Week 69 in Tarawa

This past week has been taken up nearly entirely by preparation: preparation for the EDU 430 Classroom Management class we start teaching tomorrow, January 11th, preparation for the Sunday School lesson I taught today, and preparation for our return home.  The latter preparation for our return home was the purchase of a van so I'll have a vehicle to drive.  We managed to go the entire week without taking a single picture, so Sister Sumner started recording our Sabbath day on her iPad.  This 1st picture is of the coconut grove we walk past to and from the TALL (Technology Assisted Language Learning) Lab where we will be teaching.

 

Flowers and flowering trees are in bloom year round in Kiribati.  We wonder if we have started taking the beauty around us for granted.

The only flowers left on this tree are the ones that are high enough to be out of reach of the girls who pick them to put in their hair.

We don't know what kind of tree this is beside our Moroni High School Maneaba, but we call it the climbing tree because of all the children we often see climbing in it.

Another tree behind the maneaba about to be covered in white blossoms.

This is the same coconut grove seen above from a different perspective. It is one of our favorite places to stroll alongside the ocean.

This is a baby Pandanus tree.  If you look carefully, you can see a Pandanus fruit growing near the bottom right hand corner.  Local people break the large pod apart and chew on the individual segments but don't actually eat them.

These are the pink and white flowers growing on the bushes right in front of our apartment.  In the evenings around sunset they put out a most fragrant aroma.

When the tide is out, the sound of the breakers is much softer.

But we can still hear them rolling in and crashing on the barrier coral reef farther out.  Unfortunately, this picture doesn't show the distant breakers very well.

After our Sacrament Meeting, Sister Sumner took this picture of the missionaries.  Given the difficulties of their living and working conditions, they look amazingly good, don't you think?

Iotua Tune taught our Priesthood Lesson.

Sister Cross taught the Relief Society lesson.

Elder Sumner taught the Sunday School lesson.  You'd think Sister Sumner could have at least taken a picture of me smiling!

Our last picture for today is of me slicing the banana bread and the French bread (in the foreground) that Sister Sumner baked yesterday.  I hope she keeps on baking bread even after we return home, although that will certainly not help my diet any!








We hope this blog hasn't been too boring.  Many of our blogs only highlight the occasional outside and unusual activities we are involved in.  Truth be told, most of our daily activities are very routine, although I would NOT call them boring.  Being called as full time missionaries colors all of our daily activities whether they are routine or not.  The name plaques we wear serve as a constant reminder to everyone we meet that we represent Jesus Christ and His restored church.  While it is a solemn and sacred responsibility, it is one that fills our lives with joy and happiness none the less.