It finally came--the envelope that I was never sure if I would actually hold finally came in the mail! So maybe I went home between classes, saw the mail man, waited for him to leave, then sneaked over to the mailbox and screeched when I found it inside...
But then I had to wait. Last week was one of the most chaotic weeks of all weeks--cleaning check, 3 midterms, a project, fafsa/scholarship applications due, meeting with advisers, and more. It felt like a train wreck. I wanted to wait until it was all done to open the call so I could fully focus on the joy of the moment with my family and friends.
The day before I opened it, of course, my mom said in the car, "You know Rachel, your disability was approved, so you could go outside of Utah." I said "No mom, I already put on the application I was covered under Utah Medicaid so I could only stay in Utah." So right then in my head I was thinking "Great. Just great. Rachel, you may have just messed up the Lord's will with where you were supposed to be by being impatient to turn your papers in, but you will enjoy it wherever you go in Utah."
So, Saturday finally came! The day was long and there were errands to be completed, but the time finally came as soon as my brother burst through the door from his choir concert. He was gone all day and I would have gone to his earlier one, but unfortunately it was too expensive and he had to drive the car to hurry home after. I had people on Skype as well as my family and friend Maddie with her sister. It was my first time Skyping so it became a little disruptive, but my dad was in Arizona and I wanted to talk to him. So after some tech chaos, were were finally able to settle down. I had already told everyone who asked about the mission I was serving in Utah, so after offering an opening prayer, hoping desperately to feel the spirit despite the tech chaos, it was quiet and I carefully opened the call, not wanting to hurt any part of it.
I started reading my name and realized it was the address, so then I read the first line with a piece of paper right below it so I wouldn't see. I couldn't stop smiling as I read "Dear Sister Roy, you have been called as a missionary of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the..." I smacked the call right up to my mouth as my eyes bulged out. I then hauled over and the tears came as my brother said, "Well, I don't think she's going to Salt Lake."
I had to take a moment to talk through my tears, "You have been assigned to the Massachusetts Boston Mission..."
Immediately the cries and cheers from my finally rang out, which seemed a little distant as I couldn't believe what I just read. I will never forget the special feeling of seeing that. It felt perfect. Absolutely perfect. I continued reading the rest of the letter, feeling overwhelmed with joy. I even did a fist pump when I saw that I will be speaking English, because to be honest, I didn't really want to take the time to learn another language and not be able to speak fluently.
I was in shock. I was expecting Utah, but instead, I was going to fly across the country to the furthest I've ever been (yes, I've been outside of Utah, and the furthest was Florida). The rest of the night was filled with more phone calls and such, and I only slept for 3 hours that night from excitement and questions flooding. I started looking up a little bit about Boston, including the hospital where the CF center is. It looks stunning! Since I felt it was special and I could already feel a close tie with the docs there, I decided to look at its ranking, as I discovered last night that it was ranked as the number one hospital in the nation last year! At this point, I'm ready to embrace whatever happens. I feel peace. If a hospital clean-out comes along, and with all the regular clinic visits, I know I'll be in good hands. Everything is working out so well and it's no coincidence I was assigned to Boston. I look forward to sharing this gospel that has changed my life with others. I can't wait!
Boston...here I come!! :) July 3rd seems far away, but I know it will come up before I know it.
