"Time Out" in Fiji: December 8

Woke at 5:00 a.m. just before the whistle went off. Was hoping to have the bathroom to myself. No such luck. I had to chase off three geckos before I could shower. Breakfast was again continental, but not as good as yesterdays except that I found some sugar so I could have the lemon grass tea. I actually like a warm drink in the mornings as was glad for it.

Everyone was dressed in Sunday best; white shirts and ties, and real dresses for the most part. Elder Wakolo had driven up to speak to the YSAs. Scott and I borrowed some chairs from the dining room and were just getting seated off the deck under a huge tree when we were asked to sit in with the dignitaries on the deck. We tried to get Sister Wakolo to sit there, but she would not so we ended up front. It is lovely to be honored as a missionary, but so often I do not feel like we are doing anything special and are certainly not personally worthy of the honor.

Elder Wakolo Speaking
at the Final Fireside

Final Fireside
I am on the left.

Elder Walkolo gave a great talk and it was going so well as he instructed the YSAs about this most important time of life. He asked if they had any questions and the first one was, "Which is most important education or marriage." Elder Wakolo turned and look at those of us sitting in the front and asked what we thought and who would be willing to answer the question. WELL!!!

I know the attitudes here in Fiji and I found myself raising my hand before I had even thought. I just bore my testimony that the answer to that question was marriage, but that each one of those sitting there had the right to their own answers. I testified that with faith, Heavenly Father would give them the answer to that question. I then told them about Chaya and Rex doing school together and how the first apartment they lived in made me cry it was so awful, but if you asked them now they would say that was a great time in their life. Then, heaven help us, one of the members of a stake presidency got up and said that I was wrong. That an education was way more important and, in fact, that they should not only wait to get married until their education was finished, but wait until they had purchased a home. (I wanted to tear his tongue out) Another member of another stake presidency got up and talked about having faith and how he quit a job so that he and his wife could be sealed in the Tonga temple. Finally a YSA advisor got up (he was sitting in the back) and said that marriage was ordained of God and that the young adults only needed faith, two spoon, two cups, and two plates to get married. He said other things and then he stopped and said, "If you don't have two spoons, two cups, and two plates share one spoon, one cup and one plate." I was in tears when he finished.

There is a problem here in Fiji among young members of the church. They are afraid to get married. They are being told by their parents to get an education first. In the three stakes in Fiji there are over 500 single member between the ages of 30 and 45 which is an indication that the youth are waiting to get married and then just do not get married.

I had three of our institute YSAs come talk to me and they were pretty upset. I just told them to follow the prophet. What does our prophet say? What have past prophets said? Follow the prophet and your life will happen the way it is supposed to happen. Such a bummer way of ending camp.

Group Picture at the End of Camp

We packed up, took pictures, and headed to Nadi because Suzanne's plane leaves at 11 tonight.

Saying Goodbye to
Jade, Monika, and Susanna

Tevita Cegedrau and Villi Melan

We decided to take the northern route to Nadi since we had not seen it before. This route takes us through Rakiraki, Tavue, Ba, and Lautoka. It was gorgeous and I thought the road was so much better than the one that goes from Suva to Nadi along the southern coast. Better by far except for the four or five strips of road that had been torn up and left us driving on gravel.