Coconuts and Blessings !

 Kaselehlie Maing Ko!

This week has been very fun. Elder Durrant and I have had a ton of lessons and we met lots of people this week. We were able to help our friend Reagan set up a net around his coconut trees so when they fall, they don't float away into the water. That was super fun, and he gave us some coconuts after so that was really nice. 

We also had the chance to give one of the sisters in our zone a priesthood blessing because she was sick, and I was able to give the blessing. It was a very special thing I was able to do and I'm glad I have the privilege to hold the priesthood to help with that. 

This week at church before the sacrament the stake president asked me if I would help bless the sacrament because there were no priests there. I agreed but I read the prayer in Pohnpeian. I was very nervous, but the stake president and my companion said I did good afterwards so that made me feel a little bit better. 

Overall, this week has been awesome, and I have been slowly learning a little more Pohnpeian each week. I love y'all and I hope y'all have a great week!

-Elder Eubanks 

Here are a few of the pics from this week :

Wet and Naked

 Kaselehlie Maing Ko!

This week has been interesting. We met a lot of new people this week in our area. A good mix of members and nonmembers. It's been really rainy lately but today has been very hot. 

My companion and I were able to see some of the people we are teaching at church so that was really cool. I also got called to be the ward clerk even though I still don't speak barely any Pohnpeian yet, so I thought that was funny. As a Zone for P-day we hiked to the top of this small mountain, and you could see the airport and a lot of the island so that was cool. Overall, this week has been pretty chill and not a ton has happened. I'm grateful for the little things in life that God gives us.

Love y'all so much and I hope you all have a udan mwahu (really good) week! P.S. sorry this email was short.

Funny stories: 

1. This week we were teaching a girl and her family (we took a pic with her brother and he kind of looks like a rapper Lil Nas X ) and we read from the Book of Mormon but it was the Pohnpeian version and when it was my turn to read I totally butchered the verse, and they thought it was hilarious but they were proud of me for trying so that was nice haha.

2. We teach a lot of families in Pohnpei and almost every time we are walking through a village, we always see at least one butt naked kid and it's so funny because they always wave and try to say hi to us and they are literally wearing nothing.

-Here's some of the lel (cool) pics from this week

-Pohnpeian member that looks like a rapper :) :

-My MTC Companion Elder Arceneaux and Elders serving on Pohnpei on our pday hike:

-Some scenic shots:

-Beautiful sunrise over the church:

-The name of the church in Pohnpeian!:

-Proselyting in a total Jungle!

Proselyting in Pohnpei!

 Kaselehlie Maingko!

Hello everyone! I'm in Pohnpei now which is an Island in the Federated States of Micronesia, and I am very excited to be here. The people here are awesome and super nice. I am going to be learning Pohnpeian now so that'll be fun. It's definitely a unique language and a very unique island. This Island is just 7 degrees north of the equator and 1000 miles from Guam!  I am now in another time zone ahead-crazy!  I feel like it is a little hotter here and more humid than Saipan.  Pohnpei is a lot different from Saipan. It's much smaller and way more rural and relaxed. The people here are truly on that island time!

The food here is very interesting. I haven't tried anything yet but I have heard that they eat all sorts of things from dog to sea turtle. They also eat lots of fish of course. I am very pumped to try these strange and maybe delicious foods. 

The language is pretty cool. There are so many members on the island but many of them are inactive so trying to reteach and get them back to church is a lot of the missionary work we do here. Most if not all of the sacrament meetings here are done in Pohnpeian. We taught a family yesterday and they only had tile floor and no chairs or couch so we taught them while sitting criss-cross and that was definitely something we didn't do at all on Saipan. I also don't know barely any Pohnpeian still and it was almost entirely in Pohnpeian so that was funny. 

Before the flight to Pohnpei (which was 6 hours) we were in Guam for a few hours, so we had lunch with the AP's and helped contact some people in different areas. After that when we were about to get on the flight to Pohnpei I couldn't find my Missionary fund card. Turns out I lost it so that's a bummer. It'll take around 6 weeks to get a new one. Besides that mishap I am glad all the missionaries were able to arrive safely and I know the Lord is watching out for us. Anyways I'm gonna stop here because this is already pretty long. 

I love all of you and I can't wait for you all to hear about the crazy and fun experiences I have here. Have a great week everyone! 

-Elder Eubanks

-Here are some pics from Pohnpei and this week!

-some of the landscape of Pohnpei :

-My little house that I will live in now:

-My Companion (follow-up trainer) Elder Durrant from Huntington, Utah.  Everyone thinks he looks like Toby Maguire and the kids call him "Spiderman!" haha

Crazy Dogs, Tinian, and Transfer

 Hello Again!

This week was a roller coaster for sure! My companion and I were able to travel to a smaller Island right below Saipan called Tinian. We only stayed for a few days for exchanges. It is a really small island but has lots of WW2 history. In fact, that is the island where the 2 atomic bombs took off from. It was a really unique experience to go there and meet some of the people there and see its history. 

The same day we got back from Tinian we had no car because it was being serviced in a shop. So, in order for us to do proselyting we had to ride our bikes which we hadn't used the whole time we have been on Saipan. It was good until we found out that the dogs here apparently have a bloodthirst for missionaries on bikes!  They would literally wait for us at the end of a street to ride down it so they could chase us. I'm officially boycotting all dogs here. 

On Sunday we had transfer calls. The transfer was totally unexpected because I am getting assigned to the island of Pohnpei for my second transfer. I was so surprised when I heard that and everyone else was also. So, it turns out that I will be learning Pohnpeian and I will most likely be there on Pohnpei for the rest of my mission. So that's crazy and I'm a bit bummed that I have to leave Saipan so soon but I'm super excited to serve the people on Pohnpei.

This week has definitely been a wild ride and I know there is more craziness to come. As long as I trust the Lord and do as he asks, I will be guided to where I need to be. I love all of you and I can't wait for y'all to hear about my experiences on Pohnpei!

-Elder Eubanks

Here some cool pics from this week 😎

It's 2023!

 This week has been pretty epic. We were able to teach many of our investigators and members as well. We had a lot of departing words and bittersweet goodbyes because my Trainer Elder Ludovico is now done with his 2 years. It's sad because I had a short amount of time with him but I'm grateful for the example he set and the things he taught me. One of my New Year's resolutions is to try my best to teach and serve people here the best I can according to their needs. 

On New Year's Eve we had a dinner with a few of the members and after that we watched some fireworks. On Sunday we had fast and testimony meeting and my trainer gave an awesome testimony about Christ's restored gospel and how he has seen it change lives and I was really touched by it. I am going to miss him because he was a great senior companion but I know he will continue to serve others and be that Christ-like example after the mission. I was also able to give my first blessing for the sick on Sunday. I was really nervous because when I gave the blessing I didn't know what to say at first. I let the spirit guide me and I was able to speak with compassion and I know the Lord was helping me to know what to say.

This upcoming week I'm hopefully going to go to a smaller island near Saipan called Tinian. My new temporary companion was previously assigned there and he is able to take other Elders on exchanges to go there. I can't wait to meet the people there and share the gospel with them as well. This week we also helped provide service to a guy named Juan by moving some rocks for him.

I am grateful for a New Year and the chance to see new miracles and meet new people. I want to invite all of you to strive to change or improve something in your life this year. I love all of you and I hope y'all have an amazing week!

-Elder Eubanks

Some new pics for your New Year's!