11/23/15 - QUE PASA CALABASA!!!!(;

QUE PASA CALABASA!!!!(;

 

Thought I'd just mix things up a bit! Boom! My Samoan is picking up a little more, it's all I can ask! This week we're in a three some still with Elder Bybee, Elder Lamoreaux and I so it's really hard to cover both our areas seeing as our areas combined is about a 1/4 of the island...but we've somehow worked it out!! The only problem is that this week went at about a snails pace but we're trying! Some weeks just don't fly like others do..the work some weeks doesn't fly like others do..but you learn quickly, you only get what you put in! Something real quick I've learned is now that my training is almost over, I'm kind of leaving the Honeymoon faze as well and you realize really quickly, not everyone comes out for the same reason. Some go through the motions, some come out cause they're parents wanted them to, etc. Yet the mission changes people more than you could ever imagine! I've come to see the change in myself, looking back on me before my mission, I wasn't the greatest at charity or loving others as best I could. With Samoans, they'll give you the shirt off there back if you compliment it while they're wearing it! Literally, you kind of have to be careful with that! But I'm trying my best, I've gotten heaps better but I've got a long ways to go!!

Sounds like it's quite cold over in Boise!! Haha oh please could you send some cold, it would be greatly appreciated!! It's the beginning of summer over here and it's hotter than Zeus' lightning bolt! Haha and Cade, I would like to give you a word of counsel when going to a scout camp....Be Prepared. Haha just kidding, I'm not like that, you'll have campouts like that trust me! Our klondike kind of ended up like that, but it sounds like you toughed it out a lot better than I did! Haha and keep having fun feeding the animals!! Honestly you have no idea what I'd give for under 80 degree weather! Goood to hear the fam is doing great!!! Haha sorry I didn't eat a ton at thanksgiving, I promise I'm getting my fair share over here...every night! Yesterday after church we ate possibly the best BBQ I have ever eaten...Samoan or American!!! Barbequed chicken lathered in homemade sauce, taro in pe'epe'e and turkey rump (all it is is fat)! Come what may and love it! Anyways! This week during my personal study, I'm finishing up Helaman, but when I was in Helaman 5, I just had read the first 3 words of verse 9 that say, "O remember, remember" Being the natural man, I tend to forget the power and influence I have on others, whether it be good or bad! And as a representative of Jesus Christ, I should not be doing anything contrary to what He would do. Also this is why we need to read, pray, and walk by faith EVERY DAY!! It's not a matter of dang it, just to do it, but doing it to come closer to Christ! That is when I have found most peace and joy coming closer to my Savior! 

With investigators this week, we are trying our best with Lui and his word of wisdom problem, but he's come a long ways and has improved immensley! He's cut back from coffee and smoking heaps, only 1 cigarette a day and he's trying to drink cocoa instead of coffee which is an awesome substitute!! The only thing is we can't get him to church and that is probably whats most frustrating, but we keep trying! We'll have a baptism service this week with Mindy, her testimony is solid and she's been bringing her husband back to church which is awesome because he hasn' t been to church in quite a while!! We haven't been able to go to Amanave unfortunationly because our area is so big but we're doing our best until transfers which will split Elder Lamoreaux's and I's area apart so we'll see where we go on Dec 1! 

That pretty much sums up the week, we're staying alive and doing well! Haha had some cereal this week and it brought back memories with the bros sitting in front of the tv, Saturday morning watching cartoons like That's So Raven, the Replacements, Arthur, it was like when I was 7!! Haha makes me appreciate the times more!! 

Hopefully the bros, yous all got my letters!! If not, hopefully in a couple days! Oh, and for christmas, could I get just a small speaker with an aux plug in, and a container for concecrated oil?? I've seem to have misplaced it in moving houses...OH!! And something really fun that you would all like!! I'm running out of ties because as soon as they get wet, they seem to get alittle moldy and there's nothing to save them, so Elder Bybee's fam did this, is each member of the family picks a tie from D.I. or Goodwill to send, so he has a tie from each family member and it makes thing fun!! 

Loves Yous all and have an awesmoe week!!! I'll be chattin with Ya as much as I can!!!

Elder Colbz Larson

 

This is their album cover--LOL! Elder Lamoreaux, Elder Bybee, and Colbs!

11/16/15 - Hey hey hey to the Fam, it's Monday Monday Monday!!!!! I LOVE YOUS ALL!!!

Hey hey hey to the Fam, it's Monday Monday Monday!!!!! I LOVE YOUS ALL!!!

So I just wanted to answer some of Mom's questions to begin!! No more dog bites this week, but a sly little group of war ants, found their way into my bed last night (I don't actually know what they're called, but when they bite, they leave like a little poison thing so it itches and burns kind of like a fire ant)! I'll be ok without a dog whistle, Elder Lamoreaux and I just make it a game now! If you stand still and don't back down, they usually won't get any closer but there are still some who are out for blood. The whole picking up rocks thing doesn't really work with certain dogs so it's always a little on the sketchy side when they come snarling up to you, but so far so good! My comps doing great!! We're both a little stressed this week because there have just been a lot of random meetings and song practices for a Christmas program we're putting on, so that's been that! We didn't get to meet with Taua or Ma'i this week, right now we're on an exchange with Elder Bybee because Elder Reid got put in Manu'a for a week with an AP, because they're opening up some new islands for the work to get sparked back up again! So we're covering about a 1/4 of the island now as we also have the Leone 1st and 2nd wards to visit, but we're making it work!! OH! And some celebrate Thanksgiving here, but we''re just doing a Thanksgiving dinner as an island with the other missionaries so we'll see what we get!! 

This week!!

We met with Rosa, one of Elder Bybee and Reid's investigators, and we taught her the first lesson, and I invited her to be baptized in Samoan, and she accepted! It kind of freaked me out though because she had nodded and I was still trying to finish the question, but it all worked out!! It's way cool to see these people accept to make these covenants with our Heavenly Father and take that step through the doorway!! Now it's just up to them to continue on the straight and narrow path towards Him!!! We also met with another family, Aiga Masoe, who the dad is the only non member, and the wife and 3 kids are all baptized, he just hasn't been ready to accept the lessons because he feels inadequate because he still has a problem with the Word of Wisdom. The entire time as we taught him O le Togiola o Iesu Keriso, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, all I could think about was that through this atonement, that is when he will feel adequate! I think that's one thing not being a convert, I have taken for granted, which I strive never to do again! Like I said in my farewell talk, not repenting and moving closer to the Savior through Him, is like going to an all you can eat place and ordering ramen!! The Savior's love for us, we can't even imagine, and I loved a picture I got from Bryan and Jessica this week of the Savior hugging a guy, that from the back looked a lot like me, and the smile on the Savior's face is just beaming and on the back, it just has a little phrase, I don't remember exactly, but it's called "Home"! 

"Picture the day we will see the Savior again. What will it be like? Think of the embrace that He will take you in and the love that you have never felt before. As you both laugh, smile, and cry together, He turns to you and says, "Well done faithful servant. You have ruled over a few things, and because of your faith, I will make you a ruler of many things." That's not exactly but it's close! The dad at the end of the lesson accepted the invitation to take lessons which was amazing and we just faamasani (got to know) with the family and that is how I hope to feel once my Samoan is up to par to joke around with the people! That's when they open they're hearts to you and the Spirit is able to do his work by testifying of our message, and everything goes so amazingly it's incredible!!! I LOVE MISSIONARY WORK!!! 

Haha so actually Elder Lamo has cut my hair the past couple times and done a really good job (not like your haircuts though Mom, no one comes close!) I emailed Tal, Grandmama and Buddy, and I sent a letter to Grammy a while ago, did she happen to get it?? If not, whats her email?? And thank you so much from the insights from Tad Callister and MOM!!! That's one thing that I'm trying to work on as a missionary to be really good at teaching is the atonement, because in my patriarchal blessing, it states that I will have the opportunity to be a testifier of the Savior and be anxious to testify of Him!! My Samoan isn't quite to full swing, but it's only been 3 months, so I'm learning patience as well!! 

I got sick a little bit cause it monsooned on Saturday and we tala'i (preached) in flips and rolled up our pants and we were soaking wet head to toe! But it was so much fun! 

 

Haha this week too I also just sat down one night, and just missed You bros like crazy!!! Know that I miss you guys immensely!

I loves YOUS ALL and hope all goes well this week!!

ALofa atu outou!!

Elder Larson

 

He loves the sunsets in Samoa.

 

On the beach the day a monsoon hit.

11/9/15 - HELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

Just thought I'd send some English your way!!! How's the American life?? THankyou for the pics, haha I loved em! But mom, where was you at?? Haha still working my flowers off as they say, and yes my comp is athletic. He did gymnastics and football before he came out so we're both on working out terms. Taua and Ma'i we haven't been able to meet with this week, cause being Matai's and everything, they're way busy so we weren't able to contact them this week but we're going to try and get them this week!!! This week we set goals to put more effort into FINDING people! We don't have a ton of SOLID progressing investigators and so it's been a little harder these past couple weeks, but we're working hard!

And I want to send just kind of like a spiritual thought, spiritual, testimony grower, that sounded really weird in English, I'm sorry, my English is kind of going down the dirt. anyways,

Saturday night, my comp and I went down to Poloa i lalo (Poloa down below) to visit 2 investigators, Alafua and Pacifika! Alafua is really interested, really loves conversin with us about our message, but doesn't want to change churches. So we testified to him of how there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, (Ephesians 5:4 or 4:5 I can't actually remember, I get a little confuzzled) and either The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the true church, or it's the church he attends. he's going to pray this week about it and we're going to keep up with him reading the Book of Mormon as well!! And then after, Pacifika kind of bailed on us cause he was with a bunch of buds and they were only on their first beer but he politely asked to reschedule because he didn't want to say anything disrespectful while we were there so we're meeting with him tomorrow.....hopefully(: So afterwards, one thing in Samoa is that it gets way dark around 7:30ish, and it was about that time when we were walking back up to Poloa i luga (Poloa above) and we just kind of sat down in the middle of the road halfway up, we didn't have any appts to go to for the night and we were way tired so we stopped for a bit on the mountain, and just looked up at the beautiful sky and stars and peaceful night...that sounds way cheesy but that's how it was!! And we just got to talking about blessings, (sorry tangent real quick, I've made it a goal to learn a Chirstlike attribute from each of my comps and with Elder Lamoreaux, it's been patience. Not because he bugs me or anything, he just likes to sit and think some times and honestly, with me before the mish, I would have bumped some music while sitting there, but the spirit has able to hit me more because I don't have that, and so I'm grateful for it cause honestly, while we sat there, it was like the Lord was there just looking over us, giving us a thumbs up and a pat on the back for the week saying, "Great job this week my sons". It was honestly like a Alma the missionary moment with the Lord, I'm not trying to sound sacreligous or anything, it was so spiritual and testimony builder!!! I LOVED IT!!!!

I loves Yous all and thankyou for the updates!! I'm finishing your little packages I'm going to try and send tomorrow! it's nothing huge, I just wanted to send you some fun things from Samoa!!

LOVES YOUS ALL!!!!

Elder Larson

 

Posing while his comp is grabbing a baby coconut on the beach that has naturally carbonated water in it.

 

Found some popsicles that melt faster than they can eat them.

 

11/2/15 - MALO LAVA AIGA FAAVAVAU!!!!!

MALO LAVA AIGA FAAVAVAU!!!!!

How's Ya'lls week!!!??? I LOVED THE PACKAGE and so did my comp!!! Not gonna lie though, I did cry a little bit, but my comp was in the bathroom so that's alright! I want to send some small packages to You guys, so I'm gonna try and work that out cause I have extra money from the money we got reimbursed from the plane ride over here!

So honestly, my comp and I did not have a very good week, it was a struggle. but first I'll hit Ya with some funnies...sorta!

I got bit again by a stupid dog around my calf

We got a ride home from a drunk guy, we didn't die though thankfully

We had to break into our own house cause we left our key inside

And the dog by our house that we've fed a couple times, (we call him Stupid Disgusting cause the poor guy is flea ridden and just hair is falling out all over), BUT...these two other dogs we have to pass to get to our fale(house) attacked us, and he came riding so valiantly around the corner and took out both dogs and bit one of em on the neck and so they took off and he rode behind us til we hit the main road and then trotted back so valiantly to our house, so we now call him Valiant, or Stupid Disgusting the Valiant!

But for the week, we could'nt get into any house hardly, almost all our appts fell through for the week, everyone was drunk Saturday for Halloween so it was way sketch. But we did have Pilikaki's and Chris's baptisms on Saturday which helped the whole week get better! They we so excited and you could totally tell after they came out of the water they just seemed so peaceful and clean!!! I had the priviledge to baptize them but I want to get something straight that I don't really like that most missionaries say, is that "I got MY first two baptisms" or "I have 56 baptisms so far!"....no you don't. The Lord has chosen us as missionaries to go out and find the people HE has prepared for US to find! Now I understand missionaries have a big impact on the converts, but they're not converting to US, they're converting to HIM! I'm hope I don't sound like some preacher, because I'm not trying to sound like that, it's just I've made it my own thing not to say that they're MY baptisms cause they're not. Pilikaki's family has been trying to get him baptized for 10 YEARS we found out after the baptism! We were just the missionaries who had the priviledge to finish off what other missionaries had planted and the Lord led us to them. This is the Lord's work, not ours! Let's do it His way cause He does it BEST!!!!!! 

Sorry if I sounded like a ranting preacher, I didn't mean to be, it's just something that stuck out to me when people asked me if I got my first two baptisms. No but I had the priviledge to baptize 2 children of God, so they can fulfill their coventants with the Father! Anyways, Sorry for ranting, I just want to get that out there! 

It's kind of a wierd week, but I LOVED THE PICS Ya just sent!!! 

LOVES YAS!!!!

Elder Polbin Jacob Larson

Ps.THANKYOU SO MUCH FOR THE PACKAGE!!!! I LOVED IT SO MUCH!!!!! Even though I cried a little bit, it was so awesome to get that package!!! LOVED IT ALL!!! Especially the little cards from all the fam and the awesome quote from Elder Bednar!!! it's the centerpiece for my desk....or what is like our desk!!

 

 

Colby with Pilikaki and Chris on their baptism day - Oct 31, 2015

Colby and Elder Lamoreaux taking a pic while emailing on p-day

 

10/26/15 - MALO LO'U AIGA!! MANUIA LE ASO!!!

MALO LO'U AIGA!! MANUIA LE ASO!!!

So glad everyone's safe and doing well this week!! This week I thought I'd just go through a Day in the Life of a Samoan Missionary!!!

6:30-Prayer for the days activities, interpretation of tongues, to not have the runs, and to thank for all the blessings I've received with all yous at home and here on the mission! We then usually get a solid workout in. The food here isn't exactly on the "healthy, better homes and garden health page"! Anyways, we then shower in the cold rain water that fills the tank from the mountain above us, so sometimes we get some leaves which is always fun! Then we get dressed and ready for the day!!

8:00-Prayer to begin personal study, and throughout personal study, faitau le Tusi A Mamona, sauna (prepare) mo lesona ma tagata sailili le aso na (for lessons with investigators that day), then study PMG!

9:00-Comp Study!!

10:00-12 Week Training!! Basically just go over how to become the BEST missionary the Lord knows you can become!!

11:00-Language Study!! Wonder what the heck everyone is saying around me first of all, then usually sing some hymns and read in my Samoan BoM to better understand! Then I've got a fat language study book that I hit up for about 20 minutes or so!

12 noon! We usually get a nice lunch of peanuts, water, and sometimes a muffin! Trying to eat healthy, but sometimes it gets a little sketch! (like Keato said, sometimes we get some pringles and ice cream cause we're way hungry!

Then around 12:30ish, we begin Preaching the GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST!!! We have appts set throughout the day, our first with Pilikaki ma Chris!! (they're getting baptized this week hopefully) We walk around the bend to the next village where they are, Asili! Then we finish the lesson, well my comp teaches most cause I have no idea what they say half the time, then we go to our next apt wth Lui ma Mau, which is about a 20 minute walk to Se'etaga, 3 villages over. We teach him in English, cause that's what he prefers, and he has a way strong desire to be baptized but he hasn't commited to a date yet because he wants to attend church for a couple weeks which is awesome, cause he needs to anyways if he wants to be baptized, but we heard he didn't attend this week, so we'll have to see what happened. (Quick tangent, each week we switch off from Leone 3rd to Amanave branch because our area is so stinking big, so we can only attend church with one or the other so our investigators in the other ward or branch that we're not in sometimes don't come because we're not there, which isn't good, but we're trying our best to work with the members to help our investigators but it's coming along as best we can!) Then when we finish that lesson, we'll try and contact another referral at the edge of Amanave, in a village called Agagulu, but we can't get a hold of her, so we come back to Se'etaga and contact a less active, while he was drunk he asked to have us come over, so we met with him and the bishop has also been working with him we found out, so hopefully we can get him back to church! We then go to a lesson with Mindy, we taught her the Gospel of Jesus Christ, leson 3, and she's commited to baptism the 14th of November which is awesome! The family she lives with is all LDS, her husband and his family, and she's been coming to church the past two weeks which is phenomenal! Haha because in Samoa you'll get heaps of people telling you they'll come to church, yet no one will...it's sad because every 1 in 3 people we will meet in Samoa is LDS, (from our mission pres, President Hannemann, which we met with him on Friday which was way sweet!! He's awesome and he served here in 1974, he's a little tougher than Pres. Tolman, but I think they're are missionaries that need that push! Anyways sorry for the tangent!) and there are so many in actives its so sad! They've already made those covenants with the Lord, yet they won't renew them each week and it hurts to see because they don't receive as many blessings as they could, if they came to church and has really opened my eyes and made my testimony grow about the importance of the sacrament each week!! Then about this time, we have our fafaga with a member family in the ward, and we get to eat stuff like taro(a purplish root), pisupo(basically fat and cabbage soup), fa'i (boiled bananas), fried chicken(the fattiest chicken you can find basically), faiapilikaki(basically a tuna and other fish soup that's really good with taro!!), niu (coconuts with the top chopped off and you drink the water inside which sometimes is carbonated), and there's heaps of stuff that I haven't gotten to try yet cause I'm on Tutuila but we don't usually have this all at once usually just a couple but it's great food, heaps of protein and fat so it's a love hate relationship but it's all good! Then afterwards we go to an appoint ment at the edge of Leone with a lady we met getting off the bus named Samoa, she paid for our fair and then we just got to chattin and her entire family is LDS but they're all back in the states, her daughter just got baptized, and we're going to meet with her tonight actually so I'll letcha know if she actually wants to take lessons, we'll see! And then we walk 30 minutes back to our house so we get in before 9, plan for the next day, and then shower and pass out!

So that's kind of a normal day as a missionary in Samoa, at least in our area which it's so big a lot of our time is spent walking to appts which is kind of a bummer, but we look for opportunites to help God's children a long the way!! I LOVE IT!!

Mom Dad- Loves yous both and I cannot believe how much I miss you guys!! It's so comforting to me though because one of the typography quotes I brought from Audrey was one from Elder Holland and I can't remember it exactly, but it says along the lines of, "Because of your faithful call to the response of the Lord to serve Him, He will set You and Your families free!" Something like that but know that I love you both and cannot express the amount of love respect and admiration I have for yous!! Hopefully I'm becoming the son you want me to become!!

Glad everythings going great this week with yous all and glad that the party that went down at the barn wasn't as messy as the last!! I know the Lord is blessing yous all when you serve Him and continue to strive and become more like Him!! Good job on the "ponderizing" this week!! My comp and I are trying, he's doing well with it but I'm struggling a bit just cause my samoan isn't quite up to par, it's like at a +12 over right now but I'm working on it! Training half way done, we finish in Dec 1 I think, and I have a way strong feeling I might train whether it be this next transfer or another but we'll see!! I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded for I know that the Lord giveth no commandment unto the children of men, save He shall prepare a way for them to accomplish the thing which He commandeth them!!!

Love yous all FOREVER!!! And so glad our family can be together forever with this amazing gospel!!!

Elder Larson

Taking a pic in front of some beautiful flowers

On the road with a flower for a tail

10/19/15 - TALOFA LAVA FAAVAVAU AIGA!!!!

TALOFA LAVA FAAVAVAU AIGA!!!!

So glad the weeks' been legit!! Holy cow Mom, when You read later in this, You sent almost the exact thing I wrote!!! If thats' not the Lord really trying to nail in a point, I don't know what is!! LOVE IT!!

Sope, this is my week! Haha thats not Samoan, just me(:

Oct15th,

Wow, words cannot describe how today went. Today I found out for myself what I must do in this amazing work of the Lord, to be able to feel successful, no matter how hard the day was, how cruddy the weather, how non inviting the people were, appts falling through, nothing will hold You down. When I can go to bed at night knowing with all my heart, that I gave my perfect effort that day, that I have no regrets!! While in Zone meeting today, one of our ZL's Elder Robertson, was talking to the other ZL during the week, and he told him something that he relayed to all of us that will stick with me forever..."At the end of the day, week, month, year, mission, we are the only one's on this earth who will KNOW if we were a successful missionary or not." Just me, and the Lord. Can I look back with no regrets and say to my Father in Heaven, I gave you my all, no matter how many baptisms, referrals, contacted, new investigators, anything it may be, it may not have been and seen immediate blessings, but I know that if you look back and say, I gave it my all, THAT is what Heavenly Father asks of us!!

Boom!! So next week, Pilikaki and Chris are being baptized on the 31st!!! We didn't get to meet this week cause they were way busy, but there still progressing!! And we met with Taua this week and taught her the Plan of Salvation!!! WOW. She knows it's true, without a doubt this week, both Elder Lamoreaux and I could feel it and hear it in her voice! The problem with here in Samoa is that people care a lot about what other people think!! We're having the same problem with Lui because he's been going to another church for so long with his family that he's still worried about what others might think. Both he and Taua know they need to be baptized, it's just a matter of when. Elder Lamoreaux and I can only do so much, they just need to have the faith and act! They have their agency, which sometimes can be a little frustrating, but we can't control them so we don't worry about it. We just continue to invite and hope they feel an undeniable answer from the Spirit about the truthfulness of the message we shared! And we're teaching Ma'i tomorrow...well, he asked me to teach cause I didn't say too much in our first visit so I'm freaking out, but that's what studies and role play are for!! THankyou for all Your prayers, it's such a comfort for me when the Lord blesses you all at home, and continues to bless this work as I strive to be the best missionary I can be! 

Yeah my soa and I are doing great, still kickin and puttin in work!! We go to an actual building when we're in Leone, but in Amanave we still meet in a members house, but we;re working with Ma'i though cause he has land that he wants to give the church, so we just need to contact our stake president and have him get a hold of him! BUT....we had 5 investigators at church which was unreal!!!!!!!!!

I'm glad I can chat with ya'lls for a bit while we're emailing!!! LOVE IT!! Continue to strive to become like our Savoir and the Lord promises to bless us INFINITELY!!! WE WON'T HAVE ROOM ENOUGH TO RECIEVE IT!!!

Love yous all!!!!!!

Elder Larson

Memorial of the 2009 Tsunami - close to his home

They found the end of the rainbow!

The only dog that wouldn't bite Colby until he picked him up....

10/12/2015 - MALO LAVA!!!

MALO LAVA!!!

HEY FAM!! 

Thanks for the photos You sent this week, I took pics of all of them so I've got em kept!! Haha I don't need toilet paper they sell it here, on Upolu, and even Savaii, I think....we'll see! I can load up in Upolu if I end up getting transferred over there... The food is really fatty but we're trying our best to eat as healthy as we can! I got a little chubby for a bit and hated it so our workouts got more intense! The langauge is still a struggle...it's just way frustrating right now cause I'm rolling into the weeks where I can't even speak english let alone, samoan. I'm hearing words while people talk, but I can't put it together and it's just really frustrating cause as soon as they ask me a question, I sound like an idoit cause I don't know what they asked...definitely keeps me close with prayer though cause I cannot do this by myself!! 

So this has kinda been my week!

We set 2 baptismal dates this week with Pilikaki and his son Chris!! So excited for them to take the next step to our Father in Heaven!! And we're working with anohter guy named Lui and he's not a member but his wife is, and we're meeting again this week to see if he really does want to be baptized, he's knows it's true, he just needs a little more faith to take that step!! And I want to invite You do do something this week that has been making my days a lot easier and way more Spirit filled!! I finished the Book of Mormon this week and I was reading in Moroni 7:45-48!!! And it speaks of the Pure love of Christ, charity!! I've seen and testify of the blessing and power that come from serving others with a positive attitude! My soa, the people, anyone!! I promise it will brighten Your day and it with definitely brighten theirs!! That pure love of Christ will shine through as you serve those around you, even if i'ts way small, they appreciate more than You know!!  Don't let the opportunity pass You by, it will bless you as well as those you serve!! It will stregthen not only your testimony and faith, but the way that you see God's children will be so much brighter!! 

And we were'nt able to meet with Taua this week, thank you so much for praying for her!! We found out from the High Chief, Ma'i, that Taua is the only person who is holding back the church building from being built, because Ma'i who isn't a member, (but we're going to start teaching him this week;) is willing to give up some of his land so the church could build a chapel there!! And we're teaching her the plan of Salvation this week so please please pray she will feel the Spirit!! WE're going to extend the invitiation to be baptized to her this week too!! We know Heavenly Father has been preparing her because she's letting her family, who are members, do the work for her husband in the temple, who passed away a couple years ago, and she really misses him, so hopefully she'll feel the spirit and know with a surety that families can be together forever in this wonderous gospel!!!!

And yesterday in Stake conference we learned we are entering hurricane season, which lasts til the end of March so let's hope we don't get hit too bad(:

That's kind of been the week though!! 

I'm glad everyone's kicking muli in the football pads!!

Kyle-keep the work my man!! You'll be blessed for stickin with it! You man not see it not, but it may come at the end of the season or maybe even during rugby! 

Cade-Good job with sticking with your work during school! Props for the grades! THe Lord's blessing you for being obedient!! 

Keato-I'm so sorry to here about Po. SHe's up in heaven though right now so no worries, you'll be able to play with her again! And I'm glad Shadow is awesome!!

I sent yous all a letter yesterday, I wrote it last Monday, but the spiritual parents that come weekly didnt come til yesterday instead of Tuesday so it'll get to you within a little under two weeks! Keep up the good work, I know the Lord is blessing you all for Your faith in Him and obedience!! Come what may and LOVE IT!!

I'm trying to catch you on the pic email to talk with yas, hopefully your still on!! I LOVE YOUS ALL!!!

Alofa atu,

Elder Larson

 

Under a mango tree waiting for the rain to subside

Studying in their hut (Colby meant to grab his scriptures before the picture snapped, but the closest thing to his seat was a can of Pringles).

 

Colby and Elder Lamoreaux found some pretty flowers and wanted to show them off.