Elder & Sister Mundell

Four grandchildren visiting us this week gave us lots of opportunities to spend quality time together and make some priceless memories. They really enjoyed the Polynesian Cultural Center, especially the Breath of Life evening show where we were seated right next to the performers in the second row, and the kids could look into their smiling faces and feel the heat from the flames of the torches. We kept looking at them throughout the performance and we could see how they were transfixed with wonder in their eyes. We also visited a children's discovery center in Honolulu and our grandkids loved it. It allowed them to be creative in unique ways. Our favorite part of the day was being the audience for them as they dressed up in a variety of costumes and put on a show for the grandparents. It's a joy for us to entertain small children and do things that'll make their visit to Hawaii an experience they'll remember forever. Ezra, Everley and Emberlin Sister Mundell with Edith...

We have family members visiting us this week from Utah, Cathy's daughter Courtney, husband Emanuel, and their four small children. It's the first time we've had more than two other people in our apartment, so it's been quite an adjustment for us -- but of course something we are very happy to do. We're so happy to have several of our precious grandchildren with us for an entire week!  Our grandchildren Everly (9), Ezra (5), Emberlin (4) and Edith (16 mo.) Last Sunday we were invited to speak during Sacrament Meeting at the Kahaluu ward. We were asked to speak about "glad tidings of great joy" and Elder Mundell talked about how glad tidings really means "good news" in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, and is called the gospel of Jesus Christ. He said the gospel is really basic, we shouldn't try to make it overly complicated. It is simply Come Unto Christ and have faith in Him and His Atonement. Because of that faith, it inspires us to repent o...

One thing that we've noticed in Hawaii is that their annual ward conferences are a much bigger deal than anything we've seen in the mainland. On the Saturday before they like to have a big ward social activity, which in some cases it may be even more elaborate than their Christmas party. The Waimanalo ward conference was today, and we were asked to help with the breakfast Saturday morning, and assist in making leis for the stake leaders who visited the ward. We made candy leis for the Primary leaders and beautiful crown flower leis for the stake presidency and the bishopric.  Elder Mundell helped remove the blossoms from the crown flowers that would become beautiful leis. This is what a crown flower looks like. But the ward activity was only a small part of our day --- we donated blood at a drive hosted by the Olomana ward in the morning, and participated in the baptism of Maynard Koa in the afternoon. Brother Koa has an advantage over most other recently baptized members in th...

It was a week of contrasts for us. On Labor Day we went to the youth correctional facility and played a Jeopardy game with them, followed by sugar cookie decorating at each module. The game had categories on Summer, Hawaii, Hawaiian food, Polynesia, and Anything Goes. It was interesting to observe how different each group responded to the activity. The boys were very competitive and didn't work as well together to answer the questions, and the girls even invited staff members to join their teams. It can be difficult for us to communicate effectively with the young men, but the girls really enjoy our visits with them each week. Later that evening we attended a potluck social event in Honolulu for the senior couples hosted by Elder and Sister Clawson. We brought homemade potato salad and fried rice. The activity was called the "Not So Newlywed Game" from the old 1970s TV show we grew up with. Since we were one of the couples recently married, we ended up being asked to part...

We learned an important lesson about preparation this week. In our weekly duties as full time missionaries, we meet and interact with dozens of people. We never know how these interactions will turn out as each individual we meet has unique challenges going on in their lives that affect their level of interest and engagement in our message of hope and salvation through the gospel of Jesus Christ. So it's important for us to always be prepared for each circumstance and be ready to answer whatever questions someone may have for us. We were serving at a specialized drug treatment detox facility for addicts trying to turn their life around. They are only there for about a week before moving on to another rehab program, so we usually only see them one time on Thursday. One of the men shared with us a few of the positive experiences he'd had with members of the church on the Navajo reservation, and asked us for a copy of the Book of Mormon. We were surprised and disappointed to disco...