Email from Mom: Saturday, October 16, 2021

From: Mom
To: Christian.garcia@missionary.org
Date: Saturday, October 16, 2021
Subject: Hey!

How are you? How has your week been? I have been thinking a lot about you and your decision to serve a mission this last week.

I cannot imagine the feels one must have as you fast and pray about a decision you have in your heart but then to have that prayer answered that serving a mission would be a good choice and one that the Lord supports. But it doesn’t stop there. You have to at that point then continue to work alongside the Holy Ghost and the Lord to prepare to receive a call. Once your call comes in and your adrenaline comes back to normal levels, your work amplifies in the preparation of leaving home. For most, you included, this will be the first time away from home. (Imagine the feels as your Mom!!) Your preparation days as you know it then become more intense as you are set apart as a missionary and you enter the MTC. For you it was extremely different in that you did that at home. The MTC is another stage of the preparation required in order to go out and serve the Lord as He needs you. It is also preparation for you as a companion to serve alongside another Elder who is learning similar things as you are. All of these steps you take even before you meet face to face with someone who is longing and looking for ‘different’ for their lives. Common denominator is preparation. So. Much. Prep.

Each day you are in Africa you continue to prepare to meet those the Lord has somehow touched their hearts and/or their minds. Each day I am at home I have preparations that I do in order for my day to be productive as a Mom, a wife, a Relief Society President, a friend, a neighbor, etc. And we both are promised that if we keep the Lord in the forefront of our preparations that He will use us to the benefit of those around us. What a blessing to be a part of these last days and to know that we individually have a responsibility to gather Israel and that we are being relied upon to do what it is we agreed to before we came to the Earth to have this mortal experience.

You choosing to serve a mission has been hard on my heart some days but mostly because I selfishly miss being a day to day part of life. But those days are few and far between because when I find myself missing you I hit my knees and the Lord reminds me how blessed we all are because of where you are at this very moment. Thank you for making this choice. Thank you for working through the tricky and the hard. Thank you for being willing to carry the name of our Savior on your name badge day in and day out. I pray as each day continues to move on that your heart is converted to the Gospel and that your love for your Heavenly Father grows minute by minute. I pray the things of home and the friends/relationships that are here are not the focus. I pray that the Lord is guiding and showing you EXACTLY what it is you are to be doing in His name while you are away from home.

Words will never be enough to let you know my love I have for you and for the choices you have made this far in your life. You make me proud each day and I love being able to share updates about what you have going when people ask. Your mission is strengthening and building testimonies here at home too.

I love you to the moon and back
Mom

a lady that travelled to Ghana recently brought back a couple of nativities and offered them for sale on the Missionary Mom page I follow. Although Ghana isn’t your mission I knew I needed to have it. And I love it. The wood is so pretty.

I made some cookies to ship to Randy. He is a big Yankees fan so I guess if I was going to take the time to do cookies which I haven’t done in forever…Atlanta cookies for the win!

B had to build a car for a race at school. This is what she came up with and she even included a driver named Agatha

it snowed at the cabin but the Fall colors are still absolutely stunning