NASELESELE BACKYARD 2014

Morning light spilling forth onto the backyard garden...

Naselesele Primary student on his way to the Village school...

"ALL things i can do through CHRIST JESUS who strengthens me" and "You shall know The TRUTH and The TRUTH will make you free" were my daily greetings... (Philippians 4:13 and John 8:32)

Just daily life around the house...

My brother-in-law and brother-IN-CHRIST Pelasio ("Seru") cleaning just-caught fish to share with some eager neighbors...

Sister-in-law and sister-IN-CHRIST Ana lending a big hand in peeling the many bags of cassava, with brothers-IN-CHRIST Toni and Seru...

My sister Ana completing this colorFUL array of rLn-planted blooms...

Little Lusiana Jazmyn (then just five months old, held safe by nei merlin) -- enjoying a little backyard talanoa with her oldest brother Leone...

Asenaca (our young neighbor next door) keeping Miriama company as she scales and guts fish...

Still-green mangoes just outside the window -- needing a few more weeks to mature and ripen...

 

"Nash BlueZ" rugby uniforms -- just washed, thanks to Ana's generous heart and hardworking hands. Ana is inDEED a Proverbs 31 woman!
A good woman is hard to find,
    and worth far more than diamonds.
Her husband trusts her without reserve,
    and never has reason to regret it.
Never spiteful, she treats him generously
    all her life long...
She’s up before dawn, preparing breakfast
    for her family and organizing her day...
First thing in the morning, she dresses for work,
    rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started.
She senses the worth of her work,
    is in no hurry to call it quits for the day.
She’s skilled in the crafts of home and hearth,
    diligent in homemaking.
She’s quick to assist anyone in need,
    reaches out to help the poor...
When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say,
    and she always says it kindly.
She keeps an eye on everyone in her household,
    and keeps them all busy and productive.
Her children respect and bless her;
    her husband joins in with words of praise:
“Many women have done wonderful things,
    but you’ve outclassed them all!”
Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades.
    The woman to be admired and praised
    is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-God.
Give her everything she deserves!
    Festoon her life with praises!
(Proverbs 31:10-31, MSG)

Where LIFE! happens...

What's NEW at the Naselesele FARM

Weeds -- always encroaching...

Dalo leaves, all lit up by the morning sunlight...

The coconut tree leaning over is the one Vili (na watiqu) climbs to get my favorite drink: fresh bu juice!

Impatience flowers -- still flourishing at the farm...GOD's reminder for me that LOVE IS PATIENT (1 Corinthians 13).

A gorgeous garland from GOD -- our heavenly Father and Creator.

Cucumber salad for dinner -- with sliced onion and ginger, and a dash of lemon juice.

Yep...like the weeds -- ever present!

Passion flower, about to unfurl...

Passion fruits, not yet ripe...
"You will know them by their fruits." (Matthew 7:16)

New mango leaves, colorful in its newness...

  

Moli (lemon)...

This sun-ripened-on-the-tree papaya was tasty!

The farmer (Vili) surrounded by sijan leaves (malunggay, in Filipino) -- Moringa Oleifera, the miracle plant.

Then GOD said, "Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth"; and it was so. (Genesis 1:11)

TAVEUNI "Backyard" -- BUSH FARM

Cooking bananas -- Vudi  -- can be boiled or fried, or eaten raw when ripe.

i don't know the name of this flower, but it has a strong nut-like fragrance and very common in the bush around Taveuni.

One of the boys of Naselesele, going off to his nearby farm.

Sour-sop fruit...tart, yet sweet when very ripe -- touted as having anti-cancer properties.

We usually pass by this giant mango tree on the way to the farm, checking the ground for fallen ripe mangoes.  When i'm with Vili, he will expertly throw sticks to bring down the fruits that are higher up in the branches or even climb up the tree to pick the fruit(s) himself.

Hawaiian pink papayas...

These are truly sweet when ripe!

Bushy indeedY is our bush farm!

"Pechay" or Chinese cabbage, and "Uvi" (a root vegetable) climbing up that branch.

Passion fruits, strung like CHRISTmas lights...

Everywhere my eyes land, i see GOD's hand -- such abundant provision!

Green, green green...in all shades!  Only our Creator can mix and match such subtleties in color and variety of design.

These mangoes are directly next to our house in Naselesele. This year, our mango tree is a late bloomer...kind of like me!

View from toilet window...

Alexio, with that O-so-delicious mango!

Even the butterfly knew which one was sweet and ripe -- ready to eat!

Rain-catcher, for those seasonal draughts...

Karolo and Vili, doing their best to make headway in this very bushy bush-farm!

Mika's horse...a great help to us when he carries four big bags of firewood.

Very delicate bloom, lasting only a few hours.As for man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
(Psalm 103:15, NKJV)

BACKYARD BUSH FARM

From the bush farm -- papayas are everywhere...almost every neighbor's backyard farm has a papaya tree, abundant with fruit!

Our produce -- French beans...always good for a quick stir-fry.

Capsicum (bell peppers) -- one of the plants that aren't overwhelmed by those little orange critters!

These pretty French beans are now producing abundant fruit...but picking them in the hot tropical sun is a "do-it-as-fast-as-i -can" job -- and still, i end up sweating up a storm!

Little Kani, posing with "Maia's capsicum" -- seeds mailed all the way from San Diego, now bearing fruit in Naselesele!

Searing heat and too much rain made it a short growing season for the cucumbers...but the French beans and tomatoes are doing well.

"Maia's cucumbers" -- short and fat...and delicious!

Typical farm scenics in Taveuni...

My backyard, closer to home...a view of the mango tree, treehouse and Ana's laundry from the house window...

Cooking up a lovo -- underground oven -- for what occasion, i've forgotten...au sa qase!