i'm glad they called me on a mission

it was five years ago yesterday that i entered the missionary training center and got ready to ship out for 18 months as a missionary in japan. and it was just today that one of my freelance clients asked me to tone down the "sex and alcohol metaphors" in some copy i had submitted. how are the mighty fallen!

going on a mission had never been a serious consideration in my life plan (problems with 19-year-old boys as the boss and all that), so no one was more surprised than me when it became clear that serving a mission was just the thing i needed to do. i am not totally convinced i would do it again (it is always harder to do things once you know what you're really getting into), but i also wouldn't trade it for anything, not even a husband, a bunch of babies, a nice house, a graduate degree or a higher paying job. or anything else that people managed to acrue while i was knocking on doors and eating fermented bean paste. a lot of the most important things that i know, and a lot of the most important things that i am, came from that mission.

for example, i know that cap'n crunch with chocolate milk for every meal is just plain not good for you. (the elders taught me that one.)

i know that a handwritten letter can make everything seem better.

i know that you can still love people even when their choices hurt your heart over and over again.

i know that running a hot plate, a microwave, a fan and a stereo at the same time will kill the power to an entire japanese apartment building.

i know that, a lot of the time, when things get really, really, really hard, something better than you could have imagined is just around the corner.

i know that God loves all his children.

i know that there is no such thing as a "last chance."

i know that you can dip your meat in raw egg, eat it and not throw up on the branch president's rug.

i know what it is to experience true, and well-earned, joy.

i know that i can survive even the bitterest of disappointments.

i also know that i can survive even the bitterest northern japanese winter.

on a related note, i know that you can wear one pair of thermals, three pairs of nylons, one pair of regular tights and one pair of wool tights and still be able to bend your knees.

i know that if you pray for answers, they will come.

i know that you can learn to love just about anyone.

i know that a well-tied kimono will make you pass out from lack of oxygen in less than 20 minutes.

i know that no matter what language you are speaking, or attempting to speak, if what you are saying is good and important and true, it will always be understood.

i know that i can do hard things.

and i am grateful for it.