Running From Cameras

For Makenzie
18 February 2010
Chinese New Year, Customs House, Sydney
for more information: http://runningfromcamera.blogspot.com/

Me & the Mormons and LA X

I flew out to Denver on a plane, completely full, most returning from the All-Star game. I caught my connecting flight in Denver and sat in the middle of a row. To my left was a boy my age in a suit, whose name tag said Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Oh great, I thought, they're going to try to convert me. I had seen other guys in suits on the plane and the one next to me talked continuously to one that was across the aisle from him. They talked in what seemed like gibberish. I couldn't pick up any of it. The guy won free cable and movies for the flight, and refused it, so I was a bit prejudiced by the time he introduced himself to me. Halfway through the flight, Elder White (what his name tag read), asked where I was headed. I told him Australia, and he informed me that his friend across the aisle was a native of the country I would soon call home. I had already met an Australian before entering the country. I tried to contain my excitement as I asked questions and he told me about his home. Between questions about Aus, I found out that they were on their way to the Philippines for their required two year mission. They had just spent the last month or two in Utah receiving training, and what I had heard at the beginning of the flight was the Philippine language.
Sidenote: Right now I'm sitting on my bed in my room, with the balcony door open. There's a breeze coming through and I can hear some birds chirping in the background (nice, sweet sounding birds. not the one's that sound like small children screaming, the one's that woke me up at four this morning.) and all of a sudden, I hear Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" being belt out downstairs. The guys are playing Guitar Hero Band and our room is over the common room, so I hear about everything that goes on down there.
To continue...
I probed them about what they would do there and how they would live. They would live with a group of 11 guys, one girl, with which they were traveling, and be paired up with people already there to be mentored. Elder White was telling me about his sister, how she would be getting back from her 2 year mission while he was gone, so that by the time he'd return, he will not have seen her for three years. They're only allowed to contact they're family through email, shutting themselves away from all other virtual distractions.
I kept saying, my dad would freak out.
But he assured me it would be worth it, and he believed it would be alright.
Towards the end of the trip, the moment I had predicted came. The Australian, quite charming in his manner, sure to bring many people in the Philippines (or anywhere for that matter) to the Mormon church. I could hear their training kicking in. I smiled and laughed a bit, almost getting them to "break character", you could say, when they began speaking about it.
Sidenote: The video game is off, and there's someone playing a lovely classical piece on the out of tune piano. I'm ashamed that I can't name it off the top of my head. It's often used as a wedding march. Quite lovely, though. Oh, and here comes Titanic. Summer, if you read this, I wish I was hugging you and crying.
They asked me what I knew of the church and I said, a lot of weird stuff.
I confronted them about the Jesus visiting America stuff, what I thought they would certainly stumble over. They said, why wouldn't Jesus visit the Americas? Wouldn't he want the whole world to know the gospel and to see him? So I asked him if they believed he visited every continent. Of course. Of course?
I said, but wasn't that what the whole great commission was about?
We also talked about the Bible. They asked why Song of Solomon was in the Bible, that the Bible had been assembled in unreliable ways. I said it shows human sexuality and they all decided which books would be decided at a council. Then they said that Song of Solomon talks about the king sleeping with a harlot, and that it doesn't show that that behavior should be only in marriage.
We didn't get the chance to go into their personal planets and birth control, but we did get to Joseph Smith.
They said that God gave authority to the apostles, but that they did not appoint anyone else to have authority after they died off. Smith was apparently the man, the prophet, that God placed on Earth and gave authority to. Riggghtt. That makes total sense.
I said, but why would God have the tablets taken away? They answered that the gospel and truth had been distorted before by men and if the tablets got into the hands of the wrong people, this would happen again. I said, doesn't that kind of put God in a box though? And how would having hard copies be a bad thing?
Our flight ended with me receiving a Book of Mormon, free of charge. Elder White showed me a verse saying to ask God if the words in the book were true, and He will assure you that they are.
I thought it was great to see these young men with such great faith, delving into The...A word, seeking truth. They understood the call to love others, but I wish they would just embrace THE gospel, the original, the real one.
And I'm posting this discussion, not to say I had all the right answers and comebacks. I wish I could have said more, sounded more sure of myself.
My adventure with my Mormon friends did not end as we touched down in LAX, as you would suppose, but continued until I made it safely to the ASC group. They walked with me to baggage claim and told me to point out which suitcase was mine. I met the rest of the group. A couple of the others started singing "Lean On Me", and I started singing along, adding in the camp elements (camp elements being: for, FIVE, it won't be lo-ong, 'til I'm gonna need, elbow!). This was all new to them apparently. Guess that's not a worldwide thing.
After getting all of our luggage, we proceeded to walk outside 4 terminals over (which really is a long time if you don't take a tram, especially in the humid LA weather) to the international terminal. There I was, parading around with a bunch of Mormons in their suits and I in my bright red hoodie. I couldn't help but laugh at the situation. By then, I had found out Elder White and Newman's first names. Apparently they don't freely give them out, because Elder is a title of respect/authority/etc. and because it could be a distraction. I told them I would pray for them, and gave a huge thank you and said goodbye as they saw I was safe and sound with my group. Really nice people.

First Day of School

Survived my first day of classes. Nearly.
Began the morning with a realization that we should actually be leaving earlier. Carissa, my lovely roommate who keeps my head on straight, found an earlier route to take so that we could make it to the 8:30 warm up for our acting class. We were early to the bus stop and got off at the right stop, with the help of our friendly bus driver, and made it to the bus stop to await the 436. The 436, also known as the 43-sucks, is infamous for being unreliable. We waited, and waited. It did not come at 8:01, it did not come at 8:39. Here we are, in a new city. Two directionally impaired girls (one slightly more than the other), without cell phones, without maps. We found a pay phone, and called the transportation hot line, which told us we should wait for the 8:39. As before said, it did not show. A big thanks to the hotline for informing us the bus had been cancelled.
After held back tears and frustrated exclamations, we turned to our last resort--calling a cab. He arrived promptly, letting us know he was from out of town, asking us how to get there. Fantastic. Luckily we knew the address, and he had a Tom Tom.
We arrived 25 minutes late to our class, apologizing out the wazoo to the prof, a youngish woman named Jo. She said it was alright since it was the first day. We then proceeded to lie on the floor stretching and humming for the next 15 minutes before we did some exercises.
Class ended at 11, we ate lunch in the student centre with some fellow ASCers and dancers, and headed to Hip Hop class at noon.
Hip Hop will now replace my previous nonexistent card work out. No AC in a classroom on a 93 degree day. The class is full of only kids from the program and is expected to be an entertaining class.
The walk on the way home, while sweaty and humid as can be, was not as awful as the one we took yesterday, where the temperature was higher and a Lorikeet (a rainbow parrot-looking bird) pooped on my shirt while I was trying to take a picture of it.
The Flo community has grown in numbers since we arrived. Previous students and first years are moving in, and it's been exciting to meet new people.
While I'd love to swamp you with multiple anecdotes and events about my time here thus far, I must get some sleep, so we can catch the early train tomorrow.
Heaps of love to my family and friends.