Week 10: Mission Home Visit, Bingo de Papenoo, and Hanging with Tuhay

So this week was really great! After emailing on Monday we went to run some errands at the mission office and I got to talk to the AP's and President Bize. It was great to visit with them and get to know them better. After that when we were driving Elder Drugeon did the funniest thing...I'll send you the video.  It's good to get a gut-busting laugh every now and then! 

Tuesday was really good.  We taught a lot of lessons and the family that I told you about last week that wanted to wait a year for baptism told us they all decided they were ready! My prayers are being answered. I can't tell you how awesome it is! The whole family will be baptized on November 14th. I'm so excited!

We have been teaching so many people with different backgrounds and stories. We've been teaching an inactive member named Francis and he is great, then this week he was called to be a Ward Missionary himself! It's a big change in his life in a very short amount of time, and he will do great! 

Wednesday was also a good day. We visited Patu Eria and he is doing really well. We are going to start teaching his brother and sister too. We then had a lesson with Brian and Malina and they wanna be baptized. I'm praying for ways to get Brian baptized now. I really hope that he will because he is so awesome and funny and he knows this is what he should do. Then Thursday we went and just taught a bunch of lessons.  We stay really busy. 

Friday was awesome. We had a zone meeting and after that our whole zone went to this place where people gamble called "Bingo de Papenoo" and we sang Church hymns outside just to see if we could get a few inquiries! Ha! That night we all had dinner with the Stake President and that was really great. We have a great zone. 

Saturday we all fasted for our investigators and that night we got a letter at our door from a lady who wants the lessons.  Can you believe it? It was really awesome. The power of fasting is amazing! Sunday we went to church and I hung with this little kid named Tuhay who just likes me for some reason...he is awesome. The Tahitians are great!

Mom, I'm so sorry that this letter is short and no pics. The WIFI keeps going bad at the church and I'm running out of time, so next week will be a really good letter! I love you.

Elder Connor Boyd

Week 9: The Bizoo is weird, Patu is a hungry kid, and Vatiani got baptized!

This week was really good! Monday after I emailed home, I went to town in Pape'ete and played more beach soccer...so much beach soccer I'm going nuts haha! It's not too bad, but everyone in my zone played soccer, before the mission, so they are good -- If only I could get them to play baseball!

Tuesday was super duper! We had zone conference with elder Haleck, a member of the Seventy, and we talked about planning. He shared his amazing testimony of the savior and our prophet, in English, and there were also translators for French and Tahitian. It was so good! Afterward he interviewed 10 missionaries, and I was fortunate enough to be one of them. I'm not sure why I was chosen to interview with him, but it was a great experience. 

After that, we had a teaching lesson with Herenui and committed him to both baptism (on the 7th of November) and marriage prior to that, so good things are in store for Herenui. 

Wednesday was a rough day because a bunch of planned lessons cancelled. Thursday was awesome though. We visited an investigator named Eria Patu who is a 19 old kid, and I think he feels a lot of stress in his life, because he is already starting to have gray hair. All his clothes are dirty and he is always so hungry, but he has such a good heart. I love that kid. He thinks that I am super big for my age haha. He loves feeling the spirit, so during our lesson when the spirit was strong, I asked him to be baptized and he said yes. After that, we talked about the baptism program and he asked if there will be food like 4 times -- haha it was so funny! Sure, we'll bring food! 

Friday at night we took a nice couple, Brian and Malina, to the Pape'ete Temple for a tour. They were so touched by the feeling on the temple grounds and because the front doors are see through we could see the workers in the temple. Bryan looked in and did the hang loose sign to them (which is a cool way of saying hello--its like the peace sign haha) so that was hilarious! The temple workers all laughed haha. Taking advantage of the moment, we asked them if they would commit to both getting married (civilly now, and in the Temple in a year), and to getting baptized. They are sincerely thinking and praying about it. 

Vatiani and her kids on her baptism day!

Saturday Vatiani was baptized! This was my first baptism and it was so awesome! Bryan and Malina came, and Patu also--our guy who asked if there would be food. He ate most of the food there hahaha, it was too funny!! It was such a great and happy experience though! 

Also this week, I talked to this guy and when he left he gave me the bizoo (the French custom of kissing both cheeks) and let me tell ya -- that is the weirdest thing eeeeeewwwwwww!!  Haha it's just weird to me -- maybe I'll get used to it at some point, but I'm not holding my breath. Maybe I should -- and puff out my cheeks. :) 

Sunday was a good sabbath day, but also sad as one of my favorite investigators, JN, informed us he doesn't want the lessons anymore. I felt devastated because I really thought that he was feeling the spirit and he was becoming so involved. I'm not sure what happened, but I felt very disappointed and sad most of the day. However, later that night we were able to find two new investigators. All in all, a week of ups and downs, but mostly UPS!

I'm so glad things are great at home. I am trying to figure out my camera. I don't know why the pictures are blurry. I'll figure it out.  Love you all. 

PS I was able to get my new mission bike. They'll see me coming!

-- Elder Boyd 

Week 8: Nutella is really good

It has been another great week! Last week after we did our emailing we went and played beach soccer with my district.  I should have taken a pic because the island is so pretty from the beach...maybe I'll remember a camera this week. 

Last week after P-day we had the feeling to visit Noel, an investigator, so we went to his house and he had time for a lesson. We taught about faith and then after we finished I had the feeling to read to him the story of Jesus getting baptized, so I did. After that (in broken French) I gave him the baptism commitment and he said YES!  Awesome! The cool thing about Noel is that he was going to lose his home because of financial problems, but two weeks ago a miracle happened. He was able to get enough money and the bank decided to be patient with, him which is unheard of out here I guess. So wow! We also committed Marutea, Chantal, Vaitiani, Imiura and Jose to baptism.... so yeah, it was a dang good week!

We have 27 people we are teaching right now so the days are super busy but really good.  We have 15 of those who are really progressing well which is great. It can be frustrating because many people forget about our lesson appointments and leave or just can't do them at the time we scheduled -- always a bummer. There is one family that wants to be baptized in a year because the mom thinks her son isn't quite ready, but we think he is... geeezzz I wanna baptize her now...they will be so blessed when they finally commit.

Best food moment. of the week...I bought Nutella at the store, and Nutella is really good! Just sayin'.

I got to call Elder Sovereign and some of the others from the MTC to check in this week. It's cool to stay connected with them. We had a great bond from our first few weeks of missionary training together.

It's super fun to watch the surfers from the road...we live right by a very popular surfing spot and it is sooooo cool to see them shredding it up in the waves!  

I hear Kennedi is killing it in volleyball and I can't wait for wrestling to start for B! 

Love you all and have a great week!

Elder Boyd

View from our small Missionary home.

Week 7: Fa'aripo with Elder Teamotuaitau

Connor arrived in Tahiti safe and sound at 2:00 a.m. on September 29th. We heard from the mission office that he was serving in the Fa'aripo area with a Tahitian companion.  He had his first P-day on Monday and finally got to write home.  He sounds great and is really excited about teaching the people of Tahiti!  He asked all of us to pray for him as he continues to work on the language but most importantly to pray for the investigators that he is already loving to teach.  We feel each day the blessings of having a missionary in our home and love you all for being such a great support for our little Elder! 

My MTC district newly arrived in Tahiti.

October 5, 2015

Hi Everyone!

Just letting you know that everything is well and I love it here in Tahiti! It's a beautiful island but I'm in a rougher part of Tahiti called Fa'aripo.  Everyone is so nice, but they literally live in little shacks. Yet they are still so nice and happy!  The members are like moms, they cook us dinner every night, so we don't have to cook at all...hahaha...I love it! My house is pretty cool. The front yard is the ocean and my back yard is a mountain! It is amazing! There is a stray dog that stays outside of our house...I named him "Aito" which is Warrior in Tahitian.  My companion's name is Elder Teamotuaitau, he is awesome and we work well together. He is Tahitian and doesn't speak any English. We share a room with another companionship, Elders Drugeon and Ubani. They are both French and, you guessed it, they don't speak any English, so it's definitely interesting, and a bit lonely. I have some work ahead of me to learn Tahitian so my companion and I can communicate, let alone communicate with the people I came here to serve.

With my Trainer, Elder Teamotuaitau 

My companion and I already have 24 people that we are teaching... it's really crazy. I guess the people here really like my companion! I can't speak the language, so it's not me :) I've been able to teach some lessons, and I'm actually teaching an investigator, Jean Nichelle, in English. He speaks English (thank heavens) so yeah, that is going well! We have had two baptismal commitments (I don't know how because I don't speak the language so I HOPE we have two baptismal commitments.) So yeah, all is well! 

There is a huge problem with people keeping the Word of Wisdom and the law of chastity out here, so that can really be a challenge. Each day we get up and pray to know where to go and we are guided. When we get to a home we just yell "Ia Orana!" (yo-rah-nah) which is "hello" in Tahitian, and the people come out to their yard and talk with us.

Conference was really good. Luckily I got to listen to it in English so I could understand. Elder Jeffery Holland's talk was amazing. I was also amazed that President Monson could barely stand, but he looked into the camera like he was looking straight at us and he was talking about Jesus Christ!  That is amazing to me... it shows how much our prophet really loves us.

How is the family? I hear that Kennedi's tournament went really well. I love you all!

Pray for our investigators. They all have a great desire to know. I can't understand them and I worry that they can't understand me, but they have a great desire in their eyes. I see it and I know.

Have a great week and I love you!

Elder Boyd

Elders Sovereign and Boyd in front of the Tahiti temple

Aito, our stray dog who keeps us company

The mountain beyond our back yard

Week 6: Arrived in Tahiti

We received word This morning that Elder Boyd arrived in Tahiti safely, has been well fed, well trained, and assigned a native Tahitian companion. They are serving in Fa'aripo on the main island of Papeete. What a great way to get a jump start on the Tahitian language!

 The large group of new arrivals!

Fed and happy at the mission home.

Week 5: Last Letter from the MTC - Tahiti, here I come!

Hi Everyone!

This was such a great week! I love being a missionary! 

I really loved seeing the Newell's this week...they are so amazing! Tell Lloyd that Sunday's devotional was the best devotional I have been to. His message was great...even the MTC president was crying! It was incredible and the spirit was super strong.  He said some amazing things that were so necessary for all missionaries to hear, and it was awesome that he did it like the Spoken Word....reminded me of going to SLC to attend the Spoken Word as a family and hearing his great voice. All of my district was a little jealous that I knew the man of the hour, and I got to talk to Abby and Karmel afterward! 

We got our travel plans this week and that was definitely the highlight of the week. I can't believe that I am actually heading to Tahiti! I am nervous and excited all at the same time.  I leave on Monday the 28th and go to LAX and then on to Tahiti. We will be in the air about 10 hours. There are going to be 22 missionaries on the plane to Tahiti and holy smokes it's gonna be crazy. The Tahiti missionaries are a group of really fun kids. 

My District is awesome and there are a bunch of cool kids in the other District too...high quality missionaries! I especially love Elder Heward and Elder Owens! Elder Heward is just flat out funny and Elder Owens is from Heber, Utah and has a little bit of a "southern accent" and they are both hilarious! They keep things a little lighter when we get uptight about French.

That is so great to hear about Kennedi getting Varsity volleyball time. And congrats to Neil for getting married.... good luck Kourtney.... hahaha just kidding! It really is great.

Next time I email I will be in Tahiti. I am really excited to tell you all about it, and can't wait to see where I will be actually serving over there. This is getting real!

There may or may not be a package coming this week for the family....treasures for all...but who really knows! ;)

I love you all. Thanks to everyone for the emails, packages and encouragement while I have been in the MTC. I must really be loved! ;)

I can't emphasis enough how important it is to get to know Christ. He already knows you, but through prayer, reading his words, and recognizing his atonement we can become closer to Him.  I love you all and have a great week!! Wish me luck!

Elder Boyd

Short video of a few Lone Peak missionaries and Comps

Solid group of Elders after Sunday Devotional with Lloyd Newell

Elder Connor Boyd and Elder Tate Hansen

Happy and confident Elder Boyd

Last day in the MTC with my Lone Peak baseball buddies.

Week 4: Bonjour mes amie! From the Empty Sea (MTC).

Bonjour mes amie!

How are all of you guys doing? This week at the MTC was a little up and down but generally good.  I caught a nasty sickness...but it didn't last very long so don't worry!!! I am eating salad every day, and everyone makes fun of me because I'm eating healthy..... it's just because the other food makes me super sick haha! It has to be straight spiked with laxatives and some other nasty stuff hahaha!  But all is well! 

I'm so excited to hear Brother Lloyd Newell speak next week... I looooovvvveeee that guy... he is awesome! Thanks for letting me know, it's something I will definitely look forward to. The messages from the guest speakers are always good.. The talks are prepared and saved just for the missionaries so sorry guys, you are missing out haha! I guess you guys can watch "The Office" sooooo you are a little lucky. I quote movies all the time here. There is a lot of buzz about the Star Wars 7 movie coming out. Someone put a sticker of the new villain Kylo Ren on the back of my tag..haha! 

I heard B's first little date was awesome! He looked like the biggest stud in the picture. I was like OH GEEEZZZZ! I wanted to be there to harass him! I'm telling ya B, that picture looks pretty great maybe you should have given her a little smooch...hahahahaha! Just kidding...(OR AM I) ha! I hear that Deeds played Varsity in the PG game and did awesome, and the  BYU Coaches came to see her! That is amazing!

Okay, so this was pretty awesome: we had a devotional with this guy from the Presiding Bishopric.  His name was Gerald Causse and he was French and he was sooo great. He told us that a BOLD missionary is a humble missionary, and a BOLD missionary is an obedient missionary.. so yeah.. I'm gonna be extremely BOLD! You can count on that. 

This week I have been focusing a lot on learning about Jesus Christ's life and I encourage you to do so as well.  I love Christ so much and I know that He is with us and he will do anything to help us get back to him.  On our judgement day with him, it won't just be us begging to stay.... He will be begging us, saying, "Please stay, please accept my atonement." He sacrificed for everyone and he loves us so much.

I love you all!  Thanks for helping us get new shoes for our trainer... he is such a great guy and can't afford any new church shoes.  It's raining outside now and he comes to work with wet socks becasue of the holes in the soles of his shoes.  He does so much for us and we can't wait to sneak this surprise to him! Until next week...

Elder Boyd

Companions

Connor with Matt Smith

Tate (Panama), Connor (Tahiti), Stephen (Armenia), and Easton (Japan)

Connor with Tate