August 29, 2011

 Would you believe this is a fresh (niu) coconut frond woven into the most intricate basket?  We received this at the choir festival last night to begin the Teuila Festival. It had water, muffins and an apple for refreshment.  We sat behind gov. officials and by the Miss Teuila competitors so maybe they thought we were official too!  When we got home, neighbors said we were on TV! (purely as background to the officals).  The LDS Church had a multi-stake choir performing and we enjoyed all 8 of the choirs, plus the Police Band.  Our choir sang Joseph Smith's First Prayer (in Samoan, of course) as well as another couple of LDS songs and the message was lovely.
I am going to give you a practical sense of our
living in this blog - what our living conditions are

like.  We feel very blessed to have a safe compound to live on and nice home furnishings.
 The photo of our bed also shows the breeze blowing the curtain - our sanity as we sleep with the windows open all night and a fan blowing also.  In one of the photos you will see our lamp on the floor as the wind blows it off the table and breaks the bulb, thus it lives on the floor.  I absolutely love  my double-decker drain tray - can I fit it into my suitcase to come home?
 Roy has begun a new stake and feels the good spirit of these people as he meets with them.  He feels a little more success this time, having met with the Stake Presidency first and having them arrange the meeting to get to know the bishops
and clerks. We certainly  know Roy was called here for this specific purpose - with his computer experience as well as being able to communicate in Samoan to the people.  His whole life he has been pointed in this direction and we feel blessed that he has the opportunity to make a difference.  He studies the language daily (unlike me!) and the scriptures in Samoan as well. 

You can see our comfy furniture in the next picture - I love curling up on the couch with the breeze blowing through the window.  The TV channels leave much to be desired but we aren't here to watch TV anyway!

President and Sister Leota are wonderful people and we feel privileged to serve with them.  As of last week, I have been asked to fill in as the mission nurse until another couple can be called down.  Elder & Sister Currie left on Thursday evening to return to Utah and we keep her in our prayers that they can help her regain her health.  We certainly miss them both.  I had a quiet two days and then an elder who had been ill previously was again staying in the MRC (mission recovery center) next to the mission president's home.  I spent a bit of time going back and forth and Sis. Leota spent quite a bit of time there also, as it was the weekend.  He was well enough to return to the field today so all is quiet at this moment.  Today was p-day so we had a few missionaries come in for medical rechecks as well as a few things that needed to be bandages and advice.  I am happy being busy and I can still keep up with the other couple of thing I have on the go.  I came to do some good in Samoa and this is where I am needed at the moment. (I do hope it lasts awhile!)

On this island, we have 220 electricity and a 3 prong plug.  You can see the little red line on the
top of the switch.  It is really handy to be able to turn the plug off at the source.  The large one on the right is for the oven.
I know, you wonder why I would put a picture of the toilet - because it is the nicest toilet I have ever used for one specific reason - can you guess?  I think only people who clean toilets will appreciate the fact that this one has no little nooks and crannies to clean around the bottom.  It is all enclosed and just one swipe of the cloth does it! I know, Japanese commodes are very fancy but I love practical, good design.  It does have the double flush, which is nice and I wish I could take

this home with me as well!

Mereda in the Perth mission mentioned how she missed her washing machine from home.  I agree!  This one is brand new and still doesn't agitate like the ones we are used to.  I guess we are just spoiled but the ones I have used here and in Japan just aren't the same.  This one is actually narrower than the washers I am used to.

The little dryer is cute - I only use it to do Roy's shirts until they are unwrinkled and I hang them to finish the dry - it would never fit anything large in it.  Right outside this window you an see the large black water storage tank.  These are like the ones the Humanitarian Aid from the church were installing around the island.  We really see a lot of good that the church does here and can feel proud of our involvement in the communities in Samoa

 The last shot is of the view out the other side of the laundry room - I love looking at all the green hues, mixed with yellows and reds.  The laundry room is large enough to really enjoy.  This week I got the mostly unused snorkel equipment from the roach infested outdoor closet it was kept in and washed and bleached it all and now have it stored in our cupboards in the laundry room for any of the seniors to borrow.  Sister Erickson and I really did the roach dance trying to stomp on all the beasties that came our of the equipment!  (yes, we did it outdoors!)

I have just finished reading a small book written by Wayne Shute, Roy's first mission president.  He was quoting the Head of State at the time he (Shute) was the mission president and how he (Head of State) expressed his appreciation for the LDS Church.  We make quite a difference with the beautiful buildings we have dotted all over the islands and as he mentioned, the missionaries in their white shirts, etc. are  well know and respected.  I feel our  senior mission is quite sheltered from the everyday missionary work as we work with the members and other missionaries, but we really are the working force keeping things going while the young missionaries are the soldiers on the front line.  It is kind of like being on Trek as a Ma and Pa where the youth are experiencing so many wonderful things and we are "back up" making sure things go well.  (I know, we get a lot of blessings too but I am excited for the strength of the youth).
We leave our love with you and appreciate all your interest and concern on our behalf.