Gone are the days of mission calls coming by snail mail in a big white envelope. Instead they arrive digitally via email, usually on Tuesday mornings and typically two weeks from when you submit all your paperwork. The boys had started on their mission papers back during the Thanksgiving/Christmas break getting in doctor and dentist visits and going through the interview process. By mid Feb everything was in. I had read that the Friday before calls are emailed out, if you check the missionary portal and you have an assigned missionary email, then you can expect your call that week. Sure enough, when we checked they had been assigned emails so we knew on Tuesday, March 2nd the calls would arrive. At around 9:30 am mountain time Connor called to tell me that he had gotten the text alert that his call was in his missionary portal. I had been waiting all morning to hear from him but with the time difference could hardly stand the wait. Ty was still sleeping when Connor frantically called me but within a minute of being on the phone with me, Ty was up checking his phone too to see if he too had the alert.
It's kind of become a thing for kids to announce their calls to friends and family through live feeds on Instagram, Facebook, or Zoom on the evening the call arrives so that more people can participate and share in the moment. I wasn't certain the boys would be able to wait to read the email until the evening so I suggested that if there was a chance they would be tempted to sneak a peak, they better call me right away as I certainly didn't want to be waiting around all day if they already knew! They decided the night before that it would probably be best if they opened them up with Jack and I on the phone first so we could be there as they read it for the first time. This way they'd also have time to let it soak in before sharing the news with everyone else later in the evening. As a mother of twins, I couldn't help but worry about one getting called to some exotic location while the other being called to some place less exciting. All missions are wonderful but let's be real, being called to someplace like Tahiti is going to gather more excitement than someplace like Oklahoma which is where I was called and without doubt was the best mission for me. I knew the boys had their preferences and I just didn't want one of them opening up their call for the first time in front of all their friends and being totally stoked while the other was trying to put a smile on his face to cover up maybe a bit of disappointment that would of course be short lived. It's only natural for twins to always be comparing themselves with each other.
I don't know who was more nervous about hearing where they were called to serve...me or them. I seriously at one point thought I could throw up. I felt so anxious, worried, and excited at the same time. These are my babies and the thought of them leaving me for two years is something I can barely imagine. After a quick call to conference Jack in with us, it was time to hear where they'd be spending the next two years of their lives. While I can't say I'm thrilled to send my boys off to third world countries, I can say I'm absolutely thrilled that they have both been called to spanish speaking missions in the same part of the world. They will now truly share their own twin language.
So Connor has been called to Oaxaca, Mexico and will start on June 8th...
and Ty has been called to Concepcion, Chile and will start on June 15th.
They made their official announcement later that night in the dorm lounge surrounded by friends. Here are just a couple photos that include friends from NYC, OH, and FL that came to support them which I thought was so wonderful.
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