The Most Important Thing is to Have Fought Well

This past few weeks I have reflected on the Olympics and remember back to when I became hooked on watching them.  It was 1976.  These were the games when 14-year-old Nadia Comaneci caught everyone's attention by scoring perfect 10's in gymnastics.  I became interested in Nadia, not because of how she could maneuver her body into almost impossible positions, but because we were close in age and I became intrigued when I heard how she had sacrificed pretty much all of her short life to pursue her dreams as an Olympian.  I think hearing her story made me believe you could do anything if you wanted something bad enough.

This year I have anticipated watching the summer Olympics for the last several months.  Now that they are here, Ray and I will find ourselves glued to the television, especially interested in the human interest stories of the people who will capture our hearts these next two weeks. 

We always think that athletes competing at the games go there with the goal of bringing home the gold, but the Olympic creed gives the Olympics more significance than the pursuit of gold.  It reads, "The most important thing in the Olympic games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph, but the struggle.  The essential thing is not to have conquered, but to have fought well."

I can't wait to begin watching the games tonight and see those who succeed, but what I look forward to even more is hearing the stories of those lesser known nations, like Laos, who in every event will likely come in almost last.  I have no doubt they understand the Olympic creed better than any other athletes at the games.  They know that the most important thing is not to win, but to take part and to have fought well. 

I think we could all learn a thing or two from them.

It's a Lost Art

Today a small miracle happened.  There in my mailbox amongst all the junk was a handwritten note.  It was a thank you note from a young man and his new bride.  It brought a smile to my face.

This may not seem like a big deal, but it is.  You see, many couples seem to have forgotten how to say thanks-"Thanks for taking time out of your busy life to share our special day, thanks for spending your hard earned money on a gift for us, thanks for being a good friend, thanks for sending a gift even when you weren’t able to come".

Most young people, I am sure, had parents who taught them proper etiquette. So what exactly is their excuse?  Is their newlywed life really that busy?  Did they not like the gift?  Are stamps too expensive? 

In the last year I've done a little unscientific research.  I paid attention to every wedding thank you note we received.  At the end of one year I discovered that I could count them all on one hand.    Mind you, in Utah, we get invited to and send gifts to  A LOT of wedding receptions, so that is really not impressive. 

Okay, maybe I’m old fashioned, but is it really too much to expect a thank you?  I would like to even be so bold as to suggest that couples should limit their guest list to the number of people they will be able to properly thank.  Maybe that’s being a little too harsh.  After all, in the Bible only one of the ten came back to say thank you, so maybe I should be thinking that one in five is actually pretty good. 

Anyway, kudos to the classy couple who sent the note in the mail today.

I have spies

It really is a small world.  Since Mitch left on his mission a few things have happened to remind us of this.
 
First,  when we pulled up to the curb to drop Mitch off at the Missionary Training Center, we stepped out of the car to get his luggage from the trunk and there standing on the sidewalk right next to our car was a business associate and friend of Ray's, Tom Morgan and his wife, who were in the MTC attending the new mission president seminar.

Then the whole thing about Elder Mansfield being in his district (see previous post).

 
Then this morning, Ray received an email with the above picture from a Salt Lake Gallagher coworker who is vacationing in New York with his family.  He had searched the church's website to find a ward to attend today and was surprised when the brand new missionary was called to the pulpit and introduced himself as Elder Hussey from Roosevelt, Utah.  Since Mitch has only been in NY a few days, we hadn't heard from him yet so didn't even know which area/city he had been assigned to.  Thanks to Sterling, now we know.

I have always teased my kids that Mom has spies out there.  Maybe one of these days they'll believe me.

Coincidences

Shortly after Mitch received his mission call, I received an email from one of my good friends from high school that I still see about once a year.  She has a son the same age as Mitch.  She asked in the email if Mitch was going on a mission and told me that her son, Austin, had received a call to Nebraska and was entering the MTC on June 27^th.  I replied telling her that Mitch also reported to the MTC on June 27th!  We emailed back and forth a few times saying how glad we were that they were staying in the United States, wouldn’t it be neat if our boys could meet, that that they should look for each other at the MTC, etc.

A few days before he left I reminded Mitch to watch for an Elder Mansfield.  He reminded me that there are thousands of missionaries in the MTC, with several hundred new missionaries each week, so it was pretty unlikely that he would meet him.
The day after we dropped our sons off at the MTC, Kerry and I were talking on the phone about how the last few days had been.  I told her how Mitch had requested homemade oreos at his farewell and how disappointed he was that they were gone before he had gotten one.  Since I was still in SLC, I told her I was thinking of making oreos for him and taking them on Friday to one of those same day MTC delivery places.  She thought it was a great idea and said she should send cookies to Austin too.  I suggested that since a batch makes a lot, that I should just make them and share the batch with her and maybe in a week or two she could make cookies and do the same.  

The next day I went to her house with the cookies and we boxed them up for our boys.  As we addressed the packages we were surprised to discover that Mitch’s and Austin’s MTC mailbox numbers were the exact same.   I had also just received our first email from Mitch & he told us about his companion, Elder Chapell, and how he wasn’t going to New York like rest of them in his room, but was going to Omaha Nebraska.  That is the same mission Kerry’s son is going to!   So we stood in her kitchen and figured out that our boys have got to be in the same district (group of 8-12 missionaries).  We also talked about how they were likely to share their packages with the guys in their district.  We laughed about what their response would be when they got similar packages from their moms, on the same day, with the same individually wrapped homemade oreos in them.   We wonder if they will put two and two together and figure out that they were the ones they were told to keep an eye out for.

Always Remember...

Isn't it supposed to be easier the second time around?   Whoever said, the best kept secret in our church is how hard it is to send a missionary, is probably correct. 

I know, I know, I really would be sad if he wasn't going, the time will go by faster than I think, etc. etc.  Right now none of that matters.  It is hard...maybe even harder than it was last time we did this.

It has been difficult to watch Mitch say good-bye to his friends and his family.  He has been super emotional and there have been moments that I've wondered if he is going to be okay.

Our parting words to each other were these..

“Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think."

This quote comes from a discussion Christopher Robin had with Winnie the Pooh about the two of them being separated from each other.  It's one of my favorites and gives some consolation to me on a day like today. 

  

I just may have to wake up and tell myself this every morning for the next 2 years-

Farewell

“Apparently, they still will call you on a mission even if you haven’t grown a foot or two”

This is how 5’5” Mitch/Elder Hussey opened his talk last Sunday and it cracked the congregation up.  Our family has laughed out loud several times since then about him saying this, and thinks it is one of the funniest (inside) Mormon jokes we’ve heard. 

He also talked about going to Kanab a few weeks ago and how he didn’t have a way home and the adventure he had finding someone to give him a ride to SLC so he could stay overnight to get a cab early the next morning to the Greyhound station then take the bus the rest of the way to Roosevelt.  He compared that to our life on earth and how Heavenly Father has sent us here, and it is not always going to be easy, but it is our job to do whatever it takes to find our way back to Him.  It was a great analogy.

As Mitch leaves, it has been hard for him to say good-bye.  He has been unsure and a little bit worried about a lot of things, but he also knows the Lord will bless him and he is ready to serve.

Culture Shock

What an amazing 10 days!  We just returned home from China, and while I wasn’t sure what to expect, it was one of those experiences that almost can’t be put into words.  We really live in a bubble and are clueless about how most people in the world really live.

Here are just a few of the things that shocked me:

Most babies in China don’t wear diapers for long.  By the time they can walk, they wear open crotch pants so they can relieve themselves wherever nature calls.

Also, the one child policy is mind boggling.

Chinese people are really tall.  For some reason I expect Asians to be more my size.  Not in China.  They are also very trim (most likely because they walk everywhere and eat no sweets).  And they can effortlessly  put their bodies into some really strange positions.

Everyone there was very loud.  They talked in an “outdoor voice” all the time.   SEEMED LIKE EVERYONE WAS YELLING BUT THEY WERE JUST HAVING A CONVERSATION!

The women are extremely modest-we saw no midriffs, no plunging necklines, and very few shoulders.

The traffic there was insane, with no apparent rules. 

The bathrooms.  Nobody told me how happy I'd be to find a "western" toilet and not have to squat.

I knew the government was very controlling, but didn't realize how many things aren’t allowed and are blocked...like Facebook.

The food was strange, but it wasn’t as hard to take as I thought it would be.

There are “temples” everywhere, yet very few people seem to be religious.

Lastly, I was surprised by how pleasant the people were.  They seemed very content with their life and believe they have everything they need and want.


Every time I leave the country I come home feeling even more blessed.  I’ve said before that the way I judge a vacation is whether I would want to go back and take family and friends.  We had a wonderful time and it really was a ton of fun to be there with our family.  While I would tell my friends they should definitely go if given the opportunity, I think I will check China off my bucket list.