Perhaps the most shocking revelation I have had since moving to a different country, is that having clean water throughout my life was a blessing I totally took for granted. For 61 years I drank water freely from the tap, I washed my clothes and bathed myself in it. I rinsed food, washed babies, washed my hands and poured cup after cup of it for satisfying consumption. I never realized what a blessing it was to have clean water! Now I am see the effects of water that is not clean. Missionaries have skin issues. They tell me they itch after showering. They have sores that won't heal and get infected, and I realize that I see only what is what is happening on the outside of their bodies. Yet, the missionaries are blessed and they are careful, and they continue to serve.

I asked a missionary about his apartment this week and he showed me around via video. We went over the supplies he should have in his apartment and after talking with him, I know he and his companion need: a toilet seat for the toilet, a new can opener, a small frying pan, two dish towels, and a vegetable peeler.  At the end of our interview I asked, "Elder K., are there any issues in your apartment that we did not talk about?" 

He paused and thought, then replied, "There are little red worms in our water." 

"What?"

He and his companion laughed. "There are. We can see them."

"I had no idea! I am so sorry! We need to find you a new apartment!"

"It's okay Sister Clarke. We are kind of used to them now. Whatever you think is best for the work."

I can't get Elder K. and his companion out of my mind. I thought about driving to his area this week and searching for a new apartment, and then I wondered if the situation would be the same in the new apartment. I can't fix everything here, though I want to. I can't solve every problem and make things all better. There are basic things like clean water that I would really love to provide for every missionary! We provide blue jugs of drinking water, but what they wash their clothes in and bathe in is a different story.

I love Elder K.'s humility. He is willing to stay in that apartment if it is best for the work. Wow.

 

We are having a family discussion tonight about a talk given by Richard Scott titled, "Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer." What marvelous insight Elder Scott provides!

"Think of it: the absolute Supreme Being, the most all-knowing, all-seeing, all-powerful personage, encourages you and me, as insignificant as we are, to converse with Him as our Father. we need to appointment. our supplication can be brief or can occupy all the time needed. It can be an extended expression of love and gratitude or an urgent plea for help. He has created numberless cosmos and populated them with worlds, yet you and I can talk with Him personally, and He will ever answer. Don't worry about your clumsily expressed feelings, just talk to your compassionate, understanding Father."

"I wonder if we can ever really fathom the immense power of prayer until we encounter an overpowering, urgent problem and realize that we are powerless to resolve it. Then we will turn to our Father in humble recognition of our total dependence on Him."

"Seldom will you receive a complete response all at once.  It will come a piece at a time, in packets, so that you will grow in capacity." 

"Be thankful that sometimes God lets you struggle for a long time before an answer comes. Your character will grow; your faith will increase."

"When you are living righteously and are acting with trust, God will not let you proceed too far without a warning impression if you have made the wrong decision."

These two missionaries have taught me about love this week. They just met three weeks ago and became companions. One sister became ill and needed to be hospitalized, and the other has been there for her companion day after day. Today we asked each sister, independent of the other, if she needed a break from her companion and the answer was an adamant "No!" We offered to take the companion that is not ill to an area where she could be with other sister missionaries, but she declined saying she felt like she needed to stay with her companion to help and support her. 

I think they will remember this time forever because it has not been an easy time, yet they are doing personal and companionship study every day in the hospital room, and they are making the best of a tough situation. They are showing love for one another in an amazing way.

Charity suffereth long and is kind... (Moroni 7:45)

 

We drove from Cebu across the island for a double-zone conference in Toledo. After the conference, we had some interviews, then we dropped the assistants off at an apartment of missionaries where they were spending the night, and then we drove to our hotel. The security guard would not let us in. Even after we showed him our confirmation code, he would not let us in. We found out that the hotel had been booked for the wrong night, and we were out of luck. There was a large golf tournament happening the next day at the resort, so all of the rooms were booked. Oh my! What were we to do? This is not Utah where you drive down I-15 and see multiple options. It was dark and we were in an unfamiliar place. The security guard recommended a place to us and we drove there. It looked completely dead and dark with no lights on and the office locked.  Matthew walked around the hotel property and found some people in the pool who directed him as to where he could find the woman in charge. She took one look at Matthew and said that she most certainly did not have a room with a bed that would fit him. She recommended another place to us, so we set out again to find it. It was down an alley; we pulled in and parked. Matthew inquired about a room and he was shown a sample room. It was a small room with no frills, no hot water, a bucket and a ladle in the shower area, and a foam pad instead of a mattress, but we took it. We had been praying that we could find a clean room to spend the night somewhere and the Lord directed us. 

Maybe you have heard the story about the man who is in a flood. He is stranded on a rooftop and prays to God for help, asking God to save him directly. A small boat comes by and the occupant of the boat yells to the stranded man, offering him a ride. The man declines and explains that he is waiting for the answer to prayer that he had requested. This is kind of how we felt. We had been praying to find a place to stay once we knew our reservation was not valid. The hotel room which we found was not a fancy room, but it was adequate. We slept well and cleaned ourselves off in the morning and were able to arrive at the church a little early for interviews. This was a special miracle for us because we knew of no other options in the town we were in. God led us to the people who could direct us to the hotel that had a room for us.

There is a missionary in our mission who spends two days a week helping with housing. He is marvelous because he can talk to the landlords in Cebuano about apartments that need repairs. Some missions have a senior couple who helps with housing, but ours does not. Every week there is a list of supplies that need to be purchased for the apartments. I am not complaining because I know we are not alone in this endeavor. Missions all over the world deal with housing demands for missionaries. With fifty apartments spread out through the island, it is tough to keep up on all of the supplies needed and issues. Take for instance this picture.

Two elders complained of rats in their apartment, and it is no surprise when I see the size of the hole in the door. The landlord has not been responsive about fixing the hole so we must find a new apartment for the missionaries to live in. But when will I have time this week to look for a new apartment? We have zone conferences on two days, and then we will be out of town interviewing missionaries in the northern part of the island. I advised the missionaries to ask the members of the ward they attended today for apartment leads. I will pray that we receive direction as to how to solve this issue.

But then, when my head and heart are heavy with issues, I think of the happy times I have had this week. Here is a picture of the three tallest sisters in the mission, and they are currently in a companionship threesome! Aren't they amazing?

I fight an inner battle every day of going from feeling fearful and overwhelmed, to feeling faith and confidence that things will somehow work out. I don't want to suffer through this assignment. I don't want to grit my teeth and get by. I want to find joy in it. I want to enjoy the journey. It's a lot and I am being stretched. Perhaps it is good that there is more to be done than I can possibly do, because then I find myself reaching out to the Savior, grasping for help and He rescues me. I know we can't do this without Him!

There is so much to say about this amazing woman! Her name is Kimber and she is serving with her husband here in the Cebu, Philippines mission. I call her "extra-mile Kimber," because she finds things to do in many areas and many ways to brighten the lives of the missionaries. We had a Mission Leader Conference this past week and she made a french toast breakfast for the 26 missionaries, including a variety of homemade syrups. She and her husband help with purchasing supplies, running the English Connect program, and so much more. We get to enjoy them for a few more months before they finish their mission. Kimber is a cheerful contributor and a bright light!

 

 It is 3:59 a.m. and the phone rings.

"Hello?"

"Hello Sister Clarke. This is Sister V. I'm worried about my companion."

"What is happening with your companion?"

"She has a really bad stomachache and she is crying."

"Has she thrown up?"

"No, she hasn't, but she feels like it is coming soon."

"Her stomach will probably keep hurting for a while, and then she will throw up and feel a little better. You are nice to care about her and help her through this. I will call you in a few hours and check on her."

"Thank you Sister Clarke. Sorry to wake you."

This call happened five times last week, two calls coming in during the night. I told the missionaries at zone conference to call me before they went to the hospital, so I am happy they are calling, but it is difficult for me to get back to sleep after their calls.

The most blessed news in the whole world is that a sister has been called to serve in the Cebu, Philippines mission starting in September, 2025 as a MISSION NURSE. Wonderful! I am not a nurse or a doctor, but am only pretending to be.

Yesterday at church we met a sister who has lived here in the Philippines along with in Seattle, Washington. She is familiar with both countries and cultures. She gave us marvelous advice. She said,

"Embrace the humidity. Embrace the people. Embrace the country. Embrace everything about here."

We are learning to not point out what is different here than in the United States, or what is lacking, or what is not as good. We are not above or better than anyone else. It is frustrating and of no worth to dwell on the differences. We are learning to find the beauty and to find the good. We shouldn't come here and try to change the country or their way of living. We must meet the people where they are and live as they do. We are guests and we are blessed to be here. There is so much good here!

One of the favorite parts of my week was watching the missionaries compete in the "Mango Relay." They could not touch the mango with their hands, but had to use plastic spoons to transport the mango from one side of the gym to the other. They then passed the mango to their teammate who ran it back across the gym to the next teammate, and so on. They laughed as they raced. In their hurry, some missionaries collided with other missionaries, and mangos were dropped along the way (much to the delight of the crowd). Other missionaries cheered on the competitors, waiting for their turn to compete. The upper picture shows the winning team from the Friday Zone Conference (three zones), and the lower picture is the winning team from the Thursday Zone Conference (three zones). We felt the Spirit at zone conference, we felt united, and we had fun too.

 

This picture is taken from the balcony of one of the senior sister missionary's apartments. The temple grounds are nestled in the middle of a busy section of the city. There is repose in the midst of chaos. What a striking difference between what is inside the temple gates and what is outside! The scene is very analogous to our lives. There can be busyness and disorder swirling around us, and yet peace and joy within.

I realize that growing up in the United States I have taken many things for granted. There are numerous things that I have been blessed with that people living elsewhere do not enjoy. I am humbled with what I have seen so far. I'm not sure that I will every look at my life the same.