Week 9: Camarillo

We are doing well. This week, Elder Weatherford and I had a few meetings to attend. We enjoy them. However, at the beginning of every meeting, the leaders of the Spanish groups ask (almost beg) the participants to turn off their cell phones. Then, the leaders remind people to turn off their cell phones before the sacrament prayers. Then, during the sacrament, at least one phone rings with some funky ringtone and the sound goes on and on. We just laugh a little because it's a different culture. The ward had a blood drive and I saw that no one reserved a time. I was sure that no one would come, so I went and donated, and there were a TON of people there. Again, it's a different culture because our friends never know when they will be called to work, and they can't plan their days like we can. The beauty of living in another culture is that we can learn from their willingness to work when needed and their more open and relaxed approach to life. 

We had a discouraging week in some ways. I suppose that is very typical. A few of our friends had hard times, and we felt their sadness and carried that with us. We invited a friend to come to the family history library, but we didn't realize that the man who runs the library is not mentally sound. So our friend got discouraged and had to leave. But by the end of the week, there seemed to be good news for most of our friends. Still others needed our prayers. In one family, where the grown children live with the parents and help pay the bills, two of the three cars they own have been wrecked and the family members are struggling to get to work. Yes, the drivers in California are pretty crazy! Dad has done all the driving so far, for which I am very grateful. 

Dad and I spoke again in church, this is the second time. We performed our musical number with our friends. And Dad led the music while I played the piano. AND at the end of that meeting, several people gave us big hugs with tears in their eyes. Wow! It's hard to describe the depth of this experience. We love it. One of our friends in this ward loves soccer, and so we have been following the World Cup as much as we can and we share it with him. I think we are developing a new love of soccer. The final game was a thriller!  Now Dad has a soccer-buddy.

On Monday, we went to Thousand Oaks. Besides Santa Barbara, it is probably the most wealthy of the areas in our mission. And yes, Oxnard is probably the poorest. In Thousand Oaks, there is a huge church built by a wealthy donor, and at that church, the members set up a town of Bethlehem and gave us "shekels" to spend. After we spent our shekels (pennies) on homemade bread, oil lamps, and bracelets, we went to the theater and watched a musical representation of the nativity complete with donkeys, lambs, and a baby almost as cute as Ariana (it's not possible to be as cute as Ariana). We loved it so much. We are so happy to celebrate Christmas here in California.