EFY Junkie

Okay, so I really want to catch everyone up a little bit about what I did this summer after the mission before I start blogging about all the current stuff going on in my life. The basic nutshell version is:

• I came home from Spain and spent an entire month with my family in good ol' Las Cruces. (I literally spent all my time with them and it took me several weeks before I even started looking up all friends.)



• I travelled to Tucson for the weekend to catch Whitney's amazing senior recital.



• We went as a family to our annual week vacation in New Port, California. (The first time that I had worn a bathing suit or swam in 20 months). I just love the beach and we went deep sea fishing which was a blast!



• Whit and I then went to Scottsdale to spend a few days at a resort there with uncle James, Kristen, and Katie plus all our little cousins.



• Whit and I then headed with some of her friends (which are now my friends) to Havasupai in the Grand Canyon. We back packed 10 miles in, spent a couple of days jumping off of waterfalls, swimming in gorgeous blue water, and just having an awesome time. I then backpacked the 10 miles out at midnight so I could drive with a couple of friends to Utah to be there in time for my EFY training meeting.

Yup, EFY. When I was a participant during high school I had decided that I wanted to be an EFY counselor someday when I grew up. Well, the summer after the mission seemed like the perfect time to fulfill that dream. While I was still in Spain my dad applied for me for the job, but because I was still on my mission I was unable to have an interview for a position. When I got home in April they told me my only option to work with the EFY program would be to be a volunteer counselor in Salt Lake. So there I was in my 1st training meeting for what I thought would be my one week of EFY couseling experience. My plan was to do one week to say I did it and spend the rest of the summer selling baby clothes at my uncle's store. During that first night I was a little bit nerveous just because I still hadn't really been forced to be "social" since the mission and you know those recently returned missionaries have a pretty bad rapt of being socially inept.

Well, long story short. During that 1st week of EFY I fell in love! In love with the kids, the programs, the other counselors, the teaching, the testifying, the blue and green polos, the games night, the variety shows, the dances, the devotionals, and not to mention what we call EFC (especially for counselors). I felt like I was as close to being back in the mission as I could be without actually being a missionary again. I just felt good all the time. I felt like I could make a difference, and it felt good to know that I was literally just donating my time for what I considered a worthy cause. Well, one week turned to two weeks. Two weeks to three, etc... and the next thing I knew I had volunteered for all 6 weeks of EFY in the Salt Lake area and then the summer was over. It was just a blast though and I loved every minute of it! I spent my spare time visitting all my Utah family and just trying to live it up (including going on dates and stuff again which is definitely an adjustment from mission life). Nothing got me more excited though then starting a new week with the Sunday night counselor training meeting. I literally was addicted to EFY and I couldn't get enough. I was and still am an EFY junkie!