He is always there......

When a missionary leaves the MTC they are allowed to call home from the airport before leaving for their mission area. Last night Elder Holmes called home and we had a great conference call with everyone on the phone. We were even able to have one of his best friends, Collin, join in on the call. We enjoyed many stories of the MTC and the experiences he had while there. You could hear the enthusiasm in his voice and his excitement to reach Singapore and get started as a missionary. He was traveling with an Elder Newing from New Zealand. All the other missionaries had different flight schedules.

As a Mom with a Missionary leaving overseas it can be a little nerve-wracking. Elder Holmes has traveled enough times that I know he will be fine, but there is the side of me that worries. I guess it's a "Mom thing". His flight itinerary was as follows, SLC to LA, LA to Manila, Manila to Singapore. The following morning I received a text from my brother stating that Elder Holmes had spoken with my sister-in-law before flying out. Apparently he and his companion couldn't board due to a ticket problem. He called the LDS travel services and was put through to the on call agent, who just happened to be his Aunt!!! She said he was a little anxious because they were boarding but she was able to assure him that it would only take a couple of minutes to fix the issue and she was also able to change his seats to window seats for the 14 1/2 hr flight. I found this to be one of many tender mercies we have experienced in the last few months. Heavenly Father knows what we need and having Elder Holmes' Aunt help him, I know it assured him all would be well.

When they arrive in Singapore, the Mission President and his wife meet the missionaries at the airport and take a picture with each one of them. The missionaries then send the email to the parents letting them know they made it. We never received the email. After 36 hours of wondering I finally called the mission office and spoke to a wonderful gentleman that informed me he did in fact arrive and stayed at his apartment the night before. He would check to see what happened as we should have received the email. It made my Mom heart feel much better!

Email with picture arrived late that night (Singapore is 12 hours ahead):
"In Singapore, on my way to Malaysia! Ipoh! Sorry, think I typed the wrong address, suppose to go to dad. Singapore is amazing! Very hot. Love you!"