Hi!

Hi awesome people,

 What can I say, this week was a huge learning week for me.

   I have loved serving with my new companion, Sr. Bluker. She is from New Caledonia and finishes is 2 transfers. She loves to talk so we have been finding potentials like crazy. It is awesome. I have a lot to learn from her.    Yesterday, we ate coconut tree crab. It comes from the TUAMOTUS (like TAKAPOTO, where I was). It is luxury food here and even in TAKAPOTO, only the rich can afford it. It is a really pretty blue color and then when you cook it turns a really pretty red. The Jacquet family bought it just for us wanting us to try this dish. The meat in the arms was good. Then in the stomach of it, the crab eats the coconut tree and has enough food stored in his stomach to survive for a month without eating. To get that out of the stomach you squeeze it. 

The Jaquects told us that was the best part of the crab. So they squeezed it out into bread for us. It was brown looking but didn't  taste bad. Yup. I can now say I have eaten coconut crab insides.

  

The work here is Fautaua is incredible. There is so much to do. The more we work the more I realize that. 

  Recently we have been working with two youth, Ariirata and Manutea. They both have been taking the missionary lessons and want to go on missions. It is incredible, because as they have read the Book of Mormon and gone to church they have had a change of heart. Manutea is even going to sing in the Christmas concert. We have planned their baptisms. 

  We work with a lot of youth in this area. They have a lot of faith. 

  I was really touched this week because I prayed to have a good day. Then as I was doing my personal study, Sr. Reyelts dropped off a huge bag of groceries for us with  a homemade salad. It was a direct answer to a prayer, evidence that God exists and knows us. I am so grateful for that experience. Really I cannot tell you how many times people have taken care of us here as missionaries. It is incredible. The members here have so much faith. 

    I gave a talk in sacrament meeting Sunday. I really prayed for it to go well and for my French to be ok. I got up there and it was a huge struggle for me. I felt like no one understood me. Then I also was speaking and just started to cry because this mission is almost over and looking out at the ward and the people I love so much I just can't believe how fast it has gone. 

  After the talk, I ask Sr. Bluker why was it that it was so hard for me to speak there. She told me that maybe it was because I needed to learn patience with myself. Then I remembered this week I had been praying to have patience with myself particularly (see PMG chap 6 attributes assessment #39). There is another prayer that God answered for me this week. 

  Today we spent a little time playing volleyball on one of the black sand beaches with the missionaries. It was so relaxing to be there and some of the smoothest sand I have felt in my life. Tahiti has black sand beaches because before the island was a volcano and all the volcanic rock sanded down makes a black sand beach. It was incredible and so relaxing to be there. 

   There are so many blessings to serving a mission. I am so grateful for it all. I love you all so much and hope you have a great week!

Love,

Soeur Campbell

PS: HUGE SHOUT OUT to my mom who's birthday was yesterday!! I love you so much. You are the best! I couldn't be out here without you!!