So I've decided it's been entirely way too long since I've updated my beloved blog, and thus will do so in a short novel. Since my last post I've been beat-up by the salt river, traveled to TX and Europe and back, broke my wrist, and sent off a missionary. June, you have been insanely busy. For starters, the Salt River.
I had never floated the river before, but had been warned by numerous people of the low lying trees and the high speed exit. If you know anything about me you know I have ZERO coordination and if anything random or bad can happen, it will. So, the floating itself was amazing (excluding Sean and Brooke getting endlessly sling-shotted into the roots of trees) but because of their misfortune I had an endless supply of laughter. When people get injured around me I get a nervous laugh, it's nothing personal it just happens. Anyways, the time comes to exit the river and I'm the first to jump ship (or should I say tube)...let me take a second to appreciate the irony that is the upcoming story. The second my body hits the water, I'm done for. The current sweeps me away and I proceed to get dragged down the river hitting every sharp rock imaginable, while my friends look on in shock and hilarity. This would have been a terrifying experience if not for two things, 1. my swimsuit wasn't around my waist and 2. the water was more than two feet deep. Seriously, when standing, the water hit maybe mid-calf on my 5'6.5" frame, so watching me (a former varsity water polo player) flail on my back like a discombobulated turtle was nothing short of side splitting. Eventually, Tyler and Brooke came to my rescue, and once safely out of harms way I assessed the damage.
OUCH. Both legs were completely annihilated and I now have a lovely scar on my foot to remind of the traumatic Salt River experience. Actually though, it was a complete blast and absolutely beautiful and as soon as my horrendous cast comes off I'll be adventuring back.
Now onto my recent travels. I always love going back to Texas because it reminds me of who I am. The atmosphere of the South is entirely unique and a lot more humble. I generally find myself trading in my Tory Burch flats and designer jeans for daisy dukes and a perfectly distressed baseball cap every time I go home. Anyways, I was in TX just long enough to recharge my batteries and then I was off to Europe. First stop was Ely (which is right outside of Cambridge and about an hour and 1/2 away from London) to visit my "sister" Alicia. I always have a hysterical time with her and I'm so glad to call her one of my best friends. While we grew up together in the same house, our 10 year age gap really prevented us from getting to know each other during that time. Now, as adults, we get to swap stories and appreciate each other a lot more. She's made a wonderful life for herself, and has the most precious family so she's definitely someone I admire and trust for good advice. While biologically we're cousins, it would be wrong to call her anything short of a sister. We had a blast together. It was my first time visiting her at her home in England and getting to glimpse into her life overseas. So many great stories and laughs came from that trip and I can't wait to go back in March to see her.
After Ely, I had a brief stay in London before heading off to Paris. Holy Cow. Paris about made me cry, it was so wonderful. At first, I was extremely overwhelmed by lack of sleep, taxi wait lines, and the language barrier but once I checked into my hotel I was in love.
We stayed about 3 minutes from the Eiffel Tower in the sweetest hotel ever (I HIGHLY recommend it if you ever visit). On our first round in Paris, we had lunch at a precious cafe, went to the Eiffel Tower, and ended with the Arc de Triomphe. By far, the Eiffel Tower was my favorite.
It literally gave me chills the second I saw it. I can't wait to come back in a few years with whoever my sweetie is and appreciate the romanticism of Paris with someone I love. How cliche am I? Anyways, the following day I went on to Turin to visit my best friend Becky. She is currently studying abroad with her other best friends Angi, Eugenia, Stephanie, and Megan. Prior to this trip we have all hung out on several occasions, but I would say it was really our friendship with Becky that connected us as friends. After my trip to visit them, I can honestly say I will never feel that way about those girls ever again. They all have such wonderful and unique personalities that it's truly a joy to be in their presence. I came to Europe going through some personal stuff, and was counting down the seconds to see Becky to unload everything. Slowly but surely another girl would show up and sit down and listen. By the end of the day every girl had embraced me with such love and honesty that I left Italy with 4 new best friends with their own perfectly fantastic qualities. I was heart-broken to leave this community of women, and can't wait until we're all together again. They are such examples to me to be myself always and to truly value myself as a woman and it's absolutely an honor to know them. The only downside to Italy was this:
Excellent. Prior to going abroad I was jokingly telling everyone how every time I travel internationally I get some type of illness on the way back. Little did I know, my tradition would ring true and I'd come home with the worst souvenir ever. My first night in Italy we were walking through the streets and I tripped over some train tracks and fell. That's it. That's all it took for me to end up in excruciating pain for 6 days (the duration of time it took me to see a doctor, thus no support or pain medicine), 4 of which were consumed with lugging luggage through subway stations, up and down stairs, and onto a plane. Just my luck. Initially, I was a grump when they casted me because Arizona summer and a cast really don't mix and the cast meant an extra week in Texas. Normally, this would be OK, but since Sean was leaving for his mission on the 28th I wanted to get home ASAP to spend as much time as possible together. However, everything happens for a reason, my other sister Cristina and her daughter Allanah came to visit and we got to spend some rare quality time together. Since my goddaughter Madison was in town too, we had a FULL house. Mads and Allanah are both 4 years old, so getting to watch them together was SUCH a flash back for Cristina and me. We are extremely close, and have been our whole lives, but we bickered endlessly as children. Madison was exactly like me as a child while Allanah was Cristina's spitting image. It was wonderful, hilarious, and frustrating all at the same time. Needless to say, I loved it.
When I finally came back to Arizona, I had been gone for just under a month. It was a bittersweet homecoming because I knew I would have to start prepping to say goodbye to Sean. For months people have been asking me if I'm ready and I've been volunteering how difficult it was going to be for me. Heck, I cried for days when he left for a semester of college, how was I going to say goodbye for two years? Sending a missionary off is one of the most emotionally confusing events imaginable. As my Uncle Jordan so eloquently put it "from an eternal perspective we would all be ecstatic to see you go, but from a mortal perspective it's extremely difficult to say goodbye". I was SO excited for Sean to go spread the truth of the Church to an otherwise Christ-less nation, and being a product of his mission work myself, I was fully aware of the kind of missionary he was going to be. Let me tell you, he's nothing short of extraordinary. His love for the Gospel and for his fellow man plus his fantastically quirky personality make him a perfect vessel for Heavenly Father and His message. Knowing this, I was thrilled for the people of Japan to receive him, but sad for myself to sacrifice my best friend. When Sunday came I was shocked that it had finally arrived. I had no idea how I was going to feel and caked on as much waterproof mascara as I could and headed out for goodbye. After several tears at his farewell, our family testimony meeting, and a fantastic talk with Meagan, we went to his setting apart. After the closing prayer I felt relief. What? I wasn't expecting that emotion at all. Several hours after, and no tears later, I was floored at what was going on. I had been praying for days about this goodbye, but I wasn't expecting this level of comfort. After our final hug, and a goodbye that was perfectly us, I hopped into my car and did something that you couldn't have paid me to predict: I smiled. I turned on the mixed CD he gave me, and belted it out through laughter the entire way home, and haven't cried since. Something came over me in the car that reassured me that something bigger was a work and that there was a plan in action for me and for Sean. That brought me so much peace. Several girls have reached out to me who have recently shipped off missionaries, and it's incredible the community at work. I'm thankful for missionary work and for Sean sacrificing two years of his life for the Lord (as well as all the other missionaries at work) and it's truly a blessing. While I'll miss him and this is still new I'm excited and can't wait for these next 24 months to fly.
See you in two years Elder Burns I love you :)
Remember, we see only a close up of the fragments. Our God will not forsake us. He will never make our lives a blur without already knowing why He's done so, or the power of what a million pieces can create when assembled correctly:
