Elder Michael in Niuatoputapu

Elder Michael in Niuatoputapu
The Other Side of Heaven

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Happy Easter

Well i am really really sorry that my letter didnt get throught to you
last week. I wrote it on the same email as one of those pictures but
i guess it didn't get through im really sorry. it wasnt really long so
ill try to summerize what i said.
I didnt get transfered i stayed in Nukunuku which im really happy
about, though Elder Mafoa did get transfered which i was really sad
about. We got really close and i really missed him for the first few
days of the transfer. my new hoa is Elder Tu'avao from Orem Utah, he
went to school with Sarah Leveitt and was in the MTC with Travis
Se'uli. He has been out over a year and is really good at Tongan he
does not speak to me in English which i am very grateful for and since
he can speak English and Tongan equally well he is able to explain
stuff to me. the language is still a struggle for me but it will
come. The work is going great!! This week went by very fast, Elder
Tu'avao and I were out of the house all day talking to members and
talking to people, the Lord has really blessed us we currently have 4
progressing investogators, 3 of them have been committed to baptisim,
one is actually going to be baptized tomorrow which is AWESOME!!
Easter was kinda strange because all the other churches it was a
big deal and they were doing special programs but at church for us it
was not anything special, (or maybe it was but i just didnt know it
because i still cant really understand the Language haha)

Okay i got to go LOVE you all
Ellen have faith in your self
Dad congrats on the race and thanks for all the pictures
Mom you are awsome
LOve you all okay
sorry this is short.

PS. Ellen if you get the chance can you tell Roshan and the ORtiz that
i sent them a snail mail.
--
'Ofa atu
Eleta Maikolo

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Ma le

Malo tolava kakai 'oe Mamani!
This week has really flown bye!
Transfers are next week so this is likely my last week with Elder
Mafoa i am really going to miss him i have been really blessed with a
great companion and a great Trainer.
This was reallly an awesome week. Yesterday was perhaps the best day
of my mission! it was also the busiest day of my mission as well. We
woke up at 6 am to go clean the baptizimal font from then on we were
visiting members, making sure the programs were printed, getting the
baptismal records all straightened out, and other things preparing for
the baptism. We also had out quarterly interview with President that
went well. We were really busy all day the only time we had to relax
was when we ate Dog at Bishop's house. 'Uie Yah i ate dog yesterday
and it was as good as advertized. It was a little chewy and probably
could've used some A1 stake sauce but over all it was very delicious.
i took alot of pictures as evidence. At first it was a little weird
but then i tried it and tasted how good it was. it was probably the
best tasting meat I've had in along time, it kinda tasted like stake
but instead your eating off the bone like chicken. I hope that made
since and that your not throwing up right now.
The baptism yesterday was amazing. Three people where getting
baptized Maile, Siaku and Sosaia. There ages are 14, 16, and 9. We
Maile and Siaku are cousins and we taught them at their friends house
who are members. Sosaia's family are already members and he goes to
primary and everything but for some reason he wasnt baptized when he
was 8. Maile and Siaku's friend Lepeti baptized all three of them.
It was reallly a special baptism. the man who gave the talk about
baptizim talked about how there hadnt been a baptisim in Nukunuku of
more then 1 person in a really long time. Like the entire ward came
out to show their support there was almost as many people as sacrament
it was really cool and there was a special Spirit there. I it was the
coolest baptisim ive been too since Josephine's baptism. After the
service we had Ice cream and bread rolls. Bishope's friend provides
ice cream at every baptism for Free. "The Church is true" he says
when he told me about that.

Well thats about it with me sounds like everything is going great back
home with the kitchen and everything. Love you all so much thanks so
much for all the prayers and love. The work is going forth here in
Tonga.

'Ofa atu
Eleta Maikolo

P.S. tell Hubeto CeolIo i found out that one of the sisters in one of
the Families in the ward went on her mission to Boise Idaho with him
isnt its such a small world!. She is married now but her name on her
mission was Sister 'Ahokav

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

'Ofa Lahi Atu

Oh good im glad Hillary got that Email from Elder Fokimauana, yah the
APs came and picked us up and i thought we would come back later but
didnt happen. Yeah i baptized 4 kids the Saturday before last, i was
told like literally 5 mins before the start of the baptisimal service
that i would be performing the baptisim and go and change, i didnt
even know their names so i had to have them read to me from of the
witnesses, it was really a cool experience, there were a total of 6
people baptized that Saturday which was really awesome, the last
person baptized was a sister from austraila and the service was in
English, it was kinda cool to hear everything in english again. An
investigator Elder Mafoa and I have been teaching Maafu got baptized
last Wednesday, by his cousin. He is the first person i taught all
the lessons to, (more like Elder Mafoa taught the lessons and i just
bore my testimony). We have 5 investigators that we have either
already started teaching or will teach by the end of this week. two of
them already have baptisimal dates. We also are teaching a 9 year old
who goes to church and his whole family are members but for some
reason he didnt get baptized when he was 8 so the missonaries have to
teach him, its kinda weird because he has gone to primary his entire
life, i teach him in my broken Tongan which is really good . The
Language has been a struggle, i never know what is going on during
meetings and my comp is the one who does all the talking ...
i am getting better and should realize im not going to become
fluent in my first transfer.
This week i had some really cool experiences:
ELder mafoa and i took some short cuts through the 'uta (the bush or
wilderness) to get to some members houses, i bet i was the first white
person to ever have seen the path we took. it was really awesome to
walk where only pigs and young kids have been before... we visited a great
family this week..the father
is in the Bishopric and the wife is in the primary presidency and gave
a talk a couple of sundays ago. they are some of the most fathful
people ive met here in Tonga. they literaly had no material things but
they were some of the richest people i know because they have a
testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
I know ive said this before but the best members in the world are here
in tonga, they love the missionaries, and one of the hardest things
ive experienced so far is eatting at a families house and having
everyone watch you eat. we eat first and no one else eats until we are
done. its strange and kinda hard when you have the little kids who
you know are hungry and want food but they have to wait until you are
done and you know that they might go without food for a little while
so that they can feed the missionaries. you want to eat as much as
you can so that you respect the family but at the same time if you eat
all the food then there is nothing left for them. Seeing what they
sacrifise to feed me gives me such a greater love for these people and
a desire to serve them like Ammon served The Lamonites.
Well i hope a everything is going good back home, we didnt watch
conference last week they watch it the following week here in tonga so
i will watch it this saturday and sunday.
I hope you all know that i love you so much and im so grateful for
your prayers and love.
'Oku ou 'ilo koe Siasi 'o Sisu Kalaisi 'o e kau Ma'oni'oni 'i he
ngaahi aho kimui ni koe siasi taha 'i he mamani.
'Ofa Lahi Atu
Elder Maikolo