Thursday, July 1, 2010

OPERATION


Not just a classic Milton Brothers game. Currently the story of my life.
So, here's the story:
For those of you who for some reason still don't know, I am not currently in the mission. In fact, I am currently on my couch in Eagar. I've been home for a week last Wednesday. It was all VERY sudden. One day I was out teachin' and preachin' the next President Davis was in my room telling me how he hates to send missionaries home. I said, "Great! So don't." He just smiled and said he appreciated my humor and my desires to serve. Gee thanks. Then he kept talking and I was kind of zoned out not really listening. Then he said, "So, you'll be on a plane either this weekend or sometime Monday" What?! This was on a Thursday. He stood up ad told me that he appreciated my understanding and shook my hand. That's when I started crying...a lot. He ran and got his wife and had her hug me because he couldn't hahaha
The weekend passed without another word. Then Monday morning came and still nothing. I began to be hopeful that maybe in his packing up his house, he had forgotten me. No such luck. For our P-day on Monday we went to the mission home to give them a going away present from our zone. Still not a word. He and his wife just kept looking at me giving me a sad smile. Nobody in my zone knew except for my companion and my zone leader. As we were leaving to go to the city center for the rest of P-day, he came to shake my hand and said, "I'll be calling you...soon" and I said, "No thank you." He just laughed.
Well, he called that night and said "Hermana Elmer, you have an interview with me tomorrow at 10am sharp." I said "President, our zone interviews are on Wednesday, tomorrow is only Tuesday." He replied, "That's true, but yours is tomorrow." Great
As I walked in he began talking again about how he hates to send missionaries home. Then he got right to the point and said, "Well, here are your flight plans. You leave from Arequipa today at 6:30, meaning you need to be at the airport all ready to go at 5:30. From there you will fly to Lima......blah blah blah...and 24 hours later, you will be home in Eagar. I suggest you leave some time in your schedule today to get packed. We are hopeful that you can come back and serve here in the Peru Arequipa mission, but I just can't tell you for sure. You may be reassigned state side to a mission with cars, still Spanish speaking though!" Gee, that's great, thanks.
I packed and got myself all two blocks over to the airport. My companions and pencionista (lady that cooks our food) and her family and some ward members were there to see me off, along with President and his wife and a couple of office elders. I said my goodbyes and didn't even cry...till I got to the tarmac. I boarded the plane and was still crying. I looked up and everyone was staring at the sobbing gringa with the funny name tag. I took my seat and silently cried. All the way to Lima.
President was right, 24 hours of planes and airports later I was back in Eagar. This was Wednesday evening. As we pulled into town and drove past the Stake center I said, "Oh, is President Hunt there right now? I'm supposed to talk to him." He was and I did indeed talk to him. He said, "Well, you're released. Do everything those doctors tell you to and we will get you back out there soon..." "Any questions?" Only about a million that I suddenly couldn't think of. "Do I have to take my tag off?" "Yes" "Oh..." "Not right now, you could wait a minute or something"
I got home and took it off. It hurt. It all hurt. Leaving those amazing families and and missing baptisms. Just dropping everyone and everything within a few hours. All for some stupid operation that I really didn't immediately need. I could still walk, so why was I going home? I even asked President that once as I was begging to stay till the end of the transfer. "Well, if you were MY daughter......"
So I had said operation yesterday. Clear up until post-op I had been told that this surgery was to fix a torn meniscus in my right knee. Turns out my meniscus was perfect. Instead the doctor did something to realign my knee cap. It was completely to one side and that's what was causing all of the pain and popping and clicking and catching and inflammation. Weird right? This operation doubled my recovery and physical therapy time. 6 weeks was magically turned into 12. I've found in all of this to expect the unexpected, and that I really don't know anything anymore.
I have learned that I don't see the reasons. I can't keep asking "why" or I will actually just go crazy. Someone knows why. The Lord knows why. I have to trust in Him and His reasons. Maybe someday I'll get to know, maybe not. I'm along for the ride. Entonces, vamos a ver.

3 comments:

  1. You are such a great person. I know you will get better and still be an awesome missionary wherever you go. I will bring you cookies when i come home to help you get better faster.

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  2. I know I wouldn't want to be separated from my mission for one minute, let alone twelve weeks. Still, it's a good thing the Lord always has His reasons for everything! :D You will be in my prayers Anna. Here's to hoping for a speedy recovery so you can get back to Peru!

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  3. Oh Anna I do love you so!! Your testimony and example always inspire me and I'm praying that you heal well and soon. The Lord does know everything- and unfortunately, we don't. Someday it'll make sense though.

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