FATHER'S DAY ...to fathers everywhere

     We are celebrating FATHER'S DAY a day early because tomorrow is a 12 hour trip over top of mountain ranges.  
      Elder Bell will be driving a larger van because we are responsible to take all of the training materials up to the northern end of LUZON as we begin our 12 days of training assessors for wheelchair assessments for Cagayan Valley Medical Center in Tuguegarao.  (Someone has told us that if anyone ever tells us to "Go to Hell", we will be able to tell them, "we don't need to experience Hell, we have already spent time in Tuguegarao".     So we are preparing  that it is going to be a HOT experience.      (Closest part of the Philippines to the equator .... what am I expecting?))

  This past week was filled with meetings with our wheelchair partners and meetings with our Church Service Missionaries.   We have grown to love those with whom we work so closely with.     

Hot dogs, fried zucchini in garlic and onions, and root beer.
It may not sound like much, but Elder Bell appreciated the
Father's Day dinner.   (He actually chose the menu.   He calls
Hot Dogs "Tube Steaks".)     Hot dogs are a main part of our
staple meals here in the Philippines.

See!    He is licking his fingers in anticipation
of Hot Dogs with Onions and lots of mustard.
He is a simple man, but such a good man.  I will
keep him.    And he has been an amazing Father
and GrandFather in our family!!!

Here we are   ... de-crating the assessment tables
and other supplies to fit into the Van that we get to travel
the Mountain passes in.   We will leave at 3:00am so that
we arrive in Tuguegarao by 3:00pm for a meeting at
Cagayan Valley Medical Center.     Elder Bell drives like a
Filipino ..... when we get home I think that I will have to drive
until he can de-brief and de-stress; and be reminded that you
really are supposed to follow traffic rules.

A short story at the bottom of the blog about this little Filipino.
He touched all of our hearts as we learned of his situation and
we were very happy to see him receive a quad cane to assist his
walking.  

These are 3 others who received
a wheelchair from the Province
of BATAAN social work office.  These
are one of our Wheelchair
Partners and we are very
honored to be able to work with them.

I have just captured some photos of the stairs and path
ways cut or cemented in along the roadway as we
travel the mountains.   These steps will lead to a home
or a small collection of homes that live in the same
vicinity and belong to the same Barangay (neighborhood).

Steep steps leading up to homes and
many times a community living on the
side of the mountain.  

Here you can see that the residents up above must
be 'trike' drivers for a living for here they park their work
vehicle until it is time to go back to work for the day.
Actually, their 'trikes' usually double, not only for their
means to provide a living for their family, but also it
is their family vehicle.  This is how the entire family comes
to Church or goes into market.   They carry ALL of their
supplies on these little vehicles. 

This picture it is harder to see, but the hewn
stairs are out of dirt and the pathway disappears
into a groove of trees and thick undergrowth.

OK .... its a moment 'break time'.     These are the most common 'Fast Food' restaurant in the Philippines.
You can purchase Chicken JOY (a piece of Chicken and a cup of rice) for 79 pesos... about $1. 50.   They do have a hot dog or a hamburger, or plate of sweet spaghetti available, but if you don't specify, you get rice instead of french fries.            We stop at these often.    I trust the C.R.s (Rest Rooms) here, at McDonalds, and KFC.  Being on the road as much as we are ...... I am always on the look-out for the good 'Comfort Rooms'.

Here we have a slide off from rains.  We are encountering more and more of these in our travels.    Our Bishop of the Pacdal Ward, Baguio Stake, randomly came up to Elder Bell one day and asked him which was we travel to come up to Baguio.   Elder Bell told him that Kennon Road is our favorite way to come up the mountain.   Our Bishop strongly advised us to not travel Kennon Road any more.   It has proven to have many faults along its canyon walls, and there have been more and more boulders (huge boulders) coming down onto the roadway.    So we decided then and there that we will heed the advice of our Priesthood leader and travel the longer way ..... we know that if not - we would only have ourselves to blame if harm befell us.

Another set of stairs just cut along the side of the road.  We
know that it leads to someone's home or homes.

I snapped this one just a second too fast.     There is a wooden
ladder that is just around this corner that leads up to the top of
the rock wall, and then you can see the pathway cutting up
through the bushes to a cluster of homes.    If a Filipino needs
to find a way to get himself and his family to their home .... he
does whatever it takes.   These wonderful people are so resilient ...
so 'water-proof'.

Right in the middle of one of the tight curves going down the mountain.   This stairway leads
up to the Barangay elementary school.   Can I just tell you that most Filipinos' have strong legs.

Another wash along the roadway with boulders needing to be cleared.   There is always some construction or some clearing along the roadways.          But you have to admit ...... beautiful scenery.


The picture of the little Filipino man has a touching story behind it.     This little 59 year old man left Mindanao (The island where all of the Marshal Law and fighting the terrorists is going on ....Marawi City) early this year because of the unrest.   He left everything and traveled to LUZON and ended up in BATAAN ... out towards the West from Manila Bay.      He came with only meager supplies.   His family had abandoned him and he was left to take care of himself.     His eyesight is degenerating and he will often fall and hurt himself, because he can not see well.     He has been going to the local market place and begging for food, and sleeping where he can find a place to stay.                A kindly widow had noticed him for a few weeks, and finally approached him and asked him what is his story and why was he there alone.     He shyly told her about being abandoned by family on Mindanao, and his journey to a more safe place in the Philippines.   He had no money and could not work because of his eye condition.      She has a 'garden hut' out to the rear of her home, and so she took him there and that is where he sleeps.   She is providing him enough food to survive and he attempts to help her.    She brought him to the BATAAN Social Work Office because she knew that they could provide wheelchairs and assistive devices for mobility and disabilities.          He was assessed and given a quad cane to help him be able to maintain his balance.   When he received his cane, he quietly asked how much he owed.  Our assessor told him that he owed nothing .... it was his.   Silent tears coursed down his cheeks.  We kept trying to wipe away the tears, but they flowed.   Our assessor looked again at his personal information, and advised this kindly woman that the gentleman turned 60 next month and could go into the office for the Elderly and receive his PHIL Health card .... which give him access to insurance to take care of his eyes and can also provide a place for him to live.   This little Filipino was so humbled, so grateful, he couldn't speak a word, but you seen it shine from his eyes.        BECAUSE SOMEONE TOOK THE TIME TO CARE ... TO REACH OUT .... TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.   

We love the work that we are involved in ...... but the bigger picture is the little everyday acts of kindness that we all can reach out with and show to others.    A smile, a hand to lift up someone who has fallen and has not the strength to get up, a listening ear and helping hand to a woman whose husband has left her and her little ones, a kind ride for the motorcyclist whose motorcycle is out of gas, a smile for the child who is ahead of us in the grocery line,  ............ so many ways.            
Thank you for caring enough to allow us to share our experiences.     We want you to know that we know that true and lasting joy comes from following the teachings of our Savior, Jesus Christ.     He lives.   He listens to the humble and sincere prayers.    He knows .... He knows.