Again We Leave You...

During our four and 1/2 months at home we had many fun visits with dear friends. However, we spent all the time we could with our family and it was heavenly. We made trips to St. George, Salt Lake, California and Texas.

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Because of our early release we were home for the birth of a new grandson, Everett Scott Jameson.

We had grandkids' camp, went to the zoo several times, attended preschool graduation, school plays, concerts, ball games, car shows, birthday parties, and all the other things that grandparents should and love to do.

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Then the time was past and with one more party together, we were saying goodbye. Goodbye is never easy but sometimes it's the right thing to do and our family supported us in our departure.

The grandchildren who were there that night sang a special song for us, Nephi's Promise.

Then there were hugs all around. I guess that one more hug will last two years and will be easy to remember when we miss these little people so much, especially if it's moments like these.

The next stop was Utah. We spent a few wonderful days with the Utah Jamesons and tried to pack in more memories to hold onto for the two years to come.

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On June 22, 2011 our family gathered in a beautiful room in the church office building to await the time for our setting apart. Brent seemed pretty calm as he took a quick peek at the sports news of the day.

All six of our children and three of their spouses had made the trip there to be with us, at some considerable sacrifice. Thanks kids. Brent's sister, Marilyn, was also able to be there. We missed three of our in-law sons, and our brothers and sisters who couldn't be with us that day, but the day was "practically perfect" in every way!

Brent was set apart as President of the RD Congo Kinshasa Mission by Elder Jeffrey Holland, assisted by Elder Steven Snow. Then I was set apart as a missionary and Brent's companion by Elder Snow, assisted by Elder Holland and all of our family priesthood holders (Brent, Ryan, Eric and Scott.) It was very special to have these two men set us apart, since they had been with us in Burundi when Elder Holland dedicated the land. They came in talking of our shared experiences.

It made it a very personal and wonderful event. We will remember it as one of the highlights of our lives.

Blessings for us and our family were clearly promised as we follow the Lord's direction and do our personal best. We were comforted and encourage and it was a never-to-be-forgotten day. Maybe, with the Lord's help, we really can do this. We sure plan to give it our best effort and pray that the Lord will do the rest. We know that's what he's promised each of us and hope to qualify for His help in everything we do. The great need to rely on the Lord as we do things beyond our abilities and to be qualified by the Lord to do more than we're able to do alone is in reality a wonderful blessing.