Week 7: Tuesday July 23rd, 2013

Family,

Well, I'm sure you are all anxious to hear how things are here in the Philippines, so let me just tell you about it. However, it may not be what you expect to hear. I never thought I would say this, but I miss the MTC so much! It was so easy there! I laugh to think about how "miserable" I was there. Seriously, life here is incredibly difficult. My trainer's name is Elder Woods. He is from California & he has been out for 14 months. He's an alright guy. We don't really have much in common & we're both pretty quite so we don't talk much, but he's nice & determined. As for the culture, I'm in an area called Pinamungajan. It's what you would call the "bukid". Remember how I was hoping for a jungle area? Well, I got what I asked for. It's incredible to see just how poor some parts of the world really are. People literally live in 1 room shacks made from wood with bamboo or dirt floors. These people have nothing. Most of them don't even have front doors. We have to travel into the bukid quite a ways to get to most people's homes. It's so hot here! However, the area I am in is not even as hot as most of the places here. I am always drenched in sweat, whether it is because of the heat/humidity or because of the pouring rain! It has poured half of the days that I have been here, & that makes me happy. I am always tired, it stinks so bad here (really, I want to throw up all the time because it smells so bad), I feel so dirty all the time, & I can't help but want to just be back home where they have air conditioning and where I can be with my family & friends. On top of that, I have no idea what anyone is saying to me ever so I just have to ask my companion what they said & when I answer they just laugh & make me feel like an idiot. I know that this a great thing, helping people, but it is so hard. I miss home. On the bright side, they have some of the best bakeries I have ever had. The foods actually not that bad. Rice all the time, sure, but they also have Coke with every single meal. No matter what, these people always have Coke! It's kind of funny. Our apartment is right on the pier & I can look out the window & see the ocean over to the next Island, Negros. It's so pretty. But again, even our apartment smells funny. Well, I hope I didn't make everyone feel bad. I hope you are all enjoying it back home! If there is one thing that I have learned, it is that we should never take for granted the things that we have. We are so lucky to live in the place we do. For example: some of you have heard that there is no toilet paper here. Well, it's true. There is no toilet paper & no sewer system, so after you use the restroom, you have to fill up a bucket of water & pour it down the toilet to flush. Same idea as back home, it's just manually. Also, the little kids here rarely have pants on. They just run around either with just a shirt on or completely naked. And then we taught this lady who just started breast feeding in the middle of the lesson. She wasn't shy, she didn't try to cover it, she was just letting it all hang out. It was kind of shocking, but kind of funny. Anyway, I was extremely happy to run into Madison, Jazzy, Matt, & the kids at the airport. It made me so incredibly happy. I'm just so sad that it lasted for such a short time. I miss you all. I hope you are all happy.

7.16.13

7.22.13

7.23.13

Missionary Training Center (MTC) Highlights

Week One - 6/12/13

Dear Family,

     Well, I survived one week at the MTC. It's been crazy, to put it lightly. The days here are packed from 6:30 am-10:30 pm with things that they have us do. My typical day here goes something like this: we wake up at 6:30 & arrive at our classroom by 7:00 for an hour of personal study. We then have breakfast for 45 minutes & return to the classroom for three hours of language study. After language study we have an hour for companionship study. After that, we have lunch for 45 minutes & return to the classroom for an hour of personal language study. Following that, we have another three hours of language study/companion study/teach an investigator in a language that I can't even speak. Following that, we have what is called Technology Assisted Language Learning (TALL), it is a program on the computer to help you learn words & phrases in Cebuano. We then have dinner for 45 minutes & then we go back to our residence to get ready for an hour of gym time. It's great to run & play some ball to get my frustration with the language out. We then go back for an hour of personal study time & are in bed by 9:30-10:00 pm. The days here are rough. They are incredibly tougher than I anticipated them to be & in all honestly it is extremely overwhelming. I miss you all, I miss my friends, I miss how easy everything is back home, & most of all I miss my music! It's only been a week, though it feels like it has been so much longer, & I am already having withdrawals from not having & playing my music. I have resorted to writing down lyrics of songs in my notebook because that is the closest to listening to them that I can get. As I write them down, I sing them in my head & it makes me feel better/miss it more. I like gym because sometimes I will just go run outside by myself & it is literally then only time that I am not with someone throughout every second of the day. In five short (long) weeks I'will be in Cebu.

     My companion's name is Elder Uata. He is from Provo & he is a really good guy. I've gotten to know him & it has been nice. He is extremely outgoing & at times is overwhelming because I am not like that whatsoever. I think it's good though, because we balance each other out. My district is awesome & I am convinced that there is no better district in the entire MTC. There is Elder Adair, from Springville, & his companion Elder Painchaud (Pen-shoe). He is a French-Canadian & is hilarious. He sometimes has trouble with English & I can't imagine how he is trying to learn both English & Cebuano. He is pretty good at English, there are just sometimes a few words he hasn't heard. There are three Sister companions: Sister Adasme (Iowa) and Sister Lercher (Utah). I told Sister Adasme that you were from Iowa but I couldn't remember where exactly. Was it Des Moines? There is also Sister Forbush (Utah) and Sister Pickett (Las Vegas), and Sister Simkins (Utah) & Sister Doud (Utah). There are all great. I'm the only one from Southern Utah, the rest are from somewhere up North. They are all extremely extroverted & at times it gets a littler crazy for me, but I  think they are all very fun. Elder Uata sometimes gets mad at me because I don't say much. I'm sure just as he drives me crazy sometimes with his extreme personality, I drive him crazy with my introverted one. Oh well, there are plenty of outgoing people in our district & he has no trouble whatsoever keeping a conversation going with one or all of them.

         I hope all is well back home. I miss Krue, Axzelle, & Daxton like crazy. Give them so many kisses for me! I love & miss you guys.

                                                                                  Elder Staheli

6.12.13

6.12.13


6.13.13


6.16.13

Week Two - 6/20/13

    This week has gone by a little bit faster, but not easier by any means. In fact, I dare say it has been harder. The last few days have been especially rough because I am sick & haven't been able to sleep more than an hour a night the last 3 nights. Also, one of my roommates has a virus going around the MTC & has been throwing up for the last few days so I hope I didn't catch anything from him. Thanks everyone for replying. I really love getting your emails...everyone, thank you for your support & words of encouragement.

    I have one funny story to share. It's kind of embarrassing, but oh well. So, we are in the middle of class & our teacher gives us a break.  I get a drink & walk into the restroom. I'm just sitting there minding my own business & all of a sudden the door opens & I see two pairs of shoes. But they definitely were not Elder's shoes. I hold my breath & think "am I in the wrong bathroom?" After a few seconds I hear one of the sister's scream, "we're in the boys bathroom!" They run out & I hear people laughing outside. Luckily I got away unnoticed, but it was still embarrassing for me. I'm sure they were more embarrassed though. 

             Elder Staheli

Week Three - 6/27/13

Kamusta!,

    Hey everybody, I hope all is well! I always appreciate hearing from you. It makes me feel like I am still somehow home even though I am not there. So, like last week, I have another story to share. Sorry, this one isn't embarrassing.

    So, me & my companion are sitting outside teaching a lesson to an investigator (our teacher) & things are going fine. My Cebuano is coming along & I can pretty much understand anything that is being said to me, though I have trouble communicating back because I still have a limited vocabulary. Anyway, we are sitting there teaching & I am in mid-sentence when I turn my head & walking right by us is Russell M. Nelson. Me, my companion, & even the teacher, just stop & stare. Elder Nelson looked at us, smiled, & waved. He wasn't more than ten feet away from us. It was pretty cool.

     Against my will I joined the choir & sang in the broadcast. That's funny that you guys saw me. I didn't want to, but every single person in my district did so I didn't really have a choice. It turned out to be pretty alright, though. It was cool to be so close to the apostles.

     Well, this week has been slightly better. I still miss home incredibly, but I am trying to be happier. Hopefully it will help! I miss you all & love you guys. I went over my time for you guys because I love you that much! 

                                                         Elder Staheli

Week 4 - 7/4/13

Dear family,

   Happy 4th of July! I hope all is going great & that you guys have a great holiday. Well, I have been out a month now & it's weird to think that I only have 23 months left - less than 2 years! It doesn't make it seem as long if I think about months instead of years.

   Well, I have made it through another week in the MTC which means I am that much closer to leaving! We get our travel plans tomorrow so I am way excited about that. It's around a 20 hour flight, give or take a few hours. I will definitely be more traveled than when I left. There aren't really any crazy stories about this week...Josh arrived at the MTC so I'm pretty excited about that! I also saw a few other friends who are staying at the West Campus. It was awesome seeing them.

   Love you guys! I miss you & I'm glad that all is going well. 

                                                                                       Elder Staheli

Week 5 - 7/11/13

Kamusta!

   Magatdo ko para sa Pilipinas sa upat mga dio! (I leave for the Philippines in 4 days) The language is coming along nicely, I feel myself improving everyday! I set a goal to be comfortable by 4 months. I really think I can do it. The language isn't extremely difficult & I know that if I work hard to learn vocabulary, I will just be able to get down the sentence structure while I'm out there. It's going to be so weird to be fluent when I come home. It's going to be awesome, though. So, for the 4th of July, we had a special 4th of July devotional. We had a few speakers & then we watched 17 Miracles. I had never seen it before. It was really amazing to see how much hardship & trial the pioneers went through to get here. After that, we were allowed to stay up until 11:00 for the fireworks. We weren't allowed to leave campus & since the fireworks were at Levell Edwards Stadium, we couldn't see much, especially with huge trees towering over the fences. It was still nice, though. It has also been pouring rain up here for a few days this week & I am loving it! I love the rain so much. In fact, it looks like it may rain today! Me & my companion are starting to get along better. There are times when we are sick of each other, but there are also times when we really enjoy being around each other. We laugh a lot! I mostly just don't like him in the mornings, probably because it's so early & I'm not a morning person anyways, but he is so I am easily irritated.  We got our travel plans on Friday & this is what will be happening.

   We have In Field Orientation tomorrow, which is basically a crash course of what to expect, how to survive, what to do, etc. That will take up pretty much the whole day tomorrow. I'm excited for it. Then Saturday, we have class, but since it is our last day together our two teachers are going to bring in pictures of their missions & tell us stories, answer questions, & all of that stuff. Sunday is normal, we have our meetings & devotional. On Monday, the people who are going to Takloban fly out at 11:00 a.m.so they will leave the MTC around 7:00. Those going to Cebu, which is most kids in our zone, don't fly out until 5:00, so we will leave here around 1:00. We will fly from SLC to Los Angeles. From there, we have a 5 hour layover, and then leave around 10:00 or 11:00 p.m. California time. Once we leave L.A. it's a 22 hour flight straight to Manila. I'm bummed we don't get to stop in Hong Kong (the kids going to Takloban are stopping in Tokyo), but that's okay. It's a 14 hour time difference, so it will be quite the adjustment. But I'm excited!

  Well, I miss you all. Next time I'll write you, I'll be in the Philippines! Ayo-ayo!

                      Elder Staheli  

7.12.13

7.12.13

7.14.13

Matt had a flight at the airport the same day Dylan flew out. Madison, Jasmine and the kids went in with Matt hoping they might get to see Dylan. Not thinking they really would, they basically ran right into him.

Such a fun surprise!

Mission Farewell

Being dropped off at the MTC

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We had lunch at the Cheesecake Factory right before Dylan left for the MTC.

This is where the siblings, niece, and nephews said there goodbyes!

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Dylan was set apart by President Bangerter on June 4th. 

He received a beautiful blessing, and was surrounded by family and friends whom shared stories and qualities about Dylan that we all love.

Following his setting apart we traveled to Ogden to be with family the day before leaving to the MTC.

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Dylan went through the Temple for his first time on May 28th 

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On Sunday, May 19, 2013, three days prior to his high school graduation, Dylan gave a beautiful missionary farewell address in Sacrament Meeting.  The chapel was full, with standing room only, and there was an incredible outpouring of love and support from his family members, friends, teachers, neighbors, and others.  Dylan has been such a great son, brother, uncle, and friend to so many people.  He has been a good example and influenced many others for good.  Likewise, Dylan has chosen some very good friends that have been positive influences in his life and have helped him make the decision to serve a mission.  During his talk in Sacrament Meeting, he publicly thanked family and friends, and really emphasized the value of good friends.  Following Sacrament Meeting, Uncle Kress and Aunt Lynnette hosted a luncheon at their home for Dylan's family and friends. Everyone pitched in with food and other assignments to make this a very special day!