Hey friends and family! This week we went to Hume SoCal! It was mine and a couple other
peoples first time there and it was absolutely gorgeous! On Tuesday we had work all day and
since it was cold and raining and also a chance of snow we all stayed inside and just helped
clean up. My crew and I which was Brynn, Mando, and I. We were the bear crew and had to
clean out the staff lodge and since the lodges are logs we had to oil all of them. It was a blast
because I got to know more about the people I was working with! Even though I wanted to
work outside God taught me that no matter what I’m doing I can still find joy in the work and that
I can always praise him with my work. That night we carved pumpkins! We did a competition
with our roommates and it was such a blast and after that we had a dance party which was such
an amazing time!
On Wednesday the storm had passed so we were able to work outside! They had us all doing
many different things like wood chopping, raking, graveyard, digging, trail clearing and
many more. It was really nice to be outside and I had my same group! We were just
having a blast with wood chopping as we got to make sliced wood for the staff and students to use for
fires. After all of our hard work we got to hang out with the staff and just talk and it was just really
fun to get to hear all of their stories.
On Thursday we worked all day again and towards the last couple hours it started to hit, I was
getting exhausted and didn’t think I could do anymore but my group helped push me through.
Brynn made a saying which helped me stay focused, she said something like how one log
helps a student stay warm. Even though cutting wood was tedious it helped me when I
remembered that I was doing it for God and that students would be able to hear the gospel
because they’re going to be warm! After working we rested for a little then got milkshakes and
had a karaoke night which was soooooo fun! Just being able to see everyone’s personalities
come out and even though we were all tired and in pain we still pushed through and made a
night to remember. We were all very gracious to one another because we knew that we were all
in pain and it was just really cool to see how much love came out from the trip!
Overall I would say this was a really good trip and God showed me what I need to work more on
in my life and what I can do to help others. Also just being able to bond with all my siblings and
get to just enjoy life with them. Even though it’s only been a month I feel like these people really
are my family and I can’t wait for another 8 months.
With much love,
Hope Saunders (Current Student)