So as everyone probably knows, Emily reported to the MTC on Wednesday. I had the opportunity to go with her and her parents to drop her off. It was a great experience! But also very hard for me. We went to iHop for breakfast.
Took pictures at the Provo Temple. (There was supposed to be one of just Emily and I but I don't know where it went!)
Then it actually happened. The day we both knew was coming for the past year actually came, and I don't think either of us were really completely prepared for it. I'll never forget watching her walk into the MTC, with her white jacket and missionary bag. She looked happy and scared at the same time, hah. She looked like an angel! I was fighting back tears all the way home. Really embarrassing, especially considering her parents were in the car, hah! At one point Tom looked back and patted me on the knee as he said, "This has gotta be pretty hard for you, isn't it?" I was so choked up I could barely get an answer out! I managed to get a sheepish "Yeah" out, though. I'm planning on serving a mission myself, which I have to wait a year for. So this last Wednesday marked the beginning of 3 years that we probably will not see each other. I think I can speak for both of us when I say it's not going to be easy. I hope I have the strength to get through it!
I've known Emily for going on 4 years now. Emily (and her family) has been an instrumental "support group" for me during my investigation of the church, and still are to this day, really. Actually, probably even more so now, now that I've moved out. There were a lot of little things that ultimately led up to my investigation. I grew up in a "fundamentalist mormon" environment. So I have a somewhat unique conversion story. It has been a hard process getting to where I am now, and Emily was there for me through a lot of it. And actually, looking back at things in retrospect, I realized she was there exactly when I needed her to be, and wasn't there exactly when I needed to be on my own. At first, long before I ever started investigating the church, we "butted heads" quite a bit if we ever discussed religion. So, naturally, we tried to avoid it. We spent the majority of our friendship like that-avoiding deep discussions completely. Though sometimes it would unavoidably come up, especially since we both come from strong LDS backgrounds and lineages (besides me being "fundamentalist", Orson Pratt is my great, great grandfather). One day, yearly last year, Emily said to me via text, "I really think you should be LDS". She intended it to be nothing more than a compliment to my character. I was deeply offended though, as I thought she knew how I felt about the church and couldn't understand why she would think that. Ironically, it was those words that eventually did lead me to investigate the church. It took me almost a year from the time she sent that text, but in December of last year I decided I wanted to find out, and learn for myself. Exactly 10 months later I was baptized. I guess you could say I was Emily's first investigator! We've both had a lot of ups and down through this whole process. I'm certainly glad that she's been there for me, though. And I'm glad I've been able to be there for her however I could! She is an amazing person, and will make a great missionary!
This picture was taken in front of President Neilson's Office, just moments before she was set apart. I going to miss her dearly! I look forward to seeing her again! I love you, Emily!
