My Italian Missionary

Here she is the Italian missionary ready to embark on a new adventure in serving the Lord. Look at the glow of happiness in her face. She is ready to learn the I-tal-ee-an language and to have an 8 week initiation into service in the Provo MTC. Notice her orange dot on her name badge. Yes. That does mean that she is just beginning her trek down the hall to the chapel.

As we walked down the hall I peeked in the eating hall (it was lunch time) to see if I could spot our other family missionaries, Scott Miles (going to Columbia) and Braden Olsen (going to Provo Utah) but I didn't have any luck. I thought how lucky they were to be waited on in the mess hall with lots of good stuff to eat.

We left the Miles home late that morning (about 10) and did some last minute errands before going to breakfast at Villiage Inn. Jenessa had a free breakfast because she was a new missionary. We had a feast laid out before us: Omelets, orange juice, pancakes, toast, jam and jelly, and hot chocolate. So after we were full of eggs and pancakes we finished our errands and then headed up to the MTC. They had everything totally organized that morning with signs everywhere and people everywhere to show us where to go.

That morning we had to stop at the Missionary Mall to buy Jenessa a missionary bag so that she could zip up her stuff and carry it along with her as she walked the city of Rome. There she is pointing to her Rome Italy mission. She is pretty excited about the place that she is going. I can guarantee that those I-tal-ee-ans are in for a big treat when Jenessa gets there. Oh, by the way. She is now called Sorella Miles and will be called that for the next year and a half. Is she not the most beautiful sister missionary (besides her sisters Soster Miles and Hermanna Miles)?

When we drove up to the MTC Jenessa, as one of the first give ups for a long time, had to 'give up' her phone. Oh, that was really tough. She lives with her little white phone, but she was willing and ready to sacrifice her social connections for her mission experience. I had to promise her that I would do and not do certain things with her precious phone. I know that this will be one of the greatest sacrifices that she will have as she works on focusing her energies in serving the people of Italy, her companion, and being a representative of Jesus' church. I believe that this experience will help Jenessa grow in ways she never thought possible before.

Leaving the luggage before we went into the door, I thought of Jenessa's shoes. She searched all over to get just the 'right' shoes for her mission. Jenessa in the end only took 3 pair of shoes. I watched her as she packed her boxful of shoes and headed off to the shoe capital of the world...Italy. I wonder what adventures in shoes she will have. Cherie lost her shoes in the mud. Kristen patched her shoes together. Kent's shoes fell apart in the tropical heat and Jonathan bought new shoes in Germany in the middle of his mission. Shoes are important to a missionary that will walk hundreds of miles on their mission.

We met Marva and my Dad as Jenessa came out of the luggage depository. But where was Kent? I knew that Jonathan had to work and is sick with a very very bad cold. We enjoyed visiting with Jonathan and Janilee earlier in the week as we celebrated Kent's 26th birthday. By the way Kent now has his phone back so you can call him at the same number. I wondered if Kent would even make it so we took the picture here without him. There we are in front of the flags: Marva, Dad, John, me, and Jenessa.

Entering the doors of the MTC was a big step. Jenessa went in one door and we got to go in the other. I thought it was interesting that they had us go in separate doors from the beginning. Here is Jenessa going in the special new missionary door all alone. It is her last act all alone. From now on she will be with a companion 24/7. When Jonathan got off his mission that was the one thing that he commented on...he did not have anyone with him anymore. You can see the reflection in the glass of where everyone else is going.

I have pinned Cub Scout badges on my children, Boy Scout badges, and Young Women awards but I think this will probably be the last badge that I will have the opportunity of pinning on my children. Look at the happy look on Jenessa's face. She is so excited to begin her mission. Yes. I am happy too. I love to see my children grow and develop into wonderful adults. GO Jenessa! I can't wait to hear about the wonderful experiences that she will have on her mission. I hope that she will remember that missionaries are there to serve. When Kristen came home from her mission I could see the growth and change in her. She was very service oriented.

There's Kent. He was pretty sneaky and snuck up behind us when we weren't looking. SURPRISE!!! He just happened to be driving by the MTC and thought he would come in a take a look to see if he could find anyone he knew. He found us when he disguised himself as a family member who was lost. We were just sitting there minding our own business and here comes the best surprise for Jenessa. Kent-ls showed up to wish Jenessa the best on her mission. He gave Jenessa his brotherly advice, took sneaky pictures with the camera, and then disappeared into the crowd. That was the best.