My LAST email!!

This is it.  The last email from Sister Latham.  I definitely have mixed emotions about everything, but I can't express how EXCITED I am to see you all next week!  Because I am visiting my area right now I don't have a lot of time, but I will send you a quick update about my week!

AMAZING NEWS! 4 of our investigators are ready to get baptized this upcoming Saturday! What a great way to end the mission :))  Brother Alberts wife, kids, and son in law will all be baptized! We are still waiting for the approval for him to be baptized, but as for now he wants his family to be baptized so we are excited fort that!  We have really seen miracles with this family, one of them being that Richard and Cherry got married on Tuesday and because of that, they can now be baptized! I did her hair and makeup and they were just the cutest things!  Sister Bairulla and I have really worked hard to help them to get married and prepared for their baptism and look...IT WORKED :)    I attached some pictures from the wedding :)

We also got to be with President and Sister Revillo on their last day as our mission parents.  They took all the exiting missionaries out to lunch and then we all went bowling! So fun!  The best part though was the interview that I had with President.  It was such a spiritual experience as we talked about my mission and talked about all the things that I have learned.  He then gave me advice on my future and he told me that my main purpose after my mission is to establish the church and to start my own family...so...we will talk about that when I get home hahaha  He said to be excited though and study really well and the Lord has great things that He has prepared for me.  So with that being said, I AM EXCITED :)  

We also had exchanges in beautiful Morong this week, it is in the province, so so pretty!  I will attach some pictures as well!

Tonight TayTay is having a ward FHE/farewell for me and I am so excited to see everyone!  I've been able to visit a few people this morning, but most of them I will see later!  Tomorrow we will meet out new Mission President and his family at zone conference!  Then this Friday we have Missionary Leadership Council, then our baptisms on Saturday and between all of this, we have so many people to visit and I still need to pack!  So many things to do with such little time!

Well family, I love you.  I am so excited to see you all.  I give thanks to God every day that He sent me here.  My life has been changed forever.  I know this church is true, I know that Jesus Christ is the leader of this church and He is also my best friend.  I've never felt so close to Him in my life.  As Sister Revillo said, it will be hard to leave such a spiritual and holy place in the mission.  I know that I am about to experience a new adjustment, but the Lord will lead me.  See you all next Wednesday at the airport, I'm so excited to see you all again! 

Love, Sister Latham

My LAST email!!

This is it.  The last email from Sister Latham.  I definitely have mixed emotions about everything, but I can't express how EXCITED I am to see you all next week!  Because I am visiting my area right now I don't have a lot of time, but I will send you a quick update about my week!

AMAZING NEWS! 4 of our investigators are ready to get baptized this upcoming Saturday! What a great way to end the mission :))  Brother Alberts wife, kids, and son in law will all be baptized! We are still waiting for the approval for him to be baptized, but as for now he wants his family to be baptized so we are excited fort that!  We have really seen miracles with this family, one of them being that Richard and Cherry got married on Tuesday and because of that, they can now be baptized! I did her hair and makeup and they were just the cutest things!  Sister Bairulla and I have really worked hard to help them to get married and prepared for their baptism and look...IT WORKED :)    I attached some pictures from the wedding :)

We also got to be with President and Sister Revillo on their last day as our mission parents.  They took all the exiting missionaries out to lunch and then we all went bowling! So fun!  The best part though was the interview that I had with President.  It was such a spiritual experience as we talked about my mission and talked about all the things that I have learned.  He then gave me advice on my future and he told me that my main purpose after my mission is to establish the church and to start my own family...so...we will talk about that when I get home hahaha  He said to be excited though and study really well and the Lord has great things that He has prepared for me.  So with that being said, I AM EXCITED :)  

We also had exchanges in beautiful Morong this week, it is in the province, so so pretty!  I will attach some pictures as well!

Tonight TayTay is having a ward FHE/farewell for me and I am so excited to see everyone!  I've been able to visit a few people this morning, but most of them I will see later!  Tomorrow we will meet out new Mission President and his family at zone conference!  Then this Friday we have Missionary Leadership Council, then our baptisms on Saturday and between all of this, we have so many people to visit and I still need to pack!  So many things to do with such little time!

Well family, I love you.  I am so excited to see you all.  I give thanks to God every day that He sent me here.  My life has been changed forever.  I know this church is true, I know that Jesus Christ is the leader of this church and He is also my best friend.  I've never felt so close to Him in my life.  As Sister Revillo said, it will be hard to leave such a spiritual and holy place in the mission.  I know that I am about to experience a new adjustment, but the Lord will lead me.  See you all next Wednesday at the airport, I'm so excited to see you all again! 

Love, Sister Latham

2nd to LAST EMAIL!

I'MMM BACKK FROM MINDORROOO!

Hello Fam, well I'm back from Mindoro! I'm excited to be back in my area, but I also really miss the beach and fresh air!  When we flew back today into the Manila airport, I saw the part of the airport that I entered into 17 months ago and then I thought to myself.."I will be back here in 16 days"  It is so crazy! 

Well this past week we had a really fun time in Mindoro, and it was really really fun to work with all the sisters :)  We also had a great zone conference there with playing games, eating lots of food, and just laughing :)  It was also really cool because here in the mainland they use taglish, but in Mindoro it is pure tagalog, there is no english, so I loved it!  And I got to hear President and Sister Revillo speak pure tagalog and I was just smiling because in our mission we speak english in all meetings.  I love this language so much, I will need to find some filipino friends when I get home!  I'm sure I will be able to use it quite a bit.

Elder Pagaduan( a member of the 70) was the visitor at the mindoro conference and he is really nice!  We also flew home with him this morning and got to talk to him a bit.  I really loved the messages that he shared at the conference.  He said something I really loved.  He said that none of us will become perfect in this life.  Nobody can say "I am perfect"  but we can say "I am perfect in trying to become perfect."  I know that that is what Heavenly Father really wants to see us doing while we are here on earth.  Everyday we should be doing everything we can to try to become perfect like Jesus Christ was. 

Well, I only have one more weekly email to you all...I can't believe I am saying that.  I also know that it is going to go by so fast.  President and Sister Revillo finish their mission this week, I'm grateful that tomorrow we will spend the whole day with them.  All of the missionaries who go home on July 13th have an interview with them and we will be having activities and eating lots of food haha I look forward to my interview with President tomorrow! 

Next Monday I will also be emailing you from TayTay! I get to go visit all my areas next monday :)  So many things to do and not enough time!  Our investigators are also getting married tomorrowand they are planned to be baptized the saturday before I come home. What a blessing Heavenly Father is giving me to see them be baptized :) 

I love you all so so much! Have a wonderful week!!!

Love, Sister Latham

Elder Tano :)

I'm in the great island of MINDORO!

Greetings from the beautiful island of Mindoro! First of all, Happy Fathers Day Dad, I wish that I could be there, but it looks like we will have to re-celebrate fathers day in 3 weeks when I get back :) Thanks for being such a wonderful father to me, I hope that I can find someone who will be a wonderful father like you...but I will think about that when I get home haha

So, we got picked up this morning around 3:30am and our flight was this morning around 6.  The flight was only 30 minutes, so quick, but it was fun to go to an airport and be in an airplane again!  I also couldn't help but think that I would again be going to the airport in about 3 weeks with all of my luggage heading towards CALIFORNIA!  Time is flying so so fast, and we only have a little bit of time left to work in our area because we are so busy, so that will make the time go even faster!

Later on this afternoon, Sister Bairulla and I will go to the beach and just relax and read the scriptures, I am excited for that! It is really nice to see the beach after 17 months!  The air is so fresh here, and there are not a lot of people so it is very different than Quezon City.  

Last week we were really busy, one day we spent a lot of time at the City Hall, because our investigators, Richard and Cherry, need to get married before they get baptized, and we went straight to the Mayor and he is processing all of their papers for free and is going to perform their wedding for free as well!  Had we not gone to city hall, I don't know how long it would have taken them to get married and then get baptized, so Heavenly Father really gave us a miracle and they will get married next week :)    Cherry's father, Albert and his wife and daughter are also ready to get baptized, but we have to wait to get approval from the prophet for him to be baptized.  We don't know how long it will take or if he will get baptized on his set date for July 9th, but the most important thing is that he will get baptized.  He said something the other day that really showed how converted he is to the Lord and His church.  He said, "Even if I have to wait 30 years to get baptized, I will come to church every Sunday, but hopefully my baptism can be soon because I really want to be baptized. I want to become a member of this true church."  Him and his family are so amazing!

Another fun thing happened, when we arrived at church on Sunday, I saw some people getting out of their car and I noticed that it was Bishop and Sister Dasalla with Angel, Kiray and Nicole (recent convert)!  They came from TayTay to visit me! I miss them so so much! I will be going back to TayTay on July 4th and will be having a Family Home Evening with them, so exciting!

Well, I look forward to this week that I have here in Mindoro and I will send you pictures next week :)  It's crazy to think that when I email you next week I will only have about 2 more weeks here...I can't believe it, but I'm so excited to see you all!! Love you all so so much!

Love, Sister Latham

A week that WILL NOT be forgotten!

Dear loved ones,

Well...4 more weeks!  so crazy! But before we start talking about that, I have a few things to share with you this week, I don't know really where to start!  I think I will start with some of the crazy/odd things that happened first.  Well, when we talked on mothers day on skype, I remember being asked if I had ever had lice here because it is really common and I proudly said "Nope :)"  Well...I can no longer say that I never got lice on my mission because I GOT IT THIS WEEK!  Its been getting colder..not cold..but colder and we have been having rain.  So sometimes my head would itch and I just thought my scalp was dry due to the weather being colder and rainy.  It felt itchy for a few days and I never thought once that it could be lice.  but just to make sure when I was getting ready for bed the other night, I thought "I'll just grab the comb mom sent me JUST to make sure.  But I'm sure I don't have it."  Well, I sure was wrong because in just one brush with the comb, I saw about 20 EGGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Yes, I screamed. My companion came running in and I was just crying at my desk...I could not believe!  Thank goodness my companion is so so so sweet and she spent about 1 hour combing through my hair..there were about 20 ACTUAL BUGS in my HAIR!!!!!!!  I can't write out in description how I felt.  But I'm sure that you can imagine.  I first though want to thank you mom SO SO SO much for sending that comb and the shampoo, it is the best!!  I also want to thank my sweet companion, she is the best.  And she taught me how to kill the bugs and lice.  I'm happy to now say that it is all gone, but I'm still a little paranoid and I comb my hair every single night :)

Well, so that happened, and then the next day, I felt bumps on the back side of my neck and it wasn't a bug bite, but it felt like something was swollen or a cyst.  I ended up texting Sister Revillo and had to go the hospital that day to get a checkup.  The think that it is swollen lymph nodes, and I am happy to say that I think it is going away now.  The doctor said it is either cysts or a viral infection, hopefully just a viral infection. Nothing to worry about.

Yesterday we had our last zone conference with President and Sister Revillo and it was a day of fun!!  It first started out with the spiritual side, a few work shops, and then all the exciting missionaries gave there testimony in front of everyone.  I remember my first zone conference and the missionaries that gave their testimony.  I thought to myself, Wow those missionaries are going home, I still have forever!  It was weird standing in their place yesterday.  I just bore my testimony about conversion and the conversion that has taken place in my life during these last 18 months.  It was hard to describe because it is not something that I can really describe.  Everything has changed.  My testimony has changed and grown into something I can't describe.  My heart has been changed, my will has been changed because it is now in line with the Lord's Will.  Truly my whole life has been changed.  And it is my goal to just not look back and keep pushing forward every single day.  After the testimonies, we then went to all the fun and games and got out new shirts! 

Then, this morning, we had our temple day!!  And it was an amazing experience :)  I took the opportunity to pray in the celestial room and I shared with Heavenly Father about all the things that I have done in my mission, the hard times, fun times, everything.  And then at the end I asked Him a question.  I asked "Heavenly Father, Do you accept my work?  Have I done what you have expected of me?"  I waited for an answer, but I felt like I wasn't receiving an exact answer.  I thought, "Oh no..what did I do wrong"  I then asked myself those same questions, I thought about if I did the Lord's Will, if I fulfilled my purpose.  As I began thinking of those things, I felt an overwhelming feeling in my heart and in my mind, and it is as if someone whispered in my mind and in my heard. "Sister Latham, I am so proud of you.  Your work is accepted."  It brought tears to my eyes at that moment to know that the Lord is so grateful for the things that I have done here.  Its not easy, this is by far the hardest thing that I have ever done in my life, but I have pushed through and I've done it with the Lord by my side. I know that I can do hard things, not because I am strong, but because I am weak but because I had the Lord by my side as my teammate, we were strong :)

There is my update for the week fam, hope that you enjoy it!  Next Monday Sister Bairulla and I will be flying to Mindoro for a week and then when I get back I only have 2 more weeks in the field.  I am so excited to see you all :)  I will really miss this wonderful place though.  I love you all so much!

-Sister Latham

I'm going to MINDORO!!

I have the best news!!! I AM GOING TO MINDORO!!!  and I'm not being emergency transferred :)  Me and my companion, Sister Bairulla, are the STL's that get to go to the island of Mindoro for one week and do exchanges with the sisters!! 

At MLC this week, we drove in President's car and he asked if we had been told where we are assigned to do exchanges, and I smiled and said "THANK YOU PRESIDENT, you are finally sending me to Mindoro! :)"  My whole mission I have wanted to go there and I always thought that if I never requested to go there, I would get sent there, and it happened! Although it is not a full transfer, at least it is one week! I WILL SEE THE BEACH!! woohoo!

MLC was really fun this past friday!  It was President and Sister Revillo's last MLC and so they, including all the missionaries who are going home this transfer, gave their going home testimony! and my name was written there!!  I was not expecting to already be giving my going home testimonies!  I really didn't want to give it haha, but I had to and I didn't cry...I'm saving that for the next time haha  I think I have to bear my going home testimony about 4 more times...I think people will get tired of hearing me haha.  Also at MLC we had an activity and we all went and played volleyball and basketball and had pizza! It was so much fun!  Sister Revillo and all the STL's played basketball and I was in charge of guarding her haha it was so funny!  I've really enjoyed being a part of the Missionary Leadership Council, it is a lot of fun and I have learned so so much!

The day after MLC, the Mendoza family had their interview with the District Leader :) It went really really well, Brother Albert just has to have another interview with President tomorrow so we will take him to that tomorrow and we will see where it goes from there.  Their daughter is also getting her and her partners marriage stuff all ready and they plan to get married the week before July 9thso hopefully we will be able to attend their wedding and then the next week will be their BAPTISM :)

Next week we also have our zone conference and our temple day, so next week I won't be able to email until Wednesday afternoon!  Sorry...I know that is a long time to wait!  But I will have a lot of pictures for you next week! 

Thank you so much for all of your love and support, I know that the time is coming down, but I will run through the finish line :)  I love you all so much!  Happy anniversary mom and dad as well, you are the best parents ever and I am blessed because you are my parents!

Love, Sister Latham

BTW: it is now rainy season here in the Philippines, but thank goodness we are here in the mountains in Antipolo with no floods :)

I'M STAYING!!! WOOOHOOO!

I got the best news this morning!!!  I'M STAYING HERE IN ANTIPOLO!!!  I've never been this excited and nervous to get the transfer calls this morning! I woke up at 4:30 this and I couldn't get back to sleep! haha  I just laid in bed and read the Liahona in Tagalog till the phone rang at 6:30!  

The first thing my ZL says is, "well, Sister Latham...your companion is staying."  and I said "WHAT ABOUT ME ELDER!"  and then he said "And you are staying too!!"  I'm sure our ZL then had to pull the phone away from his ear because me and my companion just started screaming hahaha  Sister Bairulla and I had been praying so so hard, and even in my last two weekly letters to President I don't know how many times I told him that I wanted to stay in this area and see these people we are teaching be baptized!  And the best thing, even the Mendoza family that will be baptized on July 9th prayed last night in our family home evening, that nobody would transfer and when we texted them this morning they were all so happy!  

I am so so excited for this upcoming transfer! It is going to be so busy, exciting, really really busy..and really really exciting!  :)  We have 2 zone conferences, 2 Missionary Leadership training, temple day, with exchanges on top of that!  This also means that the transfer is going to go by really really fast!  I already can't believe how fast this past transfer went!

I also heard news this morning, that one of the sisters I trained, Sister Tropia, is now an STL and the other sister I trained, Sister Tio, is now training!  In the mission if you train, you call your trainee "anak" or child and they call you "Nanay" or mom, and then if they train, their "anak" calls you "lola" or grandma, so I now have 2 "apo" or grandchildren :)  I don't know if you get it, but it is very exciting because i now have 2 apo and they will call me "lola" :)  It is so wonderful to see my 2 "anak"  grow so much in the mission and to accept these wonderful callings that Heavenly Father has given them.  They are such wonderful missionaries and I am so so proud of them and their progression that they have made in the mission :)

I just want to share about the Mendoza family this week!  They are the family that plans to be baptized on July 9th and if possible maybe even earlier.  Brother Alberts daughter and her partner just need to get married and they are processing the papers right now :)  So we had Family Home Evening with them last night and it was so much fun!  They all shared how much the gospel how blessed them and really united them as a family.  Brother Albert says that in the past he would listen to all religions, but it didn't really affect him that much, but as soon as he listened to the gospel of Jesus Christ, he said that it pricked him in the heart, he felt something different, and he was willing to change.  He expressed his gratitude for us missionaries and he said "I pray to Heavenly Father that you will  continue to guide us through this journey, to our baptism, and even till the time we can enter into the temple as a family and be sealed."  It was so powerful because this family is seeing the whole picture.  They are not just focusing to getting to the waters of baptism, but they are focusing on entering into the temple one day.  I am so so excited to be able to continue to teach them for another 6 weeks and I pray that everything will work out in order for me to see them be baptized :)  

I have attached a few pictures.  2 are of the Mendoza family and one of them is of our district :) 

I love you all so much!!  Please continue to pray for this family :)  I only have 6 weeks left as a full time missionary, but there is still so much to do!  Love love love you all!

Sister Latham

Sister Latham's district