Elder Zachary Hatch
Erin's baptism
Silly Missionaries
Monday, September 27, 2010
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Week 98 Last Transfer
Well I don't even know where to begin with this week but I will do my best. Things were super crazy with it being transfer week, but transfer week is always crazy.
Monday 6th- We had to finish up a few things but we had a little time for p-day stuff. I got to introduce Elder Doane to the world of pawn shops. He had never been to a pawn shop before but he was looking fora cello so we went to see what we could find. Unfortunately we weren't able to find anything but it was ok we will look into it again and see what we can find. Then we went to this really cool members house and played volleyball and rugby right by the beach and the water. It was a lot of fun. I got a little burned. Whatever blood it is that is in me went right to work and I was tan the next day. Nobody ever believes me when I tell them that I will be burned one day and then tan the next.
Tuesday 7th- So we started off thinking that today would be just fine until we had to pick up the greenies, but there were a few things that came up that we had to take care of in order to get things ready. We had a few missionaries have some health concerns and such so we had to take another look at the transfer board and do some praying to see if we could figure out a way to make it all still work and have it the way that the Lord wanted it. We were able to get it figured out and when we finished we all felt like we had it the way the lord wanted and where the missionaries could get the help that they needed. So it came time to go and get the greenies and there were so many of them that we had to take 3 cars just to get them all in. It was a good thing that we took all 3 cars as well otherwise we wouldn't have been able to get all of their luggage in. It is always so fun to pick them up and to be able to give them their first impression of the mission. This group seemed like they were going to be a really good group. They all seemed really happy and really excited to be here. So we got all of their stuff and headed to presidents. When we got there we dropped them off and got them all situated and then Elder Doane and I drove to the tabernacle because we had to unload all of their luggage. Usually we wait until the night to unload their luggage but it just so happened that their was a baptism that night and we thought it would be a good idea to take the new missionaries to it so that they could get a really good idea of what our mission is all about. So we unloaded their stuff and headed back to presidents. We got there just in time for the last little part of orientation before we were to eat dinner. So we had a good dinner but we kind of had to eat fast just to make sure that we could get to the baptism on time. So we loaded the vans up once again and headed off to the baptism. We were running a few minutes behind so we were trying to get caught up. It was really suprising, usually there is bad traffic but for some reason that night there was hardly any and so we were able to make it on time. After the baptism we took them back to president's where we finished the orientation for the night and also did what we call the first call letters. This tells them who their first companion is going to be and where their first area will be. It is so fun to see the look on their face when they open it up. Generally they are very excited. Mostly because none of them know where it is that we are sending them it just sounds cool.
Wednesday 8th- Oh boy I don't even know where to start with trasfer day. This day is always just so crazy and so full of energy. So we went to presidents to have breakfast with the greenies and to pick them up to take them to the tab. We got them all and headed to the tab. It is funny being an AP you learn who everyone is and develop such a great love for them. It doesn't matter who they are you just know that you love them. I always make sure that I give every elder there a hug before we go into transfer meeting. Help them to know that I care about them. I make sure to take the time to ask each of them briefly how they are doing and if their is anything I can do for them. So transfer meeting started and it went really pretty smooth. Everything went the way it was supposed to. It was great. We got everyone all paired up and then got them ready to send them to their areas. It is always so crazy after transfer meeting is over because everyone is always asking us to do things and where certain thing are and if we can get something for them and do this favor for them and what not. We just do as much as we can and then let them do the rest for themselves. Then after the greenies are done with more orientation, before we send them to their areas we send them out on the streets to talk to people in downtown honolulu. It is kind of a fun thing to do to get them right into the the mission mode. It is fun to see their reaction when they come back from talking to people. So many of the greenies were flying off island to start so we had to take many of them right back to the airport. It was good to get them off to their areas. They were all very excited as well so we wanted to get them out as soon as possible. After we dropped them off Elder Doane and I had to go and clean up the mess of the hurricane of transfer meeting. We made sure that everything was put back together and put back in order. We had to get a few thing out to people before the day was over. I was so tired when we finally got home and were able to go to sleep. It always wipes you out and you answer about 1000 questions and get about 100 phone calls. Our phone rings off the hook all day. It was a good day though.
Thursday 9th- So today we had few thing we could do before the missionaries going home came into the office. We were completely out of a few things and knew that we had a little bit of time so we ran to the store to get what we needed really quick. With all of the transfer stuff going on we didn't have a chance to go on Monday so we just took a few minutes in the morning to get it all done. Then we went back to the tabernacle and met the missionaries there. We had to make sure that all of their luggage was under weight and that all of their bags were good to go before we headed to presidents house. It is always just fun to spend time with them and to watch them reflect on the last two years and to talk about stories from their missions. One of the elders needed to mail his bike home so I took him to ups to send it and it was fun just to talk to him and to see that he had served a really good mission. There were so many good missionaries in this group that I knew that is was going to be hard to send this group off. So we took them to president and we had one last testimony meeting with them. It went really long though. We were running really late so we had to eat dinner really fast in order to make it to the airport on time for all of them to see the members that came to see them off. It was really hard for me to send this group off. I had so many good friends in this group. So many missionaries that I had served around. Some of my closest friends in the mission were in this group of missionaries going home. So it came time to say the final goodbys and I gave them all one last hug. I made sure that Elder Medeiros was the last one. I love that kid so much and got so close to him in the 5 months that we were companions together. He is such a great kid and I know I will miss him. Good thing I will see him in just a few weeks when he comes back on vacation. So we headed back home for the night.
Friday 10th- So today was like our driving/ moving day. I think in total we made 3 trips to the airport and drove almost completely around the island. I think in total we ended up driving like 200 miles. If not that many it was like 180? It was a lot whatever it ended up being. We started out with two seperate trips to the airport. We had a few of the missionaries that were finishing flying international so their flights didn't leave until the next morning but they were spead out by about 2 hours each so we just had to time it just right for each of them. Then we closed a few pads so we had to go and move a few people out of thier places. We also did what we were calling the mission commisary consecration. We knew that there was lots of commissary floating around out there that wasn't being used so we wanted to get it back into the mission office so that we didn't have to order more from salt lake. So we drove to a couple of the zones to pick all of that stuff up from them. We got back and realized that we had forgotten to take a few of the things to the zones that needed them so we got back in the car and drove the rest of the things around. I was so tired by the end of the day because I had driven the whole day. It was crazy, but it was a good time for Elder Doane and I to talk and decide what things we needed to do and how we could help the mission.
Saturday 11th- So Saturday was a pretty good day. We had a little bit more mellow day compared to the rest of the week. We had a little bit of office work to catch up on and things like that. Then we had some time in the afternoon and evening to actually do some prosyliting. It was such a great feeling to just get out and to talk to people and to see how our ward was doing. We found a few of our members houses and they are in the ghetto and the members kind of looked suprised to see us down in their part of the woods. It was funny though. That was pretty much it for the day. Nothing to exciting happened though.
Sunday 12th- We got to church and it was just great day as always. We showed up and it was great. It was in tongan as usual but the funny thing is even though it is in another language and although I might be able to understand all of it I can still feel the spirit. I can pick up a good portion of it but I can always feel the sprit strong and that is the important. Then we were supposed to teach our investigator Erin but she wasn't there so we left and we got a call that they were there so we went back. We went back and they still weren't there so we decided to leave agian. We were kind of bummed that we missed her because she is so solid. I am excited for her to get baptized here in a couple of weeks. Then one of the other set of missionaries needed us to do a baptsim interview for them so we did. I did the interview and the kid was awesome he is so exctied to be baptised. Then we went and had dinner with some of my favorite people in the whole entire world. The Freemans fed us and she cooked us some really good shepards pie. I hadn't had that stuff in forever. Anyway it was good to sit and chat with them and to spend time with them.
Anyway that was pretty much our week. It was a good week. I am glad that it is over though because it is so stressfull. I hope you all know that I love you a lot and pray for each of you every day. It is such a privilage to have a family like you. To know that I have someone back home rooting me one and is there to support me. Those are the missionaries that I feel the sorriest for, the ones that don't have that support from home. Well again I love you all a lot.
Ofa Atu
Elder Hatch
Monday 6th- We had to finish up a few things but we had a little time for p-day stuff. I got to introduce Elder Doane to the world of pawn shops. He had never been to a pawn shop before but he was looking fora cello so we went to see what we could find. Unfortunately we weren't able to find anything but it was ok we will look into it again and see what we can find. Then we went to this really cool members house and played volleyball and rugby right by the beach and the water. It was a lot of fun. I got a little burned. Whatever blood it is that is in me went right to work and I was tan the next day. Nobody ever believes me when I tell them that I will be burned one day and then tan the next.
Tuesday 7th- So we started off thinking that today would be just fine until we had to pick up the greenies, but there were a few things that came up that we had to take care of in order to get things ready. We had a few missionaries have some health concerns and such so we had to take another look at the transfer board and do some praying to see if we could figure out a way to make it all still work and have it the way that the Lord wanted it. We were able to get it figured out and when we finished we all felt like we had it the way the lord wanted and where the missionaries could get the help that they needed. So it came time to go and get the greenies and there were so many of them that we had to take 3 cars just to get them all in. It was a good thing that we took all 3 cars as well otherwise we wouldn't have been able to get all of their luggage in. It is always so fun to pick them up and to be able to give them their first impression of the mission. This group seemed like they were going to be a really good group. They all seemed really happy and really excited to be here. So we got all of their stuff and headed to presidents. When we got there we dropped them off and got them all situated and then Elder Doane and I drove to the tabernacle because we had to unload all of their luggage. Usually we wait until the night to unload their luggage but it just so happened that their was a baptism that night and we thought it would be a good idea to take the new missionaries to it so that they could get a really good idea of what our mission is all about. So we unloaded their stuff and headed back to presidents. We got there just in time for the last little part of orientation before we were to eat dinner. So we had a good dinner but we kind of had to eat fast just to make sure that we could get to the baptism on time. So we loaded the vans up once again and headed off to the baptism. We were running a few minutes behind so we were trying to get caught up. It was really suprising, usually there is bad traffic but for some reason that night there was hardly any and so we were able to make it on time. After the baptism we took them back to president's where we finished the orientation for the night and also did what we call the first call letters. This tells them who their first companion is going to be and where their first area will be. It is so fun to see the look on their face when they open it up. Generally they are very excited. Mostly because none of them know where it is that we are sending them it just sounds cool.
Wednesday 8th- Oh boy I don't even know where to start with trasfer day. This day is always just so crazy and so full of energy. So we went to presidents to have breakfast with the greenies and to pick them up to take them to the tab. We got them all and headed to the tab. It is funny being an AP you learn who everyone is and develop such a great love for them. It doesn't matter who they are you just know that you love them. I always make sure that I give every elder there a hug before we go into transfer meeting. Help them to know that I care about them. I make sure to take the time to ask each of them briefly how they are doing and if their is anything I can do for them. So transfer meeting started and it went really pretty smooth. Everything went the way it was supposed to. It was great. We got everyone all paired up and then got them ready to send them to their areas. It is always so crazy after transfer meeting is over because everyone is always asking us to do things and where certain thing are and if we can get something for them and do this favor for them and what not. We just do as much as we can and then let them do the rest for themselves. Then after the greenies are done with more orientation, before we send them to their areas we send them out on the streets to talk to people in downtown honolulu. It is kind of a fun thing to do to get them right into the the mission mode. It is fun to see their reaction when they come back from talking to people. So many of the greenies were flying off island to start so we had to take many of them right back to the airport. It was good to get them off to their areas. They were all very excited as well so we wanted to get them out as soon as possible. After we dropped them off Elder Doane and I had to go and clean up the mess of the hurricane of transfer meeting. We made sure that everything was put back together and put back in order. We had to get a few thing out to people before the day was over. I was so tired when we finally got home and were able to go to sleep. It always wipes you out and you answer about 1000 questions and get about 100 phone calls. Our phone rings off the hook all day. It was a good day though.
Thursday 9th- So today we had few thing we could do before the missionaries going home came into the office. We were completely out of a few things and knew that we had a little bit of time so we ran to the store to get what we needed really quick. With all of the transfer stuff going on we didn't have a chance to go on Monday so we just took a few minutes in the morning to get it all done. Then we went back to the tabernacle and met the missionaries there. We had to make sure that all of their luggage was under weight and that all of their bags were good to go before we headed to presidents house. It is always just fun to spend time with them and to watch them reflect on the last two years and to talk about stories from their missions. One of the elders needed to mail his bike home so I took him to ups to send it and it was fun just to talk to him and to see that he had served a really good mission. There were so many good missionaries in this group that I knew that is was going to be hard to send this group off. So we took them to president and we had one last testimony meeting with them. It went really long though. We were running really late so we had to eat dinner really fast in order to make it to the airport on time for all of them to see the members that came to see them off. It was really hard for me to send this group off. I had so many good friends in this group. So many missionaries that I had served around. Some of my closest friends in the mission were in this group of missionaries going home. So it came time to say the final goodbys and I gave them all one last hug. I made sure that Elder Medeiros was the last one. I love that kid so much and got so close to him in the 5 months that we were companions together. He is such a great kid and I know I will miss him. Good thing I will see him in just a few weeks when he comes back on vacation. So we headed back home for the night.
Friday 10th- So today was like our driving/ moving day. I think in total we made 3 trips to the airport and drove almost completely around the island. I think in total we ended up driving like 200 miles. If not that many it was like 180? It was a lot whatever it ended up being. We started out with two seperate trips to the airport. We had a few of the missionaries that were finishing flying international so their flights didn't leave until the next morning but they were spead out by about 2 hours each so we just had to time it just right for each of them. Then we closed a few pads so we had to go and move a few people out of thier places. We also did what we were calling the mission commisary consecration. We knew that there was lots of commissary floating around out there that wasn't being used so we wanted to get it back into the mission office so that we didn't have to order more from salt lake. So we drove to a couple of the zones to pick all of that stuff up from them. We got back and realized that we had forgotten to take a few of the things to the zones that needed them so we got back in the car and drove the rest of the things around. I was so tired by the end of the day because I had driven the whole day. It was crazy, but it was a good time for Elder Doane and I to talk and decide what things we needed to do and how we could help the mission.
Saturday 11th- So Saturday was a pretty good day. We had a little bit more mellow day compared to the rest of the week. We had a little bit of office work to catch up on and things like that. Then we had some time in the afternoon and evening to actually do some prosyliting. It was such a great feeling to just get out and to talk to people and to see how our ward was doing. We found a few of our members houses and they are in the ghetto and the members kind of looked suprised to see us down in their part of the woods. It was funny though. That was pretty much it for the day. Nothing to exciting happened though.
Sunday 12th- We got to church and it was just great day as always. We showed up and it was great. It was in tongan as usual but the funny thing is even though it is in another language and although I might be able to understand all of it I can still feel the spirit. I can pick up a good portion of it but I can always feel the sprit strong and that is the important. Then we were supposed to teach our investigator Erin but she wasn't there so we left and we got a call that they were there so we went back. We went back and they still weren't there so we decided to leave agian. We were kind of bummed that we missed her because she is so solid. I am excited for her to get baptized here in a couple of weeks. Then one of the other set of missionaries needed us to do a baptsim interview for them so we did. I did the interview and the kid was awesome he is so exctied to be baptised. Then we went and had dinner with some of my favorite people in the whole entire world. The Freemans fed us and she cooked us some really good shepards pie. I hadn't had that stuff in forever. Anyway it was good to sit and chat with them and to spend time with them.
Anyway that was pretty much our week. It was a good week. I am glad that it is over though because it is so stressfull. I hope you all know that I love you a lot and pray for each of you every day. It is such a privilage to have a family like you. To know that I have someone back home rooting me one and is there to support me. Those are the missionaries that I feel the sorriest for, the ones that don't have that support from home. Well again I love you all a lot.
Ofa Atu
Elder Hatch
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Sunday September 12th A taste of Heaven!!!
We were able to attend Elder Medeiros' homecoming on Sunday. He was Zach's companion for 5 months. They served in the office together and did a lot of the administrative stuff for the mission. They are very close. When we arrived at the church Elder Medeiros was standing outside as if he were looking for someone. We got out of the car and he looked at us and said I know exactly who you are. You're the Hatch Batch, with a smile on his face. It was so great to hug him and know that just 3 days prior he had been with Zach. I know why he and Zach have grown so close. His family was so gracious and welcomed us to their ward and thanked us for coming. They then had us sit with their entire family. (A taste of heaven.) Some of them are from Hawaii so they had seen Zach recently as well. Such a wonderful family. Then President and Sister Peterson sat next to us as well. Needless to say we got a bit trunky. It was so surreal being surrounded by people we barely knew but loved them so much. It was difficult to contain our emotions as we felt the spirit so strong and were surrounded by such incredible people. Gary and I both had a very spiritual experience that day and felt so blessed to have had Zach serve a mission. Words couldn't really describe how we felt.
Hatches, Medeiros', and Petersons
Hatches, Elder Medeiros, Petersons
Hatches, Medeiros', and Petersons
Hatches, Elder Medeiros, Petersons
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Week 97 Last transfer before he comes home.
Elder Medeiros going home.
Aloha family,
So this week was really good. We spent lots of time in the office getting things ready for transfers. I will try and give you a briefing on what each day included
Tuesday 31st - We spent the whole day in the office spending most of our day doing transfers and getting things all put where they need to be. I don't think anything to exciting happened. Wednesday was pretty much just the same as Tuesday. There is so much paperwork that goes into doing transfers and so many things that you have to do to make sure that the transfer goes smoothly and that everyone gets to where they need to be with who they need to be with. It is always very stressful because if you miss just one thing it could all fall apart. Well not all fall apart but it could cause some problems. We have checklists we follow to make sure that we get eveything and when we go over the checklists we go over them like 3 different times just to make sure that we have everything.
Thursday 2nd- We spent most of our morning moving people around. We had some of the missionaries get offered new beds from their members, so we had to go and get their old ones and also go through the storage. We have gotten so much stuff from missionaries lately that our storage is just really full. There is so much stuff. Elder Doane and I are going to go through it all next week and see what can stay and what things just need to go that are really old. We have some things that have been in missionaries pads since Brigham Young. So we will see what we can do to get rid of the old stuff.
Friday 3rd- We spent lots of time in the office again. We wanted to get as much of the transfer stuff done as we could so that we could go to as many baptisms as we can on Saturday. So we got most of everything finished up that we needed to. It took us pretty much all day but we were able to do it. I thought I was going to go stir crazy sitting all day in the office but we were able to manage to get through it.
Saturday 4th- Today was like a miniature road trip. We started first by taking someone to the airport for president at like 7:30 in the morning, then we went back and went to the first baptism which was in Honolulu. Then after that one we caught the freeway and headed out to Mililani where there was supposed to be another one, but when we got there they forgot to tell us that is was cancelled so we called them and their investigator wanted to meet us, so we went and met them. We just went and talked to them for like 5 minutes and then Elder Doane and I were like well we gotta go. So we headed off to the next baptism which was down in Makakilo. We went to that one and just barely had enough time to get back to Mililani where they were having another baptism. We had to leave that one a few minutes early so that we could make it to another baptism. It was in Ewa Beach so Elder Doane and I were both excited to go to that one.(They both served there) So we went down and it actually started late so we just waited for a few minutes. There was one last baptism that we wanted to go to so we got back in the car and headed off. We got there like 2 minutes before it started so it was awesome. We made it to 5 total baptism that day. It was a really neat day. We headed home to eat some dinner and finish up a few other things. Then we had to go back to the airport to pick some people up for president. I think in total we drove 150 miles or something like that. It was a lot whatever it ended up being. It was a good day though and Elder Doane and I were glad that we were able to support so many missionaries at their baptisms.
Sunday 5th - Sundays in the Tongan ward are always good. We didn't have a chance to go to our sacrament because we had to teach a lesson to our investigator Erin. She is doing so well and she is very excited to get baptsied on the 25th. We are excited for her as well because we know it will be a great day for her. So after that we went to sunday school. They have started teaching a new sunday school class in english because so many of the tongans are marrying people speaking english now. It is great though. We have a really good teacher for the class. She does and awesome job and always makes our investigators feel comfortable. Then we went home and got all of the last things put together before the big week.
Well that is pretty much the wrap up of the week. I love you all and hope that you have a good rest of this week
Ofa atu,
Elder Hatch
Aloha family,
So this week was really good. We spent lots of time in the office getting things ready for transfers. I will try and give you a briefing on what each day included
Tuesday 31st - We spent the whole day in the office spending most of our day doing transfers and getting things all put where they need to be. I don't think anything to exciting happened. Wednesday was pretty much just the same as Tuesday. There is so much paperwork that goes into doing transfers and so many things that you have to do to make sure that the transfer goes smoothly and that everyone gets to where they need to be with who they need to be with. It is always very stressful because if you miss just one thing it could all fall apart. Well not all fall apart but it could cause some problems. We have checklists we follow to make sure that we get eveything and when we go over the checklists we go over them like 3 different times just to make sure that we have everything.
Thursday 2nd- We spent most of our morning moving people around. We had some of the missionaries get offered new beds from their members, so we had to go and get their old ones and also go through the storage. We have gotten so much stuff from missionaries lately that our storage is just really full. There is so much stuff. Elder Doane and I are going to go through it all next week and see what can stay and what things just need to go that are really old. We have some things that have been in missionaries pads since Brigham Young. So we will see what we can do to get rid of the old stuff.
Friday 3rd- We spent lots of time in the office again. We wanted to get as much of the transfer stuff done as we could so that we could go to as many baptisms as we can on Saturday. So we got most of everything finished up that we needed to. It took us pretty much all day but we were able to do it. I thought I was going to go stir crazy sitting all day in the office but we were able to manage to get through it.
Saturday 4th- Today was like a miniature road trip. We started first by taking someone to the airport for president at like 7:30 in the morning, then we went back and went to the first baptism which was in Honolulu. Then after that one we caught the freeway and headed out to Mililani where there was supposed to be another one, but when we got there they forgot to tell us that is was cancelled so we called them and their investigator wanted to meet us, so we went and met them. We just went and talked to them for like 5 minutes and then Elder Doane and I were like well we gotta go. So we headed off to the next baptism which was down in Makakilo. We went to that one and just barely had enough time to get back to Mililani where they were having another baptism. We had to leave that one a few minutes early so that we could make it to another baptism. It was in Ewa Beach so Elder Doane and I were both excited to go to that one.(They both served there) So we went down and it actually started late so we just waited for a few minutes. There was one last baptism that we wanted to go to so we got back in the car and headed off. We got there like 2 minutes before it started so it was awesome. We made it to 5 total baptism that day. It was a really neat day. We headed home to eat some dinner and finish up a few other things. Then we had to go back to the airport to pick some people up for president. I think in total we drove 150 miles or something like that. It was a lot whatever it ended up being. It was a good day though and Elder Doane and I were glad that we were able to support so many missionaries at their baptisms.
Sunday 5th - Sundays in the Tongan ward are always good. We didn't have a chance to go to our sacrament because we had to teach a lesson to our investigator Erin. She is doing so well and she is very excited to get baptsied on the 25th. We are excited for her as well because we know it will be a great day for her. So after that we went to sunday school. They have started teaching a new sunday school class in english because so many of the tongans are marrying people speaking english now. It is great though. We have a really good teacher for the class. She does and awesome job and always makes our investigators feel comfortable. Then we went home and got all of the last things put together before the big week.
Well that is pretty much the wrap up of the week. I love you all and hope that you have a good rest of this week
Ofa atu,
Elder Hatch
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Week 96 The Work Moves Forward
Well this week was pretty good. We did lots of traveling and did a little bit of flying as well. So I will just try and sumarize the best that I can the last weeks events and once again tell you if anything funny happened.
Tuesday 24th - So we were supposed to go to waipahu to do interviews with president, but we had a lesson set up with one of our investigators so we go to the house and we ask if they are there. The guy comes out and we sit down with him and start to talk with him. He is supposed to get baptised in like a week and a half. So we go over the baptism questions with him and everything is good. We got him all set up for next week Thursday. His name is James by the way. So we taught him and then we headed out to waipahu. We were out there doing interviews and stuff and they all seemed to go pretty well. Then that night we went on splits with our ward. It was really a good night with them as well. We started with a few visits and then we ended at one of the members of the bishopric's house and we taught his nephew who is not a member. It was a really good lesson. I couldn't understand everything that was going on but I did my best. The spirit was really strong and the members were bearing some really solid testimonies. It was good this kids name is Afele. He had been coming to church for a really long time and had been taught before but just had never been baptised. We asked him why he wanted to get baptised and he said because he knew that his family needed the blessing and because he needed to share the gospel with his wife back in Tonga. So it was really good and he got baptised on Saturday.
Wednesday 25th- We had to get up super early because we had to fly to the island of Hawaii. I love going there. I really like it there, but I really like it in a small town called Waimea right at the top of the island. Anyway we got there and had interviews with the missionaries there. We had to drive all of the way around the island that way we didn't waste as much time for the elders. Elder Doane and I took turns driving because there was just so much driving. We didn't mind though because President got a rental car and it was a dodge charger so it was kind of sweet to drive. Anyway we drove all around and caught a late flight back. We didn't get back home until like 9:30 So it was a really long day. It was really funny though president was running really behind schedule so we had to skip lucnh. Elder Doane and I were soooooo hungry so we took the rental car at like 5, we told president we went to put gas in the car but we made a quick stop and got some food because we were just starving. It was pretty funny though because president had no idea that we had even gone to get food.
Thursday 26th- So we were supposed to have another appointment with our investigator James, but when we tried to call and confirm the appointment the phone was disconnected so we were like that is weird? So we decide just to drive over there for our appointment and we get there and find out that our investigator and his wife Moni had been in a huge fight. She is a member by the way. So they got in a huge fight, moni kicked him out of the house and got a restraining order against him and they were going to like get a divorce. We were like holy cow what is happeneing . So we sit down and talk with her and come to find out he had ben lieing to us. He said he had been reading and stuff when he really hadn't been. She was so ashamed and embarrased. We sat down and talked with her and she just broke down. She has kind of been less active for a while so we started teaching her. It was really good she really opened up to us and told us that she wanted to get more active in the church again and she knew what she needed to do. So it was a really good thing that we stopped by. It is just amazing how the spirit works. You think you are meant to go to a place for one person when really you are going there to help another person. So we had interviews the rest of the day. Then that night we went to ur ward because we were having the baptism interview for our investigator. It was really good and he passed so we were really happy about that.
Friday 27th- So friday was a pretty crazy day. We had to go do interviews on maui, but we got word that the missionaries apartment on molokai had caught fire and that one of the missionaries things had all burned. They were coming to maui for interviews so president put us on special assignment to go and help him get all new stuff. President gave us some money to go and get it all with. So we spent like 4 hours shopping getting this elder everything that he needed. Man I just felt so bad for him. All of his clothing was gone. Everything else was ok just his clothes. They contained the fire to just one room so that was good. It was a pretty long day helping him with all of that. It was also really good to see Elder Medeiros. Man I love that kid. We spent some time together talking and reminiscing about the past and how much we missed each other. He will be one of my friends for life just like some of my other companions. But it was really good to talk to him and to spend time with him again. I am excited for you to meet him. Then we flew back home and had to get to our ward house again. Our ward was putting on a volleyball night and they had all of the youth invite their nonmember friends. It was really good and it was a good oportunity for us to get to know all of their friends better. There was a really great turn out. I wish that we would have been able to play a little bit more but they already had the teams set up. It was ok though we had a great chance to sit down with the bishop and talk to him about the missionariy work in the ward.
Saturday 28th- So we had our baptism this morning and it was really good. The baptism was super spiritual. Elder Doane had to give a talk on the holy ghost but they asked him to do the whole thing in Tongan. He did a really great job and I was really proud of him. The ward really loves him and so do I. He is a great companion and I learn so much from him. The ward was so impressed by his skills to speak the language. He is really goood which really helps me. Then the rest of the saturday we spent going to baptisms and other things like that. Nothing to terribly exciting happened.
Sunday 29th- We went to church and had our investigator get confirmed. It was really good. You could tell that he was really happy and that he was a changed man. We taught our gospel principles class like normal and it went well. Then after church we were able to sit down and meet with our investigator Erin. We taught her about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and it went really well. She could feel the spirit super strong just like all of the rest of us. We were able to invite her to be baptised on the 25 of September and she said yes so we were super stoked about that. She is just so solid and sees the need to change and how the gospel and the church just help to make you a better person. She was telling us about how things that she used to do she now realizes that they are not ok and that she needs to change. So it is really neat to see the change in her. Then later that night we went up to the Freeman's house and had dinner with them. They are such amazing people. They are just so happy and so full of life. They do so much to help us out in the office. I really don't know what we would do without them. Anyway they fixed us a really nice dinner and stuff. We were so grateful to them.
So anyway that is pretty much my week. Sorry I always try to make them shorter but it never seems to happen. This is kind of like my journal though since I don't have a whole lot of time to write in my journal. Anyway. I love you all so much. Have a great week.
Ofa Atu
Elder Hatch
Tuesday 24th - So we were supposed to go to waipahu to do interviews with president, but we had a lesson set up with one of our investigators so we go to the house and we ask if they are there. The guy comes out and we sit down with him and start to talk with him. He is supposed to get baptised in like a week and a half. So we go over the baptism questions with him and everything is good. We got him all set up for next week Thursday. His name is James by the way. So we taught him and then we headed out to waipahu. We were out there doing interviews and stuff and they all seemed to go pretty well. Then that night we went on splits with our ward. It was really a good night with them as well. We started with a few visits and then we ended at one of the members of the bishopric's house and we taught his nephew who is not a member. It was a really good lesson. I couldn't understand everything that was going on but I did my best. The spirit was really strong and the members were bearing some really solid testimonies. It was good this kids name is Afele. He had been coming to church for a really long time and had been taught before but just had never been baptised. We asked him why he wanted to get baptised and he said because he knew that his family needed the blessing and because he needed to share the gospel with his wife back in Tonga. So it was really good and he got baptised on Saturday.
Wednesday 25th- We had to get up super early because we had to fly to the island of Hawaii. I love going there. I really like it there, but I really like it in a small town called Waimea right at the top of the island. Anyway we got there and had interviews with the missionaries there. We had to drive all of the way around the island that way we didn't waste as much time for the elders. Elder Doane and I took turns driving because there was just so much driving. We didn't mind though because President got a rental car and it was a dodge charger so it was kind of sweet to drive. Anyway we drove all around and caught a late flight back. We didn't get back home until like 9:30 So it was a really long day. It was really funny though president was running really behind schedule so we had to skip lucnh. Elder Doane and I were soooooo hungry so we took the rental car at like 5, we told president we went to put gas in the car but we made a quick stop and got some food because we were just starving. It was pretty funny though because president had no idea that we had even gone to get food.
Thursday 26th- So we were supposed to have another appointment with our investigator James, but when we tried to call and confirm the appointment the phone was disconnected so we were like that is weird? So we decide just to drive over there for our appointment and we get there and find out that our investigator and his wife Moni had been in a huge fight. She is a member by the way. So they got in a huge fight, moni kicked him out of the house and got a restraining order against him and they were going to like get a divorce. We were like holy cow what is happeneing . So we sit down and talk with her and come to find out he had ben lieing to us. He said he had been reading and stuff when he really hadn't been. She was so ashamed and embarrased. We sat down and talked with her and she just broke down. She has kind of been less active for a while so we started teaching her. It was really good she really opened up to us and told us that she wanted to get more active in the church again and she knew what she needed to do. So it was a really good thing that we stopped by. It is just amazing how the spirit works. You think you are meant to go to a place for one person when really you are going there to help another person. So we had interviews the rest of the day. Then that night we went to ur ward because we were having the baptism interview for our investigator. It was really good and he passed so we were really happy about that.
Friday 27th- So friday was a pretty crazy day. We had to go do interviews on maui, but we got word that the missionaries apartment on molokai had caught fire and that one of the missionaries things had all burned. They were coming to maui for interviews so president put us on special assignment to go and help him get all new stuff. President gave us some money to go and get it all with. So we spent like 4 hours shopping getting this elder everything that he needed. Man I just felt so bad for him. All of his clothing was gone. Everything else was ok just his clothes. They contained the fire to just one room so that was good. It was a pretty long day helping him with all of that. It was also really good to see Elder Medeiros. Man I love that kid. We spent some time together talking and reminiscing about the past and how much we missed each other. He will be one of my friends for life just like some of my other companions. But it was really good to talk to him and to spend time with him again. I am excited for you to meet him. Then we flew back home and had to get to our ward house again. Our ward was putting on a volleyball night and they had all of the youth invite their nonmember friends. It was really good and it was a good oportunity for us to get to know all of their friends better. There was a really great turn out. I wish that we would have been able to play a little bit more but they already had the teams set up. It was ok though we had a great chance to sit down with the bishop and talk to him about the missionariy work in the ward.
Saturday 28th- So we had our baptism this morning and it was really good. The baptism was super spiritual. Elder Doane had to give a talk on the holy ghost but they asked him to do the whole thing in Tongan. He did a really great job and I was really proud of him. The ward really loves him and so do I. He is a great companion and I learn so much from him. The ward was so impressed by his skills to speak the language. He is really goood which really helps me. Then the rest of the saturday we spent going to baptisms and other things like that. Nothing to terribly exciting happened.
Sunday 29th- We went to church and had our investigator get confirmed. It was really good. You could tell that he was really happy and that he was a changed man. We taught our gospel principles class like normal and it went well. Then after church we were able to sit down and meet with our investigator Erin. We taught her about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and it went really well. She could feel the spirit super strong just like all of the rest of us. We were able to invite her to be baptised on the 25 of September and she said yes so we were super stoked about that. She is just so solid and sees the need to change and how the gospel and the church just help to make you a better person. She was telling us about how things that she used to do she now realizes that they are not ok and that she needs to change. So it is really neat to see the change in her. Then later that night we went up to the Freeman's house and had dinner with them. They are such amazing people. They are just so happy and so full of life. They do so much to help us out in the office. I really don't know what we would do without them. Anyway they fixed us a really nice dinner and stuff. We were so grateful to them.
So anyway that is pretty much my week. Sorry I always try to make them shorter but it never seems to happen. This is kind of like my journal though since I don't have a whole lot of time to write in my journal. Anyway. I love you all so much. Have a great week.
Ofa Atu
Elder Hatch
Friday, September 3, 2010
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