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Email:
Madison.Healey@myldsmail.net

PHILIPPINES TACLOBAN MISSION:
Sister Madison May Healey
Philippines Tacloban Mission
511 Maharlika Highway
Fatima Village
Tacloban City, LEYTE 6500
Philippines

Saturday, August 22, 2015

Host to new missionaries entering the MTC. Learning more Cebuano and happy the gym is now open.

Kamusta pamilya ug mga higala! 

I'm now in my third week! Not much has changed as far as our schedule. We are still in class almost all day every day. I actually know my way around the MTC now and rarely get lost! Although no one has told me where the tree that smells like cream soda is. haha 

I love my teachers! Sister Henshaw is such an amazing person and role model. She served her mission in Tacloban when the Typhoon hit 2 years ago. She has been through so much, but she has such a powerful testimony and relationship with God. She has been there for me when I have been discouraged with the language and frustrated with myself, and I am so thankful. 

The Sunday devotional was awesome! The Nashville Tribute Band came and performed their album "The Restoration." And the MTC choir got to help sing some of their songs. It was a really cool and spiritual experience. You should go listen to some of their songs! Some of my favorite songs were "How much can one heart take," "I was born," and "The Hardest thing." I definitely want to get their album when I get off my mission!

On Wednesday my whole district got to be Hosts for the missionaries entering the MTC. We would welcome them at the drop off, help them check in, drop their luggage off at their residence, and get them to their first class. Then we would run (literally) back to the drop-off location and do it all over again. There were over 500 missionaries that came in on Wednesday! It was crazy busy, but I really liked doing it. Helping them have a good first experience here. And I know what they are going through because I was there 2 weeks ago. I met a lot of great new missionaries. We will probably host again before we leave the MTC. 

Yesterday the gym opened! So we got to go play basketball during our Gym time! It had been closed because the floors were being refinished, so it was the first time we were in there. It was a lot of fun playing ball again. It was fun playing with my district. They were impressed. haha It is nice that the gym is open now, because Sister Powell doesn't like sports very much, so she runs on the indoor track while Sister Allen and I play basketball or indoor volleyball. So that's where we will probably spend most of our gym time now. I've heard that basketball is one of the most popular sports in the Philippines so I'm headed to the right place. :) 

My Cebuano is improving slowly but surely. I understand much more of what our teachers are saying, although there are still times when they say something to me and it goes right over my head. But I'm feeling better about it. It was funny, an Elder in my district, Elder Allen (Not related to Sister Allen), the other day in class was starting to understand some of the grammar concepts of Cebuano. We were all struggling and he said, "My light bulb is starting to flicker!" It was sooo funny. He was trying to say, ”Our flashbulbs are flickering, but they haven't turned on yet.” Praying in Cebuano is easy now and I don't even have to really think about it too much. I can focus more on the prayer than the vocab. So I have hope that I will eventually learn! Emphasis on eventually.  The real challenge will be once I get to the Philippines where people speak Waray-Waray, Cebuano, Tagalog, and many different dialects to top it all off. And they will speak much faster. So I'll let you all know how that goes when I get there. haha But I'm still so excited! The more I learn about the people, culture, and language, the more excited I get. I know it's going to be awesome. A part of me just wants to be there already. but I know I still have a lot to learn in the next few weeks. 

Nasayud ko nga gihigugma kita sa Dios. Ug tinuod sa maluluwas ug manunubos si JesuKristo. Kahibalo ko nga kon magampo kita kada adlaw, magtubag sa Dios among mga pagampos. 

Have faith. Do your best, and God will do the rest.  

Uban Gihigugma,

Sister Healey


Walking to the Provo Temple on Friday morning.

 
After doing service on Tuesday.  
L to R: Sis Powell, Sis. Allen, Sis Saafi (from Tonga), Sis. Healey

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