Beautiful insect on the truck ... we see many new varieties ... very interesting

Sunday, July 6, 2014

Today we traveled to EB Magalona; it’s about 40-minutes north of Bacolod.   It’s been raining for the last few days and the foliage is lush and green from all the rain we have been receiving.  The rice fields are thriving and people gather to fill their water buckets at the community water source, pumping by hand.  The blue truck we are traveling in attracts attention as we navigate down the narrow but paved road—where they see very few cars.  Bamboo homes close together dot both sides of the street.  Children play and dogs lay (as they tend to do here) in the road.  Less than a mile away, there are block houses with running water.

Anything goes traffic rules here--bigger usually wins out

We met an investigator with her several young children who walk over an hour to come to church.  We drove them to the end of the paved road, and they journeyed by foot the rest of the way on a dirt path to their home.  The Sisters said it is a difficult path and the high tides make traveling impossible for part of the day.  We were told they could only provide one meal a day for their young family.

Traffic is often too close for comfort--particularly around rush hours; not uncommon
to see 3 lanes formed in a 2 lane road

On Wednesday, we had the opportunity to take an Elder to the airport.  We had met him before while he was serving on a “short term” mission in Bacolod.  During that time he received his mission call to serve in the Manila area.  He has a great spirit.  As a child he lost the use of his right arm related to an infection that the family was not able to have treated.  Life goes on.

Cute new glasses for Karen

Another adventure, I got new glasses.  Examinations, glasses, lenses are very inexpensive here.  Well let me clarify that; when it came time to choose the lenses, they could have been very inexpensive, but I wanted the entire lens to have the prescription, not just in front of me.  In order to see through all of the lens, the cost was more than what I would pay in the US—a lot more.  To give an example, for a recent uncomplicated missionary hospitalization that included three nights - the charge was a bargain at less than $500, including physician fees - my glasses cost more.

Quite a mismatch here--we were in awe and had to do a double take

During Relief Society, a sweet Sister with a wet dress on (from the heavy rain) sat behind me and asked if I understood.  I told her not much.  She moved closer and translated the testimonies that were being given.  I loved hearing the content of these humble messages.  By the end of the meeting, my new friend was sitting really close to me and had her arm around me.

Stay tuned--more adventures coming!