Island Culture

One of the blessings available to us living on Oahu is the Polynesian Cultural Center (PCC) in Laie. It is owned and operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and serves a dual purpose; to preserve the culture and traditions of the Polynesian island peoples, and to provide employment, income and assistance to the students attending Brigham Young University-Hawaii. It's a truly inspired program that is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Hawaii. BYU-H students from places such as Tonga, Samoa, Fiji, Tahiti, Aotearoa (New Zealand) and Hawaii give hands-on demonstrations about various unique aspects of their island culture. This used to be merely a natural extension of what they grew up with, but in today's global environment, it's a very important way for them to preserve and carry forward the traditions passed down from their ancestors through the many generations before they become lost in the modern world. 

As missionaries, we have access to discounted tickets, but we waited until one of our kids was visiting us to attend the PCC for the first time. We visited the north shore in the morning, hoping to see some monster waves, but sea conditions weren't very good for huge swells. The weather forecast that day called for wind and lots of rain, but it turned out fairly nice, so our prayers were answered. We got to the PCC right after it opened, and still didn't feel like we were able to see everything we wanted to. Dan visited with his family almost 30 years ago, and he noticed a lot of changes during that time. The evening show was spectacular, and we loved the whole experience that day. It will be fun to return again and again in the future as more family members come to visit. 

Sister Mundell had a unique spiritual experience with family history this week. She researched some family members to take to the temple to be sealed to their parents, and as she was walking the next day one of the deceased ladies spoke to her and asked Cathy to print out her card and take it to the temple. So we went to the temple on Saturday, did the ordinances for 17 individuals and sealed three brothers (including a set of twins) to their parents, and afterward the same lady spoke to her again, and said "Thank You!"

We're enjoying teaching early morning seminary. Like most of the things we do here, we must adjust and adapt the standard program to match our talents and abilities better. The kids are responding better as we go the extra mile to magnify our calling and make our study of the Book of Mormon more rewarding and interesting. There are times when we can really feel the spirit as we teach and testify to our students. It's been really fun trying to be creative as we approach each new teaching opportunity. We dropped off a basket of goodies and activities for one of the students who was out with COVID, and on their refrigerator we saw a poster we had given them for doctrinal mastery, "I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded". We looked at each other and smiled. If all we do as seminary teachers is reach just one of those teenagers, it's all worth it!