By the time I returned home, Dallin was awake and eating a bowl of cereal. I asked if he had fun watching the fireworks display last night, and then asked if he'd like to see some more fireworks...then I slipped the mission call packet from behind me and set it on the table. He was speechless!
Plans were quickly hatched to rearrange Dallin's work schedule so he could open it this evening before we all headed to Tuachan to see the production of Hairspray.
The day went by rather slowly, but also fast! Suddenly it was time to make something for dinner (chicken tacos!) and see if Dal was going to make it home. 5:30 he was still at work...6:00 Dallin called to say a large truck got stuck in the car wash, and the car behind smashed into it...broken windshield, mayhem at the car wash and he would be lucky to make it by 6:30 when everyone would be showing up.
6:30 p.m. and friends and family are gathering in the backyard...6:45. . . no Dallin and no phone contact. . . 7:00 p.m. and I finally call the car wash land line. "Yes, Dallin is still here at work...there was a problem...oh, he's supposed to be there right now opening his mission call...oh, well I'll talk to the manager and have him call you back..." I was SO glad it was Tori Gates Hafen who answered the phone and understood what was going on!!
Just as I was telling everyone in the backyard what the latest update was, Dallin called and said he was leaving and would be home in 15 minutes. A cheer went up in the backyard!!
Dallin pulled up and made it into the backyard to say hi to everyone, ran in the house to change his sweaty work shirt, grabbed a bit of chicken taco, then ran out into the backyard. Hooray!! It was FINALLY time for the grand opening of the mission call packet!
I was running the video camera and, at one point, told Brandon jokingly, "Go stand behind Dal so you can read where he's going!! You can mouth it to me!!" Well, Brandon did exactly that. . . the only problem was that as he mouthed "Can-a-da" to me, my lip-reading skills saw "In-di-an-a" and I was SO worried that Dallin would be disappointed!! He got very choked up as he read the letter aloud, pausing every few words: "You have been called...to serve...in the...Canada-Halifax Mission..." I couldn't believe it!! I yelled, and then I ran, AS I yelled, to give Dallin the biggest hug!! He has been called to serve in the exact mission I served in 35 years ago!! It was SOOOOOO cool!! And we are VERY excited for Dallin!!
The first phone call I made was to a family I taught in my first area, who joined the church after my mission, and with whom we have stayed close friends! They have stayed at our home, and it feels like Dallin will be going to his mission with "family" already there!!
And Dallin is excited, too!!
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