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Episode 17: Maddie Greenburg Dixon - Marshall Islands - Majuro & Ebeye
47 Plays5 days ago
Maddie Greenburg Dixon (Sister Greenburg) served in the Marshall Islands from 2016 - 2018. She was "blessed" to be the only sister missionary in her MTC group of 14 missionaries, but really it just prepared her for an elder dominated, tiny island mission in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Maddie served on almost every area on the main island of Majuro as well as the blessed island of Ebeye.
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Transcript
Introduction and Background of Maddie Dixon
00:00:00
Maddie
Thank you.
00:00:01
Darin Tingey
All right, this is another episode of the Islands Podcast. And this is the first sister missionary that served in the Marshall Islands side of the mission.
00:00:12
Darin Tingey
and it just so happens, and I think it was very fitting that it was my MTC sister, Maddie Greenberg. Sister Greenberg, as you know, her her married name is Dixon. So Maddie Dixon now. um Maddie, give a background on you.
00:00:30
Maddie
Yeah, so um I grew up in Murray. um I got called the Marshall Islands in 2016, served until 2018. um Came home, I'm now married, living in Bountiful. I've got two girls, um working as a pediatric nurse at primaries, and I'm just happy to be here and talk about the mission life. I'm so excited.
00:00:54
Darin Tingey
And that's how you know she's tough, working the 12-hour shifts.
00:00:59
Maddie
Night shifts, too.
00:00:59
Darin Tingey
but Oh, man, you're crazy. But yeah, everyone someone's got to do it. So we thank you for doing that.
00:01:07
Maddie
Yeah.
00:01:07
Darin Tingey
Marsh Island's probably toughened you up for that stuff.
Missionary Training Challenges
00:01:10
Darin Tingey
But I still remember like first day in the MTC together. like I walk in late, and and my brother dropped me off late. i'm like, okay.
00:01:22
Darin Tingey
And I get there and there's like 12 elders and one sister. And it was you, you just like in the sea of elders. And I'm like, oh, poor girl. Like how did, yeah.
00:01:30
Maddie
um just like hiding in the back corner, like just hoping to stay, but like unnoticed.
00:01:36
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Like ah how did you feel about that? And we can talk about your, you getting your call too, if you want. I just, that was my first like memory is just like walking into that room.
00:01:47
Maddie
Yeah, I like remember walking into the like the um room ah like that sherman was teaching Sherman was teaching that day. And of course, he just like starts in speaking martialese to me and says like, Oh, yakwe yakwe and like start speaking. And i'm like, huh?
00:02:01
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:02:01
Maddie
I literally just like my jaw hit the floor. was like, what's going on? And of course, I didn't see a companion anywhere. My name tag said solo on it. So i was like, what is going on? Like,
00:02:11
Darin Tingey
You're like, Really?
00:02:11
Maddie
This is not real. And then, like, I had to, like, I had, like, a whole, like, instruction sheet, being a solo sister, too, ah like, the things that I could or could not do.
00:02:18
Darin Tingey
Really?
00:02:22
Maddie
And I just remember, like, reading through that and, like, being, like, oh, I can be with two elders instead of my companion during class time or, like, when
Adapting to the Mission Field
00:02:30
Maddie
i'm like, it's, like, appropriate, basically.
00:02:32
Darin Tingey
Right, right.
00:02:33
Maddie
so it was just, like, crazy to me that I was, like, that that was a thing in the MTC. So...
00:02:38
Darin Tingey
Yeah, just like a total curveball, like your first day in the MTC total curveball, you have no idea, like you're just go be a solo sister. And you're like, what? I have no companion. Like, that's what you're expecting.
00:02:49
Darin Tingey
And did they technically pair you with somebody that was like, not in the district?
00:02:49
Maddie
Yeah.
00:02:53
Maddie
Yeah, so I had a companion, like, for when I, like, wasn't with you guys, like, at my dorm and stuff, or, like, to go to meals with. It was a sister in the Samoan district. um We kind of had the same class schedule.
00:03:06
Maddie
ah Our schedules were, like, a little bit off, but, like, for the most part, we kind of aligned we could walk together and be together. But, like... Everyone I bunked with was, like, Samoan speaking, and then there was me, Marshallese speaking.
00:03:18
Maddie
So, like, they were all talking together and trying to learn together, and then there was me, like, off in the – like, on my bunk, like, trying to learn Marshallese.
00:03:25
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:03:27
Darin Tingey
Yeah, you're just studying by yourself, your flashcards.
00:03:28
Maddie
But – Yeah. Yeah. Literally making flashcards or like looking through the books. And I'm like, I just remember that like it was, it was a little discouraging at first because like y'all had your companions, y'all had each other, you guys were clicking.
00:03:43
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:03:43
Maddie
And I just remember it took me a lot longer to like open up to you guys. Cause I was just like, I was by myself for like a lot of it. So i was like, oh, well they have their person to talk to. They don't want to talk to me. So.
00:03:57
Darin Tingey
Yeah, great Greenberg and the boys. Was that was that like like, looking back your MTC experience, was it like pretty hard or would you say like you got used to it?
00:04:00
Maddie
I'm sorry.
00:04:07
Maddie
I think I got used to it and I think you guys kind of like,
Cultural and Practical Experiences
00:04:10
Maddie
yeah we all kind of started opening up to each other. and like, um i remember one time i was, I got put in a STL and I remember i left like the STL phone on my desk, like during a class and like one of you guys grabbed the phone and set like a million alarms on it for like four in the morning or like three in the morning.
00:04:13
Darin Tingey
Mm-hmm.
00:04:31
Darin Tingey
you It was not me. That is so mean, though. That is so mean.
00:04:36
Maddie
And I just remember someone, I can't remember who, but someone's like, oh, Sister Greenberg, like, we left you, we got you a surprise. You'll, like, figure it out, like, later in the day. and so I'm just like, what's going on?
00:04:47
Maddie
And so then when I finally figured it out, I was like, oh, man, these guys are punking me. Like, they're finally, like, opening up and, like, liking, like they want to talk to me now kind of a thing. They're joking around.
00:04:57
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:04:57
Maddie
It's great.
00:04:59
Darin Tingey
Yeah, that's funny.
00:05:00
Maddie
yeah.
00:05:01
Darin Tingey
Just getting bullied by the elders a little bit there.
00:05:01
Maddie
yeah
00:05:03
Darin Tingey
but I mean, I guess it was like, all right, Greenberg, you're one of the boys. You can hang out with us. You know?
00:05:09
Maddie
Yeah, kind of how it was. And like, I just remember, like, I was told by the teachers, like, okay, you can either teach by yourself, or you can teach with two elders.
00:05:19
Maddie
But if you teach by yourself, we have to keep like the door open. So like, like professionalism kind of a thing um with like Tonini and Sherman.
00:05:23
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:05:26
Darin Tingey
Mm-hmm.
00:05:28
Maddie
So like I had to if I taught by myself, I had to keep the door like wide open.
00:05:31
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:05:32
Maddie
Or I could like we could shut the door with two elders in the room and be it was fine, I guess. But um I was like, I don't want to teach by myself. Like, that is terrifying. Marshallese was, like, hard.
00:05:42
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah.
00:05:44
Maddie
So I, like, said, nope, i'll just fine I'll just attach myself to two elders and we'll go from there.
Success and Challenges in Ebi
00:05:50
Darin Tingey
Who did you teach with primarily?
00:05:53
Maddie
think I taught with – I want to say I taught with Kendrick for a little while. and then I think – who i know I think I taught with whoever Elder Hansen was companions with.
00:06:05
Maddie
i think it was Hansen and Vero.
00:06:06
Darin Tingey
Barrow. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:06:07
Maddie
Yeah. I think it was – I switched between those two. Like, I just would, like, start with them, and then I switched to another group for some reason. I don't remember.
00:06:15
Darin Tingey
Hanson and Barrow is a good call because they're super nice. So...
00:06:18
Maddie
Yeah. But like, I was just so like, I remember like just thinking Marshallese was like the hardest thing. And it was so intimidating because I feel like you guys picked it up so quick.
00:06:29
Maddie
And then like, I was just like, I'm not getting this at all.
00:06:34
Darin Tingey
Yeah, I mean, I think we like all thought we were picking it up in MTC until we got to the Marshall Islands, and you're like, oh, what? like That's not how I imagined it, you know?
00:06:44
Maddie
Oh, yeah. And like once I got to there and like my companion, like she literally was just so good at it and like connected so well with people. i was like, there's a reason I'm paired with you because I don't I'm not getting this.
00:06:52
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:06:57
Maddie
So we're good. We had we had to work on a lot of things together.
00:06:59
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:07:00
Maddie
And I was I'm stubborn.
00:07:00
Darin Tingey
I feel like...
00:07:01
Maddie
So I was like trying to learn this language was like so hard because of my stubbornness. Yeah.
00:07:07
Darin Tingey
Yeah. I feel like Marshallese is like... People are like, is it hard? and I'm like, I mean... I think initially it's hard. Like I think sentence structure and stuff, like no, not so much and whatever.
00:07:16
Maddie
Mm-hmm.
00:07:19
Darin Tingey
But like at the beginning it's hard because it's it's like nothing you've ever heard of. Like we've heard Spanish. You've heard what Chinese sounds like, German. Like you know, like your ears kind of know what those languages sound like.
00:07:33
Darin Tingey
But Marshallese, like you no one's heard of Marshallese.
00:07:33
Maddie
Mm-hmm.
00:07:36
Darin Tingey
Like you haven't heard it.
00:07:36
Maddie
Oh, yeah.
00:07:37
Darin Tingey
Like it it's so foreign to your ears, which makes it so hard to learn at the beginning.
00:07:43
Maddie
Yeah, I literally like remember telling people because like, I had a friend that served Marshallese speaking, like my one of my high school friends served Marshallese speaking in Washington.
00:07:52
Darin Tingey
Okay.
00:07:53
Maddie
And so I kind of knew what it sounded like. And so whenever someone asked me before I left, I was like, oh, it sounds like gibberish. Like you just, you can't describe it.
00:07:59
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:08:01
Maddie
It doesn't sound like another island language. It doesn't sound like, um like French or like Tagalog or anything like that.
00:08:08
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:08:09
Maddie
It sounds like gibberish until you realize what it is.
00:08:11
Darin Tingey
yeah it's
00:08:14
Darin Tingey
And it's not pretty. It's not a pretty language.
00:08:15
Maddie
Oh, no.
00:08:16
Darin Tingey
It's like back of your throat, mumbling, like no pronunciation on words. um
00:08:25
Maddie
Yeah.
00:08:26
Darin Tingey
Marshallese, gotta love it.
00:08:28
Maddie
Oh, yeah, for sure.
00:08:28
Darin Tingey
so So when we like when when we go to the Marshall Islands, like were you just like so pumped? like I finally get a companion now.
00:08:37
Maddie
Yeah, I remember...
00:08:37
Darin Tingey
I finally get to be with another sister.
00:08:41
Maddie
I remember like landing and getting off the plane. I still had my solo sticker on my badge, like landing in the islands. And I remember somebody from the intake before us, like grading us and stuff.
00:08:49
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah.
00:08:53
Maddie
And they come up to me and it was an elder. i don't remember who, but like they said, Oh, you can take that sticker off now. You're not a solo anymore. Like you have a companion now, which was so great.
00:09:03
Darin Tingey
yeah
00:09:04
Maddie
um and like when I met her, she was fabulous. I loved my trainer. She was so great we had so much fun together she had just had this like bubbly personality that like everybody loved and just was drawn to which helped me a lot to open up I feel like so sister Mati I loved her yeah we were in yeah I just had her for a transfer and then I got um oh my gosh yeah no she stayed for another transfer but she trained
00:09:21
Darin Tingey
ah Remind me who your trainer was? Yes, Mati. Yes, I remember her. Did you only have her for one transfer?
00:09:33
Darin Tingey
Then she went home, right?
00:09:37
Maddie
She trained somebody else. And i got I got transferred to Dellup with Paku.
00:09:39
Darin Tingey
ah gotcha.
00:09:43
Darin Tingey
Okay, so you started in Long Island.
00:09:44
Maddie
So Paku finished. Yeah. So I started in Long Island with Mati. And then um she was going to train somebody else for her last transfer. And then I got so moved to Dellup. And Paku finished my training.
00:09:57
Darin Tingey
Okay, so quickly run me through your areas and then we'll start at the beginning.
00:10:01
Maddie
So I started in Long Island and then I was in Delup. From Delup I went to Laura. And from Laura I went to Ebi. And then from Ebi I went to... um's see
00:10:17
Maddie
ah I went to Aduk. And then from Aduk I went back to Delup. And then from Delup I went to Ulaga. And then i like...
00:10:28
Maddie
had a brief stay in Agile Taki, and then I died in Dell up.
00:10:33
Darin Tingey
Okay, you got a good mix. like like for
00:10:36
Maddie
I think the only place I didn't serve is Rita.
00:10:38
Darin Tingey
Yeah, like Rita Jendrick area. Yeah, that's funny.
00:10:41
Maddie
Yeah.
00:10:42
Darin Tingey
So, okay, so started in Long Island, and you were as quick, just like six weeks.
00:10:42
Maddie
Sucks.
00:10:48
Darin Tingey
But like, give me give me the run through. Like, what was it like starting out, you know, and just being on Maduro?
00:10:57
Maddie
Being on Madro was, like, it was great. Like, I remember it just landing and, like, being so exhausted and like, just wanting to go to bed because with the international dateline, just, like, it messed me, like, messed with my head.
00:11:10
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:11:10
Maddie
And I was, like, I'm ready to go to bed. But, like, I remember, like, meeting my trainer and we, like, hit the ground running. We walked from, like, Bishop's house to, like, the Batagan house.
00:11:22
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:11:22
Maddie
And i just remember like getting unpacked and like falling asleep for a little while.
00:11:22
Darin Tingey
Wow.
00:11:27
Maddie
And then like we went out working right after I like took a nap. And i remember that first day we took, we had like, I want to say like five or six lessons that first day.
00:11:37
Darin Tingey
Wow. Let's go.
00:11:39
Maddie
and I just remember like being so lost and like Mati had been in there, that area for a long time. So she like knew everybody and like everybody was so welcoming and she introduced me to everybody and they were all trying to talk to me and I'm like, hi, hi, Yakue, Yakue.
00:11:54
Maddie
I don't know what you're saying, but it's nice to meet you.
00:11:54
Darin Tingey
It
00:11:58
Darin Tingey
was pretty much in a month, in a month, in a month.
00:12:01
Maddie
yeah I don't even know if I could have said that at that point in my like language skills.
00:12:04
Darin Tingey
wow
00:12:06
Maddie
Like it was, it was pretty bad. And I was just,
00:12:08
Darin Tingey
it was pretty much yawe and um and my and my and
00:12:11
Maddie
Yep, pretty much. I just remember being so intimidated to like speak because I'm like, they're gonna make fun of me. And like, I was so nervous to like, pick up the language and speak it because I didn't want to be like, say something wrong or like, offend somebody or like, make a mistake.
00:12:27
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah.
00:12:29
Maddie
And then like, i I, like, realized towards my end of the six weeks with Mati, like, because she made some mistakes, too, and, like, she would always, like, they would always play off of it and, like, be, oh, like, I'm just, like, it's just silly. Like, our kids would make fun of us, and they would be in a joking way. It wouldn't be, like, in a mean way.
00:12:44
Darin Tingey
yeah
00:12:45
Maddie
And I finally, like, it clicked in my head. i'm like, okay, I actually need to start trying a little harder because no one's actually going to judge me for not knowing the language because I'm still new.
00:12:54
Darin Tingey
Yeah, and the kids are great because they're just like, Elder, you said that wrong.
00:12:54
Maddie
yeah
00:12:57
Darin Tingey
It's actually this. And you're like, oh, thank you. That's actually so helpful because the adults don't like correct you as much, but the kids are like, no, you this is you're saying it wrong, dude.
00:13:07
Maddie
I know it's like the adults that especially like in Long Island I feel like we taught a lot of but like adults that like didn't have kids and so the adults would just be like following it like trying to follow along with what I'm saying and but they you could just tell on the look on their face they're like uh-huh I think I get what you're trying to tell me yeah
00:13:23
Darin Tingey
Yeah. did um Describe Long Island like for the people that have never been to Maduro, Long Island, like in that area.
00:13:31
Maddie
um Long Island is is the start of the countryside of the island. It's got like a little shop to it. It's really long. It looks like it's a country, but like there's a few like little shops here. There's one big shop you can shop at, but it's mainly like the start of the countryside of Medjaro. It's a really long area. we like walked to the entire area. like It started from the bridge up until, I think, the airport.
00:14:00
Darin Tingey
The airport, yeah.
00:14:01
Maddie
Yeah.
00:14:01
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:14:02
Maddie
So like that was our whole area and we didn't have bikes or a car. So we walked everywhere.
00:14:07
Darin Tingey
You guys didn't have anything like that?
00:14:08
Maddie
We didn't have anything.
00:14:09
Darin Tingey
No way.
00:14:10
Maddie
So like from the bridge, which no one lived by the bridge.
00:14:11
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:14:13
Maddie
So we didn't really like go that way.
00:14:14
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:14:15
Maddie
But like um once like our house is at the very top of Long Island. So like we started at our house in the morning and then we'd like end up at the like closer to the airport by the evening.
00:14:28
Maddie
And then if we ran into like our zone leader or the APs or somebody, they would be nice enough to like give us a ride home for the night.
00:14:34
Darin Tingey
Yeah, yeah.
00:14:35
Maddie
So we didn't have to walk all the way back. so
00:14:39
Darin Tingey
and Long Island's a beautiful area. Like you said, it's like, it's like the mix of, you know, city and countryside.
00:14:41
Maddie
it really yeah
00:14:45
Darin Tingey
It's like the in between, like suburbs, I guess, if you want to call it that.
00:14:49
Maddie
yeah it really is and like I don't I mean the members there were so great I remember like we had a few really good members that would like try to feed us too and i was like my first time like eating fish and like sitting on the floor at a member's house and being like having a family home evening with them and I'm like
00:14:50
Darin Tingey
And and
00:15:08
Maddie
this is definitely, we are definitely not in Utah anymore kind of moment, so.
00:15:12
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Did your legs ever get like ah like fall asleep sitting crisscross applesauce?
00:15:17
Maddie
Oh, yeah. All the time, like, literally, like, I had to sit, I would start, like, Chris, like, sitting, like, crisscross applesauce and then have to, like, turn to my side and be like, I can't, my feet, I can't feel my feet.
00:15:28
Darin Tingey
Yeah, like I feel like for the first like six months in the mission, because you're always sitting crisscross apples on the ground. And it's just like your legs are numb. You try and stand up. You like can't walk.
00:15:39
Darin Tingey
You're just like look like a weirdo trying to walk away after. And then your feet develop your feet and ankles develop like calluses, like big calluses because you're sitting on them for so long.
00:15:46
Maddie
Calluses.
00:15:52
Maddie
For sure, yeah. And then, like, you're walking everywhere in sandals, too, so it's brutal on your feet.
00:15:57
Darin Tingey
Yeah, yeah. I feel like every day I came home and like, if I didn't shower at night, I would just wash my feet because it was so filthy.
00:16:03
Maddie
Oh, yeah. they were It was so bad. um i also remember, like, in Long Island, that was, like, the first time, like, I had to, like, husk the, like, the meat out of coconuts.
00:16:14
Maddie
And, like, that was, like, one of our service projects for, like, the like one of our pee days. Not pee days. Just, like, during the week when we didn't have, like, a lesson.
00:16:23
Darin Tingey
ah
00:16:23
Maddie
We'd, like, always went to this one family and they would, like, have us, like, husk coconut. Like, the meat out of coconut. So.
00:16:28
Darin Tingey
the range or whatever yeah that and then they make such good food with that that coconut oh so good and long island's where they have the um it's the stake center and then ah mission home and the mission office are on long island too so presidents when he comes to marshall islands he's there a piece of there
00:16:29
Maddie
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. so
00:16:34
Maddie
who
00:16:39
Maddie
yeah
00:16:43
Maddie
yeah
00:16:49
Maddie
Yeah. and Actually, and there's, like, a bunch of apartments there that, like, the senior couple stays it the senior couple stayed in um
00:16:59
Darin Tingey
Oh, yeah. I forgot about that.
00:17:00
Maddie
Yeah. There's, like, a little, like, off branch of, like, K&K, I think, over there, too.
00:17:05
Darin Tingey
Yep.
00:17:06
Maddie
That's, like, right next door to the admission home.
00:17:06
Darin Tingey
At the grocery store. Yeah, a little tiny, like a 7-Eleven almost style.
00:17:09
Maddie
Yeah. Yeah.
00:17:12
Maddie
Yeah, almost. Yeah. I just remember, like, going there every, like, time we needed a drink or something because that was, like, their only option.
00:17:13
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:17:19
Maddie
Like, you had, like, the little, like, shops that were owned by Marshallese people, but if you wanted, like, a big, like, grocery shop type of thing, that was your place in Long Island.
00:17:29
Darin Tingey
Yeah, and i remember I don't have if remember this, but going back to like the first or second day that we got to Maduro. I was going to E-Buy, but I wasn't flying out for like two days.
00:17:40
Darin Tingey
And I remember we went to a chem-em together, yeah like night two.
00:17:41
Maddie
Mm-hmm.
00:17:43
Maddie
Oh, yeah.
00:17:46
Darin Tingey
And we stayed out till like midnight at this chem-em, which is a first birthday party for kids, for those two.
00:17:52
Maddie
Yeah.
00:17:52
Darin Tingey
know And I was like, I just got to the mission. of a missionary. We're staying out so late, but I guess this is how it is, you know?
00:18:00
Maddie
I was, I was actually, I have my journal out in front of me. I was actually reading about that. And I was like, i just have like the elders that are like, because there was you and like someone else that was flying out to Ebi or an outer island that was with us.
00:18:11
Maddie
And we were all just like, kind of like, okay, it's late. We all need to go back to our houses. Like we're missionaries.
00:18:15
Darin Tingey
We should go home.
00:18:19
Darin Tingey
But they didn't like start cooking the food until like 10 or 11, I feel like. Yeah,
00:18:22
Maddie
Yeah, crazy. Like how late things start. And like, I remember talking to Mati about this and she's like, it's Marshallese time. Don't worry about it. This is normal.
00:18:33
Maddie
I'm like, but it's not really for missionaries.
00:18:36
Darin Tingey
we're supposed to be home. ah
00:18:39
Maddie
Yeah. So
00:18:40
Darin Tingey
Yeah, a little. but i think we got broken in pretty early on in the mission. It's a day two of the mission.
00:18:46
Maddie
yeah.
00:18:48
Darin Tingey
All right, this is how it is.
00:18:48
Maddie
Well, you can't like just leave because you don't want to be judging on it. So you don't want to be rude. and
00:18:53
Darin Tingey
Yeah, especially because they're like, you know, if you go to that thing, they're going to give you food. And if you like are leaving before the food's made, they're going to like hurry and try and rush it and try and give it to you. And you're like, oh, it's okay. But culturally, I don't know just how it is. So.
00:19:07
Maddie
Yeah, for sure.
00:19:09
Darin Tingey
um So Long Island for one transfer, and then you go to Dellup.
00:19:12
Maddie
Yeah.
00:19:15
Maddie
Yep. And I'm with Sister Paku and we're in a chapel house.
00:19:16
Darin Tingey
How long were in Dellup?
00:19:19
Darin Tingey
Yeah, so you went from a decently nice house in Long Island to a tiny, tiny little place.
00:19:23
Maddie
Yeah, we like had it. Well, and then we like replaced the elders like in the chapel house. So we whitewashed.
00:19:30
Darin Tingey
I'm sorry. Yeah. Yeah. man
00:19:34
Maddie
I think the first day that we were in Delup, we spent, like, the entire day cleaning, like, the chapel house.
00:19:40
Darin Tingey
Yeah, that thing's pretty disgusting.
00:19:42
Maddie
Yeah, it was pretty bad. And, like, I just remember we, like, spent that whole day cleaning and spent, like, a lot of time, like, talking to the senior couple saying, like, we kind of need new paint on, like, everything. It's gross in here.
00:19:55
Darin Tingey
The Dellup Chapel house is like... feel like there's not a lot of privacy in that house because all the kids are playing right like in the grass and in the basketball court, which is fun, but also like...
00:20:01
Maddie
Oh.
00:20:07
Maddie
When you're trying to go to bed at, like the like like, the time you're supposed to go to bed as a missionary and, like, everyone's out playing basketball or volleyball or you have kids running around your house, like, it's insane.
00:20:07
Darin Tingey
like You're trying to Yeah.
00:20:18
Darin Tingey
Yeah. there is Like Dell Chapel is like always bumping. There's like some people there.
00:20:22
Maddie
oh yeah. I, I, in like the, mean, they usually never lock the gate to the Dell at chapel, but I remember one time, like they locked the gate and like, we didn't have a key to get in.
00:20:30
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:20:34
Maddie
So we had to like hop the fence to get into the chapel house. Cause they locked us out basically.
00:20:38
Darin Tingey
ahla and
00:20:42
Darin Tingey
Sister, you're like in your skirt, you're like, just jump over.
00:20:45
Maddie
I think it was actually a pee day. So we were in pants, but like we had to hop the fence to get over and like, it was so much fun.
00:20:47
Darin Tingey
oh nice, good.
00:20:51
Darin Tingey
Did you have a car or were you guys walking?
00:20:53
Maddie
We were walking in Dellup. I think Dellup was a smaller area enough area that we were able just to walk. So, yeah.
00:21:00
Darin Tingey
And did you cover all of Delops?
00:21:02
Maddie
Yeah, we call it covered all of Dellup. Dellup was from the brit the other side of the bridge. um I can't remember where Dellup ended and Uluga started.
00:21:11
Darin Tingey
Yeah, it was kind of a gray area. It was like, yeah.
00:21:12
Maddie
yeah it was kind of like a gray area. I want to say it was by that. It wasn't K&K. It was like the other grocery store. I think that was like our border.
00:21:18
Darin Tingey
Triple J.
00:21:19
Maddie
think it was Triple J. No, Triple J is E-Buy.
00:21:21
Darin Tingey
Yeah. There is a Triple in Maduro.
00:21:23
Maddie
was it? wast Oh, maybe that's it then.
00:21:26
Darin Tingey
but But, yeah, and it it was kind of a gray area for him. Della finished and Ula got started. But, like, ah I guess give give another...
00:21:33
Maddie
um
00:21:37
Darin Tingey
Let's see, what else is in Delup? The K&K, the big supermarket is in Delup.
00:21:40
Maddie
Yeah. Yeah. CMI is in Dellup, like the college where all the missionaries email. That's in Dellup. Yeah.
00:21:52
Maddie
i can't think of anything else that's in Delos
00:21:52
Darin Tingey
Yeah. the The government buildings are in Delup.
00:21:58
Maddie
oh yes yeah the hospital in Delos like that hospital in Maduro oh my goodness i don't know if you ever went in there but it's a it's a crazy place it is and like let i don't I don't know it just is crazy like being in a hospital here in the U.S.
00:21:58
Darin Tingey
The hospital's in Delup. Yeah.
00:22:06
Darin Tingey
Oh yeah, many times.
00:22:09
Darin Tingey
It's very dirty. and And like I could walk in the hospital and probably i walk to any room I wanted and no one would say anything.
00:22:17
Maddie
and then comparing it to the one in like Medjaro, it's a night and day difference of how things run there versus here. It's so much more efficient here in the U.S. compared to Medjaro.
00:22:32
Maddie
Oh, for sure, yeah. i'm like I remember i had to get like I went to the hospital take the because I had to get some meds for something.
00:22:39
Darin Tingey
who
00:22:39
Maddie
I can't remember. I just remember going in and they just like handed me a bag. like a little like It was just a bag of the meds. It didn't have a label on it or anything. And I'm like, this is like this sketchy.
00:22:52
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:22:52
Maddie
like There's no regulation here. I could be taking anything, really.
00:22:56
Darin Tingey
This should work. This will do fine. You're like, okay.
00:23:00
Maddie
yeah Yeah. And the only reason I trust is because i like Dr. Ackley worked at the hospital, so and he was the bishop of Ulaga, so we all trusted him.
00:23:06
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:23:08
Maddie
so
00:23:10
Darin Tingey
Yeah, Delp, man.
00:23:10
Maddie
Yeah.
00:23:11
Darin Tingey
Delp wants us have some schools too. There's some schools in Delp.
00:23:13
Maddie
Yeah. There's the co-op school in Delup. And then... think that was like the big one is co-op because that's where like all like the international teachers taught and a lot of parents to sent their kids because that's where they like taught English the most and that's where kids really learned English I feel like was at co-op so yeah yeah that's right
00:23:33
Darin Tingey
It was like the nicer school on the island. I feel like Delup and Uluga are probably like the most like city part of Maduro.
00:23:43
Maddie
yeah I feel like I could have walked like when we were in Delup we literally like walked around and like every like turn you took you wouldn't you would run into, like, a member of the ward, and, like, you could not just, like, stop and say hi. You had to, like, go in and, like, get fed, or, like, you were very well fed in Dellup.
00:24:01
Darin Tingey
Yeah, what was what was it like? yeah like ah A day in the life of Sister Missionary and Delup. What was kind of the schedule?
00:24:08
Maddie
Well, like, we would, we were whitewashing, and, like, we didn't really have, like, any investigators. Like, we tried to go off the... the book, that the area book.
00:24:16
Darin Tingey
Yeah, think it looks trash.
00:24:17
Maddie
But, like, you know, like, drawing maps and stuff is, like, so hard because it could – it's just so, like, from that person's point of view, it could be totally different once you get there. –
00:24:26
Darin Tingey
Right, this blue house over here by the ocean side.
00:24:27
Maddie
so
00:24:31
Darin Tingey
you're like, where is this?
00:24:31
Maddie
Yeah. So I think like the so like the first like two weeks, I think we were just trying to get a layout of like who the members were and like who we could actually talk to. And we kind of just focused a lot on like working with the members because they were our best asset for trying to find work.
00:24:47
Maddie
And so I just remember like we spent a lot of times like going and talking to members or like if we saw like people working on like – Crafts like amimonos like outside we'd like go and sit with them be like oh we really want to know how to make these will you show us how to make like these so we can learn like and like will you help us practice our marshallies while like we learn how to make amimonos and that was kind of like our in to like start talking to them and like build a rapport with them.
00:25:03
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:25:12
Darin Tingey
yeah
00:25:14
Maddie
So, like, we did that for a long time. And then we finally got, like, a few good investigators. And then, like, we also worked with a lot of part member families that – so we taught a few ah a lot of kids, which was great.
00:25:28
Maddie
um you had a few baptisms there, which was really fun to Yeah.
00:25:33
Darin Tingey
but yeah did Did you ever feel like elders or sisters were treated differently by the Marshallese people?
00:25:42
Maddie
Um, I feel like they liked sisters lot more over there.
00:25:47
Darin Tingey
Yeah, definitely.
00:25:47
Maddie
I feel like, yeah, I feel like sisters are just like, i don't know, they just really liked having us around.
00:25:48
Darin Tingey
Definitely.
00:25:54
Maddie
And like, so we would always just like be welcomed in, even if they weren't members, they would see like the sisters and be like, Oh my gosh, you guys are great. We want to talk to you, even though we were like not interested in the church.
00:26:04
Maddie
Like, we just want to feed you guys and chat with you because like, you're sisters and like, they're great.
00:26:10
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:26:11
Maddie
So like,
00:26:12
Darin Tingey
Yeah, feel like they really respected the sisters.
00:26:14
Maddie
Yeah, that's how I felt too, Yeah.
00:26:14
Darin Tingey
I mean, elders too, but definitely sisters. And, and you know, it's, Marshall Islands is cool. It's like, it's a matriarchal society. So like you often walk into homes and they've got pictures of like their grandmother up on the wall, which is really cool.
00:26:27
Maddie
Yeah.
00:26:29
Darin Tingey
Like, I feel like a lot of, you know, a lot of other countries are patriarchal, but they're like you inherit your land from your mom's side, like all this stuff.
00:26:37
Maddie
yeah
00:26:37
Darin Tingey
So it's like, women are very respected in the marsh islands.
00:26:41
Maddie
Yeah, I thought that was way cool because I – yeah, i definitely saw that when um i moved there and, like, there was a few houses where they had – like you said, they had the giant picture of their grandma up there.
00:26:51
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:26:51
Maddie
And, like, it was a lot – Delap was a lot different than Long Island just because it was a city and, like, there was, like, a lot more – I feel like a lot – not wealthier but, like, well-off families there too than, like, Long Island.
00:27:05
Darin Tingey
and
00:27:06
Maddie
Yeah. So, like, we were able to, like, sit and have, like like, a lot. That was, like, the first area. Like, that area I sat on couches in a lot of the houses because they had couches, which was great.
00:27:17
Darin Tingey
yeah catches are like 20 years old but yeah they got them
00:27:20
Maddie
Yeah. But, like, they have them, and it looks really nice. And, like, they had, like, there was always, like, a barbecue or, like, some kind of party going on. Like, like everyone was invited to, and you always were fed in Della, basically. They took care of their missionaries, like, really well there.
00:27:36
Darin Tingey
yeah there's like always something going on in Delop. yeah Like, as a missionary, that you just walk around, people are just outside and you're just talking to them.
00:27:43
Maddie
Yeah.
00:27:44
Darin Tingey
Like, we never knock doors, you never knock doors in the Marsh Islands. Everyone's just hanging out outside.
00:27:47
Maddie
Oh, no. Well, yeah, because it's too hot to hang out inside. So they hung out outside. So remember too, like I spent Christmas in Delip and I, that was the best Christmas because like they like had a party for the missionaries.
00:27:52
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:28:02
Maddie
They like made sure the missionaries were taken care of for Christmas. They had like Christmas presents for the missionaries and they like, they were so sweet to us at like,
00:28:07
Darin Tingey
No way.
00:28:10
Maddie
Yeah, they were so sweet to us in Delup. I loved it there.
00:28:14
Darin Tingey
Did you do beat with the Dell board?
00:28:14
Maddie
So.
00:28:17
Maddie
Yeah. And like they made us our own dresses. Like we had went to like the seamstress that was making all the dresses for the ward.
00:28:25
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:28:26
Maddie
And they were like, don't you like we offered to pay for our dresses. And i like don't even worry about that. You're missionary. Like we got you like this is our gift to you basically. So it was so it was so sweet.
00:28:33
Darin Tingey
So fun.
00:28:36
Maddie
And like just beating with the ward was so much fun. Like we, they wanted to make sure we were like always like up front and like, like in the middle.
00:28:40
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:28:45
Darin Tingey
So fun. i
00:28:46
Maddie
Yeah.
00:28:46
Darin Tingey
I love beat like literally the month of December every night is just beat like, and for those that don't know what beat is, it's just it's Marshall's dancing and it's so fun.
00:28:55
Maddie
Yeah.
00:28:55
Darin Tingey
and And it's just practicing every night all the way up it until Christmas. And then that's so fun.
00:29:00
Maddie
Yeah.
00:29:01
Darin Tingey
They got you dresses to match the ward like that is awesome.
00:29:05
Maddie
Oh, yeah. It was so great. And, like, I – like, we would go practice every night with them. And, like, we'd always go, like, leave a little bit early because of, like, the, like, missionary hour that we had to be back in our house.
00:29:16
Maddie
And they would still be out there practicing and we'd be, like, hearing the music and just from the chapel house.
00:29:22
Darin Tingey
Yeah, you're like, I don't even know why we came home. Like, we can't even fall asleep because the music's so loud.
00:29:27
Maddie
Yeah.
00:29:29
Darin Tingey
so So how long were in Delip then?
00:29:32
Maddie
Just a transfer.
00:29:33
Darin Tingey
Just another transfer. So you were boom, boom, and then thanks.
00:29:34
Maddie
yeah We whitewashed Laura. so they opened up Laura sisters with, and Paku and I went to Laura to open it up.
00:29:38
Darin Tingey
Oh my gosh.
00:29:44
Maddie
And we got put into a trio with Sister Jake.
00:29:48
Darin Tingey
Okay, so were you kind of like, what the heck, you just sent us to whitewash Delo, but now you're transferring us one transfer later and we're going to whitewash another area?
00:29:56
Maddie
Well, so this is what, I met with President before we we transferred, and he said, told me and Paku that we were doing such a good job in Delup, and we had a good, like, um We built up enough investigators that like he felt like he wanted to pull us out and start – he wanted to open up an area for sisters because Laura had been closed to sisters for like a year, I think.
00:30:19
Maddie
And so like he said, I want you guys to go open up ah Laura for sisters and do the good work that you were doing in Delop and Laura. And you're going to be in a trio with Sister Jake, who was a visa waiter waiting to go – to i I can't remember where she was originally signed to go but she was a visa waiter yeah yeah yeah she was from Ibai so she was gonna come with us until her visa came and then um yeah so we moved to Laura and we got put into a new house they got us a new house and
00:30:37
Darin Tingey
ah Lona, was a Lona Jake? Yeah, she's great. From Ebi.
00:30:56
Maddie
It was like in Irois' house, like the, what is that in English?
00:31:00
Darin Tingey
The chief, the chief.
00:31:01
Maddie
Yeah, the chief of the land, basically. He let us stay on his land. And like, it was great. It was such a great house. Beautiful area. Laura is just absolutely amazing.
00:31:11
Maddie
It's so different than Delop. Like, it's the end of the island, like very country.
00:31:14
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:31:17
Maddie
Everything's spread out. It's insane, like the difference there.
00:31:20
Darin Tingey
Were you like, this is what I imagined the Marshall Islands to be like.
00:31:24
Maddie
Yeah, like there's so much green, there was beaches you could see and like they were crystal clear waters. Like it was like this is the island that I was imagining.
00:31:34
Darin Tingey
Yeah, yeah, Laura's beautiful.
00:31:35
Maddie
So.
00:31:36
Darin Tingey
i I never served in Laura, I always wanted to. it was always fun when he had like a P-Day there or they got to do exchanges there. It's just like gorgeous. The island's like ah wider in Laura, so like you can actually, you can be in spots where you don't see the ocean, which is like rare and in the Marsh Islands.
00:31:51
Maddie
Yeah. Yeah.
00:31:55
Maddie
but Laura was like the whitest part of the island too. So like there were parts you couldn't see the ocean on either side.
00:32:00
Darin Tingey
yeah Yeah, that's what I'm saying. that Laura is so wide. like you like It felt like a little bit like a jungle-esque type.
00:32:03
Maddie
Yeah.
00:32:08
Maddie
Yeah. But like I think Laura was like the area that I struggled with like the most though. Like out of the entire mission. i think that was like my hardest area for me personally. Yeah. um Just because like Paku and I had such success in Dellup and then like coming to Laura, being put into a trio who was like a native speaker. She felt comfortable with everybody she talked to
00:32:30
Darin Tingey
Mm-hmm.
00:32:30
Maddie
It was like kind of intimidating to me and like we didn't have a great a lot of great success in Laura. And so I was just like really discouraged and I think that was just like what hit me the hardest is like what are we doing wrong? We had such great success and now we're not and I just – it hit me like – hard that area and I just like didn't feel like I was a I felt like a spiritual giant in Delop and then it kind of like took me down to like nothing like in Laura because i was like we're not having success we're not doing our jobs as missionaries so it humbled me a lot yeah
00:33:01
Darin Tingey
Yeah, just humbled you. um You feel like there you didn't have as much success be just because there are fewer people in Laura? Like Dellette, there's just people everywhere.
00:33:12
Darin Tingey
And then you go to Laura and it's like more spread out. People go to bed earlier because it's the countryside.
00:33:16
Maddie
yeah I think it was just that and like I think it was just because they were so like there hadn't been sisters there in so long. I think it was like they didn't know who the sisters were and it took them a lot longer to open up to us and like be like, oh yeah, like we like trust you guys.
00:33:36
Maddie
Like we can talk to you about like what we believe in and stuff like that.
00:33:37
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah.
00:33:42
Maddie
So it just, it took a lot of like opening up and getting to know people because they just weren't used to having sisters around. It was all, it's always just been elders for like such a long time. So it was just hard, but it was a very humbling experience. And I think have i think there' is a reason like there's a reason I was put with – I stayed with Paku and so i got we got put with Jake.
00:34:03
Maddie
It's because I was still struggling with my language skills.
00:34:06
Darin Tingey
yeah
00:34:07
Maddie
And like um Sister Jake helped me a lot. Like it was – Because like she was going to learn English and like I was trying to learn Marshallese. So we were trying to help each other. And it was just like kind of hard to like communicate sometimes because like she would say something. I'd be like, wait, whoa, that did not make any sense. Slow down.
00:34:23
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:34:24
Maddie
So it got me used to like hearing it more often because she would speak it at home. And like she would have to get used to me speaking English and Marshallese. So it was like kind of a good trade off for both of us.
00:34:36
Darin Tingey
Yeah, i wish i I wish I had a Marshallese companion. I mean, I had Elder Joseph for a little bit in the MTC, but I never was companions with him.
00:34:42
Maddie
Yeah. Yeah.
00:34:45
Darin Tingey
And you know because the Marshallese so small, even if we did have a Marshallese elder, the president would just send him to Kittilus.
00:34:50
Maddie
yeah
00:34:51
Darin Tingey
um And so I never had that native experience. always wanted it. um Now, when did I want it? Probably, I'd rather have it towards the middle of my mission, you know like where I know a little bit more.
00:35:03
Maddie
Yeah.
00:35:04
Darin Tingey
ah
00:35:05
Maddie
Well, and I think, like, President did that because, like, I was getting – like, we were pretty, like, in the middle of the mission at this point. Like, they're transferring. Like, you guys were fluent at that point. i don't know if you had gone to Kitabas by now, but, like, you were fluent in Marshallese.
00:35:15
Darin Tingey
you No.
00:35:18
Maddie
But, like, you guys were getting it. And I was like, I think – He knew that I was struggling with it because, like, I think, like, you know, you those check-ins you do, like, when you're a new missionary.
00:35:28
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:35:28
Maddie
And so he's like, we got to get this girl comfortable speaking. So we got to find something. So I think that's why he did it. He's like, he's got to get – she's got to get comfortable at some point.
00:35:38
Darin Tingey
Yeah, i ah man, the language is always tough.
00:35:39
Maddie
Yeah.
00:35:42
Darin Tingey
I feel like you may have thought we were fluent, but like you know i felt I felt comfortable at six months. I i still would have been an e-buyer by the time you were in Laura, but um it's like it's so funny at six months, you're like, oh, I feel good.
00:35:52
Maddie
Yeah.
00:35:56
Darin Tingey
And then you get to your year mark, and you're like, dude, I knew nothing back then. And then like you get to your 18-month mark, and you're like, I knew nothing at year.
00:36:01
Maddie
See ya!
00:36:05
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:36:07
Darin Tingey
Like I was so confident and that's just like, I think that's just the gift of tongues and like, honestly, like a gift of confidence sometimes that the Lord gives you. Cause like, you just like, just go on like, oh yeah, know Marshallese. And you look back and you're like, knew nothing. Like I was so bad.
00:36:23
Maddie
Oh, yeah, for sure. I remember that. I remember, too, like, in Laura, um there was this little – this grandma that everyone loved, Buburike. Like, she was everyone's favorite.
00:36:33
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:36:34
Maddie
She was everyone's grandma. She loved the missionaries. she As soon as she found out sisters – she was, like, the one person – like, one of the few people, like, in Laura that was, like, sisters are coming. Like, I want to meet them as soon as possible.
00:36:45
Maddie
And I remember she was so helpful for us. She fed us so much. And, like, that was the first place I had – oh, what is it Maytip, like breadfruit, like fried breadfruit.
00:36:56
Darin Tingey
Yeah, so good.
00:36:57
Maddie
And those are the, she makes the best breadfruit. That's the first place like I had real Marshallese food.
00:37:02
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:37:03
Maddie
And it was just like, oh, wow, this is actually like pretty good, like but for the most part.
00:37:09
Darin Tingey
did Did you like, how are the members and in that ward? Like did they, did they like, did you, did they like embrace you guys or did it take a little bit?
00:37:19
Maddie
i think Some of the older members, like, yeah, they were like, oh, great, sisters are coming. Let's work with them. Let's do it. Let's have, like, a great relationship with the sisters. But some of, like, the newer members, they were like, oh, what what are sister missionaries?
00:37:32
Maddie
There sister missionaries out there in the world. They were kind of like, a little more timid to talk to us, whereas they they would go and talk to the elders more, be more open with the elders because they knew of the elders. so
00:37:42
Darin Tingey
Uh-huh. ahha
00:37:43
Maddie
But the members and Laura were so nice, so sweet. Like, they were great. yeah. yeah
00:37:50
Darin Tingey
I think one of the, like, how of my favorite things about Laura is, you like the baseball field in Laura, like, which is awesome.
00:37:56
Maddie
Yeah.
00:37:58
Darin Tingey
Martian's people, like, love baseball.
00:38:00
Maddie
Oh, for sure.
00:38:01
Darin Tingey
And the best thing is to see the, like, older ladies playing baseball. It's like the grown women.
00:38:07
Maddie
And they're Guams, too.
00:38:08
Darin Tingey
Yeah, the grown women in their qualms, their skirts, and they're playing softball, you know? And it's like, this is awesome. They just, like, love it. and
00:38:17
Maddie
The funny thing is, though, like, we lived right behind the baseball field. So, like, every night we'd, like, walk behind a baseball game, like, just – or ride behind a baseball game, like, because we had bikes in Laura.
00:38:26
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:38:27
Maddie
And we'd just see these old ladies playing baseball.
00:38:27
Darin Tingey
Okay.
00:38:29
Maddie
It was great. There was, like, an all-women's baseball team or something.
00:38:30
Darin Tingey
Did you guys
00:38:32
Maddie
And we'd just see them in their skirts all night.
00:38:32
Darin Tingey
Yes.
00:38:34
Maddie
It was great.
00:38:35
Darin Tingey
I love that. I just like imagine my mom and her friends playing baseball and i like, that's crazy. Did you guys ever go play with them?
00:38:42
Maddie
That's so funny. No, um we didn't. I wish we would have. That would have been fun. i remember we went, like, there's also that basketball field in Laura, too, that we would drive but or ride by a whole lot.
00:38:56
Maddie
And, like, we'd go play basketball, but, like, we never stopped and played softball.
00:39:01
Darin Tingey
That would have been so iconic to just like see you guys out there playing with them. So funny.
00:39:08
Maddie
Yeah, it's so fun.
00:39:09
Darin Tingey
And then I remember, remember in Laura too, when we'd have district meetings there sometimes, like down, like a few houses down from the church, there was a little store that had soft serve ice cream.
00:39:22
Maddie
yes oh that was the best place
00:39:23
Darin Tingey
And I was like, never in my wildest dreams would did I imagine I'd be having soft serve ice cream in the Marshall Islands. And it was delicious.
00:39:31
Maddie
That was the best place. Oh, yeah. Like, that was, like, the best place to stop and get a sweet treat on, like, if it's a super hot day And it was, like, a dollar for, like, a big s sco of but like ah big scoop of ice cream.
00:39:39
Darin Tingey
not
00:39:42
Maddie
So, i was, like, this is the best.
00:39:42
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:39:44
Maddie
And, like, ice cream's my favorite. So, I was, like, we're stopping, like, every day.
00:39:48
Darin Tingey
So good. Did you guys have any restaurants in Laura? I don't remember.
00:39:53
Maddie
Uh, no, there was, like, that one, like, shop that had, like, this ice cream and they had, like, snacks that you could get, but there was like, no real, like, restaurants that you could, like, go to There was, like, just, like, the little shops that people had.
00:40:06
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:40:06
Maddie
um I was, like, for food-wise, though, I don't think I've ever eaten more pancakes than Laura. Like, people will serve you pancakes, like, a lot than Laura.
00:40:14
Darin Tingey
Yes. That it's a classic Marshallese breakfast pancakes, everyone more and pancakes and donuts.
00:40:20
Maddie
Oh, yeah. Yeah.
00:40:23
Maddie
Heck yeah. And the pancakes might be a controversial top or opinion, but I think the pancakes were so much better than the are just like dense.
00:40:31
Darin Tingey
Oh, yeah. Yeah, I would agree with you. they They, like, are so good at making pancakes. I don't know how they do it, but, like, ten times... Yeah, donuts are good, but, like, little donuts. The pancakes, though, it's, like, I think they're ten times better than any pancake I had in the States.
00:40:46
Darin Tingey
But I also don't know...
00:40:46
Maddie
Oh, first door.
00:40:48
Darin Tingey
also don't know if I was just, like, really hungry, you know?
00:40:51
Maddie
Yeah, for sure. Yeah.
00:40:54
Darin Tingey
um
00:40:54
Maddie
There's something else about Laura i was going to tell you, but I can't. Oh, Laura was like, actually, I think it might have been my second time in Laura. I had like my favorite investigators. i think it was my second time in Laura, which we can talk about later.
00:41:05
Maddie
But yeah, the second time I was in Laura, I had my favorite investigators ever.
00:41:06
Darin Tingey
Okay.
00:41:09
Maddie
So yeah.
00:41:10
Darin Tingey
Okay. We'll get to it. We'll get to it.
00:41:11
Maddie
Okay.
00:41:12
Darin Tingey
So ah from Laura, you know, go to Evi. Is that right?
00:41:16
Maddie
I went to E-Buy.
00:41:18
Darin Tingey
And like, were you just stoked out of your mind?
00:41:22
Maddie
Yeah, because I was with Paku and Paku spent like six months on Ebi. So she was like, and like Jake was from Ebi. So they were hyping it up, like telling me like, oh, you're going to love it. It's the best. It's like you are you're just going to love it. It's like literally the best place, like it in the whole islands. Like you're going to have the best time.
00:41:41
Maddie
And I was going to replace Sister Marie and was going to be companions with Sister Fisk. who is also, she's from Utah. So was my first like American companion. So that was going to super fun.
00:41:53
Maddie
and remember getting ready to go. i was, I packed up everything and I was getting on the plane and it was me, I think we two and scene. We were all flying to eBay together.
00:42:03
Darin Tingey
Yes.
00:42:05
Maddie
and so we fly to eBay, we fly into the military base. And like, I, it was like just a, such a different experience from flying into Medjaro to flying to a base.
00:42:14
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:42:14
Maddie
Because, like, they were there's such more security there. So, yeah.
00:42:18
Darin Tingey
And Americans, and Americans, you're like, what the heck's going on?
00:42:21
Maddie
And, like, everyone was speaking English and I could understand them. And I was like, whoa.
00:42:26
Darin Tingey
Where am i yeah
00:42:27
Maddie
Yeah, it was crazy. And then I remember, I think you guys were waiting on the dock for us. like Like, after like we got on the boat, everyone was waiting for us on the dock.
00:42:34
Darin Tingey
Yep.
00:42:38
Darin Tingey
I was there.
00:42:39
Maddie
And I was like, the first time I had seen you in like six months or something, and you were leaving.
00:42:39
Darin Tingey
I was there when you got there. Yeah. Yeah. I was. Yeah, you guys were coming.
00:42:44
Maddie
i don't...
00:42:45
Darin Tingey
I was even like the next day or something.
00:42:48
Maddie
Yeah, I don't think we spent like any time together on the mission, like in an area, except for like that brief like day in Ebi. Like we have got to like catch up for like a second.
00:42:56
Darin Tingey
That's actually so true. You're so right.
00:42:58
Maddie
Yeah.
00:42:59
Darin Tingey
We miss each other basically every time.
00:43:01
Maddie
Yeah, and then you went to Kitabas before I came back to Ebi, or from Ebi, so...
00:43:06
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Maybe when I was in Long Island, you might have been... I don't remember. Yeah, but but wild.
00:43:13
Maddie
Yeah, I don't know.
00:43:14
Darin Tingey
Okay, so yeah, I remember you guys coming. The plane goes one way one day and then back the next. I think I was flying out the next day. But like E-Buy, like especially...
00:43:25
Darin Tingey
So sisters at the time that we served, sisters did not serve on Outer Islands, right? It was just Maduro and E-Buy.
00:43:31
Maddie
Nope.
00:43:34
Darin Tingey
And so I feel like E-Buy was like...
00:43:35
Maddie
Yep.
00:43:36
Darin Tingey
Really coveted, i mean, among others too, but especially among sisters because it was the like the only chance to get off Maduro.
00:43:43
Maddie
Yeah, and I feel like every sister wanted to go to Ebi just because like of how much it's talked about.
00:43:48
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:43:49
Maddie
And like I did not think I was going to go to Ebi.
00:43:49
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:43:51
Maddie
I thought it was like very rare because everyone thought someone else was going to go. I was like, well, I'll either end up staying in Laura or some I'll go somewhere else on Maduro. So when they told me I was going to Ebi, I was like, no way And like to find out I was going to be working with Sister Fisk, another like ah like um an American companion,
00:44:12
Maddie
and like she was from utah too i was like heck yeah this is gonna be sweet like we're gonna so much fun like we're gonna we're gonna crush it out there it's gonna be great
00:44:12
Darin Tingey
Yeah. ha what like What was it like getting on that ferry and then like taking the boat over to the island?
00:44:28
Darin Tingey
Were you like, this is so cool, or how did you feel?
00:44:29
Maddie
oh it was it was really cool but i got i get seasick
00:44:35
Darin Tingey
Oh, no.
00:44:35
Maddie
I felt so sick on the plane or the boat over.
00:44:36
Darin Tingey
Oh,
00:44:38
Maddie
i was like, well, this needs to be over. I feel so sick. Like, this is crazy. so I was really glad to get off the ferry.
00:44:44
Darin Tingey
No.
00:44:45
Maddie
But like when they like ebay came into view, i remember someone pointing out ebay to me and I was like, that does not look like an island. It looks like just like concrete and like houses everywhere.
00:44:56
Maddie
Where are the palm trees?
00:44:57
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:44:58
Maddie
where's the green? Yeah.
00:45:00
Darin Tingey
I know. It's so funny. It's like when I got on the ferry the first time, Elder Robinson was like, see the island over there? That's Ebi. And it was like this green, luscious island. I'm like, dope. It's going to be sick.
00:45:12
Darin Tingey
And then we like turned the corner and he's like, just kidding. That's Ebi. And was like, what?
00:45:16
Maddie
bru
00:45:18
Darin Tingey
i was like, that's not an island. That's just I mean, like what we imagined to be an island.
00:45:22
Maddie
Yeah, it's like, it's nothing you imagine that's gonna, like, that's nothing like you're gonna be, like, serving on.
00:45:22
Darin Tingey
But it's
00:45:28
Maddie
It's so different. But, like, once you get there, and, like we like, once I got settled, and, like, we got to work, it was literally... so amazing. Like, we had such great investigators.
00:45:39
Maddie
The people there were amazing. i still, like, talk to people from EBI today. Like, the Stevens, like, I love them.
00:45:44
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:45:47
Maddie
They're my favorite. Like, we – still talk to their girls. Like, I picked up both of their daughters and took them to the MTC.
00:45:54
Darin Tingey
No way. Yeah.
00:45:55
Maddie
Yeah, and, like, I just love them. And then I also met, like, Joseph – Elder Joseph's family there. Like, yeah.
00:46:03
Darin Tingey
yeah
00:46:03
Maddie
And they're just, everyone there, I just can't talk highly enough about EBI. Like, they just take such good care of every, like, all the missionaries there. And, like, once you're there, you feel like family.
00:46:14
Maddie
Like, you could be nobody and, like, they would still treat you like you were their, like, sister or brother or something like that.
00:46:14
Darin Tingey
the
00:46:20
Maddie
And it just feels so amazing.
00:46:20
Darin Tingey
yeah they're gonna give everything to you like it's like like they're very much like these are servants of god like we're gonna give them everything we're gonna feed them whenever they come over they can come over whenever and hang out like we're gonna help them with like, I feel like having a member present at ah at a lesson was always like really easy.
00:46:40
Darin Tingey
i mean, it did help that they all live so close together, right? So it wasn't like a ah too much, ah too big of an ask.
00:46:44
Maddie
yeah and like they always knew like that the missionaries were coming over like because they would see you go to their house one day and they'd be like I'm coming the next time you guys come over so just like I don't even like no questions asked they're like I'm coming so I'm like great
00:46:55
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah. Sisters had cool too because so like when I was there and probably the thing you it's like there three sets of elders like one for each ward the three words of Ebi and then
00:47:06
Maddie
yeah
00:47:12
Darin Tingey
um and then the sisters got to go and the whole island you guys got to do all wards
00:47:17
Maddie
Yeah. Oh.
00:47:20
Maddie
Yeah, I remember, like, we had to cover the whole island, and, like, it was crazy because – It was like, it wasn't big, but like it felt big when you're like there.
00:47:31
Maddie
but like looking back, it wasn't that big. And I just remember covering like, we'd start in one end one day, cover it like, and then end up at the other end at the end of the day.
00:47:34
Darin Tingey
Oh
00:47:39
Maddie
And it was just like crazy um how much like ground we had to cover. And then you guys just had like your little individual sections, which was great. um But i also just remember like church on EBI was so long for us because we went to every single ward.
00:47:56
Darin Tingey
oh gosh. Yeah. I didn't think about that.
00:47:57
Maddie
So, yeah, we literally, I think we started at, like, 930 and would go to church and then wouldn't leave until, like, i don't know, like, 4-ish.
00:48:10
Darin Tingey
Yeah, because you had investigators potentially coming to every ward.
00:48:15
Maddie
Yeah, and I just remember, like, we'd have to go in, like, to the, like, it's a bomb, like, an old bomb shelter, like, the church was, like, an old bomb shelter, and so, like, it was so hot down there.
00:48:25
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:48:27
Maddie
And the AC, like, never worked as well as it should have.
00:48:30
Darin Tingey
Hot, dark, like no windows, muggy.
00:48:32
Maddie
Yeah. It was, like, yeah, muggy for sure. and like, really?
00:48:36
Darin Tingey
You should see it now. It's beautiful. Yeah, they redid it looks amazing.
00:48:40
Maddie
oh man.
00:48:42
Darin Tingey
You need to go back.
00:48:42
Maddie
and also, like, I also saw that, like, they have, like, a baptismal font now, like, outside the chapel in Ebi, which is, like, that wasn't a thing when we were there.
00:48:51
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:48:51
Maddie
Like, we baptized people in the ocean when we were there.
00:48:51
Darin Tingey
but Yeah.
00:48:55
Maddie
So...
00:48:55
Darin Tingey
I remember, remember one baptism, like, baptism in the ocean, which like, the coolest thing ever, but also, like, ebi just has, like, so much trash, or, like, floating around, so it was, like, I felt bad, because, like, here you are, like, you know, the symbolic of, like, being clean again, it's, like, being baptized, there's, like, trash kind of floating around the area, and I was, like, oh, that doesn't look so good.
00:49:02
Maddie
Oh, yeah.
00:49:17
Darin Tingey
ah
00:49:18
Maddie
Yep. Or, like, when you're trying to take pictures, like, after the fact, and you just have, like, trash on, like, both sides of, like the like, where they were baptized, and it's, like, not the best, like... look for pictures or anything like that but I remember like sending pictures home and people would be like you baptize people in the ocean that is so freaking cool they like didn't even realize like how dirty it was like or anything they just saw the ocean and people were baptized so they thought it was like the coolest thing
00:49:31
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:49:41
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:49:44
Darin Tingey
Yep, yep. Did you see a lot of rats in Ebi?
00:49:50
Maddie
No, actually, I didn't, which is really surprising.
00:49:52
Darin Tingey
What?
00:49:53
Maddie
Like, I've heard that, like, they're really bad, but rats creep me out.
00:49:56
Darin Tingey
They're huge too.
00:49:57
Maddie
So I'm like, I'm really glad didn't see them.
00:49:59
Darin Tingey
I feel like I'd be like just teaching lessons and I just see like these huge rats just like crawling around behind our investigator and i was like, oh shoot.
00:50:05
Maddie
Oh.
00:50:09
Maddie
I would have, like, I think I would be, like, trying so hard not to freak out if that was the case for me. So I'm really glad I didn't see that.
00:50:16
Darin Tingey
How did you feel about the house the or the apartment that you guys were in?
00:50:20
Maddie
I loved the Triple J house. Like, that was the nicest, like, one of the nicest apartments, like, we've had, except for, like, the water turning off every, like, night. It was great. Like, we...
00:50:31
Darin Tingey
Nice until the water's out.
00:50:32
Maddie
Yeah, nice and until the water's out and you can't shower after, like, a hot day.
00:50:36
Darin Tingey
Yeah. And I feel like sometimes the, I mean, I mean, Ebi, the whole like joke is Ebi Jatulu, like Ebi, like you don't shower because there's like too many people and not enough water.
00:50:37
Maddie
but
00:50:48
Maddie
The amount of times people have like, I don't, I feel like we like stayed, like we showered, but like at the amount of times people called like at the missionaries, jauhu it was like ridiculous.
00:50:59
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:50:59
Maddie
Cause like, what are you talking about? We do.
00:51:04
Darin Tingey
Yeah, it's just E-bye, man. like Sometimes that water was like, some missionaries like just hit it right.
00:51:06
Maddie
It's just E-bye.
00:51:10
Darin Tingey
There was like enough rain, but others, like you go a long time without a rain, be no water. and It's like, get gross real quick.
00:51:16
Maddie
Yeah. See, but I remember, I think I might have been in Ebi when it was the rainy season because I literally remember like going to church and walking home from church where like literally water was up to my knees.
00:51:18
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:51:28
Maddie
Like walking to church with in water covered, like covering my knees. And it was just crazy.
00:51:33
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:51:34
Maddie
Like I think I was there during the wet season because we always had like a lot of water, but they always turned our water off like at the end of the night. So yeah.
00:51:43
Darin Tingey
You buy floods really easily because the there's like, don't know, there's so much sand that it doesn't drain. ah
00:51:52
Maddie
Yeah.
00:51:54
Darin Tingey
I feel like we don't, go ahead, go ahead.
00:51:54
Maddie
i remember I remember we did a lot of seawall projects to like help like the flooding. Yeah.
00:52:01
Darin Tingey
Yes. Yeah, like every you know every service day, it was like building someone's seawall so their house their house didn't float away in the ocean.
00:52:07
Maddie
Yeah,
00:52:11
Maddie
for sure. Yeah, I remember like I also went to like a we had like a ton of like members that would invite us to like you were invited to eat or a family home evenings, but I would never start on time to.
00:52:24
Darin Tingey
Yes.
00:52:24
Maddie
but like there I had like Buiro for the first time and like sashimi and like all the foods that I don't really like.
00:52:28
Darin Tingey
Okay.
00:52:33
Maddie
Like I got on eBay. Like I remember getting Buiro at think was the Loyak's house or something.
00:52:42
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:52:42
Maddie
and Or like turkey, is it turkey neck too?
00:52:45
Darin Tingey
Yeah, Kanoa, turkey neck.
00:52:46
Maddie
Yeah, turkey neck. Yeah, I got like that burro and sashimi all on one plate.
00:52:52
Darin Tingey
Yes.
00:52:52
Maddie
And I'm like, triple whammy. This is um like, oh man, it took i Thankfully, like, the kids, like, they had ah kids running around, and they loved it. And so they would come sit on my lap, and they would just, like, eat off my plate.
00:53:04
Maddie
So I didn't have to eat the sashimi or the buido the turkey. The turkey necks weren't bad. Like, if you once you figured out how to eat them, they were okay.
00:53:15
Maddie
They weren't great.
00:53:15
Darin Tingey
It was just, yeah, was just like imp impossible like get the meat out of the turkey neck.
00:53:15
Maddie
They
00:53:19
Darin Tingey
It's like, i don't know how to eat this. i
00:53:21
Maddie
Yeah, but I never got the taste for sashimi or buido. Like, that was... Nope. That was where I drew the line. I couldn't eat it.
00:53:30
Darin Tingey
I think some other missionaries were the same as you. Those were two that were a little bit harder to eat.
00:53:36
Maddie
Yeah, like, especially, like, when they, like, marinate it in, like, coconut milk, too. It was just, like, it was too much for me. so And it just gave me... It was a weird texture.
00:53:45
Darin Tingey
Did you go to a lot of parties in eBuy?
00:53:46
Maddie
so
00:53:51
Maddie
Yeah, I feel like we were at, like, AKM or some kind of, like, party, like, every other night, basically.
00:53:59
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:53:59
Maddie
And I remember this one night, like, we me and Sister Fisk, we were – We went went to a K-Mem and we were like sat up in the front. Like they very important they have like all the very important people like sitting up at the front of the K-Mem.
00:54:14
Maddie
And they said, oh, sisters, go sit at the front and like wait for us to bring you food. At this point, it's like rolling on 9 o'clock. And we're like, um we got to go.
00:54:24
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:54:24
Maddie
And then like Sister Fisk was like, we can't be rude. We have to sit here for a little while. 10 o'clock rolls around. And we're like, okay, now we really got to go. And Sister Fisk is like, like we're getting there like looking uncomfortable and like we find someone finally comes up to us and they're like oh sisters is it time for you guys to leave at like 10 o'clock and it's just we're like um yeah but we don't want to be rude and leave like in the middle of everything she's like no no no like we'll get you food and get you going like we don't want to keep you guys especially because we know it's time to go so like we were so thankful for that
00:54:54
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:54:58
Darin Tingey
I feel like the members in E-Bi really like understood um the mission rules in that sense.
00:55:02
Maddie
yeah
00:55:04
Darin Tingey
ah
00:55:05
Maddie
Yeah.
00:55:06
Darin Tingey
And like the nice thing was like you didn't have a huge trek home. right like
00:55:10
Maddie
Yeah.
00:55:11
Darin Tingey
No matter where you were on the island, it didn't take you more than 10 minutes to get home walking. But my favorite thing every night is just because there's so many people out in E-Bi.
00:55:16
Maddie
Yeah.
00:55:20
Darin Tingey
Everyone's outside. And my favorite thing is as you're walking home, everyone goes, night good night night night you know like
00:55:25
Maddie
yeah Or like everybody in the morning is always like morning, morning, morning.
00:55:30
Darin Tingey
morning morning morning yeah i don't know why but i love it i love like when the morning and the evening and doing that and like sometimes in the evening you probably had this all the time like there's so many kids on ebay like as you're walking they're like hanging on your arms and tugging at you and like
00:55:30
Maddie
Yep. Yep.
00:55:45
Maddie
Oh, yeah.
00:55:48
Darin Tingey
you'd sing, there'd be like certain American songs that they would know at the time. So like one of the popular ones was like One Call Away. and like, I'd i' like sing that song with them.
00:55:55
Maddie
Yep.
00:55:56
Darin Tingey
And they're all like singing know or like walking home in the in the moonlight Evi.
00:56:01
Maddie
Yep.
00:56:02
Darin Tingey
And I was like, this is just so amazing.
00:56:04
Maddie
Yeah. I remember, like, the youth on eBay were always, like, so great. Like, we would go on splits with the youth and, like, It was great because they would introduce us to their friends and, like, it was so much fun to, like, see these young girls, like, who – like, ah so many of them have served missions now.
00:56:24
Maddie
Like, go out with you and, like, introduce us and do missionary work when they were just, like, in high school. And, like, see the um how amazing they were and, like, willing to help us sisters at that time. it was – just a very great experience to see and then like to see them then go serve missions too was like so great like so just amazing you couldn't like I I'm out of words for like what how great that feeling is yeah
00:56:52
Darin Tingey
Yeah. And the youth was very strong. They're very big. um And the senate they'd go to seminary or in the like early morning seminary, which like Marxist people don't wake up early.
00:57:02
Maddie
oh yeah
00:57:04
Darin Tingey
Like that's not a thing.
00:57:06
Maddie
But like do early morning seminary was like unheard of.
00:57:09
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:57:10
Maddie
So, yeah.
00:57:10
Darin Tingey
What was a typical P day like for you on Ebi?
00:57:11
Maddie
yeah
00:57:14
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:57:15
Maddie
P-days for us, we'd like wake up, we'd go, ah we had Sister Stevens on E-Buy was so sweet. They had a washer dryer that like we didn't have to pay for.
00:57:27
Maddie
So like she's like, bring your laundry, let me help you with your laundry.
00:57:27
Darin Tingey
Nice.
00:57:30
Maddie
So we'd go and like drop off our lawn, like start our laundry at her house because we didn't have to pay for it. And, like, we'd come back home and then, like, clean the house, get our grocery shopping done.
00:57:41
Maddie
And then we'd go over to brother and sister Rick's house and, like, start emailing for the day.
00:57:47
Darin Tingey
The senior couple, yeah.
00:57:48
Maddie
Yeah, the senior couple on eBuy. And we'd just spend, like, pretty much all day, like, at that house with the other like with the elders, like, taking turns emailing home and then just playing card games.
00:57:59
Maddie
And then, like, sister Rick's would make us lunch.
00:58:00
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:58:03
Maddie
Yeah.
00:58:03
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:58:05
Maddie
And it was it was great.
00:58:08
Darin Tingey
we I remember, yeah, say we kind of had the same P-days. It's like, which I look back now, like, we should have done more fun things on P-day. But the thing is that there was no other place to email on the island, at least that we had access to, so that the senior couple had the one laptop that
00:58:20
Maddie
Yeah. Yeah.
00:58:25
Maddie
Yep.
00:58:25
Darin Tingey
that the internet was really spotty, but you could send your emails. So like, what is there? Eight missionaries like rotating, ah like if they each get an hour or something like that, which is eight hours.
00:58:34
Maddie
Yeah.
00:58:38
Darin Tingey
That's the the whole day. Yeah.
00:58:41
Maddie
That's the whole day. Yeah. I remember. So we did that for like when I was with Sister Fisk. But then the second train, I was there for two transfers, two or three transfers.
00:58:52
Maddie
And I remember after Sister Fisk left, Sister Nilsen, Hannah came and was my companion. So I got another American companion after Sister Fisk.
00:59:01
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:59:02
Maddie
and I remember the wi-fi went out a lot when she was there with us so we found other things to do on p-day besides email so like we would we took the ferry back to quaj like a few times to like go get food from the food court on quadralen or like we woke up super early one p-day and went for a hike and like explored like the northern side of yeah and saw like a few shipwrecks and like
00:59:18
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
00:59:27
Darin Tingey
The north side.
00:59:31
Maddie
like a be like a really beautiful part of ebay like it was a beachy area it was like super pretty um and we did that like a few times um or like we would just sorry go ahead
00:59:41
Darin Tingey
that was it that was a big That was a big regret of mine, like not going... i don't even think went past the dump. Like, I didn't ever go to Gucci Goo where the high school is. i never...
00:59:51
Maddie
that's what it was called i was like trying to think what it was called goochie goo yeah
00:59:54
Darin Tingey
Good to go. I never went up there when I was at E-Buy for three transfers. that We just never did it, and I don't know why. that's one of my regrets regrets is not doing it. But when I went back last year, we went up there and saw it, which was pretty cool.
01:00:06
Maddie
yeah Yeah, we went to Gucci Gou, like, I want to say like a a handful of times, like we went there by ourselves a few times just to walk around and see what was up there.
01:00:07
Darin Tingey
But I was like, I don't know why I didn't explore more of E-Buy when I was there. don't know. But...
01:00:21
Maddie
And then... One time we went with, like, the youth. The youth did an activity, and they, like, were inviting some of our investigators, and they wanted us to come, too. And so we did, and, like, we had, like, a picnic with the youth and just, like, hung out and chatted with our investigators.
01:00:36
Maddie
And, like, we saw, like, sea turtles and, like, all these different ocean creatures, like, on the beaches there, which was, like, so cool.
01:00:44
Darin Tingey
Yeah, that's so cool.
01:00:45
Maddie
So...
01:00:46
Darin Tingey
And i they did some youth activities, like the Ricks, the senior couple would take them out on boats to like the other islands and they'd do picnic for the seminary kids.
01:00:50
Maddie
yeah
01:00:57
Darin Tingey
And the elders, we'd always try and be like, can we come?
01:00:57
Maddie
Yeah.
01:00:59
Darin Tingey
And they'd always be like, no, you can't come. And we're like, what the heck? I was so mad. i went like I think if there was another senior couple there that was like, cool they would have let us go not that the ricks aren't cool but like they just i think president told him like no it's yeah yeah which was which like later my mission like i totally like was on went on boats and went to different islands to picnics and stuff but i don't it started my mission so i didn't really know what was going on
01:01:09
Maddie
yeah
01:01:14
Maddie
No missionaries on a boat, like that kind of a boat, unless it's like to Kwajalein.
01:01:24
Maddie
Yeah.
Community Engagement and Missionary Work
01:01:27
Maddie
Yeah, I like think that they were like, it was just like to Gucci goo because I think that was what we were doing with with it was with the Ricks. They were taking the seminary students to Gucci goo for a picnic or something because they got a reward for reading the scriptures or like they had a goal they met. And so that was their reward was going to Gucci goo for a picnic. So that was really cool.
01:01:48
Darin Tingey
Did you, um how was the missionary work on EBI? Did you guys have a lot of success or? Yeah.
01:01:54
Maddie
I think, yeah, EBI had – we had such great success there. But, like, it's really hard not to have success on EBI because, like, you have so many part member families.
01:02:00
Darin Tingey
yeah
01:02:02
Maddie
You have somebody, like, willing to be with, like, your investigator. And, like, they just felt so welcomed there that it was hard not – at least from a sister's point of view, I feel like it was really hard not to have success.
01:02:15
Maddie
So there was, like, a few investigators that, like, had been studying for, like – like years and like they loved meeting with the missionaries they were part member families or something like that but they just weren't ready to like commit to it so that was hard to see that like there were like some what people call like internal internal investigators because they just aren't ready for that next step but like we did have a lot of success especially with like youth and um like some part member families so
01:02:27
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:02:39
Darin Tingey
yeah
Transfers and Emotional Connections
01:02:47
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah, the fellowship the fellowship on Ibai is unmatched. There's no other place in the Marshall Islands that ah fellowships as well as Ibai does.
01:02:47
Maddie
yeah
01:02:56
Maddie
For sure. Yeah. It's like, it's honestly like the best. I was so bummed to find out I was being transferred off of E-Buy. i remember I was sitting in church and like president had just told me i was getting, i they were taking sisters off of E-Buy because they were closing the area to sisters because the Ricks were leaving and they didn't have a senior couple to replace the Ricks.
01:03:15
Darin Tingey
Ah,
01:03:17
Maddie
So, and I guess sisters can't be on an island without a senior couple is what president had told us.
01:03:22
Darin Tingey
sisters and elders together. Yeah.
01:03:23
Maddie
Yeah, they can't be on an island together without a senior couple.
01:03:24
Darin Tingey
yeah
01:03:27
Maddie
And so they were pulling sisters off. And so the the island was going to close. So me and Sister Nilsen were coming off and going back to Maduro. And I just remember that Sunday. I was so sad. i like, just was sitting in the back of the chapel. Like, I was – you could, like, visibly tell I was upset. And I remember President pulling me aside. And she he's like, Sister Greenberg, what's going on? Like, what's wrong? And I'm like, I just don't want to leave. I love it here. This is my favorite place that I've been.
01:03:51
Maddie
And he, like, had to tell, like, say, like, I know, but, like, this is, like, the mission. Like, you you did great work here.
01:03:57
Darin Tingey
yeah
01:03:58
Maddie
now you have to go do great work somewhere else. So, yeah.
01:04:01
Darin Tingey
yeah ebuy it's just i don't believe in same feeling just like i love this place i hope you know i want to come back i will say when i went back last year it felt like nothing had changed except for all the kids grew up uh
01:04:09
Maddie
Yeah.
01:04:16
Maddie
who I know I see all these kids that like were kids when we were there and now like I follow them on Facebook and they're all grown up I'm like wait a minute no you're a baby
01:04:18
Darin Tingey
ah
01:04:26
Darin Tingey
Yeah, and like the the same things of like, you walk down the street and this little kid's yelling, ripe ripe at you you know, like white boy, white boy. And just like, like, like stuff like that, just it's just never changes.
01:04:34
Maddie
yeah
01:04:39
Darin Tingey
And I love it. um
Missionary Responsibilities and Achievements
01:04:41
Maddie
yeah
01:04:41
Darin Tingey
So you're next, you go back to Maduro, you take the flight back to Maduro. um
01:04:46
Maddie
I go to Ardek.
01:04:48
Darin Tingey
You go to Arak. So kind of familiar, right? Because Arak is right next to Laura.
01:04:52
Maddie
Yeah. So but technically we're supposed to be like Ardek and Laura because Laura had elders in it. Ardek had sisters in it.
01:04:59
Darin Tingey
Okay. And did you live in the attic house?
01:05:00
Maddie
So I, I, yeah.
01:05:02
Darin Tingey
It was like kind of green teal next to our little shop.
01:05:05
Maddie
Yeah.
01:05:07
Darin Tingey
Yes, remember that.
01:05:07
Maddie
Yeah. And I was whitewashing again. was, I was whitewashing in training that time.
01:05:11
Darin Tingey
Man.
01:05:14
Maddie
Yeah.
01:05:15
Darin Tingey
You were the whitewashed sister right there.
01:05:17
Maddie
I ah yeah except for Iba I think I whitewashed in a lot of my areas but um I was i whitewashed and I trained in Attic and like I ah had a kid of a sister had sister Kamari as my um my like daughter in the mission
01:05:36
Darin Tingey
Camaria is so great. I'm so glad you have train her.
01:05:38
Maddie
she's amazing like I loved working with her she was great We had such great success in Auduk and like I needed to go back because I had such a hard time my first time in like Laura, like with just the work.
01:05:50
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:05:51
Maddie
I like feel like I had to go back and like redeem myself with everything because now I'm like, I know the language, I'm training, I feel confident now. And that's... like, I needed to go back and, like, say, like, kind of prove myself, I guess, which was so great to do, and, like, that area, I have my, like, absolute, like, favorite investigators ever, like, it was great, because it was my first time being senior companion, and, like, I had to, like, lead the work, basically, because she had just gotten to the Marshall Islands, like, she was learning the language, she was in Kitabas before this, like, speaking Kitabas, and, like,
01:06:05
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:06:28
Maddie
Had no idea what going on, so was my job to do it. so
01:06:32
Darin Tingey
That's pretty daunting. Like, it's a triple whammy. Like, you're whitewashing an area, you're you're the first time senior companion, and you're training.
01:06:42
Maddie
It was great, though, because it was a very, like... It was like sink or swim type of moment like moment. I feel like we really like we swam really well like in that moment because we had like the elders in that area cleaned our house for us the day we got like before we got there.
01:06:51
Darin Tingey
Mm-hmm.
01:06:59
Maddie
And so we had started off with a great house and like the area book was up to date. We had just like such great success. Like we were set up for success in that area. And like, we had some great but investigators. And like, one day we were just like driving or riding our bikes, like through the area.
01:07:17
Maddie
And like, there's this one house we passed by like every day, it was like three houses down from us. And like, I looked in the area book for that house and they're like oh, they're not interested. Don't like bother coming back to this house. Like they're not interested.
01:07:30
Maddie
But like, I just like, oh, I remember like saying, like talking to Kamari and I was like, we need to go to that house for some reason. I don't know why. i know it's the area book says like they're not interested, but like,
01:07:41
Maddie
I am just being told that like, we need to go to this house. Like it's, it needs to happen. So we stopped by this house and we like, we see this mom and dad, like, and they're two boys just sitting outside their house. And like, we're just chatting with them for a minute.
01:07:56
Maddie
And they, like, ask us what we're doing there. And I'm like, oh, we're missionaries. We're, like, here teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. And about, like, i just remember, like, thinking, like, I just need to mention, like, we talk, we teach about, like, eternal families and how families can be together forever.
01:08:13
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:08:13
Maddie
And that just like clicked in their brains. Like that just sparked, like you could see it sparked an interest in their, in their like eyes. Like that's what got them interested in the church. And that's what got them like to wanting to like investigate the church and be a part of the church was like that eternal family aspect of it.
01:08:31
Maddie
And... It was so great because like we worked, i was there for two transfers and like um we worked with them the entire time. And they like the day I found out I was getting transferred was the day of their baptism.
01:08:43
Darin Tingey
So cool.
01:08:45
Maddie
And like they got married and baptized basically on the same day because a big thing for them was like they had to get married first.
01:08:50
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:08:50
Maddie
So, like, we, they got married and baptized basically on the same, like, i think it was, like, a day, maybe a day apart. But, like, I just remember, like, we worked with them so much. And, like, we, it was my favorite investigator because, like, I found them and, like, we worked so hard to, like, get them to, like, the point of baptism. And they said they were,
Cultural Insights and Personal Reflections
01:09:08
Maddie
like, so ready and they want to be a part of it, the church.
01:09:11
Maddie
And it just feels right.
01:09:13
Darin Tingey
And it was a family. Like there's nothing better than just like, we we're baptizing a family.
01:09:15
Maddie
Yeah.
01:09:18
Darin Tingey
Like we're...
01:09:19
Maddie
Well, when I met them, their two boys were too young to, like, they were, like, involved kind of in the lessons, but their boy boys were too young but like they to get baptized or anything.
01:09:26
Darin Tingey
Sure.
01:09:30
Maddie
But, like, they brought people, like, once they got baptized, they started, like, bringing people to church. Like, they had, like, the van, like, a van.
01:09:38
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:09:38
Maddie
And so they would go pick people up and, like, take them to church for us. so
01:09:43
Darin Tingey
golden investigators. There's nothing better than that.
01:09:45
Maddie
They were literally, like, my favorite investigators ah of all times. Like, we literally, like, spent so much time there. And we we um just, like, had we just had the best time getting to know them and, like, helping their family. Like, we did a few service projects with them. Nothing, like, crazy big. But, like, it was just, like, the little things of, like, making amimonos or, like, helping, like, one of their kids, like, their kids, like,
01:10:12
Maddie
draw or color with them or something like that. It was just so great.
01:10:15
Darin Tingey
Yeah, just building that friendship, bringing them and just seeing them progress.
01:10:18
Maddie
Yeah.
01:10:20
Darin Tingey
And that's so special to have it like that right before you got transferred to see them get baptized.
01:10:25
Maddie
I know. And so, like, i was so I was so bummed to get transferred out of that area, too, because I'm like, yes, this is great. I'm so like i'm thriving.
01:10:34
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:10:34
Maddie
And then, like, I stayed there for two transfers. So I had Kambari for one transfer in Odak. And then they they transferred her and put Niwe's sister, Kosarake.
01:10:45
Darin Tingey
I asked another kid of a sister.
01:10:46
Maddie
and Another kid of a sister, yeah.
01:10:47
Darin Tingey
And Kazurek is awesome too.
01:10:48
Maddie
And I was finishing her training.
01:10:50
Darin Tingey
She's great.
01:10:51
Maddie
She's so cute. Like, she was the she's the best.
01:10:53
Darin Tingey
She was so funny. Ah, miss her. ah
01:10:56
Maddie
I miss all of them. like i I wish I could see. I want to see more of them. They're so great. I miss all of my companions.
01:11:04
Darin Tingey
um when you mentioned the the marriage you know before the baptism i that just like gave me so many flashbacks to like the the weddings that i was a part of and got to see in the marshall islands and it's just so funny because they're they're so shy with their uh um what's the what's sort i'm looking for their
01:11:18
Maddie
Oh, yeah.
01:11:26
Maddie
It comes to
01:11:28
Darin Tingey
Yeah, like physical touch.
01:11:28
Maddie
like touching them or like just kissing in public. They're very shy about that.
01:11:31
Darin Tingey
Yeah, PDA. Yes, PDA.
01:11:33
Maddie
Yeah.
01:11:34
Darin Tingey
Like they are, like you'll never see them kiss. You'll never see them hold hands. You'll never see them like show any real like romantic affection.
01:11:42
Maddie
You wouldn't know couple is, you wouldn't know a couple is together until like, you like someone tells you basically.
01:11:48
Darin Tingey
Yeah, like no romantic affection is shown in public at all. So like the wedding is always so funny. And like, I like it was the same problem. They kind of like, be like holding each other's hand with like one finger, you know, one or two fingers and like, kind of like looking down at the ground as the, bit as the Bishop or whoever's in the wedding is like, you know, saying the stuff and then just like, you know, like I do, I do whatever.
01:12:04
Maddie
Yep.
01:12:07
Maddie
Yeah.
01:12:12
Darin Tingey
And then, and then they like, maybe it we'll give them like a quick kiss on the cheek or something like that. And like, or like a hug, like a, like a subtle hug and like, that's it.
01:12:23
Maddie
For sure. For sure. That's how it was. It was so funny to like see that happen. So.
01:12:29
Darin Tingey
And you're getting married. Like it's such a ah big thing.
01:12:31
Maddie
Like, be excited about it. You've been with them for, like, six years anyway, Yeah,
01:12:35
Darin Tingey
Yeah, I know. It's so funny. It's just like, they do not show anything at all. um
01:12:41
Maddie
yeah I, like, completely forgot about that until you, like, mentioned it. Yeah, you wouldn't know until you know, so...
01:12:47
Darin Tingey
Yeah. ah So from Audec, you go back Delap or you go to Uligopis.
01:12:53
Maddie
Yeah, I went to Delip and Ulaga.
01:12:54
Darin Tingey
So back to Delap.
01:12:57
Maddie
So, when I went to Delip, I... It was kind of complicated because there was, like, a few emergency transfers. So, like, um I started – I was supposed to go to Delip. And then someone either went home or got transferred somewhere else. And then we ended up, like, splitting Delip and Uluga with a trio.
01:13:17
Maddie
So it was me, Sister Kasareke, and Sister Marie in a trio in Delip and Uluga. and we just, like – I think we were there for two and a half transfers, maybe you just two trans maybe two transfers.
01:13:33
Maddie
But like we had to work both areas. And Delip and Uluga together is like as big as Ashultaki, basically, I feel like.
01:13:38
Darin Tingey
Yeah, it's pretty big. Yeah.
01:13:40
Maddie
Yeah, and there's just so many people to work with. And like we had to like space out like which day we were working in Delip and which days we were working in Uluga because it was just so much work to do.
01:13:53
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:13:53
Maddie
And, like, that area, in those areas, there was a so much work. Like, it wasn't possible for us to, like, keep up, basically. Like, we felt like we were, like, losing people through, like, slipping through the cracks, basically.
01:14:05
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:14:06
Maddie
so I think that's why, like, we didn't spend that much time, like, together because there was just so much work we had to, like, split up. So, yeah.
01:14:14
Darin Tingey
Mm-hmm.
01:14:15
Maddie
But um that area was fun. We were living in the house right next to co-op. Um, yeah, infamous co-op house.
01:14:23
Darin Tingey
Co-op infamous co-op house.
01:14:27
Maddie
It was right next to Mama Linda's house, too.
01:14:30
Darin Tingey
Super nice house two story like that was a bougie house.
01:14:32
Maddie
Yeah. It was a very bougie house, but I just remember, like, the upstairs of that house, like, literally did not have any ac So, like, in the rooms, like, where, you like, we were supposed to sleep had no AC at all.
01:14:48
Maddie
And it was just, oh, it was so hot.
01:14:51
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:14:52
Maddie
So we ended up like sleeping like in like the loft area because that's where the AC was because none of us could sleep like in the rooms where the beds were. So we ended up like pulling the mattress out to like sleep in the loft area so we could like not die of heat.
01:15:07
Darin Tingey
Did, what was typical P-Day for you, like on on Madro? I mean, it obviously varied a different area, but what?
01:15:17
Maddie
Since we were like really close to... um like CMI and stuff, we were able to like start the day like pretty early, do our laundry, go email and like walk to CMI because we were right there by it.
01:15:32
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah.
01:15:32
Maddie
And then we would like meet up with like the zone leaders or the district leader, whoever had the car. And um like they would be able to take us to P-Day because we would all P-Day together at like a park or like down in Laura to play games or something like that.
01:15:48
Maddie
um I remember in this area, though, like a lot of the P-Days, we would like um go to another island. I want to say it's Anemane.
01:15:58
Darin Tingey
Yeah, yeah but you went to NMW when you were there That's sweet.
01:15:59
Maddie
Yeah. Yeah, because we went like one P-Day. It was super early in the morning. We all got up early. It was all the missionaries on Majuro, and we like it was low tide, so we were able to like walk to the next island over.
01:16:13
Darin Tingey
Oh, cool, cool.
01:16:13
Maddie
and P-Day over there for a little while. But then, like, we had to make it back before high tide came in. So we weren't, like, swimming back to Majuro. Or we were able to get
01:16:21
Darin Tingey
Right.
01:16:22
Maddie
So...
01:16:24
Darin Tingey
Did she make it back?
01:16:26
Maddie
i think for the Majuro... Like, I think we were right there. I remember walking back in, like, waist-high water.
01:16:32
Darin Tingey
Yeah. ah
01:16:33
Maddie
But we at least got to Animana and, like, were able
Missionary Transitions and Reflections
01:16:36
Maddie
to get there. So... And have, like, P-Day there.
01:16:38
Darin Tingey
That's a fun pee day.
01:16:40
Maddie
so
01:16:40
Darin Tingey
I wish I was on on island for that pee day.
01:16:43
Maddie
That was a lot of fun. Like, we brought, like, a picnic and, like, had just so much fun. um Yeah, that, like...
01:16:52
Darin Tingey
And then that's like close to the end. And then like you spend your last few weeks in Ashtaki or...
01:16:58
Maddie
So... Um, kind of. Um, so there in, when I was in Delip and Ulaga, there was a death of like a bishop's wife from Laura while I was in Delip and And it hit a lot of us really, like a lot of the sisters really hard because we were really close with her.
01:17:10
Darin Tingey
That's right.
01:17:15
Darin Tingey
This was like right before Christmas, right?
01:17:15
Maddie
So this was right before Christmas and I was in Delip again.
01:17:17
Darin Tingey
or like
01:17:20
Maddie
and like, we got permission to take like one of the cars. Like I had my license, so I was able to take the sisters that served in like the Laura area to the funeral and spend the day at the funeral with them.
01:17:34
Maddie
And so then we come back and like find that none of our companions are there and like we can't like figure out where anybody is. And that caused a lot of problems. And I think like that's when an emergency transfer happened because there was like a big issue with like after the funeral, like people were really like kind of distraught.
01:17:51
Maddie
And I think that like, I think that's what caused the emergency transfer. I can't remember now what happened exactly.
01:17:57
Darin Tingey
I think there was a big fight. I think that happened.
01:17:59
Maddie
There was a, yeah, that's what happened. Like a big fight happened because we couldn't find our companions. And I think we were all just really emotional from the funeral that like tension was high and it caused like an emergency transfer.
01:18:05
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:18:10
Maddie
So then like I got transferred to Generic with Sister Jeremiah, who is Marshallese, Kitabas, and like Tuvalu.
01:18:15
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:18:19
Maddie
Like she's, she's a mix of everything.
01:18:21
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:18:22
Maddie
And I worked there for a little bit and I was supposed to die in Generic. But another like someone another sister missionary got sick and had to like go home.
01:18:34
Maddie
And then I ended up going to Agile Talkie with Sister Marie for my last three weeks. And then another sister got hurt and had to got sent home too. And then me and Sister Marie finished in Dellup.
01:18:49
Darin Tingey
Wow, what a whirlwind. So, so you were probably pretty pumped to finish in Delp, though, given that you like knew the people there and could have like a Kojima lock like versus Ashtaki.
01:18:52
Maddie
Yeah, that was crazy. The last half was a lot of moving around.
01:19:04
Darin Tingey
You're like, i don't know any of you guys.
01:19:06
Maddie
Yeah, it was nice. I loved that I got at least spend some time in Agile Talkie because Agile Talkie is beautiful.
01:19:13
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah.
01:19:14
Maddie
But, ah yeah, I didn't know anybody. And it was like my last it was supposed be on my last like three weeks there. like I wasn't like super bummed because I wanted to go like have Kajama locks with like my the families.
01:19:24
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:19:24
Maddie
That meant so much to me. So going back to Dellup and spending the last like few weeks with like the people in Dellup was very heartwarming because I was able to – um like, just say um my goodbyes and make sure I was able to, like, talk to everybody and, like, follow – like, that have them send me a face Facebook request or, like, follow me on Instagram or some kind of social media platform so we could, like, stay in contact.
01:19:44
Darin Tingey
yeah
01:19:49
Maddie
And it was – was so great. Like, I – I'm so grateful that i got to spend my last few days in Delip with like sister Marie and sister Carling, because did, I spent a lot of time in trios on my mission, but like they were so great, so humbling to work with and we got a lot of great work done. So yeah.
01:20:09
Darin Tingey
How did you, you know, Maduro is an interesting place, right? and our In our mission, because there's so many missionaries on Maduro.
01:20:16
Maddie
Yeah.
01:20:20
Darin Tingey
It's like just cramped.
01:20:20
Maddie
There really is.
01:20:21
Darin Tingey
And everyone knows the tea about everybody, and which is not good. And there's not that many missionaries.
01:20:25
Maddie
Yeah.
01:20:26
Darin Tingey
So we like, and we get together every P-Day, like like which is like a struggle in the mission.
01:20:29
Maddie
Yeah.
01:20:32
Darin Tingey
And it's like,
01:20:33
Maddie
There's always some kind of drama going on.
01:20:35
Darin Tingey
There's some sort of drama and I think the sisters, sometimes it was a little, you know, like you guys were either like really close, you guys were like really close or like at each other's throats sometimes.
01:20:41
Maddie
Sisters cause a lot of drama.
01:20:45
Maddie
Oh, for sure. For sure.
01:20:48
Darin Tingey
Did you feel like, um you know, there's a lot of, there wasn't very many Americans, you guys were one of few, a lot of Tongans, Kitabas and Fiji and Samoa.
01:20:53
Maddie
Nope.
01:20:56
Maddie
There were a lot of Tongans, yeah.
01:21:00
Darin Tingey
Did you ever feel like as ah as an American sister, did you ever feel like a little bit of division there?
01:21:08
Maddie
No, not not really. i feel like um all the sisters on Majuro were super, like, they were always so loving and so caring. We all, like, really, really loved each other. And, like, we were always, like, cracking jokes with each other and making each other, like, feel, like...
01:21:24
Maddie
like just making each other feel welcome and so I don't feel like I was ever one of those sisters that had any beef with anybody I feel like we all got along really well and like it was i don't know like yeah there was always some kind of drama going on but I feel like I I tried to stay pretty neutral when it came to anything that i was going on I tried to stay out of it
01:21:28
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:21:45
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:21:48
Darin Tingey
yeah Which is a smart choice. ah
01:21:50
Maddie
yeah yeah
01:21:51
Darin Tingey
There's only like, ah there was only like, what 14 sisters at a time?
01:21:55
Maddie
I think so. Yeah, that sounds about right.
01:21:56
Darin Tingey
Yeah. And probably like 20 to 25 elders, 26 elders ish.
01:21:58
Maddie
But...
01:22:04
Darin Tingey
ah feel like, yeah,
01:22:07
Darin Tingey
yeah what were gonna say?
01:22:07
Maddie
Let's see. Yeah, I just, like, I feel like with all the different, like, with... um the Tongans and then like different like ah island sisters that were there they always like were trying to teach us like different like languages like like their language basically so like we all spoke Marshallese and like ah like almost all of us spoke English so like but like they would always try to like slip in some Tongan words like teach us and so like and there was always some new catchphrase the sisters were saying
01:22:25
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah.
01:22:40
Darin Tingey
Yeah. yeah
01:22:42
Maddie
Either it was Fajian or Tongan, I feel like. But, like, we'd always, like, have something we'd be saying to the elders. Like, I don't even remember what was one of them, but.
01:22:49
Darin Tingey
and And every every Zone conference, you guys would always get the dresses made you guys were all matching. it was like such a big deal.
01:22:57
Maddie
Heck yeah.
01:22:58
Darin Tingey
Every Zone conference. ah
01:23:01
Maddie
We always had to match our, like, intake, too.
01:23:04
Darin Tingey
Yeah. So funny. So many good memories there.
01:23:07
Maddie
I remember that now. Like, I had, I, like, we had bought, like, we'd go specifically shopping for fabric to make a dress, and then we'd always have to buy, like, extra fabric to make sure, like, our brothers got, like, ties made for it.
01:23:19
Darin Tingey
Some ties, yeah.
01:23:20
Maddie
Like, yeah. So we'd all match. I have, like, pictures of, like, our intake matching with me, which was fun.
01:23:27
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:23:28
Maddie
so
01:23:29
Darin Tingey
were Were you ever bothered that like you couldn't go to Natter Island? Like that?
01:23:35
Maddie
Yeah, it always kind of bugged me because I was like, I can do anything. Like, I am that kind of person.
01:23:39
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:23:40
Maddie
I want to be able to do anything and everything you guys can do. So I remember talking to Sherman in the MTC about it because I was like, I'm tough. I can handle myself on an outer island. And then he's like, Sister Greenberg.
01:23:53
Maddie
And he's like, no, you cannot. You don't know what it's like out there. You would literally, like, you would not survive out there.
01:24:02
Darin Tingey
I'll
01:24:03
Maddie
And that bugged me because I'm like, I'm going to show you wrong. I'm going get permission. I'm going to And then I remember hearing you guys talk about Outer Islands. And I'm like, yeah, I'm good. I'm i'm good on that, Jarrell.
01:24:14
Darin Tingey
i'll stick with magic and E-Buy. Yeah.
01:24:16
Maddie
I'm good with being fed and, like, sleeping on, like, comfortable, like, mattresses and not having bugs eat me every day and not worry about my food.
01:24:26
Darin Tingey
Yeah, i I think sisters could do like some, out like Jalowicz and Wuche, they're getting a lot nicer.
01:24:32
Maddie
Yeah.
01:24:34
Darin Tingey
you can i honestly wouldn't be shocked if in the near future they put sisters maybe on some other rounds.
01:24:41
Maddie
That would be cool. I know they put sisters on outer islands in Kitabas.
01:24:45
Darin Tingey
Yeah, they did.
01:24:45
Maddie
Like before I left, like I know president sent like a few sisters to like to an outer island in Kitabas.
01:24:45
Darin Tingey
but Yeah.
01:24:51
Maddie
So that was really cool.
01:24:51
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:24:53
Maddie
i Yeah. I remember like lee going to my farewell dinner with president and like looking at the board where he keeps all the missionaries and he had the Kitabas side out too. And I remember seeing two sister missionaries on an outer island.
01:25:06
Maddie
And i was like, what? That is the coolest thing ever. Like, guys, go sisters.
01:25:10
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:25:11
Maddie
Like, they're moving up in the world.
01:25:15
Darin Tingey
Big win for the sisters.
01:25:16
Maddie
was I'm rooting for the sisters to go to an outer island one day because I think we can handle it. I think we can do it. so I know they'll be taken care of. So,
Reflections on Marshallese Culture and Future Aspirations
01:25:26
Darin Tingey
That's right. So last three questions for for you.
01:25:27
Maddie
Mm-hmm.
01:25:31
Darin Tingey
What was your favorite area, your favorite food? And what was your favorite thing about the Marshall Islands? Whether that's culturally or or the island itself or
01:25:43
Maddie
favorite area I'm torn between Ebi and Laura like those are they are so special to me especially because I've had I have great friends in Ebi and I had great investigators in Laura like the missionary work I think missionary work wise Laura was my favorite but like people wise and like friend wise Ebi is where like I have like the most friends and the most connections with I feel like
01:25:48
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:26:07
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:26:08
Maddie
So I'm to like those I can't pick one.
01:26:11
Darin Tingey
um
01:26:11
Maddie
They're both great.
01:26:13
Darin Tingey
Complete opposites, but love for both of them.
01:26:13
Maddie
ah um
01:26:16
Darin Tingey
Okay.
01:26:17
Maddie
Yeah. And I wouldn't I don't think I would have said that like when I first started my mission about Laura because I had such a rough start there. But like looking back at my mission, like it is for sure one of my favorite places and I would go back 100 percent.
01:26:30
Darin Tingey
Yeah, yeah
01:26:31
Maddie
Um, favorite food. There's a few that I actually really like. Um, and it's all the weird ones. Like I've had, I ate turtle over there. i ate shark over there.
01:26:42
Maddie
um and just like the fish, like any fish really is so good over there.
01:26:48
Darin Tingey
fresh.
01:26:49
Maddie
So yeah, it was fresh, especially when I like cooked it over the fire. It was just so good. Like I'd eat that any day of the week, 10 times a day, basically.
01:26:55
Darin Tingey
Yeah, oh, I'm hungry for fish now.
01:27:01
Maddie
It's like I won't eat fish here because it doesn't taste the same as it does over there.
01:27:04
Darin Tingey
Yeah. Yeah.
01:27:07
Maddie
And then what was last question?
01:27:08
Darin Tingey
and Last question is your favorite thing about the marsh islands?
01:27:13
Maddie
Favorite thing about the Marshall Islands?
01:27:15
Darin Tingey
A marsh leaves culture.
01:27:18
Maddie
Just the people. i love the people over there. It's my – they're my favorite thing. Just they're so loving and so kind. And they just have the most sincere spirits about them, I feel like.
01:27:31
Maddie
And like I'm so lucky that we live in Utah because there's such a good population of Marshallese people here in the States. And where I work now, i get to use Marshallese and like talk to people in Marshallese, which is so much fun.
01:27:42
Darin Tingey
No way.
01:27:43
Maddie
I never thought I'd get to be able to do that as a nurse, but it's like it's happened a few times.
01:27:46
Darin Tingey
That's so cool.
01:27:49
Maddie
um which is so great. actually used it like the other night when I was working. cute Marshallese lady was lost at the hospital. I asked her where she was going and I saw her jacket.
01:27:59
Maddie
And so I started talking to her Marshallese and she was so caught off guard that someone actually spoke Marshallese.
01:28:04
Darin Tingey
ah
01:28:05
Maddie
She was like, wait, what are you talking about? What are you saying? And I was like, oh, wait, are you not Marshallese?
01:28:11
Darin Tingey
Yeah, yeah, It's just like, what?
01:28:12
Maddie
Do I not sound like I speak Marshallese? So...
01:28:16
Darin Tingey
That's so cool.
01:28:17
Maddie
It was way cool. And like she was just so sweet. And like we were just chatted for a little bit. And it was like they're just the sweetest, nicest people ever. And like have such an amazing spirit about them.
01:28:28
Maddie
And so I wish i i I want to go back to the Marshall Islands one day and just show my husband and my kids everything about that place.
01:28:29
Darin Tingey
Yeah.
01:28:38
Maddie
And just show them why I love it so much. And like so they can see why I love it. And I always talk about it so much.
01:28:45
Darin Tingey
Yeah. And, uh, the people will, I promise, like when I went back last year, like they threw like a party every night for us, they were just like, so excited and I'm sure that'd be the same for you.
01:28:55
Maddie
I love that.
01:28:57
Darin Tingey
So,
01:28:59
Maddie
I love that so much.
01:28:59
Darin Tingey
um Well, thanks so much for being on the podcast. This was the first, like I said, the first Marshallese sister, sister served in the Marsh Islands on the pod.
01:29:13
Darin Tingey
So thank you so much for coming on. And this was another great episode of the Islands Podcast.
01:29:15
Maddie
Yeah.
01:29:19
Maddie
Thanks for having me. This was great.