Oh the Places You've Been

If you are looking for lighthearted stories about funny things that happened in Japan over the last couple days...sorry. You should probably just keep on going right over to Facebook and see what is up there. This here is going to be a serious entry because today, September 13th marks 5 years since I this kid went into the MTC. Crazy right? Unfortunately, only a few pictures survived that time surrounding that 5 or 6 months. I went into the vaults and managed to find this gem. See if you can spot me. 

I often find myself reflecting on my mission (brief though it was) on this day when it rolls around every year. The truth is that it represented a real shift in the my personality, and the way I view the world. It was during this time that I found out the extent of the anxieties that I have, and how damaging they can be to a regular life. I never could have written this story that has unfolded for myself in the 5 years since. 

I look at the things that I have lost (my hair being first and foremost) and gained over the last half decade. People say that time flies, and I guess that I agree to a certain extent. I look at the person I am now, as compared to 5 years ago, and I can't imagine doing it again. So much has happened in the last 5 years, and so much of it was a real battle for me. I am actually kind of hoping that the next 5 will be a little smoother. 

In 5 years I have: been employed in 10 different jobs, lost a lot of hair, probably gained weight (who hasn't?), gotten a college degree, been to England and France, moved to Japan, found almost entirely new friends, seen said friends get married and begin having kids (Liz), seen the arrival of quite a few new nieces and nephews, eaten thousands of hamburgers and taken up golf. 

I suppose that isn't too shabby for 5 years. 

Mostly it is interesting because I view going into the MTC 5 years ago as a hinge point where my life was changed drastically. Aside from learning about my anxieties and difficulties, coming home early put me on a different track than the rest of my friends. I graduated college almost 2 years earlier than others my age, I really got into the SUU experience, I changed who I was, I met all new people and somehow I ended up back in Japan. 

I suppose I could have guessed that at some point I would get to Japan. When I decided to take this job and move here, part of me was resolved to put Japan behind me as something that I am capable of doing. I am proving that to myself, which I believe will aid me in finally putting my mission experience to rest. 

I guess I will end with the poetic ending that we all love. Feel free to use this one when you are in sacrament meeting about how the Lord knows what he is doing after all (really don't though, that's cheesy). Today, exactly 5 years from the date that I went into the MTC, called to the Japan Tokyo Mission, I found myself sitting in a meeting house in Japan with two missionaries serving in the same mission I was called to. I would never have planned this for myself, and I wouldn't have believed you if you told me I would be here now, but there is some justice in my mind by teaching and helping with missionary work in the same place I was called...even if it is 5 years late.