***I got behind in posting Elder Kitchens letters so I posted his last letter just 2 days ago, so read it first so it is in order. Happy reading!

Dear Kitchen Family,

Faka Lofa Atu from the island of Niue. How the heck is everyone in my wonderful family?! I hope your all loving life and enjoying your summer break. It sounds like your all very busy doing sports and all the fun exciting things summer brings. It was nice to get your emails today. I'm sorry it took some extra time for me to email. We went fishing today and did some other things before. I will tell you about a cool experience we had a little later on.

Well I wont be able to say Faka Lofa Atu from the little tropical island paradise much longer. Haha I found out I am leaving on August 20th. So that's next Friday. I don't know where I will be serving in New Zealand or I don't know who my companion is going to be. I will probably find out maybe next week or when I get to NZ. In some ways my 6 months here went so fast and in others it feels like I've been on this little island forever. I will definitely miss it here so much and especially the people. I love them and have made so many life long friends here. I have grown to love the Niuean culture, language, and people. The island is beautiful and I have so many priceless memories here. I hope some day I will be able to come back to the Rock of Polynesia. My companion is ready I think to be here and lead the new Elder. I hope I have trained him good. The new Elder that is coming to replace me is named Elder Halavaka. He is half Niuean and half Australian. He has never been to Niue but his dad was born and raised here. I'm sure he is excited to come here. Well I'll have to tell ya about the parties they'll throw me because I'm sure they will. And no worries I will definitely take more pictures of the people, buildings, and island before I leave. I don't want to leave sometimes but it will be good to get back to NZ. Its really cold there I hear so I will have a shock...going from the hot humid to cold. Well I have a couple more weeks on the island and I will make them good and then I will take off maybe to never return but I hope I will someday.

I'm sure you were excited to hear about if we had a baptism. Well its a long story but Ane decided she wasn't ready quite yet. So we didn't have a baptism. She said she still wants to but she is leaving this Friday to NZ for medical purposes and then I will be gone the next...so I wont ever see her be baptized. But at least I was a part of helping her on the path that will lead to eternal life. Mom you asked if we have had a lesson with Allen or his friend. Unfortunately Allen's friend said he wasn't interested anymore but Allen is just busy. We are trying to see him this week. Our other investigators are doing good, some better than others. We received two new investigators last week and we had some great lessons. Its a hard place here to baptize but we are trying our best to do what the Lord wants.

Dad it was nice to read you went to your high school reunion. I cant believe either its been 30 years!! WOW and I just graduated last year. Well I'm sure it was cool to see all your high school buddies and catch up with whats happened in their lives. I bet it was weird to see some of them too huh. You asked about our fishing experience...well last week we didn't catch anything. Its hard to catch fish in the ocean well at least reef fish because they just eat your bait off without getting hooked. They're really smart haha. There are so many kinds of fish here. The ones people catch on land are the reef fish (the really beautiful colorful ones) and also heaps of little different kinds of fish. They ones they catch out in the deep sea are huge and a lot of different kinds also.

I was so happy to hear Ryan made the golf team. Congrats man!! That's awesome. I'm sure your really excited and you'll do awesome this year. Keep me updated and everything. And good luck in your tournament coming up. If you try hard enough I know you can be the number one this year like you said. I remember golf it was way fun...I wish I would have put a little more effort into it though... Well I really hope Jami makes the Volleyball team. I will be praying for her because i really feel that is important if she makes it. Good luck Jami and do your best. You'll have to let me know next week. When I get back Jami and I will have to play because I'm getting a lot better now. We play every week. It was also good to hear Kaylee is busy with her soccer and is doing great. You'll have to let me know how she does. Well Its good to read they are all busy doing productive active things in their live! I'm really happy.

Bear Lake this weekend! Aw that's so cool... I'm jealous, that sounds really fun. I hope you all have a blast. You guys should rent wave runners since you don't have a boat! Well you better all be safe and have a blast up there. Let me know how it went. And say hello to all the cousins for me. Its weird to think mom that the last time we went on a trip with dads family was almost 2 years ago. I cant believe Issac is going home so soon. Soon it will be me!! CRAZY!! I was shocked to hear that Samantha is going to college already!! Wow time flies....she is getting so old. I can remember when we used to be little best buddies doing things like selling snow cones on the street corner and now she is off to college! That is awesome she got a full ride to Snow college. AND wow! NICK going to California!! That is awesome! Tell him congrats for me. I bet he'll love that....man it seems like I'm one of the only people I know that went so far away on my mission. (well people I'm really close with that is...some of my friends went far away too)

Well I'm not going to go in very much detail but my week was good. We did a lot of teaching and service as usual. Tried to find new investigators, knocked on some doors, and just did missionary work. We went on trade offs with some members and visited a lot of less active members. Some came to church last Sunday so that was amazing. We went home teaching with our branch too. It is such a great experience to teach people about the gospel. It makes me so happy. I love sharing with people what I believe to be true. And to share my testimony is just incredible. Bro. Morey (a church matainence guy from NZ) was in Niue this past week. We helped him a bunch, he took us out to eat at some restaurants twice last week so that was good. We helped a member do a bunch more cement work again. I'm really good at that now haha. Well Saturday we helped some members decorate and prepare the airport for the Miss Niue pagent. It was really cool looking how they decorated everything covered in island plants and coconut leaves. We went to the bush and gathered some leaves for them. And guess what all the members told us to go to the pageant so we did. We went to Miss Niue! But don't worry they didn't wear all these tiny swimming suits or anything. Niue is a small Christan island and they have standards, even the non members. But we only went for a little while. It was fun to watch to see all the cool and incredible island style customs they had. They had cultural one's that it was entirely made out of leaves and flowers and things. The talent part was cool also.

Church yesterday was great. I gave another talk in church! I spoke on receiving revelation and inspiration from Heavenly Father. Man I'm seriously not even scared at all anymore to give a talk. I'm so comfortable up there and I look up almost the entire time. Never at my paper very much. I actually enjoy giving talks. And guess what we had a cool experience fishing today and so its cool I get to already tell you. We went fishing this morning with a member. We went to this little beach place that had a wolf (a concrete thing the boats dock onto) so no worries we never got in the water. It was a beautiful place and we had a great time. It's so cool to fish in the ocean. Well we weren't having very much luck when all of a sudden we saw a fishing boat starting to come in. It was a Niuean guy and we helped him get his boat on shore. We looked inside and he had caught 4 HUGE Whahoo fish (that's the name of the fish). Then he just said here and he gave us one!! It was really big! MAN we thanked him so much and then took pictures with it. Man it makes me really wanna go deep sea fishing someday. It was awesome. Ill have to show you the pictures. Well we stayed fishing longer after that. And we almost caught a big fish from the shore. I guess it got attracted when we were cleaning the dead fish they guy gave to us. And show Suni (the member) grabbed one of the little fish (our bait) and hocked in on the hook. He throught the line out and almost immediately we caught it. It took awhile to pull it close to shore and right before we almost had it the line snapped. EHHH!! it was so frustrating...oh well. It was a way fun experience this morning.

Well I probably have to go really soon. But I just want you all to know I love you with all my heart. Its hard sometimes but I know I'll see ya soon. I'm where I'm supposed to be and wouldn't want to be anywhere else. Your a wonderful family and the Lord truly has blessed us. I hope you have a wonderful vacation and have fun. Just keep praying for me and I'll do the same. Even though I'm half way around the world I can feel your love and prayers. I'm experiencing things I'd never dreamed of and strengthening my testimony so much. I love this gospel so much. I know God lives with all my heart. I have felt his over powering love and forgiveness. I have seen his mighty miracles and I know I'm an instrument in his hands helping his children back to him. I know Jesus Christ is truly the Son of God and Savior of the World. He has taught us how to live, sacrificed his life for us, restored his gospel to the Prophet Joesph Smith, and he will return again someday to the earth. I have increased my faith in him and his everlasting Atonement. It is only through him we can be saved and receive everlasting eternal life in the Celestial kingdom of God. We have to have faith in him, repent of our sins, and keep his commandments. I know we have been promised all that God has, all power, glory, and happiness. We can be together with our family in happiness for all eternity. God has done so much for us to make sure we can...now its up to us to endure to the end. I know this church is the one and only true church upon this earth. I know this and so much more. I can go on so long baring my testimony but I have to go. I love this church and gospel and I know its true. Well Again I love you all. Have a great week. And always do whats right.

Love your son and brother Elder Tyler Paul Kitchen