A Fairfield Thanksgiving
Hola Mi Familia y Mis Amigos.
It is your lucky day because it is my pleasure to announce that you have the privilige of having a front row seat to a one time only holiday special (drum roll please)..... A Fairfield Thanksgiving.
This story is about two missionaries who even though they were far away from home had a wonderful Thanksgving with people that they love in the land of Fairfield.
The real story starts at the beginning of last week when the misionaries began to worry because they did not have anyone to eat Thanksgiving dinner with. Their mission Presidents darling wife sent out a group text message asking for anyone who did not have a place to go to give her call. So these missionaries did what any obedient missionary would do and called her back and let her know that as of right then they did not have a place to go. Little did they know that their mission president would call their branch president and tell him that he was worried about his missionaries. They also did not know that the stake president would be involved or that the mission president would call them directly to inform them about the final plan. It was quite the ordeal but when Thanksgiving day came around these missionaries were grinning from ear to ear.
Their Thanksgivning morming suprsingly did not start at the strictly scheduled 6:30 unstead it started when the beautiful rolling hills and vineyards were still covered in the dark night sky. The could have complained as they drove throught the fog but even at the wonderful hour of four in the morning they would do anything in the name of service.
Their entire zone had the opportunity to help with the annual Solano Turkey Trot. They all sported the bright yellow Mormon Helping Hands T-shirts and they truly wore them with pride as they served the community. The community knew that missionaries are efficient and responsible and so they put them un charge of directing traffic. It was a fun opportunity for these missionaries to greet people and to serve together in a different type of work.
After the traffic died down the missionaries enjoyed cheering on the racers as they crossed the finished line and they recieved many comments about their shirts and had great opportunities to share the gospel. When all the work was done these missionaries concluded that there was no better way to start off their Thanksgiving than by doing service.
These two missionaries were then off to another adventure that also had to do with service. They drove their sparklie maroon ford fuision through the winding roads of a commnuity called Ranco Salono until they arrived at the home of the Toolsons. The Toolsons were the nicest members in all of Fairfield and had agreed to let these missionaries pick lemons from their lemon trees. One of these missionaries is from Utah and had never really seen a citrus tree before and so enjoyed picking lemon after lemon until they concluded that they had picked around 100 lemons. They decided that was plenty and that they would use them as gifts for all of the fine people of Fairfield.
It was then time to get ready for the day and these missionaries tried to put together new and beautiful outfits with the limited wardrobe that they have. They were then off to their first Thanksgiving feast with La Familia Hernandez, who feeds them lunch every week but also agreed to have them over for the holiday. They arrived a few minutes early and enjoyed getting to know the rest of the family. Then it was time to eat delcious turkey sandwiches called tortas. This was no ordinary sandwich it had wonderful sauce on it and was garnished with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and radishes. They enjoyed homemade pupmkin pie for dessert and just being with this wonderful family.
The warm family atmosphere was hard to leave but they drove through out the land of Fairfield visiting members and giving lemons to all. When the clock struch 6:00 it was time for Thanksgiving feast number 2 at the home of another member in the branch, Hermana Downing. Dinner was about an hour late but these missionaries a long with a set of elders enjoyed entertaing themselves with magic tricks and predictions about transfers. When dinner was served it was a traditional Thanksgiving feast with everything you could imagine except for dessert. These missionaries were so tired that they did not contribute much to the conversation but just did their best to stay awake. They were on their way home at what seemed like midnight but was a mere 8:30. They quickly planned for the next day and then went to bed with the thought of coconut cream pie in their wee little heads.
This story does not stop here because in the land of Fairfield the party never stops. The day after Thanksgivng was a busy one for these missionaries as they spent the entire day preparing for a Thanksgiving pot luck that their branch was having. This party included nicely set tables, homemade salsa, homemade kettle corn and much more. Sadly only a handful of people came and it was not a very pleasant sight but these missionaries still had a wonderful night. They knew that they did all that they could. Even though they were discouraged these missionaries went homw that night thankful for the opportunity that they have to serve the people in the land of Fairfield.
For your convience:
The Recipe for Hermana Clayton's Famous Kettle Corn:
1/2 cup popcorn kernels
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Put oil in a small stock pot, also place a few kernels in the oil and when they pop you know the oil is hot enough.
Add kernels and sugar to oil.
Shake the pot occasionaly over the heat so that the sugar will not burn.
Wait unitl all corn is popped and then enjoy.
It is best if sprinkled with salt and eaten hot.
Enjoy!
Bonus Material:
- These missionaries diecided to keep teaching the young couple that they met last week and have had wonderful lessons with them and are just praying that they will come to church soon. They also started teaching the young mans less active mom.
-They had an English fast this week and it was very successful. The newer missionary realized that she is capable of speaking Spanish she just needs to keep trying.
-They were given a fresh crab and had a fun adventure cooking it and eating it but discovered they really like crab.
-These missionaries have loved serving together and are making this the best week ever since it is the last week they will serve together and the last week of the older and wiser ones mission.
Authors Note:
I hope that you enjoyed this story! As I thought about my Thanksgiving in the mission I decided I wanted to write about it in a story form. I really had a wonderful week! The work is moving a long slowly but hey it is still moving. My Spanish is really coming a long. Your prayers are being answered so thank you so much for them! I love you all.
Hermana Hillary
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