Life in the Tropics

After 10 months of living in this tropical paradise we have learned a few things.  This is definitely the kind of place you would think of when you want to travel to a rather remote and beautiful island. The ocean water is crystal clear and changes from dark blue, to a green color, to a somewhat greyish color all depending on the color of the sky and the amount of clouds.  It is picture perfect. We have a home on the most gorgeous beach front property.  We spend time outside in the tiki hut that was built a few steps from the house and on the beginning of the white corral sandy beach.  What's not to love about it? The trade winds blow bringing cooler air and relief from the hot humid days.  When the tide is in we can hear the waves as they break upon the shore.

We have learned that life moves at a slower pace here and for those who want to unwind and relax this would be the place to be.  There are times when we can actually do that, but for most of the time we are busy with our assignments and responsibilities of being a missionary, although, we have been blessed to be here.  We have passed our midway point and it is hard to think that we only have 8 months left to be here and to make a difference.



Here are some of the benefits and other conditions of island living.  Realize that we are just 5 degrees north of the equator and it stays the same temp and humidity for most of the year.

*No more cracked and dry heels.
*Everything grows faster here --  hair, finger and toenails, vegetation, moss, and mold
*Eye make-up runs, so no need to wear it, but skin gets a glow due to the humidity
*No hurry or worry among the islanders
*Coconut oil is great for any skin condition and helps to heal all manner of problems with the skin, etc.  The islanders even put it on their hair.
*Brown sugar never gets hard, but powdered sugar and other powdered substances will get lumpy and hard.
*Crackers and other crisp items become soft
* Hard candy and gum will become sticky after just a few days
*Ziploc bags are extremely useful to bag things in for their protection and longer life span.
* Boats come bringing needed supplies, but not all things are included and when something is gone from the shelves in a store it may be months before you get it again.  You can count on something being gone off island every month.  Right now it is fresh eggs.  So when you see something you like to eat or use, it is best to buy in quantity so that you will have it.  No telling when you will see it again.  The boats usually come once a month.
*Rust gets on everything eventually.
*Rust on white shirts can be removed with lemon juice and salt and put out in the sun to dry.
*It is respectful to remove your shoes before entering someone's house no matter how humble the home may be. Many remove their shoes before entering the Church buildings.
*You can have blue skies and very little clouds and it will rain suddenly and then clear up and rain again later.  Torrential downpours can last for just a short time or more than an hour.  We love the rain and depend on it to keep our barrels full as it is the source of the water we use in our house.

 *Crabs are everywhere.  We love to watch the sand crabs as they make their holes in the sand and carry the sand out to be deposited in a pile they build as they make many trips in and out of their holes.  Land crabs are a little larger and they make it hard to grow gardens as they eat just about anything you try to plant.  On nights with a full moon they are out in abundance and it is a good night for the islanders to go out hunting and catching them.



* fresh fruits such as papayas, coconuts, bananas, and tangerines grow plentifully and we love eating them every day.  There are many types of bananas for both cooking and eating.  Sooo good! I don't think we will find bananas this good when we get home. The tangerines are green but absolutely delicious and only grow on this island in Micronesia. 

















There is just one big negative thing about living on this island and I really hate to tell you about it but they have RATS!!  We were here for 5 months before I saw one while we were driving in our car and then only saw one other a few months later still while we were driving.  BUT the other day I saw three in the same day and I was not in the car when I saw two of them.  My anxiety level went sky high.    This would be like pure heaven and I would never want to leave if it weren't for this problem.  Aside from all of this it truly is a wonderful PARADISE.

                  The sunrises are beautiful and we enjoy them each and every day.

Sipyen Falls

One of the beautiful sites on this island is Sipyen Falls.  It is a waterfall located up on the mountain on the southern end of the island.  The road to get there is mostly dirt with many pot holes and covered over with jungle overgrowth.  Once there the trip is well worth it.  It is a picturesque place with a small trail leading up along a creek and then crossing over a wooden bridge and then following along a rocky path.  As you look up you see the beautiful waterfall rolling over the edge of the mountain and dropping into a pool of clear water at the bottom. 

The ferns and all of the lush jungle covered this path that we walked along.

All of the Elders and us went there to spend the morning holding a testimony meeting and eating lunch.

The sunlight cast a lovely glow which distorted some of the Elders in this picture.

We are grateful to our District Leader, Elder Matthews for arranging this.  He has been an excellent Elder who has really taken his responsibilities seriously.  He will be returning home in a couple of weeks as his two years of service is coming to an end. 

 

 

 This has to be one of God's most beautiful creations that was just made for such a spiritual occasion.  There could not have been a better setting to bear testimony of the handiwork of the Lord, the truthfulness of the Gospel, love for the Savior, and thankfulness for the opportunity to be serving on a mission.  We sang some hymns, said prayers, and everyone had an opportunity to bear strong testimony.  We sat along the creek on large rocks as it was harder to hear up closer with the roar of the waterfall.  A day that we will never forget

Trip to Pohnpei

We had the privilege of spending one week on the island of Pohnpei which is 344 miles and just one hour flying time from our island of Kosrae.  All of the missionaries along with us were attending a joint zone conference with the missionaries on Pohnpei.  We never thought we would have the opportunity to visit any of the other islands in our mission.  So this was a real treat.

A picture of an atoll taken from the airplane

 Pohnpei island is the largest island in the Federated States of Micronesia with a land area of 344 km. It is a deeply indented and jagged circle that has on outer barrier reef, an intertidal lagoon, mangrove forests, and a central mountain rain forest.  It is known as the "Garden Island" and is very lush and green.  They have a population of around 34,000, just about 6  times as many as we have on Kosrae.  There are 25 smaller widely scattered coral atolls which lie outside the barrier reef, but most of the people live on the main island.  They do not have any sandy beaches on the main island only Mangrove forests.

Because this island is so much larger it has 12
missionaries serving there along with one senior
couple.  There are about 1600 members of the Church and 7 branches.  The weekend that we were there they dedicated a new chapel in Palikir.  It is very beautiful and we had Elder Gary Stevenson of the 70 there for the dedication.  Termites are a major problem here on these islands and so they used a special wood brought in from New Zealand that is supposed to be termite proof.  It was used inside the chapel and other parts of the church as part of the decor.


On Saturday they had a celebration where each of the branches performed a local native dance and some did special singing groups.  It was delightful and many people attended.  After the program there was a large dinner served.  All of this was done outside and they brought in huge tent type awnings for us to sit under. 

Hundreds of people were in attendance and now waiting to eat.  

We stayed with the senior couple serving on Pohnpei.  It was great to get to know them better and spend some time going around with them to their seminary and institute classes. 
The Kjars have been here since the beginning of May and they are from Aurora, Utah.  They hold a daily early morning seminary class at the high school.  Most of the students ride a bus to high school and one of the teachers lets them use her classroom before school to have seminary. Most of the time they have around 18 attending class.  They hold a home-study type of program at 6 of the other branches where they meet just one day a week for two hours and then the students have some assignments that they are supposed to do for the other four days.  They turn them in each week so that they can get credit.  I am thinking that something like home-study would work well here in one of our branches where it is hard to get students out because of transportation.

Each of the branches that we attended were different in the amount of people attending and size.  At one of the branches they had an outdoor baptismal  font. We have never seen anything like that.  After traveling to all of these different chapels we got a little bit of a feel of their island.  It is a lot bigger and requires more traveling to get around than we are used to.




The main purpose for us going to Pohnpei was to participate in the zone conference.  With only two flights leaving our island each week, it made it necessary to leave a few days before the conference and that is why we were there for 6 days.  The conference was under the direction of Elder Stevenson with  President Mecham assisting him.  We had great instruction and were spiritually uplifted after two days of meetings.  We spent one day going over 2 Nephi 31.  We heard about ways to use the scriptures more as we teach and have a vision of what we want to achieve and then set our goals to help us achieve that vision.  Great advice for no matter what you are doing and would work well with families in having a vision and setting goals.  Especially eternal goals that matter the most.  I helped Sister Kjar with preparing and serving lunch to all 26 missionaries and leaders. 

Before we left to go back to Kosrae we were able to visit some handicraft shops down in the village.  We went to one place that had a number of men carving a variety of different types of fish, turtles, sharks, and other sea life.  All of these carvings were done out of mangrove wood.  It is a very hard wood that they use and has lots of color variations in it.  We took some great pictures of the men working at their craft.  We also went to some of the markets where they were selling other handcrafts.  I was able to pick up a few lovely items.

As with any trip that we have been on, it is so wonderful, but then it is always good to get back home again.  We were happy to return to our home on Kosrae, we really missed it.

A Liberation Celebration

The week of September 8th is a time for the people of Kosrae to celebrate their liberation from Japanese rule.  It is something like our Fourth of July celebration.  Kosrae has had many different countries who were in control here.  After the Germans had been here for some time the Japanese took over this island during WW1 and stayed in control until the end of WWII when they surrendered to the United States.  The Japanese were in the process of getting rid of all the islanders near the end of WWII  and had rounded up many people to be imprisoned.  In 1945, when the U.S. came and took over all of the islands that had been held by the Japanese, they freed the people and set up the Trust Treaty of the Pacific Islands (TTPI).  The Japanese soldiers were removed from the island. There are still some Kosraens living who can remember what happened at this time.  We have 3 members in our branch who were children at the time the U.S. came and freed them.  The four different municipalities all planned many activities from sports games, canoe races, BBQs, and programs to celebrate this day.  Thursday, Friday and Saturday were set aside for these activities.  



Watching activities and visiting



Our two branches decided that they wanted to also have a celebration of their own.  So on Saturday everyone got together at the Lelu Church where we had a short program, games and activities and plenty of local food to eat.  Pahpah Kurr, who was alive at the time of the liberation, talked  about what he remembered and we were reminded that we should not forget this event in the history of Kosrae.  President Jonathan called upon Elder Wright to see if he wanted to add anything that he could remember about WWII, but he informed him that he was born at the end of WII and didn't participate or remember from first hand any experiences.  





Women serving food in outdoor kitchen



We had a large turn out for this celebration and everyone had a great time.  Many of the ladies worked in the outdoor kitchen of the family who live behind the church preparing and serving the food.  We had local greens, taro, cooked bananas, rice and a vegetable chicken stir fry, and their version of banana pie(yummy).

It was dished up on paper plates and covered with aluminum foil and then carried to those waiting to eat. Every one here eats with their hands because they never use utensils.  We are getting used to eating like the locals. All of the eating and activities were done outside in the back of the church.




Pres. Hadley and his family



Some of the activities that we did were a contest to see who could shell or husk a coconut the fastest.  What a riot it was!  Then they brought out the stools used for shredding coconut.  They are about the size of the old fashioned shoe shine boxes.  Then another contest was held on seeing who could shred coconut the fastest.  We have one of those shredding boxes at our house, well we actually loaned it to one of the Elders, so we have not tried to shred coconut as of yet, but after watching this I think we need to try as that is the only way I will get shredded coconut because it is not sold in stores here.





Molton and Sasaki husking coconuts



Eric Abraham shredding coconut



Games were enjoyed by the young as well. Fun relays were held where they had to run down to where a pole was located and run around it with their head down10 times and then run back and tag the next person.  They were a little dizzy and it was fun to see them try and run back and tag the next person. 

The relays were interupted by a heavy torrential downpour that lasted for about 45 minutes. We all ran to the Church for protection from the storm.  Some of us were inside and others went under the roof overhangs.  I imagine that we must have gotten about two inches of rain in that downpour.  While we were waiting we had a great game of ping pong going.  Lots of the youth and some of the adults took turns trying to beat the branch champion.  As the rain let up some, many decided it would be okay to start a volleyball game.  It continuted to rain for the rest of the evening but no one was going to let a little rain get in the way of having some fun.  A celebration wouldn't be a celebration without a little music and singing.

Paul Nena and ukulele

Fun and Games . . . S & I Enjoyment

We have had a great start to the school year in our seminary and institute programs.  We have actually had more young single adults attend so far this year compared with last year.  After two weeks of classes we are excited for what is happening in each of our classes.  Our goal is to still get more to come out in all of the different classes, especially seminary.  The youth are the future of the Church and we have some very faithful and diligent youth on this island.

We held a fun opening social for the youth and the teachers. We thought that we were going to start around 4:00 pm, but however, true to their island customs they did not show up until about 5:30.  You just never know when they will come, but they do eventually come.   I had a dice game set up to play as they were arriving and some did come early so that was a good thing.  We laughed and enjoyed teaching how to play Farkel, or some call it Zilch. 

We started out with some dancing demonstrations which were very good, although I thought that they were going to teach some of those dances to everyone so that all would be involved.   We also did the limbo and musical chairs.










We got some great videos of them participating in these activities but I do not know how to put them on this blog but here are some of the pictures we took.

A party would not be a party without ice cream.  We just served ice cream and local donuts.  Then everyone enjoy playing volleyball and ping pong.  It is great that we have a volleyball court on the back property of the Church.  It serves for both a volleyball and basketball court.  Everyone stayed until about 9:00 pm.    A GREAT TIME!!

NEW WHEELS ON THE ISLAND

Two brand new 2011Toyota Yaris cars arrived on Kosrae.  They  will replace the Corollas that are now driven by us and one of the     sets of missionaries.  Both cars were past the mileage that the Church sets as a standard for when to trade out the cars used by missionaries.  Because of all the humidity and salt air here on Kosrae, cars don't last as long as they do in other areas of the world.  We will now be involved in the process of trying to sell both of the older cars.                                                                          

                                         

                                                                       

It is always an adventure to retrieve anything that has been shipped in as we found out when he had to pick up two bikes a few months ago for one of the other sets of missionaries. First you have to get all of the paper work from the shipping agent and then go to the customs office and pay the custom taxes which are 4%.  After that you go to the finance office to pay any additional charges to the government.  Once that is done you take the paper work to the harbor where the dock is located and pay any dock fees. 

Both cars were put in the same container and so there was a dock fee, along with a container fee and also a 20 day storage fee because the shipping agent did not inform us that the cars had arrived and so they had been stored at the boat dock.  After we paid all those fees we went to find someone who could get the cars for us but found out that we had to pay an additional fee for unpacking the container and taking the cars out.  Finally all of that was done and we were able to get the cars.We brought along a member, Kaston Albert, to help us get the cars back to our house as we would have three cars to drive home, our original car and the two new ones.  It was great to have him along as he could talk to them in their own language in case we had any problems.

The Elders had a great time checking out their new car.  It was almost as good as Christmas.  These are great little cars.  They do not have all of the conveniences that we were used to and not any bells and whistles so to speak.  No power windows, no keyless entry, no power seats, no outside temperature reading, but it is great on gas mileage at 35mpg and it smells new and drives smooth and comfortable.  Even though it is smaller than the Corolla that we have been driving, it will work just fine for us here on Kosrae.

The other great advantage that we have with this car is that when we went to register it we only had to pay $10.  They charge you by the type of car you drive and not how new it is.  A sedan is only $10.  We wish that those prices were available at home.  Elder Wright is now ready to start driving his new car.

                                                                                                                                                                         

Changing of the Guard and Baptisms

We have had a change in the Branch leadership here on Kosrae.  A couple of weeks ago both of the branch presidents were released and new ones called.  Each of these men had served about 9 years as a Branch President.  These were good men and they have worked long and hard.  This is a difficult position as there are many challenges facing them in the islands, like few active priesthood holders, no phones to get easy communication with members, and lack of transportation(not many have cars).

Two new men, Sasaki George and Ben Alokoa were called as the Branch Presidents.  These men were serving as counselors in to previous presidencies.  President George has been a member less than two years and is well liked and respected by the members of his branch.  President Alokoa is a very humble and well like person also.  Both of these men hold down full-time jobs, one as an attorney and the other as a landscaper and groundskeeper for one of the resorts on the island.  We look forward to working with both of them.

Our first baptisms for this year!  It has been quite some time since we have had any baptisms here. On August 5th  we had two convert baptisms and 3 child of record baptisms.  It was a great day for the members on Kosrae.  We thought that the baptism was going to held in the ocean but we ran out of daylight hours because of the starting time.  The church has a baptismal font in the building which is very lovely.  It had been filled with water from the city, but it came in somewhat dirty and we weren't sure if we wanted to use it.  The baptism went off as scheduled and we used the font anyway and it turned out wonderful.  This will add two new members to the Lelu Branch and three new members to the Utwe Branch.  It is great to see the kingdom grow.