Dear Hughes Elder and Hermana Hughes,
You will need to just print out this letter and mail it because it will be too long to read during your hour on the computer. SO much has happened! I hope you don't mind that I'm writing both of you together. Tuesday afternoon Sage and Rebekah tended while we went to the temple together. (Sam was in Boston with Michael at a Dale Carnegie training.)
Wednesday was a traumatic day. This is what I wrote in my journal:
We’ve known for over a month that we would be set apart today, and got up early to be ready. Stewart had an appointment to go to breakfast with DeLoy Young and Perry Johnson, old friends from Bonneville Stake, and returned about 9am. We got dressed and reached Orem before 11 on order to be on time for our 1pm appointment with Elder Anderson. And about 11:15 we got a call from his secretary asking if we were on our way — the appointment was actually at 10:30 and they'd been trying to reach us! She graciously said that if we could be there by 12:15, Elder Anderson could still set us apart.
We dashed to the car! Fortunately everyone was dressed, although Sam didn’t have a chance to shower, and Sarah was still at swimming lessons. There was no one to tend the children because Rebekah hadn’t arrived yet, so Sage volunteered to stay home, even though we’d invited her to come. Sarah got home and immediately left without even feeding Oskar. All the way there I was wondering, “How did this happen?” “Why didn’t I follow the prompting to double-check the email?”, etc. I was so upset, and Stewart was very patient in calming me, and Fenton and Sam, who were in our car, joked about it and tried to ease my anxiety. It was a nightmare and I felt horrible.
We arrived and parked by 12:05, then waited until about 12:15 for the Smarts to arrive. We went up to Elder Anderson’s office while Rocky parked the car, and Elder Anderson greeted us very graciously and waved off our apologies for being late. I was mortified. Elder Robbins was also very kind and forgiving. I felt love instead of the disappointment and condemnation I’d expected.
They visited with us while we waited for Rocky to come. Elder Anderson asked about our children and had me go through and tell about everyone. He asked about Unicity, and counseled Stewart that he can occasionally accept phone calls or meet with his sons to make significant decisions. He talked about Clive Winn and the story of the evil behind the smiling eyes, and of golfing with Stewart.
Elder Anderson talked about the timing of our mission call. He said he couldn’t remember if he put Stewart’s name in or not, but he said that it’s like what Elder Maxwell said, that if you throw out an idea and it doesn’t take on a life of it’s own, you should just let it lie there. The timing of mission calls is similar—and this is the right time for Stewart.
He suggested to Fenton and Sam that that they should get married in the Manila temple while we’re there! He talked about how they’ve discussed letting fathers come back for weddings, but have decided it’s best that they stay.
Elder Robbins explained his connection with Stewart of being in our bishopric and knowing Mom. He told Elder Anderson that Paul, my youngest brother, is the mayor of Centerville, and that he, at Mom’s request, worked with Paul on his Personal Management merit badge to pass off his Eagle right before his 18th birthday. And that Paul got a perfect score of 36 on his ACT!
Elder Anderson said we were well-prepared for this assignment and made us promise to tell the area presidency he wanted us to attend the cultural celebration for the new 100th stake in the Philippines the first weekend of September. He asked our children what they thought of our call, and Sarah said, “We weren’t surprised. They will be great!”
Elder Anderson talked about visiting Africa and the miracles there and that miracles happen occasionally in the church, but they are usually subtle. However, in missionary work the miracles are non-stop in the lives of the missionaries.
After glancing at the clock, Elder Anderson motioned for Stewart to take the chair to be set apart as he had a 1:00 meeting with the Missionary Executive Committee, including Elder Oaks, or he would have spent more time with us.
He set Stewart apart as president of the Quezon City North Mission and blessed him with the keys for the work. He blessed him that
—time of service will be a fruition and magnification of the gifts and talents you have been given
—you will have revelation you need and a vision for the mission
—bless you wife (she will receive her own blessing) and you will be blessed through your wife’s inspiration
—you will be warned of danger; be aware of spiritual warning
—your family will be blessed and strengthened.
—your business will be protected and prosper and will continue on the path you have set it on
—health and strength
—time of service will be a fruition and magnification of the gifts and talents you have been given
—you will have revelation you need and a vision for the mission
—bless you wife (she will receive her own blessing) and you will be blessed through your wife’s inspiration
—you will be warned of danger; be aware of spiritual warning
—your family will be blessed and strengthened.
—your business will be protected and prosper and will continue on the path you have set it on
—health and strength
Elder Anderson hugged him and shook his hand at the same time and Elder Robbins hugged him. It was sweet!
Elder Anderson invited me to sit in the chair and for Stewart to join them as Elder Robbins set me apart as a companion to my husband and full time missionary in the Quezon City North Mission.
—anxiety, worries about culture and changes would be swallowed up the the joy of service.
—protection from danger
—family blessed with health and safety
—gift of discernment to know the needs of missionaries and how to help them.
—anxiety, worries about culture and changes would be swallowed up the the joy of service.
—protection from danger
—family blessed with health and safety
—gift of discernment to know the needs of missionaries and how to help them.
They shook my hand afterward and Stewart hugged me.
Elder Anderson excused himself but invited Elder Robbins to stay and give us counsel.
Elder Robbins said we would see many miracles on our mission and suggested that I keep a record of them.
He gave us three items of advice:
1-Love your missionaries sincerely. They can tell if love is feigned.
2-Have high expectations
3-Teach effectively Teach the missionaries in with fun lessons in zone conference
1-Love your missionaries sincerely. They can tell if love is feigned.
2-Have high expectations
3-Teach effectively Teach the missionaries in with fun lessons in zone conference
He mentioned Stewart’s system of calling at EF Hutton and how that applies to missionary work.
He invited us to stay in Elder Anderson’s office after he left and suggested Stewart and I bear testimony. Stewart invited me to testify first, and I loved looking at the smiling faces of my family as I did. Then Stewart bore his testimony. Afterwards Dan asked for a father’s blessing, which Stewart gave him. Then we filed out of the office, thanking the secretary, Alisa Hale, for her kindness and patience with us. She told us not to worry, it all worked out, and if we’d been on time we wouldn’t have been able to stay and use the office.
I love my family and wish they could have all been there. And I'm sad about Sage, since I invited her and she was all ready to go, but due to our lack of attention and preparation, she wasn’t able to attend. But she was cheerful and uncomplaining and we appreciated her help so much.
On Friday morning, Amy planned a delicious breakfast for Megan Knowles and her boyfriend, Steve Thorne. She is visiting this weekend in Sandy to meet his parents, so Connie and Steve came from Oklahoma to meet Steve, and Megan and Steve came to Orem for a couple of hours. He seems really nice (pretty nervous at first) and she seemed very happy. I hope things work out between them.
Friday night we went to a trampoline place Sam's friend's family owns, and the children had a great time. During my haircut my hair dresser thought she found skin cancer on my scalp, but fortunately the dermatologist confirmed on Saturday morning that it was not.
And then Saturday after lunch we said goodbye and drove to the MTC. It was surreal -- people all around us were going on with our lives and it felt like we were entering another dimension. We got our name tags, missionary credit card, and then went to our hotel until the dinner at 5pm which was with Elder Robbins and all the mission presidents in his areas. (About 30) We met five of the other mission presidents going to the Philippines and listened to some funny stories of things that have happened in our area.
Then back to the hotel and a good sleep -- probably the last time I will sleep in until 6:30 then go back to sleep until 7:30, at least for three years.
This morning began with sacrament meeting where the speaker was President Eyring. He talked about taking Christ's gospel and his love to all of God's children, some of the opposition we may face, and how to overcome it. He said our missionaries are specifically assigned to us and to our predecessor -- so that must be true for you two, also.
Then we had lunch in a super crowded dining room because the real dining room is the auditorium now. We randomly sat at a table with Elder Arden (from New Zealand) and his wife who served as Area President in the Philippines for five years. They told us we have a beautiful mission home and gave us some advice.
Before the next meeting began, Elder Bednar reminded us to be quiet--that reverence invites revelation, and suddenly all the visiting stopped. Then all the missionaries were introduced and slides of us shown on the big screen.
Elder Oaks gave an introduction and counseled us to teach our missionaries that the sacrament is the central act of the Sabbath. Many churches use identical wafers to represent the body of Christ, but we use bread, broken and torn. Just as each piece of bread is unique, we are all different, repenting of different sins, and he encouraged us to think of the ways Christ's sacrifice applies to us, individually. He said what we take into our mouths is not as important as what we do with our minds.
Then Elder Brent Nielson, the Seventy in charge of the missionary department, told a riveting story (complete with slides) of the hurricane in Taclaban and the miracle that all 204 missionaries were safe. He said "a culture of obedience will increase the safely of your missionaries."
Then Elder Neil Anderson taught about finding. He had lots of slides and videos, and his presentation was amazing. He talked about the importance of setting goals for finding people and making plans to meet them. He said that finding is a "daily tutorial in faith."
Elder Lynn Robbins then held a discussion with our group on finding people to teach. He said that if a missionary has 60 hours of proselyting a week, he/she should be finding the entire time. We should be looking for clues about how to approach each person. He quoted Sherlock Holmes, "Watson, you see, but you do not observe." We need to make first connections with people that are meaningful. There were a bunch of GA's in the back, and Elder Kleibengat observed that whether or not a contact is interested in the gospel doesn't matter as much as approaching them and making a contact. By just speaking with someone in a kind way we are "warning", which is another duty of missionaries.A missionary can feel a deep sense of satisfaction at the end of the day, whether or not anyone was interested in the gospel.
By that time my head was so full of information I was feeling ovewhelmed! We met Elder Craig Christensen and his wife and talked about him calling Raymond. Then we went to dinner, sitting at a random table with Elder Wilfred Anderson and then Elder Hallstrom came and sat down by Dad. All the seveny are so kind and gracious.
After dinner we planned to go back to the hotel, but the Kellys (El Salvador) highly recommended the tour of the new MTC building. We decided to go on the tour, and happened to be in the group with Elder Brent Nelson and his wife and Elder and Sister Bednar. While we were waiting, Sister Bednar approached me and said she visited our mission recently and that our mission home is very nice. She was so kind! Meanwhile, Dad was talking with Sister Nelson who said she never learned Tagalog and was glad she didn't waste time on it because she would sound like a 4-year-old when she spoke!
Elder Bednar was joking with our guides (two sister missionaries), but at the end we sat in a classroom and watched a short video. Afterwards, one of the missionaries invited Elder Bednar to say something, if he wanted. He was on the back row, and he stood up and said, "As one of 15 men who are called to be witnesses of Christ, I know that is what I will be doing until I'm laid in the grave and then I will continue in the Spirit World." He said, "I testify of Jesus Christ. He lives. He is resurrected. The tomb is empty. I am a witness that He lives." It was the most powerful testimony I have ever heard. I felt he had seen Jesus Christ. The Spirit was so strong I was amazed!
I guess that's why we are going to serve. Because He lives and this is His work. Which is a good thing, because I wouldn't be able to do it on my own, no matter how much training I received. I am so thankful you are witnesses to the world and that you have this opportunity to find people prepared to receive the gospel.
There's a lot more but I am pretty tired. More later...
Love,
Mom
PS: Mark graduated Friday and they're on their way to Utah! Ask Abby to write you The Sad Oddessy of Their Cat.
