Travel ~ California

 Another trip I took when I was a teenager was to California. I went to another YWAM (Youth With a Mission) base called Gleaning For the Hungry. I went on a very long drive in a fifteen passenger van with a team of other people from my church. We were headed there to serve in whatever way we could. There would be other teams of people there as well from other churches. I remember the drive being very challenging. I was short so I was stuck in the very back of the van with no leg room for a lot of it. The team was varied ages from younger teenagers to people my grandparents ages. 

When we arrived we were billeted on the base and I was in a room with two other girls. We realized that we were going to be working on a factory type line with a very long conveyor belt. This base processed fruit and dried it in the sun to send to places where people were without food. We processed peaches that week. I got so motion sick the first day from the endless motion of the conveyor belt. I was fine after the first day. I was in charge of removing pits. The fruit was processed and at the end of each day the whole conveyor system would have to be cleaned. That took a long time. The fruit would be put out in the sun and dried and also preserved with some sort of spray. 

We worked hard each day and sweated a ton but it was fun. The base had a pool and the couple that ran the base were awesome. The wife made all sorts of pie for dinner I had never heard of like pineapple pie. Getting to eat and chat together was lovely and the YWAM base leader had services and worship times in the evening. We also go to play games and make new friends.  

We met great people during that trip and I learned a bit more about the world. On the way home we visited the church and homes of some of the team that we met on the trip from a part of Washington. It was so fun and so memorable. We didn't do any sightseeing or go to a beach but we did what we aimed to do which was serve. This was such a good opportunity for me and it broadened my horizons. On that trip a boy from California fell in love with me and later came to my town to informally propose. I was already involved with someone else and so it was awkward and I handled it badly. I hate that I did that. I was young and so rude. I hope he ended up finding a girl that deserved him. He was amazing and I was not so much at that time. He was going to go places, work hard, and I hope he was able to thrive. 

Oh the teenage years! The drama and the adventure and the self assurance and sass I had. I am so thankful that I got to go to California and get out of my tiny world and experience something bigger and greater and important. This was the first time I went to California. I was to go again for just a few hours on another trip when I was in my twenties.