My Brother

My brother is leaving today for the Missionary Training Center down in Johannesburg, South Africa. It's all official now. He was ordained an elder last night, and my mom said it was such a comforting experience for her. He was blessed with safety, and will touch many lives there in Cape Town. Chase is so anxious to go, and we are all so excited for him.

Life seems to be coming at me so fast, I can't believe it. Here I am, an almost 22 year old married woman, and my baby brother is across the world serving in South Africa. It seems like just yesterday Chase and I were building forts, watching rugrats and picking raspberries in our backyard together. My cousin Emily told me that when her brother was serving his mission, that the first year seemed to go by so  s . l . o . w . but the second year speeds itself along. Thank goodness for that.

I hope that Chase embraces every day on this new journey of his. I hope he finds out what his purpose in going to South Africa is, and that his knowledge of the gospel will continue to grow. I know that he will fall in love with the people and the areas he is serving. We'll be here on the other side praying and cheering him along.

We love you, Chase. See you in two.

P.S. I created a missionary blog for everyone to stay updated with what Chase is doing. The address is: http://www.elderchasebnielsen.blogspot.com/. I will be updating it with all the emails/letters that he sends our way, so be sure to visit it every once and awhile.