August 24, 2008

Hi kids and friends – Elder Patten is putting the pictures on the blog and I am writing trying to get caught up. Yes, the kit house is finished and it is cute. Cute meaning although it is small we have painted it, put linoleum down, curtains up and made it look as comfortable as possible. Everything is new and clean. There are even good screens on the windows so the bugs can’t get in – it just feels so good and we are enjoying it. We appreciate so much the contractors who worked so hard for us and made the changes that we asked for to make the house liveable for senior missionaries. We took pictures and will put them on the blog for you to see.
Our second set of missionaries arrived last Wednesday and they are wonderful, it’s so nice to see the four of them planning and laughing and studying and excited to make Christmas Island their place. They are going out in full force and believe me the island knows they are here. Elder Tupou believes in teaching the whole family or at least having the family sit in while they teach the children and it is working. We have several families ready to be baptized next time around. The missionaries also won’t baptize unless they feel the children or person is really ready. It is easy to baptize here in Christmas but sometimes the commitment is not what it should be and so we don’t see them again after a few weeks. With four missionaries out they can also spend time with those who have stopped coming and bring them back. There is a lot of hustle around here and we love hearing them sing together and get prepared for the day.
There are so many wonderful people on the island that have become our friends and we love them. Our new Elders Quorum Presidency are always looking out for those who need help. They are in the process of rebuilding a house that is falling down, cleaning a well (ours needs it bad), making a door for a single sister, fishing together with nets so they can get a lot of fish and help a brother who needs money for his children in Moroni High School in Tarawa. That’s what it is all about and they quietly do it. Many mornings we hear someone calling outside our door. “Pres. Patten, can we borrow . . . . . . . we need to help . . . . . . . “ and of course they can.
Kikitea and Maria, our sweet friends lost their baby last week. The baby was Down syndrome and had leukemia. There is not good medical help on this island and they are certainly not able to deal with leukemia. Kikitea came to us just an hour after the baby’s passing and told us. We put our arms around him and he started to cry. This is a big and I mean big policeman who has been inactive for a while – you will remember his story in past blogs. We felt so sorry for him but the thought came to my mind. “How grateful we are that he came back into activity four months ago”. He told us that he understands where the baby is and that he will see the baby again. They are preparing to go to the temple. Maria has discovered that she is pregnant, “the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” The baby looked peaceful for the first time since we have been here. One of our contractors was able to make a little coffin with left over plywood from our house and they put a little pillow and blanket in it and closed it with a beautiful lei on top. Kikitea walked away when they started to put dirt in the grave, it was too hard for him and it was hard for me to watch. Maria’s mother, a catholic lady has taken care of the baby since birth and it was hard for her. I saw her off by herself crying and went over to her and put my arms around her and explained our beliefs about death and where the baby is and she took my hands and thanked me. Maybe we will have a chance to teach her now. We went to the dinner after the funeral and the room was lined with his “brother policemen”. The burial was sad but when it is over the people get together and celebrate the friendship with each other. Women had been cooking all day and the floor was lined with so much food that it seems it would take weeks to eat it all. We love that family and will never forget them.
We worked so hard painting and fixing along with the contractors that we went to bed each night exhausted but grateful. For about 3 weeks that took a lot of our time but we are back in the swing of things now. Monday evening is FHE with members and non members or less actives. We meet in the cultural hall and give a lesson and refreshments. We enjoy that evening. Tuesday is English class, Thursday we visit less actives with Pres and Sister Henry, Friday is mutual and after volley ball, we have movies for the kids and popcorn. It seems that Saturday is always filled with either a baptism, an enrichment activity or branch activity and Sunday after our Branch meetings we go to Banana for their Branch meeting. In between there is always so much to do.
We are working on the membership records trying to weed out those who have moved, died or are less active so that we know just what we have to work with. That is a big job and I am sure each couple has worked on the records, they just pile up and we want to stay on top of it. We have pushed for a new Branch Clerk, a financial Clerk, and Membership Clerk and are training them so they can keep up on the records. Betereti is the new financial clerk and today he was passing out tithing slips and told us “this is fun, I like this calling”. He will do a good job. Arebonto. Second counselor in Branch Pres. Is a lot of help with knowing the people and where they are, so he is working on some of the records with us. We love Arebonto, he worked on our kit house with us, everyday he was here and we appreciated his help. His daughter Lisa is a sweet RM and we are very close to her as well. His wife is not a member yet but maybe some day.
The Rotary Club came to town, they have been here before but this time they started a charter on Christmas Island and many of the members of our Branch are members of the Rotary now. They had a big meeting in our cultural hall yesterday and we did a lot of the food. I made a huge tray of raisin, oatmeal bars and for some reason everyone really loved them. Father John from New Zealand, a Catholic Priest was there and kept eating them. That evening we went to a big dinner with the Rotary and he was there so I made him some raisin, oatmeal cookies. He left before I was able to give them to him so I asked someone else so see that he gets them. I am hoping we will see him before he leaves and get a chance to talk about our beliefs. He is a nice man I can tell, just in the wrong church. The Rotary has done a lot of good on this island with the school and we were told last night that they have also enlisted the church in Salt Lake for help and received it with hygiene kits, dictionaries and now toilets on the school grounds. The Church is everywhere helping and helping and so much good is done that no one knows about.
Well, I guess that’s it for now, I am sure you have had enough but we write and write because it is our journal of our mission and someday we will read and read and remember. Speaking of remembering, just remember that we love you and pray for you each day. What a wonderful experience a mission is and how grateful we are for it.