Whirlwinds!

 This week has been a whirlwind of emotions and events.  Not only did we get to talk to the couple that is replacing us (The Chamberlains from Tokerville Utah) but also found out that we cannot extend our mission.  After making a few calls and meeting with the mission president we found out once a replacement has been called there is very little that can be done to extend.  Come to find out, we would have had to request an extension in June.  We missed the boat.  We didn’t want to make a fuss so started wrapping our heads around that and then had the thought, “We wonder if the Education department might be able to use our help here.”  So we contacted our good friend Jonathan Shute (our ITEP director from our last mission) and he referred us to Kurt Johnson, the director of the education department and they offered us a position teaching a course here and supervising a few student teachers for winter semester.  This allows us to stay through April even after we are released from our mission.  All we need to do is find an apartment (that is a HUGE challenge) and a car.  What a deal!  That will also give Janice the opportunity to get her other knee replaced here.

Today, we are passing out hundreds of flyers for the start of institute.  We start our classes again this week.  Please pray for us.  😁😁🤙

Devtional in the French Polynesian Village 

Such wonderful sky colors at sunset

Some of our seminary students Thursday afternoons

Sunsets are the best date night!

Grand Daughters!

 We are convinced that one of the sweetest gifts of this life is the gift of grand daughters.  We just finished two weeks of beautiful experiences with them.  We got permission to fly to Portland for Layla's baptism and confirmation.  It was wonderful!  The extra treat was that Josh, Krista, and Claire were there also from Edmonds to spend time with us too!  On the way back home, on our layover in Oakland, Rebecca, Eliza, Noah, and Henry picked us up and took us to picnic lunch at a park near the airport.  So in 3 days, we got to see all but two of our grandchildren.  We were embraced by the love of our family.

Layla in her baptism dress

Two days later, Eliza, Samantha, and Kaitlin came here to spend three glorious days with us.  We swam in the ocean (including Grandma), walked on the beach, saw Polynesian dancing, toured villages at the Polynesian Cultural Center, took a sunset cruise, went to the Temple, shopped at the swap meet and basked in the love, the giggles, and singing of the girls.  We love our family so much and cannot wait to see the rest of them soon.

Aloha Girls!

Tattoos in Tahiti

The Laie Temple

Cruise on a catamaran

Kaitlin 

Samantha and Eliza

Grand Daughters at Sunset

Cruising in Hawaii

Sunrise on Laie Point

  

We teach about 17 16-17 Year-Olds for Sunday School in our Tongan Ward.  Here is a picture of about 1/2 of them during our class.  It is the highlight of our week and we love them.

Full-Swing of Summer!

It does not seem long enough but public school has started again along with Seminary.  We have set up the program for the mentor students to work through the lessons they need to get credit.  We created a website for them to access all that at www.kahukuseminary.blogspot.com.   We will start meeting every Thursday after high school with them.

We taught our last institute class of the summer term this week.  We have had a strong little class of about 15 that have been coming every week.  We love our young people.

Paul Muti, Brother & Sister Meyers, etc.

We taught our Sunday School Class today.  We have between 11 and 17 attend our class.  They have accepted us now and we seem to be past the trial period of acting out to see how we will react.  They actually talk with us and laugh with us.  We love them!

Janice is continuing her recovery.  After a minor setback last week, she is back on the road to recovery.  I take her in twice a week to Waipio to the Kaiser Clinic there to get her "torture."  I have included a picture where I park to gather her up out the door there to take home after her session. She walks fairly well without her walker but for longer strolls it is good for her to have it with her.

We are in charge of the Close the Fast today for the senior missionaries in our mission.  I think we have well over 120 senior missionaries.  We have struck up some great friendships with them and it is so nice to have fellow missionaries that understand us and have similar situations.  We had a district activity the past Friday for the Ostergaards who are going home soon.  We will miss them.  They are very kind.

Ostergaards on the right.  Our district!

We have really missed the beach lately.  I went for a walk the other day and was relieved that we were not swimming that morning.  The beach was filled with these Portuguese man of war jellyfish.  They feel like a bee sting if you touch your bare skin to them.  I have been stung a couple times but have fairly tough hide (and ample body hair) that shields me.

We are so excited this coming week to get to go see our grand daughter's baptism in Oregon.  It will be a quick trip over and back but has given us a welcome respite from our isolation from our family.  We will stay with Benjamin's family but Josh is bringing his family down also at the same time.  It will be heaven to be there to love our grandchildren and hug our sons again.  We love them so!  It is a good thing that we feel like we are making a difference here.  If that were not the case, we would go back to our family in an instant.  At least we get to do things like this on a senior mission.  We just had to get it approved.  It even gets better the week after we get back!  Three of our grand daughters are going to come and stay with us for a few days.  Spoiling without the parents around!  A grandparent's dream come true.