31 Aug 09 Rob

Fairdinkum Mate!

To: marprina@hotmail.com
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 2009

How ya goin' mate?
Things here are great in Waterford just 30 minutes south of Brisbane Australia. Me and Elder Finau have hit it off great. He was a DJ before his mission and that's what i want to do when i get back. He said he is going to come out to Utah for a month in November of 2011 and set me up right there in Provo. He is full Tongan from South Auckland New Zealand or "En Zed" as he calls it. In new Zealand and Australia they pronounce the letter 'Z' zed instead of just zee and they pronounce the letter 'H' Hehtch instead of just ehtch. hopefully you understood whatever i just said - They're awesome i love them to death.
Mom and Dad its great to hear from you guys. Thanks for the emails. I still am not allowed to get on the blog so if you could continue to send me Matt's weekly emails that would be great. I think the blog idea was sweet though. How is it going? Is Sierra and John helping out with it? i wish i could see what it looked like. you guys should've just made a facebook group for us. haha.

Matt what happened to your slip on hush puppies? Are you getting new ones? i've been wishing i would have got slip ons now. 'cause we pretty much take our shoes off outside everyone's house we go into - and tying and untying is getting annoying. Thank you for the money mom and dad it got me to the end of the month. We're very blessed here in our ward. The first week elder Finau was here the youth gave us 2 big laundry baskets full of food and toiletries and chocys and everything. and everyone in the ward all ways tells us that we can come over to eat anytime if we don't have food.
In Australia next Sunday is fathers day. Our ward is having a fathers day potluck dinner this Friday night and the second councilor in the bishopric - Brother Vakalahi (which means 'big boat' in Tongan) who is a very large man, got up after sacrament meeting on Sunday and asked if everyone could stay seated for one last announcement. He went on to say in his broken English that there is a fathers day pot luck dinner this Friday and that he would ask the Relief Society sisters to bring "more extra". he goes i can eat ten chicken wing so i ask my wife to bring twenty chicken wing. I ask you all to bring "more extra food". Haha i just about died laughing.
Hes the man, one time he had us over for tea 2 nights in a row. In Australia Tea is synonymous with dinner just so you know. We don't drink tea thats just what they call dinner.

My Spacific Cuts hair cut (from the less active guy (Lance Liufau) who lives in our complex that we've been teaching) was great! It was the first time in my life i got my hair cut at a barber shop and i loved it. It was a kicking barber shop too. it was playing Michael Jackson remixes and had footie (rugby) posters up all over and it was just a really good atmosphere. i was like wow i wouldn't mind working here. He treated us real good and gave us both sweet hair cuts for 1/2 price.
Today we're just going to finish up our little bit of shopping real quick and then go check out some of the shops and salvos (2nd hand shops). Then i am going to try to write some letters and maybe get some shut eye because we had to wake up early a lot this past week. After dinner tonight we have 2 investigators we're going to visit and get return appointments, we've already committed both of them to baptism in the 1st lesson!
Send me a Pear Pie!! mmmmmm that sounds so good.
Tell Brother Andrews and Brother Stobbe hi for me.

It sounds like you have a great yard and garden and that you are having fun with the bocci ball set, good for you.

I didn't know you guys were having a family reunion at strawberry!! That sounds so fun! You better take pictures of the whole family together and send them to me! That would be so fun - even if it storms! haha. It rained this morning for the first time in ages. It was random because it's been really hot and sunny lately. It is just coming out of winter here and it is already up in the high 30's... Celsius that is. And with the humidity its killer. I've taken a lot of cold showers.
Matt how hot is it there in Hawaii? Is there seasons there? or is it just always summer?
Is the family all getting along well? Everybody better love each other. As i have loved you - Love one another.
Is Sierra getting tired of being pregnant? I miss kyler so much. Send pictures of him back on the flash drive that i send you. Have you used your new camera much mom? That's to bad that Matt's got run over by a car!
We don't have a full time car anymore. We have to share with our neighboring Elders in Beenleigh. So we only get it half the week. We drive a white '08 Toyota corolla - Matt is that the same car they have there in Hawaii??
So for half the week we Bike and "beat the feet" as Elder Finau calls it. It's helping me stay fit. We lost the cell phone at the beginning of the transfer and we just barely got a temporary replacement until they get us one with our old number on it.
Dad i did notice that you spelled Their/There wrong. shame on you... haha, don't you know i put your emails in the Waterford ward newsletter... how am i going to have any respect for my dad if people see that he is spelling "there" wrong. Haha , just playing dad.

Dad it is great to be the messenger of such great a message! You never feel bad about what you are doing in your life! It's the best! Tim (our recent convert) never ceases to amaze me, lately his talks of going to BYU, serving a mission, and finding good girls in the YSA program. Hes 21. He's my hero.
That's awesome that you have some jobs coming up - i've been praying for you guys.
I haven't read Elder cooks conference talk yet, but i remember liking it when i watched it. I'll have to check it out today.
Have fun this weekend with the family at Strawberry everyone! Don't stress about it. Don't worry so much about the little things and you will have a good time. Dad i can't wait to see what the yard looks like when i get home. It sound like its going well.
We've done a lot of service this past week for part member families where the dads aren't members. We're building good relationships with them. One of them is from South Africa and reminds me a lot of Morgan Freeman - he's the first black person i've taught so far on my mission! I miss African Americans.
Dad we've been doing some service on this big piece of land that i'm sure you would trade anything to live on. The first time we went there i thought of you and was like if only dad could see this place; he'd be here in a second. I'll have to take some pictures for you. Its beautiful out here guys. It really is. Everyday i wake up and i'm like - its another beautiful day.
Lincoln if you get a chance to read this email before you leave on Wednesday good luck buddy! I know you can do it. I've always respected you heaps. God speed.

Im excited to go through some of the new temples when i get home. Don't talk about swimming please. i want to go swimming so bad in this heat, there is a swimming pool in our complex, its so tempting.

I don't appreciate that you will write to me about politics but you wont write me about whats going on in BYU football. Did i tell you that Fui Vakapuna is my companions second cousin and that he's played ball with him at family reunions and stuff? I thought you would appreciate that dad.
I'll try not to use my debit card unless its an emergency.

Matt. We dropped lance. We are picking up nicely with Fiona however. Elder Finau has done a wonderful job of setting attainable goals with her and her partner Junior. They are now reading and praying together daily, and they came to sacrament meeting yesterday as well as a musical fireside last night. We have another lesson this week. She is doing much better. She also came to our ward sports day on Saturday as well with some of her non member guy friends. We had some good basketball.

Matt that's sweet that you got my letter from brother Arthur. He's actually not going to BYU he was just dropping off his 18 year old daughter Celeste at BYU. They are Maori people, they rule. Matt have you been able to listen to my tape yet? record something to send back!

Matt do you eat much Taro? Have you had Otai?? its sooo good. Matt i agree with you about what you send about Boston. That's hilarious that you saw the Bye bye birdie kid! Matt that was a crack up story about the Pigs! haha some things you will only experience on a mission.
Well my time is up again.
Faa Fe Tai Lava for everything. Fa! Love,
Elder Prina AKA ROB