Aloha to the Mainland:)

This was another great week! I had a Family Home Evening with the Ah Pucks. It was their monthly extended family, family home evening. One of the family had friends from the mainland here so they fixed a luau, so that was awesome! I finally had some palisami! I've been looking forward to that:) It was just as good as I remember it being:) It was a great evening with all the family and I really enjoyed myself. I also visited with Grandma Ah Puck on Wednesday and showed her all the boys' school pictures, I had forgotten to take them on Sunday. She said she doesn't think she still has any of those class pictures, so it was fun for her to see them. She told me some hilarious stories from her teaching years. I really enjoyed our visit:)

I wanted to share something that I learned in Sunday School last week, which was pretty cool. The teacher is a conflict management guy for the US govt in dealing with Israel, at least that's how I understand it. So he's very knowledgeable in things having to do with the middle East. He was telling us about the way the Jewish boys were taught in the Savior's time. There were several different stages in a Jewish boys teaching, but all boys were taught up until about 14 years old, I think. It is their religious education I'm talking about, which taught them to memorize the entire Old Testament, along with reading and writing. There were several thinnings out of the crop, so to speak, through the years, when the rabbis would come and choose the boys that would continue their religious education, but ultimately at age 30, if you had made each cut you would become a rabbi. Somewhere along the way, I don't remember at which age, but when you were chosen to go on to become a rabbi (after age 14 I think), then a rabbi (and there were multiple rabbis that would come) would say to the best and brightest boys, "Come Follow Me" and those that were chosen were told to follow in the footsteps of the rabbi so as to be covered with the dust from the rabbi's feet. They were to follow him and do everything he did in order to become a rabbi, by learning what he knew and doing what he did. So there is additional significance to that phrase "Come Follow Me" that we are never taught in church. Each little Jewish boy was probably hoping as he was growing up to hear those words "Come Follow Me" from a rabbi, so that they could eventually become a master teacher, as well. So when the Savior came to Peter, James and John when they were at their fishing boats and he was the age of a rabbi (30) and said, "Come Follow Me" to them, this would have been of major significance to them. Here was a rabbi, the Messiah, who was coming to them and suggesting to them to "Come, Follow Me", come get covered in the dust of my feet, learn what I learn, do what I do, know what I know. As quickly as they dropped their nets and followed the Savior, you know that as students in their growing up years, they must have longed to hear their favorite rabbi say to them, "Come Follow Me."  Now they were finally getting that opportunity! I loved learning that extra information on the significance of the phrase, "Come, Follow Me."

All is going super well here and waaaaay too fast! I'm loving my time here and am so very grateful to have this opportunity! I hope that all is well with everyone back at home! 

Love you lots!

Kindra