Still in Tu'anekivale

So this week was transfers! It was really hectic cuz usually they happen on Mondays but we needed new zone leaders so they didn’t get here til Friday! I am staying in Tu'anekivale for now but I got a new companion, Elder Neiufi from Tonga. My old companion Elder Finau is now our new zone leader! So this week until transfers I was companions in a trio with Elder Sitake from Orem and Elder Leveni from Australia. We didn’t have any investigators so we basically went around talking to members and we went to Kolo one day to get some stuff.

There was a Christmas tree in the restaurant we ate at called Mango! It is the higher up restaurant here but I wanted pizza.... haha it was actually a really good pizza too! Pineapple on it of course :) Nothing really happened because we were just waiting to get our transfers haha 4 new missionaries came to Vava'u but they are all Tongan so no new people for me to talk to (that I can actually understand haha) but this week we taught the Peace Corps lady, Kate. She is from Wisconsin and is Lutheran but they don’t have any Lutheran churches in Tonga so she has been coming to our church because the little kids invite her! We taught her a lesson in English so I taught most of it because Elder Neiufi doesn’t know that much English. It was a little unorganized because I am not used to teaching in English haha but I invited her to be baptized! Haha she said no.... but she said we can continue teaching! She just doesn’t want to commit to something that big/different so fast. It felt good actually being able to understand everything that was going on haha but other than that just trying to find others to teach!  I tried uploading pictures but this different computer I am using won’t let me for some reason and it is really slow!  I lost my jump drive though so if you could send another that would be awesome:) or just a memory card cuz I have the adapter.   I have the one memory card but it’s already half full of pictures.  I still didn’t get your packages.  Hopefully this week!  Love and miss you all! But loving it here!!

Ofa Lahi 'Atu,

Elder Huntsman

No Thanksgiving in Tonga

Sorry I am getting rushed with this letter so I am going to just write what I can remember and I promise to get you lots of pics and other stuff next week or if I am able to get on later in the week a little

This week is transfers but they are happening later in the week because half of our zone leaders here on Vava'u are going home. My comp is going to be a zone leader and they leave by plane tomorrow for a meeting. So last Tuesday we had a baptism of an old man whose family is all members. It was awesome seeing him get baptized! When we were teaching him he already knew everything we were teaching him so we pretty much just went over all of the lessons. So these past couple weeks we have actually had rain! But last week every other day the families weren't able to do fafanga so we had to find food, which wasn't too hard because there are a couple families always willing to feed us. The rain just makes everything more humid so that sucks! I don't know if I am losing weight or gaining it! haha hopefully losing.... And then gaining it back in muscle ;) haha I work out a little bit, not much but hey I am getting solid pecks for the first time in my life :) hahahaha we will see what happens in two years! So ya this week we are having transfers but I hope to stay here. Well I gotta go I am getting rushed off the computer! Love you all! Hope all is good!  Elder Huntsman

Hi again.  I am at a family’s house and the guy who we baptized daughter was skyping to him but I am back and will continue… So I have blessed the sacrament the past two weeks and the guy who leads the music says I do better than the last missionary who was here who has been here for 10 months so hey I guess the language is coming along! I have been doing a lot of studying here! I finished the Book of Mormon in October during conference and started again on November 20th! Already in Alma chapter 18 haha so yes I do read a lot here and I am actually enjoying it! So this past Thursday was the birthday of a man whose house we live behind! He is an old patriarch, the first on Vava'u, and he turned 96!!! He isn't able to move around so just lays in his bed but they had PLATES of food even though it was just like 10 of us there! But the lady who lives there is the guy’s daughter and she makes the SWEETEST/MOST AMAZING Otai everrrrrr! It is so good haha I love otai here! Especially this lady's haha! 

So mom my package should get to me this week.  I told Elder Finau, my comp who is going to be the zone leader who flies to Tonga tomorrow, to bring it with him! o ya and with the package for Vika to bring add some size large Hanes shirts, different plain colors, just cuz they are shirts I can wear anywhere, to paint and other service and not worry about them getting dirty! Malo!!! Haha so I heard the song “In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel and it reminded me of when we went to the concert! So our Bishop’s name is Bishop 'Auaea! All vowels ha it’s cool. ummm mom send me a list of the stuff I have told you and I will tell you what I can find here! I went to kolo (town) and saw things I might have told you so you wouldn't need to send them. Anyways love you all! Hope all is AMAZING there! Loving it here!

To answer your questions:  (Are there many cars on Vava’u?) There are lots of cars here! (Are you sleeping?) Yes, I sleep well! Always seem to wake up at least once though! Woke up to a cockroach in my shirt a couple weeks ago haha! (How are the cold showers?) The cold showers I am getting used to! (What was fun this week?) It’s always fun seeing the elders that I came in with! (What was hard?) The difficult thing for me is knowing what to study! What book, what topic, gospel or language this or that haha I have learned so much! (Do you have a church debit card?  How do you get your monthly allotment?) They come around and bring 90 bucks cash to us each week. (Christmas in the Summer?) It will be weird! Especially no tree or anything! Kaylee sent me with a present to open for Christmas and my birthday so I have that! Ha and I will have a late Christmas when Vika gets here! I might get to Skype you if I stay here! If I do I will talk to president and see.

Ryker is a cutie! There is a family here and their baby was born in April and he reminds me of Ryker, just cuz of the age haha he’s my Ryker for now! Ryker has tons of hair now!!!!!!!!!

No thanksgiving here haha but I did have a big meal that day! How are the Clippers doing? Jazz? Buckeyes football and basketball? 49ers? Who’s doing good in the NFL, NBA and all that? Anyways gotta go… love you!!!  

This is the man we baptized after the baptism.

The feast after the baptism.

One meal one night for two of us:  12 fish, bowl of fried chicken,
an octopus, plate of boiled bananas and talo, and lots more!
So much food!!

Dinner Sunday night:  grilled spaghetti sandwiches,
chocolate cake and cinnamon rolls!  <3  :)

A horned beatle that was outside our door!

P-day!

Too Busy To Write?

Sorry I didn't get on Monday. It has been a busy week! Next week is transfers so I will see if I can get on! The computers in my area, all the internet was down so I didn't get to get on 'til today for a bit just to say I am doing good! love you

Mission Conference

How is home? Everything here is good! The weather this week was cloudy and rainy so VERY humid... it was crazy haha! I get so dirty! Especially after playing rugby with the kids.... covered in dirt! There are a few things you get used to here.... 1. Being dirty 2. Being wet haha! I thought I would think of more but I just forgot..... hahaha o well. This week we didn’t do much. I thought we would have baptisms but we are going to try and get them this week. We have one SET and 3 hopefully!  

It is really nice here! We had a full mission conference with a member of the Seventy, Elder David L Holstrom. (I think that’s who it was. It was hard to hear.) haha They broadcasted it to us here!

So for Christmas I might be able to Skype if I stay here because they family whose computer I use has Skype! But that’s only if President says it is ok ha! Weeks here are already starting to feel like it’s the same every day! Days go slow but weeks go fast! Love it! Sorry I will try and bring my journal next time so I remember more haha! Love you all!!

Elder Mani

To answer Mom’s questions: My funnest event of the week was eating dog and watching my companion throw it out the window haha!  My most difficult event of the week was just dealing with the language ha!  My most awesome event was having someone else other than me that is white in my village haha!  I wasn’t the only one who can’t speak the language for a change!

Do they just cook up stray dogs? Ya, the family who was our fafanga told us to come get their dog haha.

One of the Fale Koloa's (stores) in our area.

Sunset!

Fafanga yesterday! It was really good! 

There is a lady here as a part of the Peace Corps from Wisconsin. 

She came and ate with us. She barely knows Tongan haha!

A picture I drew when I got bored...

Another Slow Week

This week was another slow week with only a couple lessons taught but we did do some good stuff! We went to a pineapple (faina) field and picked some pineapples to send with my companion’s cousin to the main island for some other missionaries there. We went and delivered them at night to him before he left back on the boat with his recent wife who is a Palangi from Australia so it was nice talking to someone else who was learning the language haha. When we were done gathering the pineapples, we stopped on a bridge and took some pictures. It was fun.  

Other than that it was just trying to get more people to teach! We have 7 investigators hoping to baptize 3 this week but it all depends on what their parents say since they are all under 18. A lot of the kids we are teaching are friends of the kids who hang around us all the time. We are soon teaching a kid’s dad because he isn't a member but idk when that will start. I am doing good though! I don't know if I have gained or lost weight....I sweat so much I am hoping I am losing it so I can come home with a 6 pack haha! But ya just the typical struggles with the language but it is coming!!! I just need to study Vocab!!!!

My package from you is at the office. They seem to get there but some Zone leaders take packages...... we will see if I get it cuz they brought other packages but not mine this past time.... one of my friends that came to Tonga with me works near the office so he sees it if I get stuff.

I’m in Tuanekivale now at a member’s house. This village is the one next to where Vika grew up! But there are one to two transfers before Vika gets here so I don't know where I will be then. Let me know about when she’s coming. Tell her she can email me like the week before she comes so we can figure it out! Love you!!! Ryker is getting huge! won’t even remember who I am! Neither will my other niece or nephew ;) haha!  Anyways love you all! :)

Elder Mani

More stuff you can send:

 more ties
 another memory card
 another journal
 a 6 inch ruler
 anything :) haha

p.s. One of the scripture cases needs to be longer. The Tongan BOM is long ha sorry.... it is fine if you can’t find one... it’s like 1.5 inches longer since the language is more complicated so instead of fatter they made it longer to fit it all.

(Handsome missionary!!)

The kids who hang around us when we go around.

Volleyball!

I Had Dog...Tastes Like Beef!

Tu'anekivale is an awesome area! We are doing some good work here! :) I still have the same companion, Elder Finau and we have been busy teaching lessons. We have 4 baptisms lined up. It just depends on their parents' opinions ha! 

Last P day I played Rugby for my first actual time and scored a couple times haha! We only play touch though so I shouldn’t get too hurt ;) Our water tank is almost out of water but our shower still works and everything so we will see how that goes haha. We haven’t had a good rain here in a couple weeks and the tank is somewhat new compared to the house. 

On Wednesday we had a baptism, an 8 year old named Folauhola. He is really shy but seems to like me cuz he wanted me to baptize him and only really talks to me haha! After baptisms here they always have dances called Hulohulas. It was pretty cool. We didn’t stay for a lot of it cuz we had another lesson to teach but they have music going ‘til 12 sometimes haha! Thursday we got fed ice cream with half of a loaf of bread as a cone haha! It is good ice cream! :) Friday we ate dog! :) tastes just like beef so it was pretty good.  :) 

It’s getting so hot here though. I wish we had air conditioning... haha and it’s only getting hotter..... already gets up to 90 and the hot months are December and January so we will see how it gets haha! I love it here! We’re doing some good work and time is flying. :)  Love you all and see you sooner than it might seem!  Oh ya, they came back from the main island and still no package.   L The other guys are getting theirs so I don’t know what the deal is!

Folauhola, the kid I baptized on Wednesday.

The dance they had for him after called a Hulohula.

The kids we taught at a school here.

I had dog. :)  It tastes like eef.  (B is still broken on his keyboard.)

Me with Elder Lao from Salt Lake. He came in with me. 

a few uttons dont work on this computer (haha)

(Unedited excerpt- A few uttons dont work on this computer (guess   uttons) haha um the aptism didnt happen ecause the girls family got mad ecause the LDS church had a dance during their two week funeral and they arent supposed to do anything during funerals...funny to read!)

A few buttons don’t work on this computer. We have to use a member’s computer because the chapel doesn’t have one so I will try and write as much as possible. haha The baptism didn’t happen because the girl’s family was upset because the LDS church had a dance during their two week funeral and they aren’t supposed to do anything during funerals. And it was her grandpa that died so hopefully next week. O ya we got transferred. haha We are just in the village before my other ones. It is called Tu'anekivale. There is a lot of work here. We have already taught 7 lessons in 4 days and in my 4 weeks in Koloa we only got one lesson taught so it is a big change. I never knew how much happiness handing out Book of Mormon's brings until we handed out two here. We have two baptisms this week I think, one next week and one in December. Everyone got transferred haha I am with my same trainer though. Everyone stayed together. They just moved. 

So this week we gave a girl who had been SUPER sick and in bed for at least a week a blessing. They didn’t even uncover her face as we gave her a blessing she was so sick. As we gave her the blessing, I started to feel weak and tired, and right after we walked out of the room my companion said the exact same thing.... It was amazing how some of our strength and good health transferred into her body and the next day she was up and walking around in her house... amazing how God works.

To answer Mom’s questions: They don’t play the piano here. Everything is acapela. If they have a piano, the way they sing it doesn’t match how they play so they don’t play. haha Some baptismal fonts are outside and some inside. The font in Koloa and here are inside but the one in Ha'alaufuli is outside and the one in Tokomololo was outside also. The primary songs are the same here. They even sing some in English as well as in Tongan. It is cool. (My exclamation point doesn’t work either.) haha The past two weeks have been Primary Programs here and I forgot how much fun they were. haha The hymns here are a lot of the same but they have Tongan hymns to in their hymn book. It seems like when they sing it is a contest between EVERYONE who can sing the loudest. It doesn’t matter if they are on key haha so sometimes it just sounds like yelling. The Methodists sing for most of their church so they have a lot of practice and sound good here in Tu'anekivale.

There is this little kid here named Funaki who is a hilarious little kid and always runs over when he sees me. I love it when people make chocolate cake here haha and I never liked it at home. They eat a lot of canned spaghetti and I don’t like it cuz it’s always cold. haha The grilled sandwiches they make here are just filled with spaghetti. haha  I have cooked 6 pigs by myself. They take about 2 hours so my arms get tired but it’s a good workout. haha :) I don’t know how much weight I have gained. I don’t think that much cuz I sweat so much. haha It gets hottttt but I deal with it. haha I try and drink as much as I can but I don’t like it when they make this warm drink so I rarely drink any or I would just be drinking my own sweat haha grosssss!! haha I am loving it. Just the struggles with the language are the only things I don’t like now.

Everyone calls me something different, some Mani, so Simani, some Hansi, some Hansimani, some Huntsiman haha just depends. I just tell them it is Huntsman or Mani cuz it is the easiest.  Crazy that I have been out for 3 months Wednesday!! Oh and I ate turtle this week! It was pretty good!  Tastes just like chicken. I could eat a lot. haha Anyways love you all. Thank you for the emails.

"Now is the time." -President Thomas S. Monson

"The blessing (talking about being set apart as a missionary) is conditional upon faithful performance." -President Spencer W. Kimball

Send a Christmas package a.s.a.p. because it might get to the office but I won’t get it for a while after that.  I still haven’t gotten any mail or your packages.

Some things on my list to send with Vika:

backpack

Snickers

hi-chews

sweats (thin)

long sleeve shirts (2 thin)

scripture case for my English scriptures

duct tape haha

I will send the rest another time.

(p.s. Mom fill in that missing letter throughout the letter haha love you tons.)

my study materials every day like 20 different pieces haha

Our new church.

The road my village is on.

Funaki hahaha his favorite pose!

My scripture case I made for my english scriptures. haha 

me and my comp

My first house.