Adam Ericksen's Ecuador: Week 5 - My Last Week in Mexico

Hello friends and family,

Happy Wednesday! I am writing you all from the midst of a very busy P day. Already this morning, I have done a weeks worth of laundry, eaten two meals, completed a mock pack and weighed all of my luggage, went to the CCM tienda, and even got a haircut! It isn´t even 1 o´clock yet, and despite the busy nature of today, I have been lucky to find some time to reflect a little bit about my experiences thus far, and to think ahead about the adventures that await me in Ecuador. I am really starting to become very excited about leaving! I retrieved my travel plans yesterday, and that really only fueled the flames.

This coming Monday night, I will be going with my district to the reception/meeting place in the CCM at 9:50 PM. We will load up onto a bus and then head for the Mexico City airport, saving time to check in and navigate the Spanish hallways. I will be flying on a plane that departs at 1:28 AM, with an airline called Avianca, to Bogota, Columbia. After a 90 minute layover I will get on another plane that should have me arriving to Quito, Ecuador at about 10 AM. I know that it will be one exhausting day, but I can´t help being incredibly enthusiastic. It only makes things sweeter that I will be flying with all the guys that I have bonded with over the last 6 weeks here in Mexico, since we will all be going to the same mission.

I mentioned that today has been a day of reflection. If I had to sum up the last 38 days away from my family and friends, it would be: change. Although, don´t take that in a negative connotation. Change is the catalyst for growth and improvement. I have grown in so many ways and in so many ways that I would have never expected. I have grown in my ability to live alone. I have grown in my confidence to adapt to challenge and hardship. I have grown in the Spanish language. I have grown in my people skills and sociability. I have grown in so many important and amazing things. It is becoming quickly apparent to me that these growths are just little sample size doses of the type of person I will be for the rest of my life. And I kind of really like that.

Also, I have found that the key is to embrace the changes. I have been so much happier and more content as I have stopped resisting so strongly the improvements, and started welcoming them, as I cope with the help of God, my friends here, and the letters from the loved ones back home. I encourage you all to embrace your life´s alterations as you finish out a great week! Life is good! Don´t ever forget that.

Much Affection,

Elder Ericksen