BACK IN THE SADDLE

Querido Familia y Amigos,

NEWPORT BEACH NEW CONVERT NIGHT:  Oct. 13, Elder Fowers Journal~I drove to the temple with Brother Rosales, Sister Gante and Sister Navarro.  It was our monthly New Convert Night at the Temple.  There were only 6 new converts from the 10 stakes within the mission so we had ample time to instruct and assist.  We had several male family names from Cecilia Navarro so I asked brother Wright if he would like to perform these on her behalf.  Being recently baptized himself, this was his first time inside the Temple and he felt honored to do so.  He is an older guy kind of rough around the edges but I could tell it was a spiritual experience for both he and Cecilia.  Likewise in the confirmation room, we took a moment to understand the impact of what we were doing, that these ancestors now had the opportunity to accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ just like themselves had recently done. It was another special night in the temple.

Hno. Rosales, Hnas. Navarro and Gante with Elder Fowers

HOME FOR MEDICAL CARE:  Last blog, we mentioned that we were having difficulties getting adequate medical care to figure out of what was happening to Luci.  After two frustrating weeks, she finally decided to fly home to work with our trusted family doctor and try find some answers to the strange symptoms.  Family and friends were so kind to watch over her while she was home alone.  Luci even got to attend a Cookies and Milk gathering with her siblings which raised her spirits.  All the medical tests took much longer that expected and she was home a full 10 days.  After all that, she returned to the mission without a  positive diagnosis, but with the assurance that the doctors back in Utah they would work with her to manage symptoms from a distance. She is feeling much better...back to work!

Found a fridge full of food from dear neighbor Kilee.

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Big Sister, Terry's tender care after medical procedure.

GRANDKIDS CONNECTION: I was antsy and frustrated to be at home so I decided to focus on spending time with my older, adult grandchildren.  They made it their mission to "take care" of Grandma and keep her company.  Several sweet interactions with my "grands" reminded me what amazing people they are and how much joy and love they bring into my life.  They are such a treasure to me.

John and David Hanging out with Grandma.

Helping Ellie celebrate her birthday.

Dinner with Tim, adult grandkids and friends.

Joy of Family

BEAUTIFUL FALL: One other blessing...I returned home during the peak of the fall colors.  They were so beautiful this year. I immersed myself in the beauty of the season through my daily walks.  I am so grateful for the beauty of this world.

FIRST DAY BACK: Oct. 16, Journal of  Elder Fowers~A busy first day back in the saddle with Luci.  Attended Zone council and district meeting in the morning.  Took Elder Fisher out to lunch for his birthday.  He is 25 and has an interesting story about leaving the church for a time.  His younger brother brought him back into the church via nightly phone calls while he was serving as a full-time missionary in Florida.  The Lord knew Elder Fisher's heart and his potential.  He presently leads the mission with 5 baptisms in the last six weeks.

 We then taught Fidela another lesson, reviewing the apostasy and restoration.  She really got it this time and is positively preparing for baptism on Nov. 11.  Luci did a good job with her improving Spanish and I felt guided in my teaching.  We assured her that she can be a member even though she does not read and that there are many ways she can grow and learn. I believe someone in this last general conference stated:  "It does not matter where you are on the covenant Path, just get on it" 

We then went to the Bonillas and helped their two daughters progress in their elementary education.  Last time we challenged the parents to take an active role in reading and helping them with their homework. Many time our Latino parents wrongly assume that the public school system is responsible for their children's education. In our meeting today we could see they took our words to heart and the girls are completing their homework and reading with their Dad.  They are improving and feeling more self confident.  

Later we greeted the new mission couple the Spencers who will be living in our same complex.  They are our same ages and are called as MLS missionaries to the YSA wards and CES/Institute.  They come from Chicago and have extensive experience with YSA.  We hope to teach them pickleball!

Hosting Elder and Sister Spencer

TIM TEACHING GAMING TO VISTA YM:  We invited our son Tim, via Zoom, to share his journey as a game designer and introduce our Young Men to some fun on line games.  They played an interactive game with him on their phones and had a good time.   He gave them some great advise during the question and answer period.  He taught them how important it was to accept feedback during the creative process and make adjustments along the way.  When we open ourselves to input of others we can adapt and accomplish our goals. Thanks Tim for taking time to interact with our Young Men!

Tim's virtual class via Zoom to teach YM about gaming.

 Con Much Amor,

Los Fowers

Never a Dull Moment!

HECTOR'S LESSON:  We have been teaching the Gonzales family for more than 6 months, with our focus on the dad, Hector, who has not yet been baptized.  We taught them for the first time in about six weeks, as they postpone lesson after lesson.  We knew he needed to hear and feel the Spirit powerfully in order to move him more seriously toward baptism.  We prepared and prayed for inspiration on what to teach. Among other doctrines we decided to show him a short segment from “The Chosen” series where Christ meets Nicodemus at night and asks him to follow him. It is one of the most powerful portrayals in the series. After reading the scripture in John and the showing the segment, we asked each one present what they felt.  Luci followed up with some inspired questions which brought a strong spirit into the discussion.  Before we left, he committed to find out for himself the truth of our message.

"Chosen", Jesus Christ and Nicodemus 

 SANTA MARGARITA RANCH HOUSE: We spent a beautiful morning with the other senior couples touring the Santa Margarita Ranch House which is situated in the center of the Pendleton Marine Corp base in Northern San Diego County. It was part of an old Ranchero that was established in the 1790, and it has been maintained by the Military since its purchase in 1942. We spent a couple of hours walking through the history of it with some well informed docents, but really it was just another excuse to get together with the other seniors friends.

Newport Beach Mission Seniors

Santa Margarita Ranch House Courtyard, 1864

SCHOOL ADVOCATE:  We have been meeting with the Bonilla family since we arrived.  Typically Elder Fowers teaching Bro. Bonilla Sanchez while I spend time tutoring Chelsea (10 ) and Issabella (9).  Their struggle in school is intensified by the fact that they have minimal English, but as 4th and 5th graders they are expected to understand content in a language they don't understand.  This past week, we attended a conference with the school principal, acting as translators and advocates.  It is so interesting so see how as senior missionaries we use experience and talents to serve wherever we can.

 Tutoring project with these sweet girls!  Chelsea

Issabella

JULIO COMES HOME:  Julio called saying that he would be released from the hospital at 5:00 today.  We volunteered to get him because his brother-in-law, Cirilo, was still at work. At the hospital we were given discharge instructions, pain prescriptions to fill, then we carefully loaded Julio into a wheelchair departing what had been his home for the last 32 days.  It was emotional for him. He never imagined such an accident would happen to him.  He had to slide down 10 stairs like a baby toddler while I held his legs to get to his downstairs apartment. Once down the stairs, he can manage a walker fairly well.

The next day we stopped by his apartment and found him in great pain and unable to get comfortable on the couch.   Luci pulled out her phone and found a medical supply company in Vista with a extending, lift recliner available for monthly rental.  So off we went in Cirilo’s pickup which was full of greasy old car parts.  I took off my tie and made room for the chair, while Luci negotiated the chair rental.  Soon we were back soliciting the neighbors to help us get the chair down the stairs and into the apartment.  It was a tight fit, but thanks to someone thinking outside the box we got it inside. Julio immediately felt relief.  It will be several more months before he will be able to work. In the meantime he will have regular physical therapy. 

Going Home after 32 days!

FEIDLA TO MEXICO: Sometimes as senior missionaries you have to think outside the box to make things happen.  This was the case with Fidela.  We have been teaching her for some time and she is preparing for baptism. However, every other week she returns to Ensenada, Mexico to tend her grandchildren. She needs to be fellowshipped by her home ward so we offered to take her home to Ensenada and attend church with her.  She was thrilled that we would offer to take her.  We got approval from the mission president to leave the mission and the country. On Saturday afternoon we set out on the two and a half hour journey.  I drove while Luci sat in the back seat showing Fidela some Book of Mormon videos. 

Once we arrived in Ensenada, Fidela began to give me specific instructions to her home. I turned left at an intersection, thinking she wanted me to do a U turn.  She then said no, turn left, so I proceeded to make the correction in the middle of the busy intersection.  Well, a cop came out of nowhere and put the lights on me immediately. I began sweating bullets as he pulled me over. I did not need another Tijuana jail story. The policeman approached the window and asked what I was trying to do in the intersection.  I explained  we were from the US and a little confused. He was not convinced. He then asked for my drivers license and why I was in Mexico.  I explained that we were missionaries and showed him my missionary badge.  He then said ok, be careful and don’t do that again and returned to his patrol car.  Needless to say, I was greatly relieved for that tender mercy.   We arrived at Fidela’s home and met her daughter’s family.    We enjoyed a meal of Kentucky Fried Chicken with her family (she thought that as Americans that would be the perfect meal.  Little did she know that some local street tacos would have been our preference). We then dismissed ourselves to a nearby Airbnb for the night. 

The next morning we attended the Ensenada Hidalgo Ward. The members there were so open and friendly.  They wrapped their arms around her in the first few minutes, and we just stepped back and watched the magic happen.  It was such a powerful example of Christlike inclusion.  They will need to play a vital role in her development and retention. 

It was even worth the 3.5 hour border wait to get back into the USA. 

 

Warm welcome to Hidalgo Ward.

WEIRD SYMPTOMS: About 10 days ago I woke up with a swollen eye and cheek which was rather random.  The symptoms of this strange malady progressed to include pain around my eye and at my temple, jaw pain and debilitating headache.  The mission doctor thought it might me something serious so he suggested we go to the ER to get checked out.  In SoCal everyone goes to the ER for the slightest illness because they can get free care.  They are so overloaded with patients that I am certain the seriously ill patients could die while waiting!  We ended up in a MASH tent in the parking lot. Eight endless hours later, we left the hospital with no diagnosis and no medicine, but still had all the weird symptoms. Doing much better now with a short course of steroids.

Droopy Eye!

Endless Wait in ER.

FAMILY HISTORY:  The Elder’s Quorum sponsored an evening at the family history library located in the Foothill building.  We had about 12 people attend which put every computer on duty.  The Elders quorum president brought a non-member couple for the first time so I volunteered to help them open a free Family Search account.  In a short time, we had three generations of her family posted on her tree.  You could see their interest in their ancestry come alive as we discovered nuggets of information in the Mexican census records.  It was a successful night by all who attended. Through out this mission, we have been helping more than 20 different individuals with Family Search.

Spanish Ward Family Search Activity

GENERAL CONFERENCE: There is something very special about listening to conference as a missionary.  The "spiritual bubble" of missionary service prepared us to hear more clearly and feel more deeply.  So many messages were tailor-made to guide us in our current challenges.  We loved our time with members as we share food and fellowship together between sessions. Julio was able to join us in our apartment for lunch and the Saturday afternoon session of conference.

Sharing fellowship between sessions.

Conference at the Fowers Apartment

CLELBRATION!

Querido familia y amigos,

Blog time again!  I can't believe how fast two weeks fly by and it is time to write the blog again. 

FIDELA IS "ON DATE":  Several weeks ago, we introduced you to Fidela.  A sweet hispanic sister who is exactly my age. She travels to Ensenada (2.5 hour drive) once or twice a month to help care for her grandchildren that live their.  The constant back and forth between here and Mexico has been really challenging in maintain progress in understanding gospel principles.  This summer she completely dropped off the radar for more than two months while visiting family in Oaxaca in Southern Mexico.  But about a month ago she called and wanted to meet with us. We were delighted and when we arrived at her house, she could hardly walk with knee pain.  We quickly got her connected with a physical therapist in our ward who works magic with massage and acupuncture.  So each week she gets two treatments and two lessons and she has made miraculous progress both physically and spiritually.  She is now "on date" with an Oct. 28 baptismal date set. Please pray for her.

Fidela with myself and our dear friend Anabel.

MESSAGES OF ENCOURAGEMENT TO JULIO: Our good friend Julio is still in the hospital, one month after the accident.  He still has many months of recovery.  The Lewis family (Sarah) generously donated a computer to him to help expedite his communication with family members in Mexico, along with the insurance companies and legal council.  We finally got a copy of the police report which puts the other driver 100% at fault for driving under the influence.  His positive attitude and tender testimony endears him to everyone he meets.

Julio and his new computer, donated by the Lewis Family.

NEW CONVERT NIGHT AT NEWPORT BEACH TEMPLE:  One of the most powerful tools our mission consistently employs is getting new converts to the temple within a few weeks after their baptisms. We set them up in Family Search to locate names of their antipasados (ancestors) and take them to the temple to do their baptisms and confirmations.  It never fails to be a powerful spiritual experience for all involved.  Below we have captured the moment of Laura and Arnolfo entered the Newport Beach Temple to do this work. with ourselves, the missionaries who taught them and our ward mission leader.  This is truly the pinnacle of our work!

New Converts at the Temple: Hermana Laura Guerrero and Aldolfo Sanchez in the center front.

Hermana Laura, baptized just two weeks prior.

Hermano Aldolfo at the entrance of the Newport Beach Temple

SENIORS AT CORONA DEL MAR BEACH:  Great food, happy conversations, our fellow missionary friends making memories at sunset on the beach.  Nothing better.  It is hard to express how dear these people of become to us.

 Senior missionaries relaxing at the beach!

Dear Senior Missionary Friends

MOBILE HOME PARK SERVICE:  We have been busy at the Vista manor mobile home park (a non-profit), but this time we are on our own.  We spent one morning stripping the "popcorn" off the ceiling as we helped Joshua, the maintenance man remodel his kitchen after a water leak.  (No pictures of that but we did included a picture of our badges cover with wet "popcorn.")  We also repaired a very damages and graffitied picnic table and repaired it.  We dismantled it, flipped the boards, sanded them and repainted.  It looked like a brand new table.  The park directors were a bit amazed!

Down and Dirty!

Good as new!

Luci in her element.

DINNER WITH PRESIDENT & SISTER CARTER: We were blessed with an evening meal,  conversation and  wise counsel from our mission president and his wife.  Both had spent a long day interviewing our Vista Zone missionaries.  They work so hard to lift and build our missionaries.  I think these dear people should be translated! 

Sweet evening with President and Sister Carter

ANOTHER BAPTISM:  Hermana Oliva Mendez Zavala was baptized this week and became the newest member of the Vista Spanish Ward.  We were not involved in teacher her but we celebrate every person who find their way to the waters of baptism.

Baptism for Hermana Oliva and our remarkable "misioneras."

LATINO FESTIVAL: Latino music, dance and food are a big part of the culture here in Vista.  You might say it is where they go for comfort when they are homesick.  So,  for the last couple of years the three Spanish wards in the area gather to celebrate Mexican independence (from France) with a big Latino Festival.  Preparations included building an outside stage for the dances, stringing decorations and preparing all the typical Mexican/Latino culinary delights.  The Relief Society sisters adorned in colorful costumed dress practiced weeks ahead for their traditional dances . The Elders Quorum entertained us with a vaquero ballad from the past.  The Fallbrook brothers performed the"Dance of the Old Men".  After the program, everyone started dancing because the music because you can't resist the energy of the music.  A couple of older sisters latched onto me and away we went.  I tried my best and prayed that no one was watching. A wonderful time was had by all.

Our misionersas joined in the traditional dance.

Relief Society Sisters

Elders Quorum

Elder Fowers dancing with the Senioras.

ISAAC ORDINATION/FAMILY ATTENDS:  During the time we have been serving in the Vista Spanish Ward, we have had eight priesthood ordinations.  This week we rejoiced with Isaac Molina who was ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood.  He was baptized as a child, but had learn nothing of the gospel as he was growing up.  We found him and started to prepare him to for FSY.  We taught him the missionary lesson  so that he would have some gospel knowledge before the FSY experience. This group of boys bonded and were strengthen in remarkable ways which continued long after they returned from FSY.  So this Sunday Isaac came to church with his entire family of seven to support him. They had never attended in the entire time we have been here.

Isaac (2nd to left) with others recently reactivated headed to FSY

 Con Much Amor,

Los Fowers

SEEING THE MIRACLES, TRYING TO BE THE MIRACLE.

 Dear friends and family,

MARIA MAGDALENA:  About three weeks ago I got a very angry phone call from Maria. We mistakenly called her phone number because we thought it was her Dad's number.  I talked her off the cliff in a very kind way, assuring her that we would harass her no further. I thought that we be the end of it.  However, she showed up at church and asked that I would come by to teach her about BYU Pathways. We met in her home today and had a tender conversation. As we were chatting about Pathways she began to tell me about her deep regrets and her desire to come back to church and how she begun reading the scriptures again. The spirit filled the room and I taught her about the joy and peace that comes from repentance.  Fast forward one week...she is now enrolled in Pathways, and we assisted her in getting a scholarship.  She has turned back to the light and you can see it in her countenance.

JULIO'S ACCIDENT: I received a call from Cirilo Morales, the brother-in-law of Julio Lopez, our member mechanic that we have mentioned previously.  He said that Julio had been in a bad accident the night before when a speeding drunk driver crossed over the center medium and hit him head on. Julio had no time to react.  Paramedics cut the top and door off the car to extract Julio. He was conscious during most of the process. The airbags deployed which probably saved Julio’s life. Cirilo called from Julio’s hospital room to tell us that Julio would be going to surgery within the hour and he wanted a blessing.  Arriving at the hospital, with another Senior, Elder Prater, we found Julio in much pain.  He was so emotional with the trauma from the accident fresh in his memory. Both knees were broken, a femur and tibia with compound fractures and a broken heel.  We gave him a blessing and they took him away immediately for the first of several surgeries to follow.  He recounted with tears how he fought the paramedics who tried to cut off his garments which he believes saved his life. In the ambulance he sang primary songs as the paramedics attended to him in route to the hospital. His spirit brought them to tears.  We learned that his father prayed all night for him in far away Oaxaca. He told us, via Facetime, that we were Julio's angels.  He is a man of great faith and Julio follows with the same pattern faith.   After a bit of battle with the towing company we were able to get Julio's tools and other items from the wrecked car.  We are working with immigration to obtain a special humanitarian visa for his wife to come and be at his side.  We think of Julio as an adopted son and we ask for your prayers in his behalf.

Remains of Sarah's donated car.

Julio facing months of recovery with hope and courage.

Julio chatting with is Father Mexico.

MATILDA, the MUSICAL:  Oh my goodness, what a show! I haven't laughed so hard for a long time.  Our son Brad's family is passionate about theatre.  Mallory has been involved for a couple of years, but in the last show, which was the musical performance of "Matilda"--Becky, Mallory, Leah and Penny were all in the show.  Becky played the lead role of Miss Trunchbull and she was amazing!  Fun was had by all!  It is one of the sweet blessings of our mission to be close enough to attend the kids performances.

SERVICE:  We continue our service to the Vista Manor Mobile home park. We love taking a troop of missionaries and helping with anything they need.  We have never actually preached the gospel to anyone in the park but everyone knows the "Missionaries" from the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  We tell them that we are Christs hands. Here are a couple recent pictures.

Happy Hermanas painting a fence in Vista Manor

LAURA'S BAPTISM: Hermana Laura is a 60+ year old woman who has been studying with the missionaries for nearly a year. Her study of the gospel has been tenacious and thoughtful.  Many Elders and Sisters participated in her journey, so last week the was a huge celebration as many missionaries and friends came together to participate in her baptismal service.  She stands alone in her family as the only member of the church. What courage!  She will be attending the temple with us on Friday at our New Convert Night.

Hermana Laura with all the missionaries who taught her.

Hermana Laura and the Sisters 

ZONE CONFERENCE:  All of the teaching is directed toward the young missionaries, but we love Zone Conference because we learn so much! And...we love the young missionaries!

BLANCA'S COMFORT: Hermana Blanca is another one of our courageous members who stands as the only member of the church in her family.  She is the matriarch of her family, all of which live in her home as a multi-generation household. Her testimony is deep and true and she doesn't hide it from her family. Recently she has been really struggling with the news that her only sister is dying.  We dropped by hoping to bring her a bit of comfort.  We shared with her the video "The Wounded Shall be Healed" and by the time it was finished, tears were streaming down her face.  She then testified to us that it was true. Jesus Christ is the source of her courage and comfort.  I believe she lifted us more than we comforted her.  It is one thing to press forward in the gospel when surrounded by faithful members of your family but is such a courageous journey to be baptized against the wishes of your family.

DAVID'S MIRACLE:  Our friend David, grew up in the church.  He graduated from High School during Covid. The isolation of those months lead him to lose his faith and turned his energy to gaming many hours everyday.  His mother came to us in tears last week telling us that he had hardly left his room for two years,  asking us if we could do anything to help him.  We weren't sure what we could do, but we suggested that perhaps he would like to enroll in BYU Pathways.  For the Latinos in California there is a scholarship available that pays 75% of the cost of tuition.  She wasn't hopeful that he would be interested, but the very next day we got a text from him asking if we could please come and explain how Pathways works. He was hesitant to take the required religion classes.  We thought that would be the end of it, but the next day he called to ask how he could fulfill his community service hours required by the program. That afternoon, he worked shoulder to shoulder with four missionaries in the hot sun.  He thought it was great and he wants to join us for our next service event.  He is now fully enrolled in Pathways and is starting school next week.  I know that this doesn't seem like a big deal but his mom know that it is a miracle.  As our mission President often says:  See the miracle and be the miracle.

David giving community service.

"YOU ARE MINE" PAINTING: We are huge fans of the Chosen series.  It is one of the few programs we watch while on the mission.  We read recently that Liz Lemon Swindle, my cousin, had painted an extraordinary painting and donated it to the show.  They are selling copies, so we decided to purchase one for our apartment and to give financial support to the show. We love it-- so touching.

YOU ARE MINE, by Liz Lemon Swindle

Con Mucho Amor,

Los Fowers