June 10, 2012

 June 10, 2012 update:
Teaote is a special lady.  She is very educated, ran for Parliament and works in accounting for a company.  She has such a mature outlook on everything and a solid testimony of the church and gospel.  Talking with her, you would think she had already been a member for years. She is married to an Australian and speaks English very well. 

The elder in the sulu was doing the baptizing.  The native in the back is in the bishopric, the one on the right is the IT man for the church's service center for the country and also serves a a counselor in the mission presidency.  The lady on the left is, I believe, the R.S. president.

Teote made her own baptismal dress.  Above, she is by a hybiscus flower at the church.

This picture shows the road that goes the length of the island and one form of transportation.  They also have 15-passenger vans that run continually, which you can ride for $0.70.

Because of the close tie with Australia, they drive on the left side of the road here.

 Surprise!  Judy is teaching a square dance to the young single adults.  The stake president, President Tune (pronounced toon ay), when he saw dancing on our list of things we could help with, wanted us to teach some pioneer dances for a Pioneer Day celebration he has scheduled for July 24.  Most of these young people are returned missionaries.

 The young man with the big smile originally said he just wanted to watch, but I got him to take my place and he was having a great time very soon.

                                    Looks like they're having fun.

 Look closely and you'll see where walls have been built on the beach, then filled in with sand to provide an area to put a house on.

 At low tide a man walks between islands on a man-made walkway.  The kids use it as a slippery slide sometimes, since it gets covered with algae.

 Kids here love to do handstands.  We didn't ask them, they were just doing it in front of the bank.

These kids aren't shy.  They are happy and beautiful people.











We are happy and well.  We are getting scheduled in to help out with teaching dancing, leading and keyboarding classes and a personal/family finance and budgeting workshop, in addition to our duties in the missionary finance and flat oversight.

Having 3 other senior couples here with other assignments in humanitarian, medical and CES makes for an interesting exchange of experiences.  It is a great group of people to associate with.  We still sweat a lot out in the heat, but we are getting acquainted with things and places, as well as getting to know more people.  We were told our assignment would be English-speaking, but it appears we will have to speak some Kiribati, especially as we get to some of the outer islands to do some training.  Even with an interpreter, we need to comprehend their concerns better.

We enjoy keeping in touch with family with Skype and emails.  Thanks for all the interest and support.
Elder & Sister Bush