Odds and ends!

      As we progress in this adventure, we seem to be taking fewer pictures.  This does not mean that we are having any fewer experiences.  These experiences are just becoming more commonplace to us.  The following are some random things to share.

     Do you know that poinsettia plants grow as large as trees?  Around the island there are many poinsettia trees.  They come in red, pink, and white.  They are really amazing to see.

       Employment is also a huge issue when teaching self reliance to these good people.  We have setup an employment committee made up of young adults in the district.  They created job boards for each of the branches.  Each week they update the jobs that are currently available.  We are also teaching these young adults about creating/writing resumes or CV's.  Hopefully, these select kids will be helpful to more and more members.  This effort will take a long time to germinate successfully. 

 

      There is a native dress here.  Well, it is kind of native.  Apparently when Christian missionaries first arrived in Vanuatu, the people didn't wear much.  The missionaries came up with this dress for the women to wear.  Everyone does wear it now.  They certainly don't wear it all of the time, but they all wear it sometimes.  The dresses are very colorful.  I was commenting on one of the dresses that a sister was wearing at church. Another sister over heard our conversation.  This week she brought me a dress.  Here it is.  They are like big tents.  The sister was sweet to make me one.

      On a drive up to Paoningisu Branch, we passed one of the many little island roadside stands.  Usually these stands have food items - fruits  or vegetables.  Today we saw a stand with all kinds of island baskets.  They make them right there in the tiny village.  There were some truly beautiful designs.  Here are some of them.

      

      This is our poor little car.  We were at the grocery store and a truck rear-ended us.  The young man had just barely arrived from Australia that very afternoon.  He was not used to checking for drivers on our side of the road.  He was looking for traffic from the wrong direction.  His father did pay to get our car all fixed up.