October 20, 2009

Our last week was one of adventure and meeting lots of new and wonderful saints. We had our first visit to an area called Goa . It is a small town about 2 hours from here. We were there to do training of the leaders and the employment committee stake and ward employment committee. We were surprised to find that they had invited the people who were only supposed to come to the workshop to the training also, so they were all there the full nine hours. They seemed to enjoy the training and especially the career workshop. You have to be there for the full 8 hours in order to receive the certificate. The certificate means a lot to them, some said they will take with them when they interview for a job and show them they completed the course.

We had our best class ever, usually after lunch we have several people not come back, but this time we had almost everyone stay the whole time. They had a hard time understanding some instructions because some of them don't know the English language very well or at all. The Stake President would reiterate the instructions in Bicolano and immediately they would go to work. That is the native language they speak there.

When we go to the Naga area we stay with the mission president if they are in town, we enjoy getting together with them. President and Sister Smith invited us on Sunday to attend Sacrament meeting in a small branch up in the hills not to far from where we had to present a Prosperity Fireside so we went. Be grateful for you meeting houses what ever they are because you don't meet in a small and I mean small house, or hut. It has about 30 to 35 members crammed in to this living room and the kitchen is where the pulpit is. The Primary was in a bedroom next to the living room. They only have one person pass the sacrament. It was a special day because they had two returned missionaries come home at the same time and they were brother and sister also served in the same mission.

President and Sister Smith are next to Annette, the Lambson's are at the end of the table, and the West's are next to Lee:

The service was very good even if we couldn't understand what they were saying. It was perfect until they had a brown out and soon as those fans stopped it got toasty in there. We had to leave after Sunday school, don't know when the electricity came back on.

It was so funny a young adult was sitting next to a fan in the front and when the light would blink he would lunge for the switch but he never got there before the light was out again. This happened about four times before we left, never got the fan on but he got his exercise.

By the way that is my first time being with a dog in church. He slept under Lee's chair. He would get up and move around a few times during the meeting until some lady smacked him on the head, then he left.

We then drove to Pulongi for a Prosperity Fireside and guess what after my part we had a brown out again. They never got the electricity on again either at least while we were there. We had about 75+ attend and about 60 come to the Ligao fireside. Hurray no brown out in Ligao.

Elder & Sister Cooley