Hey everyone, as you to tune into the latest episode of the podcast, where I step into the role of host to share my personal journey as a mom in the midst of the anticipation for my youngest son's mission call. I share how my reactions and emotions have evolved over the course of sending my kids on missions.
I delve into the uncertainty that looms when our missionaries are waiting for a call, or return home, and how we navigate the mix of excitement and nerves. Drawing inspiration from the classic "Oh, the Places You'll Go" by Dr. Seuss,we talk about getting out of the waiting room and how much growth is available.
I share a story from a few years ago when two of my boys joined the National Guard and left for boot camp. I found a new friend that we faced some challenging times together. Throughout the episode, I share actionable advice on managing uncertainty, including the power of reflection, journaling, and staying present. I also highlight insights from "Chatter" by Ethan Cross, which have been incredibly beneficial.
Exciting news for all you listeners out there: I'm hosting a Zoom class focused on setting boundaries and self-advocacy for missionaries. It's a valuable resource that I'm passionate about, and I encourage you to join and share with others who might benefit.
This episode is packed with relatable experiences and wisdom for anyone looking to navigate life's uncertainties with grace and courage. As a podcast host, I'm committed to bringing you content that resonates and empowers. So, don't miss out on this must-listen episode—perfect for parents of missionaries, individuals facing life transitions, and anyone seeking inspiration during times of change. Tune in and let's embark on this journey together!
Hey everyone, as you to tune into the latest episode of the podcast, where I step into the role of host to share my personal journey as a mom in the midst of the anticipation for my youngest son's mission call. I share how my reactions and emotions have evolved over the course of sending my kids on missions.
I delve into the uncertainty that looms when our missionaries are waiting for a call, or return home, and how we navigate the mix of excitement and nerves. Drawing inspiration from the classic "Oh, the Places You'll Go" by Dr. Seuss,we talk about getting out of the waiting room and how much growth is available.
I share a story from a few years ago when two of my boys joined the National Guard and left for boot camp. I found a new friend that we faced some challenging times together. Throughout the episode, I share actionable advice on managing uncertainty, including the power of reflection, journaling, and staying present. I also highlight insights from "Chatter" by Ethan Cross, which have been incredibly beneficial.
Exciting news for all you listeners out there: I'm hosting a Zoom class focused on setting boundaries and self-advocacy for missionaries. It's a valuable resource that I'm passionate about, and I encourage you to join and share with others who might benefit.
This episode is packed with relatable experiences and wisdom for anyone looking to navigate life's uncertainties with grace and courage. As a podcast host, I'm committed to bringing you content that resonates and empowers. So, don't miss out on this must-listen episode—perfect for parents of missionaries, individuals facing life transitions, and anyone seeking inspiration during times of change. Tune in and let's embark on this journey together!
Hello, and welcome to the podcast. I am excited to be here today because we're talking about a topic that I'm actually currently going through as we speak. So at the time of this recording, My youngest son has submitted his mission papers and is waiting for his call. And the anticipation and uncertainty is coming up for both me and my soon to be missionary. So this is the fourth call that I've sat in the wings waiting to come, and each call has brought on different emotions. And. The first one. Before I understood kind of what was happening. What emotions. It was a lot of excitement. But now I can notice that uncertainty seems to be a Barre. Prevalent thing that comes up. And this call feels a little bit different because it's my last child to go out. So I want to share some of the things. That I've come up for me during this uncertainty. While waiting for calls. Or this also applies to waiting for them to come home. Waiting for them to decide the next step that they're taking in their life. And how. I try to handle it now. And I've seen this in clients. A lot who's missionaries are coming home and they're trying to decide, what they're going to do. And mom says something like, I wish they could just stay out there serving because when they go home, they have to deal with life. And when we say they have to deal with life, we're talking about uncertainty. And sometimes. Uncertainty can feel very untethering for us. And it reminds me of Dr. Seuss's. Book. Oh, the places you'll go where he talks about. Basically the essence of anticipation and the emotions. That we experienced while waiting. And it begins. In the waiting room. Where everyone's kind of in this frozen state. Of suspended, animation or longing for something to happen. So like passengers are waiting for planes or waiting for a train and the barbers are waiting for their customers. And children are waiting for their hair to grow. So this really sets the stage for a journey of self discovery and personal growth. And he illustrates the waiting room. In a way that's very windsical kind of, and. And vibrant. And it also encourages the readers to get out into life and not just sit around. Waiting. So it's kind of like an embracing with open arms. Uncertainty. So I want to preface this with kind of a little bit of a story. I live in Southern Utah and I always enjoy outdoor adventures. Over the last 13 years, That I've lived here. I've certainly found a group of ladies that like to go outdoor adventure to. And we've hiked and biked and skied and Kenyon eared. Through just some amazing places. So a few years ago, there's this lady that I was well acquainted with, that lived in the town that I live in. But we weren't what I would call friends. Her husband joined the national guard. At the last minute, right before the age limit cutoff. And he left for bootcamp. Two weeks before two of my boys left for bootcamp. And when my boys left, you know, my, my heart was kind of all over the place. I was. I had a lot of uncertainty. I had no idea if they were okay, what they were doing and we could only communicate by letter, not email calls, phone calls or anything. And. It gave me. A certain amount of. Kind of feeling okay. Because I knew that my boys were going to run into her husband. At least at church, I knew they wouldn't be in the same. Platoon, but I knew that they would run into him at church. So I, I got up and text this lady. One day and asked her how she was holding up. So initially she said she was good. So I sent her another message telling her that I was struggling a little bit with my boys being gone, not being able to communicate. And she confessed that she. She was also kind of struggling too. So we decided that we were going to start doing ice plunges every Sunday morning. I'm not really sure why we thought this was a good idea at the time, but I was really glad that she was crazy enough to agree to do it with me. Fast forward a few months. I had been wanting to go do this canyoneering. And via ferrata called Aja. The needle and is down by Zion national park. And so I asked her if she'd want to go with me. So there's a few places that we repelled down and the water is like super loud. And it. Because of the noise that starts to generate some anxiety and you get pretty cold while you're waiting for the others to get down. So you can of continue and we had a guide. And I knew we were okay because we'd been ice plunging. So cold water had lost kind of some of its power road over. Us. And we got to the bottom of the canyon. You know, super cool repels. This is where the via ferrata starts. So for, if you don't know what that is, basically they take rebar. And they bend it and they anchor it into the side of a mountain. So it looks like a ladder going up. And you that's how you climb it also kind of like a ladder. And there's a cable running up the side that you hook into your harness for safety. So I've done a lot of repelling and canyoneering, but this claiming was new. And I quickly realized that we were going to be climbing around 400 feet. And I couldn't look up. Very far and I couldn't look down. Because it was terrifying. Both of them started to just really nerve me. And so. What I decided to do to manage my own anxieties fears, uncertainty. Was, I was, I could work in the 10 feet. Space around me. this is what I realized, what I do while I'm. Waiting for a mission call or like the uncertainty of what's coming. If I look too far down, In my kids life in general, then it gets very untethering for me. So I try to look down the road. And just kind of peek at it. And I also look backwards, but I just try and peak at it. But I don't try to, to dwell on it. Otherwise, it becomes so overwhelming that it's kind of paralyzing. For me to move forward. And so I work in the present moment or what's right in front of me. So like the via ferrata. I take a lot of deep breaths. I prepare. You know, for the upcoming opening of my son's mission call and I take one step at a time. So I don't have to do everything at once. And that has helped me be able to calm some of that. Uncertainty and embrace the moment that I'm in. And like I've mentioned in the past. Episodes. I also really like to journal, so. Being able to write down kind of what's coming up for me is very helpful. So if you're worried or anxious or excited, here's a couple of things to consider that may help. From time to time peak up at what's in front of you. Occasionally peek backwards, or maybe don't at all. To see what was behind you. But work in the present and trust that you're going to make it. The second one is when your brain wants to start spinning stories. About. Things where they're headed. Remember once again, you have to supervise this cognitive story. And I do this by writing it down. Because it feels like a lot and, very true until I write it down. And then it's easier to see how creative my brain is to come up with things. So it's like, there's this gap. And so my brain is trying to fill it. And it makes up like the most wonderful, terrible stories about what could come up. I usually go through, after I write down these things, I usually go through and I make a line. Through things that I can see are kind of on the absurd side. And that sends a subconscious message to my brain that I'm not buying the story that it's selling right now. The third time thing is sometimes it feels like our brain is just her hurling down this track of uncertainty. And it's hard to kind of interrupt that story in the moment because it's moving so fast. So from a book. That's called chatter by Ethan Cross. And it's done about missions. But it's about the chatter that goes on in our head. Or the radio station that sometimes seems epically loud. One of the methods that he mentioned is to say your own name out loud. And so an example, Michelle. That's enough. And that interrupts that chatter that's going on. In our mind. And I, this isn't in the book, but I've added this to that method. Is I also say God or heavenly father, I trust. You to see what is coming that I cannot see. So it's kind of way of reaffirming trust and faith. In the process and what's happening. And very, very helpful in interrupting kind of that. Runaway thought train. So uncertainty can feel well. You know, uncertain. And untethering, like I mentioned, And we think we want to know what's going to happen. But if we did. It would take away a lot of the growth opportunity for us. Okay, so just to recap, Peek forward, peak backwards, but don't live in the future. Don't live in the past. And. Just try and live in the present And. enjoy the journey that you're on. And then supervise your brain, know that it's going to try and fill in the gaps and spin stories in a really creative way. And just write those stories down, get them out of your head and onto paper. And then last time, last thing. If it gets away from you, then. I interrupted by calling yourself by name. And. Also, including God, our heavenly father that, and just say that you trust. That they can see what you can't see. All right. That's what I've got for you this week. So upcoming opportunities to work for me. I just want to mention. I will be having a zoom class coming up May 13th through the 15th. It's one hour, each day. We're going to be talking about how to set up boundaries with companions. How to advocate for how to teach them to advocate for themselves. And when to ask for help. So make sure you get signed up for this class. It's a limited thing that I only teach. Twice a year it's$29. And it's going to give you a lot of tools that help can help you. In the way that you talk about it with your missionary, so that they're prepared for some of the things that are uncertain for them. So click in the show notes. And I'll get you on the waiting list and send you all the information. And make sure that you share it with any of your friends that also have missionaries serving as well. All right, everybody. Thanks for listening. Make sure you drop a rating and have a great day. Bye-bye.