Week 39-June 20, 2016

Yadra Vina'a Matavuvale,

Boy this week seemed to fly by! 

Monday, well Monday was pretty average. Just a normal preparation day.

Tuesday, all of Nausori North went up to Samabula for Zone Conference! It was awesome. We got to see the APs and President and Sister Layton. We received wonderful training about The Atonement of Jesus Christ. I learned a lot and I feel blessed I get to share this knowledge with the people of Fiji.

-The Bush boys in the big city!

Wednesday we had interviews with President Layton. Mine went well. Afterwards I went on exchanges with our District Leader Elda Stock. He came to Bau. It was a good time. Lots of fall throughs, but we had fun. We went pack to the flat and had a wonderful meal of microwave rice, toast, and canned fruit. Good times.

Elda Stock and our fancy meal

Thursday we switched back around mid day. When we got back to Bau, we didn't skip a beat, immediately back to work. 

LOL

On Friday, we kept that fire burning. No one was going to escape a lesson with the Mormons!! Mwuahahahaha!!!! 

Saturday, on Saturday, we buried our week. We cemented in our hard work. We met some great new people and basically visited our whole area. It was pretty sweet.

Brother Ragogo, Mai Ba, he's a ward missionary now!

Sunday was an average day at church. The bathroom smelled terrible so we all had a crinkled nose all three hours, but we mad it through. Ruwhiu and I left early because we found out that an investigator of mine from Ba was being baptized in Nakelo. On our way there, we thought, "oh we have time for one quick visit." Well that guy ended up talking to us for about 45 minutes so I missed the baptism, but his cousin is being baptized next week, so we'll go to that one. We went and visited a few more families. I met a beautiful Returned Missionary from Tonga. She is staying with her cousin. It was a lot of fun to talk to them. So FOB. Oh my. 

Well I had a pretty sweet week. No complaints. 

I love you guys. 

Elda Dawson

PS Congratulations Michael and Kayla

PPS I'm sorry about that party Emma

PPPS Sorry about the boob squishing mom.

-- 

Peace Be Still

Keep it Real

Week 38-June 13, 2016

 Cola Vina Matavuvale,

So, I think there might be some confusion. Elda Ruwhiu is my Senior Companion.

Isa, it's been a week. Man where do I start? I guess Monday would be appropriate.  (Pictures added for excitement!)

Elda Ruwhiu and Big Mama

So this past Monday we had our qito at the chapel in Nakelo which means we got to be "Like Mike" and B-ball way hard. We really just ended up playing rugby in the end, because switching things up is for punks. 

Tuesday was actually super duper meh. We had a District Meeting and then went back to our areas. Elda Ruwhiu and I got to see some people but the work has been super slow lately.

The South will rise again!

Wednesday, honestly...I don't really remember what happened on Wednesday...

Reppin in Fiji #dragon #willhowardismybishop

Okay I'm just going to skip ahead to Friday because some crazy stuff did happen. We were asked to cast out another devil! That's two in two weeks. Here's the best part, they were at different houses. We have a family we go and visit with and the daughter-in-law was "possessed"  just before we got there. We knelt down said a prayer and the mom said she felt much better. She said she has another daughter in Suva who is coming to live with them because she gets possessed a lot, too. (She can't come now though, because she's been admitted to a FREAKING MENTAL INSTITUTION!!) I don't even know what I'm doing anymore. I just kinda go with the flow.  A lot of the time people are looking for someone to listen and for someone to offer comfort and those are two things we can give. #indianprobs #FSMprobs #PLEB2PRO

We felt to dirty to sit in this house...

Saturday was pretty lit tale ga. We did some good work but at night we went over to Nakelo because it was Elda Tupou's Birthday. We microwaved him a cake and watched Johnny Lingo! I know, I know...so disobedient. It was a good time though.

Bae caught me sleepin (yes I meant BAE)

Sunday was actually way fun. It was Stake conference so all of the Eldas from Korovou to Makoi got to go to Naulu. I got to see all of my old zone and my current. Stake Conference was way cool as well. Elder Hamilton of the Seventy spoke and President Pearson of the Seventy spoke as well. President Pearson spoke about finding our true identity as children of our Heavenly Father. It was a way sweet talk.

Elda Ruwhiu and Elda Burgener.

Elda Amisone and our little friend.

Elda Aguiar trying his hardest to be consecrated. 

Well that's basically been my week in a nut shell. 

I hope all is well. I love you guys and miss you so much.  

Everyone's Favorite 

Elda Dawson

P.S. I most definitely have bush fever. It's pretty bad. I just love that Ulumagi.

I am the King of puppies!!

--

Peace Be Still

Keep it Real

Week 37-June 6, 2016

Cola Vina Matavuvale,

Yep so this past week was transfers week, and you'll never guess what happened!! I STAYED IN THE SAME AREA WITH THE SAME COMPANION!! Yeah I know crazy! It was actually a super small transfer so not much happened. 

Okay question answer time:

-I see Pres. Layton like every three months (ish). Usually just at Zone Conferences. 

-The missionary couple that takes care of us is the Smiths...I think. I'm not to sure. The senior couple I interact with the most is the Alldreges. They are the housing and 'what not' senior couple. 

-We did get yelled at this week, but valailai ga. Nothing to bad.

-I actually haven't spoken in Sacrament meeting since Ba (my first area)

Okay so this week. Well we had a way fun combined zone qito so I got to see Visawaqa, Green, Ogden, Van, Sister Mafi, it was just way sweet!! Then on Tuesday we had a district lovo. A lovo is an underground oven, and the food it creates is the best!!! We had so much freaking food. Elda Lemusu got transferred which was a bummer, but Elda Tupou came in to replace him so it's not so bitter. 

Breaking coconuts

I got a cannonball coconut...only the shell cracked!

Lovo

The rest of our week was pretty average. 

On Saturday though, we had a second lovo for a baby's first birthday. So imagine all of the Fijian food I've ever eaten at one meal. That's like basically what it is. And the best part, it was our second dinner that evening, so Elda Ruwhiu and I basically rolled home. 

Baby Nifai's Birthday

Nan Painter. Such a cutie!

It's been a good week to be a Mormon missionary in Bau. 

So something I want to mention today is Fijian kindness. Elda Ruwhiu and I have started counting, and we are offered (on average) three free rides a day. Now that might not sound like a lot to you, but when you take in to consideration how expensive petrol is and the fact that one in like fifty Fijians own cars, it's a pretty cool thing. Fijians are the greatest people! 

Alrighty, well I love you guys and I miss you a bunch. Stay golden!

Elda Dawson

-- 

Peace Be Still

Keep it Real

Week 36- May 30, 2016

Fam Bam,

How's it hangin' everybody? This week has been weird, well to me and Elda Ruwhiu, at least.

Let me start by saying that I love my companion. Elda Ruwhiu is one of the coolest dudes. He's just really laid back but motivated at the same time. He's pretty young in the mission just like me, so he's never a junior companion to me. He's way awesome. 

So this week just seemed really boring. Our whole week kind of was thrown off because we had our District Meeting on Wednesday and not Tuesday, so it kind of messed up our schedule...you know, like when you have a school holiday on a Monday and then you can't ever remember what day it is for the rest of the week. It was a good District Meeting though. I gave a "How to be Metal" insight. It was pretty sick.

On Thursday we did service at a family's house and we painted their house. The Koroi Family are way awesome. It's just an old lady and her husband and they love us and make us bomb food, like Shepard's Pie and other way sweet stuff! 

The rest of my week has been super boring and average, sorry. Oh wait, on Saturday, I was asked to help with "casting out of Evil Spirits". Don't worry it wasn't as terrifying as people might think. Just some lonely Indian lady, I think, but jokes on her, now we know where she lives, so we are just going to return and teach her about Jesus. Ha-ha-ha, Eldas get the last laugh!!!!  

So something Elda Ruwhiu and I do to pass the time while we are walking around is free style rapping. We'll give each other subjects or a phrase or a word and we just spit bars. It's lots of fun and we are getting better and better every day. 

That's pretty much my week. I miss you guys and I love you tons! 

Elda Dawson

--

Peace Be Still

Keep it Real

Week 35-May 22, 2016

Yadra vina'a noqu matavuvale!

This has been a great week! Not to intense, but enough to keep us busy!! 

So you'll all be happy to know, I didn't get yelled at this week. #winning

Selfie stick

This past week started with a real adventure. The whole Nausori North Zone visited some sweet caves in Nausatoka. It was way cool, also probably the most touristy thing I've ever done in Fiji. I'm sure we were still leagues ahead of normal tourists because we were all speaking Fijian. It was so cool, and a little creepy. Part of the caves was an area where they would keep prisoners of war to eat...yikes. Pictures didn't turn out the best but it was still way sick! 

Scary!

Elder "Thanos-Insanos" Stevens and the "Killing Place"

Elda Dunn and a stud

Elda Johnson and a stud

Tuesday was pretty normal, we had District Meeting and then we went and visited some people. 

Wednesday we had exchanges with the Zone Leaders. It was pretty fun I guess. I was with my grandma Elda Lautogia in my area and we had a way productive day. 

Tang tongues

Thursday came and went, but on Friday we had another exchange with our District leader. I was in Kuku with Elda "Thanos-Insanos" Stevens! It was way fun. Saturday also just came and went. Sunday, yesterday was a very special day though.

My whole time in Bau we have been working woth a young lady named Maraia Dilomavata. She's 24 and she was a referral from her older sister who is a member. Well Maraia took to our message very quickly. By our third meeting she told us frequently that she knew what we were teaching was the truth. Well, yesterday she followed her Savior's example and got baptized. I was honored to see it happen. Maraia is such a special person to me. She's been one of my favorite people in Bau and it doesn't hurt that she's easy on the eyes. I'm pretty lucky, when she hits her year mark of membership, I'll still have four months left, so hopefully I'll be able to go to the Temple with her.  She's awesome, and she has already told us about people she wants us to teach. I love her and her sweet family.

Maraia Dilomavata

Maraia Dilomavata and family, and studs

Honestly, I hate getting mushy and stuff in emails. I just never felt like that was really me, you know? But, I love doing what I'm doing. I've watched people's lives change. I've watched families change, and you can only watch so much change without it effecting you. I'm blessed to be in the position I'm in. I'm thankful for my Heavenly Father, for my parents, and people like Andrew Hudson, Alex Crowley, and Marc Allred for making missions sound cool. I might not know everything, or even a lot of things, but I know that I have a Heavenly Father who loves me. I know that I have a brother who gave his life for me. I know families can be together forever because of the blessings of the priesthood and Temples. I know that we are here on earth to experience happiness. 

I love you all so much. Keep the Faith.

Elda Jasen Dawson

Elda Ruwhiu the Exterminator

Ants, no more

-- 

Peace Be Still

Keep it Real

Week 34-May 16, 2016-A Good Scolding is All I’ve Never Wanted!

Matavuvvale,

Yadra Vinaka, everyone. This past week seemed to fly by, and it was pretty eventful. 

The peak of my week probably came in the beginning. I got a chance to talk with my family. Technology is so sweet. It was great seeing them and hearing about all of the exciting (but not as exciting as Fiji) adventures they are having. The rest of the week has just been tons of hard work.

So Bau is an interesting area. A lot of Eldas say it’s a hard area, but honestly it's an area that just makes you work hard.

Bau

Bau

Bau

Last Tuesday we were given a challenge by our Zone Leaders to hit the Standard of Excellence to teach 20 lessons a week. Well, in Bau, President Layton came and witnessed the work and actually dropped our Standard of Excellence to 14 lessons a week. (Bau’s reputation in well earned.)

Elder Ruwhiu and I are over-achievers so 20 seemed like a righteous goal.  We worked as hard as we could, bustin' our tails sometimes biking to appointments in under 5 minutes. We ended that week with 19 lessons. We felt good, but we knew we could hit 20.

Elda Ruwhiu and his intense study sessions

This past week, we worked even harder…this time without bikes, because, you know, I lost my handle bars and all.

#hardmodeactivated  

Please note that these bikes have only one gear, no hand breaks and they weigh about 500 lbs.

My handle bars, before I lost them!

There seemed to be an endless supply of fall-through appointments and after about Friday we really just stopped counting lessons.  We figured whatever happened happened. Well, Sunday morning during planning we counted.  Elda Ruwhiu looked at me, a little shocked, and told me that we were sitting at 17 lessons.  We were stoked. We planned the day with close to 8 lessons on our schedule. After church, as we were going about, there were so many fall-through appointments. Even with the disappointment of the  fall-throughs, we kept our heads high and kept working. When our District Leader called for our numbers, I was happy to tell him that we had hit our goal of 20 lessons. This past week, we have met so many great people and have really made progress with a few of our investigators. We will hopefully be having a baptism on the 22nd. 

My flat made of tin!  So nice!

Now for the title of my email. During church we were approached by a man who is infamous for railing on Eldas. He came right up to us, in the chapel and started yelling at us. Just really digging into us. He kept asking us where we had been this past week, why we weren't helping them with home teaching, and why we had missed his dinner appointment. Even after explaining to him that we had been super busy with investigators, and less actives, and that we had been given a dinner list without his name on it, he continued to yell. He kept saying "You're not doing your job.  Where are all your baptisms?" (I was pretty close to throwing a right cross and knocking his old self out.) We both just held our tongue and kept eating our food that the Branch Relief Society made for Branch Conference. After he was finished he walked over to a bunch of the members and then in Fijian started talking to them about us, in not a nice manner. Jokes on him though, I understand Fijian, so I know exactly what he called us! HAHAHA *laughs...cries in side*
Then we went outside and got yelled at by another infamous person from our Branch for the same thing.

The best food in Fiji!  Branch Conference!

I tell this story for two reasons. For a good laugh and also for some advice. If you feel like the Elders in your Ward or Branch or Stake aren't doing their jobs, volunteer to go out with them and find out for yourself. Just because you don't see the Elders all week does not mean they aren't working. Love the Elders in your area. ELDERS ARE PEOPLE TOO! (I'm going to trademark that slogan so....no one steal it, kerekere.)  Also, if you aren’t a member of the church and you see Elders or Sisters walking down the street or eating in Denny’s or whatever, say “hi.”  They probably take a lot of abuse in the name of “serving the children of Heavenly Father and sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ” and could use some kindness!

Eldas need love too.

Elda Ruwhiu, pronounced ROO-FEE-UH, is a Maori from New Zealand.  He's the best!

Fiji is awesome and I love my companion.

I love you all and I miss you tons. 

Your favorite Elda,

Elda Dawson

Myself and my man, Akuila!  He's the best, seriously!

P.s. Happy Birthday old man!

P.s.s. Congrats Emma. I'm sure you killed your performance.  Wish I could have seen it!

-- 

Peace Be Still

Keep it Real

So much Tang!

My accidental mohawk.  Sorry, President Layton.