EFY

One of the biggest reasons we couldn't cancel our trip in spite of all the car difficulties and such was Matthew had worked hard and saved up to go to EFY.  And it's not cheap.  But he really wanted to go so for the last year he saved.  500 dollars later he was at EFY in Provo Utah.  This first picture is me sending my baby boy off for a week without me.  It was much tougher on me than him.

 This is a group of the kids who he loved to hang out with while there.  He loved the whole event and wants to go again next year.  He's already started saving for it again.

 This is a picture from us while we were walking around campus with the other kids and laughing at the sheer number of kids there for EFY.  They were everywhere!  My favorite part of this was watching as each girl had to be "escorted" by a male. So as they walked everywhere they all were arm in arm a boy and a girl.  (That was one of matthew's favorite parts too.)  He also told me all about his "cow".  I was kind of concerned when he first told me it was the girl he liked and he was calling her a cow.  But he said it was okay becuase he was someone elses cow.  Still I was a bit concerned but then he told me it meant "Crush Of the Week".  I guess it's not bad to have a cow when they live in another state.

These last two pictures are the morning I was picking him up to bring him home.  He loved it.  Words can't describe how great it was for him.  I didn't hear from him the whole week until the night before he came home.  The night of the testimony meeting.  He told me he had never felt the spirit so strong.  He told me about how he wanted to do more in his life so he could feel it more like that all the time.  What a great example he is to all of us. 

Matthew and Michael Niu say good-bye to EFY for another year.  Here's looking to next year...hopefully!