Happy Birthday Mom!

I don't know why there is a huge gap... we really like these people!
Elder and Sister Thomsen, Sister Minnick, me and Elder Drugeon

Ia ora na tout le monde!

I need to start off by wishing my Mom a happy birthday! I hope that everyone cracks an egg on her head :) Thanks for all of your support Mom! I appreciate it and I know that each one of your kids does too!

Unfortunately I have to be short today, but, I'll try!

My Split with Elder Malca

This week we had a split with the Elders of Mahina and of Papeete. It was great to be with Elder Malca and Elder Tepa! I was again in our sector, and our investigators are doing really well!  Elder Drugeon and I also had the chance to ride in President's car which took a while, but was great!  Elder Drugeon and I have been preparing the conferences that will happen this week, and have to finalize our trainings!

A picture of Sr. Hunter's birthday cake - and a highly religious stuffed animal admiring it:)

Funny Moment: This week was Sr. Hunter's birthday! We made a great cake :) Sr. Hunter is awesome and I love working with her in the office! We sang in English and French for our Sr. Chasseur :)

This is the definition of a Spunky Postal Worker

Culture Shock: Even cat food is on sale in Tahiti.

Even cat food goes on sale in Tahiti (that's for you Dad).

Elder Drugeon and a cool cat :)

Spiritual Thought: Spiritual Impressions are important. President Bize challenged us to ask for the phone number of inactives that are coming back to church and one day, I saw the importance of it. We had a lesson with an inactive, exchanged numbers, and left. 30 minutes later, he called us, saying he got kicked out of his house and needed help. We were able to help him out and luckily, he found a home. Thanks to the impression that President Bize shared and the impression I had in the moment to take this man's number, this inactive member was able to find a home. Even if the impressions are small and we don't entirely understand them, we need to follow the Spirit! He sees the future, and He tells us what will be best for us. It is up to us to decide if we want the best, or if we want to be disobedient.

Love you all!

Elder Garff

According to Rachel's holiday calendar, Mom's birthday is Whiskey Day...
Mom Note:  Thank you for pointing this out Josh and Rachel

My Companion

Elder Thomsen, Soeur Thomsen, Vainui, Elder Drugeon, and me after Vainui's baptism!

Hey Everyone!

I asked Elder Drugeon what I needed to title my email as and he said, "My Companion". So, voila le titre :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RACHEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Who turned 17 on March 17, 2017. That is a lot of 17s. Thanks Gam for pointing that out :) And also to my brother King Triton! I heard that the play went really well and shout out to my brother (who, by the way, needed a costume to have muscle definition ;) Love you bro!) 

This week was great! We were able to have the baptism of Vainui and it was a great spiritual experience! She is definitely converted to the Gospel and I know that she will stay strong! A cool thing with her baptism is that we invited another couple from Utah, Elder and Sister Thomsen to come with us to the lessons! They are great teachers and we love teaching with them! In all, congrats to Vainui! 

Tahiti - Just a glimpse

...Or Two

...Or three

This week, we were also able to have splits with the Elders of Papeari and the Elders of Arue. I was with Elder Rybin and Elder Clements! It was great to be with them and to teach! Elder Clements was my companion in the MTC and we defintiely saw an improvement 22 months later ha ha ha! 

Thanks Aunt Mary!

Einstein is happy too :)

Funny Moment: Elder Drugeon at 2 in the morning asked me if the Sisters of Orofero called to leave their sector. I told him, yes, they are doing an island tour and then sailing to another island. He accepted it pretty readily, but not the next morning ;)

Culture Shock: In Tahiti, there are many things that are great. You have to love coming home and relaxing by drinking a nice cold glass of pineapple juice. That's the life :)

Another Facebook Photo.  We love this little window into life in Tahiti!

Spiritual Thought: This week, I have thought a lot about the purpose in our life. Reading The Miracle of Forgiveness has really helped me to think and to see clearly why we are here. Reading the first chapter is amazing and one of my favorite ideas is that on the earth, we are here to prepare our destiny. We must live in the present and prepare for the future. In all we do, we must ask ourselves if our activities are worthwhile and if they are approved of God. It is useless to stay in sin saying we will repent tomorrow. It is just as effective as someone saying that they will study the day after the test. I love you all, continue to aller en avant! Haere i mua!

Wish you all the best!

Elder Garff

WAHOO!!!!!!!!!! May 23! Awesome, Awesome, AWESOME!!!

Tahiti

Bonjour Elder GARFF,

Voici en Pièce jointe l'itinéraire de ton vol de fin de mission. Tes parents sont aussi destinataires pour organiser ton arrivée à l'aéroport ainsi que ton président de pieu pour ta relève.

Merci de servir notre peuple polynésien.

Bonne continuation,

Here attached is the final itinerary for Elder GARFF  so you can, parents, organize to pick him up at the airport and President ENCE, his release time.

Regards,

Christine HUNTER

Eglise de JESUS-CHRIST

Des saints des derniers jours

Tahiti Mission Financial Secretary

Office Week

Mission trip to McDonalds!

Hey Everyone!

So, my parents complained to me that I didn't have enough photos in my email, so I will include more photos this week :) Unfortunately, we were in the office and there is not a whole lot of scenery ;)

Map of the Mission, all of the sectors and the missionaries :)

This week was a good week. We were able to work even though we were a little sick! We have been doing lessons constantly in the hopes of boosting the sector and it paid off! But, maybe because of overwork, we both collapsed Saturday and had to take a break. We recently took on another sector and we will be giving the sector back this week. Getting to know another sector well enough to show to another missionary team in 1-2 weeks isn't the easiest, but hey, with the Lord, all is possible!

According to Rachel's calendar, it was national cereal day on Tuesday :)

I would like to give a shout out to my cousin Truman and his marraige! I wish the best for them and can't wait to see the new Mrs. Ballard! Congrats Truman! Have a great Honneymoon! (I would suggest coming to Tahiti ;) )

Funny Moment: Always a great moment when you are doing reactivation work in a sector that isn't yours and, because of sickness, have to ask to use their bathroom...

Culture Shock: Probably the first bathroom that I used that didn't have doors. 

A pose that is often seen from Elder Garff :)

Spiritual Thought: Lately I have been studying two books: The Miracle of Forgiveness and Twice Blessed. Throughout my mission, I have seen the power of forgiveness for myself and others and it is truly unbelieveable to see what is possible with the Lord. With the power of His Atonement, forgiveness for all is possible. With His power, we can be saved, strengthened, and comforted, even in the darkest and hardest trials. 

Love you all!

Elder Garff

Happy Birthday Dad!

So great to see Mark and Linda Monsen!  They stopped by in Tahiti and I was able to say hi!
Mark was a hero for me before my mission and still is today!  Definitely a highlight of the week!

Hey Everyone!

Today is my Dad's Birthday! I hope that all of you wish him a happy 28th! I think an appropriate gift would be either a rum tart or a beekeeper hat. Before my mission, I remember my Dad telling me how much he loves his beekeeping and how after retiring from selling cars, he looks forward to tending another bee farm. His Number 1 Client I am guessing will be a major cereal brand:

"It's a funny taste of honey, and an Ulsifer kind of nine, Honey Nut Cheerios!" Thanks for all you do Dad! Can't wait to see you in 10 weeks here!

This week was a good week! We were able to do a split with Raromatai and I was with one of my old companions, Elder Peel! It was great to be with him again for a day and it was so fun teaching with him! I miss those good old Maraa days! Also this week, we did transfers (which turned out well), leadership council, and training for the new missionaries! Also, great to see the Monsens! They were able to stop by this week and it was so great to see them!

Kenny was found hiding in the suckers :)  Silly Kenny, suckers are for kids!

Speaking of our sector, we just took another sector so, for the instant, we have the office and two sectors! It is pretty crazy but it is all good :) Everything is going great and our sector should be having miracles in no time!

Funny Moment: At leadership council, we all posed for a picture (which I don't have yet...). Last week, in the middle of transferts, President Bize took 3 minutes to gently scold me on my head positioning in photos. He said: "In all of your pictures, you never look at the camera straight, it is always tilted to the side!" So, when we took the photo, right before, President looked me in the eyes and made a motion with his hand as if saying "Straighten your head!" I can't wait to see the result ha ha ha!

Culture Shock: This week, I was drawn to the fact of the importance of chapel attendance. Tahiti has one of the highest rates in the world and it is cool to see the faithfulness of Tahitian members!

Spiritual Thought: This comes from a question from my Mom about the importance of the "Whisperings of the Spirit". On my mission, I have found that there are three steps. 1. Search for and be open to the Spirit. 2. Recognize and understand His direction. 3. Trust in and do the things He says. If we don't do one of those 3 things, the whisperings of the Spirit are not effective and we will never be able to accomplish the will of God. So, be open, learn to recognize, and do the things you receive from the Spirit!

Je vous aime!

Elder Garff

Not much of a contest.  We all know who wins!  Got to love Tahiti Graffiti!