Hey everyone!!!
So as you can tell transfer week is coming up this next week and President Barrientos already told me I'll be transferring but I have no idea where to. I'll tell you next email! But he told Elder Risenmay that I want to go up north to Caguyan (which I didn't) so maybe that's a hint of what's to come.who knows! Time will only tell haha. But Caguayn is known as missionaries paradise in the Laoag mission. It's so green up there, white sand beaches, blue waters no cities, the people are humble and accepting and I heard nothing but amazing things. But like I told President when he asked me where I want to go "I'll go anywhere where the Lord wants me to go." :) So we'll see soon!!
This week was a pretty good one! I love working with Elder Angolluan! I've never had so much fun in my life because of how fun he is to work with! I've learned so much from him and it's been such an amazing blessing to have him as my companion this transfer! :) We're housing missionaries this week for a mission wide zone conference on Tuesday so Elder Risenmay is staying with us for this week and I didn't realize how much I missed him until we started talking about everything that's been happening. The missionaries here in Laoag are amazing and I know most will be lifelong friends after my mission as well! :)
Summer is for sure coming up quickly now. It's pretty miserable actually on some days because of how hot it gets in Laoag and there's no breeze, no cloud coverage, just sun, sun, and more sun when you're always on the pavement in the city too it's just brutal. It'll be nice to get the fresh country breeze again when I get transferred :) All I know is that Laoag is the most densely populated area in our mission so what that tells me is that the rest of my mission is pretty much little city and population outside of Laoag and Vigan! :)
Without a doubt I'm going to miss the members here in Laoag. I've grown so close with a lot of them and they have been such amazing blessings in my life to be able to serve them and to be able to serve alongside one another. I'm going to really miss the families here in Laoag 3! That's probably the thing that Laoag 3 is known for is just having amazing families that love the missionaries and are just amazing people! I love it here because of them!! :)
We had a really good week with the our investigators too! :) Unfortunately, John Neil and Allen Rae really don't have a desire to be baptized and they try everything to avoid being taught by the missionaries now so without a doubt it was a really hard day to realize that we can't teach them anymore as we had been doing in the past. I still love them a lot and I still pray for them but we need to find those who are ready to hear the gospel and it breaks my heart that we can't help them be prepared to be baptized. It really, really stinks. But we have new investigators now who are really doing amazing! Seeing one of our investigators come in when Antero Ligot picked her and her two kids up in Barit and drove her to church yesterday and seeing how joyful she looked when the sisters in Primary took her into their arms and care was probably one of the sweetest gestures of Christ-like love I have ever seen in my life. I love replaying that moment and that feeling I received when I saw and witnessed that love from the members of the church. It was one of the purest joys I have yet received on my mission.
Then we've been teaching Lexter De Guzman and he's been doing amazing! He's been keeping every commitment we've been giving him, you can see the interest and desire in his eyes to keep the commitments that we extend to him because he's witnessed that the commitments that we give him brings him profound joy and happiness and amazing blessings in his life. Unfortunately, his baptismal date is on the 28th and if he continues preparing for that then there's no doubt he'll be baptized on that date! I'm so excited for him!!
A lot of our less-actives that have been less-active for a long time are now considered active in the church and even Cornell is bring his daughter now to really try and help his family receive the gospel. It's been an amazing work in Laoag 3B and I'm so blessed and happy to have spent my time here and help others receive the true gospel of Jesus Christ. I can't be any more grateful for my time here and I will forever cherish the 4 1/2 months here as sacred and some of the hardest, yet most amazing moments of my life to this day. I love each and every member, family, investigator, and less-active that we have been able to teach. I can't tell you how much I love the people here. I'm sad to leave but I'm excited to see what's next in store.
I love you all and hope you have a great week! I'll talk to you all again next week and I'll fill you in on where my new area is! Wherever it is, it''s where the Lord wants me to be! :) Love you guys!!! I'll talk to you next week!
Love,
Elder Oslund
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