Miracles

Hi mom and dad! We had a really great week, President came yesterday! We literally had everything go perfectly and had like almost 80 people at church! WHAAAAT! Pres cried and it was so awesome. We also got to give Teiaaba the Melchizedek priesthood, he's the man. Sion didn't get to come, Pres brought AP's instead. So it was Maisey and Price. It was the best day of my mission so far. We also did baptismal interviews in the afternoon, should have 3 or 4 next Saturday. So exciting!

We hired a car, and we told the people in Nikumanu that they needed to be ready by 7:30, because we had to pick them up and get them back up to Muribenua before 8:00 or so, so we could go wait at the airport for Pres to get there. The car came and picked up me and Farley at 7:00, we got down to the south at around 7:30 on time, and there were just heaps of people ready to come. We started picking up from the house furthest south, and then as you looked up the road north you could see there were little groups of people standing next to the road just waiting for the car to drive by allll the way through the village. By the time we finished Nikumanu the car was overflowing and we had probably 50 people in the bed of this truck. It was sick. We dropped them off at the North and got right back in the car to hit the airport at like 8:40. As we pulled up to the airport, the plane had already landed, but its propellers were still spinning, that's how perfectly we timed our arrival. Pres and the APs got out, we got in the car, drove to the house, prepared the sacrament stuff, and started probably within 10 minutes of when Pres showed up. He was SO happy that things went according to schedule! So were we, literally a miracle.

(We asked him how in the world they got that many people to church!) It was so fun! We just asked the people that we had and they brought their families. It was lots of little kids, but it was good because there were lots of parents and families and it was all together going well. During the week we just said, looks there's going to be a car and we're going to have church up North, not here, so you need to all be ready by 7 and they all were! We'll see if it helps and can carry over to next week. We rocketed our outie into the territory of Maiana, which got opened about a year and a half ago, and has about 70/80 coming. Its considered the best outie for work, and is Elder Loe's homeland. We'll see if we can't take things to a whole new level.

Pres delivered a sermon and it was SO awesome. People were like weeping, Maisey bore his testimony, and he's leaving with Sion in just 4 weeks so he was super emotional. Pres also brought this guy Tongoi, who was the seminary teacher at Moroni High, and he delivered a super, super strong address on conversion and facing trials. He's really famous in the church here in Kiribati, and hes actually Pres's 2nd counselor in the mission presidency (the other one is Sharman). It was awesome. A lot of members who were less active were there, probably 15 or 20 members in various stages of activity. We had 30 real investigators, based on age and such. The rest were little kids from the different families. A really solid break down, we had probably 10/11 grown men who could hold the
priesthood. Pres wants us to have 3 more Melch. candidates by the next time he comes, so we'll work on that.

It was the cooolest thing i have ever done. We worked so hard to get the little chapel ready. Farley and Teiaaba and Tanentoa and I brought coral gravel in rice bags on our backs from the beach to the house to make a nice clean floor for the building. The coral stuff is called the atama, and its basically the floor of any camp. When its old, it turns kind of gray and dirty, but when you just get it right off the beach its white, with cool coral colors on it, like blue or orange or pink. The house looked really cool because the atama was new, and it was shiny and nice looking.The ladies weaved mats out of palm leaves to go on top, then we had the woven kie mats over that, and it seriously looked so crisp. Then it was just literally overflowing! There was like 2 feet of open space between the sacrament table and the heaps of people sitting on the ground for sacrament. I got to bless, and since we only had 1 tray for cups, we obviously were going to need to refill it at some point because it only holds 36. There's always the game of trying to not waste time filling up too many extra cups, but you don't want to not have enough and then have to refill again, so its tough. I just randomly guessed how many we would need, and i was SHOCKED when Tanentoa brought it back up after he finished with the rest of the congregation and there were exactly two cups left, one for him and one for me. Literally, miracles on miracles yesterday, everything went so perfectly.

I think this mission will lead to lots of good talks someday. I'm so happy i got to come here. I feel like Wilford Woodruff or Lorenzo Snow. We frequently talk about how crazy it is that Pres let us come out here to begin with hahaha! He is the MAN. I love President Weir.

After church was over, we had a DELICIOUS lunch! Everyone was super sensitive to Pres, since they know he cant get sick or there will be problems, so they just got him coconuts to drink (they're the cleanest drink, plus they were in the icebox so they're extra delicious), some bananas (which only grow in the special garden dept here), some kind of scone/cake thing they made with milo (Australian Nesquik, literally the best thing ever), and some fresh tuna they fried. He was so happy he wasn't forced to eat something gross or ill. Everyone else though had heaps of raw fish, and we even killed a pig on Saturday night! It was so fun. Me and Farley helped clean it up and stuff. They burn the hair off, but then you have to shave it of all the rest of the hair, so it was hilarious to see Farley shaving a pig with a razor hahaha! But the pig was SO good, Rutia and Tarawaa are pros. Way good. 

Tongoi was stoked. It was the best kind of Kiribati food, and they hardly get it on Tarawa so he was proud of us. As we were leaving, all Tongoi was saying to me and Farley was "kam nang kangaanga" which is like, you two are a big problem. It was a big compliment. He was proud of the damage we're causing here, its so fun!

It was such a special day. I wrote like a novel in my journal last night. It was so exciting. I remember that letter that Dad sent me from Grandpa, about wellsprings and fountains and things. There's a part that talks about when something really amazing happens, you need to remember and recognize where it comes from and let it fill up your well. It was such a cool experience. I was so happy.

I wish i could fully express what a day here is like. I don't think I fully can, and (not that its your fault at all) I don't think anybody really really understands unless you're here. Its crazy, every second of every day is crazy, but its so amazing.

In our interview with Pres we were talking about transfers, he said, "Elders, I am in a pickle. I have too many areas and not enough elders, and nowhere near enough leaders for these areas, and yet I have two of my best elders together as a companionship right now. I need you both to be in more places, but I feel like after today I can't move either of you. Its a pickle elders." He's too funny, but it means so much to make him proud.

It was honestly the coolest experience ever. Because Pres saw that, he said hes going to try to keep Farley and I together until Farley finishes in September, then have me finish my time here through to December. Way long transfer, but I'm down.

The guy who got the priesthood was Teiaaba, the man who we live with. He is absolutely solid. He gave the closing prayer and he was crying and when we all were done I looked over and Pres was crying too. I think President understands Kiribati sometimes. He's just in tune its crazy.

Today, we will be watching prisethood session of general conference! Maisey and Price burned it to a DVD for us, so we will be excited to see that. Farley wants to snipe a chicken with this slingshot he got in a package. We'll see if we can get dinner from that. 

We actually do have to leave now, the internet place has lunch. Love you all! Skype next week WOOOHOOO!

love dal