Sunday, 11 A.M. Hinckely Building. BE THERE!

I want to inform you, if you haven't read this week's "Progress," that I am speaking in church this Sunday, the 15th. It's President's day weekend, so if you're looking for a get-away, come home! Come say hello (and goodbye) before I run away to Germany. :)

23 days . . . and random thoughts

Today's being February 2nd and all means I only have 23 days left before the 25th. Now, for the random thought. On the sidebar of my blog there is a picture from London of the Beast in a production of Beauty and the Beast. I quote, "I think this is an interesting interpretation of this story. It fascinates me because by the end of the play/movie/production, you LOVE the Beast! How could anyone love this alienated creature? He's a mixture of George Lucas' imagination and Christmas lights. He's scary looking! And tall! So . . . how do I love him? " I want to clarify something on that last bit. I am not opposed to tall people, in any way or means. Actually, when it comes to attractiveness, I prefer them. I'm short (tallest of the girls in my family, but hey . . .) My sons need a shot at tall genes somewhere! Anyway . . . random enough thought? yeah . . . it is.

I Nephi, having been born of goodly parents . . .

"What could you do better for your children and your children's children than to record the story of your life, your triumphs over adversity, your recovery after a fall, your progress when all seemed black, your rejoicing when you had finally achieved?"

President Spencer W Kimball

My sister Heidi loves quotes. She sent us a text a few days ago asking if we had any really good ones to maybe be her theme for the year. I think she's amazing at keeping a journal, and when I read this quote I thought of her. I'm an awful journal writer, if you count journaling as only writing the events of the day in a diary looking book. I think I have to look outside the box to keep my record. I think I count blogging as a record. Then, if I do that, it's not so bad! :) I share my feelings and tell funny stories about stupid and cool things I do. I've shared testimony and talked about overcoming fears. And! you all get to read it! Luckies! I type a bajillion times faster than I write with a pen or pencil, so I tend to write more often. I like getting things done but I really love detail. Details are hard to capture when you write slow and there's a space or time limit to meet. Books can be restricting that way . . . anyway. I just wanted to share this cool quote, and you know . . . add to this record, which I know is a true account that I make with mine own hand. ;)

Mission advice?

My mission packet said I had to send 8 passport pictures to the mission president asap. I got those off yesterday with a note asking for advice of what to buy and where. I don't know if I'll hear back from him or not. My aunt's foreign exchange student from Germany shops when she comes to America because everything is so much cheaper but Heidi wishes she'd bought her winter boots and coat in the country because then she wouldn't have had to lug them all around Chile. Needless to say, and don't be shocked, but I'm really nervous! When I tell people I'm going to Germany I get one of two reactions. First choice: They look at me incredulously because how could somewhere so gorgeous and beautiful count as a mission when really it's the perfect dream vacation. Or Second Choice: They grin at me like they know something I don't know and wish me luck like I'm going to convert the Pope. I mean, I know European missions are hard, but isn't every mission hard? I love the people and I speak their language fair enough already. I love the Gospel and I have a testimony of it. That should count for something, right? So, you returned missionaries, what's your best advice? And you not-returned missionaries, what's yours? A friend on a mission right now just says to leave everything behind, excluding him. :) Haha! If you want to write me, I'd be more than happy to have mail! And, I promise no matter how long it takes, I'll write back eventually. - Lyndi

A-Z tag . . .

I'm copying Coley 'cause I'm bored :) so here goes . . .

A: ATTACHED or SINGLE? hmmm . . . single

B: BEST FRIEND? today, let's go with Heidi, my older sister


C: CAKE or PIE? PIE! PIE! PIE! PIE! I despise cake. It's dry and unless it's got divine frosting, any kind of pie is better. I experienced my first key-lime pie this Thanksgiving, and let's just say (I love lime) it was heavenly

D: DAY of CHOICE? right now they're all about the same, except for one little thing. tuesday is temple day, I'll pick tuesday

E: ESSENTIAL ITEM? kleenex . . . in any shape or size or color, though white is my preference. I can't seem to get enough these days stupid cold

F: FAVORITE COLOR? green, in almost every and any shade

G: GUMMY BEARS or WORMS? bears. The originals came from Germany. Haribo is the best!

H: HOMETOWN? sometimes we call it the Armpit of America, but it's not that bad :)

I: INDULGENCE? bread. I'm not a chocolate fan, ice cream makes my stomach hurt. I have allergies to wheat and dairy, but if there's bread around, it's SO tempting. oh, and brownies. they're not safe from me either, so it's a good thing there aren't any around . . . haha :)

J: JANUARY or JULY? July. I prefer summer to winter. I like heat

K: KIDS? do I have them? no. do I like them? yeah, especially when they're happy


L: LIFE ISN'T COMPLETE WITHOUT? family. I have the tendency to think mine is the best, and I look forward to starting my own someday

M: MARRIAGE DATE? hmm . . . well, let's not say december anything because then my birthday, christmas AND my anniversary would all be in the same month

N: NUMBER of BROTHERS and SISTERS? 2 sisters and 3 brothers

O: ORANGES or APPLES? if the orange is perfect and chilled, oranges. if the apple is pink lady and there's peanut butter around, apples. actually, my favorites are beautiful, ripe, juicy nectarines and peaches

P: PHOBIAS? being alone, cancer (not dying, that's ok, but cancer really scares me), going blind

Q: QUOTE? "Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort." FDR
"In vain I have struggled, it will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you." Mr. Darcy


R: REASON to SMILE? I'm going to Germany!

S: SEASON of CHOICE? summer, but they all have their ups and downs

T: coley left this one out . . . .

U: UNKNOWN FACT ABOUT ME? my eye doctor told me my eyesight is so good I should be a fighter pilot

V: VEGETABLE? all of them but brussel sprouts. I live on vegetables and protein

W: WORST HABIT? cleaning my fingernails with whatever I can find, including my teeth

X: X-RAY or ULTRASOUND? neither if I can help it

Y: YOUR FAVORITE FOOD? hmm . . . I love food, can it all be my favorite?

Z: ZODIAC SIGN? sagittarius

Beautiful Temple

I went through the temple on December 27th. I took some pictures of the temple I love most in the world. It's beautiful. And, someone who thinks I'm beautiful took one of me. I liked it. So here they are, though I have many many many more. :)

Mission Call!

I must confess, I received my mission call weeks ago. I opened it on the night of Friday, December 19th. However, I'm not telling where I'm going until I tell the story.

Thursday: After I'd finished all of my exams (yes, it was finals week at BYU) I could finally focus on the project I'd worked on throughout the week, due the next day at 11. I am a costume design major and my final project for my design class was to costume 6-8 characters from a show. I had my ideas, fabric swatches, history and images to work with, but I hadn't started drawing or painting or anything like that. I had all my supplies and a work space cleared. At 4 pm I sat down to work. At about 7 pm my sister called and wanted to know when we'd be able to go home. I was sure I'd communicated that I had to go to work Friday until 6 pm, and then I would have to go back to my apartment and pack and clean. There was no way I would be ready to go until at least Saturday. This is the best (almost anyway) part. Heidi and Trevor really wanted to go home (so did I, but didn't think it was possible before Saturday) so Heidi came to my apartment and packed all of my things! I pulled out the few things I would need before the next day, and she packed everything else. From the kitchen to laundry, the bedroom to bathroom Heidi put everything in boxes and bags and hauled them from my apartment to her car to Grandma's house. I sat in the same chair the entire time drawing, tracing, coloring, painting. Heidi left around 1 in the morning, my apartment was bare. She left me my computer and a few movies with whose company I could finish the project, a change of clean clothes for the next day, and a can of tuna and one of V8 for lunch. She also left the sheets, blankets, and pillows on my bed, hoping that I'd make it there before work. I didn't. not really. I'd started the project at 4 Thursday afternoon and finished in Friday morning around 8.

Friday: After the project was 100% finished, I took about 15 minutes to just lay on my bed. I don't think I was asleep. After telling your body it can't sleep for 16 hours straight, I don't think it wants to afterward. It's like missing the exit from the freeway. Once it's gone, it's gone and you have to keep going. Anyway . . . after sleeping failed, I jumped in the shower to freshen myself up. I hate being dirty. I was in the process of straightening my hair when my mom called. This is a very rare occurrence. Don't think that my mom is a bad mom because she never calls me. "It just does not work that way." (That's a quote from President Packer, I love it.) My mom is the most thoughtful and wonderous person ever. She doesn't call because she knows we're busy. She keeps herself free so that we can call her when we're not. It works nicely. :) So, I was a bit surprised when she called. I thought something had gone wrong, someone had died or something. I asked what was up and she said something like, "I think you should call your boss and tell her you can't work today." Mom, I have to work today. Nobody else is qualified to do my job and those that are are already gone. "Could you get it off if you told them your mission call was waiting for you at home?" Is it?! "Yes." AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!! I woke two roommates and danced around my apartment screaming for what felt like 10 minutes, even though it was probably only 2. I had despaired when it didn't come on Thursday like the Post Office said it would if it was coming. I was sure it wouldn't come for another two weeks since the next Thursday was Christmas. But no! It was waiting for me at home!!! All the tiredness and aches from denying my body sleep were gone. I was so excited. The rest of the story isn't important. Well, let's rephrase that. I finished my hair, said goodbye to roommates and friends, exchanged Christmas presents and wishes with few, and went to turn in my project. It was beautiful and I got 100% on it. My mom called me and said she'd called my boss and arranged it that I wouldn't have to go to work. She then said she'd asked Trevor, my brother, to help me with my cleaning check so that we could get headed home before the weather got nasty. Trevor came over and mopped my floor! (Holy smokes . . . he must really have wanted to go home.) We finally left Provo around 5 pm which was LOTS earlier than I thought was possible. We drove through terrible snow from Provo to Filmore, taking three hours for an hour and 20 minute drive. We arrived in Overton, and at home, at about 11 pm Utah time.

After hugging mom a couple times, Grant and Pamela at least once, and pacing up and down, I thought "Just get it over with." More than once in the car, I fell silent and Heidi said, "Mission call?" Yeah. I couldn't stop thinking about it. I SO wanted it to be the Lord's will for me. I was so nervous . . . I wanted whatever it said to bring peace to the churning sea of nerves in my stomach. I knew that in order to serve for 18 months I would need to know the call was perfect for me. People asked me where I wanted to go and I simply told them, wherever the Lord sends me. I can't pick a place because I can't start out disappointed. So, I finally braced myself and grabbed the envelope. I sat down in the blue recliner, indian style. My fingers fumbled as I broke the seal and ripped the contents out placing them face down. I didn't want any surprises before I was ready. I placed the envelope over the text so that I could slide it down, reading only one line at a time.

Dear Sister Mecham,
You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You are AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

That's about how it went. :) The name of the church fills up a whole line! The next line . . . I didn't get a whole lot out of! Heidi, who was standing behind me screamed too. She saw it . . . :) I tried to get the rest of the words out through the tears that had already begun to flow.

You are assigned to labor in the Germany Munich/Austria Mission. (Then everyone else screamed.) It is anticipated that you will serve for a period of 18 months.

You should report to the Missionary Training Center at Provo, Utah on Wednesday, 25 February, 2009. You will prepare to preach the gospel in the German language. . .

The rest was very beautiful, but I won't share it here.

Sincerely,
Thomas S. Monson
President

So, that's the story. I immediately began calling people who expressed desire to know ASAP, like Grandma and Carolyn Jensen. Bradley was on the phone listening, but you know he's deaf, so I re-read it for him. I sent out texts to everyone in my phone (if you didn't get one there's a post on my blog previous explaining why. It's not because I don't love you, it's because I no longer have your number!)

If you don't know where Germany, Munich, or Austria are, these may jog your memory.



That would be "The Sound of Music", Neuschwanstein Castle, and Hallstatt. Very famous, very beautiful. I'll get to the Alps in the Spring. May. Oh man . . . it's perfect. :)