Merry Christmas

Hello to our Dear Family and Friends,

The trouble with waiting for several weeks to write these updates is that you sit down and don't know where to begin! Actually, the beginning is easy because we owe all of you many thanks for your prayers and numerous other ways you have blessed and supported our efforts here! Countless! Maraming salamat po! 

The two most notable events were the Mission Presidents Seminar in November and a visit from Denise and Dan in December. It goes without saying that there are daily, possibly hourly events that could be shared, but even our journals would cough and die if we tried to include everything. So, to spare you and me:

The Winters had this waiting the first night. 

So thoughtful and fun!!

MP Seminar was in Manila, attended and presided over by Elder Andersen, Elder Renlund and Elder Maynes, along with their wives. We stayed AWAKE!! So much counsel and direction, which we were ready for! We looked at each other grinning, wondering if this is really us having these experiences! Learning from apostles and prophets! So much kindness, wisdom, cutting edge understanding and full of good humor. Teachers! We only get these opportunities so that we can use it to bless the lives of the Filipino people. They are so beloved.

The seminar schedule allows us time with other presidents and wives, which is as valuable as it is fun. Our circle of friends is ever widening, and again, what we gain is for the purpose of strengthening the Philippines for its great role in the church in the years to come. We try to bring everything home to the six districts and one stake in our mission, and to our 180 missionaries!!! Action packed times ahead!

In nearly 18 months we have never felt to play much.  Last June we made efforts to plan a carefree day or two, but the damper pedal was on full force, and we just couldn't feel right about  it. Well, all stops came out two weeks ago when we watched Denise and Dan coming down the escalator at the Manila airport! I don't have the words to describe the joy. Even the four hours in door handle to door handle traffic to make a thirty minute drive to the first destination, then another three hours home, was bliss ... for everyone but the driver. Poor Dennis. 

We had three days with Dan here, (they had already spent four days at Coron having a fun snorkeling getaway, staying in a hut on the beach), then another five days just with Denise. I won't give you the whole list, but let's just say we made the most of it! Hiking into a volcano, Mt. Pinatubo, which now has a beautiful (if poisonous) lake in it, was an all day adventure that we had planned to have since before we came here. We rode in a cage at Zoobic Safari and watched while the guide hand fed a tiger inches from our faces. Nice teeth! Dan and Denise went fishing for crocodiles...about thirty of them! Denise set baby turtles loose on the beach and watched them scurry into the waves. We shopped at length in the open air market, worked with Sisters DelaCruz and Cusile, then caught a trike home at dusk. The last day we hopped a jeepney down into town for one more short shopping trip, then rode home again. Departure day, the Winters drove Denise and me to the Manila temple for a session, then to a gorgeous hotel for a long and luxurious dinner followed by swimming and lounging at poolside. Finished at midnight with saunas and a hot tub. Did I say I wasn't going to give the whole list? :-D. I left out about the lunch and dinner at restaurants in the sand on the beach, ship watching, fish feeding, long conversations over mission projects, walks onto the lahar and shopping at the abalone shell factory. Enough already?!! I really won't tell about the three a.m. shuttle ride to the airport and the excruciating goodbye. Ouch!! So grateful my sweet sister Gaylene (aka Sister Winters) got up in the night and cheerfully rode along for moral support. (Dennis stayed home to be at a District Conference.) Thanks and praises to Dan's mom Lennea, and her sister Laura for staying with their little guys, Liam and Grey, so we could have this time!! 

Driver and guide driving us to the volcano trailhead. Through rivers and streams for an hour! 

Good looking hikers

And ready for a nice rickety ride back down. 

Invading his space

Tiger on the roof!

Lunch after feeding the tigers and crocs

Now, with all of that wild behavior out of our systems, we are ready for the second half!

This is the Lord's work!! Every part of it, including the excruciating parts. We are privileged to be able to be here and try to contribute. The gospel is spreading, his children young and old are learning, growing, and preparing for the future! The Plan of Happiness really is for inner peace and happiness now and through the eternities with our families. With those glad tidings we proclaim joy to the world! He lives!

Merriest of Christmases to you with ALL our love!!

President and Sister Dahle

Cemetery exploration 

Denise finding an interesting photo

Sending off a baby turtle 

A half an hour here enjoying the sights and visiting with another vacationer. 

Out with Sisters inviting everyone to the chapel open house on Friday night. 

Photo op at the Manila temple after our session

Christmas lunch for District and Stake presidents, mission presidency and wives. 

The cool striped entrée in the middle is a whole fish covered in different minced veggies! Gorgeous!

A Christmas concert by the Olongapo District.

Both Olongapo zones participated! Stunning! Inspiring!

Rain or Shine

October 26, 2015

Dear Family and Friends,

We have heard from some of you out of concern for our dryness and safety after last week’s storm. It turns out there is a story.

Our mission extends north into what was the very outer perimeter of typhoon Lando. The mission home is located nearly at the center of the mission, north to south, and had some pretty serious wind and rain, but nothing very alarming. At 10:30 Sunday evening the zone leaders reported all was well throughout, and the storm was supposed to be dying down, so we were comfortable that yet another typhoon had passed us by without causing too much trouble.

An hour later we had received two phone calls.

The Bayto elders had reported in to their zone leaders and gone to bed, but one of them could not sleep because of the heat. The power had been off for hours, and that means no fans and lots of sweating. As he lay there he noticed a light shining at the apartment window, and surprised, he got up to see what it could possibly be. As he did so he became aware of water on the floor and knew he immediately needed to wake up the others and get out. The usual procedure is to quickly place belongings on counter tops, bunk beds and dressers, then evacuate to the chapel or other close by location at higher ground. Surprisingly, there was not time for such preparation. One got his proselyting bag and the awake elder rushed across the room to get the card with our phone numbers on it. Only one got shoes. The water rose so rapidly and with such force that they were unable to open the front door against the current. In moments it was at their shoulders as they made their escape out the back door into the black wild night, amidst muddy churning waters. They held on as a foursome, lifting their shortest companion up between them so his head would be above the water. Two cars had floated along to form a partial blockade in the alley. Seeing the narrow passage left by the cars was where the water flowed most swiftly, they decided instead to climb up on the high path provided by the hollow block and cement fence nearby. After traversing the fence, praying and holding onto each other the whole way, they climbed onto the roof of a house and then jumped onto the roof of a van, calling and waiting for rescue workers to help them. They were able to grasp a rope and were pulled to safety, then along with others, took refuge in the rooms of a college building nearby. They borrowed a phone and made the urgent call to their mission president, barely communicating their situation before hanging up for others to use the phone.

The second phone call was from the Guisguis Elders. They too were taken somewhat by surprise, but had time to put most of their belongings up before wading out in knee then waist deep waters. As they made their way toward the chapel they remembered an elderly member that they often checked on as part of their daily routine. He is a stroke victim and could barely walk. When they arrived at his house they discovered him standing in waist deep water with no chance of getting out himself. One of these elders is a Samoan, built for the task. He put the tatay (word for father or a middle-aged man) up on his back while his companion held the flashlight to help them find the way. Together they struggled along in the rising, racing current, with the rain, wind and darkest night adding to their trial. The elder carrying the gentleman became barely able to hold onto him. At the moment he thought he may not be able to go any further, a light appeared off to the side of the road. Someone had taken the moment to shine his light out into the pitch dark, and seeing their trouble called and guided them into his also flooded, but safer home. These Elders phoned in to say they were alright and to ask if it was okay if they spent the night at a neighbor’s home rather than the church, since they weren’t able to get that far. We learned later about the rescue of the tatay.

President Dahle gathered up our emergency kit along with blankets, shoes, and anything else that he thought would help, and waking an elder serving in the office nearby to be his temporary companion, sped north straight into the storm.

Now, because we need a break in the suspense and possibly some comic relief, let’s recall that the power was also out at the mission home. As the mission president prepared to leave, his companion was nervously helping in the dark, to gather the items he needed. She did not appreciate the brand new strange, human sounding, eerie whistling that had begun at the back end of the upstairs. Not the wild whistling of raging wind, but an odd scale of minor tones, repeating itself in varying sequence and regularity. Dennis saved me by looking to the corners to try to see where it was coming from so I could face the rest of the night alone in this apparently haunted house! No luck! But, also no ghosts or robbers or sadistic whistling creatures, so that was truly lucky! I was also especially blessed, because my sister who lives across the basketball court, Sister Winters, was awake just in time to see Dennis get into the car and drive away. She then texted all manner of offers to come and be with me, while I cowered behind my locked and barricaded (ok, it was a flimsy desk chair) bedroom door. Her kind and funny texts settled my nerves and all was well at the mission home. I settled in with a hiker’s headlamp strapped to my forehead, my favorite pen and journal.

Daylight and receding waters from tropical storm Lando. 

It was this high!!!

Yes, they tie up their cows here. 

Yes, that is a pig. 

The arrival of the president a few hours later at the scene of shivering muddy missionaries was a great blessing. They sat in the car, warming and waiting for the flood to subside and daylight to come, then went farther north to find the Guisguis Elders and survey damages all around. We enjoyed the company of these six fine missionaries for about three days. After the efforts of many, donations of the elders serving in the office, and an all day shopping trip, we were able to send them back out to the field to begin again that which they came to do. They feel, in both instances, that they were saved by a light. You may ponder, expound and apply this in many ways. We have.

Survivors! First they survived the storm, then they survived an all day shopping excursion.   

Turkey chili and chips after much needed showers!!

Wednesday we welcomed Elder and Sister Haynie who joined us for a two day stay and mission tour, where they taught in two zones conferences, a mission leadership council, and a senior couples dinner. They also encouraged, cheered for and gave kind direction to the mission president and his wife. It was a complete delight and a great blessing! Our experiences tend to the extreme, wouldn’t you say?

Zone conferences with Elder and Sister Haynie. 

Great looking service crew! Storm cleanup in Castillejos. 

 Thank you for your prayers! We need them rain or shine.

Much love,

President and Sister Dahle

Remember Grandma and Grandpa Juco? He is 92 and a recent convert! 

The countdown to a temple sealing is on!!

Tree topper! Filipino resourcefulness turns cardboard and paper into something great. 

The tree is made from styrofoam. 

Sisters Enguito (Imma) and Dela Torre (Michelle) met up for a trip back to the mission. 

It was so great of them to knock on our door!!

It's so fun to see them! When our missionaries get on the bus home we wonder if we will ever see them again. 

Four carts in a row! Bags of rice on the move!

New arrivals just off the bus and heading out for two hours of cti practice. Waiting next to the road in front 

of the mission home. Very soon a jeepney will come along and whisk them away. 

They were ready to get to it!

Six of our new October batch. That first ride to the mission home is a lot of fun. 

October batch and their trainers! So much power in this new group. 

Monday morning basketball guest players. President Dahle invited the Castillejos Elders to join the fun. 

Not exactly an action shot... Elder Albano, (Clint), is on the right. He's another missionary gone

home then come back to say hello. And shoot hoops.

A Look at August

Dear Family and Friends,

How are all of you? What are your family events and forecasts? We miss you! Put us on your Christmas letter list! It's time to think about Christmas here, because the -ber months have begun! The outdoor lighting decor is for sale as we speak!

So, just because it's the rainy season doesn't mean it rains all day every day. Usually we just get one or two storms a day; sometimes with ferocious lightening and thunder and bucket dumping downpours! It is amazing and reminiscent of a good winter-time blizzard. Nice to look at and listen to, but you don't necessarily want to be out in it; which brings us to the fearless missionaries! Umbrellas and rubber shoes or boots are the must haves! I spied two of the little boys who live behind the mission home as they brought the family washtubs out and climbed inside rowing around in the floods! Bloom where you are planted!

Front Porch

Unfortunately, when the rainy season comes, so do the mosquitos carrying dengue fever. Twelve cases all in one geographical area! All Elders. It put them down for a week, and missionary work came to a screeching halt. The now dengue-savvy Gardners were in the doctor shuttle business and literally handled every single need for all twelve over about a month’s time. Exaltation earned!! We are continually in awe at how much of a difference all our senior couples make! I keep wondering how to repay them for everything they are doing! No answer but one. They don't do it for us or for pay, they do it for the missionaries and for the Lord.

August was a month of mission president interviews. Each time we have these, we try to change things up so there is less time just sitting and waiting. You wouldn't think it would be a difficult thing to avoid. Ha! We are doing a little bit better. The side benefit is that I have some time to visit with those who wait. It's a treat. Dennis has really begun to spend more time with each missionary, and he enjoys it ever so much more than running them through a chute, so to speak. But add up 165 missionaries give or take and multiply that by the average 20 minutes. Yes. Well, it’s another of our favorite things!

San Antonio Zone Sisters! 

We had a special event! The U.S. medical ship Mercy came to Subic Bay! The chaplain assigned to this tour is LDS, a returned missionary, married with a young family. He contacted us and invited a group of 20 to come for a tour, then later in the week he came ashore and gave a fireside for the local branches. It was faith building and fun, both.

The Mercy with my sweet sister! 

The Mission Presidency and wives were the lucky guests!

The Mercy is an enormous boat; second only in size to an aircraft carrier! Stepping on board was walking onto US Territory, dedicated 100% to doing charitable surgeries and giving other medical care for people in developing countries. It has state of the art everything! Lieutenant Luckeson was allowed to show us all through its exquisite interior. What gifts they bring; sight, the ability to walk and talk. A most exciting endeavor!

The travels of the Mercy.

A few weeks ago an Elder was injured in a tricycle accident, and he was in the hospital over a Sunday. We asked the Olongapo Zone Leaders to bring the sacrament to him and his companion.  Stopping by later for a visit, we were just in time to open the door on four Elders concluding their own sacrament meeting. The room was spirit filled, and it was surprisingly tender to see the sacrament emblems laid out carefully on the hospital bed. They sat there ready to sing the closing hymn. Why do we get to have these experiences? Can you feel the greatness of this simple thing? I can’t convey it well enough.

Hospital room sacrament meeting. 

We are doing great. Learning more about working together and enjoying the time. We oft repeat this truth: "There is no growing in your comfort zone, and no comfort in your growing zone!" OH the GROWING!! I had a little prompting, I guess you could say, to stop wishing the time away! What?! (Guilty as charged!) I should endeavor to treasure every day we have left in our mission here, doing this work as companions. It is a gift. Dennis and I have rarely even served in the same stake over the last 13 years. So, time to look at each morning and the hours ahead as a blessing. Being grateful in prayer! Opening my eyes all the way. And now that I said it aloud, I have to do it! :) Thanks for your prayers!

Sending all our love,

President and Sister Dahle

From our hotel window in Balanga:

Promptly at 6:15 a.m. the Zumba music begins to pour out of enormous speakers and the 

exercise conscious ladies of Balanga gather to pump it up! This was purple day. Apparently

some forgot and thought it was orange. Nope. That was the day before!! Faux pas! 

Otherwise rather quiet on the street. 

Someone grand coming down the stair case!!

Oops! Check that tie! 

Impressive group of Elders!

  Goodbye! They are going home! Everyone except that nice couple at the right. 

  So, the Elder in the middle at the front didn't have to lose his first name! His name is Elder. His grandpa 

met two really nice young men on a jeepney, went home and told his pregnant daughter that if she 

had a boy she should name him Elder. He was impressed that those two wonderful young men 

had the same first name! Years later the family found the church. :-). Great story, right?!

Our newest batch!

Triplets! 

President Dahle teaching! 

Clean shoes to start every day. 

These new Elders spent a couple of hours out working the first 

day here and had some mud to show for it.

Ahhhh. Ready to go and meet their trainers!

An exciting moment!

Anticipation!

Exhilaration!