The day had finally come. A white envelope had arrived to the silver box
outside Chelsey Fisher’s apartment the Evening of February 7th, 2013.
The rest of her classes seemed to consume her life, and the little patience she
had still, as she waited for the time to come when she could open this packet
that would change her life, as she knew it, forever. For weeks, maybe even
years, she had been waiting for this day to come, and now, the only thing
keeping her from knowing was Time.
Friends and family gathered at 7:50 in the living
room and kitchen of Chelsey’s apartment. The love of those present was quite a comfort
to the girl who, all day, had not been able to contain her excitement. The
immediate family, and best friend, Hilary Harris, gathered back home in Aurora,
Illinois around a computer screen and webcam to use a video chat through Skype
to communicate with those gathered in cold Provo, Utah.
Finally, the time had come. With letter opener and
letter in hand, Chelsey began to open the corner of the white envelope. The
room was silent, as the letter opener sliced through that paper product. Now,
the document was exposed to the extra carbon dioxide that, a second earlier,
had been filling the apartment air. Then, the pages were torn from the comfort
of the white heaven and covered so as not to reveal the answer it concealed.
The reading began, “Dear Sister Fisher…” Chelsey
had thought she would cry but, pindrops of diamonds gathered in the corner of
her eyes. She continued reading, “You are hereby called to serve as a
missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You are assigned
to labor in the Utah Ogden Mission. It is anticipated that you will serve for a
period of 18 months. You should report to the Provo Mission Training Center on
Wednesday May 29, 2013. You will prepare to preach the gospel in the Spanish
Language.”
The room erupted with sounds that were inaudible to any human ear as
Chelsey just died laughing and continually repeated, “I’m going Spanish
speaking!” and “The Lord has a sense of humor!” All sentences clamored together
and hands clasped together and Chelsey just laughed. Hugs were shared. It was
done and Chelsey felt excited and at peace. The world would have to see if she
slept until her report date arrived. As the crowd dispersed and Chelsey had a chance
to catch her breath, she was so grateful for the opportunities which had
befallen her so that she could go out and serve the Lord and help bring others
to her Savior, Jesus Christ.
