testimony in chuukese

Hey Mom!

Ifa Soum?  

Hey, that sounds great that you did a blog for me.  I can't look at the blog since I'm not allowed on the internet but I'm sure it looks good!  Thank you. 

Today my camera ran out of batteries and I don't have enough money to buy new ones,  so unfortunately I can't send pictures this week.  

Well it has been a pretty discouraging week,  I am not gonna lie,  but we are still happy! 

Alvonny, an investigator is having a hard time drinking tea, and he's only nine years old.  We are trying to find ways to help him quit!  I actually think it is quite funny.  We are also still working with Lester and teaching Alvonnys mom (Alvins wife)!  So not so bad.  We are probably going to have a baptism or two in the next couple of weeks!   

Transfer calls are coming up on wednesday night!  The other missionaries think I am going to Chuuk or Guam.  I really want to stay here on Saipan though and will be sad when I leave this Island. 

I know this Church is true and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God  and that this church is led by a living Prophet Thomas S. Monson and that Joseph Smith really did restore the true church!  I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ Amen!

now in Chuukese:  nang mei sinei Mwichefen mi ennet me pwe ewe Puken Mormon mi ewe Kapasen Kot me pwe ei mi emwen mi manau sofouson Kot Thomas S. Monson me pwe Josef Smit feri niwiniseni ( I think thats restore) ewe ennet Mwichefen! Ua apasa ekkei mettoch non ewe fan iten nom Sias Kraist Amen

Love you guys so much,

Tong

Elder Kearl

short update and more pictures sent in the mail

Hey mom!

How are you?  Ifa soum ewe famini?  Hows the family?  

I am doing great.  So this week is probably one of the best weeks of my mission so far.... alot happening here on the island of Saipan!  

First and foremost...yesterday Saipan branch became a ward!! We have a bishopric now with Bishop Esplin as Bishop (he was branch president) and Bro Lumbanyia as First Counsellor.  They have not called a Second Counsellor yet for some one reason!  

We also had zone conference on Tuesday!  I was able to see my mission president, it's been weird not being able to see him for three months.  We had a good talk together.  He said our area has lots of potential.  He is a really funny man!  When he arrived, he and Sister Dowdle came out of the car they were eating McDonalds.   During our interview he was still eating McDonalds!  We talked about the fall and the importance of having a positive attitude. 

We are finding some new investigators.  We have to delay Alvonnys baptism for a couple of weeks so his dad can get the priesthood and baptize him.   We are also working with his dad (have actually been doing that since I got here).  He has some word of wisdom problems but together we are working on it.  We told Alvonny he can help too.   When he sees his dad chew beetlenut,  he can take it away from him!  

Well I gotta go I luv you

Sipwap Chufengen

Tong

Elder Kearl

side note:  Del Benson sent me another card in the mail with pictures of the missionaries serving in Saipan.  Very kind of him indeed....
julie

survived the tsunami warning

Hey Mom!

Ranineem!! Ifa Soum Faminiei???!!!!  (how are you my family?)  

So this week was probably the most interesting and funniest week so far on my mission and not just because of the Tsunami!   I was with Elder Nicerio who is from the Phillipines because both of our companions were in Guam for Leadership training!  He is absolutely hilarious!  We would be talking to people when we were tracting and we if they would reject us he would say to me..."they are afraid to know the truth, I can testify of that my brother!"  He is just a lot of fun to be around and we get along very well.   

Then on friday the Tsunami warning happened.  It turns out that Saipan was protected by the Tsunami because of the marianas trench and so we were fine.  When we received the warning we were helping someone move and we had all their stuff in our pickup truck.   We were driving on beach road and we had the cab top open and a whole bunch of their boxes fell out and so we had to stop at the side of the road, get out of our cars and pick it all up!  Turns out it was just some water, cleaning chemicals and some tupperware and my companion called the member and told him in tagolag "Brother... your stuff is missing from the  pickup and your tupperware is rolling on the road!"  He didn't say Kuma sat or hello or anything he just straight said that and it was so funny we were laughing so hard!   The way he talks is very amusing!  Very straightforward and matter of factly. 

Back to the Tsunami warning.  At first we had no idea what to do so we put food and supplies in the back of the truck and went around warning members.   We couldn't contact anyone at the mission home in Guam or our local leaders because they were all in leadership training.  They called us two hours later and told us to go out and make sure all the members were aware of the warning and get to higher ground!  The whole Island went insane!  All the grocery stores were packed since everyone was stocking up on food and buying gas.  We were fortunate because our truck had plenty of gas and our truck was loaded with lots of food and so we were just fine!  

SO I am still ALIVE!!  

WELL i GOTTA GO, 

LOVE YA, 

C YA

Love Elder Kearl  

branch get together

cute kid

more cute kids

typical meal we are served

earthquake in japan.....tsunami watch in saipan

early friday morning i woke up in the middle of the night, started surfing the net and saw that there had been a massive earthquake and tsunami in japan, not to far from dan.  i then saw that saipan was on alert for a tsunami and became a little worried.  his island is only 5 miles by 9 miles and so if a big tsunami was coming there was no where really to go.  i checked his mission presidents blog and it informed us that they were aware and had been in contact with each missionary and they were all prepared.    i didn't worry for that long;  i knew dan had been instructed what to do and that he would follow the instructions exactly.   i was relieved the next morning to see the warning had been lifted for micronesia and no major damage had been reported.  it is devastating to see the damage in japan, my thoughts and prayers are with the japanese people at this time.  my heart went out to the moms who have missionaries serving in the area. it was over a day before the church could confirm that all missionaries were accounted for and fine.  i look forward to receiving dan's email tonight to hear about what happened.  julie

converted to spam and rice....

tracting in the jungle

Hey mom!

Thank you so much for sending me all those emails.  I am wondering if you can send me some more pants.  I only have one pair of pants right now because my other ones are getting repaired by a member lady.  It feels like my clothes get destroyed here more than they did back home.  Oh, and some socks would be great too, I seem to be running out!  

I am getting more used to working in the heat here in Saipan, but I always feel myself sweat, very different than the climate in Calgary.  I feel like I really belong here in this mission and living on this island, it is weird and great all at the same time!  

I can hardly believe that wednesday will be one year since grandma died.  I was really sad when I thought about her this week, I miss her so much.  She loved me and was always so good to me.  On Thursday it hit me all of a sudden that I could hardly eat my dinner.  

I have been converted to spam and rice.  You put them together and they are so good, especially with soy sauce!  You can barbecue it too.  That is so exciting that Kent is waiting for his call, I think he is going to go somewhere good, I can feel it! Be sure to let me know when he gets his call. 

So exciting that Grandma and Grandpa Kearl are getting ready to put their mission papers in.  I hope they get called to this mission, they need a senior couple on Kosrae!  I am happy to hear that Thomas Palmer received my letter I sent him.   I drew him a picture because he drew me one too, but I am afraid mine isn't very good compared to his, it was awesome!  I am going to send you my memory card through the mail, please send it back to me when you are done!  

How is Grandpa Rosenvall? Please tell him I am thinking about him right now and I will send him something soon!  It will be a very hard for for the whole family thinking about Grandma.  I'll pray for you all!

well I gotta go

Love ya

Elder Kearl

AP's come to visit Saipan, they are tall dudes!

missionaries serving in saipan

cutting a coconut with my machete

kalabera caves on P-day

very deep and a little scary