Everybody has a Province

Kids there is a principle that I learned in the Phillipines as a missionary.

I lived in Manilla for 2 years, specifically in Quezon City for 9 months, Calookan City for 6 months, Morong rizal for 6 months, then Marikina for the rest.

When I first arrived in Quezon, it was the rainy season. It rained more in one night than i had seen to that point in my life. When I went to walk around the streets the next day, they were clean and looked nice.... Till you got to the end of the street. There, you would see trash piled up in the gutters. Trash blocked roads canals and led to flooding.

I could not believe how much garbage was there. As a missionary, I loved the people and tried to teach my faith. As we learned about each person, i noted a recurring theme: No one in the city comes from the city, they all come from the province for a better job. There were tons of "squatters" living in ramshack houses put together with cardboard and drift wood. But most people lived in homes of wood and tin. When I was there, you could judge how rich someone was but the number of outlets in the house, and if the floor was concrete. You could also judge how high the water made it in flood season by how high the lowest power outlet was.

I am telling you this because it emphasizes living conditions. Every single person I met had a province they claimed as home. The would speak lovingly of how beautiful the province was and how amazing it was. Followed closely by, how little trash there was. Then, you could watch people just throw their trash out the door. Some would use the gutters as toilets (in the poorer areas)

I noted that i had comparison too. My "province" was the US, My 'province' was a farm. People compare their situation to where they came from. In Manilla, they did not view it as home, so they treated it like trash. 20 million people. Thats a lot of trash.

It isnt wrong to miss what you know and what you are familiar with. It is not wrong to note how things are different.

My point is this
 Live every place like it is your province. You will love it more, be less miserable and have more pride where you live. Treat your living, as though you will be there forever. Keep it clean, be proud of it, love the people there. Dont treat the people or area like trash, you will only end up living in it too.

 In Docterine and Covenants 51:17 talking about saints living in a place for a short time, the Lord commanded:
  wherefore let them act upon this land as for years, and this shall turn unto them for their good.

Look for the positive, keep yours clean, treat an area like you would live there forever and you will be happier.

I love you kids. I am proud i got to be in your life