I Ate Horse!

Hey sorry I haven’t been able to get to net til now. We weren’t able to on Monday. We went to the next village over so we asked bishop to do it today. The work here is pretty much the same. We taught one kid and had him set for baptism but his dad won’t let us meet with him anymore so back again to square one! I am thinking about just sending my memory card with Haleki, but since I won’t get any of your packages til probably September, I might go to town to get just a 2GB card for cheap, that is if Pres. will let me. Doubt it though!

We didn’t really eat anything weird this week but I had horse for the first time! It was way good! Not better than beef and especially not better than dog!! We are having dog tonight at our neighbor’s house then they said they will cook one for Haleki right before he goes home so I think next Wednesday! Can’t wait haha.

So Haleki was part of this performing group where they do all the Polynesian dances and stuff back at home and they do this Maori thing called Poi balls. His friend’s mom sent him some so he taught me how to do it and gave them to me! So I have been practicing that in my down time haha. I will have to show you when I get home! Or if he takes the memo home you can see it on there. He videoed me practicing last week. I have been trying to take more pictures recently, with members and just of me in general cuz I don’t take that many haha.

For exercise I do the one thing that Brian told me not to do, pushups..... But my shoulders have been getting stronger! Only popped out once since January! But I am probably in the best upper body shape of my life! haha I do 80+ pushups a night, I still can’t do too many cuz of my bad shoulder but I get better and better every week! Then I do whatever abs I can think of until my abs hurt.  I use the band to strengthen my arms/shoulders. You would be impressed. I haven’t gotten fatter here! My arms/ chest are actually getting muscle and definition haha.  It’s just my stomach that’s the struggle, the pooch never wants to leave I guess hahaha. Sometimes we run at night, but we haven’t really lately. We usually ran 2+ miles a night.

I haven’t seen the Liahona yet so haven’t seen the article about Tonga. I don’t care about you selling the Trikke. I was getting too big for it anyways haha but I BOUGHT THAT WITH MY MONEY ;) haha The spiritual moments this week were just the times we got to teach cuz it had been a couple weeks not teaching an investigator! BTW mom Haleki's ward has sacrament at 11:00 and it’s on the 24^th just so you know.  And his Poly friends might cook some Poly food so hit it up haha. We gotta do an underground oven for mine!!!!!!! I will even do it all :) haha Anywho, love you guys! Take care!

Love you,

Elder Mani  (I finally got that on my name tag now!!!!)

Hump Day!

Well hellllooooooooooooooo!!!

Sorry I didn't write my big letter last week.  The internet was down so we didn't get to do anything with it! But I am here now!

The work is still slow. We had one girl set up for baptism but it’s kind of a long story.... so we baptized two girls in this family we have been teaching. The mom, Toa, is a member but goes to another church cuz her husband (who passed away last year) was a member of the Church of Tonga. So we baptized Paea and Siu in June and planned on baptizing the 16 year old two weeks later. But during ward conference when we were confirming the other two, one member of the Church of Tonga was visiting cuz everyone comes to the ward conferences here, member or not. They took a picture of us when we were confirming them and sent it to Toa's mother, in New Zealand, who is also a member of the Church of Tonga. So she called her daughter, Toa, and told her not to let us baptize any more of her children. Soooooooo we haven't been able to work with the 16 year old, Salome. That's a big thing here. Tradition and following what your family has always done. The story is a little longer but it’s kind of hard to explain fully haha but ya so now we have no more investigators! The work is getting slower and slower..... and it’s been hard cuz everyone knows that my comp is almost done with his mission so they think we don't need to work anymore so we haven't been getting help from them.... And that's the only way that really works here is through members, or at least from my experience. We have had no luck knocking doors and I am pretty sure we have knocked them all and talked to everyone!

So we are just struggling right now finding anything to do! Lottttsss of studying.... but my language still is a huge struggle..... people don't really talk to me cuz they know it’s not the best so they just talk to my companion.  It’s a struggle but I am just hoping that I get better next transfer! Still working at it every day though! And reading the BOM and praying so it’s just a matter of time I guess! Sorry no pictures again it’s not working.... but we hope to find more work this week! We should have a new investigator this week! President Neiufi promised us we would haha!  He is our next door neighbor and the coolest family I have met here! He and his wife are like my mission parents. We go over there and cook our own food even haha! I mostly just cook eggs or ramen but they just let me do whatever. I eat 7 eggs with 5 pieces of toast and still don't get full!!

Anyways that's pretty much what has been going on here! I celebrated hump day with a tie burning, eating actual pizza from town, and hanging out with Elder Grant and Naufahu who came in with me and work in the next village over. We just chilled in the house though haha and talked.  It was good though. Love you all!

Elder Huntsman

Fourth of July Fun

Sorry again no pictures! It still isn't reading the card!! But this week was awesome!!!!!!! Elder Haleki and I were the first people in the world to celebrate July 4th in 2014! We stayed up, just til midnight, to celebrate!! It was awesome haha! He made an American flag when he was in Niua so we put that up, sang songs about 'Merica, and ate cookies before heading to bed haha! I love the 4th of July!! Our neighbors have fireworks so we shot some off on the 4th and the 5th!!! It was awesome1 All the kids at our neighbors house were having a blast!

One of the kids who stays with them sometimes is a student at Liahona but he is from Papua New Guinea. He stays in the dorms there but on school breaks they go out to like "adoptive" families so that they don't feel too far away from home! His name is Tinirau and he is really funny. We always talk about Papua and his life and stuff when he comes over. Even he was excited when we were shooting off the fireworks, mortars and everything! haha Last night the Liahona rugby team came and ate over at our neighbor’s house because the kid my age there is the team captain. So they all ended their fast together last night as a team with so much food!

This area is weird to me cuz they don't expect us to do that much anyways or have that much work! They understand that it’s hard, maybe cuz other missionaries slacked off before but they just love that we had 3 baptisms our first transfer! We have another one planned for this week so we are hoping that that still goes through!

The language is still a struggle but I have realized something on my mission.... I am the most average person I know! There is nothing I am "great" at and nothing I really "suck" at! I am just average... so I have accepted that I will never be the best at something, but if I don't try, there is no way I will ever be anywhere with that thing! So I just do my best and the Lord will bless me with the rest that I NEED not what I WANT....

It was really weird not being home for the 4th, but hey you guys better save me fireworks next year!!!! We will light some off when I get home next July 11th!!!! haha I need to do it. I love fireworks!!!  I wish I had real American burgers here. The ones here taste like meatloaf.  We didn't eat anything exciting this week but I never get full anymore.... I could eat for DAYS!!!!!  You thought I could eat like crazy at home....... not even close haha!  Good thing I work out some or I would be FAAAAAAAAAAATTTT!!!

Love you all!

Elder Mani

Slow Week

We had transfers but I get to stay here with Haleki. This week was really slow... all of our lessons flaked on us or hid from us so we had to find random stuff to do! We SUPER cleaned our house and we just did random things to help us be productive! It’s hard living in such a small village and not being able to do much or go anywhere! We have been searching hard but haven't found any new investigators recently so these next 6 weeks I am hoping that someone pops up! We need work!! Haha but one girl we almost have ready to be baptized. It’s just hard for people here to see that church isn't a social thing it’s an eternal thing. So hopefully when we teach her later today we can get her committed to either this week or next!!

We try to find service to do. We helped one lady a couple weeks ago cut some trees in the bush and take them and put them in her yard for a clothes line and bishop wasn't happy that she asked us and people would like stare and tell us to stop.  I don’t know why they won’t let us serve them.

Sorry my letters are always so lame! I am just a lame person haha ;) just kidding! It’s just really slowwwww! But anyways hope all is well as usual at home! Love you all!  Sorry I can’t get pictures to load.  :(

Elder Mani

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