Oh, The Places You'll Go...The People You'll See

I have been thinking a lot lately about my missionaries and the life experiences they had. I found so much joy in the letters that they wrote to me and the pictures that they sent home. I love being a missionary Mom. I especially like reading about the experiences that my children had on their missions.


Jonathan went to Germany. Years later he and I went back to experience some of the places that he went. I could see him with his missionary board in the ancient little town of Stade, going to the little branch in Branschweigen and strengthening the members, attending the ward in Hamburg with the wonderful friendly members there, and experiencing the awesome German culture. He would meet people on the street, live in buildings that dated 400 years back, and share his musical abilities with members and nonmembers alike. When we moved from the Hazel Dell Ward the choir sung one of his arrangements that he wrote on his mission. I was in tears because of the gratitude that I had for their tribute to my family.



Cherie and Kent were in the MTC together in the same branch. The Branch President told them that they were not allowed to hug each other so that they other people in the ward would not be offended. Yep. My kids do hug each other. I felt that it was not a coincidence that they were together there. Cherie was studying Spanish to go to Uruguay and Kent was on his way to the Phillipines and learning Tagalog. They both were wonderful missionaries. It was the first time that Kent was away from home and Cherie was an experienced traveler.



Letters from the Phillipines told us of how Kent got off the plane in the Phillipines and had left his scriptures in Hong Kong. The tropical heat and humidity was practically unbearable for him and he was sweating bullets. His white shirt was soaked and he left his suit at the mission home. No need for hot suit jackets there because all the missionaries wore short sleeve shirts and ties with their pants. Maybe someday they will have missionary shorts for the tropics...maybe not because of the bug problem. His first area was in a remote area called Dingalong Bay where he lived in a store front. He experienced the bugs, the lizards, climbing coconut trees for food, bathing in a bucket, baptizing in the local creek, going to church in a mobile home, no phones, no mail service, traveling over an hour to zone conference every month, the monsoon rains, the typhoons, the floods, the insurgents in the hills, crazy companions, the strange culture and food, the swamps, being the only white person around and towering heads over the people, and learning a new language. He also experienced the great power of prayer and learning to love people in poverty. Wow, what an experience.



Cherie had a different experience in every place she went. She had tender moments of learning about the power of fasting and prayer when her love for a part member family brought the father into the church. Later she had the experience of going to the temple with them to see them sealed as a family. She had an outstanding missionary experience but had her trials too. In one place it was the cockroaches, another the slugs, then another place the frogs coming up through the sewer. I must have sent her three umbrellas that either got lost or stolen. The mud was so deep in the streets that one time she lost her shoes. The pictures she sent home showed how much she loved and experienced the culture. Her Spanish improved over time but at first she had her trials. One time she got up to bear her testimony in Fast meeting in Spanish and a Primary child came up to ask her if she had spoken in English. Another time she bore a powerful testimony to a lady that she was teaching and the lady turned to her and said, "I didn't understand a word you said." Cherie learned through experiencing the culture too. She would go to the grocery store and every time a man would follow her around and sing to her. Such is the life!!!



Kristen's experience in Norway was an experience in strengthening the members. She loved meeting with the members and giving service. In Drammen her first area she met, taught, and attended the baptism of Stephan. She still communicates with him and learns about how his powerful testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ has grown. Learning the language was also a challenge for Kristen and she came home so quiet that I was wondering what happened. She told me that for the first six months of her mission she did not talk very much because she was did not know the language. By the time she left for college she was back to her old self. Kristen lived above the Arctic Circle and in the cold. She bundled up with scarves, boots, winter coat, and mittens. She watched the kids ski to school and stoked the fire in her apartment to keep warm. Kristen went to Hell Norway for Zone Conference and then back to her town Bodo named aptly "living death" in Norwegian. Her experience with the elderly women in her mission gave her memories that she will never forget. She loved her companions and enjoyed naming her bike.

Jenessa is ready to go to Rome and is looking for the missionary stuff that she will need for her mission. Shoes, dresses, backpacks, and other essentials are on her list. I'm sure that when she finishes with the material things she needs and the spiritual preparation she will become just as wonderful a missionary as her brothers and sisters. She leaves on February 18th.