The Road to the MTC II

At 1:45, on Tuesday, July 19, 2011, Mountain time, Peter started a countdown, "24 hours!", on the hour every hour. 

 On Wednesday, July 20, 2011, Talmage awoke early to be Elder Urmston's companion. He watched him wake up, then brush his teeth, and start his scripture study at 6:00am. At 6:10, Tamage fell asleep. We went for the traditional photo shoot with Aunt Leslie in Benjamin, Utah at 8:00. We had fun with the poses and no tears were shed.

We returned to the Provo and got the last minute packing done. Luggage was weighed, and the contents were prioritized into "items ditched first if the luggage is overweight". No tears were shed.

At 12:00 we had a family meeting. All family members were asked if they had any last words. A Father's blessing was received. A few tears were shed.

At 12:30 we went to JDawgs at 880 North 700 East Street Provo, UT 84606 with Aunt Emily and boys, and Grandma and Grandpa B. We met up with sarcastic cousins Candice, Cooper, and Kait at the previously mentioned JDawgs with the special sauce. No tears were shed. Several other missionaries were there with their families. "Hey, you're going to the MTC? What time? Where you going?" No shedding of the tears. 

At 1:35 we ended up at the temple parking lot for pictures and drop-off strategy. We determined to put the Elder in the very back of the car to be the last one out, the photographer would be the first out, while the rest readied themselves for hugs. Garrett would only go for the luggage, in the trunk, when given the sign that everyone had given their farewells.

At 1:45 we arrived to a host of smiling missionaries welcoming us to the MTC. We were directed to drop-off #20 and everything went as planned. No tears were shed. We watched the boy/young man excitedly walk off with his host companion, striking up a conversation, "What's your name? Where are you from? Where are you going?"

As we drove out of the parking lot at 1:50 and turned the corner onto the main street, tears were shed. The cousins were instructed to say something sarcastic.

 

The Road to the MTC

We had a good drive to the Utah on Monday, July 18, 2011. The trip went surprisingly fast considering we only listened to General Conference talks, Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and classical music. We were in Barstow close to lunch so we asked Porter what he would like to eat for lunch. Peter mentioned In&Out. Porter said yes. Elaine claimed that Peter was picking the place and not Porter. Porter said if they had a Chipotle, he would like to eat there. We ate at Chipotle. The trip to Las Vegas was uneventful and we stopped at St. George for gasoline. There is a San Jorge in Guatemala in Porter's mission. We may have veered from the mission rules and listened to "Throw Away Your TV and Get A Life!" by John Bytheway. From Cedar City to Fillmore we dodged orange cones like the Astroids video game. Excuse the language--rumproids video game(doesn't sound much better). The travels were interspersed with memories of Porter but mostly the stresses of having everything packed and getting everything on a plane in three weeks. We talked about the MTC and the great ladies in the travel office, meals and meetings, branches, districts, zones, and companions. We asked Porter if he believed people when they said he was going to be a great missionary. He modestly mumbled some things. As parents we assured him that people just didn't say such things. Over the past year, and when he determined for himself to serve a mission, we have seen his faith , his humility/dependence on the Lord, and his joy in obeying the commandments/doing the right thing all increase. For these reasons we know he will be successful--Faith, Humility, Obedience. We arrived at Provo and before we reached our destination, we had one last stop, a last supper, at In&Out. Everyone ate their favorite burger and got a shake for a Family Home Evening treat. It was Monday after all.

Happy Birthday Talmage

Talmage is 12 years old.