January 27

Up at 5:45. At 7:00 Vasemaca arrived at our house. Opened the chapel at 7:15 with the guards key.  Only Olive was there. At 7:20 Elder Jackson showed up. At 7:30 had ten YSAs. Even offering breakfast did not make a difference. Fed muffins to the ten who were there and then I led practice at 7:35 as Maggie was not there yet; she had problems and did not show up until the meeting had started. Six YSA women came in so late they had to sit in the back of the overflow. Two of our YSA men were at the sacrament table and did not get up to sing. I will never get used to this----NEVER.

The choir sang beautifully. How can these young people sing 'because I have been given much, I too must give' with so much feeling? They have so little. However, they mean it when they sing it.  I was so touched as was Scott.

We spent over an hour getting those with callings to their ward buildings.  We drove to Nasinu first dropping off YSAs as we went and then turned right around and came back to Suva into Tamavua and then out to Lami. Filipe was giving a talk in his Sacrament Meeting and we got him to Lami at exactly 10 a.m.

Our ward Relief Society President, Sister Bahn, was released today. As I was asking her if she needed condolences or congratulations, she told me that the Relief Society presidents in this ward only serve six months---that is right 6. She was quite proud that she had lasted eight. I know that leaders here do almost all the work, but I did not realize it was quite that bad. I do know that there are only four visiting teaching routes with about seven sisters to be visited in each route. I do not know who is visiting the rest of the sisters in this ward, but I am sure there are more than 28 relief society sisters in the ward.

Ate lunch with the Jarmans.  They are the neatest couple.  I just love Sister Jarman; she is kind, perky, and a lot of fun.  Elder Jarman takes such good care of her.