WX NORTH

It's been a good week! I'll share a few of the highlights-

Spring has sprung! The temperature remains pretty much the same but for some reason it doesn't feel as chilly. The flowers are blooming, it's pretty green because of all the rain, and there is more daylight to enjoy! And yes, it's pretty easy to enjoy it when there are beaches nearby! And happy, random street (or beach) performers are out and about. We saw a guy in an inflatable gorilla suit dancing by the beach. It made me smile!!

On Monday, the sisters in our apartment complex called and asked if I might be available to go to a lesson with them. I was happy to and so I met them that evening not too far from our apartment and proceeded to enjoy a glimpse into young missionary life. They knocked on the door... and no one answered. They called, and no one answered. I imagine that they get a lot of unanswered calls and dropped appointments. But these sisters were not discouraged! We headed back out to the street and as we stood there for a moment, we glanced up into the sky and saw something we'd never seen before. I've included a picture. It looked like maybe a rocket or missile, but I've never seen either of those, so I was just guessing. It was amazing and beautiful. A man was walking past and so I asked if he knew what it was. Turns out he was under the influence of something and didn't make much sense and just asked us for money. The next person to pass by was a young man, 16 yrs old. We asked him and he didn't really know either. Then I watched while these amazing sisters went to work. They asked him what was something good that had happened that day. He said, "I got my haircut" and "this thing in the sky". They then asked if he was religious. They are so bold and brave!! He said that he'd actually been thinking about religion recently. They had a short discussion and invited him to church and gave him some material to read. They made it look so easy! Turns out the spectacle in the sky was a satellite launch. SpaceX launched their Falcon 9, sending 22 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit from Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County. It was really cool!!

We did normal activities this week like District Council, volunteering on the Midway, Senior Zone leader responsibilities, record keeping, letter writing, spending time with the young missionaries. We did get to attend a baptism, not at the MCRD. The sisters needed a pianist, and I told them I could do it. I've been here for almost a year and very few people know I can play the piano! So we arrived a little early so I could practice, since I don't have access to a piano and figured I'd be a little rusty. Thankfully, it was just basic hymns. The baptism service was all in Spanish, so I didn't understand much of anything, but I felt the Spirit and saw the light radiating from the man who was baptized. We were grateful to be there.

We had a senior activity on Saturday. A senior couple did a Passover presentation for us. It was very interesting, and we really enjoyed it. I don't think I'd ever tried lamb before. So much symbolism that relates directly with the Savior. It was a good preface to Holy Week and Easter. Then we ran home and hosted the weekly Saturday night apartment gathering in our apartment, since it was raining. I've often wondered how many missionaries we could fit in our apartment. Now I know it's at least 17! I'm sure we could have squeezed in a few more.

I'll wrap up with a good story from the MCRD. We have a recruit, Caden, who came in 6 weeks ago. On the first Sunday with us, the recruits fill out a brief form that gives us their name, if they are members or visitors, their Priesthood office, if applicable, and then their home ward and Bishop, if they know that information. He is not a baptized member but his father is, so he gave us the ward info. During the week, our Branch president calls each of the bishops and talks to them about the recruit to get to know them a bit better, etc. Caden and his family were not active before he came to bootcamp. After the branch president called his bishop, his bishop called and visited with Caden's father. And then his father got the card that we sent out with a note from his son. He was so impressed that his son was attending church that he started going back to church and hasn't missed a Sunday since. Caden has been taking the lessons from the missionaries and has expressed the desire to be baptized when he gets home and wants his dad to perform the baptism. I love to see how the Lord works!! I love to see the transformation that can happen as people become converted to Christ! I love to listen to our recruits testify of the power of prayer and see them rely on Him for comfort and help. I love to see how the Lord orchestrates everything in our lives to work for our ultimate good. It truly is a joy and a privilege to be here. Thanks for all of your love and support and prayers!! Have a wonderful week!

Love and hugs,