and she's gone again

Emily has been home from her mission for nearly a month.  It has been a month of family time and great help at home. I can't tell you how nice it has been to have a cheerful, hardworking, beautiful, respectful, courteous, organized, fun, entertaining, thoughtful woman in my home.  . . and to think she is my daughter!  She had some great experiences on her mission in Bolivia.  She gave it her all and came back even better than before.  When we love and serve beautiful things happen to those we serve and also to us.

This photo depicts some of the special things of her last 18 months from the journal to the Preach My Gospel  manual to her Spanish scriptures.  The Book of Mormon is much darker than the Bible because this is what she was sharing and teaching so much to the people of Bolivia.

My personal favorite is the brush she brought home and continued to use until we finally got some shopping done.  That simple worn out brush symbolizes selflessness.  It is the desire to lose yourself in the service of others.  It is learning to be content with what you have and making do.  It is that touch of green that is her favorite color.  It is my little girl becoming a woman of God, a daughter in His kingdom, a tool in His hands.

She is gone again.  Off to college, to the next phase of life and to more great and good things.

grateful:

131 missions change lives

132 small evidences of big sacrifices given quietly

133 I got to drive Emily to college, help her get settled and get her some groceries

134 for GPS even though it took me on rough gravel roads, through abandoned farmlands, up small mountain roads I did finally find a major highway and people.

135 enough gas, air condition that worked and windows that kept the really big grasshoppers out.

136  family parties that bring together distant cousins.

137  extended family dinners every month

138 free peaches on the side of the road 

139 taking our extra corn and squash to church and having other people take it home.

140 trying homemade J dogs.  Pretty good.

141 finding this picture on my camera and remembering the muddy clothes on the back lawn and that all this happened because a couple of 16 yo boys went fishing?  (they did not catch any fish)