Good morning everyone! One week down...many more to go. I haven't had much of a problem adjusting and I'm happy to say that the tan/burn lines are starting to form. To answer your question Brady, at the PCC we give tram tours that go to BYU-H, Laie residential area, and the Temple. My summer tour giving skills are actually coming in handy. There are a lot of asian people here and its funny because whenever they see me and my blonde hair, they want pictures with me. Its only ever the men though haha and I definitely stand out here but I'm finding that its usually a good thing.
The natives here are so nice. Even if they don't want to hear our message, they will still usually chat with us for a while so we can soften them up a bit. I've gotten more kisses in the past week than I have in the past year LOL....everyone here gives us kisses. At first I was a little weirded out but I'm starting to like it now :) There are some boys in the ward that want Sister Smith and I to go surfing with them. Tempting, I know. And for those of you that are curious...yes, I am putting on weight. Sister Smith said if the polynesian people love you, they will do anything for you. That means that we always eat their food and LOVE it haha. That's how we find people to teach. We will be blessed for our willingness to eat their food and hopefully the Lord will help me take the weight off when I get home.
A really cool thing happened this past week. We were teaching the second lesson to a recently found investigator on Sunday. Her name is Marie and she lives in Kahuku with her 3 children. We were planning on extending the commitment to get baptized to her that day even though she was only on the second lesson because she really seems ready to have the blessings of the gospel in her life. As Sister Smith was about to ask the question, Marie beat her to the punch and said, "Well Sisters, I want to be baptized. What do I need to do?" Wow. We both wanted to jump out of our chairs and yell Yippee!! I have come to learn that there are lots of people out here that are not ready to embrace the gospel, but when you find that one person who has been prepared, it makes all the other rejection worth it.
The Lord's hand is in all things. He guides this work because it is His work and it will continue to move forward! I see miracles everyday.
Love,
Sister Stringer
