June 20, 2014

Kamehameha Holiday was Wednesday, June 11,  2014.  We got the day off from our Mission work and we went to the Bishop's Museum with the Coopers.  The Bishop's Museum is about the history of the Hawaiian Islands from the beginning when the natives from the Polynesian Islands migrated to Hawaii in their sailing canoes to the present time.  These families sailed thousands of miles without any navigational tools except for the stars and the moon and soon populated the islands.  They traveled from Tonga, Samoa, Fiji, Tahiti, New Zealand and many other islands.  They must have had the urge to travel and very good reasons for leaving their homes.

The Museum is a complex of several buildings with different activities.  The main building housed the history showing various tools, weapons, canoes, etc.  It told the story of King Kamehameha and his winning battles with other tribes and organizing the people under one leadership, making himself as King.  He was a very large man and won many battles.  He was a successful king and the islands accepted Christianity.  The white people came and settled in.  They also brought disease which nearly wiped out the Polynesian population.

During the middle 1800's the first Mormon missionaries came to the Islands.  They settled in Laie and built up a thriving community.  The Temple, BYUH and PCC followed.

After the Museum tour we went to the Ward Mall and ate at a new restaurant.  Can't remember the name but it was very good.  We will need to remember for future use.  Of course a day wouldn't be complete without a visit to Ross Department Store.  Sister Tremea and Sister Cooper shopped while the Elder's sat on a bench and waited patiently.  We got home around 8 pm and got ready for another day of Missionary work at the PCC.

On Friday we went to Haleiwa Joe's which is a restaurant in Kaneohoe.  We went with five other missionary couples to celebrate anniversary's and birthdays.  They sat us at one long table and we enjoyed the meal and the scenery.  The Missionary couples were Elder & Sister Cooper, Pollock, Painter, Johnson, Tremea and the Bailey's and the son D-Bob.  We have been blessed to become acquainted with theses wonderful people, we have made new friendships that will certainly go forward and provide us places to visit and be together.  This is the wonderful part about missionary service here at the PCC.

Elder and Sister Lund, Sister Clark from St George

Single Sisters with Elder Pollock and Elder and Sister Lund

On Saturday we made a Costco run.  George wanted us to get supplies for his house.  In addition we went to K-Mart to find curtains for the master bedroom.  I think we will have to take them back, George is after something different.  Oh Well, K-Mart is not the greatest place to find curtains.  We spent nearly $300 on stuff for his house, we will deduct it from the cost when Becky and Mark and family come at the end of June.

Fathers Day Sunday was a good day.  At church one of the families in Laie sang.  They sang a medley of Father's Day Primary Songs.  The group was brothers, sisters, aunties, daughters and moms.  They were all from Sena's family.  It was a nice tribute to Fathers Day and her Father.  Our Bishopric lost a counselor today.  Brother Shade is returning to the mainland to teach at BYU Provo.  We will miss him he could always take over a class when someone went missing.

Aimee and family had sent a complete dinner from Omaha Steak Company.  What a treat.  We went to George's House on the deck and BBQ the steaks.  Coopers came with us.  We had whole dinner planned and cooked.  We just sat down to eat when it started to rain….we just moved into the bottom unit and ate inside.  Funny weather, it had been blue skies and sunny all day, then just when the steaks were done here came the little grey rain cloud.  Turned out fine, and we will remember the fast move of all the good food from outside to the rain less cover.  Rain stopped just as we finished eating.

Monday we were back to work early.  Sister Cooper and I were asked to cover for our boss Kathy this week.  She was in Washington DC for a dance workshop.  We had 8 students coming in to work with us at 8:00 am.  So, we were up and early getting to work.  The students were good kids and wanted to help. We put them all to work, then went to Tita's and bought 3 loaves of homemade bread with butter, and 5 cartons of chocolate rice pudding.  The kids were so hungry they ate everything.   The Costume Department for the first time looked like a clean workplace.  

There was one problem however.  Because of the rats….bait was put out to kill them in the ceiling. Unfortunately, the rats ate the bait, died in the ceiling and we had dead rat smell followed with maggots.  Sister Cooper and I had had it.  We marched to the bosses boss and up the line.  We had pretty quick action.  The following day the ceiling was cleaned.  We are waiting for the next episode of the rat patrol.   I for one, hope we don't have one.

Now for the swivel chair accident.  Don't ever stand on a swivel chair.  I knew that one, but I didn't realize while sitting on a swivel chair,  I couldn't lean down to pick up a dropped bobbin on the floor. I reached down to pick it up and the chair scooted backward leaving me seat less and I dropped to the floor.  My head hit the corner of the fridge, my neck caught the iron garbage can and my feet went to the ceiling.   What a sight.  Sister Cooper told me after, good thing my underwear was clean.  What a friend.  Anyway, I had a headache, arm and shoulder pain and both wrists were sore.  It's all part of the day.  I was stiff and sore for couple days.

By Wednesday of this week we were ready for a change.  Elder and Sister Fuller went with us to Haleiwa for dinner.  After dinner they wanted to go see the turtles.  We had never seen turtles on this beach.  We have been to the beach with Aimee and family and Mike and family and still no turtles. So we were in for a big surprise.  We saw 9 turtles on the beach.  It was awesome.

Three of the 9 turtles at sunset

Ivy is a student from China that sews with me in the afternoons.  She is an only child.  Her father joined the church with her, but her mother is not a member.   She has only been here since January. She asked me about the hike called The Stairway to Heaven last week and said some of her friends were going.  She wanted to go with them.  The hike has been closed to the public and a guard has been placed at the gate.  It's a dangerous hike, and many hikers have fallen or been hurt on the trail. Kids and Polynesians have found a backdoor entrance now to sneak in.  They leave at midnight and make the hike up.  She wanted my opinion.  Well, I told her she shouldn't go.  The kids were breaking the law, she wasn't a US citizen, and I didn't know what would happen to her if she was caught.  She might be sent home.  She still wanted to go and for the next two days she would hardly speak to me. Then Monday, she came running up to me and said she didn't go.  She was smiling.  I knew she was happy.  I hugged her and told her she had made the right decision.  She said she felt good about her decision, in fact she talked the other students to not participate also.  When we make the right choices, we are happy.

We worked again last night at the PCC.  The crowds are coming back.  It's summer and we have had over 2,000 people at the PCC each day this past week.  I'm still not sure how we feed that many people every night.  It's a miracle.  After we work, eat and meet in the parking lot it's almost 7:30 pm. Elder Petty has it timed for us to see the volcano erupt on the back of the Ha Show at exactly 7:32 pm.  This is a picture of the back stage event in the parking lot at 7:32 pm every night.

We love and miss you.  Have a good week.  Be good and do good.
Nona and Papa