Elder Daniel Tolman: Chapter 39: A Familiar New Area

I'd like to start with a mystery. wHeRe iN THe bLAzeS waS LaSt WEek'S emAiL??

Alas! It was caught up in the chaos of a recent development...which is likely even more **shocking** than the tardiness of this message. Is that dramatic enough fer ya? Everyone's on the edge of their seat? Boy oh boy let's dive right into this!

Another transfer done! There was a LOT of apprehension about the news for this next transfer—which is funny cause we also got a lot of information leaked to us through the mission's underground network of informants. Since our mission has been losing a lot more missionaries than it's gained, we fully expected that our area was going to shrink down to one companionship. Between the elders and sisters, who would they want to keep? The sisters, obviously. We were sure Elder Rhodes and I were going to make like the House of Israel and get scattered. Elder Rhodes had such high hopes to spend his last transfer in Rancho Peñasquitos.

The news? Imperial Beach is still vibing at full strength! Sister Ward's sticking around, and Hermana Archunde was on the verge of becoming one of the first sisters on bikes in the mission, but then...she got her visa! She's headed off to Peru. Oh, yeah, there are sisters on bikes now! We had someone spoil that news to us a week prior. I'm sure there are other missions where that's not a big deal, but it's quite the change in San Diego. They're starting off with a couple companionships who were consulted about it beforehand.

As for Elder Rhodes, he'll be dying in Imperial Beach! Fourth transfer in a row there. He'll be teaming up with Elder Provencio (Elder Meilstrup's missionary son!), and all I can say is if the members liked our companionship, they'll CERTAINLY like that one. As for me, well we'll get to that. :)

First, a couple things from the week. We got to do service cleaning up Libby's front yard one morning! The opportunity was simply marvelous. Weeding, raking, wading through cobwebs, and ripping up the remains of an old fence. We were privileged to have a lad and two lasses at our side. PLUS, there were ample fortunes of good luck all throughout. A ladybug lighted upon my back, and one of our trusty fellow workers found a lucky penny. Then again, two giant spiders went galavanting across my shoulder and up my leg, so maybe that cancels out the fortune... If anyone's an expert in omen mathematics, let me know.

My last member meal in the area was with a newer family in the ward. The father is the second nuclear engineer I've met in the area, and it's really fun making a huge deal about that occupation. Actually, a quick fun fact on that topic. Did you know that a nuclear reactor going critical is actually its desired state? Contrary to the movies, it's not "Everyone evacuate! The reactor's going critical!" Critical just means that the amount of neutrons being produced matches the amount being consumed. No excess energy, no deficit. "Everyone celebrate! The reactor's going critical!"

Baaack on topic. As we were on our way to this fantastic family's home, a couple in a golf cart nyoomed along the street, and with a "Hey! Elders!" they pulled up beside us. It turned out they were members from another stake, and they were visiting a place they own in Imperial Beach. We chatted with them a bit and then they offered us a ride (we had locked our bikes up at the pier). Our journey down the street accelerated significantly, and a couple minutes later, we discovered something positively charming. The couple lived in the exact same complex as the family we were visiting! Their units were only a couple doors apart. They offered to join us on the doorstep so they could introduce themselves, and it went over very well. That evening featured some awesome discussions, and sacred experiences were shared. It's always mind blowing when you have an experience with deep personal meaning and then later find yourself in a discussion where that experience relates perfectly with what someone else is talking about.

Time to disclose my fate! I'm transferring to a service mission! That's to say, I'm a service missionary as I write this! The word count on my name tag just went up by two. I've been enduring some health concerns over the past 9 months, and it's raised an interesting dilemma for me. When do you stick something out, and when do you make a change?

The fact that something isn't easy certainly isn't an indication that it's not worth diligently pursuing. In fact, usually that's an indication of the opposite. Elder Holland's message of persistence in his BYU talk "Remember Lot's Wife" helped me realize this during one of my lower points. I listened to it in my second transfer, and it helped me let go of the crushing home sickness I faced as I was still training. If we turn away from an endeavour at the first sign of discomfort, or even the second or third sign, we are dismissing what that experience has to offer and the potential wonders the future holds. Even when circumstances seem dire, the pain seems too much, and the purpose behind it seems feeble, the greatest growth and the greatest reward often come when you stick it out anyway.

Here's the rub though. Does this mean everything is to be put up with? Of course not! To use a trivial example, if my clothing is tattered and torn, I could use it as an opportunity to exercise patience and remind myself that looks aren't important...or I could just buy a new set of clothes. Yes, some supposed 'problems' simply need to be accepted for what they are, and one grows wiser by doing so, but others can simply be solved, and we SHOULD solve them as soon as we can.

I once had the pleasure of acquiring an eye infection. My eye was bloodshot, it constantly felt like it had an eyelash stuck in it, and half my vision went blurry. For a full week I put up with it, telling myself it would get better in time and that I needed to demonstrate grit. However, finally, I decided it would be a good idea to schedule a doctor's appointment. The doctor asked me how long it had been going on, I told her, and she exclaimed "Goodness you are patient!" I don't think she was referring to that as a virtue. I was given prescription eye drops, and within a few days, the infection cleared up.

Someone has reccomended a service mission to me before, and my adamant response was, "Hmmm.... NO. I was called to San Diego, and in San Diego I'll stay. To the end. There are people I have yet to find; lessons I have yet to teach. What's more, I haven't proven myself yet; to my family, my God, or myself. If things are hard now, that only shows that I'll be all the stronger in the end." And I think that was the right answer at the time. There are people I needed to meet over course of the past few months. Conversations I needed to have. Hopefully God positioned me to touch others' lives with equal meaning, whether I noticed it or not.

About a month ago, however, the prospect of transferring to a service mission surfaced again. Though prayerful about that matter, I knew God rarely presents us with a "right answer" when it comes to personal decisions like this. I resolved to come up with my own answer, and simply ask that the Lord direct me if His will was different. With all the resources available to me, the best answer I settled on was to press on teaching in San Diego. And...in a more distinctive way than I've experience before, I found myself corrected.

Some time after my decision, the thought of transferring kept returning to my mind. I consulted President Merritt about it, and he immediately told me he believed it was more than just a thought, as he and Sister Merritt had each been praying about it, and each independently felt a service mission would be right for me. So, there ya have it! With barely a week to process it, I transferred to the Salt Lake City South mission on the 23rd. I think my main takeaway is that though endurance is powerful, it is not always what God expects of us. Sometimes He simply requires our humility.

I bade a fond farewell to Myron (who has been revealing a strong testimony of the Spirit World and a strong faith in the Kingdoms of Glory!!), and we had a final lesson with Alexander (who has been reading the Book of Mormon on his own and has great reading comprehension!!). For my final lesson with Francisco, we brought our ward family history consultant in, reviewed family history and temple work, and got him set up with a FamilySearch account!

There are a few tragedies about not staying a full two years that I had to accept, among which was missing out on all the things departing missionaries get to do; departing testimonies, a departing temple visit, and a special lunch at the mission home where you are served President Merritt's legendary homemade "Grandpa's Ice Cream". Missionaries hear about that last treat on day 1 in the field. Guess what though? After our last lesson with Alexander, we got a call from President Merritt. Even though I don't technically count as a departing missionary, he personally invited Elder Rhodes and I to go to the mission home that evening so I could secretly partake of the fabled ice cream! I was super touched, and returning to the mission home gave me a nice feeling of closure as that was the first place I stayed at in the field.

Friday morning was a blur. I needed to be at the airport before transfers, so most of my goodbyes to fellow missionaries had to be said over messenger. Plenty of people to miss. Elder Meilstrup, Elder Tausinga, Elder Rogers, Sister Snow, Sister Ward, Hermana Garrett, Elder Cox, Elder Mickel, Elder Rhodes, Elder Larsen, Hermana Christian, Hermana Archunde, Elder Nielsen, *sigh* and so on. But, I have another "guess what"! This past transfer was Elder McLean's last, so we were on the same flight home! No parent should have to see their child die, but at least we went down together. We had a great time sitting in the terminal reminiscing over memories from Calexico.

The past week has been pretty bizarre, catching up with family, working on getting my service assignments together, and meeting my new mission leaders. The options and flexibility of service missions are incredible. I'm super excited about the opportunities! It's looking like my main assignment will be in the Global Services Department in Salt Lake City, where I could have a hand in various church-wide functions, such as managing referrals for missionaries in the field and working on the Gospel Library App. I was also told about a position as an editor in church publishing, which would be wild. I'll be touring both locations soon, so we'll see what happens! I've also got 3 other opportunities for the rest of my time! I'll be an ordinance worker in the Oquirrh Mountain Temple, I get to help out at the Road Home Shelter, and...get a load of this last one...actually, a little backstory first.

A few months ago we were sitting at ward council in Rancho Peñasquitos when we had a couple special visitors. The service mission leaders in San Diego were joining us to discuss potential service missionaries in the ward. While they were there, they also had a special presentation about a pilot program the church is coming out with this year. What is this program, you ask? Drumroll please...

They're beginning to combine service missions with proselytizing missions!

When I first heard that, I thought, "Wow, it's super cool that they're doing that", and now, turns out I'm going to be a part of it! haHA! Fate thought it could keep me from teaching, but it schemed in vain!

This seriously is such a tender mercy. One of the biggest griefs I was facing was the prospect of not being able to teach as a missionary, since that's truly what I love most about this calling. But, as it happens, teaching opportunities will be plentiful! Talk about having your cake and eating it too XD.

More specifically, the mixing of the missions means: *clears throat pompously*

•Instead of having separate mission leaders between service and proselytizing, the service mission leaders now fall under the mission president, so we all work as one unit.

•Service missionaries get to attend Zone Conferences!

•The organizational structure of service missions is shifting to match proselytizing missions (districts and zones instead of just districts).

•Service missionaries can join a companionship of proselytizing missionaries to form a trio, or go on splits with them. Sounds like this encompasses both teaching and finding, and it can be as often as we choose!

I can't wait to dive right in once I finish location tours and interviews! They've also assigned me to be district leader, so they're not shy about throwing the new guy under the bus. XD

Bishop Rider's family just happened to be visiting Utah the same weekend I returned, so my parents and I set up a time to meet up with them. They were down in Saratoga Springs to attend the temple open house, so we had breakfast with them there at Denny's and I got to share one last message with them (the Rider's refer to our lessons as "Snippets" cause they love it when we include videos in them).

Mmkay, I had a lengthy fancy shmancy ultra spiritual thought to end off with, but the email length has kept up its habit of getting away from me, so I'll save that for a future week. Instead I'll write out a quick blurb I shared this past Sunday.

Everyone's testimony is unique. Each has its own strengths and intricacies. Each has points of certainty here and points of faith there. Our differing experiences entail this. What's cool is when you realize that knowing something, believing something, and merely desiring to believe in something aren't all that different in God's eyes (Alma 32:27). They all look heavenward. And, if anything, God values our uncertain decisions more than our certain ones (John 20:29, Alma 32:16, 3 Nephi 12:2). Where do you lean upon experience that has been graciously given to you, and where do you lean upon faith?

When we know something, that is a gift from God. When we believe something, that is our gift to God.

God be with you,

Elder Tolman

•