Hi,

So this week has been good. That’s (too bad) about BYU though. That's awesome about Brooklyn and Nate Henley! And it's been raining a lot here... pretty much always.

   So I figured out I'm most likely going to be a trainer this coming transfer. We went on splits with the Zone leaders elder Tanner and Elder Kemmy, Elder Tanner is from Logan and Kemmy is from Tennessee. So I stayed in our area with Elder Tanner and Elder Tabucol went with Elder Kemmy. It was good. I had to lead the area and stuff, which was fine, and I had to lead the lessons. But after that, Elder Tanner said I am most likely going to be a trainer and stay in this area for another 18 weeks.

 And I really would rather cut my foot off then stay in this area. I just figured out there has only been two people baptized in the past two years or so... So ya I really don't want to stay here. I can't even teach a full lesson on my own, or hold a conversation with someone.

There are so many new people coming in that they need everyone to step up. According to the Zone leaders our mission is really lacking leadership.  When our mission split lots of the good missionaries ended up in the Urdaneta Mission and we got lots of missionaries from Loag mission.. The thing is, Loag missionaries are lazy. I've only met a few and I really don't like them, I almost beat the crap out of an elder who is from Utah who is from Loag mission, (also my District leader). They had to stay with us for a week because their apartment was changing... but he's gone now so yay!

   But President Balledos has already sent home so many missionaries for various reasons so it's pretty much if you aren't a Zone leader you're training. There is such a lack of experienced missionaries that no one knows who the next AP's will be, cause there is really no stand out Elder in our mission... It's crazy.

   In other news, this Elder from New York who’s been here about a year (Elder Delos Reyes) is staying with Elder Tabucol and me for the next few days because his companion is getting sent home. He's super cool though. He's got a sick York accent and we are pretty good buddy’s.

   We gave the Montano family another IBD, so we will see how that goes. They said yes again. We taught them baptism and they just need to come to church now.  Their dad loves us and they are reading the book of Mormon a lot, but really they are the only beacons of light/ hope in our area. We get rejected hard core, but also we have probably reactivated like 6 members-- which is way awesome. People that haven't been to church in years are now coming every week because of me and elder Tabucol. So  I'll keep you updated. Our mission is not looking so hot because of the 70+ new missionaries coming in this month and the next two months and all the old experienced missionaries getting sent home. But once my batch grows up we will tear the Baguio mission up mark my words. Anyways-- love you guys. Hope all is well.

 Just realized this is a very dark email but I'm doing fine. I just hate Loag missionaries and to be honest I'm not sure if the age change was too effective. I know it was revelation, but quantity doesn't mean quality. But it's from God so I'm sure it's important.

 Anyways loveeees. I'm fine. Just angry cause of all the slacking missionaries getting sent home and forcing me to train when I'm not even sure what country I’m in..

love you!

 Keep it real. Keep me updated.

-Elder Jones

         So this weeks gone good, transfer day happened so I'm still with Elder Tabucol which is good cause we are literally tearing up the streets of Baguio like it's nothing, We are sharing time in lessons now which is good and way more effective for me and our investigators.

         OK, so I'll start with transfer day. Elder Horsebruagh (the Aussy) got transfered to Agoo and he is now companions with elder Fulivai (my buddy from MTC),  so it's still me, Elder Tabucol and Elder Lagasca in our apartment. Elder Lagasca got called as a trainer so I was way excited to see who he would be training, and his name is Elder Manning from Weber, Utah..... so you know the missionary on the best two years? The Greenie? Elder Manning is a repleca of him!! He's so ready to serve and stuff and he's so excited but he's so nerdy haha. You gotta love him though. Nice kid. 

         I figured out I'm the youngest missionary ever in the history of the Philippines Baguio Mission... that's kinda cool. And our zone is way new; all these Americans from Bountiful and another from Provo. I tried to help them a lot cause I remember when I first got here I couldn't have been more confused and no one told me how to do anything so I just figured it out myself. Lucky for them I told them what to to and not to do  because I learned the hard way. 

         So there is a very strong possibility I could be a trainer in 5 weeks... so this coming transfer... and it's funny cause I'm still confused where I am and how I got here. So hopefully I'm not a trainer yet! Haha that'd be wild. 

         We found a ton of new investigators this past week and our investigators are good. The Mentano family, (our "golden" if you will)  didn't come to church and when we walked past their plave going to another appointment, they were talking to an Iglecia ne Cristo preist. So our next lesson to them, we straight up asked if they believed us and they said, "yes, they believe us." They said they have other religious priests and what not at their house everyday offering to pay for this or by that for them if they get converted, but the tatay (father) said he doesn't accept and he believes us. They will get baptized. Maybe not in my time here but I know they will. It's crazy though people believing in 18-20  year old boys!  I was walking down the street and literally past 10 churches with random names like "Baguio Save by Grace Church" or "Jesus the One and Only" and just weird stuff like that. The Philippines is a mess religious wise... Anyways that's about it....... My language is good. I can carry conversations with people... kinda. I'm just lacking the vocabulary now. But ya, it's good. Hope all's well whichu guys. Got your package, thanks a bundle. Love you

-elder Jones

Week 4!!

Family, 

   Hi, Elder Jones commin at you from Baguio City. 

        So the reason I'm so late emailing is because we played basketball for ever today. We play every P-day with a bunch of Gangsta thugzzzzzzz. It's fun cause I'm like a center and the biggest guy every time, and I've always been the smallest playing b-ball.

        The blog is pretty cool Mother, keep up the work, looks great, and sorry for anyone I didn't email last week I got into a little tiff with the Zone leader, it's a long story, but he made me stop emailing. It's no big deal, It's not even my Zone leaders. My Zone leaders are cool beans. 

       And Jolene, (mom) I sent you a card for your birthday last week, but considering I haven't even gotten any mail yet, or the package you sent me my first week, I'll assume mail takes a while here in Philla-land.. 

         How's my Tagalog.... well I can understand a good amount now,--75% of gospel, and probably 55% of everyday stuff. but can I speak it yet... NOOOOOPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  But it's fine. Everyone has told me three months is when foreigners start getting the hang of it, and 1 year (to be) fluent, so I have a long way to go.. but ya it's goin good. 

         So transfers are this coming friday, so I will figure out if I  leave or get a new companion. I hope not-- me and my companion are killing it right now. 

          5 investigators came to church including 4 of the Montano family. They said they enjoyed church and it was huge that they came because they have baptismal dates, and it shows their sacrifice because they literally have no money. We gave their dad an IBD--he said yes, so almost their whole family has a baptismal date. It's just if they go to church or not (Dad to answer your question you need to go to church 4 times in a row and you need to do a bunch of other stuff before baptism) so ya it's good stuff.... We just need to put the nail in the coffin.

        So usually trainers are supposed to train for 12 weeks, but my trainer doesn't know if he or I will be transfered cause we aren't sure what president will do.

        We had a tri zone conference and a Filipino Area Presidency guy who is in the Quorum of the Seventy elder Echohawk, ya coolest last name ever, but he came and talked to 3 zones and it was way good. He told some crazy stories about  how they pick people's missions. He told this story of President Cook (of the Twelve) when they were picking missions for missionaries, one missionary came up and he was way qualified-- he knew like 3 languages and had way good grades and stuff-- so Elder Echohawk said, "lets send hime to Russia or Japan or something like that" than President Cook stopped and just sat there and thought. As time passed by he said "No. Des Moines Iowa is the mission he needs to go to, he will be disappointed when he opens his call, but he will bring someone of great importance to the church." So that was a crazy story! So tell Kevin Harper that haha... it's probably him.

         So at lunch that day president Balledos picked me,  another Elder and another Sister to sit at the front of everyone on our own table and eat with Elder and Sister Echohawk. It was kinda weird cause I was just pounding food because it was way good and they kept talking to me but I was starving so I didn't really talk to them. But turns out they're from Orem. Nice people..

          Anyways this week wasn't too crazy. Oh I saw a spider like as big as my hand and a lizard almost get into a fight... that was cool... and yes mom I can have I-pods. I was going to ask you to send me one actually, but they have to be like shuffles okay. I'll send you a list of songs to put on later because we can listen to some other stuyff besides Motab. Oh, and when convient send me my temple clothes please (: my white pants and tie, because I forgot them...(: thanks... love you guys!

Elder Jones

For anyone interested, here is Mac's address for letters and/or packages:

PHILIPPINES BAGUIO MISSION
P.O. Box 115
National Highway, Brgy, Lingsat
San Fernando,La Union
2500 Philippines

Week Four

This weeks been good, still not sure where I am or what's going on but it's fine. I can probably understand about 50-60% of Tagolog now and it's starting to make sense. Wait, no it's not. buttttt I taught some lessons this past week and let me tell ya I butchered them with a butter knife man... it was awful.  But each lesson I got better and better which is good. 

   So we are actually reactivating a lot of less-actives, like 5 or so showed up to church yesterday for the first time in like a year or something and we had some ward party thing Saturday. It was fun. We had a skit as the missionaries because the theme was missionary work. We performed a skit. It was way funny.  Anywhoo, ya... so we had some investigators show up to that and they have baptizmal dates-- the Delesantos family. They're cool, but he makes fun of me and I know it but he doesn't know I know it so it makes things nakakailan (awkward). He's (for lack of better words) a tool. But he wants to be an American like everyone else here in the Philippines. Literally everyone wants to be american. The girls we see always ask me how old I am and if we can get married so I can take them to the States. All  the teenage punks (sigas, philippeno gangsta) rock like Kobe jerseys and like American stuff, and every taxi or Jeepney I've been in is either American rap playing (too be honest I'm okay with that..... jk that's bad mom) or Taylor Swift.. 

   Anyways on a more spiritual mission related note, yesterday our golden family that we found (the Mentanos), we gave 4 of them IBD's or baptizmal dates and they said yes, so right now we have 6 IBD's! But people refuse to come to church so it makes things difficult. But  they really want to be baptized and you can tell they know it's true (they're iglecya ni Cristo) (it's like a knock off of catholic) but it's just hard to get them to do anything cause they have a hunge family and are way poor. 

   They have like 7 kids, but we've only invited four of them cause that's all we tought yesterday. This is the family that I said if we teach the dad we are in. So last Monday he finally came around, so we tought the dad and the rest of the family (sorry I'm backtracking here) and we asked him to give the closing prayer and to ask if what we were teaching is true. So he did and he started bawling, than the whole family started bawling. You could taste the spirit it was so thick. It was way cool. So every time we teach them they are all way receptive and want to learn more. so hopefully we can baptize them..

   So this guy Brother lito (he's brother Mentano's brother) we were teaching him, and he's the gay that can't walk cause he has diabetes. He always asks my companion if we can give him money. Then the other day, the scariest thing happened; I think he was drunk. But my companion was talking to someone else then brother Lito is like "Hey, come here," so I crawled ovcer to him (you can't stand up in their house-- it's like 8ft by 10ft and it's like 5 ft high) then he grabs me way tight and whispers  in slaughtered English "Do you have 8 npesos so I can buy some coffeee?" and I shoved him off and said "wala" (none) and it was way wierd.......... ya. He's weird cause he reads the BOM and prayers like everynight and says he knbows what we teach is true but he can't really go to church and he drinks and smokes so............. it's a weird situation.

Sooo thats all I got for this week.... ya, oh and we were out of money the whole week somehow so all we ate was oatmeal and dinner appointments... haha ya... anyways. Keep me updated on all the good stuff, sports, family, sports, news, sports. ya kkkkkkk luuuvessssss 

Ingat! 

/Elder Jones