Week 26 - Easter in Sonoma
This week, we found ourselves in Sonoma, a scenic area in the wine country of California. The only information we had about Sonoma was what my brother Topher, who used to live in San Francisco, had texted me: "Lowkey just as good as Napa, I think. I haven't been to either though for a proper trip, just driven through." Needless to say, we were experts on all things Sonoma.
One of the unexpected highlights of my week was driving through the back streets of Guerneville, a small river town where we spent a few days. As I learned from my now 102-year-old grandpa, I like to honk at people (especially in the bus), and when I saw someone on their back porch, I gave a honk. The person looked up, saw our bus, and immediately threw out two rock-on symbols with his hands and shouted, "oh yeah!" Things like this happen often, but this guy was unique. It made my day. For some reason, his quick reaction felt genuine and welcoming. Despite not knowing much about this area, we continued to feel welcomed by practically everybody.
People often ask us how we find people and organizations to help, and the truth is, it changes each week. One of our common strategies is to ask people we are working with if they know of any needs in the area we are headed, and right now we have been heading north. When we asked All-In, the non-profit we worked with in Watsonville, they mentioned there was flooding in Sonoma Valley, so we decided to head there. I looked up churches and somewhat randomly chose Lighthouse Church, mostly because I liked the name and one day want to go to the top of a lighthouse. We showed up there, and throughout the service, people came up to welcome us. We ended up speaking with a few of the pastors, and they connected us to people around the community.
Lighthouse Church has recently expanded to a campus in Santa Rosa, and we were connected to assist with the Easter service preparations. Our focus was on the grounds of the church - weed eating, installing a moisture barrier, spreading mulch, and general clean up. We didn't think much of it. As we worked throughout the week, we began to understand the significance of what we were doing. This was something the church had been trying to accomplish for a while, but the constant rain and other issues had caused delays. We recognized it was a big need for them, especially since they were hoping to have an outdoor Easter egg hunt. Throughout the week, about ten people personally told me our help was an answered prayer. Some of them were even moved to tears because they had no idea how they were going to finish the preparations in time for Easter. It was amazing to understand how our simple act of living out the mission of the LOST Bus could bless people without us even realizing the extent of it.
After spending the first two days helping at the church, we shifted our focus to assisting families and individuals in the community who might not be reached by most churches or non-profits, who were connected with Lighthouse Church. From Wednesday to Friday, we worked with a new family each day, providing yard work for those who were unable to do it themselves and hanging a ceiling for a family that had an overwhelming number of tasks on their plate. It was fulfilling to not only complete these tasks but also to share meals and spend time with the people we were helping. Each family was extremely hospitable and spoiled us with a home-cooked meal. I had the best (and first) imitation crab burrito I have ever had, as well as fish tacos with fresh halibut, which our host had caught the day before. He shared with me the secret sauce he uses to fry it and if you reach out, I might share the secret with you! Through spending time with people, you end up hearing their stories, and sometimes they are crazy. For instance, Kevin, who caught and cooked the halibut, built ramps for Tony Hawk and other X Games events back in the day, and his uncle started the sport of disc golf (his name is Ed Headrick). Despite having just met them, each family welcomed us with open arms. Kevin even gifted us with one of just a few frisbees that have his uncle’s ashes in it.
Each day during our trip, we felt welcomed by different people, but the Hernandez family stood out. Sebastian, our first connection from church, is one of those guys who will do anything for you. Their strong sense of family values seems to have been passed down for generations. While they're currently building a new home, Sebastian, his wife Kelly, and their four kids – Xylinla, Cruz, Xeala, and Xiana - are staying in a two-bedroom duplex unit with Kelly's parents, Nani and Papa. Despite the tight quarters, with six people sharing just two queen beds, no one complained. Kelly's brother and his wife live on the other side of the duplex. The Hernandez family has also welcomed Trenton and Trevor, twins from another family, who stay over 4-5 nights per week crashing on the couch and floor. They included us in everything they did, and it felt natural, not an inconvenience. We spent the week celebrating birthdays, going to little league baseball games, playing backyard baseball, going to the movies, playing tic tac toe with the kids while waiting on food, and hanging out in their duplex. They believe their love for God is what continues to bring them together, and we were fortunate to have experienced it firsthand.
This all sounds nice how welcomed we were, but there was one incident where we felt a bit like outsiders. Davis, a former turf grass major in college, told us about a famous golf course nearby called Northwoods. It was designed by Alister Mackenzie, the same architect who created the Masters golf course at Augusta National and is filled with beautiful redwoods. So, during Master's weekend, we decided to play a round after work. We were about to smack some slices on a dogleg right hole when a woman pulled up and drilled us with questions about our bus parking and why we were playing on the course. We were defensive at first, but then realized she was Penny - Trenton and Trevor's mom whom I had spoken to on the phone. She just so happened to work at the golf course and was also a school bus driver, kind of like us. Although at first it seemed like we were outsiders, she was pulling a classic prank on us! We laughed over dinner and were grateful to continue to spend time around her with the Hernandez family.
The past week has been filled with welcoming and a sense of belonging, thanks to Lighthouse Church and the Hernandez family. As we leave the Bay Area, we look forward to continuing our journey to South Lake Tahoe.
