The Drama of Transfers 

Liz’s sister, Patricia and her husband, Joel, came and spent a few days with us.  We went to dinner with them their first night.  Saturday, we drove to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum (about 90 miles) and spent 4 hours remembering history.  I was impressed with the principles he promoted. Freedom and Liberty, reducing the size of government, lowering taxes, building the military, human rights, and several others.  His thoughts on freedom and democracy were so succinct, yet meaningful.  And his love for Nancy Reagan was unquestionable, and vice versa.

Afterwards, we went to dinner at a place called Castaway in Burbank. It is located on a hillside with a wonderful view.  Our dinners were amazing! So were the prices. We enjoyed being with Pat and Joel.

Two weeks ago, we took 15 missionaries to the airport who had completed their 18-to-24-month missions.  It was also Transfer Day where many of the missionaries are moved to a new area and /or receive a new companion.  Sometimes the anticipation of transfer day can be palpable.  The mission president and his assistants study long and hard to make certain that the right missionaries are in the right areas with the right companions.  The mission president’s son, Henry, 16, put together a little video about transfer days that is fun.  The mission president made a cameo appearance. 

The next morning, we took another 15 to the airport.  Then a few hours later, we returned to the airport to pick up 20 new missionaries!  This is an exciting time for both the returning and the arriving missionaries.  Those who are returning have mixed emotions.  Most are excited to return to their families, but some are a little apprehensive to begin the next phase of their lives.  Where will they go to school? What will they major in?  How will they be able to afford an education? Many will need to find a job as soon as they return.  Lots of decisions.  While missionaries are on their missions, they only need to juggle a few balls (study, service, find, teach, etc.) and their focus is on Christ and helping others.  Their days are planned out with their companion.  Some ask to extend their mission for 6 weeks.  Some really don’t want to go home because of all the good they are doing, and how it makes them feel.  It is fun for us to drive some of them to the airport and to listen to their conversations with their fellow missionaries.

"My Plan" for missionaries

To assist them in making the adjustment to “civilian” life, each missionary is supposed to follow a “My Plan” outline to think about their homecoming, to define their goals, consider how they will maintain the habits they learned while on their missions in terms of study and service, what their plans are for getting an education and for dating.  The senior couples in the mission are asked to mentor these returning missionaries for the last 6 weeks, spending about 30 minutes with them each week.  It’s been fun to get to know them, and to hear of their plans; what they are excited about, and what makes them a little nervous.  We mentored 4 during their last six weeks.  These are delightful young men and women who have much more confidence than they had when they arrived.  As we listen to their answers to the many questions in the My Plan outline, they will often ask us how we did something, or how something worked for us as individuals or a married couple.  Some of their questions are quite deep.  Sometimes we’ll ask them questions they had not thought about.

Several times I have shared an experience I had with my brother David.  When Liz and I were first engaged, he invited me to lunch (he paid) and basically said that I was now taking on larger responsibilities and I needed to consider taking care of the new family that I would be starting.  He talked about life insurance and health insurance, both topics I had no idea about.  It was an eye-opening conversation for which I was very grateful.  I have asked these returning missionaries some of the same questions, and they are generally clueless.  But we encourage them to visit with their parents, their bishop, and others who might be able to offer a little direction.  The pictures included in this blog are of those missionaries we go to know during the last 6 weeks.

The Sunday after they returned home, 3 of the 4 spoke in church.  So we attended our own ward, then raced home to attend 3 missionary Zoom meetings, and another Zoom meeting where my new bother-in-law was speaking.  That’s a lot of church for one day!  Last Sunday, the last of the 4 missionaries spoke.  Each of the 4 missionaries talked about what they had learned and shared some experiences they had while serving.  Their testimonies of the restored gospel were heart felt, and very impactful.

I was impressed with one sister missionary we took to the airport.  Liz and all the missionaries were inside the terminal getting checked in and saying their last goodbyes. The mission president and his assistants were leaving and had walked across the street to the parking lot to drive back to the office.  Sister Pozos suddenly came running out of the terminal calling them to stop.  She wanted to get a copy of the Book of Mormon to give to someone she just met while standing in line to check her luggage!  She was an excellent missionary and was going to continue doing missionary work right up to the very end.  She was leaving it all on the field, with no regrets.

We are enjoying our mission, serving with the young missionaries. Since they refer to us as Senior Missionaries, I think we should refer to them as Junior Missionaries. They are excited about the work they are doing and are wonderful examples to all of us!  We enjoy working with the other “experienced” missionaries in the office.  They are wonderful people and always willing to help in any way they can.  We will miss the McBrides when they return home in September but look forward to getting to know their replacements.

You know you are having a bad when...

As the Vehicle Coordinator, I recently had to prepare cars that were being retired from our fleet for transport to the auction. One of the larger auto auctions is right here in Riverside, just a few miles away from the mission office.  When the car hauler comes to take our cars away, I'm impressed with how quickly they can load them onto the 2-lever trailer.  The other day, I was taking one of the cars for a spin that I had to jump-start.  I happened to drive near the auto auction and saw this car.  If you look closely, the front wheel is not where it should be on the trailer.  I'm glad I'm not the guy who has to drive the retiring cars onto the trailer!  

One last bit of news, not related to the mission:  

Our son, Martin, was recently hired to be the General Manager of the Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront hotel! He and his family will be moving to the Portland area, and are working on finding a comfortable house to purchase. He will begin on August 2^nd.  While disappointed we can’t be there to “persuade” them to live close to us (he naturally wants to have the shortest commute possible), we are thrilled that they will be living in the area, close enough for us to Grandparent, and we are excited for him to have this opportunity!  They received an offer on their house in Salt Lake City last week.  Kendall and the girls will be joining him in about 12 days as she wraps up a few photo shoots for her clients in SLC.   This has happened very quickly, but it feels like it is all coming together for them.  When he arrived in Vancouver last night, he texted and said, "It feels good to be home."