Be unstoppable

 Oh hi Bakey,

Just a short letter tonight because I’m having one of my hard to get to sleep nights. Mostly because I let mom talk me into getting a Diet Coke from McDonald’s later than I should have. Mom’s really excited because she got another job interview. It’s half kindergarten and half something I don’t quite understand. She’s very much in demand right now and I think she should enjoy it. She can tell you more about it herself.

I’ve been thinking of your situation a lot too. I figure you’re good with the mission President, although it’s also my guess that he didn’t give you a ton of comfort with the situation in general. I hope you feel like you can go through a temple session. You’ll get strength and guidance there, even if it just comes in the form of peace and calm. I’m going to fast for you tomorrow, I would have done it today, but I had lunch plans with a guy at work who I’d like to get to know better. 

What I’m about to say is probably 100% wrong, but there may be something to it. It also may just be racist and ignorant. When I was called to the high council, President Howell told me that he had be given the directive to choose stake leaders from the newer area of the stake in independence because they needed training to form and lead the eventual new wards. He told me that he was shocked that he got inspired to call me at all because I was from the established stake and quiet the doofus (okay, I just sorta guessed that second part). It occurred to me that a lot of the Mexican elders may be being supported on their missions, they may be treating it like a welfare vacation and may not have the drive to be there for the right reasons like you and others from the states (racist and pompous I know). I also wonder if your mission President feels like he needs to give those elders leadership experience because the area’s they’re from needs that experience, even if they are far from the best candidates to fill the leadership roles. 

I could be way off. But you’ve had and will have opportunities to lead in the church and in life. You have strong wards and leaders and I hope a family that can give you those opportunities. Your job now is to lead your own mission experience to have it be something you can live with, something foundational that you can build your own testimony on. I kinda feel like in your area you are swimming uphill in the snow. You have to drag your comp and fight your bishop. But here you have a baptism coming up, with the potential of several more. That has to have been a long time coming in that area and that’s the way the Lord recognizes and rewards your efforts. 

I can’t think of a more arduous mission than yours right now. I wouldn’t say this in front of Ben but it seems to me that his worst companion would compare favorably to your best one. Maybe Uruguay or Uganda or somewhere might be rougher than your area, but I’m not sure. I’m not trying to discourage you, the opposite in fact, I think you’re prospering and making the very best of it possible by your willingness to work. And you see more opportunities to work even more. That because you are gaining more capacity through your diligence and faith…and work. Keep at it, don’t worry about small or even large setbacks, just keep going. By doing so you’ll continue to get stronger, you’ll find more joy and peace in the work, you’ll have expanded success, and the time will go faster. I can’t promise that it will be easier though. But by the end this will have been like Karl Malone running up a mountain with a parachute dragging behind him, you’ll be strong, you’ll be unstoppable, you’ll have no regrets.

Love you kid, so much. You are ever on my mind.

Pops