October 30

Today was to be the last chorister class.   Eight weeks of almost perfect attendance and I only had two show up for this class.  How does that work?

Usa (oo saw) and Mao came.  Jone (cho nay) is in the MTC in Uganda.  Nunia(noo nee ah) is still in Taveuni (taw vee oon ee) with her folks.  Leslie was sick and I have no idea what happened to Ulai (oo lie).

I just went ahead and gave Usa and Mao the final exam which consisted of a written exam, so I could see how well I taught the material, and two hymns to lead.  I told them last week to pick a song they wanted to lead, and then I would give them one to lead.  Right from the start of the class Mao had a hard time hearing the beat.  I thought he would do better as he worked so hard during the classes, and although, he knows all the beat patterns, he was never in the appropriate place in the pattern during the hymns he led.  Usa on the other had was right on and I gave him a really hard song to lead.  Ah well, no one in Fiji will notice as most who lead here never where they should be in the beat pattern, and many use the 4/4 beat pattern for every song no matter what the time signature is.

It is funny to me that I am the music expert here.  Me?  Who hardly plays at all and although I can lead any hymn have never had the opportunity to do it in church.  Recently President Seru came looking for me.  I was home working on a lesson, so he sent Scott home with the children's hymn book with a question about one of the songs therein that he was translating into Fijian.  I was grateful that I knew the answer.  I even remembered the word descant which created the problem for President Seru.  Nice.