Adventures in Paradise 1

Ward & Susan at Mission Home

Ward Susan & Elder & Sister Teriipaia - Couple we replaced

Nand Family.  Recent converts

Mission Home back yard looking towards the ocean

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Wednesday, 13 October 2010

WARD AND SUSANS EXCELLENT ADVENTURES IN PARADISE CONTINUED

Hello, everyone! We were told that the time would pass quickly and boy is that true! Can you believe that we have been here six months, already? Oh, wait, it only seems like six months!

We are adjusting to life here and it’s  little challenges. We had been invited to dinner by a sweet Indian family from Fiji. When we first arrived, the Elders gave us a whirlwind  tour of the island. Well, we were sightseeing more than paying attention to exact locations and we did not realize at the time that there are no street addresses. Sooooo, when it came time to go to dinner, we had no idea where to go or how to get there. It was getting later and later and we were starting to panic. Finally, we located the Elders and they gave us directions. Go down the main highway(slight exaggeration) until you come to a green fence (well, everything here is green!) and turn left when you see the cement wall. Go up the road (again a BIG exaggeration) and turn left again at the banana tree and keep going until you see the big  boat on cinder blocks. The house is next to that boat. Whew! We were forty-five minutes late by American standards and right on time for island standards. The family was very sweet and we had chicken curry for dinner. After dinner, Ward gave a lesson on the Priesthood.  He did an excellent job! One of our biggest challenges is eating the food that is served after seeing where is it prepared. This could be the best diet ever!!!

We met with a branch mission leader who is also an emcee for several of the island shows. He invited us and the Elders to the show that night and it was spectacular! We drove up on the mountain to a cultural village, which was the original site of one of the island tribes. The view of the beach at sunset was beautiful. They had a buffet dinner and floor show and this is the one we will take you to when you visit.

Sunday, we had dinner at a member’s home. She is a nurse, so we thought that we would get lucky with a little tidier house. We were wrong! I am learning to ask,”so tell me, how do you prepare your lovely chicken, fish, pork, pet, or whatever?” By asking, I hope to have some idea of what the  dinner actually is and how long it was cooked! Pretty smart, huh?Well. it was chicken and onions and it was hot and right out of the pan, so that was pretty good. But the mother did not sit down with the rest of us and when I asked her why she wasn’t going to eat with us, she said that it was tradition that the hostess would stand and fan away the flies while the rest of us ate. Boy did that whet our appetities!  Ward wondered silently why they just didn’t close the doors! It’s hard not to appreciate people for their kindness, but we find that this is about the most challenging part of the mission.

Saturday is the open air market day and it’s a lot of fun. Everyone comes to town to eat and shop and when the members see our badges, its almost impossible to pay for any food. Whoever visits will enjoy this a lot.  You can buy produce, clothing, ice cream, pearls, well, almost anything you need and it’s a party atmosphere. We are trying to get to know people who come there so that we can approach them later about the Gospel.We met one man in town earlier that week and took him some cookies to say thank you and he and his pregnant wife had a booth there. We will be working on him. While we were at the market, we noticed that there was a little lost chick. The adults could see the mother and the rest of her babies a ways off, but the chick could not see the mother and was running all around chirping. Grown men were trying to herd that baby back to it’s mother. Later in Monday’s Family Home Evening, I drew a picture of a baby chick and told the story. I asked the children how they would feel if they lost their mother and I asked the mothers how they would feel to lose one of their children. We read the scripture about Christ being the Great Gatherer and how he will gather us in like a hen gathers her chicks. I told them that Chirst does not want to lose any of his children and often, just like at the market, where other people were helping the baby to find it’s way back, the missionaries are doing the same thing is helping people return to Christ. It was a good night……………well, there was the part about dinner, but I will leave that to your imagination. There were two investigator families there with their children. The children here are beautiful.

We celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary on Monday and that time really has gone by fast. We want you to know that we are happy and healthy and glad to be serving. Ward is going to be singing in the district choir and we are finding people to teach. We have a lesson tonight and an appointment tomorrow evening with a sixteen year old girl who wants to be baptized. We are looking towards working with her parents as well.

We would love to have visitors and would like to guarantee that the Hotel Belliston is one of the finest on the island. We have it on good authority that the kitchen is clean and the management is very tidy. There is beach-front property and the caretakers are careful to rake the beach for a smooth walk to the water. Because we are surrounded by a reef, there are no crashing waves on the shore, so we do not concern ourselves with guests being washed out to sea. The water is crystal clear and on a clear day you can see all the way to……..oh, well, I guess that you can see all the way to the ocean.  Please book your reservations now to avoid the rush. 

PLEASE come and see us!!! Ward and Susan