Week 77: So This is IT...the Final Countdown!

I suppose that I should do something cheesy or sentimental for my last email... a testimony of how much my mission has changed me or something along those lines. It has. Oh my goodness, it really has. I am bolder, nicer, humbler, smarter (except about philosophy, pretty sure I've forgotten all that), more outgoing, more spiritual, more prayerful, more faithful, less selfish, so many other things that I can't even list them all. But I think that most people know that missions are great for that.

I have laughed so hard. I have cried. I have had my heart broken. I've worked harder than I have ever worked in my life. A mission isn't just physically tiring. It is! Don't get me wrong, I'm pretty sure that if I sit still for too long I'll fall asleep anywhere. It's emotionally exhausting... You love people, and sometimes they break your heart. Sometimes you have so much happiness that you are exhausted. It's spiritual boot camp, for sure. You're tested and tried, questioned, mocked, pitied... It's intellectually wearing, trying to stay on top of everything.

And it's all worth it. I am a part of the greatest sister and brotherhood in the world. I am about to get really cheesy, so bear with me. I have loved being a missionary. Every morning, I get to put on my nametag, and I am so so so grateful. It's changed my life, I hope for forever. I'm aiming at forever.

I am so excited to come home, to see my family, to begin another chapter in my life. But I am also sad that I won't be going out everyday as a representative of Jesus Christ, to preach the gospel as a full time missionary. I'll miss it. It's been an amazing, amazing 18 months.

Sister Devynne Barret