Learning to fly...

It has been said that when a bird is old enough the parents will push their young off springs out of the nest and teach them to fly on their own. For the first part of their young lives these baby birds have relied on their parents for the basics needs of food, shelter and protection. I am sure that during the nurturing period the parent hopes that the off spring is watching and learning, learning what is critical for survival in a sometime hostile world.

The same could be said for each one of us, there comes a time when we as parents must “push” our children out of the nest and see if they have learned to “fly” on their own. Seeing you children out in the “world” can stir up a myriad emotions. As a parent you still want to protect you children, yet you want them to be independent, but it is still difficult. With children at all stages of life I find that finding an equal balance on emotions is sometime quite challenging, but I would not have it any other way.

Recently my wife and I had the privilege of sending a son off on a LDS Church Mission to Argentina to see if he can fly on his own. We have had this opportunity twice before when our oldest daughter left for the Portland Oregon Mission and a son to the Philippine Naga Mission. And as a dad of 3 great missionaries I can assure you that it does not get any easier sending your children out into another part of the country or world for a period of time to teach people about the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This last time when we took out son to the MTC in Provo Utah I could not help but notice the number of proud parents there were as they escorted their sons and daughters into the MTC. The faces of those missionaries preparing for the unknown told the story of what lay ahead for both the missionary and the parents.

Once it came time for the missionaries to say good-bye to their families it was apparent to me that this was a time to let your child fly on their own. But it is never easy, I will always wonder if we taught them the things that they will need to know to survive with out the watching eye of their moms. Will they be able to boil water without burning it, how will they survive without dad reminding them what time to be home at night?

But to my knowledge there has not been on missionary that has starved in the field, nor has there been many missionaries staying out late into the night. After all missionary work is hard and by the end of the day you are just ready for a good night sleep, regardless how lumpy the mattress maybe.

So I guess it is time to let our children fly on their own, knowing that they know where the nest is located and that they are always welcome back….So to my children who have had this opportunity to “fly” go, have fun, work hard and remember where your nest is located….