The Adventure Begins: The Island is Out of Power

Dear friends and family, 

   This week has had its challenges. Good grief! haha.

  We will just cut right to it. My companion and I have gone into camping status.

  The island's electrical generator is very broken. We have been surviving for the last 6 days with no running water or electricity in our house.

  Most of the Takapoto has found a way to generate their own houses without the community generator, but there are others who don't have their own generators. Those "others" include me and my companion.

  The great thing is though is my companion comes from Montana and has been camping a lot. So we have been using her knowledge to figure out a lot of our problems. 

  I will explain why we don't have running water in our house. Our water pump is electrical, so with no power, we have no water. 

   Tuesday and Wednesday we went without a shower. Those days were super hard making the adaptation. We sang "Count Your Many Blessings" in French and Tahitian so many times.

   Thursday we decided we needed to find a way to make a shower happen. So at 6:25 am Thursday morning, we had a knock on our door. Our branch president had connected a pipe to our water cylinder and told us we could use that to put water in a bucket and take a shower.

  Sr. Stosich also figured out how to flush the toilet with no running water. We have also been brushing our teeth under the stars. And Saturday night we washed our hair under the stars. We have really been getting creative. 

  Today we even cleaned the house with no running water. We just went outside and filled our buckets.

  Ok. So that is our rough it status. It makes me think how I could have used a little bit more camping experience before coming on a mission. Those of you who know my family  should be laughing right now. hahaha. 

  And for those of our who have running water and electricity, this is a call to be grateful! There are too many things in life we take for granted.

  Well, that whole crisis happened Tuesday and then Thursday I came to the realization that some things just don't really matter. The light and water are important, but people and their salvation and spiritual growth is way more important. 

  I have seen more people read the Book of Mormon since the power has been out. It is amazing and a miracle for a missionary to see. 

  We don't know when the generator will be fixed. People say all sorts of things. This morning they were saying they are going to get a whole new generator shipped from Tahiti. If the boat comes here directly from Tahiti that will mean 2 days, but I think they are still trying to figure out exactly the problem. 

  This morning we got up and did some cophra. Pretty much Sr. Stosich and I pried open coconuts and stacked them on top of each other. The coconuts will stay there to dry out a couple of days and then the insides of the coconut will be taken out in a process they call "pita." We were helping out one of our recent converts, Mauhuta. I actually taught him in Tahiti. It was some nice work but didn't really seem to bad, because we were doing it right in front of the lagoon.

  This week has been full of blessings because so many people have given us fruit. We have received bananas, pineapple, grapes, oranges and apples. I was especially excited to eat the grapes and pineapple because it has been 3 months since I have had fruit like that. 

  We also have seen miracles with the people we teach this week. We have committed Gloria to pray about a specific baptism day. We found out why she was hesitant. That took us some time to figure out. Communicating in Tahitian really takes patience and persistence. I love Mami Gloria though. we keep on inviting her to all the little church activities we do (like English class and music class) and she comes to every one of them. It is really good for her because otherwise, she would just stay at home. 

   I also love speaking in Tahitian. It is like a puzzle because a lot of the times you describe a word because there isn't a word for it. 

  We also had a miracle Friday. Friday there was a new cargo boat coming to the island. So the whole island was waiting for this boat for like 4 hours, meaning our lessons got canceled and we ended up at the dock with the rest of the island. While we were there one of the ladies were used to teach, Mahina, came up to me and asked if we could teach her English at her house. I was thrilled and Sr. Stosich and I are happy to have a new opportunity to serve.   

  Well, I just have to say how much I love this island and these people and the language. This week has really helped me to realize that and to have a little glimpse of how God loves His children.

  I hope you all have a great week! Don't forget to count your blessings.

Love,

 Tuahine Campbell

"The Picture Perfect Scene"

Dear Family and friends,

  So last week I couldn't send an email because the power was out most of the day and the were fixing the generator for the atoll. Then when we did go in to do our email, the computer had a problem I think to the loss of power earlier in the day. Then we didn't have much time and p-day ends at 6pm. Yeah, it was all a thing, but things are great now.

  So I cannot believe it is already that time, but my sister Erin, who has been serving in the Nagoya JAPAN mission for the last 18 months goes home today!! I am so happy for her. Her example has motivated me and helped me to be the missionary I am since the beginning of my life. So SHOUT OUT to Campbell shimai. I LOVE  YOU!!!!

  One of the best things of my week has been teaching Gloria every day. I just love her. She is like 65 and we are pretty sure she has had a stroke, making it hard for us to communicate, but her testimony is so strong in the Book of Mormon. 

  We teach her in Tahitian, so we really have to focus on the Spirit, but it has helped me listen better and study more. I love it, I love Gloria. Like I said last week, she never really wanted to be baptized, but because she has been reading the Book of Mormon, she has had a change of heart. Now she tells us every lesson how much she loves TE BUKA A MORMONA. 

  Her love for the book has grown as we have given her 2 or three verses to read after every lesson. It is just glorious. 

  Another miracle this week was that we found Loic! He has been like gone somewhere on this atoll for the last 3 weeks. It was great to see him. He is the one who caught the huge tuna a while back. He loves to fish. 

  So Saturday we decided to fast with one of our amis. I explained how fasting was for 24 hours without water or food and that we fast for an objective when we fast. Then I asked our amis, "So why do you want to fast?" We had already talked about dedicating this fast to overcome obstacles for baptism. Our ami responded, "to loose weight!" 

  In that moment....as a missionary I was super concerned. Then we resolved concerns and started the fast, but looking back that was so funny.

   Oh, so HEIVA (the games and dance community thing they have been doing for the last month) ended. Every team who was in it got a cow-calf to roast as a prize. So Friday we ate the calf for lunch. It was my first time eating it and it was pretty good. Actually, probably the best meat I have had on this mission, besides the fish. Then the next morning my stomach didn't feel well. oops!

  Saturday we had a lesson with one of our recent converts. We started the lesson with a hymn  and prayer and then our convert tells my companion,"You  smell like a tourist. Hasn't anyone told you before that your perfume smells like a tourist." She didn't understand so I translated. We were both really confused because she hadn't put on perfume. Then it occurred to us it was her American deodorant. Then we really started laughing. haha. Oh, the things we hear as two white sister missionaries on this atoll. It is priceless.  

 This week we contacted Cheyenne. She has seen miracles in her house, because of the example of Vaitea (our ami, who has been reading the Book of Mormon every day). 

 So we had our first lesson with her and explained the restoration and it went well. But as a missionary, you never really know if it went well until the next appointment if that ami is there. So we went back for the 2nd appointment and she wasn't there. Then yesterday Sunday we decided to stop by and see if she was home. She was home, but they were eating, so we said we would come back later that day.

  Well, the day went on and we had about an hour left before we were supposed to go home and I remembered we needed to go see Cheyenne. 

 As Sr. Stosich and I were riding our bikes over to Cheyenne's house, wondered if she would really be there. As we approached her house, we see her in her yard with two chairs for us and trying to read the Book of Mormon. It was a picture perfect scene for a missionary to see. And she was there!!

  It was a miracle. I was just ready to cry as we testified of the Book of Mormon and the church. My heart was in my mouth. It was the greatest feeling ever.  

  And that is how we ended the week. I couldn't be any happier. 

  I love you all. Thank you all for every prayer, letter and the encouragement! Have a great week!

 Love,

 Tuahine Campbell

Having the best FHE and hearing "I Love You"

Hi, Everyone!

  I remembered last week after I already sent my email that I failed to give a shout out to my sister Kadee for her birthday! So HAPPY BIRTHDAY Kadee. shoutout! I love you! As you are 18 now, welcome to being independent. 

  Now as for this week. So many miracles happened. I don't know if I will be able to write about them all, but I will try. 

  To start out the week Monday night we had a branch family home evening. Sr. Sommers and I were in charge, so we delegated out the lesson and activity and watched one of the best activities I have been to here unfold. We asked 2 young adults to take charge of the lesson and activity and the turnout was just so good. They went above and beyond what we would have done as missionaries. It was also great because there were 5 investigators there too. 

  Then after the family home evening, our ward mission leader pulled out a chair for Sr. Sommers to sit on. What happened next was fun to watch. Because Sr. Sommers was getting transferred and leaving Takapoto, everyone came up and put shell necklaces around her neck that they had either bought or made by collecting little shells, then piercing them and stringing them. It was awesome. We took a bunch of pictures and by the end of the night, she had like 30 pounds of shell necklaces on her. As she was drenched in necklaces, the members wanted her to eat with all them on. We didn't do that. I helped her take them off, which was quite a task. That is what happens when you leave Takapoto. 

   Then Tuesday we really ran out of water. Our house has 2 black cylinders that collect water and the one we were using were completely out...oopppss. So we called our zone leaders to get permission to shower at a member's house and we prayed for rain. Then we found out there was still water in the other black cylinder, which was good. I was worried I would have to tell my new American companion as she got off the plane, "Welcome to Takapoto! It is like paradise here, but we don't have water." 

  So Thursday we went to the little airport here to send off my dear companion Sr. Sommers and pick up my new companion Sr. Stosich. 

  Almost everyone on the island was at the airport to send her off and put another 20 pounds of shells necklaces and leis around her neck. 

  So my new companion is Sr. Stosich. She just got finished training that means she has been out for like 5 months as a missionary. She really has the gift of tongues and works hard. She comes from a small town called Lima, Montana where there are like 200 people that live here. 

  So with Sr. Sommers (who is Tahitian) gone that has left me with the responsibility to teach in Tahitian. Good grief. I am grateful for the gift of tongues because I have fasted for it and all the sudden I LOVE teaching in Tahitian. Before I would have trouble understanding in Tahitian lessons, but now, miracles happen and things have changed.

    Friday, Sr. Stosich remembered she had my letters from the mission office with her!!! YESS! It was a happy day because the mission office doesn't send our letters often, because it is a whole thing to send them on the boat.

  Also Friday we learned one of our amis, who didn't really want the "missionary lessons" at first, is determined to stop smoking. He has started reading the Book of Mormon and feels the power of it. Within the last month as he has been learning about the gospel with us he has decreased his smoking habit from 3 packs of cigarettes a week to 2 packs a week and wants to continue. We encouraged him to pray and ask God for help to continue to stop smoking. It is wonderful because he is already having that change in his life and becoming converted. 

  OHHHH. The craziest thing happened this week. Friday Sr. Stosich and I went to go see Yves, who speaks only Tahitian and is like 50 years old. He has had missionary lessons for months now. We went over there and the spirit was so strong. We talked about 1 Nephi 10:6 and how Christ has saved us from death. At one point he asked his daughter in law to translate and she came and left because we ended up not needing it. That lesson was just full of miracles. I could feel God's love so strong. At the end of the lesson Yves was so touched he told my companion and I, "Ua here au ia orua" or "I love you guys." I have never heard those words spoken by a Tahitian before. Yves had truly felt charity, the pure love of Christ during that lesson and was changed by it. That was probably one of most marvelous experiences of my mission so far, to hear those simple words in Tahitian. 

   Saturday we put on another branch activity. The branch walked about 40 minutes together to a beautiful lagoon. It was really pretty. My companion and I then taught the members how to play signs. A couple other members played the ukelele and jammed out to Tahitian songs as we were there. Some other members took advantage of the beautiful lagoon water and went swimming. We didn't. haha. 

   Sunday was fast and testimony meeting. I knew I needed to bear my testimony because I was really touched by a letter my dad sent me explaining how my family is praying for the people of Takapoto and that my family also loves the people here. So I got up to bear my testimony and started with, "J'ai  recu un lettre de mon pere.." (I got a letter from my dad), then I continued to explain through tears with my American accent how much love God has for His children here in Takapoto  and how much my family loves them too, then of course how much I love them. The spirit was strong and had touched my heart. I felt soo much love for the people.

  Then we had a miracle, because not very many usually stay for the Gospel Principle's class for the 2nd hour, but so many people stayed. It was kind of intimidating because we as missionaries were supposed to teach the class, but everyone participated and learned something. We talked about service.       Later that day we ended up at our ami, Mami Gloria's house. Mami Gloria has taken the lessons since Sr. Kimball served here, so about a year. Sr. Sommers and I have been praying to have a miracle with her for 3 months now. We haven't known what to do, because the lessons are in Tahitian and sometimes we don't understand or she doesn't understand, but last week we asked her to read Mosiah 18:8-10 about the people of Alma and  baptism. She had already read those verses like 2 other times. Well, Sunday I was asking her about what she read and baptism and she tells us she wants to be baptized! I have no idea where that came from, but I was studying about charity this morning and really thinking about Gloria and I think I have and idea.

  1 Cor 13:13 talks about faith, hope, and charity, and that out of the three charity is  the greatest. For the last 3 months, we have prayed and visited Gloria with faith and hope that God would work a miracle. About 1 month ago Gloria was sick and had to go to Tahiti to get medical help. Ever since that trail, Sr. Sommers and I were there for her to encourage her with her sickness and get a priesthood blessing and everything, going to her house just every now and then to check up on her. Put simply: we were really trying to serve her. Then she came back from Tahiti pretty much healed.  God orchestrated a miracle for us because now she has just had a huge change of heart. 

  Being with her yesterday was just an awesome feeling. I was able to speak with her in Tahitian and encourage her. That was a miracle too.

  I could just go on and on. My mind is blown by thing changes we have seen in the amis this week. Surely God is in the details of our lives and is mindful of His people here in the isles of the sea. 

Love,

Tuahine Campbell

  

No Water, Sacrifice, and Miracles

Bonjour mes  amis et ma famille,

  Je vous aime! E here au ia outou!

  This week was full of many experiences. I will start out saying that Sr. Sommers and I planned during weekly planning last week to make a sacrifice to see some miracles with the amis we have. We decided that we would fast 3 times during the week for our amis. Well, you all will read throughout this email, there were many miracles to follow that sacrifice. 

  First off, Tuesday I was reminded to be grateful for the running water and electricity we have as the power was out almost all day, meaning we didn't have running water, but it was only one day and a good experience. It happened because the whole islands runs off of like 2 generators and they have been using a lot of electricity to power the lights for the HEIVA games every night. All in all the generators were exhausted. Since we didn't have any light in the house, we did our language study at night under the stars. The stars here are incredible. That experience without water and electricity throughout the day, brought my companion and I to our knees at night really just thanking God for the light and water we had in the past, that we never were grateful enough for. 

  Wednesday we had many miracles with the amis that we fasted for.

  One of our amis, Jean Paul, who at first didn't want anything to do with us, told us that since he has started learning about the gospel with us, he has stopped drinking. 

  We haven't even talked about the word of wisdom with him yet, but he has already started to make changes in his life to keep that commandment. 

  We also had a lesson with Vaitea, who is loving studying the Book of Mormon with us. He usually studies the Book of Mormon for 2 hours daily and Wed. we found out that before he reads he refrains from smoking for 3 hours. 

  Again huge miracle, because we have focused on the Book of Mormon with him haven't committed him to stop smoking yet. 

  OHHH yeah, we also found out this week my companion, Sr. Sommers is getting transferred this Thursday. It was a surprise for us because normally the transfers are in like 2 weeks. We put all her stuff on the boat that came Saturday, to go to Tahiti. We got the transfer call Friday night. The miracle was though, that she was already ready. So packing Friday night wasn't that stressful.

  Sunday we had a district conference. Pretty much it is a branch conference. There were 6 priesthood leaders that came on a boat Saturday from other islands. 

  Wednesday during our coordination meeting we found out we needed to have a choir for the conference Sunday. Sr. Sommers and I headed that one up. We held practices two nights in a row and the members were supportive. 

  The Sunday conference came and the choir sang "Seigneur Je Te Suivrai" (Lord, I would Follow Thee) and "I Know that My Redeemer Lives." They did well for only two practices. 

  Also Sunday we put on a fireside. We decided to delegate. Throughout the week we asked families to prepare a song to sing as a family about Christ. Then we asked a couple of members to share their testimonies about the Savior's role in their life. 

  The  program went really well and the Spirit was super strong. It was really simple. There were 6 families who each sang a different hymn about Christ, but there were many in tears at the end. It was an evening where the Savior's love was felt by families. 

I was so happy that the night was a spiritually edifying experience for the members. Music is so so so powerful.

  As I accompanied on the piano, my heart was full. It was like I was at home accompanying my sisters on Sunday night as they played hymns on the violin. 

  Today Sr. Sommers and I went fishing again. It was a good day to fish. The sun was bright and everything. We saw sharks and the water was so relaxing. I love the beach. I love serving a mission in paradise. During the week it is easy to work hard with the work,  but preparation day..... ahhhhhhh, yeah the best water in the world is here. I have never been in it, but the way it looks is breathtaking. AND now my hands smell like fish!! hehe. 

                                         Well, hope you all have a good week!

                                                             Love,

                                                     Soeur Campbell

Tehiva family and their backyard

cleaning fish like a tahitian..then we ate it.. hehe (check out those sandal tan lines:)

The ocean here, it doesn't look the same as the lagoon at all. The lagoon is prettier

Changes are Happening in Takapoto!

Helloo my friends and family,

  This week. haha. Let's just be honest, I don't feel like writing much today.

  We worked a lot with the members this week which is good. President Bize has asked us to do that more often. He has challenged us to work with at least 4 different members each week. 

   Sr. Sommers and I felt inspired to start a choir here in TAKAPOTO, so that the members can sing and feel the spirit. Music is powerful and I know that will be something that will help the branch. We found some choir music on lds.org and are going to put it to good use. At times like this, I am grateful for the ward/stake choirs I went to growing up.

  Tuesday we did some service for a member. Here they put long cords with plastic on them in the lagoon for little clams to grow on them. Then after the cords are left in the lagoon for about a year it produces a clam and the inside of the clams are shiny and they use the to make jewelry. The metallic clam is called "knack." The service we did was helping arrange the plastic cords to be put in the ocean. The cords are at least 20  yards long. 

  Well, the next morning after we did that little service, there was  a knock on a  door. The member, Pres. Pickett, had bought us two HUGE boxes of food. 6L of milk, 4 boxes of cereal, 4 bars of chocolate, a ton of apples and oranges, many packages of cookies. It was a huge blessing. The members really sacrifice to feed us here. Those boxes of food had to have been super expensive, considering a box of cereal here is like $7.

  Friday they had local dance competition for HEIVA. Well pretty much every girl on the island danced (literally every Tahitian girl knows how to Tahitian dance), so we went to support our investigators and members. It was super fun to see some culture and dance.   

  We invited some drunks to church Wednesday.  One of them was inactive. Then Saturday we saw this same young man (it is a small island, you see everybody all the time), on his hammock smoking and re-invited him. Sunday he was there at church. It was a great miracle. 

  We fixed a lesson with him after sacrament meeting and so Sunday afternoon we had a lesson with him. 

  He told us he had come here to Takapoto to escape his problems back home in a way and think things out. We shared with him how there is ALWAYS hope with Jesus Christ. He told us in tears that he was almost convinced there wasn't hope and thanked us for reminding him.

  We then gave him a Book of Mormon and read with him the sentence in the Introduction that reads, "Those who read this book will find the way to have peace in this life." I then bore testimony that through reading the Book of Mormon I find peace every day. He then looked at me and asked, "How do you know I am searching for peace?" I didn't know, but Heavenly Father sure did.  

  It was so nice to have that miracle lesson Sunday. My companion and I both felt the spirit strongly and it was an encouragement to us. 

   My companion finishes her mission in 3 weeks (the same time as my sister in Japan), so we have decided we are going to make some sacrifices this coming week to show our commitment. It works out well because yesterday in Sunday School, we talked about the young rich man and sacrifice. 

   As for me, I am pretty sure God sent me to this island to learn patience, faith, and humility. These past 2.5 months in Takapoto have been super eye opening to me, pushing me to be more and more reliant on God. I am so grateful for Him in my life as a rock, someone who stays constantly there for me. My mentality is becoming more  and more, "just forget everything and rely on the Lord." 

  As for today, I discovered in the bathroom a big spider and didn't scream or kill it (they don't really kill bugs here, that includes cockroaches and bees, the only exception is mosquitos). The bad new is though I think it is still lurking around in there. Oh well, some things are just better left unknown.  Then later this afternoon we made fondant (like brownies)  with one of the ward members, Sr. MATEHAU. 

  My sister, Abbee, asked me how we wash our clothes and here is the answer. Well, we have a washer outside our house, and then we hang our clothes out to dry.

  Enjoy your summer! I love you all.

  Love,

Soeur Campbell 

Cow Heart and Speaking in Church

Iorana outou!!

  Tei vai ra i te mau mea ino teie hebidoma, tera ra, aita vau hinaaro ia papai no nia i tera mau mea. 

   Ok, good luck translating that! :P I will tell you though what I ate this week. 

  We were at the barracks (the little "restaurant" stands for the July festivities) and I was eating chow mein. Then Sis. Tehiva told me to try this meat that was on a skewer, so I did. Then found out it was cow heart. 

  I ate cow heart!!! There aren't even any cows on this atoll! like the duck, I ate last week, AND like the duck I tried last week, the cow heart wasn't my favorite. 

   Then I don't know if it was the cow heart, the raw fish, or the water, but something made my stomach upset for the next three days after. So I survived off of crackers and rice for those days. 

  The Heiva July festivities continue here. The whole island meets to compete Monday-Thursday from 6pm to like 8pm ish. Then Friday and Saturday each team sings and dances. There are 6 teams, each is a color and they all play. The branch has a team. It is awesome because Eria, our investigator decided to play on the branch's team. 

  They compete on a point system and there isn't really a winner. The Heiva will continue through this whole month. It is really simple, but it has a big family reunion feel. I really like it because there are maybe like 600 people on the island right now, and most of them are on a team. 

   Right next to the fields they play at is where the barracks are, and that is how the barracks make money. 

  This week it was really nice to have all our amis back from the other atoll (Takaroa) and our ward mission leader.

   We had lessons with Vaitea (who wants to know more about the Book of Mormon) every day. He has read almost all of 1st and 2nd Nephi in the last 2 weeks. We keep on encouraging him to pray about it. He is loving what he learns in the book. He keeps telling us he reads when he can't sleep and then when he reads his eyes don't want to put down the book. 

  He has changed since he has started the reading the Book of Mormon and it is really a miracle to see. What really gets my companion and I is that he brings his co-worker, to the lessons because he wants him to learn more about the gospel too. 

   Then Vaitea was at church Sunday too. And he even stayed for Sunday school. That is huge!!

  One of the other greatest parts of my week was our amis Loic. He loves to fish and is always all over the island. We go all over the place to find him for lessons, but the great news is that now Loic carries a little backpack with his brother's Bible and friend's Book of Mormon in it everywhere he goes. Now he is always ready to have a lesson. And he came to church Sunday too!

  Oh yeah. Sunday I spoke in church in French. I spoke about Elder Renlund's conference talk and  Nelson Mandela's statement, "I am not a saint unless you consider a saint to be a sinner who keeps on trying."  

   Pretty much everyone feels great right after they are baptized because they are cleaned from sin, but after that what happens. We all mess up, so we need to keep trying: praying and going to church when we don't want to. When we keep going, despite our weaknesses, we can be made holy or saint.

   Also, I would like to give a shout out to my older sister, Sister Campbell, who is on a mission in Nagoya Japan and whose birthday is this week. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! mahana oaoa no oe! And Bon Anniversaire! From a sister, sister missionary to sister, sister missionary: I love you!! 

   Good luck this week!

  Love,

 Soeur Campbell

When MOST of the ATOL is gone..... The Work Still Moves Forward

Hi everybody,

  I hope you are having a great summer. It has actually been "cold" here the last couple of days. It had to have been in the 50's with wind.

 

  I ate duck yesterday for the first time. There isn't any ducks on this atol. It was imported. It wasn't my favorite.

  Another great eating experience I had happened Saturday. We were just outside the church eating with our Branch President and his family. He encouraged us to eat with our hands. Well, everyone eats with their hands here, even for steak. So we ate with our hands.  

  For the 4th of July, we did nothing. haha. I had Sr. Sommers, my Tahitian companion, sing "America the Beautiful" for companionship study. I also read in 1 Nephi 13 when Nephi prophesies about the American colonization and revolution and how God would help them be free from captivity of the mother Gentile nation (England).

 This July 4 was special because I was far from America and now I really appreciate America more. I realize more how guided our founding fathers were and how America has been blessed as a nation.  

  This past week most of our investigators were in TAKAROA (a different atol) for the sport challenges this week. In other words, there was like no one on the island. Sr. Sommers and I would go running in the morning and practically see everyone on the atol within that 30 mins of sport and then we would go see them again throughout the day. 

  We had some good experiences thinking of people to see this week, because like I said we would see everyone before lunch time. 

  Saturday we were totally stumped on who to go visit, so we asked ourselves, "First off, who is here on the island?" Then we thought about it..."pretty much everyone is gone and if they are here, we have already seen them." haha.

  Saturday we were also at the airport to send off Mami Gloria, the mother of Marie Louise (who we made cake with that one time). Last Monday her leg got infected and swollen, so she was at the little clinic they have here. She also had a really high fever. So Tuesday we went to see her and encouraged her to get a priesthood blessing and she accepted. The next day the swelling went down in her leg, but she spent the rest of the week in and out of the little clinic here. They decided that she needed to go to the hospital on Tahiti, so Saturday she left with Marie Louise. 

  I am so sad they had to go to Tahiti. They will probably be there for like a month. I will especially miss Marie Louise who has shown us us much love. She doesn't know how to read, but has sooo much faith. She is a huge support to us in missionary work too.  

   Now that July is here there is something going on called Heiva. Heiva is a month long celebration that happens on all the islands of Polynesia Francais. Here on Takapoto they are going to have more sport competitions like soccer, basket ball, volley ball, and pitonck. They also have built "barracks." A barrack is a structure made out of plywood that the community has built for people to buy out a room and sell their goods. Then everyday from 5-11pm at night. The people who bought a barrack sell their food as concession. So pretty much a barrack is a Tahitian concession stand. 

  I have started teaching in Tahitian more. We were in a lesson with an inactive this week and I was trying to explain something in French and the member wasn't understanding, so I looked to my companion to help me and then she told me, "try in Tahitian." Then I started teaching in Tahitian and the member seemed to understand. It was truly a miracle and the gift of tongues. 

  I am learning switching languages during the lesson helps, because Tahitian is a supperrr simple language. You can't confuse the investigator too much in Tahitian, like you can in French. 

   Yesterday night (Sunday), we had a huge miracle. It was about 5:30pm and we had a meeting at 6pm, but we knew we had to go see someone. I had previously made an attempt to set up a lesson with a family earlier in the week, but they weren't there when we went over thereon Friday afternoon. So Sunday night we went over to their house again and they were all there. It was a miracle. This is like the saddest thing ever, but that was my first time teaching a family who is all not members to put things in perspective. My companion and I were thrilled to be there with all their family, and they were thrilled too. They gladly accepted us. They were happy to be together as a family, because 2/3 kids go to school on a different island during the school year and they aren't often together as a family. It was wonderful. 

   The other good news is that our investigators all came back today from TAKAROA, so we are going to have people to teach this week. They were supposed to come yesterday (Sunday), but there was a big rain storm. They were smart and didn't want to take the chances of getting caught in the storm trying to make the boat voyage between the islands. 

   Thanks for your prayers and encouragement and your faith. I love you all!!

 

Love,

Soeur Campbell