January 31, 2012

Well, two more days and we will have been married for 38 years!  That's such a long time and such a short time too.  Lots of happenings in our lives so far - and here are the happenings of the last week or so.

This is the flower on the flame tree - absolutely gorgeous and a really sturdy flower

An update on last week – we went to the airport according to the info given us, Mission Pres and entourage in one van and us in our car and no Bonilla’s.  We repeated the trip the next night at midnight and they were there.  We wonder if the mixup in dates was due to our jump across the dateline and they are still working out the bugs that the 23^rd in America is actually the 24^th here.  We took them shopping a couple of times and arranged for them to have meals with the Johnsons as we were busy getting a new area opened and I went with Roy for the first week. 

This past week has been fairly steady, getting the yearbook updated and ready.  We printed it off yesterday and I bound then this am.  I also helped Afalua make sandwiches this am for the zones that were in and the sick elders.  Her daughter is helping her this afternoon so I came home and got some much needed washing done.  I also walked back to the school to pick up something and it was HOT! 

We tried a new restaurant on Friday – the bar-b-que at Insel Fermin Hotel and took the Johnsons with us.  It was ok – the steak was a little tough but we filled up and it was ok – I don’t want to go back again until we have tried a few other places, though.  They have a swimming pool and I asked the waiter if we could swim and he said yes.  Cost?  Free he said.  We questioned if it was three or free (the Samoans pronounce th’s as f’s).  No, free he said.  Well, we checked at the desk when we left and they said it would be $10 to come swimming. 

Something I have acquired a taste for - lychee

I am reading the Pearl of Great Price right now.  I finished the D&C and now this.  The BofM  will be done in another month and half  and then I want to read the New Testament and the Old Testament.  That will make all the standard works read during my mission.  I hope I can keep it up as right now I am not very busy but that could change.  Hatu mentioned to Roy they may have me work with the PEF funding so we will see.

Sister Leota’s Uncle came from Australia to visit an aunt that was in the hospital and the day he was to go home, he died!  They are having a lot of company come this week and the funeral will be here.  It will be a big load for her.  I just hope they can keep away from the Fa’a Samoa that requires the giving of lots of food and fine mats to the matai’s and villages involved.  The church is councilling the people to break the tradition of so much giving as it puts people in debt and keeps them very poor.  I know when we were here in 2007 I saw ads on the TV to get your fa’alavelave (troubles) loans with that particular bank.  It really is getting out of hand.  The givings in some of the churches is also way out of line.  The ministers of these other churches get money given to them and the list is read out to embarrass those who haven’t given much.  Their homes are huge and are surrounded by their parishoners who live in poverty.  One fellow in American Samoa was given $5000 US  twice in one month.  There is a problem with that!

One problem Roy finds as he checks the memberships is that people have left our church to study at the ministerial colleges to become ministers in other religions.  Ummmm, why do they still have a membership in our church if they go to another as a minister????  - just one of the many problems he encounters.  Right now he is working in the West Stake, out past the airport and wharf.  It is a flatter part of the island but still beautiful.  We are really getting to know this island well. 

A traditional fale being built at the Aggie Grey Resort by the Airport

We got quite wet this am while going for our walk – but we didn’t dissolve so no problem!  It was actually quite refreshing. 

So we are having 3 new babies this year – Ian and Sharleen in March, Brooke and Aric in April and Chelsea and Daniel in August.  That will make 4 new ones to meet when we get home, giving us 12 total.  I sure love being a Nana!

Newman - I get to cuddle in church occasionally - so cute in his lavalava -

I am sure grateful for the tender mercies of the Lord - we see them constantly in our life and just need to pause at the end of the day and reflect on what they are.  Sometimes they are a physical something that turns up or is healed, or whatever and sometimes it is a softening of a heart or mending of a misunderstanding.  I am just grateful to be the recipient of some of those.  

January 23, 2012

Hmmm - I am not posting any photos this time as I am having trouble with my camera and need to take a different approach.

We are planning a trip to the airport tonight to welcome the new humanitarian couple here.  We went last night (another vehicle with the Mission Pres & wife, AP's and nurse couple also went) and they weren't on the flight.  We were told that it was the 23 of Jan, 1:00 am flight.  We think with the jump across the dateline the day was mixed up and they are arriving on the American 23rd, not the Samoan 23rd.  As Zone Leaders we make sure the house is ready (clean & some food) plus we have a package we put together with Senior Missionary Phone list, FHE group list, map of the country, temple schedule, Samoan hymn book, etc.    We went last week at the request of the President to pick up a single sister returning from the Brisbane mission to Pago.  We went to meet the 1:00 am flight that didn't get in until almost 4:00 am, brought her to our home for a nap, shower and breakfast and then on to the Fagalii airport to catch her connector flight to Pago at 8:30.  We were quite tired that day!

We have a dear little sister in our ward - Sose, who has had terrible stomach troubles and had surgery last week.  We went to visit her in the hospital and she is so frail and sweet.  She is home now but the Bishop indicated it is cancer and the surgery didn't get it all.   She is such a dancer - any ward dance she is in the middle of it and a going concern.

Twice in the past couple of weeks we have had junior missionaries call us up and let us know their fafaga (dinner appointment) has cancelled and they need somewhere to eat.  We certainly don't mind and have had fun getting to know them better.  I have cut three heads of hair too - not that I am great, but it is cheaper than going to a barber.  Today is p-day so there are quite a few missionaries at the office.

We were given (by the office mission couple as they couldn't go) an invitation to go to a movie premier at the Apollo Theater downtown.  The Prime Minister gave a speech, the actors in the movie were there and there was a reception in the lobby before the beginning of the movie.  It was interesting to see a few other LDS couples there.  It was promoted by Digicel, the mobile phone company.  Well, it was filmed in New Zealand, featuring mainly Samoans.  Ummm, as the movie progressed we realized we just didn't feel comfortable there and left.  When we got home, the first movie (this was a sequel) was on TV and we just skipped over it knowing it wasn't something we wanted to watch.  We don't watch a lot of TV as the choice is not great plus we don't have a lot of time. but when we do it has to be worthwhile watching.  There are a couple of religious channels (like 2 out of the 5 we get) and they sometimes have some decent music on them.

What a lot of rain we had last week.  It poured for a couple of days and it was so nice and cool.  When the sun comes out it is steamy hot but while it is raining and cloudy, I love it.  I know home has had some very cold temperatures but I can take that easier than the tremendous heat.  Yah, just try me in November/December when we get home and hear me complain of being cold!

Last Friday we were able to attend a devotional at the Service Center, transmitted from New Zealand.  Elder Callister of the 70, Elder McMullin of the Presiding Bishop's Office and Elder Quentin Cook of the Quorum of the 12 spoke.  Their main emphasis was complimenting the staff as they are the front line of the church.  It is our privilege to be a servant of the Lord and we should act accordingly. There should be unity in all our positions.  It was only just less than an hour but what a treat to hear something in English.

Roy has had a few training sessions lately and I have gone with him.  I do end up reading a lot, going for walks,  and mainly just keeping him company on the drive.  I met a really sweet sister yesterday who was on the road with her niece and she had returned from the SLC mission last May.  She has a horrible skin condition on her face and she said it is from the sun and she was able to see some Dr.s at the University hospital in SLC.  It is really hard for some of these returned missionaries to find busy-ness and fulfillment when they return from their missions - we see it with so many.  If they can go away for school it really lifts them and they can direct their lives more.  After serving a full time mission, it is hard to return to a fale and have little to do each day. Walking down the road was a Samoan man with a little palagi fellow, holding hands.  This sister told me that this Samoan couple had adopted this little white boy in America.  It was so different as we usually see it the other way around.

We had a change in our bishopric here in Samoa yesterday. One councilor was released and put in as the High Priest Group Leader and the clerks kind of just stepped up the ladder a bit, filling the position.  The one released is named Tuna - which reminds me that we are keeping a record of interesting names that we find here.  That will be a blog entrance all of it's own.

Well, that's it in a nutshell from sunny Samoa.

January 10, 2012

Blue AhMu - trim still needs to be finished

I am going to include a few journal entries rather than write them again.  If I have repeated myself on anything, forgive me as I have had little time to go back over what I wrote before - make sense?

December 28, 2011

I am very weary today – I actually had a hot bath (yes, hot) and it felt so good to squish into that tiny tub and soak for a bit.  Roy was sick for the past two days and wasn’t able to participate.  He feels a bit better today, thank goodness.  It is not nice to be sick anytime so we are glad he his on the up-and-up.

Seniors and Juniors working side by side

Yup, that tired old me.

What would we do without ladders?

Sister Leota doing touch up

The outside ceiling being painted.

trim

We have a song we have been singing today-

"There is no tomorrow but only today!" (The old words of Today While the Sun Shines")

And Roy's favorite saying today is

"Don't put off until tomorrow what you can put off until the next day!"

Thus, we end our existence on the east side of the dateline in 2 1/2 hours and instead of being the last in the world to celebrate New Year's Eve we will be the first in the world.  I know two people who will miss their birthdays due to this.  

On New Year’s Day, we had Elders Priday and Petelo come over for dinner.  It was Priday’s

birthday on the 23^rd and his mom had sent him a cake mix with all the trimmings.  We provided the oven and mixer and they baked the cake and we, of course, had some for dessert.  It is nice to have younger people in our home sometimes.

The "dot" wearers - results of one of the Christmas Party Games

January 3, 2012

As I write it is 15 minutes to midnight – we have just come to take a shift at the hospital to sit with Elder Rogers who had a ruptured appendix yesterday, resulting in surgery.  Perhaps they waited too long to do the surgery, but my mind is at ease with the hospital situation as he is in an air conditioned Acute Ward and seems to have the meds and things available for his care.  It is much cleaner and nicer than when I had a miscarriage almost 34 years ago.

We are really frustrated with the work situation right now – all Samoa takes a breather over Christmas and slows down everything.  Roy is between stakes and the next Stake President won’t see him until the second week in January.  This did enable us to do that work in Savaii,  as well as attend to the duties of Dr. Burton’s trip and the Christmas parties but it really is frustrating.  The Johnson’s (auditors who just arrived before Christmas) and the Erekson’s (public affairs) are finding the same thing and we wonder why they were told to come before Christmas.

January 4, 2012

We FROZE last night at the hospital.  Finally I had to go for a walk in normal air to thaw a bit.  Today, they had to take Elder Rogers back into surgery to get the drainage tube out that was stuck.  They also found some infection in the subcutaneous layer which was probably  the cause of the fever he developed in the night.  They still think  he will come home tonight and will be cared for better at home with Sister Hanson right close by.

During the choir presentation at our Senior's Christmas party - that baby had every grandma's heart.

Monday, January 9, 2012

Last night was our annual temple worker’s fireside and it was held at the Pesega Chapel, air conditioned, nice.  Thank goodness Sister Ho Ching and part of President Fitisimanu’s talks were in English.  Roy did a good job of translating for me but it is nice to hear it all myself and I felt sorry for the Webers as they are the only other palagi couple (oh, and Sister Aiono) who couldn’t understand the messages.  The main emphasis was that we raise the bar in life and expect more of those who are baptized, and more of those who go to the temple, and then those who are workers are expected to be at a higher bar still.  It was very complimentary even though my words don’t suggest that.  Pres. Fitisimanu emphasized that we must “take the temple home with us” when we leave.  Children should see a difference in their parents when they return – life should reflect the goodness and peace of the temple.  They announced there was a treat after and to go to the cultural hall after the meeting.  Usually that is to facilitate a bit of socializing, mainly.  Well, they had bottles of water and small brown sacks with something in them.  We all took our little bags and left – no one stayed to eat or mingle.  We took Sister Tumanuvao home with us (we have been doing that from our Thursday shift as well) and just went home.  There were two half sandwiches and a bag of cheese twists.  Since we had eaten a big dinner before we left, we just put the sandwiches in the fridge and took them down to the compound guard with some freshly baked cookies later that evening.  We did eat the cheese twists as we wanted to compare to Hawkins Cheezies (we had some in a package from Brooke this week) and they were ok – but not nearly as good as the Cheezies!  Thanks Brooke. 

Saturday we took the Merrells and drove down to Fagaloa Bay.  We had a drizzly overcast day, but it was lovely anyway.  Cascading down the mountains were numerous waterfalls and after the first one, my camera battery died, of course.  We did try to go to Uafato but the road was just a little too rocky for us.  I don’t think a bus can even pass that way.  We did go in 2007 with Ian and Sharleen but maybe the difference was being in a truck rather than the 4-wheel drive Hyundai we drive now (or the road might have deteriorated in 4 years).  There was a huge rock mass in the middle part way that we would have high centered on.  Thank goodness Roy has a key for the buildings and we were able to stop at one of the chapels and we ate our lunch, setting up a table and some chairs on the covered walkway.  I love going to the out-of-the-way places and seeing the people in their normal surroundings, void of a lot of traffic and just a bit more peaceful.

We continue in our 3 month reading of the Book of Mormon, marking all references to Jesus Christ.  It is a wonderful way to read – I have never read with a specific focus like that. 

This week should be a bit busier as Roy has three appointments set up -  hooray. 

One of the flame trees on the Pesega Campus

Well, I will continue busy with the phone bill this week – hours and hours are spent tracking through the individual missionary phone records to detect errant calls (longer than 10 minutes and those made after 10:30 pm and before 6:30 am).  Last month there was one phone that had 100% - so I gave them a package of cookies.  This month there are two, so far, and I am so thrilled I will do the same and hopefully it will impress on their minds a little to follow the rules.

January 10, 2012

Elder Rodgers is feeling quite well now - an occasional nap but nothing more than that.

Tonight we are having our first Senior Sisters gathering - kind of like a Relief Society homemaking meeting but just some friends gathered to learn how to make 2 cards.  One of the sisters expressed a great desire to do this before she goes home in a month or two so we decided to start this little gathering.  We will learn other things too - dancing, cooking and anything else anyone wants to learn.  I think it will be a real bonding time for those of us who seem to get quite busy.