7-2-12

Sup Dudes,
This letter's gonna be mega quick today cause the senior missionary couple are coming to pick up the mail in like two minutes....OK, jk, they just came, so tough luck.  But actually the ZL's are going to Apia tomorrow, so I'll just give this letter to them tomorrow.  I assume you've already sent me some stamps, so I won't ask for any just to avoid redundancy.  Also, the letter I wrote last week is still with me so you'll probably get these ones together or something.  But it's all good. 

This week was pretty cool.  It's been pretty busy, which is good, definitely.  Even today (p-day) we had to teach a lesson.  We got up like it was a normal day and did study until 10:00 when we went over to our lesson.  It went really well though.  My companion's Samoan is coming along way good.  This week we're only gonna speak in Samoan, so that should be pretty cool.  My comp understands more than he speaks, but it's coming along way good.  So that's dopeness.  Everything's dank and sick over here.

We got a new investigator this week.  She's an 11 year old girl named Maleka.  She's pretty stoked on the church and has been going and stuff.  We have to finish up her lessons this week, but she's scheduled to be baptized this Saturday, so that should be good.  This morning we taught Failelei, which is officially her last of the missionary lessons.  She just has to get married now.  She's totally ready though.  She understands the gospel way good and reads and prays every day.  We just gotta convince her man to get married and she'll be totally ready.  So we'll see what happens with that.  We'll continue to visit her and teach her just whatever--so it'll be good.  And it's the same story with Faasinoala.  She just has to get married and she's been ready for baptism for months now.  We were supposed to have the interview for marriage on Sunday, but her man didn't show up, so we'll just have to keep working on it.  Also, we've been helping out our recent convert, Palepa, and her family a lot.  We're trying to get them to the temple and get them callings and stuff, so it should be good.  We committed her husband, Samai, to quit smoking so he can receive the Melchizedek Priesthood and he hasn't (smoked) since, so that's way good.  I pretty much called him out on it.  My Samoan isn't good enough to imply secret messages or do any sort of persuasion.  I sort of just have to be blunt with people.  But it works.  I guess just as long as we're following the Spirit.  But yeah, so that's good.

So yeah, it's later now.  Today was pretty cool.  We pretty much played volleyball with our zone and stuff.  It was pretty cool.  So yeah, this week was really good.  We've been pretty busy.  On Sunday we also started lessons with Paualaisa.  That was way good.  He had tons of questions and is really stoked on the church.  He's a way cool guy, probably in his early 20's or so.  He's mega good.   He has a smoking problem as of this point, but I think  he would be willing to quit, so we're going to prepare to teach him the Word of Wisdom this week.  I really think he'll be alright. 

Also, this week we taught a lesson in zone meeting about how to work miracles.  Cause me and my comp are really trying our hardest to work miracles in this area over the next few months.  But it's been crazy how much things have changed just within the last month.  I've really seen so many blessings and so many great things happen.  I consider it a miracle that my companion and I can even help one person to be baptized, let alone any more.  But truly it's the Lord that prepares these people.  We just have to stay in tune with the Spirit so we can be ready when these people come across our path.  My companion and I have really high expectations this month.  I have a feeling this month is going to be one of the best.  One thing I learned lately was the power of personal revelation.  It really is so completely necessary for all of us to know what the Lord wants for us.  My companion and I both prayed to know what the number of baptisms we should give as our goal for this month.  We both prayed separately, but when we discussed it, we had both been given the same number to work toward. It's a larger number than we've ever had before, so this month should be really good.  We just have to give it our 100% so we can make this happen.  But that just tells me that there are a lot of people the Lord is preparing for baptism and the ordinances of salvation. 

Things are going super mega good.  It's pretty hard sometimes, but it's way more awesomer than it is hard.  I feel like I've grown a lot in the last month.  It's been really good.  Me and my comp work really well together and he is progressing mega fast in everything.  I'm stoked on this guy.  Things are freakin' tight though.  It's awesome to see the changes in these people.  It's just awesome to be here.  I really can't imagine where I would be right now if I didn't go on a mission.  There's so many really important principles that I've learned that I really never would have understood if I wasn't here.  The world comes into perspective and you see how things really are and what things truly are most important.  Once you really put the Lord's promises to the test, then it all becomes real.  Your faith grows and you begin to see the blessings of living the gospel and living righteously.  It's good stuff.  The mission is good stuff. 

We also started teaching Faamau this week.  She's probably 17-18 or so.  But she's gone to church a few times and likes to go to all the youth activities.  She has a little brother too, so we want to get him to join in on the lessons too.  That should be good.  We'll need to prepare her a little bit before and she'll be ready to be baptized, but we'll keep teaching her and try to help her develop her own testimony. 

So the work is going really good.  Even though me and my companion have no clue what we're doing, the Lord does, so that's all that matters.  He really does lead up to those who have been prepared.

So yeah, that's what's gone down for this week--it's been a really good week.  Today the mail came after like forever of not getting any mail, so I was stoked on that.  Unfortunately, I have like no time to write letters, so all you people who want letters are gonna have to wait cause we're freakin' busy as heck.  I really have no time.  But I got Becca's package--thanks BECAB!!!!! I was really stoked, for reals, it was the best.  I'm gonna write you, just be patient.  Also, Momma--I got your two packages--thanks a ton.  Really though, it actually just made me feel guilty cause I know you spent like many hundreds of dollars on all those pictures and all that stuff (Julie says not true.)  I do appreciate it and sometimes there is stuff I need, but please don't go overboard.  Like how I asked for pens, thinking you would send me a cheap pack of Bics, but you sent like this huge pack of these nice pens.  And you spent like a billion dollars on all those pictures (again, not true), but I just wanted some printed, not every picture that has been taken since the world began.  Just try to be frugal--it's important to budget your expenses and be thrifty.  I appreciate the packages, it's like the best thing ever, but maybe you could send me cheap things like animal bones, or neat things you find at the dump.  (He really shouldn't give David ideas like this...)  I know I ask for stuff sometimes, but try and be frugal and "money-smart."  Just so I don't have to feel guilty about receiving packages. 

But yeah, things are going good here--it's dankness.  I really can't think of anything else to say and this letter is super long, so I hope it placates any and everyone.

6-18-12

Sup Baby Girl,
How's your bones?  It's a dognar party up in here.  The steeze couldn't be easy, but it's always worth it when you got your dankbones makin' noise.  It's steeze magnets though.  Hardly even naggin the gnar at any points, just when you get weiched. 

Things are sick in the area.  It's all mega good--all good, all good.  Saturday was our baptisms for Dalepa and Pato.  They were mega dankness.  We had Palepa's wedding at 1:00 and then right after we did the baptism.  My son did the baptisms.  He did really good.  It was mega sick.  I was stoked to see Palepa's progression from how she was when me and Nansen started teaching her and how she is now.  It's tight.  And then after we went to Palepa's house and drank coke and ate cookies.  It was sweet.  Technically, I think it was their honeymoon, so I guess I can say that I've "honeymooned."  It was pretty cool.  I guess I can see what all the hoopla is about.  Her husband, Samai, serenaded us with romantic songs on the guitar and we all just chilled for awhile.  But unfortunately, me and my companion had to cut the honeymoon short to go do our baptism for Pato, which was mega dope too.  Pato is tight.  She's real smart and remembers everything that we've taught, so I'm stoked on her. She'll be good for sure.  My comp did the baptism too.  It was way good.  We've been working real hard.  Now we're starting to see some of the fruits of our labors.  We just go out every day and try our best, and somehow it always works out.  It's pretty good.  My comp's humble enough to try out any ideas I have, so we do really good.  He's dope, we get along good.  We pretty much just try our best and put the rest in the Lord's hands, which ends up working out really good, so it's cool. 

We've been fasting a lot too, which has helped out a ton.  I think my testimony of the power of fasting has like quadrupled since I came out on a mission.  Fasting is real good, along with prayer.  It helps me the most out of anything.

But yeah, so then on Sunday I got to do the confirmation for both Pato and Palepa.  It was good--double bones good down here.  I'm real stoked on Pato cause she's the first investigator I've taught on my own.  All the other times mostly my trainer would teach and I would sort of just chill and then bear testimony.  Now it's pretty much teaching everything, so it's kind of a big change.  But I give my boy the opportunity to teach as much as he can.  It's a gnar party no matter what.

Not much else really happened this week. We started teaching Tamoalii--that's been good.  She's gonna be baptized this Saturday, which  should be sweet.  She's only 11, so teaching her is the best cause it's really simple.  Her baptism is gonna be this Saturday, so that should be really good.  We're planning to have Faasinoala married and baptized on Saturday as well, so that should be really good.  She's totally good.  She knows her stuff.  We just gotta get them married and we'll be set.  But I think it'll go down, so I'll let you know next week how it goes down. 

So yeah, not much else really happened this week.  Just the same mold, same mold.  My son's doin real good--he's a real good young chap.  I'm pretty used to fathering young ones, so training is nothing new to me.  I'm sort of the "Dad" to my group of friends back home.  They all loved to call me "Cool-Dad", and looked to me as somewhat of a father figure.  I remember the first time I taught Chase to play catch--boy he sure was excited.  It's really important for a dad to bond with his boy--that's something I learned early on.  It seems like it was just yesterday I put Austin on his first "two-wheeler."  He rode right into old man Wilson's prized rose bushes!  Boy he sure gave us a hollerin' for that one--you bet your eye he did.  And I could never forget that stormy day when that little Stringham boy came running to the house, crying his eyes out because some bullies at school had stolen his favorite set of marbles and then made him eat a grasshopper.  That poor little orphan boy never really had many friends.  But since that day, I took it upon myself to raise that boy as one of my own.  He always wore the same tattered, smelly jacket, with no shirt on underneath.  But his wide, toothy grin was enough to warm any heart.  Boy he sure did aggravate old Grandma Perkins though.  She was getting old and her diabetes make her cranky and irritable.  We've sure had some good times.  It wasn't easy being a father to such a rogue bunch, but I'm as proud as any dad could be.

So it's safe to say that taking my baby boy over here under my wing is nothing new.  And Jackson is much more well behaved than any of my other children, especially stupid Wyatt.  I know you're not supposed to pick your favorites, but Jackson is mine.  But kids will be kids.  Pretty soon he'll be old enough to date--that's just gonna be another handful.  So we'll take em as they come. 

Anyways, it's all good down here.  This week was good.  It's dopegnar.  There's one thing I need to ask you though.  I need you to send me some roller blades.  There's this new thing in our mission designed to get missionaries more motivated about the work.  It's called "Blades for Baptisms."  The idea is that we can have a better mode of transportation to get us to each appointment quicker, but still having that confidence and style that only comes from strapping on those blades.  I think it'll be a great motivation to all the missionaries.  We're all really excited for the new changes.  So yeah, if you could, send my new roller blades as soon as possible.  I'm really gonna need them soon.  Things are really moving fast.  I just don't want to get left behind.

Keep on shreddin' the gnar bones,
The Fresh Prince of Samoa
(He drew a picture at this point of a sunset scene at the beach with palm trees and a hut and a self portrait of him wearing a necktie with an amphibious looking face.  That's the best I can describe it.) 

6-11-12

Zup there fampants,
It's all dank up in here.  Everything's beans gnarly.  It's like we're having a goat-face hamster party where the gnar is always the star.  It's a shred fest though, to the days.  This week's been pretty sick, though.  We've just been spankin' it out all day, every day.

So yeah, not much has really been goin' on, just the same stuff really.  We started teaching lessons with Pato--that was good.  My comp asked her to be baptized during her first lesson and she said yes, so that was cool. She'll be baptized this Saturday, so that should be good.  Also, Palepa is supposed to be baptized this Saturday.  Her wedding is planned for this week, so that should be sick--cause that's the only thing keeping her from getting baptized is that they're not married yet.  So that should be good.  We also started lessons with Failelei this week.  She's tight too.  She's probably in her 40's or so, and she goes to church every week.  We just have to get her married and she'll totally be ready to be baptized.  So we'll see if we can try and make it happen.  Also, Faautu, the girl we baptized last week, has a brother who wants to start lessons with us, so we're gonna do that tomorrow.  His name is Perenise.  We'll see what goes down. 

And then when we were eating dinner with a family a couple of days ago, they told us that they have a daughter who wants to be baptized, so we're gonna start the lessons this week.  We baptized the girl's little brother, Ailua, back in April.  So that should be good.  She goes to church every week, she just hasn't been baptized.  And then we also have Panalisa--he goes to institute every week and has a bunch of friends in the ward.  Word is that he wants to start lessons, so we'll have to go visit this week and see what the go is.  And the nwe have Faasinoala--she's dope.  She goes to church every week too.  She just still needs to be married before she can be baptized.  Her man/boyfriend kept putting it off every time we would schedule a date for them to be married.  It's the dumbest.  But then we found out the reason is cause he thought you had to fill out a bunch of paperwork and he was all afraid cause he doesn't know how to write.  Haha, but pretty much all he has to do is write a signature, which could pretty much be anything.  So hopefully we'll get that marriage soon, cause Fasinoala's totally ready.  So that should be good. 

But yeah, not much else has really been going on.  We're just making visits and teaching some lessons and stuff.  My comp's cool.  We're shreddin' the gnar all day every day.  It's pretty tough, like I think it would be tough to do it all in English, but in Samoan, it's like extra hard.  But it's cool I guess--we try our best.  I try and let my comp take the lead in teaching aand stuff--it's good.  My goal is to have him ready to train by the end of this 3 months.  We're just gonna have to read the BofM like crazy in Samoan so he can get good Samoan.  That's probably what helped me most with the language.  I finished it on the boat ride over the morning I picked up Jackson. So it's good. Things are cool.  I'll probably have pretty good Samoan by the end of this three months.  I pretty much just talk to people all day.  But before pretty much Nansen did all the talking, so it's good. 

We're real lucky, though.  This area is mega good.  There's tons of work here.  But yeah, not much has really been goin' on lately--just work, work, work. I think these last two weeks have been like the most serious I've acted in my entire life.  I pretty much just have to stay as closely in tune with the Spirit as I can or else I'm totally lost.  Cause, seriously, if it was only up to me, this area would die very quickly.  Cause my Samoan's still on the rocks.  I only understand things when they're really important--like if an investigator has a concern or something.  Pretty much the rest of the time I'm just winging it and guessing what people are saying.  Talking to chiefs is especially the suckiest--it sketches me out.  We're trying to reactivate this girl and her little brother, but her grandpa is like this super important chief in the village so it's always super sketchy going over there, but we just go anyway.  Cause within the Samoan language, there is like four languages.  It's like words that you would use with a high chief, and then totally different words to use when you speak to a talking chief, then there's the common language, and then there's like the slang.  It's pretty tough.  If you don't use all the respectful language and stuff, you can offend people.  And you have to learn all the different chief titles of the people in the village and figure out if they're a high chief or a talking chief before you go visit them so you can know what words to use when you speak to them.  But it's rude to ask, so you just have to figure it out before you go visit.  Anyways, its dumb.  I don't really know any of that stuff very well--so it's sketchfest.  But I don't spend that much time trying to learn it cause I'm busy learning how to teach lessons and other more important stuff.  So it's cool.  The mission's dope though.  I'm stoked on it.  Everything's going good.  We're  "smiting the earth with the word of God."  And that's the dankness.

Keep shreddin' 100% gnar,

Elder Johansen