The Insolated Room

We had an interesting conversation at our last Zone Meeting. When President Whiting came it to meet with us, there was a situation with a Sister Missionary.

Sister Canete was a new missionary coming with a group from the Provo, MTC. She was from the Philippines. She came from a very poor family. She came to the Provo MTC with old worn out luggage, and old clothes. She knew she was not like the other missionaries, with everything new, and very nice. However, that was not important to her, she just wanted to serve Heavenly Father. When she arrived in Korea with all of the other missionaries, there was a problem with her visa. She was the only one in the MTC group that was not a US citizen. So after a 19 journey from Utah, she was stopped. She was put in an insolated room with around 50 other women, for over 24 hours. There were no beds, and no food. Most of women spoke Korean. We first hear this story as she was still in the insolated. We heard Sister canete as we met with the whole mission to be spiritually feed. When President Turner stood up to tell us about this young sister he wept. She cried as told him how scared she was. She told him she was hungry and tired. President Turner tried to advise her with encouraging words. Sis Canete said, “President Turner told me, that all things happen for a reason. That I should reach out. Maybe there was someone there I could help, or something I needed to learn.” Many of them were angry, and ready to fight. As she sat on the hard floor, with tears streaming down her face she sang,“Heavenly Father, are you really there? And do you hear and answer every child's prayer? Some say that heaven is far away, But I feel it close around me as I pray”. When she would stop, women would plead for her to sing more. In her broken Korean, she taught the gospel. One asked if she could teach her more after they were released. Everyone was hungry. She got out her American chocolate and shared it with some of the women, and had them drink water. They were so excited to get American chocolate they wanted to save it, but she told them they needed to eat it. As she talked I could hear the words, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren , ye have done it unto me”. After over 25 hours, she was put on a flight going to the Philippines. There she stayed in the Missionary Reception Center (MRC), for 6 weeks. When they saw her poor belongings, they replaced them with some they had there that missionaries had left. Dan, I mean Elder Hawks was so excited when she said she went to the MRC. He served at the Philippines MRC, in 2001. They had changed buildings. Just 2 days before Elder Hawks and I had been talking, about Boycee, a man he had worked with on his mission. He just loved working with Boycee  and we had wanted to visit him; however Elder Hawks has lost Boycee's email, in a computer mishap. He said, “Did you know a man named Boycee ” Boycee is a not a Filipino name. Sister Canete said, “I love Brother Boycee ” He was the one that helped get a better suitcase and clothes. She is sending out picture for her friend to show Boycee  and someone is send his to her. As she finished her sweet story, she said she had learned a lot from that very difficult time. It reminded of D & C 122:7 “And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.”

Elder Hawks has already exchanged 6 emails with Elder Boycee.