We arrived at the airport. I wanted to be in a good spot to see him coming. There was airport construction going on so he would descend the escalator far back and walk down a corridor before coming out into the open area. The arrival times were posted in the same area. I think I checked them about every 2 or 3 minutes. He was arriving from DFW on flight 1925 at 8:45 pm.
We tried to keep positioning ourselves closer and
closer to where he would come out. There were two other families there welcoming home their missionaries as well. One of the families was that of Elder Boyce Weber from Justin's mission. The other was a missionary that had served in Europe. Their sign said "Welcome home Elder Hairball." I am pretty sure that was a joke and not his real name! I could feel the excitement and the energy from all around. There were signs and balloons. There were excited parents and siblings. There were eyes darting here and there saying, "Is that him? Is that him?" I felt the same way!
The plane landed and the wait began. There were numerous people in suits coming...but none of them was my son. I was standing but not still. Moving back and forth, back and forth. Looking desperately. I couldn't wait to get my hands on that boy of mine.
And then I saw him. And he saw this. People, his people, behind a sign. And he stopped. He didn't know what to do. And I began jumping. Up and down, up and down. Jumping and squealing.
I couldn't keep my feet on the floor. Here he was. Back safe and sound. Back to me.
He had done it. We had done it. He was home.
The cheering and the hugs began. Elder Moore was home!
It was wonderful to have him in my arms again. I loved seeing the brothers together....after almost 4 years. He was surprised at how his little sister was now all grown up.
Justin's other brothers were there too...Adam Lee and Daniel Lym. Now if I could only see them all play basketball together again my life would be complete!
I got just what I wanted...all my kids together...and Elder Moore got what he wanted...well, except for the masseuse! We gatherered the luggage and headed off to dinner at Denny's. It was late so we picked a restaurant we knew would be open.
At Denny's Elder Moore was having a hard time deciding what to order. He hadn't spoken English for a long time and he hadn't eaten American food for a long time. It was hard for him to make typical decisions. The menu was too big. He finally decided on a Chicken Caesar Salad but the server came back to say they were out of some of the ingredients and he would need to choose something different. He then chose a brownie ice cream dessert.
It was so wonderful to have him back in the same place as me, but all the time I kept thinking, he would rather be back in Nicaragua. That was home to him now. That was where he was comfortable. It was there that he understood the language and the people. I know this period of adjustment is necessary...but it still makes it hard for the mama to watch.
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