This week has been so great. So many blessings and so much food. The members LOVE feeding missionaries. I am learning how to feast, temporally and spiritually.
Tuesday was probably the most full I've been so far, and maybe the most full I've been in my life. We had dinner with the Fata family, whom we love. (They're awesome and have a couple of sons preparing for missions and a million kids) First, here's the lesson part of the night: Before dinner we taught about how they can "catch the wave" of missionary work like Elder Nelson taught. They committed to praying for missionary opportunities and to look for the opportunities as they go about their daily lives. I also found out that one of the sons is on the school football team with a young man named John, that I was able to teach my first day in the field back in Redlands. John was super awesome and wanted to be baptized, but was too young and couldn't get permission from his parents. But the Fata's son said he would keep inviting him to activities and stuff. The whole family is super excited about missionary work and we're excited to check up next week on how everything went.
Then, we had dinner. We had rice (which is a Polynesian staple), beef ribs, casserole, polish sausage, salad, and apple soda. Delicious. We finished and were full with food-babies. But then another son came home carrying Popeye's chicken and groceries. I was scared. I thought to myself, "be strong." They insisted that we eat some chicken, so we had a few pieces. At this point, I thinking, "okay, I can't eat any more. I can't do it." But then they brought out dessert--cream cheese croissants and mega-sized muffins. I ate a croissant, which was the smaller of the two. Then they brought out plates with 2 round ice cream sandwiches for each of us. I was hesitant. I looked to Elder Browning, who had already started one. I had to eat one now. So I slowly started and finished one. I couldn't do any more. I couldn't. I had to shamefully leave the other on the plate. I had much more than a food-baby now. I had trouble breathing. It was such good food, but just a little more than I was used to. As we left, I was so full I had a tough time reaching down to put my shoes on. I was afraid I was going to meet Ralph on their doorstep. The drive home was a struggle. Elder Browning drives, and the whole time he was making me laugh so so hard. But I survived and I'm here to tell the tale.
Elder Browning is a great missionary. He is hilarious. I don't go a day without laughing until I cry. Working with him and this ward is really great. The members are so great. On Saturday they went to a Samoan session at the temple. They had us meet them there afterwards to go do missionary work with them. we split up into teams and visited members of the ward we haven't seen at church and others that needed visiting.
Gotta go, but the work is true! Heavenly Father loves us and is so mindful of us! :)
Love,
Elder Judd
