We will never be the same

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On New Year’s Eve in 2018 we joined our children and grandchildren at a cabin get-away before we left on our mission. While there, Butch challenged each of us to choose a characteristic that we would like to work on during the coming year – a virtue that would stretch and refine us. I chose patience, because I like to get projects moving and have a hard time wondering why others don’t feel the same way. He had us write the name of the characteristic on a rock to remind us to keep working our goals.

Being the ‘maximiser’ that I am, when the topic of personal growth came up a second time at the Mission Training Centre, I decided to again choose patience as the virtue I would work on for the next two years. Butch selected charity as the Christ-like attribute he would increase in his life.

Little did we know at the time that mission life, in addition to pandemic self-quarantines, stay at home orders and lockdowns, would provide ample opportunity to practice patience and charity; sometimes with myself and mostly with each other.  We were blessed and even challenged; spiritually, physically, emotionally and mentally. When we set out, we felt prepared, but quickly found that there would be a lot of learning to do and adapting to the circumstances we found ourselves in. All in all, the mission experience was a time of growth on a personal level and as a couple and we will never be the same.

Looking back on our mission experiences has helped us recognise God’s hand our lives and focus on our blessings. Here are a few things we learned and loved.

What we learned:

This is God’s work and His work continues even through imperfect people like us and many times in ways that we don’t understand. It was amazing to see how time and distance diminished while working remotely from the US. We were also strengthened to see how the skills and interests of all missionaries are put to work.

Mission work is hard. While many of our blog posts highlight exciting and fun adventures, the reality is that the majority of the work took place in the office or remotely at home; answering phones, attending meetings, writing stories, articles and scripts, emailing and following up with others, researching and even cleaning the Church building and bathrooms where the office was housed. As missionaries, it was about adapting and doing whatever it takes to get the job done.

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The United Kingdom is full of faithful Latter-day Saints. As a people they are thoughtful, courteous and kind. They look after and care for the missionaries who are far from home. It wasn’t unusual to find a box of chocolates at the office left from a new friend or receive an invitation to dinner or the theatre or to have your birthday remembered in kind ways.  One of our wedding anniversary, we were busy supporting a media event north of Manchester when our friends Kevin and Barbara Fletcher slipped us a note and picture along with some A&W root beer, which is hard to find in England. 

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History runs deep in Great Britain. Everything has historical meaning. If you were to compare the UK to Mesa, the UK would be the great-grandparent and Mesa would be a pre-teen. History is everywhere and we embraced it. In fact, Butch being the storyteller that he is, took many of our visitors on a walking tour of Warwick, which included a stop at Saint Mary’s, a beautiful church built by the Earl of Warwick in 1123. On one of these tours we were with our daughter Kelli and her husband Bert and noticed a lady following us. She finally approached Butch and told him that all ‘tour guides’ were required to sign in at the desk. He explained that we lived in Warwick as volunteers serving a two-year mission for our church and enjoyed brining our friends to Saint Mary’s. When she learned this, she asked him if he would be a volunteer at Saint Mary’s too; as a tour guide. He politely declined, but what a compliment to be asked.

Our children and grandchildren are amazing! They were such a great support to us and made a special point to video chat often. We loved those calls! Our family rallied around us when we unexpectedly returned home March and filled our homesick hearts. They supported us once again preparing our home for our arrival when we returned home for good in February.

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It takes nerves of steel to drive a car in England, and even more when someone else is driving and you are in the front passenger seat. While we were both able to get UK driver’s licences, we definitely have a whole new appreciation for anyone who can drive on the left side of the road and navigate narrow roads and roundabouts.

I was also reminded of how well-loved and resilient my husband is. He especially enjoyed kidding around with the young missionaries and helping them keep other members in the loop of missionary work taking place within the congregation we attended. When we would experience obstacles in our work, he was usually the first one to keep going and come up with a plan B, C or D.

During lockdown, you can be dressed comfortably for online meetings. Butch’s favourite trousers for all of our virtual meetings were in reality pyjamas (yes, this is the correct spelling in Britsh English) and I wore slippers to work every day.

What we loved:

British food favourites: a full English breakfast, crumpets, fish and chips, bangers and mash, scones, clotted cream, Yorkshire pudding, rashers, meat pies, sticky toffee pudding, toad in the hole, and Bird’s custard.  

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We also loved castles, cobblestone streets, old churches in every village, swans on the River Avon, green rolling hills and sheep and lambs all over the countryside and learning about the royals.

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We never tired of listening to people the UK talk and hearing their different dialects such as; Scottish, Welsh, geordie, and brummie to name a few. We did much better understanding what they were saying when we were face to face. In addition, we have adopted a few words and phrases into our vocabulary such as; squirty cream, massive, brolly, rubbish, XOXO, loads, sorting out, straight away and crack on.

Spending time in the London and Preston temples was choice. Each time we were able to go, we were strengthened spiritually and it refocused our perspective. We pray that the time will come soon for temples to fully reopen in England and all over the world.

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One high point for Butch was returning to parts of England where he served as a young man from 1973 – 1975. God knows your heart and his reunion with a former companion and friends who joined the Church during that time was a tender and treasured time.  It was also humbling for him to return to his roots and for us to train the entire Manchester Mission missionaries during their zone conferences and led them in discussions surrounding the best way to answer questions about the Book of Mormon Musical. It brought back nostalgic memories and hopefully left an impact on the younger elders and sisters about how important their work is. No words can express . . .

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While we were aware of the work of early missionaries and converts who shared and embraced the gospel of Jesus Christ, we came to have a deeper appreciation and love for those who went before us. Many of our ancestors are numbered among the early pioneers who left their homes and livelihoods in England and immigrated to the United States. They crossed the plains, some under great hardship and joined with other members of the church in Utah and then Arizona. Any sacrifice or offering that we may have made doesn’t come close to what they did. It was humbling to serve in their home country and hope that we have honoured their legacy in a small way.

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Lastly, we loved serving together. We always planned on serving and in fact when things were going well and even when life was a struggle, we would often turn to each other and say, “We’re living the dream. . . ” How many times in your life do you have the opportunity to consecrate two full years of your life to the work of the Saviour? We can tell you that we will never be the same and hope to carry a measure of that consecrated effort throughout the rest of our lives.

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This is the final post for BodinesOnAMission. We hope you’ve enjoyed our blog and will consider taking some time to talk with missionaries who you may come in contact with. Thank you for joining us on our journey.