Maiana 5 October 2015 (letter in the mail)

Hey,

So yeah, no email today. Sorry. Apparently, the power/some battery died in Tarawa so the internet's not working today. Hopefully they'll have it fixed by next week though?

Would like to start by saying a huge THANK YOU for the package. It showed up last night when the plane came. (Flies here on Fridays and Sundays). Yeah, you're all pretty much the best. We were way tired from the whole fast Sunday and tons of biking thing but then I had to stay up late reading the letters and stuff. One good thing about letters vs emails is I might actually try and answer Q's from letters/respond (which I have been horrible at so sorry for that.)

It's night right now and I'm about to go to bed, but I need to finish writing this so here goes...Today was pretty busy. Did not get studies in today so I've been feeling that. Instead woke up and we fixed Elder Nauer's bike, then hand-washed our clothes. Then ran down to a marriage we were going to be doing for some of our investigators (not doing, just witnessing.) Yeah they didn't show up. Everyone's all busy right now cause the Kiribati Pres (who's final term is up) came today to have a celebration/party/gathering here since Maiana is his home island. Pretty big. He'll be here tomorrow too and leave Wednesday. So since we got stood up, we went and Elder Nauer dropped us some coconuts (moimoitos) and we messed around and had a good time. Then we played volleyball with people who are actually good and on a low net. It was fun. ; ) Elder Nauer's a stud at volleyball. Then with no one home (the whole island but us is staying at the gathering) we had noodles and crackers for a lunch snack and dinner. And Elder Nauer got chatty and I got tired...

P.S. to answer Fanning Island trip Q's:

-no missionaries on Fanning because no plane that comes, only the boat every 3ish months. So round trip boat rides. :)

-we stay at church maneba/Kiribati house (chapel/giant shade structure) for the Elders near it. Members feed us the WHOLE time. Between the two of us we had one pack of fruit snacks. I didn't bring them.

-we had two people get baptized by their dad who we interviewed. We gave the Aaronice Priesthood to the dad.

-Easily the greenest, most alive agriculturally place I've seen yet in Kiribati (Maiana's the 2nd.)

There should be pictures on the SDs Elder Stone took back with him. So those should be getting to y'all around now.

Love you all,

Elder Pettingill

Pictures from his trip to Fanning Island

Also, if you haven't watched the videos he sent from the boat and on the island, here they are again. Just click on the links below:

On the boat

dolphins

more dophins

and even more dolphins with Kiribati language in the background

riding bikes on the island

Maiana Week 6

We fasted that we would be able to successfully combine the
whole island for fast sunday church and it worked out! The little
stick chapel was packed. We had a sweet break the fast lunch
afterwards and planned a Christmas party! I felt like it was a pretty
sweet answer to our prayers...

Pretty much the same old same old living in our stick house and taking
bathroom breaks in the woods and stuff. President Weir and the two APs
visited us (elders Davis and Openshaw) to give us a pick me up
(homemade bread and 4 apples and some pringles) and to do other church
stuff.  It was fun and we spoke English and everything! Also we got
this way good feast made for us. Elder Davis who's preparing to go
home (only has like 2-3 weeks left) reminded me of how different
America is from here and stuff  #thedifference
#notsureIllbeabletohandleit

prayer as a form of communication has really been a focus of mine this
past week and I have started teaching investigators to ask in the
personal prayers the question Ko uara? or How are you? to our Heavenly
Father as a way of starting out and have actually used it myself. If
nothing else it is a great reminder everytime that someone is
listening. Talk to him.  Definitely seen answers to our prayers this
past week.

Love you all so much
Elder Pettingill

Questions:

I'm guessing the internet was down last week? yeah the internet was out last week

How is missionary work going over there? Are you able to teach a lot? Do you have good bikes? yeah we teach a bunch and we have nice bikes, I think we average 20-25 miles a day on these super nice dirt roads that should be flat but never are ;)

Can you tell us about one spiritual experience you had this week? too many spiritual experiences to share any of them sorry...actually I forget them all and don't bring my journal (I record at least one every day)...OH! We've been teaching these kids who's parents are more than happy to let them have lessons but they aren't ready themselves and then lately they have been hanging around listening in until nowadays they get ready and listen silently and support their children. We talked with the wife yesterday and she said that is because they've seen such a change. Before it would be her husband doing one thing and her another but the lessons bring them together as one and she really likes it and wants to take lessons too she's just gonna wait a little longer to see if her husband will take them with her. I then quietly testified to her of how we don't want to teach people so bad for any other reason than the one that she just stated. Te bitaki or "the change"

Here is a video from Daniel's birthday in June that we loved watching. This was when he was still on Christmas Island.