Io ora na, to'u utuafare here! I love you forevah!
Things about my life:
- Before my mission I looked up all the Tahiti pictures on google and stuff and it always looked so tropical and gorgeous and all that. On my mission I've seen some very beautiful places, but I was kinda like.... those google images were kind of a scam... Well, guess what? No they weren't. Moorea looks exactly as picturesque as all those incredible photos you see online. It's real. I have been here a week and I am still in awe. I didn't realize that places this beautiful existed in real life. This morning I was cleaning the bathroom upstairs (I have my own bathroom nowadays- life is so good) and I sat in the windowsill and put my feet on the roof and just sat still and looked at all of it.
- Life here is different from Tahiti, even though we really aren't far away. It's so calm and simple and perfect. It's like a spiritual refuge. Something a little difficult is that they do speak a lot more Tahitian over here. Time for me to tell you guys something- I really don't speak Tahitian very well at all. There are words I use all the time, but my mission has mostly taken place in French-town. So when I got here and everyone was like, "A mea papu roa te reo tahiti ia oe?" I was like... shoot. But I have been amazed at the help Heavenly Father has given me. Here is something I have definitely observed this past week- the Spirit is real, and He really does open our minds. I have seen the gift of tongues, the actual, real-deal gift of tongues, at work this week. Yesterday I went to relief society in Tahitian. They do one class in French and the other in Tahtitian. Our class was held outside, just a few old mamis and us sittin' on some folding chairs. It rained a little bit, but no one even cared. And the wonderful thing- I understood! Certainly not everything, but I followed along, and I have learned firsthand on my mission this truth: When our spirits are well, when we are obedient and grateful, the Spirit really does come. And he really does teach us and help us. That is a fact. I'm not really planning on speaking fluent Tahitian like a pro in the next 5 weeks, but I am grateful I get to practice it more because I really love this language. Its a language that represents the culture and people I love.
- Last night we were eating dinner (chicken cooked in coconut milk with taro) and I look over and see a large crab sitting there eating his dinner, too. There are crabs all over the place here. People's yards are sometimes literally made of sand, so the crabs come and dig holes all over. At night they come out and they scramble around all over the place. Something I didn't realize is that crabs actually feed themselves with their little pincer hands. They just sit upright and bring their hands to their mouths, just like us. I was so charmed by that funny little crab- me and him, just eatin' our dinner together at the same time.
- Those same darling crabs are also smushed all over the street in the form of road-kill. I do love them, but it is also I little bit satisfying to crunch a crab. Two days a week we have a car, and you really can't avoid them. But I figure they were already living in paradise, so their transition to the spirit world is probably a breeze. Sorry, crabbies!
- I straight-up adore my companion! Another soul sister discovered on the mission! Soeur Atamoe Paraurahi lives true to her name and talks a whole lot, and I love it. I look forward to our companionship studies every day because she just cracks me up. She is totally cool about everything, never stressin out, never too worked up, and she is completely obedient and dedicated to the work. Its so fun to work with someone who likes to work. It makes life very pleasant. She is from the island of Raiatea. Something I love about her is that she just lets me be me. And she laughs at hard things or obnoxious things, rather than get cranky or worried. Huge blessing to finish my mission with such a great companion.
- Our bishop is 29 years old. He wears t-shirts and hats turned backward. Cool.
- There are no streetlights on this island. When we ride our bikes home at night, its just a billion bright stars, palm trees, and the ocean waves crashing.
- The sisters in this area rocked it, and basically all their investigators got baptized last month! Amazing! Now we have lots of work to do to find new investigators to teach. I'm at the point in my mission where there is no fear, nothing to lose, faith in this message is sure, so opening my mouth and talking to people is not hard anymore. I know this message is true. I know that living the gospel will bring these people joy. So it's not scary anymore to talk about it.
- I got a card from Trina the other day that sang me a lovely loud song and made my day! Thank you, Trina! She said she likes to hear about the food, so I will tell you a little more about the food. My favorite Tahitian dish? U'ru pua'atoro. English translation: Cooked breadfruit with corned beef. You eat it nice and hot. With your hands. Attached is a picture of a sweetie pie Papi cookin some u'ru (breadfruit) Tahitian style. One thing I never want to eat again for the rest of my life: chow mein. Something odd about Tahiti is that their main food source in the evenings are these little restaurants run out of the back of vans. They all sell the same food: lemon chicken, beef and brocoli, and chow mein. If I ever eat chow mein again....
- Something I learned and believe this week: The bible dictionary entry under "revelation of John"- at the end of the paragraph it says that all the prophets since the beginning of time have prophesied of the final days when Christ would come again. The part that stood out to me: They all taught "that the end would be better (more glorious) than the beginning. The victory would be achieved through Jesus Christ."
- I believe that phrase with all my heart. The end will always be better than the beginning. Along the way, there are ups and downs and happy and sad, and it's best to just stay where you are and get what you can out of the present moment. No need to rush anything. But people who believe in Christ, that He loves us, that He cares about us, and that life is eternal, know that there is always more good to come.
- Family, I know Christ lives. Life is beautiful!
All my love,
Soeur Mann
The Other Sister Mann's Blog
