Aloha

Good Morning Brothers and Sisters and Aloha!
It's so good to see your beautiful smiling faces! That's what President Peterson is going to say this week when we have Zone Conference. Yes I'm still with Elder Unga here in Maui and If I'm lucky I'll get to serve with him one more transfer. We are commencing week five of my fourth transfer here in Maui and I am loving life. This morning it started raining really hard right at the close of Comp. study so all four of us in the pad got into our gym shorts and t-shirts and jumped in the puddles in front of the house and made a slip and slide out of the grass in front of the church parking lot. I guess I was being a little too up tight with my boy Elder Unga, our district leader elder LeJohn sat us down last night and conducted a pretty intense companionship inventory where we said a lot of things that needed to be said. I've learned a lot of patience over the last 3 months and I'm working on being more humble. Sometimes I feel like my companion is holding me back but I needed to realize that he is my responsibility just as much as the area is my responsibility. I love Elder Unga and I've gotten to know him so much more than I knew "Greg" back home, he has a whole different side and has taught me so much of the Tongan Culture. Last night I decided that we needed to bond more so we all built a fort covering the entire kitchen starting from the top of the fridge and holding down the sheets with weights and packaging tape. We all slept underneath it and I froze because all of my blankets and sheets were making the fort instead of covering me!
Believe it or not we are doing a lot more than building forts and playing in the rain. We are trying really hard to teach all of our lessons in Tongan from now on. Every day for Comp study we memorize one of the principals from the lessons in Tongan and do a role play. Rob, we are kind of the same as you right now. We don't have anyone with a baptismal date and are struggling to find new investigators who will keep their commitments. Lisa failed the 15 step program. Yes it is the same one with the grapefruit juice and the vitamin c. We dropped her but are currently teaching her Mom and her sister (IOLANI not LOLANI) the after baptism lessons. Because we don't have tons of investigators right now we are working hard on our recent converts. In my opinion retention is just as important as baptizing. Nela Bloomfield (the big Tongan kid with the fro) is finally thinking about cutting his hair so he can bless the sacrament and get his patriarchal blessing. It is really hard for him because both of his parents are dead and all of his immediate family hates the church (including his parents when they were alive). Luckily he has an Uncle who is on the stake High Council who is a really good example and said if Nela decides to serve a mission he would pay for the whole thing for him. He currently doesn't want to go but if he did it would be the happiest day of my life, he is praying about it. Nela got baptized right before I got to Maui.
Mom, I got the new shoes, thank you so much! I haven't received the pants yet though. I loved yours and dad's Emails, they are always the best!
Rob, good luck with your back, I was just telling elder Unga this week about how I think Physical Therapists are so creepy. Remember the freaky guy who took pictures at all the Timpview Basketball games (not to be confused with the freaky man)?
Another cool thing is that two random people just walked up to us last week and asked us if they could come to our church on Sunday (two days in row). Too bad they probably won't come to the Tongan speaking ward!
Scoty, can't wait to get your letter you, little norker dorker!
I love you all and I love this work! I bore my testimony again yesterday, the Tongan people say I'm their inspiration. Last week for a finding activity we went to a big parking lot and drew with sidewalk chalk the plan of salvation over the whole thing and talked to people who started watching. Also for a finding activity this week we did "soap boxin", we went out and stood on a raised platform and preached in public Dan Jones style, it was so fun to boldly declare the mission of Jesus Christ. I'll send you guys some Pictures and maybe a video.
Any cameras coming soon? Disposables are lame...
Tau Toki Sio Eh?
Ofa Atu
Elder Prina.