Picture this:

It’s Christmas, we’re all wearing our new pajamas (everyone in cute little onesies and me in my new nightie, I didn’t want a onesie, but now I think I want one because it looks so fun). We’re wearing our new Anthropologie aprons. Those who got new shoes, hats, jewelry etc have also put them on and are parading around the living room wearing it all because we’re hyped up on the Rittersport chocolates we all ate. We turn on Mama Mia which we got from Santa while I make Bigos and Pickle Soup (I promise, it’s good) for our annual White Elephant/Bingo/Soup party at our friend’s house. When Mama Mia finishes we watch the Sing-Along version and my dad excuses himself to the other room for some NBA/Lakers time.

Around 3:00 Jess calls from Singapore and we get to hear about how clean the subway is, that she’s going to be in Miri East Malaysia and will be traipsing around the jungle and riding bikes in heavy humidity not being able to talk to anyone who is Muslim. It sounds so different from my mission! Her trainer is from New Zealand and we are all excited about Jess perfecting her impression of her!

After getting off the phone, we’re all a little melancholy thinking of her, missing her. I’m consumed with thoughts of my mission, remembering being so nervous to go to my first area, sitting on the train with my trainer, completely trusting her and following her to wherever we go. I remember feeling so apprehensive about talking to people and a little anxious about what we’re going to do everyday. We rode the train down to my first area and I gave the first vision story to the other travelers in our compartment. I wonder what’s going to happen with Jess. I can’t get over how strange I felt going into my new apartment on the 16th floor of a huge old Soviet apartment building, hearing about our current investigators and the upcoming meetings we’ll have with them. I remember getting excited at the grocery store with the prospect of having Kinder Buenos and tasty juices and yogurts everyday. I remember being urged by my trainer those first days to contact people on the street and wondering if we were going to tract all day every day (we generally did). I remember being shocked that I didn’t get extra time to sleep so I could get over my jet lag and lamenting the fact that I was going to be tired my entire mission. I think I’m going to be reliving my mission a lot through Jess and comparing the huge differences.

Christmas day was wonderful. Jess was definitely the highlight, then maybe my Anthropologie apron, then soup at the Barnes.