Little Moments

Hey hey hey. I’m just chilling on my last night here in Fiji. And I just want to say a little something about moments. Little moments are something I’ve come to appreciate more these past two months. I’ve really enjoyed the firework moments too, but I absolutely love the little moments.

Little moments like my phone call with Warren (the Australian Safari Lodge owner dude in Nananu-i-Ra) was a funny moment. Here’s the dialogue:

Allyssa: BULA

Warren: Hello, Abi?        

Allyssa: No, this is Allyssa.

Warren: Oh hello! Are you coming back to Safari Lodge this weekend too?

Allyssa: No, I’m sick and I don’t want to spend money to sit on a beach and be sick.

Warren: Well it’s better than being in SUVA.

Allyssa: Haha, that’s a very good point. I’ll think about it.

Warren: You should really come.

Allyssa: But I’m sick.

Warren: That doesn’t matter, come anyway.

Allyssa: Huh, it sounds like some Australian man wants my money, Warren.

Warren: Uh, I don’t want your money, honey….

Pause

Warren: I was going to finish that line, but I don’t think I should.

Allyssa: Please don’t.

Or there was that time when an old married couple stopped and talked to me and my friend. The woman told me that they’ve been married 44 years, she told me a little about how they met, she thanked me for the work that I do, and she also lit a cigarette and blew some smoke in my face as she talked. Good times.

One of my absolute favorite moments was sitting next to a woman on a bus who was holding her small toddler in her lap. He was fast asleep (and I was wondering how, because the windows are open and you can hear everything on the street, and these bus drivers play their music loudly), but sometimes he would wake up with wide and confused eyes. His mother would pull him closer, stroke his hair, whisper to him, and whatever other things a mother does, and he would go back to sleep. Beautiful moment. I’m not sure the mother would agree, she could tell I was staring at her and her child and I think she thought I was really weird, but I promise I was just taking in the beautiful moment!!!!

I loved passing the temple every day on the bus, too.

There were a lot of moments of realization too. The “Wait, what?” moments, you know? The ones where you kind of do a double-take at yourself.  I remember when I realized how used to swimming in salt water I am. That’s a big deal for me.

OR the moment when I realized how confident Fiji has made me. One time I was just sitting on a bus, looking out the window, and I realized that the night before I had looked in the mirror and thought I was pretty. At that moment I thought, “Wait, what? I thought greasy hair in a messy ponytail, baggy pajamas, no makeup, and acne scars were pretty?” Let me tell you, it is a stellar look I have going on. And thank you blog post for reminding me that when I go back to the good old USA I have to start wearing makeup again.  

Let’s see, what other moments? Eating roti and curry for dinner was always a good moment.

Watching the children at the different schools brush their teeth together after lunch was a good moment.

Hanging out with some music teachers at Nuku and singing/playing “I Know that My Redeemer Lives” was a good moment. Also playing volleyball at Nuku (and killing my arms and my pride) with the teachers and students after school was a good moment.

Aw, there was that one time when I was taking a nap and I woke up and asked Kelli (my roommate) when the team meeting was going to happen. She told me it already happened and she wouldn’t let the other team members wake me up. She wanted them to let me rest. So good to me.

Bearing my testimony and singing in church were good moments.

Watching a family go from being investigators to being baptized was a lot of good moments.

I loved when I taught at Bishop Kempthorne and saw these beautiful lyrics on the teacher’s desk:

And I loved the mornings when I woke up facing the window and was able to see the beautiful sunrise.

So if you were to ask me to give you some wise counsel right now (because basically I am Socrates, right? Tell Allyssa her blog posts have been your Socrates.), I would tell you to remember and ponder some beautiful little moments you enjoyed today. They are there, trust me.

And also, just because I’m in Fiji doesn’t mean that I’m the only one that can enjoy a sunrise. Everyone has a sunrise. Go watch yours. 

That is all, now wish me luck with the water situation going on in my neighborhood right now. The situation is that we are out of water. Hopefully, the neighborhood's water is refilled soon (it's been HOURS), or my family might be welcoming a hobo home in SLC. No joke.