Talofa!

Oh no Todo, I don't think we're in the Gong anymore...

Tuesday when we were walking out of the library, this African pastor started Bible Bashing me and Sister Sekete. That was a strange experience. Tuesday night our ward has a rescue night, so we went and saw some less active members with one of the sisters in the ward. Then after we went and saw them, Sister F took us to Macca's to grab a snack. And I said, Ï would like an ice cream please." So she ordered me FOUR ICE CRE

AM SUNDAES!!! And then we went contacting at the train station and I met three YSA from the Tongan ward and they were like, "Sister, take our drinks! Sister! Let us take you to the shop and get you food. Let us buy you something." Everyone is so nice here and wants you to eat ridiculous amounts.... I guess I can take one for the team and totally devour anything in my sight. hahaha.

Wednesday was so good! We went finding in the morning and then taught a lesson to our investigator Lin Lin. That was interesting. Haha. Then we went and had a lesson with George and he only smoked one cigarette, which has apparently never happened before. Woo! I also had him convinced that I was 47 and was just really good at doing my makeup, but then he wised up and realized  I was joking. We went on splits and that was super fun. We went and saw our investigators Linda and Diana. They're both African and I now know what an African party looks like. It looks super awesome by the way. Then we went and saw Simone, a recent convert. We shared a message with her, her kids, and her non-member partner. It was a really fun night.

Thursday I found out that Sister Sekete is actually a rapper, so that was interesting. I am so white as it's not even funny. All of our appointments fell through so we ended up doing a lot of contacting. We met this cute little Vietnamese lady at the train station and she thought I had yellow hair and Sister Sekete was from the Philippines. She is obviously blind.... I also decided that I have an African spirit and that I need to move to South Africa and raise a giraffe from infancy.... But that's not missionary related. hahaha.

Friday was good. We had district training and we got to meet the rest of the district. We were walking home and decided to grab a fifty cent cone at Macca's, right? So I'm waiting for my ice cream and this guy behind me starts flipping out on his wife and kid. F words are flying, and the mum and little boy were both obviously upset. So I gave the little boy my ice cream cone and talked to the mum for a little. The dad was yelling and I just handed him a pass along card and told him to be nice, because some of us aren't blessed to have our families on this side of the world, but that's okay because I get them for eternity. And then he shut up. So ya know, that was kind of cool. Then we had a lesson with our investigator Deserae and that was the first time that anyone has been around her that she hasn't sworn once! Woo! Kind of awesome. Then we went to the Espinosa's for dinner, but we took a wrong turn and had to walk for an hour, so we were a bit late. But they were so sweet and weren't even mad and we had yummy El Salvadorian food together. Then we went and saw a less active member named Shelley. She was praying and the Lord told her that she needed to invite the missionaries over, and less than 24 hours later we just showed up! It was a pretty cool experience. She really wants to come to America so she can go to Walmart in her pajamas. I told her we could go together and even throw some hair rollers in. Haha.

Saturday was TRAUMATIZING. I woke up to a cockroach crawling on me. Aaaaagh. I almost cried. Then it was so hot that I got a tan line walking from our flat to the train station. Haha. Australia, mate.... Sister Sekete made Chakalaka, a South African dish for lunch. It was pretty good! Then there was a missionary fireside because someone in the ward just came home from their mission in Perth. He's Tongan and so there was a mass Islander feed afterwards so we could talk to his non-member friends and family. It was crazy! There were two FULL pigs (teeth and everything still in), a chocolate fountain, HEAPS of KFC, and yumm desserts. I swear if I didn't have to walk to Sydney and back everyday I'd weigh 200kg.

So Fairfield Stake is legendary for their Sundays, and I now understand why. This morning we had MCM and then went street contacting. We met this really cool guy named Oscar from Iraq. Most of the people we meet on the streets are from the Middle East, so I always carry around Arabic copies of the Book of Mormon and the Restoration Pamphlet. Church was really good. I'm one of three white people in the ward, and the other two are the Elders.... Hahaha. O áu o se palongi sui o le ekalesia a Iesu Keriso ole au paia o aso egata ai. Oute le iloa tautala faasamoa. Then we went to the Amone's house and went on a hound dog run! All of the missionaries in the stake get together and have a big feed, then we switch companions and go and see assignments from the Stake Presidency. It was super fun and my companion for the night was Sister Albano, my old companion from Sutherland! We taught a lesson to a recent convert and found a new investigator. It was a good night! Then we went back to the Amone's and had yumm dessert. Sundays are awesome!

It was a really good week. I think I'll adjust to Villawood pretty nicely. It's completely different than any area that I have ever served in, but I know I'm here for a purpose. The church is true, and I'm so grateful I get to share the Gospel with the people here.

Alofa Atu. Tofa,

Sister Danielle Laree Stott

Picture: Sister Eddie (Solomon Islands), Sister Teahe (Tahiti), Sister Sekete (South Africa), Sister Stott (Idaho!). The first time in my life I've been considered tall and pale.