"Flag Day"

Yesterday was Flag Day!!!

The day we received the flag for the country to which we have been assigned.

We've been waiting impatiently for months to know where we would be going, and finally the long awaited day had come.  The U.S. Department of State is based in Washington, D.C and has more than 270 embassies, consulates and diplomatic missions worldwide.

http://careers.state.gov/work/foreign-service

We got a list about a month ago, of the countries where they had positions open to new FSOs.  We spent a week agonizing over which countries would go in our "low," "medium," and "high" classifications.  It was very strategic as we considered where we wanted to live, the languages we wanted to learn, safety for our kids, quality of schools, pollution and disease, etc.  In talking with Briant's assigned counselor, it became very apparent that his Portuguese was going to impact greatly where we were posted.  So he and I made sure that we put Sao Paolo, Brazil in our high grouping, and Angola (a Portuguese speaking country in southwest Africa), in our low grouping.  We had concerns there, but it was mainly because we didn't really want to go to Africa right now, but felt a stronger pull to Brazil if we were going to get sent Portuguese speaking.  In our heart of hearts, we were really hoping for some Asian or southeastern Asian country to start, especially because we wanted Savannah to be able to continue on with her learning of Chinese that she started in the Chinese immersion program of the elementary school.

They started making the announcements by putting a picture of the country's flag on the big screen and saying the country's name.  Then they would announce the person's name.  Clapping and cheering ensued for the next hour.  There were 100 students in the A-100 class.  After announcing about 30 people and their assigned countries, including the Sao Paolo spots, we were shocked to hear Briant's name called for Luanda, Angola!!!

Just wondering if the machete in the flag is telling me what I should pack.  :)

I was stunned...I couldn't even hold the camera right to get a picture of Briant up front with a picture of the Angolan flag behind him.  Immediately, Thomas started to cry because he was really hoping to go to Brazil (as all of us were prepared for because they almost never assign "low" countries out).  He was even wearing his Brazilian jersey shirt (a hand-me-down from my friend Claudia, a Brazilian) underneath his regular shirt, with the plan to remove the top shirt if they called Brazil. :) He would have accepted another post like China or something else that was on our medium or high lists...but ANGOLA?!  That was a total shock to everyone.

Here is a blurry, but true to the mood picture of how everyone was doing (my camera is not dependable these days.  It's on its last leg).  In addition to the disappointment, Rhea was hungry and Savvy's ears were hurting "because of all the clapping and loud noises" that had been going on for over an hour.  Thomas took his top shirt off anyway to reveal the Brazilian jersey.  :)

We were shocked, but really feeling optimistic.

Trying to get a grip, we came home and started researching Angola right away (we still don't have smart phones :) ).  We wanted to know everything!  First I had to be reminded of where Angola was in Africa.  Unfortunately we didn't find a lot of encouraging information or statistics.  Crime is high, cost of living is VERY high, there's a lot of traffic and poverty, and we have to be careful of diseases such as malaria, typhoid, yellow fever, and denguey.  They also recently ended a 30 year civil war so their infrastructure is weak.  And as Bri lamented, "What are we going to eat there?!  I had high levels of culinary delight waiting for me in Brazil!"  After a somewhat discouraging hour where we were still determined to be hopeful, we looked at the LDS church website to see if the church has a presence there.  I have talked to a number of families since we moved here to D.C., that have had to hold church by themselves in their homes abroad because they were the only members of the church.  We were relieved to find that there are a few branches in Luanda and that Angola had become its own mission last year.  So there are a number of missionaries serving there and the branches are growing with converts.  I actually found a 2013 Ensign article by Elder F. Michael Watson, entitled "Obedience:  A Hallmark of Faith," where he shared this story of Angola:

A Prayer of Faith

In the country of Angola, opposition threatened to thwart the desire of faithful and obedient Saints to see the gospel take root in their land. The Lord had sent His servants to open the door to missionary work, but on the eve of their scheduled travel, visas still had not been granted. When Church representatives visited immigration officials about the delay, they were turned away.

With approval from the First Presidency to dedicate Angola for missionary work, Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and others awaited word in Johannesburg, South Africa. At the same time, faithful member Paulina Lassalete da Cunha Gonçalves tried to open what seemed to be a closing door. She hoped to obtain letters of invitation that would grant permission for the Church party to enter Angola. Once there, they could then obtain necessary visas.

Within minutes of government offices closing in Angola, Elder Christofferson assembled with those waiting in the Africa Southeast Area offices. Then, kneeling in prayer, he asked Heavenly Father to intervene. In that same hour, immediately following his prayer of faith, the letters of invitation were signed. A loving Father in Heaven had prepared the way for the day of dedication. At the request of Elder Christofferson, a humble prayer of thanks was offered for the granted miracle.⁴

We looked at blogs of missionaries serving there, and were filled with peace.  We felt the comfort of the Spirit.  We saw their smiling faces and all of the good they're doing there, and saw the faces of the Angolans, and we desired to be a part of it.  Is it going to be without its challenges?  Certainly not (the list of required immunizations says it all)!  But I was reminded of a scripture in the Book of Mormon.  The same scripture that has had a strong presence in my heart and mind since the road to the foreign service began.  It is this:

"And I will also be your light in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before you, if it so be that you shall keep my commandments; wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the promised land; and ye shall know that it is by me that ye are led."  (1 Nephi 17:13)

This photo shows something that Thomas made for Bri and gave to him (along with a candle he made), right before Briant left for the Oral Assessments in D.C.--the last step of the testing process.  It meant so much to Bri that he folded it up and carried it with him in his pocket to the test for good luck.  It is now framed.  And I love the reminder.  Because truly we do know that even when it seems that things don't make sense in the way they've turned out, especially after our own work and effort to make things go the way we want, that Heavenly Father knows what we need and He will lead the way.  So we'll move forward with an eye of faith, determined to have a tremendous tour!