Return to Sender

So, I am expecting a letter from my mission president, who is currently in Bolivia. I have reason to believe it was mailed on December 1, 2013. And today, January 25, 2014, I still have not received it. This gives me reason to believe that correspondence through mailing letters while on my mission will be a little inconvenient. Luckily, I will be able to e-mail once a week! Now, the point I am trying to make here is that, yes, I would greatly appreciate the occasional random letter in the mail. But I want to hear from people weekly, too! So here are some tips on what could be sent in e-mails, and what might be worthy of a letter in the mail

Holidays

• Please send me Christmas cards! Birthday cards! Valentine's Day cards! Leif Ericson Day cards! 

Make me cry

• If you feel so inclined, write me a thoughtful letter. About how much you miss me, or fond memories we share, or plans you have for us when I come home! Old-fashioned letters are a great way to express some feels!

Make me laugh

• Fill your weekly e-mails with all of the embarrassing moments you've had that I missed out on! I will be painfully awkward in another country, where I can barely speak the language, and nobody gets my jokes. I don't want to feel alone!

Keep me updated

• Tell me about your classes, your new boyfriend, the new boy you've been stalking on social networks, the new sandwich you tried at Panera, the new movies you're going to re-watch with me when I come home! Mention it to me in a weekly e-mail, or write a detailed movie critique and mail that sucker!

Pictures!

• E-mail me every prom picture you can get your hands on! And any other goofy pictures you can find. Mail me pictures of weddings, or awkward family photos, or anything I can hang up that reminds me of home!

Do whatever the flip you want!

Honestly, anything and everything you send me will make me unbelievably happy. I know a lot of great people, and I will miss everyone so much while I am away. I know you all have your own lives to attend to, and writing to me will not always be at the top of your list. But anything you can scratch down, or just a quick "I miss you. Hope you're safe." Or I'll just see you in 18 months! Do what you want, what you want with my address.

(*Bonus HP reference: owl post, anyone?)

Holy Smokes

Well, my mom and I are on our last night in California. We came out to stay with my great grandpa while his daughter (My great Aunt Dayna, who usually takes care of him) was out of town. And let me tell you, for a 93 year old man, he's quick as a whip.

Edward Donald Wright is probably my favorite person in the world. (Well, I guess he found out later in his life that his birth certificate actually says Everette Donald Wright, but he thought it was Edward most of his life!) He is just so sassy! He told my mom and I several times that he might just keep us around. Thanks, Grandpa. I am so happy that you kind of like us.

Being here has been quite the learning experience. It's interesting to hear stories about my grandpa's life, and how different things were for him than they are now. He said when he was a kid he had a paper route that took him all over Dayton, Ohio, and then worked in a field all day, where he raked in a whopping 50 cents

Grandpa was a mechanic by trade, and owned a few garages in his lifetime. He told us a story about a priest he was friends with that was going on a trip out of town and really needed new tires, but he couldn't afford them. One day, my grandpa let him borrow his car to go play golf, and when he returned my grandpa had put 4 brand new tires on his car. The priest said "Don, I cannot afford these." But my sweet grandpa said not to worry about it. They were paid for. Now, my grandpa is not Catholic, and the priest told him he knew members of the church who wouldn't even do that for him. Finishing up this story, my grandpa said "it all comes back around". 

I have learned so much this trip, and have so much respect for my grandpa. He's had a long life with countless trials, but he does his best to appreciate the countless blessings.

The funnier parts of this trip were grandpa being way more impressed with my mom's iPad than the pictures she was trying to show him on it. Or his "medicine" (whiskey) he had every night with his dinner. And he kept asking me if I told my sister that I had been swimming outside in January, and how he wished he could see her reaction to it. He's an old spit-fire, that man is, and I love him so much.

The greatest man I know

Harry Potter Parallels

Similarities between the Harry Potter Series and my mission:

Being assigned to a mission is like being sorted into a house at Hogwarts. Like the sorting hat, an Apostle sizes us up and decides what mission is our best fit. And, based on my Pottermore account, Bolivia Cochabamba is the Gryffindor of missions.

The Missionary Training Center (MTC, or my spanish-speaking one will be a CCM) is like Hogwarts. Where I will be for 6 weeks to learn my powers of choice, missionary lessons.

Parseltongue is my mission language. Really, it's Spanish. Like there's a difference. At first, it will be terrifying, but later I will see how much it will bless my life. Just like my boy Harry.

Ron and Hermione are two extremes of companions I will probably encounter. One who is well versed with excellent execution, plays by the rules, and is a little bit of a know-it-all. Another who is a little bit of a goofball, with the occasional case of the murmurs. Both bold and caring with a lot to teach me.

Dumbledore is my mission president. Wise from years of experience. He will always be there to answers questions, provide support and comfort, and will definitely not be shy about putting me in place when I need it.

Voldemort is the adversary. Pretty self-explanatory. Don't worry, I'll beat him.

50 Days of Sydney

I'm sure you have all already heard that I will be serving a mission in Bolivia through my church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I have been getting a lot of questions about it, and rightfully so, because it seems pretty random from an outsider's perspective. So, since this is the blog I (well, my mom) will be posting on throughout my mission, I thought I'd kick it off with a post about what my mission is and what the heck I will be doing.

Question #1: When do you leave?

Everyone must be pretty excited to be rid of me, because this is the question I get most often. I report to the Columbia Missionary Training Center on February 26, 2014. (Which is 49 days from today, but I rounded it to an even 50 for the sake of my witty blog title). However, I will probably leave the 25th, just to make sure I arrive on time.

Question #2: How long will you be gone?

18 MONTHS! I know, it's pretty crazy. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around exactly how long that will be. But I've been told that it will fly by. The first 6 weeks I will be in the MTC in Columbia studying Spanish and the missionary lessons, so I will technically only be IN Bolivia for 16 and a half months.

Question #3: Are you going with a group?

No, I will be the only person from the area going to Bolivia, as far as I know. But there will be other missionaries in the same situation, coming from all over the United States and other countries, that I will be with in the MTC and in my mission. 

Question #4: Where will you live?

From my understanding, I will live in an apartment with other sister missionaries, or with families who are members of the church already.

Question #5: Do you get to call home/will you have a cell phone?

I get to call home on Christmas and Mother's Day. That's it! But I can e-mail once a week and write letters anytime I have a spare moment! My mailing address will be posted on this blog somewhere, and you can contact me before I leave for my e-mail, or my mom after I leave. I would love to hear from anyone and everyone while I'm gone. But I will have limited response time, so I may not be able to respond right away. But my mom should always update this blog with my weekly e-mails to her.

Question #6: What will you be doing?

This is probably the most important question. My purpose as a missionary is to Invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance,baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. While I will do service while in Bolivia and have opportunities to sight-see, learn a new language, and experience a new culture, my main purpose is to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people of Bolivia. I am leaving my family for 18 months so that I can help other families learn about their Heavenly Father, Savior Jesus Christ, and how they can be together forever. 

 This is the day I received my mission call. The calls are done on inspiration, so I had literally no idea where I was going. It could have been pretty much anywhere on Earth. Bolivia is pretty random, but I love it and I know it is where I am supposed to be.

My best friends since middle school (Brittany left and Trisha right) came over to watch me open my call. We're pretty hype.

This is the temple in my mission, the Cochabamba Temple. Isn't it beautiful?