It was a foggy, dismal day in Combremere, Ontario. Our beat up mini-van rolled down the long dirt  road that would lead us into our week at Cana Colony. I was sitting in the back seat, along with my siblings. I was also pouting. This was NOT the week I had wanted to go on. You see, there are multiple weeks when families can come to Cana Colony and camp together. My parents had overruled my vote to go with some families we met the year before, and so here I was, facing what I thought would be a long miserable week.

                As we pulled in, we were greeted by a man andh is fourteen year old daughter. She was bright and perky, and looked nice, but unfortunately, since all the other families had arrived there already, she had already become friends with them. Three strikes for me, I thought and leaned against the bumpy fabric of the seats.

                We were then assigned a fridge and table, and I set about helping my mother unload the groceries. The kids at the table across from us looked nice, but they had already met people too, so I figured I’d just be the odd man out all week.

                There was one thing I really wanted to do. That was go up to the small, old wooden chapel with the hard benches and wooden floors. I slipped in the door and quietly told God my fears. If I don’t make any friends this week, and it’s YOUR will, God, then I won’t make any friends. And I’ll try and be happy with that. Not my will but your will be done, Lord.

                I walked down the hill with a new-found peace in my heart. I was actually kind of looking forward to the week with God thing. But not really. There was still a part of my wanted to make friends; desperately.  “Hey Sarah!” a voice knocked me out of my day dreams. “You want to play?” I looked over to the badminton nets where most of the kids my age were assembled. It was the girl that I had met at the beginning, and the kids from the table across from us. It only took a split second for me to decide. “Yeah, sure!” I rambled down the hill and joined them.

                I am still in touch with the people I met on that week, nearly three years ago. The family with the “kids at the table across from us” and my family have become very tight. Now we see them nearly twice a month or more. In fact, the mother is my confirmation sponsor. The “bright and perky” girl and I have become pretty close too, and we all did another Cana week together last summer. If we had never listened to God’s voice and gone out of our comfort zone, we would have never met such people that have become such crucial parts in our lives.

                I have to wonder sometimes what the outcome of that week would have been if I had never surrendered to God. I believe that if you trust the Lord and give him two pennies, He’ll bless you in return and give you back a dollar. There have been many times, that yes, God hasn't answered my prayers in such obvious ways, but many times He has. For those I am truly thankful.