Fishing Updates

We are working both day and night to discover ways that hopefully we can provide lasting benefits to these wonderful people. To help prepare a 19 year old young man for a mission, I’m teaching him English and reading the Book of Mormon with him and his sister in the late evenings.  He allowed the missionaries to cut his piggy tail off so we are making progress.  He brings us bunches of bananas and we put money into an envelope for his mission fund and pay him a little so he can pay tithing and gain a testimony of that commandment.  We are blessed to be teaching a group of extended family members in Chuukese with the Elders.  The Elders are amazing as they learn the language quickly. Yesterday the family called and ask to change the appointment forward a day. We tried to find the Elders but ended up going on our own.  Our interpreter became so interested that he quit interpreting for the group and started asking questions. He is a Branch President from one of the outer islands.  We have made an arrangement with two Chuukese young women who are returned missionaries to help teach the next lesson. I wish there were several just like them in every Branch.

We have been meeting with a family group from the Philippines.  It seems that people from PI are hard working, own or manage most of the stores, and have more education and skills than are typical of the island peoples.  We are praying that many of them will join the church so that we could see a Philippine branch started on the island.

A family took us on a hike up the mountain to see huge cannons that the Japanese left in caves from WWII.  The influence of the years of Japanese occupation is evidenced in names, some customs like slight bowing and the facial features of many people.  The family prepared a traditional lunch of bananas sliced lengthwise and cooked in coconut milk, sticky rice, hot dogs and a can of corned beef as a special treat. We had saucers but no artificial utensils, only our fingers.  Our lovely green table cloth was spread on the ground.  It was freshly cut large leaves/limbs from a banana tree.  The machete is a universal tool because it can clear a jungle path, chop fire wood for the cooking fire, cut the grass, dig holes to plant a garden, weed a garden,  cut down a banana tree to harvest a bunch of bananas (then the tree grows again from the stump), dig tapioca roots, cut mangos, papaya and bread fruit off the tree, husk and break open coconuts and can even be used to make clay steps to a family dwelling.  It still seems a little unusual to see a beautiful young woman walking down a path or the road with a machete longer than her arm at her side. The young children play marble type games with small rocks.  I’ve flipped a few with them and they are quite skilled.  Both girls and boys play the games and love it when they actually have marbles which I’ve seen only twice.

This AM I picked up a Branch Relief Society President and we shopped for a Branch party.  I thought you’d be interested in the menu: 2 cases of chicken leg pieces and soy sauce and white vinegar to use as a marinate and then they will be bar-b-qued (over an open fire in a barrel, 20 pounds of fresh small fish (about a foot long) that will be fried with their heads attached, 1 case of turkey tails, rice, koolaide and sugar which is used to water down the can of koolaide to make 8 gallons, bread which is white round dinner rolls made by the local bakery.  The sisters will add cooked bananas and tapioca (which is not pudding). 

Previous Reports:

• 2007 Fishing Season
• 2006 Fishing Season
• 2005 Fishing Season

Doc & Linda’s Mission Updates:

• January
• February
• March