Waterworld

Wow, there has been so much rain this past month of July. For comparison's sake I am going to use an image right up front here. We have Elder McAllister, an avid amateur meteorologist who put up his own "weather station" outside his apartment close by us in the Eastwood Mall. Last week, during one of the two monsoons that we went through, it showed about 18.52 inches of rain in a 7 day period.

For context, the average annual rainfall for Vancouver, Washington is about 42 inches. From July 1 through July 28 there was 48 inches of rainfall in Quezon City (Metro Manila) per the Pagasa weather company (the US equivalent to the "National Weather Service"). Although, if I use this good Elder's additional post, he would say that his weather machine calculated about 30 inches. That's in just one month. The average rainfall in Metro Manila in July is just over 15 inches. It has been extremely wet this past month.

This rainy weather causes lots of flooding in the low-lying areas of Manila, and certainly in the outside provinces. The Manila Temple stayed open each day. There were a couple of days the last couple of endowment sessions were cancelled. Many Church members could not make it to the Temple because their homes were either flooded or it was too flooded close by and they couldn't travel through the waters. I had one temple worker tell me that he put his temple clothes in a plastic sack and waded through the floodwaters to get to the temple. He is one of many that made it despite the weather. There were many who were not able to make it. I was the beneficiary of extra blessings because on Tuesday and Thursday of last week, there were no sealers that could make it in on those days. I was the sole sealer throughout the day, and was truly blessed to help out in sealing family's together forever.

Sardines Anyone?

July was also another experimental food month, but this time we were challenged by a couple of youth in our Sunday School class. We foolishly agreed to try sardines. I tried them "once" while I was on my mission in Japan, but that was the last time. I had no desire to try again. However, they were so excited for us to try. Most Filipino's really like sardines. So we told them we would buy the type they recommended and we would let them know what we though the next class, in two weeks. 

We bought the can of small sardines they told us to buy. We waited until the Saturday before the Sunday we were going to see them again and gave it a shot. It was a bit comical. We prepared to eat a few things afterward to get the taste out of our mouth if need be, and I really thought we would need it. However, when it came down to it, it wasn't as bad as I thought. I popped it in my mouth and kept saying to myself "oh, this is just like tuna - yes, this tastes like canned tuna!" After saying this a few times, it was down my throat and all was well! Laurie then took turn and her experience was pretty close to mine, but not so much with the after effects..... Here is a picture of what we had. We only had one each. That was enough. Yes, I know, there are many of you who are sardine lovers out there, I just don't happen to be on the same page with you.

This was the brand and version (tomato sauce) the youth wanted us to try.

The Temple

I am going to make this one shorter than usual. I believe the next few may be a little longer as we start our final lap home. Our mission will end in less than two months now. We have mixed feelings because of the love we have for the temple and the people who work there and those who come to serve as patrons there.

Laurie and I were pretty busy ourselves this past month. I was able to work with the Temple Recorder on getting rid of older "things" in the recording office that took up  The Temple Recorder sent off some images of older reports and other older temple-oriented information kept in notebooks. The Temple Department said it was OK to shred it all. I was like a kid in a candy store. Suffice it to say that there is a considerable amount of room in the cupboards of the recording office now.

It is sometimes the little things that bring us just as much joy as the big things. I have to keep reminding myself of this simple principle.

One more picture of the temple I took in July. It was during the eye of the storm and I liked the cloud formations and colors.

The next two weeks is the Temple shutdown time for maintenance. Laurie and I will do a little travelling and some work during the two weeks. The final two weeks in August will be the final two weeks for this Temple Presidency's three-year service. They are excited to move on and get back to their homes and families. There will be a few social gatherings to commemorate the Temple Presidency's service. The Temple President and his wife (President and Sister Cabrito) will be moving in to our apartment complex for the final two weeks of their service prior to returning to Baguio, where they live. They are cleaning out the Temple President's home nearby for the new Temple President. I am sure I will have many pictures and stories for this next month's blog posting.

One last thing;

"For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection."2 Corinthians 13:9

Often, we are not as happy for other's happiness as we should be. Additionally, our hope for others sometimes "gets in the way" of our hope for ourselves. I have thought recently about how I need to happily acknowledge both small and large improvements in other people to the extent that I reflect happiness in my life when I hear how their life is improving. There is much to be thankful for, especially in other people's lives.