Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Last E-mail of Brett's Mission

Brett said that he thought this would be the last e-mail he'd send us. He did say that there was a possibility that he'd be able to check e-mail when he was in the office next Tuesday. But that if he didn't get a chance, this is it.

In our letter to Brett we told him about how many bags he could bring home, and how much Delta charges for the second bag. I was worried because when he left he was packed to the gills. But he just laughed and said that he wasn't worried at all. He said he didn't have much left that was worth bringing home. I remember that feeling - you'd been wearing the same clothes (for me 18 months) for two years and they just don't have enough life in them to make it worth the effort to bring them home.

I guess that we'd better be prepared for a major shopping trip when he gets home.

As it turns out we are going to be driving to JFK to pick Brett up. His itinerary got changed and he ended up having a 6 hour layover in JFK. We decided that we could drive to JFK in three hours and have him home in six, so that's what we're doing. I imagine we'll be home around 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 5th.

Brett said that it is definitely a lot harder than he though it would be to finish his mission. There are so many mixed emotions. Happiness because you're going home, but also sadness because you're leaving the country and people you've grown to love.

He said that he's really trying to finish strong. Which I'm sure his companion appreciates.

His last day of "missionary work" will be Sunday, May 2nd. On Monday he will pack. Tuesday he goes into the mission office for his exit interview and any other business that he needs to take care of. I imagine that Tuesday night he will have a nice dinner with all the departing missionaries. And then he catches his flight from Birmingham to Paris at 6:25 a.m.

Brett thanked us for "making my mission a good one and for always giving me help when I needed it".

Then he said he'd see us next week, which is amazing. Where has the two years gone?

His P.S. said: "I forgot all about root beer till just the other day and now I'm really craving it!"

No comments: