Fwd:

I guess the mission equivalent of getting a phone number is getting an email. Bahaha. I love Filipinos! Enjoy this picture of us! haha this was the morning we got up at 4 am to say goodbye to Elder Crichton so don't look too close at me.

Re: Pictures!

Pictures!

Pananampalataya

Kumusta!

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY! And I don't think I'll ever be able to say that enough. So get used to it. Oh my heavens this week was AMAZING. Every day is when you're a missionary.

So on Sunday we had our last Sunday with the Senior Batch of missionaries who were leaving for their missions on Wednesday. We had an activity where we all stood on one side of the room and were each asked if we wanted blessings from Jesus Christ. With every answer, whether yes or no, Elder Carrington did 5 pushups. Everyone was sobbing by the end of the lesson because we saw him suffer for each of us individually. It was a parallel to Christ's suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane. He suffered for our pains and sins whether we want to accept the Atonement or not. He loves us so much that He suffered for us individually. It's hard to explain this sort of thing because the Spirit was just SO STRONG in the room. We are so so blessed.

So along with the Senior Batch, one of our elders, Elder Crichton, left for his mission because they don't teach his language here. He'll learn it in the field. We got up at 4 am and had a testimony meeting before he left. So now my district is my trio and Elder Bautista. We have to teach our lessons all four of us cramped in a tiny room with our investigators. It's hard but Elder Bautista is full Filipino but he grew up in Canada and he knows way more Tagalog than any of us so that's a huge help. But it's just hard to balance between four people.

One such lesson was with our investigator Sister Alma. We talked about the restoration and about Joseph Smith. My part of the lesson was to bear testimony after we sang Joseph Smith's first Prayer in Tagalog. Everyone was crying so it pretty much ended being a solo by yours truly. I just want you all to know that I KNOW that Joseph Smith is a true Prophet of God. I know this because I prayed to Heavenly Father and asked; and through the Holy Ghost, He told me. I know it. Beyond a shadow of a doubt. He restored this church to the earth. As I bore testimony, that knowledge grew stronger. And I could see in the eyes of my investigator that even though she couldn't understand my broken Tagalog, she could understand that the Spirit was telling her what I was saying was true. We then committed her to read Ang Aklat ni Mormon. I just... love the gospel.

This morning we were able to take our first temple trip. The Manila Temple is beyond gorgeous. The Spirit was so so strong. I loved all of it. The Filipino workers were incredibly sweet the entire time. I sat in the Celestial Room and cried for like 30 minutes because I just was overwhelmed with how incredibly blessed I am to be here among these people and how blessed I am to have so many family and friends back home and throughout the world supporting me and loving me. God is good to me.

After the temple, we greeted the new batch that came in. I was pretty anxious for them to come because ever since the senior batch and regular training missionaries left on Wednesday, there have been literally 17 missionaries in the entire MTC. It's been so quiet. I'm excited to get to know the new batch. I'm a Sister Training Leader so I get to help out a lot with them and it's such a blessing. The native missionaries are the sweetest. One of them is headed to Phoenix!

Ok, funny thing that everyone keeps telling me. Apparently Wilkins is a water bottle brand over here. Every time I meet a native and say "ako po si Sister Wilkins" they laugh and say "oh, did you know that Wilkins is water?" I just want to see some evidence of this.

Oh, so Pananampalataya is the word for Faith in Tagalog. Before I left that was one of the words that I saw. I was terrified because, well, look at it. But not only have I mastered that word, I've gotten some harder ones. There is no way on earth that I'd be able to do any of this without the help of the Lord. I love seeing how much I've learned in the past two weeks. I'm so grateful for the Gift of Tongues because it is SO REAL!

Welp, I love you all so much! Tell Steph I'm rooting for her and I can't wait to see pictures of Baby Dallas! I'm so so so happy! 

Kita Kits!

Sister Wilkins

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Thrilla in Manila

Kumusta!!!

Holy heck I love being a missionary! I have two weeks to report on since last friday was not really a p day. SOO here we go.

Here are some things that I've learned so far:

1. Do not take strange Australian medecine no matter how horrible you feel

2. Tagalog is the most beautiful language but it's SO HARD to learn

3. Filipinos drive insane but they never get in wrecks

4. The Spirit is the real teacher

5. Fish eyeballs are not as squishy as you'd think

6. The Jacob district is the best district

7. I wish I had an accent

Let me expound.

1. So in my district we have my mgakasama (companions - I'm in a trio) and two other elders. Elder Chrichton is from Australia. I have a bit of a cold and I wasn't feeling good at all, so he gave me some of his medecine and my body didn't like it. first it thinned my blood so when we played volleyball at gym I got tons of broken blood vessels and bruises on my arms. Then it made me shake like a chihuahua. I'm fine but it was so weird. It's normal for a 6'2" elder I guess... haha but a good thing that came of that was I asked for a blessing and Elders Chrichton and Bautista gave me one. It was such a beautiful blessing and I felt the Spirit so so strongly. Heavenly Father takes care of His children.

2. I LOVE TAGALOG. Like for reals. It sounds like a mixture of Spanish and Mandarin.Which sounds really weird but it's accurate. I know that the Gift of Tongues is a very very real thing.

3. Driving to get our Visas was an adventure. Filipinos are the defenition of agressive drivers. ALL OF THEM. I would never be able to drive here. I'd get killed. But they're so good at it. They're completely fearless.

4. We taught an investigator who turned out to be our teacher. completely in Tagalog. I know so little that it was just like.. stress beforehand. But despite our flipping through our English to Tagalog dictionaries, the Spirit was present in every single lesson and I know that she felt that what we were saying was true. Even though she was acting, you could tell. No matter how little we know, the Spirit is the one that does the talking.

5. The food here is so good. Like really. Today for lunch we had fish. Like a fish that was caught and then cooked. Nothing else. The Aussie dared me to eat the eyeball so I of course had to do it. I was expecting it to be squishy and what not but it was like eating a bead. but weirdly good.

6. My district is seriously incredible. We all just get along so well. My companions sister bell and sister layola are the sweetest and funniest people and I love them to death. The Elders are hilarious but immature. We all joke around so much but when we're learning the Spirit is definitely there.

7. Aussies, New Zealanders, Pakistanis, Samoans, Tongans, Filipinos. I'm one of very few Americans. I just want any one of their accents. They're all so cute. The Filipino accent is theeeee cutest. My companions and I always talk in their accent when we do roll call and throughout like everything. I am in love with the people here. Words can not describe. Plus they love me. when I first got here, everyone was looking at me and at the hotel we stayed at the first night, the workers wouldn't let me carry my bags but everyone else was okay to... haha and a lady stopped me to tell me that I'm beautiful. I feel pretty special and blessed to be here.

So much has happened and it's hard to say everything in such a short amount of time but I just want everyone to know that I love being a missionary and that I KNOW that the church is true and I KNOW that our Father in Heaven is very very mindful of each of us and He loves us beyond our comprehension. I have felt that love so many times while being here. This is the Lord's work. This is where I am meant to be right now. It's hard, but as Elder Bowen of the Quorum of the 70 who came and spoke to us this week said, "Life gets tougher and tougher, but you get stronger and stronger."

Mahal Kita!!

Sister Wilkins

P.S. Chris, Alfredo says hi. I sat next to him on the flight from SLC to LA. OH! and this Japanese lady on my flight from LA to Tokyo who spoke very very little english was asking me about the Book of Mormon. She looked it up on her phone and asked me if that was what I was reading. I love the gospel and I love sharing it! 

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IM ALIVE

Hello everyone! Just thought I'd let you know that I've flown safely
and I'm now in the Philippines MTC! It's beautiful here and I already
love the people! I'm in a threesome with Sister Loyola and Sister
Bell. My district is tiny with us three and two other elders. It's
humid and hot, but I thank my lucky stars I'm an Arizona girl and it's
about the same as a Phoenix summer day. The 23 hour flight was killer
but I survived with few injuries. Those being that I inherited mom's
tendency to blow up like aunt marge and I have super swollen feet and
ankles. Its ridiculous. Japan was beautiful and the Philippines is
even more so! I love you all so much and I miss you already but I know
I'm where I'm supposed to be! I'm one of two white sisters in the
whole MTC so that's cool. I LOVE IT HERE! My P day will be Fridays
just so you know. oh p.s. they all drive like dad and it's hilarious.
I love you all!
also this isn't letting me send this to some of you for some reason
sooo forward please, mom? i don't have time to figure it out.
--
Sister Wilkins


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          Welp. Today is the day I was originally supposed to enter the Provo MTC. It's a weird feeling. At 8:30 I looked at the clock and thought "I'd have been set apart as a missionary by now" at 12:45 I thought "I'd be reporting to the MTC right now." and so forth. I got a call from my stake president two days ago telling me that they had changed my assignment. Upon realizing that I was the only sister headed to the Philippines entering the MTC that day, they decided to delay my entrance a week and to instead send me to the Manila MTC.  Far too many times I've witnessed something that seems like a setback or a problem but turns out to be an immense blessing to ever doubt that this is what the Lord wants. I was banking on seven weeks in Provo to adjust to missionary life, and then to fly to the Philippines and adjust to the culture. I admittedly am pretty terrified to make this change all at once but I know that our Father in Heaven has a plan for each of His children and there's a reason I'll be there sooner. He can see what I can't. So here I am with an extra week at home on my hands and I intend to make it count. One of my best friends once told me "there's no such thing as wasted time in the Lord's time frame". You are where you are right now for a reason, so let's figure out why.