District Conference in Nelson

We have had a busy time lately. Last Friday the young elders stayed at our flat so that we could take them up to district conference on the weekend. We took them to help us do missionary work. We went out to a couple in Granity. She is a member who has not been active for many years and her husband is not a member but they have been very receptive to our visits. We had the elders teach them the first lesson, The Restoration. It was well received. We left a Book of Mormon with the husband as she has her father's in Samoan. We had a great visit. When we got home, we got new material and went over to Bob's place. He wants to learn right from the start. We taught him the first 2 lessons. He was really receptive, as was his son. We had a successful evening of teaching. Bob has had lots of experiences, we just need him to get on the right track and endure to the end. We came home and had a bowl of hot soup and buns. We had an early night as we were getting up good time to leave for Nelson on Saturday morning.
When we got to Nelson, the Relief Society sisters had prepared a light lunch for those who had traveled a fair distance. Blenheim had traveled an hour and a half, we had traveled two and a half hours and Greymouth had traveled three and a half or four hours. The lunch was lovely--hot soup and Maori bread and a savory roll. The missionaries visited and fellow-shipped the young and the priesthood leadership from the district had a meeting. Everyone loves the young missionaries. After the men had their meeting there was a great Relief Society Meeting on Visiting Teaching, which is a lot like missionary work. Then at 4:00 p.m. there was a general meeting for all the members. Our district filled only the chapel. The first speaker was a Tongan. He spoke only in Tongan, which many understood but we did not. But you could feel the spirit of his talk. He was dressed in traditional Tongan. He is working in Nelson at the present time. It was a great meeting. After the meeting there was tea for all the district members. It was a feast, as we have witnessed at all the gatherings we have been at. Robyn had organized it and it was very good. Then we went home with Sarah Venable. Her husband had gone with the youth for an activity. They were going go-carting. I spoke with some of the Greymouth youth the next day and they had a fabulous time.
Above, you can see Ashley Venable, Sarah Venable, and Joshua Venable. They were our hosts for the evening. What a lovely family! They live in a modern home with insulation, double glazed windows and central heating. We had a great visit and enjoyed getting to know this charming family. Ashley is 11 and Joshua is 8. Ashley is so excited to be going into Young Women's in August. That means that when our district goes to the temple in September she can do baptisms. They are going to drive up as a family. We are probably going to fly as it is a 2 or 3 day trip, depending on the hours you drive. That includes a 3 hour ferry ride.
Ashley and Joshua are very bright and polite children. It was a delight to get to know them. The husband, Rob, is the Branch President, in Nelson. He had early meetings. When we were visiting, he asked if we knew Darren Cahoon from Cardston. They had been missionary companions years ago and to my delight I had contacts where I could get the email of Darren and reconnect the two of them.
On Sunday all of New Zealand had conference via satellite from Salt Lake City. Above you can see some of the Tongan men dressed in their traditional dress for Sunday meetings. Elder David S. Baxter conducted the meeting and spoke first. He spoke about the need for unity among the saints. He said we need to be tolerant of diversity. We need our hearts knit together in love. He spoke of 4 qualification:

1. We need to remember whose church this is. It is the Lord's church and we need to come into conformity with the Lord's will.
2. We need to strive to be one. He talked about the Saviors heartfelt desire for all of His disciples to be one.
3. We need to avoid cultural traps. We should be equally yoked, avoid pride, and become like Him. Ask ourselves "What would Jesus have me do and DO IT!
4. We need to be defined by discipleship.

Sister Sylvia Allred spoke next. She spoke of the importance of families. We need to love and care for each other. We need to have a desire to obey with exactness. Elder Richard G. Scott spoke next and it was powerful. He wanted the residents of New Zealand to reflect on what they do to be blessed to live in this beautiful land. He taught that in order to reach a goal never before attained we must do extraordinary effort to accomplish it. He also taught that Satan has no power to force a determined righteous individual as the Lord will protect him. We need to exercise faith in the Savior and do not fear. He also taught that if we have traditions that bring us closer to Jesus Christ we should treasure them; if the tradition distracts from Jesus Christ we need to put it aside. President Boyd K. Packer, who was presiding at the meeting spoke last. He talked about the need to follow impressions of the Holy Ghost. In conclusion he conferred a blessing on the members in New Zealand. He blessed the children that they would be guarded and watched over by angels. He left a blessing on all the homes of New Zealand that if we live the gospel angels will be there to protect us. It was a powerful meeting. Only way it could have been better would be if those people were physically there.

After conference, there was another lovely luncheon. This time it was provided by the members of the Nelson branch. It was like pot luck. Here they call it bring a plate. When I first heard that I thought that you were to bring a plate to eat, but now I know you have to have something on the plate. Above you can see some of the people after the meal. They hang around as if they don't want to return home as it will be a while before we see each other again.
These boys are mainly from Greymouth. They love their pictures taken. I started with one and soon had a group. It was a great occasion.
On Monday we looked for flats for the Nelson Elders. Their flat as no heat, except the small electric heater, and a very poor shower. It only does cool water. If you turn it to hot it just drips out. Above you can see them having a picnic on the living room floor. From left to right you can see Elder Booth, Elder Mataupu, Elder Fullmer, Elder Berryman, Elder Sacco, and Elder Tamale. They are eating mussels, boiled chicken, boiled lamb, fried steak, fish, and chips. They also had apples supplied by the members. We shared some of their food also.
This flat also has limited lighting. We discovered the next day that one breaker was shot and replaced the breaker and the whole flat now had light after we replaced 10 light bulbs.
The next morning the elders had interviews and we stayed at the flat to meet the property manager. She was impressed with how nice the elders kept their flat; but appalled at the conditions they were living in. As we were replacing light bulbs the one in the toilet blew the main breaker so the flat had almost no power. We were able to get that fixed after visiting with the property manager.

1. 

It was a drizzly day as we returned home to Westport. The mist in the air is kind of pretty as you can see from the above picture. We had beautiful sunny weather on Wednesday. We made lots of visits that day. I love sunny days. On Thursday is rained and blew all day. We aren't getting flooded here on the West Coast like it is on the east coast but the wind is cold. The residents told us that there would probably be snow on the mountains that we can see from our flat. And sure enough, when the clouds cleared there was snow on the tops of the mountains. I guess winter is coming whether I like it or not. We just have to wear lots of layers and stay warm and enjoy the journey.

Nature--It's Power and It's Beauty and Other Things!

Last Thursday, in the wee hours of the morning we were awakened with a loud bang. We leaped out of bed to see what was going on. A loud and ferocious wind had started. It had been blowing when we went to bed, but not like this. We looked out the window in the dark to make sure the car had not hit the fence. We were afraid that the roof of our flat was about to blow off. Then the fire alarm rang, and we found out later that someone's roof had blown off. There were sparks like lightening from trees hitting electric lines. I was afraid. Finally the wind calmed a bit and we were able to get back to sleep. Then at 8 a.m. or so another wind hit and more alarms rang. We found out later that spring tides had washed away some of a local park where campers and motor homes were. A woman was down at the tip watching the waves and saw this huge "King Wave" and she knew there would be trouble and she called "111". The waves came in and washed a good size motor home on its side and the next wave righted it again. The fire chief was there and saw the wave coming and thought "I'll hide behind this motor home for safety." The wave washed him into the flax bunches. It just shows you the power of Mother Nature. This was just spring tides. What would be a Tsunami be like? I am not sure why they call them spring tides as it is definitely Autumn here. On our trip to Greymouth this day the sea was wild and in some places the splashes from the waves were hitting the roads. Heaps of damage was done from the wind and the waves. One driveway out at Carter's Beach lost 20 Blue Gum trees and the paddocks had trees uprooted. Trampolines were on roof tops. It was just incredible.

On Saturday morning we went out of Westport a bit and came to a former Scout Lodge. Since there are no scouts in the area at the present time it has been donated to a group called "Island Creek" Association. They maintain the property and let it out for camper groups and do catering campstyle for various groups. The leader of the group is Frank O'Connell. He is the husband to one of our less active sisters. The first time we went to visit them he said "My wife belongs to your true church and I belong to the other true church." He is quite a character and we have visited lots with him He loves LDS DVDs. He has seen more than me. His favorite ones are "The Best Two Years" and "The Other Side of Heaven". He has a complete set of "The Work and The Glory" and has read the set several times. But we can't get him to read "The Book of Mormon". Now to why we were out at "Island Creek Camp Lodge". The group was splitting felled trees for firewood to sell to the community. We had quite a group here for a service. The weather was just lovely. You can see the pile of rounds they were splitting. They said that they did 5 cords of wood in about 3 hours. Elder Archibald worked outside with the log splitter and I worked in the lodge preparing lunch for the group with another branch member, Thea Williams. We did soup, sandwiches and savories. I made a type of sandwich that is quite popular here in New Zealand. They call it cream cheese and onions. You have grated cheese and to that you add a bit of boiling water to kind of melt the cheese. Stir it and add more water until it is just right. Then add a bit of chopped onion. Then you put this mixture on bread and they just gobble it right down. I have never made so many sandwiches in my life. 4 loaves of sandwich bread and 4 dozen buns. We also did egg, and ham, and luncheon(looked like bologna) and tomato and then some with all the mixtures on one sandwich. After the group had worked for about 2 and 1/2 hours it was time for a break and lunch and then it was back to work. It was nice to be of service in the community.
While we were still in our working clothes we journeyed out to Iain's place. He is an inactive member who has a small farm as well as working at Solid Energy on the hill. He lives in a bus with no power or running water. He seems quite happy. He has pigs, chooks, 1 sheep, 20 or so Beefies (beef cattle), and 2 dogs. Above you can see one of his beautiful roosters. We had a great visit and as we were leaving we asked if he would be at meetings on Sunday. He said, "That depends on whether I am invited." We extended an invitation and told him that he was always invited. The next day he was there much to his mother's delight. In fact she was surprised because when he came to town for his morning shower she said he was grouchy. It was so nice to have him there. We love him.
Above, you can see Elder Kaufusi packed and ready to go home. He left Hokitika on Monday morning. We drove him to the airport. President Kinikini came over to their flat to say goodbye, but he will see him again as he goes back to Tonga quite a bit and the villages are not far apart. They aren't really villages, rather small cities. We had been teasing him that we were keeping him here in New Zealand for a while longer so he could help us out. He had mixed emotions this day. He was so excited to see his family but he loved the members he worked with on his mission, especially in Greymouth. His bag was a bit heavy and he did some repacking at the airport. They are only allowed one bag that can be 20 kg. to fly to Tonga. His was 25 kg. He didn't seem worried because he has cousins that work at the airport in Auckland that they would get it on for him. He only had clothes in that huge bag. But there were lots of levis for his cousins in Tonga. I guess they are really expensive there. We never heard back so we are assuming he made it home okay. We told him to think of us during his eternal summer while we were going into winter. He assured us it was going to get colder as we are only in Autumn yet. So far we are warm with the heat pump and our one blanket. We discovered an electric mattress cover that works to take the chill off of the sheets when it is really cold. We will let you know "how cold does it get."
In the above picture you can see Elder Sacco, Elder Fullmer, and Elder Kaufusi. This is at the airport just before Elder Kaufusi was leaving. It turns out that we are distantly related to Elder Fullmer.
Here we are with Elder Kaufusi. We hope to be able to see him in Tonga on our way home. Depends on whether we can work out travel. We will probably never get back to this end of the world. As Elder Kaufusi boarded the plane the pilot shook his had and said "Well done." It was touching to me. We don't have a picture of it but we do have it on video.
After the airplane had gone we went into Hokitika for lunch and then took the Elders out to Hokitika Gorge. Neither had ever seen it and was pretty even on a cloudy day. We walked down the trail, across the swing bridge, and around the trail some more to get to the prettiest part. Here Elder Sacco is inspecting the water. Elder Fullmer did also, and they each got some great shots of them and the water. It was a great day for them and us. As we were driving out we could see snow in the tops of the Southern Alps. Winter is coming. But it is still so beautiful.
On Tuesday we went north, we think. We tried to see many less active on our day. At the end of the road was Oparara Basin. We did about a 1 km. hike into this large limestone arch. It is the hugest one in New Zealand. It is 200 m. in length, 49 m. in width, and 37 m. in height. It had bush growing all around. Merle hiked a bit more along the trail and it came out into daylight on the other side. The water flowing through was a rich brown color. There was gold in the river at one time and probably still is.
We hiked through this amazing rainforest to get to the arch. At times you had to cross foot bridges. You could see and hear babbling brooks. The rocks were covered with moss and there were fungi growing all around. According to a natural history photographer, autumn is the time for fungi and the West Coast has an abundant supply growing in the forests. We saw them and they were beautiful in color. We will have to pay more attention when we hike in the bush. I am not sure how much more hiking we will do as Merle's hip has been bothering him since this day. After we had seen this beautiful basin we were once again on the road and finally we found someone home. We had a great visit with her. This lady lives all alone, through a trail and on a mountain side. She says she is never alone though. She has only a radio and books and a phone. Her stove is broken right now and we worry about her keeping warm but she says "No problem." Coming back we tried to do a few more visits but no one was home.

Wednesday the elders were doing exchanges and so the District Meeting was here in Westport. After the meeting we fed them because they have long trips back to where their area is. In the picture you can see Elder Tamale, Elder Fullmer, Myself, Elder Archibald, Elder Sacco, and Elder Berryman. Elder Tamale is Tongan from Auckland, Elder Fullmer and Elder Sacco are both from Utah and Elder Berryman is Maori from at the present time Mesa, Arizona, but he has spent lots of his life here in New Zealand and is related to the McDonals. As you can see, it was a beautiful day this day also.
Here you can see Elder Tamale, Elder Fullmer, Elder Sacco, and Elder Berryman. Elder Tamale and Elder Berryman are the Zone Leaders for our Nelson Zone. I dispense ginger capsules frequently as many of the Elders get car sick on our winding roads. Ginger works really well and does not make you drowsy. We had a great District Meeting. You should hear the singing. It sends chills down your spine. We are healthy and happy and busy. We are always either doing missionary work or branch work. We look forward to this weekend going to District Conference in Nelson, about 2 1/2 hours away.

Mother's Day In New Zealand

Today was Mother's Day in New Zealand. It was a beautiful sunny day, the likes we have not seen for quite a few day. As it was the second Sunday of the month, I was the speaker. As many of you know, this is a difficult day for me but I made it through. Today I spoke of the prophet's mothers from Joseph Smith to our current prophet, Thomas S. Monson. I had enjoyed doing the research and I think that the congregation, although small, appreciated the knowledge and the importance of mothers in all our lives. The priesthood surprised us after meeting with a meal that they had mostly prepared themselves. In the above picture you can see Bonnie, Thea, Reg, Levi, myself, Lyn and Joy. It was greatly appreciated.
In the above photo you can see Matah and her new baby brother Toutouwai. His name means Black Robin in Maori. These are the two darling children of a couple we met on the street. They used to live in Christchurch but moved to Westport in January. They know and love Elder Hudson, who at the present time is in Blenheim. When he goes home next year they want to send him money to come back to see them. I was blessed to hold the little guy for all the while we were visiting with the family. I have missed holding babies. The next day after visiting with this family I became so sick for 4 days. I had the flu and a bad cold. It really knocked me for a loop.
I would like to share the story of the Black Robin. It is an amazing story of survival.

Long ago, hundreds of Black robins (toutouwai) lived on the Chatham Islands. They sang in the forest and ate grubs, weta and worms on the forest floor. Then people came. They burnt the forest to make farmland.

Cats caught the robins and rats ate their eggs and chicks. Soon all the robins on the main Chatham Island were gone. Just a few survived on Little Mangere Island.

Little Mangere Island is tiny. Its cliffs are 200 metres tall, keeping it safe from rats, cats and people. But it was so small and wind-swept that the forest was dying. The robins’ tiny wings were not strong enough for them to fly away to find another home.

This is the story of how the back robin made a comeback!

Now there are about 200 Black robins singing in the forests of Mangere and South East Islands.

* The main population of black robins now lives on South East Island, which has more homes and food for the birds because it is much larger and has more forest area than Mangere Island.

* The total of 200 black robins was from both islands. It's not possible to get an exact count because many of the younger birds do not have coloured leg bands.

* There are no rats, cats or possums on Mangere or South east Island.

* All the black robins alive are descended from just one pair, Old Blue and Old Yellow. Old Blue lived to be 14 years old. She was the female.

What a marvellous story of conservation and survival! The fostering programme used to save the black robin was so successful that it has been copied to save endangered birds around the world – how lucky New Zealand is to have such wonderful conservation officers and volunteers!

I had wondered why anyone would name their child Toutouwai but after reading about the Black Robins I know why. I thought you would enjoy the story too.

Every day when I look out our window I see these birds. I am reminded of the Windex commercial at home where the crows are talking and the guy hits the window. I can just hear these birds mocking us.
We were in Nelson this week for Zone Conference. The above picture is of Elder Booth, a new elder, and Elder Mataupu leaving their flat for an appointment. Every time they leave their flat they get a work out. It is so steep leaving the Cherry Avenue flat. The flat is up in the hills of Nelson. When we call the elders in the evening we can hear them puffing as they ride their bikes home.in the dark and cold.
Above you can see a praying mantis. I am fascinated with the bugs that are all over New Zealand. I am learning to take better pictures of what I see and I wish I could share all the pictures with you. Elder Hudson helped me with this picture.
Here is our new Nelson Zone. Front row, myself, Elder Archibald, President Jolliffe, Sister Jolliffe. Back row: Elder Tamale, Elder Fullmer, Elder Kaufusi, Elder Booth(in the back), Elder Sacco, Elder Berryman, Elder Hudson, Elder Mataupu, and Elder Kavaefiafi. We have an awesome Zone and had a wonderful conference. We were taught about the importance of Integrity in everything we say and do. It is not always easy to be full of integrity. Elder Worthlin said that he knew of no higher praise than any many could receive than that he had integrity. It is the light that shines from a disciplined conscience.
We have had a slow couple of weeks as far as working with inactive and non-member people as I have not been well but we have been busy when we were healthy. Yesterday we travelled to Greymouth for tea with the Kinikini's. Sister Kinikini's mother was returning home today to Tonga. Her visa was running out. She lives in the same village as Elder Kaufusi who returns home with honor on May 18th. We will truly miss him. He has been here ever since we got here and we have really gotten to know and love him. We truly love what we are doing, although days like today we do miss our family but we are blessed here in New Zealand.

On The Road Again!

During the past 2 weeks we have been on the road constantly. On Tuesday, April 13 we helped the Elders out. We travelled to Greymouth to pick up Elder Kaufusi, and Elder Tamale to go to Nelson for interviews with President Jolliffe. Neither of these elders drive. We usually don't go to interviews but we needed a Temple Recommend Interview so that when our Branch goes to the temple in September we can go with them. Because Elder Archibald is the Branch President we have been able to get special permission to go to Temple View with the District. Our recommends ran out in May. It was nice to associate with the young elders and visit with President and Sister Jolliffe. We got to view the area books and chat with Sister Jolliffe while she mended pants for the elders. I have done my share of mending for the elders down our way. Below you can see the Elders in our Zone as I had made some Puffed Wheat Squares for a little treat for them. This is the last time this group will all be together. Elder Barker returns home with honor on the 30th of April. Elder Kaufusi returns with honor on May 18. We learned at interviews that we will have 4 new elders in our Zone after transfers next week. New ones to get to know and love. You can see Elder Hudson, Elder Haynes behind and bending over, Elder Mautupo(I think of spelling), Elder Tamale, Elder Kaufusi (squattin), Elder Sacco, Elder Tuipulotu, and Elder Barker. Elder Archibald is behind the trunk. This is an awesome Zone.

When we got home to Westport with the Elders we took them out to an inactive lady's home. We were lucky and a lot of her children were there. We had a great visit and the Elders from Greymouth had a great interaction with the two teenage boys--Norton and Rory. We were excited that we got such a welcome reception and an appointment for next week.

This week was flat inspection week, just before transfers. We went to Blenheim first and it was such a beautiful day. We left Westport in clouds and threatening rain. As we got around some mountains the sun came out and it was spectacular. Last time I wrote about not seeing autumn colors but in Blenheim and Nelson it looks pretty like falls can. In Blenheim the grapes are ready for harvest and the leaves have turned. They also have trees that have turned colors. It hasn't been frosty yet so it is the days getting shorter. The above picture is taken in Nelson. We spent most of the day in Blenheim with the Elders. It was their P day and we did inspection and then took their car to the Toyota dealers to get warranty work done and a bumper fixed. During the car inspection one tire was bad so they also got a new back tire. Then we went to the grocery store and then home to the flat. The Elders had been given heaps of groceries--sausages, potatoes, pumpkins, cabbages, cauliflower. Elder Archibald showed them how to cooked fried potatoes and onions. He also did his carrots where he adds brown sugar to them as they cook. The elders have all loved his carrots. They didn't have a pancake turner so he ended up using a saucer to turn the potatoes. It was an adventure. The elders--Elder Haynes and Elder Hudson had done a great job with the flat and it was very clean. Then we were off to Nelson before dark. When we arrived at the flat in Nelson it was a disaster--they had slept in the living room where the heater was because they had been cold the night before. When they saw us they said--"You weren't coming until tomorrow." We assured them we would be back in the morning to inspect and things had better be ship shape.
We went on the computer on Tuesday morning to look for new flats for the Nelson Elders so they can keep warm in the coming winter. We couldn't get any appointments. The real estate people think that the elders are transient--which they are but there are always elders in the area. If only the people who own the flat they are in would fix the shower and install a heat pump all would be good. Anyway, when we arrived at the flat on Tuesday morning it was wonderful. The beds were made, the floor vacuumed, the fridge and freezer clean, stove and oven clean, and cupboards wiped clean and dishes put away. I could not believe it was the same place. They had all worked hard. Above you can see the Zone Leaders: Elder Tamale, and Elder Barker with Elder Archibald in the middle. Elder Archibald has trouble wearing his tie--it chokes him.
After flat and vehicle inspection in Nelson we were ready to head home. We had no new flats to look at and it was early so we stopped along the way to see some of the sights along the road. We stopped at some look outs coming over the pass. But my favorite stop was at Lake Rotoroa. It is just before Murchison and is part of the Nelson Lakes. The only drawback--SANDFLIES. At home they would be dead by now because of frosts but no frosts here. Next time we will remember the bug spray. But the lake was so beautiful. I remember Grandma McMurray talking about Lake Rotoroa. It is not that far from Blenheim. Below, you can see a black swan and 2 of her babies. She would constantly dive to bring up food for her little ones. I have it on camcorder.

We had a great drive back. Then it was back to real missionary work when we returned. We have been able to visit with lots and each Sunday we wait to see who will come back. This month we have been able to have 1 or 2 inactives return and it is quite exciting. We just need to keep nourishing them. We love our work here and really love the people. We are also thankful that our health is good. We are blessed to be able to serve in this great area.

This picture begins and ends this post. It is at the Spooners Range Lookout. It is about 45 minutes out of Nelson. We drove up the side road to see what was here. The birds were singing so musically. We really did enjoy this drive back to our home here in New Zealand.

It's April--It's Autumn

Well, it is April, and they say that it is Autumn. The leaves where we are don't really change colors and fall off the trees, they just fall off the trees. I am waiting for the Autumn colors we experience at home but we only see the odd colored leaves on trees. But we have noticed that as we drive down the coast road there are many trees without leaves now--but no color change. We have been told that if we drive the Lewis Pass to Christchurch we should be able to see the autumn colors. I am still having trouble wrapping my brain around Autumn in April. We were happy to have summer in December and January but now we have to adjust the other seasons. The other day we were out visiting inactives. We have passed this by this monument many times and I thought it was penguins. It is out at Ngakawau. It turns out that it is dolphins. A special kind of dolphin named the Hector dolphin and apparently they breed in the Tasman Sea around here. Their dorsel fin is rounded rather than pointed like the other dolphins. Also, they are white and black like the Orca. A week ago we saw a news clip from a whale watching tour where the orca flipped a dolphin high in the air. The other dolphins in the pod soon scooted speedily away. It was a predator, prey situation. It was very interesting and the marine biologists were extremely interested in the video. That was one on the ball tourist.
That same day we went out to the other side of Westport to visit another non-active. It was so interesting because right on her doorstep were these beautiful peacocks. As they say here "There were heaps of them." about 6 or 7. The cat just watched and the dog stayed away. I was nervous because, as you know, I am frightened of birds but I stayed in the car and watched. They had free run of the yard. The man of the house said they were messy but interesting. He said, "It's a good thing they are beautiful or they would be out of here." It is so interesting where ever we go!

Last Wednesday we had our monthly Branch Family Home Evening. We had a beautiful Easter lesson and then the boys, Levi and Kahn were in charge of the activity. It was a Talent Show of sorts. We were divided into groups and had to make up a poem, song, or dance about New Zealand, nature, or the Church. We were given time to create and then were to perform our number. Luckily, Levi and I were the judges and we all had such a great time. Below, you can see Sister Thea Williams being a fantail. That is a bird. Her group had made up a poem about the fantail that comes into her home to visit and sing and her dog, Dougal, who barks at it. Brian was Dougal. Thea has made a fan for her tail. It was roll on the floor hilarious. Elder Archibald couldn't hear the poem and thought she was being a pig as she has pigs out at the farm. It was so enjoyable. A side note on the fantail. The other day we were visiting at Thea's and Elder and Thea looked up at something. My heart started pounding as I knew they were looking at a bird right in her home. It flew into her bedroom and lighted on something and sang, then past my head to a line in the doorway and tweeted another song. She said another day the fantail brought in a mate to sing too. The mate was unfamiliar with the surroundings and had trouble navigating out but, this one comes lots and is familiar with the home. It is interesting that Thea's patriarchal blessing says that her door will always be open to welcome guests. That is definitely true--it's only shut and locked when she goes away. Thea is a lovely lady.
Last Thursday we had district meeting here in Westport. The Zone Leaders were doing exchanges with the Greymouth Elders and we were a good meeting place. Also, we feed them. We had a wonderful meeting with the Elders and at the end shared the most spiritual experience of the week. That was awesome. We were even able to take a group picture--we all set our cameras on timer and ran back to our places. It didn't turn out too badly. Left to right--Elder Barker from South Salt Lake City, Utah and going home on the 29th; us and that is Elder Archibald's hand on my shoulder; Elder Sacco from Price, Utah; Elder Tamale from Auckland now but originally from Tonga; and Elder Kaufusi, from Tonga going home mid-May. We keep teasing him that we are just going to keep him here. We really have grown to love him and his humble spirit. He is a great missionary--they all are. This week we will go down to Greymouth to get the Elders for interviews in Nelson and the will get their own companions back. We have the Greymouth Elder's car in our driveway so when we come back we don't have to go down to Greymouth. Not that we mind the drive but it really adds on driving after a long day.
When we drove the Elders back to Greymouth we stopped at President Kinikini's home to visit and collect our cake pan that I had left in Greymouth. Below you can see our little dolly--Lou Ann. She is so adorable. She had on her shades and was ready to come home with us to Westport.
We have had a great week. This past weekend we were able to watch Conference via DVDs from the District. What timely messages were there! As Elder Neil L. Anderson said in the last session the messages were indeed a spiritual symphony divinely orchestrated. One thing that really hit home to me because we are missionaries is from President Uchdorf's talk. When he talked of the statue of Jesus that was mostly destroyed in WWII and rebuilt all but for the hands, and the sign that was placed with the statue, "You are my hands!" I truly feel like we are His hands and we need to do as He would do. I pray each day that we are up to the task.

Better Late Than Never!

It seems as time goes by we are getting busier and busier and as I think "I need to do the Blog!" we need to also visit a less active or needy member and out the door we go. We love what we are able to do and we love the people here. We have had many exciting things to do this past week and a half. Over a week ago we went to Nelson for our Zone Conference. Above you can see a picture of our Nelson Zone. We are the smallest zone in numbers but the largest area. President Jolliffe has challenged us to keep our funnel full so we always have people to work with. Elder Archibald has taken this challenge to heart and we do have a full funnel right now. I will name the Elders in the above picture: Elder Kaufusi, Elder Hudson, Elder Mataupu, Elder Tuipulotu, President and Sister Jolliffe, Elder Barker, Elder Haynes, Elder Tamale, The Archibalds, and Elder Sacco. Elder Sacco is new in Greymouth and Elder Mataupu, from Samoa, is new in Nelson. We had a great Zone Conference. We played a great charade game with the scriptures from Preach My Gospel. We had to guess the concept and the scripture. It was fun to watch the acting of all the Elders.


Above you can see the Elders playing a thank you song for the lovely sisters that cooked our meal. Sister Jolliffe had had pipe chimes made. We are playing He Sent His Son. It was absolutely delightful. The first time it was played was a little rough but after the while it was beautiful. It brought goose bumps to my arms. I love music and the feelings it brings. I want to get the pattern and have Elder Archibald build me a set when we get home.
The above picture is not particularly beautiful but I want you to look at how the bush is on the right side of the picture. As we have driven this and other roads I have marveled at how the trees grow so uniformly. Then I thought that perhaps the big trucks going by had something to do with it and then one day we were driving and came up to 3 trimmers going along the road and each was trimming part of the bush: so that is how they are trimmed so evenly. And I thought it was just how they grew. Silly me.

The above picture was taken at night with the flash. One day Elder Archibald noticed a snail on about half way up on the front of our house. It stayed there all day long. That evening when we came home we could see it moving down the side of the house. During the day all you could see was the shell, but in the evening you could see its head and part of its body as it slid down the house. I found it very interesting and watched it in the dark after I took it's picture. Nature is wonderful.
A week ago it was Mormon Helping Hands in the South Pacific. In Greymouth they did service at 2 schools in the area. It was also their Branch Conference that weekend and on Saturday night they had a celebration with the guests from Nelson. Above you can see the 2 pigs which had been cooked on spits during the day. President Kinikini and his delightful wife were in charge and Elder Kaufusi and Elder Sacco had helped cook the meat. It was delicious. We ate only one pig on Saturday night. I think they used the other the next day after meetings.
Above you can see the tables laden with heaps of food. To me it was amazing. The members each brought a bowl for the tea. There was all types of food and everything I tried was delicious. I am not a very adventurous eater but Elder Archibald tried lots too, and it was all delicious. There were salads of all kinds and other meat dishes and different kinds of potato dishes. They also made a yummy drink with watermelon, pineapple, coconut. Oh my, that was a treat.
Merle has taught the many children how to play the finger game where they cross their hands and double them up. Then you point to a finger, don't touch, and have them move that finger. Because you hands are crossed it gets a bit confusing to move the right finger without practice. The children practice and when Elder Archibald appears they come running up and have their hands crossed and want to play the game. It is a universally accepted game and we have played it wherever we go. Above is Mele ready to play the game. Isn't she delightful? We truly love the people we have been able to meet here.
Probably the highlight of the evening was a display of Tongan dancing. I was busy videoing it and Merle was supposed to be taken still photos. Above is one of the pictures taken. It was such a fun evening with our Tongan friends in Greymouth.
Another thing we have been doing over the past few weeks is delivering DVDs--The Lamb of God. There are media spots on the television and a 0800 number to call. So when someone calls from our area the elders in the office call us with a referral to deliver the DVD. We have delivered about 10 and have call backs on all but one. One had requested the DVD but when we called to deliver it he said he changed his mind. Above you can see the backyard from one of our friends, who had requested a DVD. We had a wonderful visit with him. We even left him with a Book of Mormon and will be going back to teach. This gentleman's backyard goes straight up. He said he had tried to climb the hill in the back yard but only got about 2/3s of the way up. The bush is just too dense.

One of the other fun things we have done is attend Care and Craft. It is an activity for Seniors, all ladies. This past Monday they had an Easter Bonnet Parade. Here are the ladies who brought bonnets. The lady on the front row on the right in the blue dress is Jean who is 104. She has taken quite a shine to Elder Archibald. The week before this event we were the entertainers for an hour. We did a sing song--on the cd player and the keyboard. Music is one thing that is universal and even when you get old music makes you feel alive. The lady in the back row with the gray jacket even yodeled for us last week. That was so entertaining.
We are sure enjoying our adventure and seem to be getting busier and busier. Tonight we have to remember to turn our clocks back--daylight savings time is ending until the spring. This is my favorite night of the year--an extra hour of sleep.

A New Challenge, But What a Surprise!

Every week has its challenges and surprises and this one was no different!


Thursday was Transfer Day. So we arose early and drove to Greymouth so that we could take Elder Beckwith to the airport in Hokitika. He was excited to move on to a new area in our mission. He went to Wellington. We will sure miss his enthusiasm. This is a picture of him as he is leaving for the plane. He wouldn't turn around so we could see his smile but perhaps he had tear in his eye as I did. I will miss him but all the elders get transferred from time to time, it is part of their growing. It will be exciting to hear how he is doing throughout his mission. He will be out just past us.
Elder Beckwith left at 9:00 a.m. and so we spent the day with Elder Kaufusi. We went to Lake Mahinapua. It is a large coastal lake. We drove on a one way track through jungle to get to the lake. It was an overcast day, but it was so peaceful here. There were campers and school children were on the lake learning to sail. Above you can see Elder Kaufusi and Elder Archibald trying out the new camcorder--he forgot to push the record button. We wore jackets which were just right to keep us warm.
The lake used to be a traveling place where people from the coal and gold mining met and left from. Above, you can see Elder Kaufusi waving to his mom and behind there is some old equipment that was used for mining. We were just killing time and touring around. After we saw the lake we traveled on down the road to Ross. It was a small gold-mining town. We saw trucks the day we were there coming down the mountain and unloading their material. It was a small quiet town. Further down the road are the Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers--about 4 hours return or more from Hokitika. We didn't figure we had the time. Elder Beckwith said that when he transferred in the people meeting him had done that trip and he waited outside the airport for a few minutes not quite sure what to do. After our short tour we drove back to Hokitika and watched the waves for a while. That is a real novelty for us and the waves at the beach are wild. I also walked along and collected interesting little rocks and the odd shell.
You can really see the waves here. The water is getting quite chilly now. We are going into Autumn. It has rained a lot lately but we do get nice parts in almost every day.
Above you can see our new Greymouth elder, Elder Sacco, from Price, Utah arriving at the airport at 5:10. That was about 12 hours since we had gotten up. He is a nice young man. And we are working at getting him a drivers license as soon as possible. Right now the elders in Greymouth are on foot or bicycle. That is good for them.

I love butterflies and above you can see a monarch on a dahlia. 2 of my favorite things. This picture is taken in a garden of one of our less actives. We had been to visit her but her gate was locked so she must be away visiting her sons. When we got back to our flat that afternoon, we were just relaxing and planning our next moves. At about 5 p.m. we got the surprise of our lives. President Kohu of the Nelson District knocked and we invited him in. He asked Merle if he would be willing to serve as the Branch President. Humbly Merle accepted, and on Sunday in Branch Conference he was sustained. I know he will do the best job he can. He will have lots of help. He has two great counselors and I will always support him. Today we were saying goodbye to some friends who had stopped to visit when the phone rang. I came in to answer it and they wanted to know if this was where President Archibald lived. I said "Who?" and then I realized who they wanted and said yes he lived here. They wanted to know our physical address and so I gave it to them. They were from the Hamilton Distribution Centre. Just when life is getting comfortable we are thrown a new challenge. But we are up for it. We are blessed heaps.