Thursday, October 28

Aaron returned home last night, and today we are fully in packing up the house and making an inventory of the remaining items. The girls are pros at this stage of our journey. We make lists and divide up the tasks.

Katherine began to count rolls of toilet paper and bottles of shampoo and bars of soap. Olivia tackled the inventory of the medicine box, noting expiration dates and sorting antifungals and antibiotics and pain relievers and snot medicine. Thankfully, we got a little bit of rain today. We were checking email with the satellite when the drizzle began, so Katherine grabbed the umbrella and held it over the BGAN unit so we could finish sending and receiving.

Before we came back to the village, we bought a bale of onions. Although we use onions almost every day, we still had plenty to give away. So, much of my time today was sharing onions with my neighbors in between times of pantry inventory and storing the food away in our rat proof window seats. We even had time to squeeze in a game of Tri-Ominos and some chocolate oatmeal no-bake cookies before bedtime, celebrating a good day of hard work.

Wednesday, October 27

This beautiful bird lives on our friend’s porch and talks constantly. Every time I walk by, I smile when it says “Gusi!”-- the name of its owner.

Just around the corner, one of Olivia’s good friends is raising her young family. Olivia is a regular in Kolis’ kitchen, and often baby Joila’s nap time coincides with Olivia’s visits.

Tuesday, October 27

 

We often have tooth brushing parties in our little bathroom, and recently this guy decided to join us. Aaron tried to shoo it away, but the spider was aggressive. Aaron said it chose the wrong “fight or flight” response. We like having spiders around because we know they eat some of the other critters that like to find refuge in our house. But I’m not sorry that this one is no longer living underneath our roof.

Monday, October 26

“We believe that being happy is the equivalent of being successful, comfortable, and in control of our lives. While there is nothing wrong with these things in themselves, according to Jesus we should take great care not to depend upon them as our reasons for being happy.”
-Scott Sauls, A Gentle Answer

Today has challenged me. The rain tanks in Marulaon and in the surrounding villages are almost all empty. The school, which usually boards the students, has sent the students home and asked them to make the trek to come and go every day because their rain tanks are empty, too. We haven’t had more than a sprinkle in in several weeks. And we’ve had a steady stream of neighbors coming to get rain from our tank on the front of the house. After we wash clothes, we save the rinse water to use for flushing the toilet. And I’m still in awe that we have an indoor toilet thanks to the family that began the translation project before us. As always, we appreciate prayers for a good balance of rain for our water tanks and sunshine for our solar panels.

As people learn that we are planning to leave this coming weekend, the frequency of requests has increased. We’ve had people ask for flour, our dugout canoe, laundry detergent, change for large bills, pain reliever, and a recipe for chocolate cake. We love being generous, and we always plan to bring extra things to the village that you can only find in Honiara, with the intention of sharing. But sometimes, I dread hearing the knock at the door. I need the Lord to keep my heart soft and to give me wisdom to know when it is culturally appropriate to give, as well as how much to give.

Belza showed up this morning with the news that a death in a nearby village was going to delay Aaron’s plan to go the east side of the Russells. And he also told us that he had been asked to go into town by a relative, so he wouldn’t be going with the translation team and he wouldn’t be our driver to take us in the motor boat. So instead of a two night trip, Aaron will only be gone one night, and he will shorten his program.

I’m not successful, comfortable, or in control of my life. But I am happy and thankful for the life God has given me, even with all of the twists and turns that living in a remote village throws at me.

Friday, October 23

As I headed down the hill to take a friend some pumpkin seeds, I saw one of the village’s widows headed toward me on her way to the rain tank. I called out good evening as I turned left and veered off the path. She made my day when she responded with, “Auniovea hobea, ŋavovou!” (Good, evening my daughter!”)

Bits and Pieces of Life in the Village

Saturday, October 24

Aaron spent the last two mornings walking through more of Matthew with catechists from our church district. Walter excitedly made the connection that Jesus is the key between the Old Testament and the New Testament. The turnout was sparse, but I enjoyed making gingersnaps for the studious men. I especially like gingersnaps made with the local coconut oil we can get here. We made enough cookies to share with the ladies who met to sew together. I also took some thread, yarn and a requested crochet hook along with a plate of gingersnaps.

While in Baisen Village earlier this week, Aaron received most of the gospel of Luke, handwritten in pencil. Part of my contribution to the project is typing manuscripts. This one is going to take me a long time, partially because Luke is a very long book, and partially because I’ve never typed for this translator before, and his handwriting is unfamiliar to me. There are also long sections where he has erased and written over the erased sections, so sometimes I struggle to read the corrections. I’m thankful to have a little bit more time to help Aaron, now that our kids are older and more independent.

Katherine loves to swim with her friends here. She has learned to ask about the tide before she goes in the water. High tide brings all of the critters and the trash, a few weeks ago she found all of the tiny jellyfish in the water and subsequently went through lots of hydrocortisone cream. Low tide makes it easier to enjoy all of the beauty underneath the water.

We recently had some unexpected excitement. Aaron was paddling over to see Ezekiel, and the girls and I were doing school at home, when what looked like a huge C130 rumbled through, flying very low, directly over Aaron. It cruised back and forth, up and down, and we watched it for a long time as it made its way east over the Russells. Later, we got an email from our director including an article about planes from Australia helping the fisheries department look out for illegal fishing in the Solomon Islands. We don’t have any airports in the Russells, so a plane caused everyone to stop, look, and holler!

Wednesday, October 21

Katherine and I were supposed to be down at the beach at six o’clock yesterday morning to catch a ride to Baison Village. At 5:50 I was stepping out of the shower when two of Katherine’s friends came to ask if we were ready to go. Our friends are almost never early, so I was caught by surprise! With no makeup or hair to fix (one of the perks of village life!), we were ready in just a few minutes and climbing in the motor boat.

Aaron had been asked to be ready to preach, just in case. When Katherine and I landed on the shore around 6:20, he still didn’t know if he was supposed to preach. The second set of bells rang, so Aaron went to get dressed for church while Katherine and I walked up the hill to find Olivia. She was grabbing a quick bite to eat on the porch of the house where she and several of the Marulaon girls had spent the night.

(video of Kyrie)

Aaron did end up preaching so he was up front with all of the church leaders, Katherine and I found a seat about halfway down the aisle, and Olivia ended up in the overflow outside the church. One of the things I appreciated the most about this service was the custom dancing that accompanied much of the singing. Even though the Apostle’s Creed was sung in English, the dancing was definitely from the Solomon Islands.

After church, the village served hot sweet tea and lots of different kinds of breads. The “ring cake” are my favorite. Olivia ate with her friends and quickly went up the hill to practice dancing and get dressed. The rest of us settled in with the other big men and their families and waited for the dancing to begin while we visited.

Marulaon was ninth to dance, so it was close to two o’clock before their group finally performed. Olivia has invested many late nights dancing and singing and still getting up with her alarm at 5:30 each morning. She has spent hours making the right things to wear. My spunky girl has been the spark that has encouraged others to do things the right way, the culturally appropriate way, instead of slopping through. From end to end of our village, everybody treats her like one of their own.

All of the dancing finally finished, and we began to wave the flies away as the food was set out on the tables spread with banana leaves as tablecloths. The girls sought out their friends while Aaron and I stayed at the big man table for feasting; fish and cassava pudding were a great way to finish up the festivities. Aaron chose to ride back in the motor boat with us, but Olivia wanted to walk back the two miles along the trail with her friends. One of the hostesses handed us a big basket full of food to take back with us.

I knew it would be too much food for our family, so when we landed back at Marulaon, I shared more than half of it with the owner of the boat as a thank you. We traipsed up the hill, thirsty and ready for a shower. Olivia arrived around 6:30, and we enjoyed filling each other in with the stories of the last twenty four hours since we had been in three different locations much of the time. I think we were all asleep by 8:00, enjoying the sleep of the exhausted and content.

Saturday, October 17

Aaron’s report from Nono:

True to our hopes, each of the four districts were represented at the committee meeting, something that has not happened in years. Three villages in particular who had not had active participation in the project attended and seemed to be engaged and interested to be a part!

Not everything was a highlight however. One of the key responsibilities of the committee is to facilitate generating funds from the Lavukal villages to operate the translation project. Though they set a budget goal back in March, most villages have not given to the budget. This was discouraging and a bit topic of discussion at the meeting.

We all know the expression “good things come to those who wait.” Well, in 2017 we finished our trial editions of the books Ruth and Jonah. Thursday at the meeting we finally received our first real feedback from any use of these books. One member said he had read the first chapter of Jonah in the church service. He said at first, as he practiced, it was hard. But, by day three, he happily reported that he really felt the translation was good and that it really was his language! Several years of waiting and we are beginning to start seeing the first signs of fruit.

We also tackled key terms together as a committee, with each of the translators leading a small group. Key terms need to be consistent across church lines, and some of the concepts are really big and sometimes difficult to narrow down to just one word. Men and women from all over the language group have been working through this list for years, so it is good to see progress!

Friday, October 16

Last time Aaron and Belza (who is one of the few who follows clock time around here) traveled together to a meeting, we were still enjoying an afternoon coffee break on the porch when the boat arrived, and Aaron had to be fetched like a tardy school boy. Yesterday, I was determined that we wouldn’t be the reason for a delayed departure. So a few minutes before 3:00, Aaron and I headed down to Belza’s house to be ready. We sat with Kiko, who was also going to the translation committee meeting, and watch our boat’s crew go fishing. Evidently the tuna were “running” in a bait ball, and everybody who had any kind of canoe was out catching supper. People were pulling in fish left and right! After a while, I couldn’t wait any longer, so I gave my husband a high five (the only acceptable form of Public Display of Affection here), and walked back up the hill to finish school with the girls.

Around 4:00, I heard the boat come ashore and quickly leave again, and I knew that Kiko, Aaron, and Belza were on their way to Nono Village. A few minutes later, Kiko’s sister Delight popped in with a bowl of very fresh fish. She said George, the owner of the boat, gave five for us and five for her family. We decided to stick them in our little gas-powered fridge until Aaron returned home tonight, so he could enjoy them with us.

Thursday, October 15

 “Through Elijah’s story I realized that there is a very real connection between care for our body, ability to continue deepening our relationship with God and our capacity to faithfully carry out God’s purposes for our life over the long haul.”

-Ruth Haley Barton, Sacred Rhythms: Arranging Our Lives for Spiritual Transformation

I’m slowly getting better about listening to my physical body. This morning’s sunrise once again made my jaw drop in wonder. Venus hung just above a sliver of moon. The crimson glow of the sun mirrored back in the ocean. We call it lala fare, literally “peace, flat”. Jesus and coffee, peace and calm, moonset and sunrise, what a good way to begin the day.

“Paying attention to what gives our body and our spirit a sense of life or drains life from us can help us stay connected with God’s guiding presence. When I honor my body by 'listening' to tension, discomfort, lightness, or joy and wonder, asking, Now what is that about? Often God speaks into that awareness with truth and insight that proves very helpful over the long haul.”

The red in the sky began to fade, and I knew it was time to go inside to exercise. But my body didn’t want to cooperate. I dissolved into tears while trying to finish my push-ups. My ears began to throb. I was extra cranky and irritable. We hadn't been able to connect the satellite email for more than a week, and I missed hearing from friends and family.  After breakfast and chores, I asked Aaron to charge the otoscope so he could look into my ears before he left for the overnight translation committee meeting in Nono Village. When he took a peek midday, he said it looked like somebody had sneezed in my ears! The kino blooming for the last couple of weeks caused my body to fight back more than I had realized. 

My goal is to listen to the Holy Spirit well and steward every area of my life well – physical, mental, spiritual, emotional – so I can continue to deepen my relationship with God and my capacity to faithfully carry out God’s purposes for my life over the long haul.

Wednesday, October 14

Katherine constantly creates in a variety of mediums, so it didn’t surprise me when she decided to learn how to make moga/necklaces like our neighbors.

She spent the last several days working with Unu, one of Olivia’s friends, learning patterns and methods of stringing the beads together to make a necklace that looks Lavukal.

Tuesday, October 13

Our house hummed with activity yesterday. Aaron held another training with catechists from nearby villages. I sent a loaf of banana bread with local nuts, havu/ngali nuts, as a thank you to these guys for coming. Monday is a big workday after a day of rest on Sunday. Everybody needs to go to the garden, and many people begin the long process of making copra on Monday as well. But these guys were willing to paddle over to our village and give their morning to learn about God’s Word.

While Aaron taught, Nancy, Chief Hensi’s wife, brought two hands of ripe bananas and asked for banana cake and laundry detergent in exchange. A short time later, three of my friends showed up to weed our yard. I’ve told them whenever they want to come, I would appreciate their efforts at subduing the overgrown tangle. They are always eager to earn some extra money, and they know how to make the yard look right through Lavukal eyes. They worked, and the girls and I tackled school. This was a school day Olivia had been anticipating for a long time: dissecting a heart for Advanced Biology. Every time she digs into one of these specimens, we all end up with our jaws dropped in wonder at the way God created our bodies.

Olivia cleaned up, and Katherine and I began read-aloud and lunch prep. Aaron popped in and said he was finished over at the church, but he was headed down to talk to Bela about the upcoming translation committee meeting. Katherine was scraping coconut when Ezekiel popped in and asked for Aaron. When she told him her daddy wasn’t home, he asked why she was scraping coconut and seemed delighted that we were making soup for lunch.

Aaron came home soon, and the two guys did translation business on the veranda while a late lunch simmered and the ladies continued to work around the perimeter of the house. Ezekiel was too fast and left before I had lunch on the table. After lunch, I alternated rounds of comprehension questions with the girls while also keeping banana cake for Chief Hensi moving through the oven. I figured while I had the oven on and the precious gas heating up the house, I might as well make an afternoon of it. So, I made another batch of banana cake to begin our village sharing, along with a couple of loaves of cinnamon swirl bread. One for us and one for the next catechist training. The girls finished school and went out to play, and I shared plates of banana cake in appreciation of this village who has embraced our family.

Monday, October 12

Marulaon Woman’s Daybook

Just for today...Monday, October 12

On my bookshelf… Garlic and Sapphires by Ruth Reichl. Just wrapped up this one, it’s a fun read about a New York Times restaurant critic that takes a thoughtful turn toward the end.

Creating in the kitchen...when we were in linguistics school in Dallas, one of the local grocery stores frequently donated its bruised produce. We coined the term “blessing soup” because we never knew what would show up each morning, but we were grateful for whatever God provided for the soup pot that day. Here in Marulaon, we often have soup for lunch, whatever vegetables showed up at market, cooked in coconut milk with curry and salt. It’s on the menu again today, with ears of corn on the side.

On my knees in prayer...for our satellite email system. Still not working. And I’m realizing more and more how easy it is to try and fill up my day and my heart with communication with the outside world. Even though we don’t have internet, so we don’t have access to any social media, I still crave connection and relationships. That’s a healthy desire, but not when it becomes an idol.

A grateful heart…that my girls can safely run and play around our village. I know that our neighbors love Olivia and Katherine and are always looking out for them. One of my friends who has daughters around the same ages as my girls phrased it this way, she keeps her eyes open for the “two legged katalea/crocodiles”!

Pondering these words… “Do you think, perhaps, that God has let you hunger for whatever it is you are so hungry for so that you might become more desperate for him, more convinced that he is the source of what will fill you up? Do you think he might want to retrain your appetites, redirecting them away from this world, this life, even this age, so that your anticipation of the age to come might begin to shape your perspective on whatever it is you lack?” -Nancy Guthrie, Even Better Than Eden

Noticing...that a group of ladies just walked by my house, and several of them grabbed the stamen from the red hibiscus bush. It’s a local “Q-tip”, and as they proceeded down the path, they cleaned out their ears.

A few plans for the rest of the week…Aaron is working with the catechists from several different villages today and tomorrow, he’ll be making a trip over to the eastern part of our language group on Wednesday to make sure everything is in order for the Lavukal Translation Committee meeting on Thursday and Friday in Nono Village.

A peek into my corner of the world…when kids get hungry here, they go looking outside for a snack. This time of year, the two most common snacks are kino/cutnuts and sival/mangoes, so we see a lot of kids climbing trees.

Saturday, October 10

“This is the underpinning of true faithfulness: persistence whether or not it is convenient.”

-Glenna Marshall, Everyday Faithfulness: The Beauty of Ordinary Perseverance in a Demanding World

We had just finished breakfast this morning when we heard a knock. (In Lavukaleve, as in English, “knock, knock” is an onomatopoeia: “tek, tek”.) Ezekiel's voice rang out and put a smile on our faces. Yesterday, his village held a district wide meeting, and some of the catechists from another village had expressed their excitement about the Lavukal translation. They poured even more fuel on Ezekiel's fire, and he was here at 7:45 on a Saturday morning, unannounced, ready to work.

So I began to make banana cake (really muffins) to send to Ezekiel's son as a thank you for the use of his motorboat earlier in the week, and Aaron and Ezekiel walked over to the church to work. I finished the banana cake as well as some banana bread for us. The girls and I mopped, peeled cassava, finished washing and hanging laundry, scraped coconuts, washed dishes, and prepared pumpkin leaves. I cooked lunch and took some over to the church so they could keep working.

After lunch, Olivia began making a new double-tied skirt underneath the house with a friend and her little one. Last time, she learned how to make a single-tied skirt. Another big feast day is coming up, and Olivia is looking forward to traveling to another village and participating with the youth in all of the activities, including custom dancing. The guys finally wrapped up, and Ezekiel walked down to his dugout canoe around 2:45 with a load of banana cake. A very productive Saturday, indeed!

Friday, October 9

Aaron got home from working with the translation team in Hae Village just before supper last night.

As much as I love to cook and love on my family with good food, I was thrilled to see that he brought home a big leaf basket full of good leftovers from lunch.

This village always provides amazing hospitality, and Aaron said he ate more seafood in three days than he has in the last year. At least four kinds of seafood and four starchy vegetables filled the basket. We ate our fill and had enough left to share with neighbors.

When I asked my hubby for a report, he told me he was really pleased with the work the translation team was able to accomplish. They held programs for the village each evening and worked on the last revisions of Matthew during the days. Several members of the translation committee live in Hae, and they publicly declared their support and approval for the translation work, which encouraged Aaron.

Aaron also said that the bells for communion woke him up at 4:30 a.m. yesterday, and around 5:30, he was asked to preach for the morning service. Which began at 7. One of my constant prayers for this faithful man has been 2 Timothy 4:2: “Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage --- with great patience and careful instruction”.

Thursday, October 8

Katherine was sitting at the dining room table doing her pre-algebra, and I was only a few feet in front of her, in my rocking chair on the veranda. She whispered to me, “Mama, look! There’s a lizard. On the kino tree.” Sure enough, somehow while working math problems, this creation loving girl had spied a bright green lizard, hanging on for dear life as it enjoyed the all-you-can-eat buffet of insects hovering around the flowers.

We observed at the reptile hopped on to the hot dog shaped blooms, then Katherine began to warn the critter as it climbed lower and lower in pursuit of more breakfast. As the lizard reached the bottom, the last few flowers let go with a quick ride to the ground. She said, “I told you so, Mr. Lizard!”. We giggled, and then got back to work. What a sweet respite in the midst of our school day.

Wednesday, October 7

Our satellite email connection quit working today. It’s a lifeline for me and important for Aaron’s work. Hebrews 6:12 says, “Then you will not become spiritually dull and indifferent. Instead you will follow the example of those who are going to inherit God’s promises because of their faith and endurance.” (MSG) When my faith and endurance are challenged, for example when my husband is in another village, unreachable, and my only way to connect with the outside world dies, I’m reminded to use this opportunity to keep from becoming “spiritually dull and indifferent” instead of allowing Satan to discourage me.

Tuesday, October 6

We sent Aaron and Belza off to Hae Village this afternoon. He and the Lavukal Translation Team will be continuing to fine tune the first part of Matthew in anticipation of the consultant check next month.

“The reality of gospel life in ordinary days is not romantic. Instead the Christian life is day-in and day-out faithfulness that goes largely unseen and is sometimes unrewarded or unfruitful. It’s easy to become blind to beauty and to forget where we are in God’s story.”

-Christine Hoover, Searching for Spring: How God Makes All Things Beautiful in Time

This team forges ahead with faithfulness and sacrifices that often go unseen. Not just the translators, but also the members of the committee. My friend Kiko, the committee’s treasurer, told me last weekend that she often doesn’t feel up to the job, which gave me the chance to confide in her that I feel exactly the same way! In addition, people all over the world are giving toward and praying for this translation project. Some make encouragement their goal and continually strengthen us with affirming words and care packages. We’re all on this team together, a microcosm of the Body of Christ. 

Technical Difficulties

Choate Friends, 

I just received word that the satellite system that allows the Choates to send and receive e-mail from the village is not working. So, there won't be blog updates from Joanna until that is fixed. 

Aaron did have a successful few days of translating this week in Hae village, which I'm sure you'll hear about in more detail when the system is back up and running. 

Please pray for quick reconnection of the system and for encouragement while the Choates are disconnected from e-mail, and therefore from friends and family. 

Thanks for upholding this precious family in prayer!

- Ann H. for the Choates 

Monday, October 5

Yesterday afternoon, Ezekiel paddled over and visited for a while. Watching two of my favorite guys sit on the porch, eat banana bread, drink coffee, and chat about the translation project and life in general made me very happy!

This morning, Aaron led some of the catechists from surrounding villages through the first chapter of Matthew. Having grown up spending 8-10 hours a week at church, I am spoiled to familiarity with my Bible. These faithful catechists are at the forefront of Scripture use, leading morning and evening prayer day after day after day, navigating disputes in the village, and coming alongside their neighbors in times of need.

If Aaron can pour into them and help them to understand God’s Word in their own language, then they will be better equipped to share it. My job this morning was to provide a big bowl of popcorn!

Mason, the translation committee secretary, dropped by this afternoon, and Belza, the translation committee chairman popped in last night to make sure all of the loose ends for this week’s translation team workshop were tied up. Life here is never boring or predictable.

 

Sunday, October 4

“If we don’t venture outside our comfort zones, trusting that the stranger God has brought into our lives has something for us, we will never even know what we’re missing.”

---Ruth Haley Barton, Life Together in Christ

Some of our thoughtful neighbors came to the house yesterday afternoon to ask us if we had heard the rumors that COVID-19 had reached the Solomon Islands. So, we shot off a quick email to our director who confirmed the rumor. As of today, there is one confirmed case of the virus, a student who just returned from the Philippines, and he is in quarantine. Currently, no imminent lockdown is planned. We have plenty of supplies right now, and the plan for now is to continue to live in Marulaon Village and go ahead with the translation work here.

This friend, Volela, isn’t afraid to ask us questions or give us difficult information. I’m so thankful for her and her sweet family. Years ago, when we had only recently arrived, she and her husband came and talked to us with concerns about why Katherine, who was a toddler, might be running a fever. I had been holding children of someone who was known to practice sorcery, and they were afraid that I had offended the family. That was a hard thing to tell an outsider. We’re grateful for the community that God has provided for us here.

Saturday, October 3

We’ve enjoyed making some pumpkin recipes since we had an abundance of pumpkins show up at market recently. For Aaron’s birthday breakfast yesterday, we made Willow Bird’s “Pull Apart Pumpkin Bread,” sort of a glorified monkey bread, minus the canned biscuits.

Katherine is becoming quite the baker, following in her oldest sisters footsteps. Tomorrow, we plan to make pumpkin cookie cups as our Sunday dessert. It’s fun to pretend that crisp, clear air exists and that leaves are changing color and falling. I always feel like I’m stuck in a perpetual summer here, and time seems to stand still. Cooking some seasonal recipes helps me remember that in other parts of the world, the weather and the daylight are changing, even if they aren’t here.

Thursday, October 1

When we are in the village, lunch is often a soupy mix of leafy greens, starchy root crops or cooking bananas, and curried coconut milk. In Lavukaleve, we call it “nasu”. Today the mix was slippery cabbage and cooking bananas. Yesterday, it was pumpkin greens and local potatoes.

Aaron was given some fish as he left the feast day at Nono village on Tuesday, so we tossed the fish into our soup yesterday. We even had enough to share a big bowl with one of the widows in our village! The girls usually scrape one coconut each to make the milk for our lunch, and sometimes they have an audience.

Aaron made a trip over to the East/Catholic side of the Russells this morning to meet with Chief Michael to set up a future workshop in their village. On the way home, Aaron stopped to check in with Ezekiel. He got home just in time to eat a late lunch of nasu and precious watermelon slices that one of our friends brought to market yesterday.

Wednesday, September 30

Aaron attended an unexpected meeting this morning. He was invited to participate in a gathering sponsored by the Prime Minister’s Office and spent the morning interacting with the visitors as they led a program for community leaders.

One of my favorite things about living in the village is watching my kids’ personalities through the lens of my neighbors. Each of our children is loved well by our Marulaon community. Our kids have earned a good reputation here for obedience, hard work, laughter, and a willingness to learn language and culture. Olivia already has people asking her to give them her clothes when she leaves to go to America next year (which she will). All generations love her, she’s even had offers to stay with families here whenever we go back to Honiara. She dances with the youth and sings in the church choir, too. Olivia is intentional about each day she spends in the village, and her attitude is contagious.