The Mighty Baltic Mission

This weekend I went to my mission reunion. I have only been to one reunion previously and that was in 2006, so it's been a long time since I've seen everyone. (It seems like there was always something else going on or we went to Mitch's reunions instead of mine.) I had two mission presidents, the Barrs and the Wattersons. The Wattersons just got home in July, so this was the first reunion they attended. It was neat to have both presidents there. (The Barrs live in Australia, President Barr was actually born in Lithuania, his family fled during WWII to Australia. President and Sister Watterson live in Colorado Springs.) President Watterson spoke and of course he cried. I had forgotten that he cries every time he speaks. It's just a tear or two, but it's kinda funny. I'll admit it though, I cried when I heard President Barr and President Watterson bear their testimonies. They are both amazing examples to me of great faith and dedication to the Lord. I look up to them and their wives so much.They are very wise and noble people. I hope I become more like them.

This is me, Britt, and President and Sister Watterson

I had so much fun catching up with fellow missionaries. My MTC companion., Sister Strait (Britt), and I ended up being companions again in Lithuania and Latvia. We were companions for half of our missions. We had the best companionship and we're still best friends today. I am so glad I could spend the day hanging out with her, we don't see each other often enough. I enjoyed seeing the elders I served with all grown up and married. Most of them are pursuing competitive educations and will do great things with their lives. I truly served with amazing people.

Britt and I as comp.s in Vilnius, Lithuania

We built this cup model to relieve our stress. We would
shoot down the cups with our plastic b.b.s. The cups said things
that stressed us out like fleas, Elder Smith, drunk men, the bus, below
zero tempertatures, frost bite, falling on the ice, etc.
This is Britt and I today.

This was our district from the MTC. This pic is towards the end of my mission. Far left: Nathan Lott, Natalie Waites, Me, Brittney Strait, Troy Thomas

As you can see in this pic if you click on it, Elder Thomas (far right), has a huge chunk of skin missing on his forehead. That's because the day before he ran into a light pole while walking down the street. It was so cold outside that a chunk of his skin got ripped of his head and stuck, frozen, to the light pole. It looked nastier than it does in the picture. Don't worry, as you can see in the pic below it didn't scar.
Those of us who could make it last night:
Far left: me, Brittney Jones, Nathan Lott, and Troy Thomas

I hadn't seen Nathan since I left the mission on May 31, 2006. At that time he was an AP and took Britt and I to the airport to go home. It was great to see him last night after over two years. He looks exactly the same. Troy, Britt, and I have hung out a couple of times over the last two years. He's a cool kid. He and Nathan will both be at BYU-Idaho this year if any ladys are
interested ... let me know! They're both great guys and I look up to them a lot.
This is Britt, Spencer Shell, and I.

Spencer and I served together in Riga, Latvia for my last 6 months. Me, Britt, and Spencer finished our missions at the same time and Spencer and I flew home together as he is from Sandy. He helped me a lot when we got home. I missed being a missionary and coming home was such a difficult transition. I cried every day for the first two weeks. Spencer (though he won't admit it now) had the same problem, so we talked a lot and helped each other out. I was glad I could visit with him at the reunion and catch up with him.

I am thankful every day that I could go on a mission. Sure, I have some physical ailments now as a result: bad hips, S.A.D. in the winter, stunted hair growth because of nasty water in Lithuania, a strange cough, flea bite scars, etc. It was the hardest thing I've ever done, but I grew more from those 18 months than I have any other time in my life. I loved being so tired (mentally and physically) at the end of the day, knowing I had done my best to spread the Gospel to the people of the Baltics. I love the Russian people. I love their stubborn, unwavering, enduring conviction in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I love the Gospel and my Savior. Not a day goes by that I don't think about my mission and I will never forget what I learned there.

Now this weekend I get to be uplifted and enjoy General Conference. I love conference time and always find myself rejuvenated afterward.
As President Watterson would say I feel so blessed to have been part of "The Mighty Baltic Mission."