The Biggest Mistake of My Life (...Nobody Died!)

Whoa. Hey, incidentally, did you know that the first Portuguese triple combination is supposed to come out Novemberish? I think I'm gonna buy it. That way I can maintain my Portuguese better. I've got a feeling I'll be using it way longer than just my mission.

            In other news...welp, here's another 2 weeks come and gone, and they've been stressful for several reasons. I'll try to explain them as best I can, but really it's simple: struggle to survive on the mission!

One of the most stressful things was actually...not so big in retrospect. One of the Elders in our house started to use one of my pairs of shoes without informing me, and I got pretty steamed. I gave him until the next P-day to go buy shoes...and on Sunday he told me he'd gone broke. I then gave him R$50, told him to go buy himself some shoes the next day, and if he for some reason failed to procure shoes he'd be using the old ones he'd torn. It wasn't particularly fun, but at least it was handled calmly, and he didn't resist. Complications should end, as he's got new shoes of exactly the same type. I was in the midst of a bit of self-loathing because I was the loudmouth for cleaning, but the house ended up using a few creative solutions to the work and now the house is good. Life be good there now.

The entire house has developed a better attitude with respect to obedience too, and now EVERYBODY gets on each other's case when the missionary manual says something different than what we're doing. Call me crazy, but I think it's cool. It's kind of more of the bickering style we had (have?) at home, and it works. We're feeling the Spirit much more now, and the house unity has gone up. It's amazing what a redesignation of the DL can do.

            The other big article I want to mention....well, that's the namesake of my title. This last week, we had transfers - I ended up not being able to get anything out to anybody in terms of correspondence, and now that we're following more exactly the P-Day guidelines I'm hoping that'll get turned around. The transfer was the most henpecking one of all...because the arrivals got a day earlier than expected.

Yeah. Let me recount this all.

            So, the MTC had sent me an adjusted transfer schedule a day in advance of our then existing one...and so Pres. adjusted the transfer from Tuesday to Wednesday. Mentally, I was working towards everything happening on the 27th...and I dismissed the itinerary that I received saying the arrivals would be heading out on the 26th. 

On the Tuesday morning of the 26th, we were all hustling and bustling to make the transfer happen as we planned...and suddenly we get a call on the land line. Nothing out of the ordinary. E. Pájaro, who was waiting around for his flight while he hung out in the office, answered the phone (since he was the financial secretary before, this was permissible).

He starts to attend them...and says, "Elder Novaes? Ah, alright, well, hang tight there for a minute..."

The instant I heard that name, I knew exactly what had happened. My face almost hit my desk. I quickly ran over to President's desk and just told him:

"Uh, President...as chegadas estão no aeroporto." ("Uh, President...the arrivals are in the airport.")

"...que?" ("What?")

"As chegadas. Estão aqui já." ("The arrivals. They're already here.")

Pause for 5 seconds. Then the chaos of calls and logistics ensued. It's a very elaborate story, and I'm still getting ribbed big-time. I had some serious emotional downtime for about a day after the transfer was over. But now we've got an inside joke at the office, started by President. Whenever somebody forgets something, we call it Gubler Syndrome. And now, all of that group of arrivals will never forget Elder Gubler...and their first day in the mission field.

THAT was the biggest shame of my life so far. But everything turned out all right, and if anything the mistake has served as a lesson of diligence and using one's own brain. I just hope that I don't make President go bald in the midst of it all (though Sister is more likely!). He's probably the most merciful individual I know, and I'll have to ask him one day how it was to witness Elder Gubler when he entered the office and how he was leaving the office. I've got a list I'm maintaining here for the last testimony and last interview.

I learned something precious about mistakes, too, while it all happened. I withdrew during the transfer, and I felt rather bitter about my mistake, though I was doing everything possible to fix it. However, when I was about to train the mission hymn with the newbies, Sister Gonzaga (probably the most stressed of all in the entire mess!) said something that touched me:

"Tá bom, Élderes e Sisteres, nós vamos treinar o hino da Missão Brasil Maceió...Élder Gubler, cadê você? Esse Élder toca muito bem, vou ter muita saudade dele quando ele partir..."

Translation: "Alright, Elders and Sisters, we're going to train the Brazil Maceió Mission hymn...Elder Gubler, where are you? This Elder plays the piano really well, I'm going to miss him when he leaves..."

It may seem a little sappy, but Sister Gonzaga was actually the person I was most worried about stressing out. She's a high-energy person, and I know she got REAL upset when Pres. made the call that she had to get everything ready "today". I felt touched because even though I'd commited a mistake that affected her so, she still thought me a good person and even expressed that she'd miss me. I wonder just how much they had to endure to develop that sort of love for other people, and I hope that I get to that point someday. From all appearances, it's necessary as a parent and certainly not easy to maintain - less so for people you don't know that well! I still think about that moment, and the relief I felt in that single sentence, realizing what I did. Letting somebody know they are loved is highly important, and an integral part of the work that Christ performed - I'm grateful for the example that was set for me this last week.

Well, my head's been emptied today. It's easy to see how those few events have occupied my head for now, huh? Though I'm not necessarily proud of my mistake, I'm proud to say it was a valuable means for me to become a better person, the effect I had hoped my mission would always have.  I hope I never become blind to those facts, and that the Lord always see fit to humble me should it happen.

I end this record for the week with my usual request: Don't ever forget to write! The P-Day section of the mish manual isn't necessarily my favorite part, but I follow it, and I feel good for it. I hope it just means more blessings...in the form of letters! I love communicating the incredible things I'm receiving as a missionary, and getting updated on what's happening in y'all's lives. Just do it!

Love,

-Erich