Sunday, April 13th, 2003

We all slept until about 8:30 am this morning. Everyone then started hitting the showers and grabbing a bite to eat so we could leave for church at 9:30. The meetings started at 10 am and the church building was about 15 minutes away. Joe and Leslie Todesco and their two youngest kids were going with us as well. We all arrived just as things getting were getting started and there must have been less than 25 people in the building and that included the 10 of us. Priesthood and Young Women’s were the first meetings followed by Sunday school and finally Sacrament meeting. Jamie was the only female in attendance for the entire Young Women. She was taught by an elderly black woman by the name of Sister Dickinson. Jamie said she was a very nice lady. Normally, she said there were 3 or 4 local young girls there. Brother Oaks taught the priesthood lesson that I attended. He taught a good lesson on integrity. Apparently, he is the cousin of Dallin H Oaks. By the time Sunday school started there must have been about 60 or 70 people in the building so things had picked up a little. All in all, it was a good experience. We met some good people and received some traveling tips for the remainder of our week. Just up the hill some lively music was coming from a neighboring Pentecostal church. On the way out, we paid them a quick visit and they looked like they were enjoying themselves. It was a very different environment from what we had just experienced in the Latter Day Saint church.

I took an afternoon drive with Keri, Joe, and Leslie. We drove along the east end of the island and checked out the ferry docks. We were planning on taking a ferry to St. John Island tomorrow and we wanted to get the departing details. We also visited a couple of beaches for possible day trips later in the week. We made quick stops to Sapphire beach and Coki beach. Sapphire beach was located next to a resort and the beach was absolutely perfect. The water was blue, the beach was long and sandy, and people were swimming and snorkeling everywhere. For a few minutes, it made us feel like we were staying at the wrong place. There was not any basketball court’s though and Bryant and Jeff were definitely getting the most enjoyment in their local contests with the island natives. We decided though that we would reserve a day to come back and visit. Coki beach was another hot snorkeling spot but it did seem a little more commercial and not quite as clean.

When we returned back to our place we found Jamie asleep in a lounge chair at the side of the pool while Kacie and her friend Jillian were enjoying a short swim. Jamie was in a deep sleep and totally unaware of anything around her. I took a couple of pictures and stole her room key and she still slumbered away.