I thought you might like to see some of the flowers that surround us.  These were taken by me while walking down our street a few minutes ago all within 3 or 4 minutes from our house.

These flowers were eating their lunch and doing homework out in front of our house waiting for their dad who was replacing the stove in our kitchen.

Couldn't resist this photo at the fish market.  The guy was wearing an Irish hat.  His friend said he was a black Irishman.

Yesterday and today we enjoyed stake conference at the stake center that is next door to our housing compound.  Saturday night a youth choir sang.  The opening song was Be Still My Soul by Jean Sibelius (Finlandia).  I was with the Coir on the bow of the ship when they sailed into the harbor in Helsinki and sang this song.  It was perhaps the prettiest thing I had ever heard, until last night.  I could not keep myself from weeping as these young people sang,
Be still my soul: The hour is hast'ning on
When we shall be forever with the Lord,
When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love's purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past,
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.
As I looked over at Dr. Larsen he was weeping as well.  It was as if we were both receiving the
same message, only it was given in Samoan.  These people are naturally gifted in music.  Their singing is strong and sweet and beautiful.
     Wednesday, Clyde and I went to the far eastern side of the island to catch a ride to Namua Island.  It cost 40 tala per person to ride across the lagoon, get a beach fale and spend the day.  They met us with coconuts to drink and would have fixed us lunch, dinner, and a mattress and pillow for an overnight stay had we wanted.  What a beautiful place.  We were greeted at the launch by this two year old and his new birthday present.

We climbed to the top on a trail thru the jungle, accompanied by a couple of dogs that were eager to go, and were rewarded with a magnificent view.

We've mad arrangements with a missionary couple to go to the big island of Savaii next week.  They will pick us up at the ferry and show us around the island.  They teach at the church school at Vaiola and we will be exploring the possibility of taking a mobile clinic to the school.  We'll see how it goes.  Stay well........Duane

P.S.  Cidne, I can bring home a small machete for Luke if you like.

We drove across the island to a village called Siumu to visit the principal of a high school that we had met at the clinic.  We had given him a couple of hundred toothbrushes to give to his students with the promise that we would come and teach oral hygiene to his studentbody.  His school was devastated a few years ago by a cyclone and has since been partly rebuilt using Australian aid.  There are still about 100 students who have no desks but who sit on the floor during lectures and classwork.  We have been working with the Gillettes, missionaries from Idaho who have been called to get the vocational program at the Church College running.  He is teaching welding so we proposed to him that his students build desks for the college in Siumu.  They are thrilled with the idea and he has made a prototype desk with his students.  The powers that be in New Zealand are also quite taken with the idea so if they approve funding for it the principal may get his desks and our students at the college will get to learn a lot about welding and woodworking.  Kind of exciting.  Following are pictures of me with the principal and some pictures of the school.

We stopped along the way to buy some lava lavas from a street vendor out in the country.  Thought theses would be nice for swimming wraps for the ladies in the family.

We stopped in Apia on our way back to McDonalds cause we didn't feel like cooking.  Something I've not seen in Bountiful McDonalds is the men wearing dresses and the women wearing pants.

Yesterday we went with the Schafermeyers snorkeling.  We swam around this Island and saw lots of starfish that were bright blue.

This little guy seems to be saying What's Up Doc.  Catch You later.

Yesterday Dr. Larsen and I decided to go snorkeling on the south side.  We 1st went to the clinic to take care of a missionary with a toothache.  He is stationed on the island of Savaii so he had to catch the 6 AM Ferry to get here by 9.  After doing a root canal we drove by a group of LDS youth who were at the side of the road advertising their car wash to raise funds for charity.  It was part of their youth conference.  So we stopped to have the car washed.  It was quite dirty.

We then headed to the fish market to get some fresh snapper.  The owner of the market called and left a message that the snapper were in.  She knows that is our favorite.  Then we headed south on the east cross island road to Lotofaga (pronounced Loto fanga) and found a secluded beach.

 

There was a lot of coral there with a large number of fish, large schools of colorful tropical fish, not very large but way fun to watch.

 

We found a beautiful waterfall called the Sopoaga (pronounce Sopo aunga) waterfall.  While there we found a young man in a cultural garden mowing the lawn.  They had coconuts you could husk, or at least try to husk.  He saw our struggles and came over to show us how easy it is.  These three pictures show him shredding the broken coconut, then squeezing the cream out.  It really is quite amazing.  They use coconut cream to cook with all the time.

We went down the road a little and found a place called the To Soa sea trench.  It's a huge hole in the ground filled with sea water from a lava tube.

 The area around the sea trench was beautiful volcanic rock formations with the surf pounding in.  It was gorgeous.

 We stopped at a seaside cafe.  I had a Coke Zero and Clyde had a coconut.  This crowd of kids were the same ones at the youth conference doing the car wash.  We weren't disappointed in the day's adventure.

There is quite an uproar on the Island about the big game Wednesday Manu Samoa against the All Blacks of New Zealand.  Villages are decorating the roadsides with banners and painting flagpoles and selling flags on the roadside.  Downtown is a frenzy of street vendors selling Samoan flags, Manu jerseys and hats, and anything Samoan.  This is the first time the teams have met and since it's in Samoa it's like a national holiday.

The sound of the dental drill can be very relaxing

 We're eating quite a bit of fish.  Trying all sizes and colors.  These were actually quite tasty.  Neither of us tried the eyes.

Our table is often quite colorful too with fresh fruit, salads, and coconuts.  Notice the straws in the coconuts.  These are young coconuts called niu.  You can buy them from street vendors everywhere; ice cold and quite pleasing.  I'm told they are packed with vitamins too.

Dr. Larsen is a great guy.  He served a mission with his wife last year in Hyko, Nevada working on a church cattle ranch.  After they were home 6 months his wife died of liver failure.  He raises sheep and beef, and pork on a farm between Price and Wellington.  He makes his own sausage, slaughters his own sheep and beef, and makes lamb stew, his favorite dish.  He's a sometime artist because he makes saddles.  A few years ago he presented President Bush a saddle in the oval office, as well as one for Governor Leavitt.  He's a very humble man and reminds me a lot of Lew.  We're making a pretty good team in the kitchen except he wants to try everything Samoan and I'm a little more reluctant.  Well, I hope you all had a happy 4th.  Have a great week.