Episode 18: Flying Rat

Picture this: I'm on a split in Taravao with lovely Soeur Manning. We go to a baptismal interview for her friend Richard, who is getting baptized next week! Richard wanted to do it at his house, so we meet up with elder-ma at this beautiful house in the mountains of Taravao overlooking the Tahitian sea. The district leader and Richard do the interview while we wait and hang out, admiring the view. After everything's finished we're all just chatting, when I hear a rustle in the tree just over to the side overlooking a stone fence. A big fat rat materializes out of thin air and begins to scuttle along the fence until it reaches the end of it, which is just a big space where the gate is meant to close. The rat fearlessly continues to scuttle along and then proceeds to Superman-style launch itself off of the fence, where it then splats on the ground like a beanbag. Unphased, the rat continues on its journey into the Tahitian jungle. We all watched it happen and just kinda sat there staring in silence for 10 seconds lol

Anyways greetings everyone, I hope you've all had a wonderful week! This has been a really sick grind week over here. We've been doing a fat handful of lessons and splits and meetings and work work work. Next week is going to be the last week of the transfer too!! So so crazy. I'm going to be getting out of training so I can't pull the greenie card anymore. I'm super excited though! I've got no clue if I'm staying or leaving Mataiea but I hope for the sake of the ward I'm staying hahah. I don't think they can take another whitewash (brand new set of missionaries). 

This week we had a multi zone conference with an area 70! It was super fun and so awesome to hear all the discussions and to see a whole bunch of other missionaries. 

The highlight of this week was visiting this really awesome assisted living home. We go there every week for Olivier, a member who speaks almost only Tahitian and has a really bad problem with his knee. So we go and we visited Olivier, and usually he always seems a little sad, but this week he was smiling and laughing and he seemed so much happier! After we visited Olivier we met this cute mami in the home named Odette, and we sang for her and visited for a little bit! Then we saw Paolo, who is this super kind old Italian man who speaks Italian, French, and English. We've been trying to visit with him for the past few weeks but he's always been asleep so it was a great miracle! He really enjoyed our visit and we're gonna try to catch him again this week! He was telling us all about how he used to be a sailor, how his favourite place to sail was Greece, and how he's just sold his yacht. I love Paolo. I'm trying to learn some Italian on Duolingo for him but it might be better to stick to French and English.

I finished the Book of Mormon this week too! So, my little invitation for all of you this time comes from the very last chapter, Moroni 10:4-5 (a classic)...

4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. 5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.

I can testify that this is so true!! When we ask God of something with a real, true intent to know of its truth, it'll be made known unto us. I've seen that for myself and others! I invite all of you to pray about the truth of God's love for you this week, because while I know for a fact He loves every one of you perfectly, it always feels better to hear it from Him :)

Anyways that all for today! I love you all, have a great week!

- sœur snuggs <3