Merry Christmas!

This week was good especially being able to talk with you guys! I miss snow! I always have liked the cold just not the bad roads! It sucks cuz it’s always so hot here and you can’t really take anything off haha but when it is cold you can always put more on!

So we taught a few lessons this week and they went pretty well! I taught another lesson to the Peace Corp lady in English so it was pretty much me talking the WHOLE time. My comp just gave me scriptures to share haha but hey now he knows how it feels when I teach in Tongan! I gave her my BOM in English to read because we couldn't find an English one to give her on this island ha but then after we returned home after Church I found one that an Elder had left!! So that was great. I hope to switch her today so that she can have this one and be able to keep it (plus get mine back haha)

Yesterday morning I felt an Earthquake! Or at least a tremor haha! It was cool! For Christmas we went with the family that was our fafanga and played ping pong at the peach and drank otai. It was a great day! The family that lives across the street from me had a HUGE family reunion so we went there a couple times last week to eat and they gave me and my companion shirts! Palefau Family Reunion 2013 haha! Part of the family now I guess! 

It was weird no one really showed up to church til 20 after 9 which wasn't good because our investigator showed up before 3/4 of our congregation here ha so hopefully that doesn't happen again! Nothing really to complain about. Everything here is going good! Me and my companion get along great because he can be just as immature as me haha but he's just like an older brother! So I am going to try and send you guys pictures tonight! It’s not working again but I will try my other adapter! Love you all and hope you had a Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year's!

Ofa Lahi Atu,  Elder Huntsman

Milk and cookies.

Bees on our roof.

Elder Neiufi and Elder Huntsman

Me and Neiufi

Doing my laundry!

Mom & Dad were happy to see
this face on Christmas Eve!

No Christmas Package

12/23/13

So this week was another typical week. We taught a girl that has been taught a lot and believes the BOM is true and everything but doesn’t believe Jesus was more than a Prophet so that is her stumbling block and we haven’t taught her since but I have found some scriptures to share with here so hopefully we teach her again soon. Other than that not much happened this week! We haven’t taught the Peace Corps lady again but hopefully we will see her around so that we can try and teach her again. This computer is the same I have been using so no pictures again this week sorry! But hey you get to Skype me so you will be fine!

The weather has been pretty rainy this week so I just pretend it’s like snow in Idaho! Just not as cold... haha but no I am not getting the Christmas package..... Next year send it EARLY!!  haha It gets to the office but if I am not in Tonga it just sits there til they get enough stuff to send all together! So next couple months maybe haha but it’s all good :) Vika comes next month maybe she can pick it up! Tell her to email me sometime with some info about her plans.

How is everything at home? Christmas is DEFINATELY going to be different than any other that I have had but hey it’s worth it right?  I will be fed well! I have already talked a lot with the family who is feeding us on Christmas and they plan to have some good food so hey that will be my present this year. Sorry not a lot to write here. I didn’t do much this week! We are still just trying to find a new investigator or as they call them here "Laumalie" which means spirit. So just trying to find another spirit to bring back to our Heavenly Father! Can’t wait to Skype! Don’t worry my Tongan still sucks so don’t expect me to say much!!! haha Love you all see you soon! Oh and I finished the BOM for the second time and have read D&C once!  Now to read in Tongan!

Elder Huntsman

Cow Stomach and Cow Heart

Sorry pictures aren’t working again! The files just don’t load correctly! I don’t know what is going to happen with Christmas yet! I will try and figure it out this week! I got my mail this week! The second package hasn’t come yet though.  

So this week went by fast and not a lot happened! Plus I have a bad memory so that doesn’t help at all.... but I ate cow stomach and cow heart this week!! And looking through the lady whose house we live behind’s daughter’s mission pictures I found Whitney Wilson! Small world! I have found someone who knows her, knows Zack Peterson, Chasen Marler's mission companion, a Cox's Honey tub! Small small world haha! Ask Whitney (if you see her ever) if she remembers Hermana Tu'itavake! Anyways it rained a lot this week so it’s really humid!! I have started lifting weights a little, not too much cuz of my bad shoulders, but the food here has like natural steroids so I might come back huge! ;) haha kidding! We had a zone meeting so after that we went to town just so that my companion could see if they could replace his watch battery which they couldn’t so we went back to our area! We didn’t teach the Peace Corps lady this week but will try next week! Gotta find new slippers since mine broke. Anyways sorry this letter is small…not much happens! Love you all! Oh and to answer Mom, my new comp is from Tonga, he’s 23, and he played rugby at Liahona.

 Elder Huntsman

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...