Naomi:
Hi, my name is Naomi, and I am four years old. I really like missionaries Keren and Orion. They always give my mommy nice storybooks to use for my Sabbath school class. My mommy is a teacher, and my daddy is a church elder.

I have older sisters and brothers; they are in school. When I am bigger, I will go to school, too.

Missionary Keren isn’t good at catching fish, so I help my mommy catch fish and bring them to missionary Keren to feed her cat. She always gives me something to eat, and she has promised to bring me a fishing net from town.

Keren:
Naomi is so sweet! Everyone promises to bring my cat some fish, but they rarely bring any, and my cat has suffered through plenty of dried fish. Naomi, though, delivers. She has adopted the task of feeding my cat and often comes with her father when he needs to work on church business with Orion. And the “nice storybooks” Naomi loves are kindergarten Sabbath school quarterlies.

The culture includes an endless interplay of “I help you, and you help me” interactions — well beyond anything I have experienced elsewhere. To prevent too much cultural debt between her family (Paul and Anna) and ours, I have always given Naomi something in return for the fish, whether bread, crackers, pancakes or anything else I have available that is easy to carry and eat. Her father asked if I could bring a fishnet, the right size for catching the fish they bring me, and I am happy to do so! They are such a wonderful family.

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