Two Baptisms- No Pictures

So this week has been good! We had two baptisms! They are two sisters named Paea and Sui!  Sui's full name is 15 names!!!!!!!!!! I could not memorize that so Elder Haleki held her record in front of my face so that I could read it while I was performing the baptism! It was crazy! But it was good! We are baptizing their older sister either this week or next and hopefully the same with the kid! So the kid who was smoking wouldn’t come to any of our lessons or talk to us so we saw him at the Ward Conference yesterday. He says he is just shy because it is so hard for him to stop and he is scared or something. So we gave him a blessing yesterday and we are going to fast for him tonight til tomorrow night. It should be good! I am just hoping he has that true desire! The work has been good! This week went soooo fast so I honestly can’t remember much! I have just been studying hard with the language but stilllll struggling! O well! Hope all is well at home! All is well here! Love you tons!

Elder Huntsman

Some stuff you can send:  elastic work out cord is something I need! Mine is breaking.... and I actually work out! Haha and some recipe cards so that I can do flash cards with vocab words!! I think that will help a lot cuz I struggle with memorizing words!!!! But ya that’s all I can think of that I need that I can’t find!  Mainly cuz I am not in town anymore or I could find the cards. And some more envelopes. I ran out a while ago and haven’t written any since December!

Musical Fireside

Sorry mom, pictures aren't working today. I don't know why! Happy father’s day!!!!!!!!!!! I didn't even know when it was cuz here they celebrate the week after mother’s day...... but thanks for everything Dad!

This week was a slower week cuz most our lessons fell through! One night we didn't have our fafanga so we went and got some noodles like ramen then went to our neighbor’s house to cook them and I added some mesquite seasoning she had to some canned corned beef and cooked it up! Then mixed it with the noodles and it was BOMB! Still doing my cooking in Tonga! ;) haha I wish we got to cook more....

Our 5-6 baptisms we had planned........maybe just one is getting baptized this week so that's no good but we are working hard with them! The only big thing that happened was the Fireside! Yesterday we had a Musical Fireside that we put together to get our members to invite people.  Our chapel was Packed! More people who were invited came than the actual members so it was good! It’s easier for me to talk to the kids cuz they don't think I am an idiot if I don't understand like the 16+ people do haha but at the Fireside I gave my longest malanga or talk and it went good! And it was all just me thinking and talking about a topic I had never tried explaining to people so last night I REALLY felt the spirit! It was awesome!

Great Harmony & Beautiful Testimony

Warning to Dog Lovers: This Is Tongan Life!

So this week was just somewhat of a typical week, teaching a few lessons a day and getting one kid ready for his baptism Saturday. We were able to help Sosefo 'Ofahulu become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and have the opportunity to return to our Father's Kingdom. This other kid we are working with named Tani is having a hard time with smoking so that has been something that we are struggling with is helping him to stop by this Saturday so that we can baptize him. We have 5 people committed to be baptized on the 21st so we hopefully can help them to progress and be ready for that day. We taught a man named Moni yesterday and he is from Salt Lake but got deported. We get to teach him in English so that has given me more confidence haha. He is really interested in the Plan of Salvation so that has been something we had to focus on last night. It went good and he seemed to understand, even volunteering to take us to lunch someday this week! That's really it for workwise I guess haha.

To answer your questions…we haven't found any new investigators but our ones right now seem to be moving along. The less actives are hard cuz they seem committed one week but not the next so it’s a struggle to get them to understand it is an all the time thing, not just once a month or something. It was really cool seeing the kid we baptized bare his testimony at only 9 years old but still do good! It was a big Spirit moment for me. So I am not really knowing what I am studying that much in the BOM cuz I am trying to read it just in Tongan now. But I just read about Nephi breaking his bow then making a new one to find the food and follow where his father was told to find the food. Just teaches diligence and following what the Lord wants for us. The average day for us is full of just walking around finding people and talking with members. From 6:30 to 11 is studying, 12 lunch, 1-3 we usually have a lesson with Tani or someone, 4-6 we are visiting members, 6-7 we teach a lesson, 7 dinner, 8 sharing spiritual thoughts with members then 9 o'clock being back home! Today we are just netting than playing basketball with a flat basketball cuz we can’t find a pump!  :(   I try and exercise usually at night. Breakfast we don't get. Sometimes we eat just once a day. We just drink filtered water from our neighbors when we are at home. The sickness is all gone Mom so don't worry haha!

This is our next door neighbor Clifton.
He is the drum major for Liahona's marching band. 

They all did a huge march through town and stuff for the opening of Parliament this past week!

Our baptism this week. 

We had dog again!!! Soooo good!!!

I didn't kill it! We were driving back from our baptism and 

we saw the guy who was gonna be feeding us that day walking down the 

street dragging it behind him! He had someone shoot it for him.

The dog once it is cooked! Looks just like beef but tastes even better!   :)

One day we saw Oreos at the store here so I had to get them with some milk!!! 

It tasted so good even though the milk here is gross haha.

Pizza and chocolate chip cookies we had for our fafanga one night! It was the sweet pizza thing again and dark chocolate in the cookies but I still ate it haha.

Blow Holes, Investigators & Dengue Fever

Sorry this week’s letter isn't going to be as fun filled with pictures. My whole idea for a picture a day didn't work out hahaha. But the blowholes were pretty cool! Not as cool as I thought but it wasn't bad. Nothing else to do out here anyways! Today we are just staying at the church. We found a basketball but it’s flat so no playing against each other… just shooting around!

To answer your questions…The new area is great! We have 5 baptisms planned but we are probably pushing them back to the 21st because that is when our Ward Conference is and here Ward Conference is a BIG thing! They have so many things planned for it! But the work is going good. We have 10 investigators/inactives we are working strongly with and a couple more we have just taught once. My comp is good! It’s just me getting over stupid little things like noises he makes when he eats and what not but that's with everyone hahaha. He goes home on August 9th-ish so his homecoming would be either the 10th or the 17th. The ward here is somewhat small but we are having good turnouts this month because of all the Ward Conference preparations. My memory card has 5GB of the 16 left so if you could send one it would be good just in case! I can’t think of anything else I need! This area is good with everything. If I need something the members will give me it! But ya the work is good! I have never had this many investigators at one time before! I have never had more than two at one time before haha!

So Mom, read Alma 26. It’s the best chapter in the Book of Mormon about missionary work! I need to read it again. It has been a while but I love that chapter! It has been the biggest factor of keeping me strong and willing to faithfully serve an honorable mission! Sorry I am so boring though.  I promise to start writing in my journal so I can remember!!! I need to. But that's good that all is well at home! Keep Karissa out of trouble! Love you tons!

Elder Huntsman

(Still having pain in your leg? No but I just got the disease again..... My arms have the spots and I have had a headache behind my eyes since Wednesday or Thursday.... and my body aches....... so yeaaaaaaah. I might call the mission nurse tomorrow.)

The blowholes! We didn't get to see any massive ones.
We were too early in the day.

My comp climbs coconut trees just for fun.
I still haven't tried it haha!

My disgusting feet..... the reason I am getting a pedicure
when I get home no matter how femmy I might feel.

Finally...News From Tonga!!! New Area: Vaotu'u

This is when I had the worst of the Dengi Fever! It sucked so bad!
Especially the not being able to shower cuz I STUNKKKKK!!

What was the worst part: nausea, vomiting, fever, painful joints or itchy rash?
It allllllllllll sucked..... depending on the time. Sometimes the itch was worse but the pain was horrible.... not so much the sick part though cuz that wasn't that bad.....just one or two days maybe.

This was my district back in Popua. We were all white kids from America and two Tongan Sisters haha but it was awesome! I got really close to the Elders in that district. Elder Harris who I came in with was in it so we were alllllllways talking about times in the MTC haha!

This pizza place is wayyyy good!!
Surprised me for Tonga how good their pizza places are haha!

Elder Haleki with a guy that came up (possibly drunk) and started dancing around to the music coming from the pizza place we were eating at!

Ok you need to look closely at the picture..... we were watching a movie about Joseph Smith and then it shows Peter, James, and John restoring the priesthood and it did a close up on Peter, or as I see him WILL FERRELL!!!! You cannot tell me this does not look like Will Ferrell! Surprised us seeing him in a church movie!! haha JK

Can you believe this new change in uniform for all the missionaries???

Haha just kidding! That would be weird! The sisters before us left these in our house so we tried on the sisters uniform haha!  It fit us pretty good not going to lie!!!! haha But I wouldn't like wearing that all the time!! So glad I get to wear my white shirt and tie haha!

I shaved my legs.......................................................... The one thing I made fun of
 people in the MTC for doing and promised myself I would never do!

....but it feeeeelllsss good hahaha! I just trimmed them with the back end of my razor but they still feel somewhat smooth! it was something that took me a looootttttt of thinking to do haha but my comp convinced me that it isn't gay in Tonga sooooo I did it.... haha NO HOMO.

We started teaching one kid this week named Jordan, or we just call him Tani. He is 16 and his dad was LDS and died. His mom remarried to a man from another religion so she hasn't been back but wants her sons to be in the church their dad was so his older brother got baptized last month and we are planning to hopefully baptize him next week if he is able to stop smoking and drinking... So this picture is kinda pointless but I found this candle in the road and brought it home to light it.... just for fun haha still a little pyro I know.....

Tongan Caviar!!!!!

...or just papaya seeds haha! This new area (Vaotu'u) is all in the bush. That's what the name means, Vao means bush and Tu'u means to stand or be in. I am still not a fan of mangoes, papaya, coconut, lu(the meat cooked in taro leaves) but I try hard to eat them haha especially at members houses! This is studying language one night before bed! It seems like all I study now is Tongan haha. It's slowly improving and I mean SLLLLOOOWWWWWLLLLYYYYY improving haha but it will get there!

"Big" gecko that Elder Montenegro found in our house! I still don't like touching slimy things or letting things crawl on me so ya I didn't hold it.... haha.

So this was our first day in Vaotu'u! We moved into our house at like 3-4 o'clock that night and found out we are staying next to our Stake President.... gotta be on good behavior right??? haha as always I promise :)  But his wife made us dinner. It was so good! It was pasta with sauce and chicken, garlic bread, grilled fish, and taro so it was way good! The sisters who stayed here before us had a birthday or something before they left haha.  Funny thing is with the sign they spelled HAPPY BIRTHTAY not birthday haha! Them FOB Tongans haha.    (What's FOB?  It's an acronym for Fresh Off the Boat.... like I speak FOB Tongan haha. People here speak FOB English mostly cuz they don't have much experience.)

The next day we had a district meeting and met our new district.. Sisters alllllways ask the palangis if they have a camera then take like 30 pictures so here is one with Sister 'Asa haha! Our district is 4 Elders and 4 Sisters, and we are the only Palangis haha. Nothing new for me! We have a lot of time cuz our area is so small So I have started studying language like CRAZY!!!!!! Still not getting better but I won't give up I promise haha ;)

So Wednesday we went to our fafanga and it turns out it was my old comp, Elder Neiufi's family! The made pizzas but it was like a cinnamon dough with weird stuff on it but I ate it! Mom I might come home eating veggie pizza with you!!! Gross huh!?!? haha just kidding but I have gotten a lot more of a variety of foods in me since I have been out so not ruling out anything!

This bird Haleki caught in our window in Fasi by throwing orange peels out to it.

Us eating lunch one day with the sisters in thehome of the first counselor to the Mission President.

New Area

This is the one Nativity mom. I don't know how much it is or how well it would travel in my suitcase haha but I hopefully can get my hands on the other coconut one!!!!

Anyways this week was good... just getting to know our new area! The people are really nice and ALWAYS make sure we are fed good! I really like working here and I think we will be able to help God's Kingdom grow here in Vaotu'u! The struggle here is that people get offended and just stop coming to church so we have started working on reactivation with the members... Sunday they do the 2 class periods first and then sacrament so when we saw not too many members there we went out to all the members houses we knew and started knocking doors and inviting them to come! Got 3 families out by doing that so that might be something we have to do every week haha but I am loving it here! So there are these things called Blowholes just in the next village over so we are going to go see those today for P-day.  I will explain them next week with pictures! Love you all tons!!!

Elder Huntsman

Two Weeks...No Emails!

After two p-days came and went with no email, we received this brief one late the other night.  

Sorry, President sent out a mass thing saying no more touching computers but now it's just the church computers so if I can't find computers I am sorry... I am at a member's house right now and Mother's Day will just be a phone call! Sorry I haven't sent much lately but this whole situation is messed up so I will explain when I have more time! I will try and net next week love you tons!!!