I love coming to school each morning and greeting the security. They are always friendly and welcoming. As we walk passed, they always call out, "Have a bless-ed day." I love the way they pronounce blessed--it always has 2 syllables. That's why I wrote it with a hyphen. In my literacy class that I've been teaching, we had a section on syllabicating words. It was a really enlightening class as we discussed words they pronounce differently and how to "correctly" pronounce them and then learning how to divide words into parts. It was one of my favorite days. I have often started a new class with a review on syllables and breaking words into parts. It's always a learning curve for them and for me. I was nervous about teaching this class, whether I was really qualified etc., But I have loved teaching it and have loved seeing the lights come on in these teachers. I think they are learning a lot. Some things that won't be applicable for high school teachers but it helps them to see where their students need to be and what they should be able to doing. Here's a few pictures from class.
Two weeks ago we were THRILLED to have our ITEP coordinators come and visit. Elder and Sister Johnson have been serving out of Hawaii for the past year because they can't get into New Zealand. They have done some wonderful things as they work with the professor from BYUH over the ITEP courses. We do a lot of communicating via zoom with the Johnsons but having them here in person was so much better. We could have had another week with them.
Brother Syd Daniels came to visit the same time. He is the assistant director over area schools in New Zealand. He works with the Johnsons as well and wanted to meet with them in person instead of zoom. The three of them were the guest speakers at the dorm's weekly devotional. The leis they received had fresh flowers and were gorgeous. Elder & Sister Johnson were able to visit a couple of my literacy classes. Sister Johnson was a literacy coach, I think, so she was able to give some good input to the class. We were able to also visit several classrooms of the ITEP teachers (teachers who are taking the ITEP courses).
Elder Johnson learned to watercolor paint as a youth and has continued to enjoy this talent. He brought a painting for the college and one for the primary school and presented them both at their weekly devotionals. The students were so excited to receive them. They are both paintings he has done while serving in Hawaii.
Their last day here was a Saturday, so we took them on a excursion. "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy!" Along with Elder and Sister Walker and Elder and Sister Patton we went on the Navua River Trip. We had done this same excursion in 2019 so we knew it would be worth the time and money. They took us up the river in a small motor boat. When they got to the "rapids" we had to get out and walk a small distance. They asked Elder and Sister Johnson to stay in so they would have some weight. I could tell Sister Johnson was a little hesitant but it all turned out ok. They didn't capsize! All along the way there were lots of waterfalls. There were places where the local children were out playing in the water. We had had several days of rain so were a bit worried about the weather for the day, but it turned out to be perfect. No rain and a bit over cast so it wasn't hot. Further up the river we got out and walked about a half mile up to a huge waterfall. We had come prepared to swim since we knew that was an option. Two years ago I think Kim swam and maybe one other person in our group. This time, Kim adventured out first with Elder Johnson. Then Elder and Sister Walker decided to go in, so I got brave and made the adventure. It was SUPER cold at first but soon we adjusted and it was fine. A couple of the tour guides climbed the cliff and dove in! Definitely worth going there! And I'm so glad that I got brave enough to swim. Once we got back in the boats, we started back down the river. About half way back to the village, they stopped at the edge and we transferred to a bamboo raft. We floated for a little while down on the raft to experience the way the locals use to transport their goods, back before motor boats. Then we got back in our motor boat and finished the route to the village. Once in the village, we had a kava ceremony. Only the designated chief drank the kava. They had a couple of dances and then served us a traditional fijian lunch. Coconut dalo leaves, curry chicken, coconut fish, paw paw and other things I've forgotten BUT it was all very delicious. They showed us how to open a coconut and make coconut milk. They wove some coconut leaves into a basket. Showed how to weave a mat after preparing and drying the leaves and how to make the tapa out of the bark from the mulberry trees. We ended the day by taking Elder and Sister Johnson to the Suva market. They were able to find a tapa to buy with the last of their fijian money and I bought myself a bowl of flowers for only $10 which is about $5 US.
Bamboo Raft. The young man on the right is a member of the church. He is working on putting in his paper to serve a mission. He's a great young man and excited to serve.
I don't do it very often, but I love buying flowers at the market because they are gorgeous, they are inexpensive and they are sure to keep at least a week!
Elder Roper brought his drone to church a couple of weeks ago. The kids, old and young, loved it. He even was brave enough to let a couple of them try flying it and "parking" it. They had a great time.
The best part of Sunday....siting and talking after church on the front "porch".
This was at the Primary School. The girl in the green had a small camera and was trying to take my picture but was so embarrassed when I caught her. I had to take a selfie with her. Wish there was a way to give her a copy.
The kindergarten teacher, Sister Singh, had a welcoming program for the kindergarteners. The first picture is her aid in class. She is in the red in the 2nd picture. We just happened to stop by the school during the program and ended up giving the closing remarks. I thought this was a fun program for these little ones as they begin their big adventure into school.
Two weeks ago the first North American missionaries returned to Fiji. I believe we got 4 missionaries. Each of them has been serving elsewhere waiting for the borders to open and come to the land where they were officially and originally called. Elder Andrew was serving in the Oakland California Misson and spent 6 months in a Fijian Branch. He was immediately assigned to the Korovou Branch where we attend church. The members were SO excited to have missionaries again. It has been over 2 years since they had missionaries in their area.
And I'll end today's post with my favorite sunset this year! I'm always in awe at the beauties that fill the sky at night. Enjoy! Bula Vinaka! Until next time.....God is Good. The Church is the Church of JESUS CHRIST! I love my Savior. I love serving God's children. The three lessons we have learned in YW: Be strong and of good courage. Hear Him! When temptation comes...RUN. Get out. Grateful to be able to teach the Young Women. They are the stalwarts of the church and tomorrows leaders!
These were all taken the same night in the same place! ❤️❤️❤️
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