America's Birthday and a Bunch of Others

When you are a missionary living in another country, celebrating Independence Day on July 4th gets complicated. Because it was also the birthday of our two mission presidents the day before and the day after, and about half of the senior missionaries also have birthdays in July & August, we gathered for a quiet celebration on July 7th.

It was the traditional hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, melons, and apple pie. There was only one problem: as the burger fry began, the skies opened up and the rain began to pour down. Even with umbrellas for protection, Elder Hoffman and his side-kick were soaked through and had to beg a change of clothes from our dear Mission President before they could eat--and of course, that couldn't happen until John had made his super-special burger with the onions under the cheese creation!

Happy birthday to the President of Mexico Monterrey West (an old-timer of a year)...

Happy birthday to the President of Mexico Monterrey East (a newbie of one week)...

And happy birthday to the institute and temple couples!

But the biggest happy birthday of all to the United States of America and all those that made its existence possible. Thanks to Elder Hoffman for his patriotic message reminding us of the rich freedoms that we enjoy as Americans--not the least of which is the freedom to worship. 

There are few experiences in life that equal the feeling of crossing through customs, seeing a bigger than life American flag flying up ahead, and hearing the words, "Welcome home." 

God bless America!