Pizza and Burgers!

I finally got pictures for you! They’re loading now! I got my package from the ward. It didn’t get to Tonga til 2 months after they sent it haha!

So this week was another slow week. STILL haven’t found any new investigators. The members always just joke around with us about them so it’s no bueno. But this week was good...another fast week! Wednesday with one of our wards we went and helped them do service even though they started an hour before they said they would! Then after that we went to the big FHE with the other ward in Ha'alaufuli. The Fine Ofa (Relief Society) did their dance that they had prepared for this big program they did as a stake on Friday. Saturday night for fafanga it was our Ward Mission Leader's turn so he told us we would go to Kolo (town) to get the food and we told him since it is my comp’s birthday today and the other two who were coming with us were about to leave on missions that if they took us to The Aquarium (the nice restaurant here) we would buy. It was good! We got pizza and hamburgers. It was amazing haha! So I finally got to take money out of the ATM when we went to Kolo! Dad might be glad that I am able to.  He kept asking if my debit card worked.

So a couple weeks ago it was raining EVERY single day but now it hasn’t rained just been windy which I think feels good but now everyone here is getting sick! It is starting to cool down at night to where I finally pull the sheet over me haha! It’s not even that cold though. I like it! :)

I hope we are able to find someone to teach this week because not being able to teach anyone isn’t the funnest. I feel like I am wasting time ha but this week we were actually able to find more stuff to do so it was good! Anyways, love you all! Stay amazing! :)

Elder Hanismani

Elder Mani

Elder Huntsman

(you choose) :) haha

P.S. So there is a kid who just left on his mission from my village to the MTC in Provo to serve in the Tempe Arizona Mission so I was wondering if you and/or Kayleigh could just put together a small package to send him! I don’t have the address but she could just drop it off at the MTC! His name is Elder Gabriel Naeata!! That would be amazing!  Thanks!

The road after a smaller rainstorm, still flooded!

WaterVai
(Vai means water in Tongan so WaterWater haha so creative!)

Before we went to do service FOR ONCE!!

RS dancers at huge family home evening
one ward here does every month.

My $5 slippers ($2.70 american money ) but they
have quicksilver bottoms haha so cheap!

Sucks, Sucks, Sucks...Just Kidding!

**I gave him a hard time for saying “sucks” in his email six times last week.  Here is his letter this week! ;)

SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS haha 7 this time ;)‏

Just kidding! It was good this week haha! So one good thing is I am not getting fat! I weigh the exact same as when I can in! 185 haha! My comp though has lost 30 pounds since the MTC and he doesn’t work out or anything! I have gotten bigger though. I do push-ups and sit-ups and stuff every single night! Hopefully I don’t change my habits haha! 

So last week our Bishop in one of our wards asked us to give a talk in Sacrament Meeting and then the night before it happened we heard President Tupou was going to be in our ward.... so I wrote a 10-15 minute talk in Tongan then when we got there, Bishop says “Oh just do a testimony” so I tell my comp that he told us that and I go up and think of a scripture and share it with a testimony on being a good example to everyone and then my comp goes up. He gives his 5-7 minute talk that he prepared and straight up tells the Kaingalotu (members) that they are asleep and the work is dead haha right in front of President! I was like ooooooh my....... haha but then in the next ward the Bishop was like “I think if the Elders were up here they would tell you that the work here is dead and they need your help!” So hey that was maybe good???!! haha But I tried talking with President after and we did a little but right when I was going to bring up the ZL, the ZL walked in so that was bad…notice I didn’t say sucked , ha!  ;)

So I have gotten ngaahi angatamaki'i (boils) under my armpits and it hurts like crazy! I have been lucky only one has come up out of the skin. The others just go away! But this kid in the other village who came into the mission with me had a huge one in his armpit the size of a golf ball and it was the MOST disgusting thing I have ever seen.... haha! I saw a video. It was a straight stream of puss and blood and it spattered on the mirror!!!!! Then it just kept dripping down his hand and arm! Sooooo gross.....

But this week we gave two blessings and I was able to do it in Tongan! So that was somewhat of an achievement for me haha! But anyways this week I taught the Peace Corp lady again and she told us she isn’t interested in listening anymore.... so ya.  Oh well. But we are still trying to find an investigator here.... still haven’t found one so that is no fun! But we are trying! Loving it here! Just super hot haha! Sorry, no pictures. I just don’t take any!!! I will take a bunch this week. I already told myself that cuz I don’t have any of like the people so I need to take more!  Oh and breakfast this morning was with Harvey Unga's grandparents!   :)

Anyways, all is well! Love you all!  

Elder Huntsman

Umm...this sucks!

WARNING FROM KAMDEN'S MOM- Extreme overuse of the word "suck" in this week's conversation with Kamden.  Real life frustrations of a teenaged boy a world away from home whose mission isn't going quite as he had planned.

Hello! This week was another slow week. We had 3 Putu (funerals) this week so we didn’t have much work because EVERYONE in our two villages went to them! And our Zone Leader told us no going to the Funerals. Then we asked President yesterday and he said GOOOO! Those are your best teaching opportunities! So that sucked....

It was a REALLY slow week..... We sat at the Chinese store in between my two villages and tried to find stuff to do there.... I helped them put things out and organize stuff and carry the heavy stuff in so that was probably the highlight of my week! 

It’s so hard being in such a small area..... and this is probably the biggest or one of the biggest in Vava'u!!  I hate being confined to such a smallllllll space...... and seeing all my friends on other missions and they always seem to be able to find something to do, somewhere to go where here, if we leave our area, we get sent back to the main island and if it happens again you go home!!  I am having a hard time here haha but I am not coming home or wanting to at allllll!!!  I just need to find something to do!!!

Still no phone yet but we talked to President and he said they have tons at the office. He doesn’t know why we don’t have one........... this sucks.... nothing like I thought a mission would be. It’s so small I never know what to do..... toooo freaking relaxed! I want to serve where I can go home sore and fall right asleep cuz we did so much but that nevvvver happens.....and they are trying to make this area into two.... like that would make the work slower... ya we get a lot of baptisms but that’s just cuz we get it done fast! Haha!  

I don’t know.  It just sucks seeing friends pictures of them with other missionaries, them actually doing stuff, them having investigators where I am just like ya we have maybe one at a time…every area here on Vava'u is like this. I am in one of the biggest areas and it sucks! I am never even stressed here. It sucks but am not down! haha it just sucks.

Sorry this letter is short. We honestly couldn’t find anything to do this week! Our bishops asked us not to proselyte so ya…what is a missionary supposed to do right???? We try serving them but they won't let us.  They want to serve us!

Anyways love you all! See you in 16!!! haha

Elder Mani

Oh Mom, this other elder wanted me to see if his dad sends you a camera if you will put it in a package and send it here cuz I always get my stuff haha! His packages seem to get stolen or something. I’ll give him your address.  Thanks!

Baptism in the Ocean

This week went really fast! We had two baptisms on Monday but when we started to fill up the font we ran out of water at the church!!! It only filled up to about a foot so we had to go to the beach! My first ocean baptism so that was cool! Elder Tu'akalau performed the baptism so hopefully I get one in the ocean soon! Haha maybe this week or next!

I am sorry I don’t remember much that happened this week! I got to do vilo hoa (companion exchange) to teach the Peace Corp in lea Faka-Palangi (English) so that was good! She struggles a lot with faith and she doesn’t really believe what Joseph Smith saw! She always has a bunch of questions so I like doing that. We gave her the book Our Search for Happiness by Elder Ballard and it is really getting her thinking and helping her understand more what we believe and what we are teaching her.

But ya this week we didn’t have much to do. Just trying to find people to teach! Our Bishop here, Pisope Veni, calls me Sinimani (Cinnamon) haha so that always makes people laugh! Or he just straight up calls me Palangi (white guy) so I call him Tonga cuz I know he knows my real name haha I like this area a lot. It’s good and everyone is nice!!!

Mom, I gave away one of my super thin towels so if you could send one of those somehow that would be good ha :) I am loving it! The only thing that really sucked this week is that when we go to the mission prep class we help out with those who are going to go serve English speaking missions and so we showed them how to do street contacting in English and man, did that make me wish I was doing that instead of Tongan.... Sooooooo much easier!!!! Haha but hey I guess I can just work harder on my Tongan!! Ha anyways love you all! All is well here in Tonga!!!

Elder Huntsman