Being prepared for tougher times.

Yesterday was very uplifting in Church. Even though we had only 19 people in Sacrament meeting the spirit could not have been stronger. It's amazing how such a small group can go over time each month for testimonies. Of course Ahmed Mussad our member from Egypt gets up and takes a chunk of time and we can only understand about every 5th word but he is so lonely that he just can not contain himself when he gets around other people. In Sunday school we had a lesson on marriage and family. Our branch president handled the lesson and made it very clear that Mothers are the best people to take care of their children. Not a neighbor down the street and certainly not some day care center. Here with small families and children going to school at such a young age it is the norm for children to go directly to a care center right from school. One of the things that was also mentioned is that when most of us were young and getting started in our married life we had to make do with what ever we could but the new generation expects to have all that mom and dad have taken years to accumulate. A new car, big plasma TVs, new furniture and the whole ball of wax. Putting them in debt from day one and stressed to the hilt worrying about payments. He mentioned that when he got married ages ago they had an orange crate with a board over the top for a kitchen table and they were happy to get a bed from grandma for a wedding present. The brethren have warned us about getting in debt over our heads but I really don't think people are listening.

In Priesthood and R.S. combined we talked about being financially stable and planning ahead for tougher times. Having food storage is not a concept the Dutch even think of because they are still in the habit of shopping daily for their needs. Mevr. Venema our cute neighbor next door would not dream of buying more than a days worth of groceries except Saturdays when you automatically go and buy fresh flowers, bread and food for Sunday. Heaven forbid if you feel sick on Monday and can't go out. We are fortunate because we actually have a grocer on wheels that comes by our apartment building every Monday and Thursday for those who don't want to make a trip to the store.

People here would flip out if they were to see the well stocked storage rooms back home. The church is not telling us to be prepared for the fun of it, it just makes sense to plan ahead.