Mission Extension Decision Call with You (Valdivia), March 16, 2026
The mission extension announcement. You told Mom and me that in your interview with Presidente Mackay this week, you committed to extending your mission by one transfer. Your new return date is approximately September 2026 (one transfer past the original).
The mission extension - how it surfaced
You walked Mom and me through the lead-up:
- For weeks, the thought "would you extend your mission if the president asked you to?" had been coming and going.
- Your standing answer in your head: yes, immediately.
- You prepared a different set of questions for your interview with Mackay this week.
In the actual interview:
- Mackay opened with "how are you?"
- You got nervous and started rambling.
- The extension thought surfaced in the ramble.
- You said it out loud: "I've been thinking about it, and I think that's what God needs me to do. I'm more than happy with doing that. I just want to do what the Lord wants me to do. When else am I going to get the chance to be a missionary?"
You watched the light bulb go on for Mackay. He told you that he and Hermana Mackay had been actively planning future leadership assignments, your name had been coming up, but your current release date didn't fit. The extension resolved it. He told you to think about it, pray about it for three weeks, then you'd talk again - you told him you'd already decided.
What you're bracing for - Hermana AP
You're 95% sure of the layout:
- One more transfer in Valdivia (with another companion replacing Artieda - Mackay told you this directly).
- Then three transfers in Puerto Montt as hermana AP - traveling the whole mission, doing exchanges with every leader.
You caveated your own framing carefully: "I don't want to be like 'I DESERVE this, this is going to happen because I'm the one' - because that is junk. That is not how the Lord calls. The Lord calls who the Lord calls. If that's me, awesome. If it's not awesome, awesome. I just don't want to be the kind of leader that's all about being the woman."
You named Hermana Snowder as the AP before you - Snowder goes home one transfer before you were originally supposed to. You do not think Snowder will be your trainer in the AP role.
The atonement moment in the interview
A daily atonement study you and Artieda had been doing this week landed in the interview. Quote from you, near-verbatim:
"The atonement of Jesus Christ is real. It is not just a little thought. This is not the tradition of my parents, like the Chinese New Year. It is real. Without Jesus Christ, we are doomed, 100%."
You started getting teary; Mackay started getting teary. (Standing pattern in your interviews - both cry.)
At the stake conference that followed in the week, Mackay opened his own talk by relaying - without naming you - that a missionary had recently testified to him in interview that the atonement is real, and how that made him so happy. You recognized your own moment being held up in his talk.
The secret Concepción temple trip
The Chile Puerto Montt Mission has no temple in-region. Closest is the Concepción Chile Temple - about a six-hour bus ride from Valdivia. You, Artieda, and the zone leaders went to Mackay with the proposal and got his approval. Approximately 17 people going. Bus tickets ~$15 each. Nobody else is supposed to know. (Alexa came on the call midway, was told, sworn to secrecy.)
Practical implications - BYU-Idaho housing
You won't be at BYU-Idaho for fall 2026 because you'll still be on your mission. You need to:
- Cancel Centennial housing.
- Defer one more semester at BYU-Idaho.
Me: "Sorry, that's fine. That's exciting. So don't be a grump."
Praying for humility
You have been deliberately praying for humility. Yesterday was particularly humbling. Your reflection: "I just kept looking at the sky and being like, 'You know what? Maybe I shouldn't be afraid of humility. How ridiculous.'"
My framing: "I've learned that if I ever want to pray for patience or humility, I can't just say 'give me humility.' I say, 'give me the gift of patience without having to go through the work.'"
My Herriman Hills hike photos
Brief photo-share at the end. Sunday hike in the Herriman Hills behind our house. Lone tree at the top. Camp Williams visible. Cow-trampled grass at the church. Mom-emailing-you-from-a-tiny-keyboard moment captured - Mom was 4'10" away from a full-sized keyboard and chose to type the email on a tiny one anyway. I called myself "the bigfoot of the Herriman Hills" because nobody else is up there.
My dream
Brief - I had a dream about going to Jurassic Park with a heavy pack, jumping in water, sinking like a rock, ditching the pack to swim to the surface. Your interpretation: it means more than just drowning; I should discuss it. Me: work stress. You: "Maybe the dream was telling you to just quit and go boating every day in a lake."
Closing
Sign-off. Mom and I celebrating your choice. Mom (after the temple-trip secret): "I won't tell anyone."
Cleanup Notes
- Mission extension event note created.
- Profile snapshot for you: Updated to reflect the new return date.
- The exact original vs. new return dates: You said "I'll come home in September" as the extended date.
- The atonement-of-Christ moment: Added to Spiritual Turning Points theme.
- Concepción temple trip: Treated as upcoming event; will get its own event note when the trip happens.