Rainbows & Savaii

The sun is shining bright as ever in Samoa and the rains are increasing, bringing with them lightning and thunder on occasion.  However, the temperatures hover in the 80's as always.  Ron captured this  beautiful double-arc rainbow this week.

Level 12 & 13 students have been taking important external exams each day, averaging 1-2 exams a day.  They continue testing this next week.  Tests are intense because scores can determine their future ability to attend university and such.  The traffic loop has been blocked to minimize noise levels.  Overall the students seem to be in good spirits.  We hosted our last movie night for the year so we baked them cookies.  Love these young people!  It was with profound sadness and joy that we realized in a few days that our association with the fine level thirteen students will be over.  They will be off to conquer the world on their own terms with only the echoes of their laughter, the warmth of their smiles, and the deeply ingrained memories of their kindness to linger with us, a gift to be forever cherished.   

Our Multiculturalism & SIOP class is now complete.  We have been getting grades ready to submit and have had time to pick up the office clutter and clean out some files.  We've also acquired new office supplies with year-end budget monies.

SIOP Class

Preparations for future classes now dominate our time as a dozen courses yet be taught for next year will need be prepared from the ground up.  We are in constant search of worldwide information that will allow the us to guide the instructional practices of our staff. 

Saturday we invited Elder & Sister Deffense to lunch and they ended up taking us to a new location.   It was a 45-minute drive to the beautiful beaches on the northeast side of Savaii at Fagamalo.   The beaches there were very sandy which is not the norm as much of the island is volcanic rock that drops immediately into the ocean.   Tropical fish swam in large numbers in the shallow water that was very warm and most inviting.   It made for a tranquil and salubrious afternoon that disappeared all too fast with the descending sun of early evening.

Other pictures from this week:

Honors first missionary to Samoa in 1830 from the London Missionary Society.

Starfruit---when sliced has five points like a star.  It is eaten much like an apple, skin and all.

                             It has one seed in the center.  Our preference is to cut off the thin 

                            membrane on each section before slicing.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! "THINK TO THANK"