Crazy ideas about us

Post-game recovery

If you've ever been inside an LDS meetinghouse / chapel and tried to use the free Wifi, you'll know that descriptors like "lightning fast" or "strong reliable signal" do not apply.  Ever. No matter what building you are in. Whoever sourced the service left that out of the RFP (allegedly). So it should come as no surprise when I tell you that we are now in week three of bizarre issues with the server through which TMFKATB sends his weekly emails. For instance, the stunningly patient and mighty fine SML got his weekly letter right before 2PM our time when he sent it. I, who was included in that same group, got it three hours later. I got a couple of pictures in an email and she, also included in the same group, has yet to get them. I know it's not us because I forwarded that picture email to her while using the most craptastic WiFi on the planet (gracias, Amtrak) and she got it instantly. But I digress...

Server foolishness notwithstanding, TMFKATB served up another good, reassuring letter this Monday. He's busy, so he's a little more tired than he'd like to be. He's ready for winter to end, saying "I am so ready for short sleeves!" (Thanks, Sipowicz - let's just say I'm not a fan of short sleeves and ties.) He also mentioned for the first time something that happens to almost every Mormon missionary in the course of a mission and that was coming up against anti-Mormons. Given that he's serving in the belly of the beast as it were, or Mormon Mecca, it's not unsurprising that there is some virulent opposition to the Church. While he spent no time on the details, he said this, "People...have some crazy ideas about us." He seemed pretty non-plussed by it all, taking it in stride and content to stay focused on the happiness he is found during the course of his missionary service. That seemed a pretty reasonable response to me.

Crazy ideas about the way people believe abound. Just ask a Muslim. What a world it would be if we truly let people practice their faith without prejudice. What a world it would be if we didn't have preconceived (and wrong) notions about a faith different from our own. I don't claim to be a perfect member of my faith. I can assure you I am not. I really do hope that as I've shared the mission experiences of TMFKATB that we've been able to dispel some of the 'crazy' that's out there about our faith.

It's a process

Pancho Villa

Perhaps it was that additional dose of wisdom that comes with age that I earned yesterday as I entered my 49th year, but it was really good to take in this week's update from TMFKATB. I picked up on how he is maturing, more so than I have in previous letters. I also noticed how his English is deteriorating again. That's a good thing, given that he's behind the Zion Curtain, a place not exactly known for an overwhelmingly Spanish-speaking population.

He talked a bit about some of the challenges the people they are working with are facing. As missionaries get to know people, they become, unwittingly, psychologists, marriage counselors, headhunters, and confessors. It's a lot for teenagers, because by and large these are eighteen and nineteen year olds, to handle. He's seen the highs and lows of people's decisions and actions this week. He talked about how the answers people are looking for don't come easily. He mentioned the process. There's a process to getting answers, particularly to those answers that need to come from God through prayer. There's a process to exercising the necessary faith. It's not a matter of just asking. It takes some work.

He talked about the busy week he'd had. He likes being busy but I don't think he'd mind a moment to think about what's coming next. He's always a bit more at ease when he knows what's coming next. He did have time to enjoy what he called "the best torta in the world." Here it is:

One beaut' of a torta 

It sure looks good, I'll give him that. And as for the 'Pancho Villa' get up in the first picture taken at a church party, no words. I have no words. But then again, he is my son. And there are plenty of pictures of me, dressed foolishly, for many a church party. Sadly, I wasn't a twenty year old in most of them. I was 40...

Guest Post:TMFKATB Reflects on His First Eight Months of Service

It had never dawned on me to offer up the opportunity for a guest post here in the Den. Then The Missionary Formerly Known As The Boy (TMFKATB) returned home to heal a bit. While he is progressing, we are eagerly awaiting some test results which will give us definitive insight into what's next. In the week he's been home now, he has shared some stories from his experiences as a missionary in Tuxtla Gutierrez, Mexico. As he was telling us a story one night, I realized I needed to have him share a bit here in the Den and in his mission blog. What follows are his reflections, in his own words:

First, I would like to talk about my time in Mexico. The 8 months while being away were the best 8 months I could have asked for. Since the moment I landed in Mexico, my love for the country and its people began to grow. I started my time in Mexico with the best trainer I could have asked for. Before entering the field, many people told me i should pray to receive a good trainer because they can really start the feeling of a mission. My trainer was definitely an answer to many prayers. We hit it off from the beginning and we both just had a huge desire to work. My first area was one of the harder areas in the mission that hasn't seen "success" in a very long time. When i arrived, my companion told me we were going to leave the area better than we found it. Thanks to the grace of god, i think we were able to do that. That area will always be my favorite and something i will never forget. The lessons i learned there were incredible. I learned the power of obedience and the miracles that come from it. Some of my favorite families came from that area. Following my short training with my trainer, I was called to train and be a district leader. I felt so incapable of doing those two things, for i had not had a full grip on the language yet, let alone much experience in the field and the ability to motivate my district of missionaries. I ended up opening a new area and training a brand new missionary from Guatemala. I was forced to open my mouth and talk to everyone in my new area. This speeded up my learning of spanish ten fold. I had to do everything, just as my first companion had to do everything when i arrived in my first area. In this area i saw the power yet again of miracles. I began to get super sick again and as a companionship, we saw lots of trials in our area. We weren't seeing lots of "success" but we decided we would change some things and we just went to work. By the end of my time there we saw miracles. I learned patience and the power of prayer in my time there. I was often getting switched around with other missionaries that transfer due to my companion getting sick as well as myself. I saw so many things i would never have seen if i weren't in that situation. The lord was preparing me in so many ways. I was able to do a lot in those 8 months in Mexico. The things i learned there will only prepare me for my next phase ahead of me. as i got home, there were a lot of different things i am still getting used to again. A hot shower feels foreign to me still and it burnt me pretty good the first time. the amount of things we have in the states still shocks me. the support i have felt from my family principally and then from all my friends and people i don't even know has been wonderful. I know that this next phase will be incredible. I know that the lord needed me in mexico for the short time i was there. he prepared me in many ways for my next mission and i am positive i will see the reasons for why a lot of things happened while in mexico in my next mission. I love missionary service and i am itching to get back out there. The only thing i do is trust in the lord because if i do anything else, this would all be not worth it and i would be pretty upset. The fact is that i needed to be in mexcio for while i was there and i know there is things i will only be able to learn in my next area. for that reason i am going there. the lord does not get confused or make errors. i can't wait to see the reasons of all these events in these upcoming 16 months!

So there you have it. Many of you don't know TMFKATB personally but he, as he said, has felt your support. We have too, and I can't say it enough, but thank you again.

Coming Home

If you've been following the adventures of our son, TMFKATB, of late in his missionary service, you'll know that his gastrointestinal system has gone into full angry rebellion. That's never a good thing and things have escalated quickly.

When your key operating systems/defenses go into rebellion, what do you do? You pull out the big guns and throw all your resources at it to quell the insurgence. At least that's what you do according to the "Hunger Games" and "Divergent" series, right, Katniss and Tris? To that end, our missionary son will be returning home tomorrow so that the big guns, AKA GI docs and their ilk, can get a full picture of what's going on, quell the insurgence and get him better.

This coming home is an extremely difficult thing for him. He does not want to come home. He wants nothing more than to stay among the people he has grown to love in their country. He has the presence of mind though to understand that whatever is afflicting him is not going to relent if he stays where he is, so he knows that a change in plans is what is best at this time. He wants nothing more than to get better and serve once again, even if that means he can't return to Mexico. In the last couple of days, his mission president told him, "You were called by God to serve and that's what matters; where you serve is the assignment, not the calling." That counsel will no doubt serve him well in the coming days.

Since this escalated so quickly over the last 48 hours or so, the stunningly patient and mighty fine SML and I have been fraught with a slew of emotions. We are so proud of our son. We are hurting for his ongoing physical challenges and for the pain of having to leave his mission and the people he has grown to love in the time that he has been there.  We are humbled by the love shown us by our Church family. Our bishop (local lay clergy leader) stood before our congregation this morning and with genuine care and concern, announced our son's impending return and solicited the prayers of our church family on his behalf. It was a beautiful moment, marred by the muffled sobs of some ugly crier in one of the pews. Oh, wait, that ugly crier was me. Well played, sir, well played.

While we can't be certain what the coming days will bring, we are confident in the knowledge that it is all a part of the greater plan God has for our son and us. Truth be told, a 'sneak preview' of what's in store as far as that plan is concerned would be nice. In saying that though, I know it's not going to happen. Instead, we'll take comfort in the peace we felt as we talked to our boy yesterday. We'll take comfort in the peace we felt with our church family today.

We know this will all work out in the end.

Contrasts

A little different look than last week's hospital bed 

After last week's 'View from a Clinica Bed' update, we were, once again, anxiously awaiting TMFKATB's Monday missive. It dawned on me that, thanks to the switch to Daylight Savings' over the weekend, he is now two hours behind us and we'd hear from him an hour later. Well, that proved to be true. It was an hour later than normal once his letter arrived and it was worth the wait. To say that it was a study in contrasts from last week would be understating it. He kicked it off by saying, "so this was an awesome week." And with that you may have heard the sigh of relief that the stunningly patient and mighty fine SML let out simultaneously. It may or may not have knocked down one of our trees. Clearly whatever he was given during his stay in the clinica did the trick. He reported that health-wise he'd had a great week. He also shared several stories of how he saw his faith building and seeing the rewards that come from working hard on behalf of others. He got to see some people he'd taught previously and had a sweet reunion with them. He made his way into what he called "Jurassic Park" to meet with some other people.

I marvel at the experiences he is having. We can see him changing and growing in ways that will benefit him the rest of his life. Over the years here in the Den, I've shared proof of how everything TMFKATB touches turns to gold. Everything. It hasn't been that way for him in Mexico. He's learned, and will continue to learn, that life can be a series of surprises, good and bad, wanted and unwanted, and that how you react to them defines who you are.

"Entering Jurassic Park"

It's a privilege to get to watch this. As parents, you try and prepare your children for all that life may throw at them. I've realized that's just not possible. I'm glad he's learning what he is in this most unique environment that he finds himself in now. He's where he is for a reason - well, lots of them. It's all good.

A quick note of thanks to all who checked in with us after seeing the picture of him in the clinica last week. He continues to mention that he feels the power of prayer. And so do we. Thank you, friends.