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| Santiago Chile MTC |
We ate our last meal with our daughter Tuesday at The Red Iguana in Salt Lake. I tried hard not to think much about what would happen in a few hours. But as my daughter Rebecca sat next to me, I could feel the nervous excitement in her.
Dropping her off at the Salt Lake airport was definitely tearful. It’s definitely a bittersweet experience. On the one hand you are excited for this time in your child’s life and at the same time you’re wishing they were staying home with you.
We were excited to see about 6 missionaries at the airport who were also headed to Santiago. Of course I buzzed around talking to several to find out which mission they would be serving in. We found out later that 26 of them were on her flight headed to the Santiago MTC (Missionary Training Center) and 2 more joined the group in Atlanta. On the flight they had the fun opportunity to answer questions about the Church with passengers.
To be honest, I followed her flight most of the day checking the Delta website often to see when her plane arrived in Atlanta and that it for sure arrived in Chile. What else is a mother to do when they send their child thousands of miles from home?
Rebecca arrived in Chile Wednesday morning, tired but excited. We were happy to receive a quick email from her that afternoon. What a relief! We will hear more from her each week through email, and will Skype with her at Christmas-time and Mother’s Day.
Some people may wonder why we don’t talk more on the phone to our missionaries. Too much communication from family can be a distraction and does not help missionaries focus on their work. It also adds to their homesickness. So, I am fine with the weekly email and have always looked forward to it coming in my Inbox when my sons served their missions.
She will spend 6 weeks in the MTC learning Spanish and also how to teach the Gospel. I am excited that my daughter gets to have this great experience. She is a wonderful example to me of faith and obedience. Only 548 days until she returns!
