Relief Society Birthday Party

The floral head wreath fits where it touches
and no that is not a coconut tree growing out of the top of my head

On March 17th they held a bi-stake Relief Society Birthday celebration at Moroni High School.  The Stake Presidency, Bishops, and Senior Missionary Couples were invited as special guests for the dancing and dining.  Each ward drew out an island nation to perform a dance from that island nation.  Our ward did a Tahitian dance, other wards did dances from the Cook Islands, Kiribati, Fiji, Tonga, Hawaii, and etc.  After the first dance the dancers took the floral wreaths from their heads and placed them on the heads on each of the honored guests. The sister who gave me hers must have had a very small head.

Sister Thorne looks bright and cheerful in her  new floral head wreath

Unfortunately for me the honored guests were also asked to dance.
 I did nothing to dispel the stereotype that a Pallone (white man) can't dance.

This is known as my stationary dance, Sister Thorne especially enjoyed the fact that only the men were asked to dance and she could sit back and laugh at my ineptness.  However, the ladies that asked me to dance were patient and didn't laugh at me (at least where I could see them).  After the dance they would graciously bow with both arms extended toward their partner.

The costumes were all very colorful and the native dances were very impressive as they swayed their hips and performed arm and hand motions to the island music

The ladies in their white t-shirts and lava lavas really enjoyed themselves.  However, the lady (lady second from the left)  had writing on her shirt that said: "24 hours in a day - 24 beers in a case - Coincidence".
Probably, not what you would see in the Provo 63rd Ward.

Participants came in all ages, shapes, and sizes but all seemed to have a very good time

As it grew darker the photo were not as sharp and clear

Some wards had many dancers and beautiful hand sewn outfits

 As the ladies danced people from the audience would go up and down each row of dancers and spray perfume under their arms, on their neck, and others would sprinkle foot powder on their feet as a sign up approval.  Many of the perfume sprayers would sway and dance to the music as they went up and down the rows of participants.

Each ward brought a relief society birthday cake

The ward and branch relief society presidents were assigned to cut the cake.
 Only one president brought a knife, the rest had to use plastic spoons to cut their cake.

After the party officially ended at 10 p.m., many ladies stayed and continued to sing and dance until the wee hours of the morning.  One groups ride did not return to get them so finally at 1:30 am the guard got a van and drove them home.

Liahona Middle and High School in Tonga

Tonga Temple, we were able to attend two sessions at the temple (one in English and the other in Tongan)

Originally our flight plans had us going to Suva, Fiji for 5 days and staying in temple housing.  We were looking forward to spending considerable time in the Suva, Fiji Temple, however at the last minutes our flight plans were changed and we went to Nadi, Fiji instead for three days and then directly to Tonga.  It was disappointing but we did get to attend two sessions in the Tongan Temple (one in English, the other in Tongan).  Ear phones were provided so we could hear the session in English.  It was a special experience, since there is no temple in Kiribati.

Liahona High Schoool

Sign painted on hall way at Liahona

The principals conference was held at Liahona High School, which is the largest of the Church secondary schools.  The campus is large and spacious, similar to a college setting with green lawns, trees, and very inviting landscaping.  The campus is also the site of Liahona Middle School.  There are two other middle schools on the island that serve as feeder schools for Liahona High. Next to the campus is the Tongan Temple and the distribution center and service center are across the street from the temple.  Tonga is about 60 percent LDS with over 110 chapels on the islands.  The Church is putting a new emphasis on vocational and technical training and Liahona is the first to pilot the new program.  

The pictures that follow show some of the changes and upgrades for the TVET (Technical Vocational Education Training).  Elder and Sister Osborne are doing the training and upgrades (He worked at the Ogden Weber Technical College and she was a home economics teacher.  The spent 6 month in Tonga and left last week for Samoa, then to Fiji for 6 months and then will be in Kiribati for the remaining 6 months of their mission.  Prior traveling couples help establish counseling programs and improved library services at Church Schools

Home Ec Sewing room

Native dress sewed by a student

Student art work

Drafting lab at Liahona was moved to a larger classroom in a more central location

School Band class practicing

Several hundred middle and high school students performed a traditional sitting dance
for the visiting general authorities at the principals conference

Liahona High School Principal kept rhythm by striking two sticks together and five other students used large drums

After the performance two students wanted to pose for Sister Thorne,
one of them gave her a lei she used during the  performance

A Week in Tonga

Airport in Tonga

Sister Thorne and I left March 1st for a principals conference in Tonga at Liahona High School.  We left on Thursday morning and stayed in Nadi, Fiji until Saturday and then flew to Tonga for the conference which began on Monday evening and lasted until Friday at noon.  There are several pictures which follow with some brief information.  The Kingdom of Tonga is a beautiful island nation with LDS chapels everywhere over 110 in Tonga.  Sixty percent of the residents of Tonga belong to the LDS church.  There is a beautiful temple next to the Liahona campus.

View from hotel room

We stayed in a small hotel by the name of Little Italy, which had a nice room with a great view, but even more special it had a pizza parlor on the ground floor.  So we had some good pizza for the first time in over 7 months.  They also served lots of pasta and other Italian dishes.  The ship in the picture run a ground during a typhoon.  They had a cyclone a few weeks ago with grounded several other ships on the Northern part of the island.  It rained over 19 inches in a 24 hour period.

They claim this is the only coconut tree in the world with a fork in the the trunk

Ocean view

Hidden beaches along the shore line.  Few islanders swim so many beautiful beaches are along the coast line

Land Bridge of Pigeon entry way

 A few years ago a group of LDS nurses were doing volunteer work in Tonga.  While visiting this site one of the nurses from Utah lost her balance and fell backward to her death 70 feet below.  Her body washed out to sea before her husband could get down the cliff to try and rescue her.  The body was never recovered.  A new hospital is being built and her statue will be placed on the grounds in her honor.

Blow holes shoot 60 plus feet into the air when the waves hit the shore line.  Dozens of blow holes are seen up and down the coast line from this view area

Another coast line view

This structure built in 1200 AD is similar to the stonehenges in England.  

Sign describing theories on how the structure was built and it possible purposes

Plaque honoring the site where Captain Cooks landed in Tonga in 1777

Two LDS missionaries grave sites who died in the early 1900's of Typhoid fever.  The grave site of Charles John Langston from Rockville, Utah.  One of our friends in the ward is from Rockville

Some ancient wood carving is an old Tongan Village