It's a hard job but somebody has to do it!

Kamusta akong Amigos!

Well to start the whirlwind week off we had a Calape Zone transfer meeting combined with District Meeting from all the districts.  Transfers were handed out and everyone learned their new assignment for the next 6 weeks. Every 6 weeks these missionaries experience changes that some times include a new companions, a new area and sometimes both.  Some are changed every transfer and some stay for as long a 5 months in the same area with maybe 2 or 3 companion changes.  The only constant thing is that things will always change.  That is a good lesson to learn because it is that way in life.

District Activity

On Wednesday we had a District activity that started with pancake breakfast and included a trip to Mag-aso Falls. This is a beautiful place in the center of the Island most people never visit.  That is one reason why we like it so much.

A shot from the falls

Sister Bell's battle wounds from the activity.

(The rocks are very slippery and so when I was jumping from one rock to another, my foot shot right out from under me and I landed sitting on the rock like I was riding a horse but there were a few bumps on the way to the sitting position!)

Well needless to say transfers took place on Thursday and all went well.  The missionaries have really figured these transfers out so they go so smooth and we do not carry most of the burden as we did in the past.  We just hate saying goodbye to so many great missionaries on the same day.

Elder Tomakin and Elder Singsam, Sister Bell's Nindot Primary Missionaries.

(These two missionaries always helped me in Sagbayan Primary.  They sing beautiful bass together and I always teased them that we had the best bass section in the entire church as far as primary goes!) 

Well I am going to turn the most exciting portion of the week over to Sister Bell. She is alway better with words than I am.

Love Ya Always

Elder Bell (Tatay, LoLo & Amigo)

Ayo Family and Friends!

It has been a busy week!!  But it was also a very fun week even though we had to run from activity to activity with not much rest in-between.  So after transfers on Thursday we had Seminary on Friday morning.  Well, it was the last day of the Old Testament Course and so we had the last lesson on the last unit and then took the final assessment exam.  Everyone did pretty well especially considering that English is not their native tongue.  I am really proud of them. And so we decided to celebrate.  After class we brought them all (16 of them) to our house for a quick lunch and then we took them to Mag-aso Falls.  This was our second trip of the week but it was so much fun because unlike the missionaries these kids could go swimming!  None of them had ever seen the Falls and so they were really excited to go.

Our Seminary class!  We love these kids so much.  They sure do renew my hope for the future.  They are tomorrows leader of the church in this part of the world and they are remarkable young people.

More fun at Mag-aso Falls!

After we had dropped all of the kids off at their homes in Sagbayan it was just getting dark and so we headed up to Talibon to spend the night in the Wayside Inn, a little place we often stay at when we need to be way up north really early in the morning.  We pulled in just in time to go to bed and be up and at a baptism at 7:00 AM.  

Talibon had not had a baptism for quite awhile and so the missionaries were really excited about these baptisms.  They are two middle aged men who are not related but shared a baptismal service in the ocean.  As always it was just a wonderful experience.  The branch members came out in force as they planned a branch activity immediately following the service.

Elders Wilson and Calumpang with the baptismal candidates, Verulo Casquejo & Guillermo Barro

The humble home we picked up Brother Verulo from.  They don't have much but they are wonderful people who are humble and teachable.

There are times that what I see on the horizon just takes my breath away!  We sure live in a beautiful world!

Well, that is our week in a photo collage!  I know you are thinking that all we do is play….well, it is a hard job but somebody has got to do it!  We do occasionally have a play week but as with anything in life all those fun outings take planning and preparations.  I somehow didn't think you would enjoy the prep pictures as much as the play pictures……

Life is good!  We are still doing what we love and loving what we do.  We are happy to be serving here on Bohol.  It is a remarkable work that rolls forth and we are so happy to be a small part of it.  We are still working hard on our language.  Cebuano is not an easy language to learn but we will just keep trying.  We understand a little more each week and maybe someday will have the ability to really understand every word of a talk or testimony.  

It is hard to believe we have been out here nine months already!  The weeks really do fly past.  We are so busy every single week that we can hardly catch our breath.  We really look forward to our time with the missionaries and the members.  We have made some wonderful friends here.  We miss you all and sure do love hearing every detail of your week also.  You think it is boring but to us it is manna from heaven.  We want to hear about all of it!  Thank you for all the prayers and emails and pictures!  Keep 'em coming!

Love you forever,

Sister Bell (Nanay, Lola, Amigo)