In February 1977, Patrecia Gray, her husband Larry, and two daughters, Robin and Melinda, left their West Virginia home to serve for eight years as missionaries in the highlands of Papua New Guinea. The newly independent country had won its independence from Australian control less than a year previously, and much of the land was still labeled by many as "stone-age."
Papua New Guinea is an island where palm trees sway and the moon seems so close that one could reach out and touch it. Bluish-green Pacific waters lap the shores. Sweet pineapples and orange papayas grow as big as footballs. Luscious guava trees and banana plants wait for children to help themselves. Lemon trees are so loaded with fruit that their branches must be supported.
The island has its own particular scent. The land is rich in oil, gold, cacao trees, coffee trees, timber, and copra.
The people are friendly, strong, and helpful. The island, like other lands, has its "rascals," as they are called, who can steal, kill, and destroy; yet islanders will not willfully harm a bystander when they are in battle with another tribe.
Papua New Guinea, PNG, is a totally unique habitat.
The content of this book comes from Patrecia's diaries, capturing memories, private thoughts, and stories of delightful, tragic, and miraculous events that revolved around the lives of this missionary family and the native islanders they served.