knows what we can and can't handle. And everything that seems unfair, or dumb, too hard, or not realistic at all, can be made fair, awesome, easier, and realistic through the power and reality of the atonement. 

We taught RJ Visperas (our investigator, 19yrs old, part member) last night about enduring to the end, in lesson 3. One thing that our fellowshipper (she's an RM) said is that this gospel isn't "basta basta" meaning like "whatever" or "something casual". This gospel is a life long pursuit to become better every day, and our covenant at baptism is so important. It is not going to be easy, at all. It almost seems like as you come closer to Jesus Christ, more trials come. But when we know the gospel of jesus christ, we are equipped to handle them. It was such a cool lesson, and honestly, when I bore testimony to him that it really isn't just "whatever" and that if it was just a "whatever" kind of a thing, I wouldn't be here in the Philippines. I am here in the Philippines for a year and half because this is the most important thing in my life. The spirit was so strong as I explained this to him. The Visperas family has honestly changed, and they are growing so close and realizing the importance of the gospel. I can't even explain to you how much I love them and how they have helped me see the importance of the gospel in a family. 

This is really hard. This is really awesome. I am so dang blessed it almost seems unfair haha. But I am happy and I really don't know what else to say. Maybe next week I will have a cooler story to tell or maybe something crazy will happen. I just am being so very blessed right now, and I am almost nervous that one day I'm going to wake up from the dream and realize I'm still in the MTC. (i really hope that doesn't happen haha)

Thats really all for now. I feel like my emails are getting more and more lame, so maybe next week I'll be better. Haha. Really though, its just to the point where I can't explain how I feel or what it's like here. I forget that I came from a completely different world. I forget that I used to shower with hot water, sit in a sacrament hall with cushioned seats, drink tap water, drive a car, study anatomy, text my friends, instagram, wear lots of make up, lay around all day sunday, cruise on facebook for hours, forget to read my scriptures, use bad language, gossip all the time, and forget who my heavenly father is. I forget that is where I came from and what normal life was, and when I remember, I just thank my Heavenly Father that he allowed me to come here. I apologize and tell him that i should have prepared better, I should have been a more "ready" misisonary for the hastening work of salvation, but then I just tell him that from here on out I will give my 100%. And I know really thats all I can do. 

With a full, thankful heart,

Sister Abbey Hafen

Sister Obnias, her new comp, me, and my anak! (trainee)

Right before transfers. We all matched :) Sister Bates, Sister Palomo, Sister Obnias, me.