Wait...you mean it's been over a month since I opened my call? I really can't fathom that, and I can only imagine how quickly time will pass while I'm on the mission. However, to celebrate this landmark I'll tell a story!
Last semester missions were on my mind almost all the time. I spent a lot of time watching interviews with RMs (Prepare to Serve Youtube Channel and website) and just learning about the places and people I might see. Eventually, as was bound to happen with so much exposure to missions, I had a dream. I think it was around October that I had my first dream about opening my mission call. In my dream I pulled the paper out of the mission call envelope and read something like "the New York, New York Mission." I thought that was interesting since I could totally have seen myself going to New York with it being such a melting pot of cultures and all. However, I didn't dwell on it too much.
At least not until a month or two later when I had my second dream! This time it was a little farther from home; I remember reading "France." I think the name of the mission started with a T, so maybe Toulouse? I wasn't sure. That was crazy to me because I loved France and French so much, so I really didn't know what to think. I remember telling a friend here at BYU-H who served in Paris about it and he was pretty stoked even though it was just a dream.
I went home for winter break for about two and a half weeks, returning at the beginning of January. I had been home maybe a week when I had my third dream. This was the clearest of them all, I distinctly remember reading, "the Taiwan Taipei Mission." That was ridiculous and amazing to me because I had been studying Mandarin, I had a friend who had just been called there, I had made friends from Taipei, I'd been learning some Chinese martial arts, and there were other things that seemed to point toward Taipei. I was in awe when I woke up from this dream because I felt like I'd basically received an answer as to where I would serve even though I tried to think of it as just another random dream.
So those were my three dreams! Those contributed quite a bit to the strong feeling I had that my mission call would have a personal connection to my life and my experiences. I would have been stoked to go to Russia for example, but I was almost certain I wouldn't because I have no connection to Russia. However, I had no idea that my call would be that personal. Two of my favorite languages and basically my favorite country in the whole world? Who would have thought? (granted I've only spent one day in Paris and that was my entire experience in France, but it was fantastique nonetheless).
As the title suggests, I report in 2 months, just 61 days! I've had an appointment to renew my passport, talked with people that served in my mission, congratulated other friends on their calls to Ohio, Brazil, Portugal, Utah, Japan, Nevada, Guatemala, etc. and have been working through the missionary preparation guidelines on the missionary.lds.org website, as well as studying French and Mandarin throughout. I feel like it's been a productive month, but I still have a loooooong way to go before I'll feel ready to serve. Still, I know that even if I feel ready to go I'll get to the MTC and out into the field and realize how unprepared I really am, but that's when I'll really have to trust the Lord to make up the difference and help me be an effective instrument in His hands. I love my Savior and I'm so incredibly grateful for the love that He has showed me and the opportunity that we all have to be forgiven of our sins so that we can return to Him at the close of our lives.
Last semester missions were on my mind almost all the time. I spent a lot of time watching interviews with RMs (Prepare to Serve Youtube Channel and website) and just learning about the places and people I might see. Eventually, as was bound to happen with so much exposure to missions, I had a dream. I think it was around October that I had my first dream about opening my mission call. In my dream I pulled the paper out of the mission call envelope and read something like "the New York, New York Mission." I thought that was interesting since I could totally have seen myself going to New York with it being such a melting pot of cultures and all. However, I didn't dwell on it too much.
At least not until a month or two later when I had my second dream! This time it was a little farther from home; I remember reading "France." I think the name of the mission started with a T, so maybe Toulouse? I wasn't sure. That was crazy to me because I loved France and French so much, so I really didn't know what to think. I remember telling a friend here at BYU-H who served in Paris about it and he was pretty stoked even though it was just a dream.
I went home for winter break for about two and a half weeks, returning at the beginning of January. I had been home maybe a week when I had my third dream. This was the clearest of them all, I distinctly remember reading, "the Taiwan Taipei Mission." That was ridiculous and amazing to me because I had been studying Mandarin, I had a friend who had just been called there, I had made friends from Taipei, I'd been learning some Chinese martial arts, and there were other things that seemed to point toward Taipei. I was in awe when I woke up from this dream because I felt like I'd basically received an answer as to where I would serve even though I tried to think of it as just another random dream.
So those were my three dreams! Those contributed quite a bit to the strong feeling I had that my mission call would have a personal connection to my life and my experiences. I would have been stoked to go to Russia for example, but I was almost certain I wouldn't because I have no connection to Russia. However, I had no idea that my call would be that personal. Two of my favorite languages and basically my favorite country in the whole world? Who would have thought? (granted I've only spent one day in Paris and that was my entire experience in France, but it was fantastique nonetheless).
As the title suggests, I report in 2 months, just 61 days! I've had an appointment to renew my passport, talked with people that served in my mission, congratulated other friends on their calls to Ohio, Brazil, Portugal, Utah, Japan, Nevada, Guatemala, etc. and have been working through the missionary preparation guidelines on the missionary.lds.org website, as well as studying French and Mandarin throughout. I feel like it's been a productive month, but I still have a loooooong way to go before I'll feel ready to serve. Still, I know that even if I feel ready to go I'll get to the MTC and out into the field and realize how unprepared I really am, but that's when I'll really have to trust the Lord to make up the difference and help me be an effective instrument in His hands. I love my Savior and I'm so incredibly grateful for the love that He has showed me and the opportunity that we all have to be forgiven of our sins so that we can return to Him at the close of our lives.
,Que Dieu soit avec vous
Garrett
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