Such a sad title! We had a wonderful last visit to Palawan, our favorite paradisiacal island that just happens to be in our area. We had several reasons to spend a few days there. First of all, we had two school turnovers and another school to visit where we donated materials so they could rebuild a two classroom building. They are almost finished with it, but not quite ready for their completion celebration. We also had to talk to the two school divisions to see how their literacy program is coming along. So it was a busy, fruitful time.

The first turnover of donations was at a very small high school in Narra, which is two hours south of Puerto Princesa, the main city on the island. We rented a car and drove down there, but Google Maps didn’t know where she was going and we got a bit lost. We eventually got there and all the students (around 135) were sitting under the covered court in their super heavy old, wooden desks/chairs. All the new chairs and desks were off to the side, ready to be used as soon as the turnover was finished. When I looked at the program and saw the huge number of speakers, I truly felt sorry for the students. Everyone kept their remarks brief except for the representative of the mayor- he had to blab on and on. Politicians have a way of doing that here. Their moment to shine, I guess.

At least the students were able to perform for us. Each grade had a cultural dance to share, so that was fun. Lennie said I gave my best speech yet. I guess I felt so sorry for the long sit they had that I had to spice it up a bit. I had them stand up and say “good-bye to your uncomfortable chairs” which they did. Then they turned and faced the new chairs and said “hello” to their new chairs. I said some other things that must have been somewhat inspiring. Sometimes I don’t even know where the things come from that I say. That has been one of the true blessings and wonders of this mission. The spirit really does tell me “all things that I should say”. Well, maybe not ALL things… but I can tell you, I don’t usually plan my remarks ahead of time. After the long program, (the District President was there, Dave Laureo who brought all these projects to us, the local Elders were there, the Taceys, who are MLS missionaries in Narra- they all had to speak ), we went and had a wonderful lunch buffet they had prepared for us. It is always a risk to eat the food that is prepared for us, but luckily I didn’t get sick from any of the food we ate on this trip (Lennie never gets sick). Oh, this is also the school that our DTA, Ed Fernando, thought should get some fresh paint since they have all these new desks. So we did indeed get them some paint and they got right to it and painted all eight classrooms and even the outside! It helped to freshen up the school, but it still looks kind of sad. The teachers seem dedicated, though, and the students seem like nice kids as well. We have at least two church member students there- one gave the opening prayer.

After lunch, we had a bit of time until the next turnover, so we went to Elder and Sister Tacey’s place to rest for a few minutes. They live in an actual house in a local neighborhood. What a difference from living in Quezon City! The next turnover was at an elementary school. A church member saw a post about what we had given earlier in the year to Narra High School, so she reached out and asked for help with their school. We gave them whiteboards for all the classrooms (they have 23 classrooms), a couple of TVs so they all have TVs now, and lots of reading and math manipulatives. They had listed certain math manipulatives for the different grade levels which I thought was very good. I am always happy to help if they have a plan for their school and know what to ask for. The turnover for this school also had lots of people listed on the program, but it went fairly quickly. They even had their 6th grade student body president give a speech, which was very good. Afterwards, we were talking to their principal and found out he had actually been baptized when he was 17 years old. Of course, we invited him to come back. The teacher who is a member didn’t even know this about her principal.

One of the things they gave us was something we will truly treasure. They gave us a “certificate” of sorts that included a picture of the banner they had but our pictures were hand drawn by their principal. So cool! Once again, we had full time missionaries there and the same people who came to the first turnover. The mayor rep didn’t talk quite as long this time (after all, it was afternoon and hot and everyone was tired). The students here did some really awesome dances, especially the coconut dance! That was another first. When the turnover was finished, we took Dave back to his wife’s restaurant where we had our sad good-byes. Dave has given us four projects in his part of Palawan, which has been amazing. He has a good heart and it was great working with him. He is trying to get a Visa to go and work in Hong Kong. He really wants to provide better for his cute family, but it’s sad he feels he has to go abroad to do it. This seems to be true with many people in the Philippines. The last picture in this group is maybe the nicest service station bathroom I have visited anywhere! Lots of plants both outside and inside, modern, clean and had everything (meaning soap and toilet paper and running water ).

After leaving Dave and his family, we headed back up to Puerto Princesa so we could meet a senior couple who are serving in Quezon Palawan. They had been all the way up to El Nido to get missionaries settled in (it is a new area). They were staying in Puerto that night and wanted to talk to us about a potential project for some poor schools in Rizal. They are a dynamic couple- they are tasked with going all over Palawan and making sure the missionary apartments are okay- doing simple repairs, maybe getting different apartments, fixing their bikes, etc. They have only been here for a couple of months and have already put in lots of miles. We had them stop by the hospital we helped in Roxas to check up on our donations, so that saved us a lot of time. We had a wonderful visit with them. We have so many talented, varied, amazing senior couples here! The next day we had an appointment with Palawan school division to check up on their literacy program. We haven’t had much contact with this division, not like Puerto Princesa. Partially, it’s because they have new people in the key positions. So we got to know the new people and hopefully, the Gardners, our replacements, will be able to continue to work with them. We are helping nearly 50 schools, so I hope they get their act together!

Since we had a free afternoon, we decided to take some time to enjoy Palawan and hired a boat to take us into Honda Bay again. We went to the snorkel spot, then Cowrie Island just to enjoy a nice, clean white sand beach. It was lovely! The snorkeling isn’t as great here as the last two places we have been, but it was still a great break and we continue to be amazed at the wondrous world under the surface of the ocean. I even had a massage on Cowrie Island. I mean, when else could I get a massage right on the beach? It was a much needed respite for us. Finally, on Thursday, we had a very productive (yet a bit sad) meeting with Cristina Ferriol and Glenda, with the Puerto Princesa School Division. I feel like we have had such a wonderful working relationship with Cristina, in particular. She was so sad when she learned it was our last trip there (as were we). She was actually on leave, since her father-in-law just passed away, but she really wanted to meet with us. After we met, we traveled for about an hour to get to the San Rafael school to check up on the construction of the two classroom building that we gave building materials for. They are almost finished, but not quite, so we didn’t have a turnover.

They will be painting the correct name of the church on the building along with others who helped sponsor it (like their alumni association). It looks good! Too bad it didn’t quite get finished. We had the Single Drop for Safe Water people with us at this point because right close to the school is a barangay that is hoping for help with a water project. We had a great meeting with their new, dynamic, fairly young barangay captain, a woman, and she also invited some of the residents including the IP tribal people. They prepared a lunch for us (which somehow ended up in my lap!) then we went in the rented van up into the mountains to see where the IP tribal people live and to see what their water situation is. It is so dry everywhere right now! Usually Palawan is so green and lush, but this area is so dry they have had some recent brush fires. And the river is almost completely dried up, so some of the areas where the tribal people live have been temporarily vacated. They moved to a place where they can access water.

I loved seeing their little villages. The homes are made of bamboo and local plant material, but they are well crafted (sometimes) and the areas were neat and well planned. When we saw their “well” in the river, it was shocking. It is basically just a little area they have lined with rocks and they divert some of the water into a shallow pool. I guess the idea is that the small rocks will filter the debris from the water and it is their drinking water. Never mind the cow that was standing right in the river! When asked if they have gotten sick from drinking the water, the woman said their bodies are used to it, so they don’t get sick from it any more. The plan is to provide systems and piping so they will have good sources of water. I think the plan also includes toilets and septic tanks. The goal is for zero defecation. Too bad we won’t be around to see this one implemented. We haven’t done ANY water projects on our mission.

While we were walking around in the hills, we realized just how HOT it is now in the Philippines. This is truly heading into the hot season. They joke about how the Philippines has three seasons: hot, hotter and hottest! That is just about right. Well, that ended our work here in Palawan. We love our Carpe Diem Villa, the good food here (we found a charming local restaurant- Ka Lui), the untouched beauty of the land, and of course, the people. Both members of the church as well as doctors and school people have enriched our lives so much. It was so hard to leave it all behind! Our plane was delayed, so we dropped off our luggage and walked to our favorite gelato place which was much farther than we remembered, then took motorcycle rides back to the airport (very refreshing and a bit scary). A perfect ending to a bittersweet trip.