August 25, 2010
Family,
I love it here in Cebu! First of all let me clear up what the Baileys said about the traffic. I don’t know what they said but they have to drive in it. That is probably nuts because it is so different than the US. But honestly it is fine here. I haven’t seen anyone crash yet, and I walk the streets downtown every day. It is crazy because there are not any rules... that anyone follows. Lanes don’t matter. Motorcycles go zooming past no matter when. The jeepnys stop all the time and people are always crossing the street. But they are used to it here. They are not like prideful Americans who hit someone if that person was at fault. They pull out into full traffic and everyone stops. It seems crazy that you can just drive across the road and the other cars yield to you, but in the Philippines that’s how it works. It is, most of the time, very efficient.
I have attended the temple once. We get to go once a month, even though it is in my area and only about a 15 min walk from my apartment.
Thank you so much for emailing, but we are only going to have 30 min from now on and if I spend the entire time reading, I cannot write much. And I have so much to say. So maybe just cut out the flab and tell me the same stuff, just faster?
No Mom I haven’t been to the waterfall yet. My last 3 p-days haven’t really been p-days. The move, the big leadership meeting today (for elder Clark) and something else the other day. We called a lot of temple referrals yesterday, and had made appointments for this morning. I have been working with Frankie for the last 3 days till 5 and tomorrow too.
I finally found out what they mean by the "rainy season". It was a lot like Washington rain for the first few weeks.... but hot and not a whole lot of it. Then last night, it went from nothing to huge drops of water coming down to within 30 seconds it felt like I was in a waterfall! Luckily I was at the temple grounds, unluckily I was planning on walking home then. So we grabbed umbrellas from the rack and ran across the parking lot to the chapel. By the time I got there (maybe 30 seconds) my left arm was soaked so that I could see my arm through my shirt, and my pants were soaked from my calves down. All of the stairs were waterfalls and the road turned into a river.
Finally it let up a little so we took a jeepny to our road, then a hubal hubal (motorcycle) to our apartment. It had pretty much stopped raining, and the road was fairly dry. Then we hit traffic at a little intersection that never has traffic. Our road, the same one the marcado is on, was a river of brown water at least a foot deep rushing down! I ended up having to walk part of the way to my apartment where I saw Elder Clark stranded with his leadership training comp who is staying with us for the week, in the guard booth at the gate. We walked home (they had to wait for me because I had the key) in the deep water. It turns out waterproof shoes hold in water really well! That was fun. :)
We still had appointments, and I did something I never anticipated doing on my mission. I went out teaching with my pants rolled up and in green 45 peso flip flops! Kind of fun!
We also went to an appointment almost at the end of our area in the mountains. I had no idea how big my area was! We rode a hubal hubal for an hour up and down mountains to get there! It was like 38 km out of the city! Super pretty though. I could see both sides of the island and both Bohol and Negros.
Our new apartment is good now. We figured out the water and spent a whole day cleaning it. The tile and wood floors are now shiny and we have all of the furniture we need. It’s nice. We still have a shower! But it’s cold... especially this morning. It was cold yesterday after the rain, and last night did a number on the water. But it feels so good to be clean after sweating your guts out every day. I sweat all day long unless there is a fan or air conditioning. I use my handkerchiefs a lot! They are usually soaked by the end of the day. And my shirt, and my pants. But good news! I just go my second pair of custom made pants today! These ones are super nice. The new ones are so much better than the tight American style. Definitely not made for the Philippines.
We have 3 progressing investigators, one has a baptismal date for the 18 of September, one has wanted to be baptized for a long time but her dad (not the best guy in the world... unlike mine) hasn’t let her yet. And the third has read 20 pages of first Nephi, but doesn’t have that assurity that it is true yet. We work hard. About 60% of the time our planned for lessons don’t happen because they aren’t home. But we still talk to a lot of people. I am getting a little better at Cebuano. I still do a lot of patient sitting with little clue what is going on, but I find myself understanding more and more, and being able to carry on longer conversations with people. It’s good.
I love you all!
Elder Schenk
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Sunday, August 22, 2010
From the Baileys
Our Dearly Beloved Family and Friends,
Since a mission actually starts the day you report to the MTC, we have now completed our first month. One down, 22 more to go. It’s amazing how fast time fly’s.
For those who believe in the old saying “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, don’t believe it. Sister Bailey and I have had to learn very quickly how to text. That is the method of communication here in the Philippines. No one talks on the phone.
Driving here is a real treat for those who have never been to foreign country where they really don’t have any traffic laws to speak of. We got our Philippines drivers’ license this last week, so we are legal to go play bumper cars. They also made us get our Motorcycle endorsement, (as if I’m going to get out on these roads without a lot of metal around me). There are four basic rules to driving over here. “Flow”, “Pick”, “Pick-Flash” and “The No-See-Chicken”.
Flow – It doesn’t matter where the lines are painted or how many official lanes of traffic there are – flow with the traffic. If there are only two lanes painted on the road and there are four lanes of traffic, don’t worry – just flow.
Pick – This principle is as simple as the first. Whichever driver can pick (place) any portion of his vehicle in front of the other vehicle, the successful (first) picker has the right of way. The slow learner who waits for a break in the traffic is bound to spend much of his traffic life waiting for that break. All it takes is a little courage coupled with a small portion of bumper or fender picked in front of another vehicle and you have the right of way. Of course this works both ways. If another driver picks his vehicle in front of yours, you have to give the right of way.
Pick Flash – While the pick principle applies to traffic in the flow or at intersections, there is an important special application of picking when you face another vehicle head-on with room only for one lane of traffic. This occurs when you’re on a 2 lane road and one lane is blocked by road work, a stalled vehicle, a landslide or whatever. As two vehicles approach each other and the one lane section it is not always obvious who can win the race to get through, the “pick” is won by the vehicle that flashes its headlights first. Playing this game correctly requires good eyesight, distance judgment and a quick hand on the light switch.
Along with the Flash Pick is the “Vis-à-vis pick”. This applies when passing moving traffic on a 2 lane road. You pass, and while passing the slower vehicles, an oncoming vehicle appears. If you flash first, the on comer must slow down and let you get around; if he flashes first, prepare to fall back, escape or abandon ship.
The No-See-Chicken – This is a version of the old American game of Chicken. It is important in the no-see-chicken situation not to let on (no-see) that you see the other vehicle(s). For example, when entering an intersection, if there are vehicles coming from your left or right, you have to act like you don’t see them. The best procedures are to maintain your speed and look straight ahead. If speed is slowed or you turn your head to look in the direction of the other vehicle, the driver will know you have spotted him and the old American variety of chicken goes into play. Be prepared to give the right of way.
All the above is done while you are watching out for motorcycles that go wherever they want to and pedestrians who walk into your traffic lane or stand on the line in the middle of the road. Enough about driving here in the Philippines.
We were able to find a nice furnished, 2 bedroom townhouse apartment on the third day. Mostly out of desperation. As temporary housing they had us staying at the Temple Patron house for two nights. That was about all we could stand. It had a bathroom (very nice) and a sleeping room that had 6 bunk beds. Nice for a night if you and your family were there to go to the Temple, but not for long term living. Our apartment is in a complex of 4 apartments. The owner (landlord) is in apartment #2 and he is the 1st Councilor in the Stake Presidency. Apartment #1 is occupied by the Family History Senior Missionary couple. Apartment #3 is occupied by the City Zone Leader Missionaries and we are in apartment #4. Gee, a 100% LDS community in the Philippines, how wonderful is that.
Things have been very busy for us since we arrived. Yesterday, Sister Bailey and I were able to relax just enough to finally get to the Temple. It was so wonderful to be there. I know it hadn’t been all that long since we had gone but when you were used to going twice a week every week it seemed like it had been a lifetime. The Temple here in Cebu is new, clean and very beautiful. The session we attended was full to overflowing. They had to bring in some extra chairs to fit everyone in. Most of the sessions here are that way. It is wonderful to see a people so dedicated to serving the Lord.
We definitely see the need to learn the language here. As we attend church each Sunday we have a very difficult time understanding what is going on. In one sentence the speaker will use English, Cebuano and Tagolog.
We want all of you to know that you are in our thoughts and prayers. We love you and miss you and will stay in touch. May the Lord bless you and keep you.
Love
Elder & Sister Bailey
Philippines, Cebu Mission
Since a mission actually starts the day you report to the MTC, we have now completed our first month. One down, 22 more to go. It’s amazing how fast time fly’s.
For those who believe in the old saying “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, don’t believe it. Sister Bailey and I have had to learn very quickly how to text. That is the method of communication here in the Philippines. No one talks on the phone.
Driving here is a real treat for those who have never been to foreign country where they really don’t have any traffic laws to speak of. We got our Philippines drivers’ license this last week, so we are legal to go play bumper cars. They also made us get our Motorcycle endorsement, (as if I’m going to get out on these roads without a lot of metal around me). There are four basic rules to driving over here. “Flow”, “Pick”, “Pick-Flash” and “The No-See-Chicken”.
Flow – It doesn’t matter where the lines are painted or how many official lanes of traffic there are – flow with the traffic. If there are only two lanes painted on the road and there are four lanes of traffic, don’t worry – just flow.
Pick – This principle is as simple as the first. Whichever driver can pick (place) any portion of his vehicle in front of the other vehicle, the successful (first) picker has the right of way. The slow learner who waits for a break in the traffic is bound to spend much of his traffic life waiting for that break. All it takes is a little courage coupled with a small portion of bumper or fender picked in front of another vehicle and you have the right of way. Of course this works both ways. If another driver picks his vehicle in front of yours, you have to give the right of way.
Pick Flash – While the pick principle applies to traffic in the flow or at intersections, there is an important special application of picking when you face another vehicle head-on with room only for one lane of traffic. This occurs when you’re on a 2 lane road and one lane is blocked by road work, a stalled vehicle, a landslide or whatever. As two vehicles approach each other and the one lane section it is not always obvious who can win the race to get through, the “pick” is won by the vehicle that flashes its headlights first. Playing this game correctly requires good eyesight, distance judgment and a quick hand on the light switch.
Along with the Flash Pick is the “Vis-à-vis pick”. This applies when passing moving traffic on a 2 lane road. You pass, and while passing the slower vehicles, an oncoming vehicle appears. If you flash first, the on comer must slow down and let you get around; if he flashes first, prepare to fall back, escape or abandon ship.
The No-See-Chicken – This is a version of the old American game of Chicken. It is important in the no-see-chicken situation not to let on (no-see) that you see the other vehicle(s). For example, when entering an intersection, if there are vehicles coming from your left or right, you have to act like you don’t see them. The best procedures are to maintain your speed and look straight ahead. If speed is slowed or you turn your head to look in the direction of the other vehicle, the driver will know you have spotted him and the old American variety of chicken goes into play. Be prepared to give the right of way.
All the above is done while you are watching out for motorcycles that go wherever they want to and pedestrians who walk into your traffic lane or stand on the line in the middle of the road. Enough about driving here in the Philippines.
We were able to find a nice furnished, 2 bedroom townhouse apartment on the third day. Mostly out of desperation. As temporary housing they had us staying at the Temple Patron house for two nights. That was about all we could stand. It had a bathroom (very nice) and a sleeping room that had 6 bunk beds. Nice for a night if you and your family were there to go to the Temple, but not for long term living. Our apartment is in a complex of 4 apartments. The owner (landlord) is in apartment #2 and he is the 1st Councilor in the Stake Presidency. Apartment #1 is occupied by the Family History Senior Missionary couple. Apartment #3 is occupied by the City Zone Leader Missionaries and we are in apartment #4. Gee, a 100% LDS community in the Philippines, how wonderful is that.
Things have been very busy for us since we arrived. Yesterday, Sister Bailey and I were able to relax just enough to finally get to the Temple. It was so wonderful to be there. I know it hadn’t been all that long since we had gone but when you were used to going twice a week every week it seemed like it had been a lifetime. The Temple here in Cebu is new, clean and very beautiful. The session we attended was full to overflowing. They had to bring in some extra chairs to fit everyone in. Most of the sessions here are that way. It is wonderful to see a people so dedicated to serving the Lord.
We definitely see the need to learn the language here. As we attend church each Sunday we have a very difficult time understanding what is going on. In one sentence the speaker will use English, Cebuano and Tagolog.
We want all of you to know that you are in our thoughts and prayers. We love you and miss you and will stay in touch. May the Lord bless you and keep you.
Love
Elder & Sister Bailey
Philippines, Cebu Mission
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Elder Schenk with President and Sister Hansen
We recieve a letter from President Hansen today saying that Elder Schenk had arrived and was in good hands! He enclosed a "welcome snapshot". I think Devin looks great!
August 18, 2010
August 18, 2010
Family!
The mission is great! I still don't speak cebuano but I am learning. Sorry if this is short and choppy. Most of the keys you have to hit to make them work, and I have no time today.
The mangos are good. We eat about 4 kilos a week. We have rice and usually chicken or pork stir fry for dinner. Sometimes we eat at the patron house. It is good and cheap. You can get a meal for about $1.40. Not bad.
We went to the temple today. It is beautiful. We got asked to be witnesses for sealings. That was a nice break after we moved last night. It is a nice place, but it hadn’t been lived in for a bit and was dirty. We spent all last night trying to get water, and all day this morning cleaning. I got some pants made. They are big, but I really like them. They are a nice dark green with a bit of a black stripe.
We have 2 progressing investigators, and many that haven’t had the second lesson yet. If we push ourselves I think we will have a lot of success.
The address on my sheet I handed out works. I got a letter from Brittany last week.
Thanks for all of your prayers. I love you all!
Love,
Elder Schenk
ps. We found a sweet waterfall in our area. We are going to hike it soon I hope! :)
Family!
The mission is great! I still don't speak cebuano but I am learning. Sorry if this is short and choppy. Most of the keys you have to hit to make them work, and I have no time today.
The mangos are good. We eat about 4 kilos a week. We have rice and usually chicken or pork stir fry for dinner. Sometimes we eat at the patron house. It is good and cheap. You can get a meal for about $1.40. Not bad.
We went to the temple today. It is beautiful. We got asked to be witnesses for sealings. That was a nice break after we moved last night. It is a nice place, but it hadn’t been lived in for a bit and was dirty. We spent all last night trying to get water, and all day this morning cleaning. I got some pants made. They are big, but I really like them. They are a nice dark green with a bit of a black stripe.
We have 2 progressing investigators, and many that haven’t had the second lesson yet. If we push ourselves I think we will have a lot of success.
The address on my sheet I handed out works. I got a letter from Brittany last week.
Thanks for all of your prayers. I love you all!
Love,
Elder Schenk
ps. We found a sweet waterfall in our area. We are going to hike it soon I hope! :)
Thursday, August 12, 2010
First Week in the Mission Field
Family!
I love it here in Cebu! It is hot and humid, but not unbearable. When I first stepped off the plane in Hong Kong it was like I hit a wall of water! When you walk out of an air conditioned room at church it feels the same way. It is crazy how much you sweat!
I am assigned in City zone in Cebu City. The temple is in my area! The only area with it! I feel lucky. My companion is Elder Clark. He is an American from California. He has been out 21 months and is a really good missionary. He takes good care of me. Everybody is his friend and they tell me how lucky I am to have him as a trainer. He is one of the best Visayan speakers in the mission. He understands everything and is always joking around with the Filipinos trying to make them laugh. We were both transferred into this area, and the boundaries are about to change and all of the previous progressing investigators are moving to another area, so we had nobody to teach. We have been doing a lot of tracting. We have met a lot of members. One of them, Frankie, doesn't have work so he has been going with us every day for the last 3 days. He knows were a lot of members are. My area is huge! It covers a lot of down town, which is tiny houses all smashed together. So many people can live in one block! Also we have a LOT of bukid (hills) in our area. We take a jeepny up there almost every day. I’ll send you a picture next week. It is amazing how many homes are built on such steep hills!
I love it here. There are so many good people who live in such humble circumstance. They have little houses made of concrete the size of half our carport with 6 or so people living there. And on the other side of the wall is their neighbor’s main room. They are literally right next to each other. It is so beautiful! Everyting is so green. The bukid is so beautiful. They have a place called tops. It is the very top of the bukid. It costs about 100 pesos to get up there, 100 pesos to enter, and probably 50 more to get home. That is about 5 dollars, but it is really expensive here. A normal jeepny ride is 6.5 pesos. We took 3 of us on a motorcycle (motor) 15 minutes up a steep windy road into the bukid and it cost 80 pesos up and 45 down.
The temple is so beautiful! The grounds are so beautiful. They keep it really nice. My apartment is the nicest one in the entire mission! We have AC, a shower with hot water and no bugs. We live at the old church next to the assistants. One area over, Sister Robbison, who I was in the mtc with, has a bucket of cold water to shower with, dies every night because it is too hot, and bugs everywhere. We are so lucky. We are moving next week so that another senior couple can move in. Hopefully that place will be nice too.
Mail takes forever to get here, so email works just fine. Thanks for everything! I love you all!
Elder Schenk
I love it here in Cebu! It is hot and humid, but not unbearable. When I first stepped off the plane in Hong Kong it was like I hit a wall of water! When you walk out of an air conditioned room at church it feels the same way. It is crazy how much you sweat!
I am assigned in City zone in Cebu City. The temple is in my area! The only area with it! I feel lucky. My companion is Elder Clark. He is an American from California. He has been out 21 months and is a really good missionary. He takes good care of me. Everybody is his friend and they tell me how lucky I am to have him as a trainer. He is one of the best Visayan speakers in the mission. He understands everything and is always joking around with the Filipinos trying to make them laugh. We were both transferred into this area, and the boundaries are about to change and all of the previous progressing investigators are moving to another area, so we had nobody to teach. We have been doing a lot of tracting. We have met a lot of members. One of them, Frankie, doesn't have work so he has been going with us every day for the last 3 days. He knows were a lot of members are. My area is huge! It covers a lot of down town, which is tiny houses all smashed together. So many people can live in one block! Also we have a LOT of bukid (hills) in our area. We take a jeepny up there almost every day. I’ll send you a picture next week. It is amazing how many homes are built on such steep hills!
I love it here. There are so many good people who live in such humble circumstance. They have little houses made of concrete the size of half our carport with 6 or so people living there. And on the other side of the wall is their neighbor’s main room. They are literally right next to each other. It is so beautiful! Everyting is so green. The bukid is so beautiful. They have a place called tops. It is the very top of the bukid. It costs about 100 pesos to get up there, 100 pesos to enter, and probably 50 more to get home. That is about 5 dollars, but it is really expensive here. A normal jeepny ride is 6.5 pesos. We took 3 of us on a motorcycle (motor) 15 minutes up a steep windy road into the bukid and it cost 80 pesos up and 45 down.
The temple is so beautiful! The grounds are so beautiful. They keep it really nice. My apartment is the nicest one in the entire mission! We have AC, a shower with hot water and no bugs. We live at the old church next to the assistants. One area over, Sister Robbison, who I was in the mtc with, has a bucket of cold water to shower with, dies every night because it is too hot, and bugs everywhere. We are so lucky. We are moving next week so that another senior couple can move in. Hopefully that place will be nice too.
Mail takes forever to get here, so email works just fine. Thanks for everything! I love you all!
Elder Schenk
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Cebu City!
I made it! It is nice here. It is humid and a little smelly, but it is a great place. The temple is so beautiful! A beacon of light shining out of the dirty city. The driving here is nuts! It felt like a roller coaster getting over here. But it was fun. There are people on motorcycles everywhere, and people riding in the back of trucks and hanging onto the jeepnys. It is cool. I love it! The missionaries are nice, the president is nice. It’s all good. We will see how optimistic I am next week, but as of now I cannot wait to see how it is all going to go! I love it. Tomorrow I meet my kauban (companion) and go to my first area. We just had pizza and bananas for dinner. They are good here. I am excited to eat a mango! Sometime soon I hope. I love you. Take care. I can’t wait for bed, and it is just past lunch time! It is past my bedtime in Utah. I’ll manage. The humidity is actually kind of nice. I like it. It is a nice change from the Utah dry.
I love you all! Take care. I am in good hands. The Baileys are taking good care of me!
Love always,
Elder Schenk
I love you all! Take care. I am in good hands. The Baileys are taking good care of me!
Love always,
Elder Schenk
On My Way to the Airport
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Mom, The cinnamon rolls were great! I took them up to the temple on Sunday and put them on the sidewalk. In about an hour they were all hot and gooey! They were so good! Thanks so much for them.
We take off in 45 min! Nuts. Here is the deal. I can call you at the airport! I don’t know if I will have time here in Salt Lake, if so it will be at about 9:00 pm tonight. But if not I’ll call in San Francisco about 11:30pm tonight. If not then, I have a 3 hour layover in Hong Kong tomorrow. I can call from 2-3:30 tomorrow afternoon. It will be 6:30 in the morning in Hong Kong! I am so excited to talk to you! Thanks for everything!
I sent you a package today with my suit and some unneeded clothing. Look for that one.
I love you! Take care. I’ll write you when I get to Cebu. It may not be till next Wednesday when i have my p-day, but I'll write.
I love you all!
Elder Schenk
Mom, The cinnamon rolls were great! I took them up to the temple on Sunday and put them on the sidewalk. In about an hour they were all hot and gooey! They were so good! Thanks so much for them.
We take off in 45 min! Nuts. Here is the deal. I can call you at the airport! I don’t know if I will have time here in Salt Lake, if so it will be at about 9:00 pm tonight. But if not I’ll call in San Francisco about 11:30pm tonight. If not then, I have a 3 hour layover in Hong Kong tomorrow. I can call from 2-3:30 tomorrow afternoon. It will be 6:30 in the morning in Hong Kong! I am so excited to talk to you! Thanks for everything!
I sent you a package today with my suit and some unneeded clothing. Look for that one.
I love you! Take care. I’ll write you when I get to Cebu. It may not be till next Wednesday when i have my p-day, but I'll write.
I love you all!
Elder Schenk
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