Hermana Heywood

Kaitlynn in the Chile Puerto Montt Mission

Father's Day Call with You (Puerto Montt), June 21, 2026

June 21, 2026 · Puerto Montt (Kaitlynn); Herriman, Utah (Jason)

A short Father's Day call, about fourteen minutes, with you calling from your house during what was technically your personal study time.

Connecting and Father's Day wishes

We had some trouble connecting at first, then you could hear and see me. You said you were in your house, squared up in a little corner. I asked what you had going on. You said you did not really have anything that day, that your plans were not solidified and the good plans you did have fell through. You said you were studying, so technically it was your personal study time, but you find that the call counts, so it was okay. You asked how my Father's Day had been, how church was, and whether the family had treated me well.

My Father's Day at home

I told you it was really good, and that the family was making me tacos right then. Church was good: Brother McGee spoke, on staying strong when you have troubled kids, and I loved the talk. It was heartfelt, and you could feel the testimony as he and his wife have been going through hardship with their kids who have made choices. The youngest of the Laker daughters spoke, and Brother Acton spoke; it was a really good sacrament meeting. I got to go to Sunday school, which is rare for me since I am always in Primary, so it had been a long time since I had been to Sunday school or elders quorum.

I told you Sister Fairbanks, the Relief Society president, had everyone wear the same tie that day. I did not know about it until I got to church; I had thought Mom was just being sweet giving me a new tie for Father's Day, and then everyone at church had the same one. I said, "Well played, Mom."

Birds, fires, and weather at home

I told you I took a picture of birds that morning, little finches, a male and a female, that I thought were looking for a place for their nest. There was a fire behind the University of Utah and another out by Alberta, so the day before it was smoky at home, just normal summer fires. You asked whether it was because it is hot and how hot it was. I said it was just normal hot, but that we have not had much rain, which I think is the biggest factor.

Rain in Puerto Montt and the fisherman's suit

You said that for the past two days you had had so much rain. I asked how you stay dry when it rains like that. You brought up how Rob had talked about bringing supposedly waterproof gear on his mission and finally just buying a fisherman's suit, and said you had done the same. I asked if it was yellow; you said no, luckily it is a dark green color, but that you look like an idiot wearing it. You said it is basically a rubber poncho and rubber pants, and the pants get super humid, so if your pants are even the least bit wet and then you put on the rubber pants, it is "just like a sauna for my legs."

I joked, "You're just getting moist in your eyes," and that your leg skin is just getting hydrated. You said that was a good way to look at it and a way to be positive.

The Coyhaique and Aysén blitz and the flight cancellations

I asked what you were studying. You said you were reading the Book of Mormon, and that it had been a really long week because you went to Coyhaique. You said you went to Puerto Aysén; you thought you had told me that was where you were going, but you clarified it is not where you served when you were in that region. You said it was still gorgeous, "like Hawaii, but cold," and that you did a blitz of the mission there.

You walked me through the travel trouble. You got to the airport on Wednesday and your flight got delayed, so you ate lunch, and then the flight was canceled. You could not book another flight for Thursday because there were none, so instead of leaving Wednesday you had to leave Friday. You had only planned to be there a couple of days but ended up there from Monday to Friday, which messed up your other schedules: you were in your sector and missed a couple of the other intercambio blitzes you were going to have, so those had to be moved. You said the good thing was that you got to go back to where you served and got to see Carlos and Victoria again, which was super fun and cool.

A stressful Sunday

You said Sunday had been stressful, and the day before too, because you got home from Coyhaique and then did another intercambio blitz. That morning was stressful because a bunch of your friends were supposed to come to church and you were coordinating who would go with whom and who would pick them up, since they live far out in the country; but they got to church, so it was okay.

You said you did not have lunch with a ward member that day, but that there is a member who loves her mote with all her heart, who came down from Valdivia, three or four hours away, and gave you lunch. You said normally when it is the two of them you just exist, which is fine but slightly drains you, and that you ate way too much.

Studying the Book of Mormon in Spanish

I said that being extra tired you were probably just wanting to fall asleep reading. You said you had actually been enjoying the Book of Mormon so much, and that you know the Spirit and the enabling power of Jesus Christ are real. You had been reading the Alma war chapters and liked them, and it was in Spanish, so "clearly, God is a god of miracles." You said the day before you finished Alma, which you called "the biggest accomplishment of anybody's life," and I noted it is the longest book. You said that day you were studying in Helaman. You said that was a really long answer that did not really answer my question about studying; I said I could not even remember what I had asked.

David and Goliath and giants

You asked how Sunday school was and whether I learned anything cool. I said Brother Cox was teaching and we talked about David and Goliath, which I like, and that there are a lot of parallels and I find giants fascinating and want to learn more about them. You said you did not know why there were giants in the land. I said the way it was phrased made it sound like a race or culture of people, a tribe who were all really big, as opposed to just tall people now whom we do not call giants, and I joked about how the Old Testament phrasing sounds, "the people from Iceland, that's the giants."

I said we also talked about the woman who got between David and her husband because her husband was, in my words, an idiot, and the parallels between her and Jesus as the intermediary, the mediator. You said you had talked about that in your Sunday school that day too, but that it was a lesson in Spanish and harder to understand.

Spanish comprehension and wrap-up

I said I thought you understood Spanish better than English now. You said you do not necessarily understand more; at this point you are just more "used to not understanding." I said you just accept the confusion and do not dwell on it. You agreed and said now it is normal.

You said you should probably go because the president had said a little bit, and you told me you love me. I said that was perfect, told you to have a great Sunday, and said I would talk to you the next day. We exchanged "I love you" and said goodbye.

Cleanup Notes