Mark's send off

Hello all.  I wanted to start his blog by sharing a little of what the last few days have been like, from my perspective.


Sunday was such a wonderful day.  It was fun to watch Mark's face as he was sitting on the stand in church.  When he'd see someone unexpected walk into the meeting, his reactions were priceless.  Mark's talk was fabulous...spiritual...  He started by bearing his testimony, rather than ending with it.  That set the whole tone for his talk.  The subject we were given to speak on (yes, I had to speak with him) was preparation...mine was temporal preparation and his was spiritual preparation.  He spoke about his experiences over the last year or two preparing to serve a mission.  Many mentioned that it sounded more like a homecoming than a farewell.


After Sacrament Meeting, a crowd came to our home...both friends and family.  It was delightful to have the opportunity to visit with everyone and it meant so much to Mark to have you come to support him.  I can't thank enough the family and friends who pitched in to help out.  It was great to be together, have some good eats, and visit.


After the big group had mostly cleared out, visitors came throughout the day...right up until about 9:00pm.  It was wonderful to have so many come to honor Mark.  He was thankful and humbled by the outpouring of love and caring.


Monday and Tuesday were spent getting the last minute things purchased, laundry done, and bags packed. As we packed the suitcases on Tuesday night, Mark discovered he could not locate his scriptures anywhere.  So on the way to the MTC, we stopped at Deseret Book and purchased a new set.  It's funny.  We'd been there the week before getting some last minute items he needed and had met and talked with a gal at the Distribution Center.  She was there working yesterday when we arrived and she came out to talk with us.  Her comments were something like, "Hey Elder, don't you have someplace else to be."  It was pretty funny.


When Mark purchased his clothing for the temple back in May, a different lady in the Distribution Center helped him.  As it happened, she has a son serving in the Cincinnati mission also.  She was there yesterday when we stopped by and we got to talk with her briefly also.


As soon as I learn how, I'll post some pictures to the blog.