Missionaries

Today was the last day for two years. Two years, 24 months, 730 days, 17,520 hours, 1,051,200 minutes, or 63,072,000 seconds that my parents are gone. My only correspondence with them will consist of letters, emails, and occasional phone calls to keep them in touch with my busy life as a senior in high school. They are leaving to serve the Lord in the New York, New York North, Public Affairs mission as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am so happy for this opportunity they have to serve. This moment is bittersweet though I as I contemplate the family events they will miss and the void that their absence will create in my life. For seven years Dad and Carolyn had traveled from Florida to Arkansas then back to Florida while I tarried in Utah with my mom and a majority of my siblings. When they finally returned to live in Salt Lake I could never had been more excited; I was finally going to have that father-figure in my life that had not been physically there when I was growing up. Now as I have to give them up again to the wonderful people in New York, I feel selfish and want to keep them all to myself, at least until I am graduated and living more on my own. I do not write this in anyway to worry them or any of my family, but I cannot keep these emotions in while I suffer through the drama of high school. Because of their willingness to serve, I know that I also will be blessed as well as my entire family. How wonderful that will be to notice things in my life and be able to attibute them to the mercies of the Lord. So many missionaries leaving ranging from my parents to Jeremy, Jason, Josh, Sean, Cody, Curtis, Andrew, Jon, Spencer, Pettit, Jess and so many more that I cannot even begin to start naming. They all mean the world to me and I am so proud of the choices they have made that have brought them to this spot. I love you all!