May 12

Raced out to Lami at 1:00 today to practice our two new songs and only five of the men showed up.  To make it worse, only one woman showed up.  Argh.

However, after the practice the one woman told me that the Primary Choir is singing on Sunday and they are singing If The Savior Stood Beside Me.  When she told me that I just wanted to bawl.  Why had no one told me.  President Seru and his counselor both knew that we were planning on singing it.  Planning. Coordination. These are not words in the Fijian vocabulary. Don't misunderstand me.  I love these people.  The way they live works beautifully for them----but at this particular moment not for me.

We had scheduled our final practice tonight at 5:00 and then this morning it was announced that the stake was showing the latest CES broadcast at 5:00.  At first I was so ticked.  Why, oh why, does no one is Fiji plan ahead?  And then I realized that it would be a blessing in disguise. Thank you Heavenly Father.  The YSAs love CES broadcasts; they will come out in mass which would give me a captive audience.  I would just get all of them to stay after the broadcast for the practice which worked. We had between 50 and 60 stay to sing.  We worked on the two songs over and over and over.  It will have to do.

To make up for the last song we have to give up, I have decided to sing the Tongan song that the YSAs love so much.  No practice necessary.  They sang it beautifully tonight the first time we sang it.

I asked Maggie Vodo to lead Help Me Teach With Inspiration, Lillian Rokobuli is leading Come Unto Him, and Filipe Bogidua will lead Folofola Mai a Sisu.