For Christmas, we wrote up some more stories to add to my mom and dad's Tender Mercies book. This is one that I wrote about recent experiences:
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In the Spring of 2022, Jonathon received the amazing news that he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to conduct research in Salvador, Brazil for 4 months. The scholarship was not only very prestigious, but it also came with a substantial amount of funding to help pay for the research and most of our family’s living expenses. We were so excited for the many adventures that awaited our family. Over the next few months, we worked hard to start preparing for our trip, but as time went on, I started to get more and more nervous. I was stressed about things like not speaking the language, trying to find a safe place to live, getting around the big city, and not understanding the culture. The boys were nervous as well, but especially Hyrum. The anxiety even started to affect his sleep. This added another worry for me as I tried to help him. My excitement was suddenly overcome by overwhelming doubt and fear.
One of my good friends, Ali Vigue, knew about the trip and the anxiety we were feeling. She said she wanted me to meet one of her friends who was from Brazil named Luna Crookston. All three of our kids were on the same soccer team that year, so at the beginning of one of the games, Ali introduced us. After exchanging a few pleasantries, Luna asked about what we would be doing in Brazil. I mentioned that Jonathon was going to be teaching a class at UFBA in Salvador. Immediately, she smiled and said that was the city she was from! In fact, her brother still lived there, and their whole family had gone to visit for 3 weeks during the past Christmas. She pulled out her phone and showed me pictures and videos from their recent trip. She went into great detail about the best neighborhoods to live in, specific places we should visit, and food we should eat. I was in amazement that of all the cities in the huge country of Brazil, this woman just happened to be from the exact place we were going. After the game, I watched the video several times and showed it to the kids. Some of the excitement came rushing back.
One chance encounter may have easily been explained away as a mere coincidence, but over the next few weeks, we saw several more similar miracles. At school one day, I spoke with one of the other aides that I work with. She was also from Brazil and helped in the Portuguese classes, so I thought she might be a good contact to have for questions. When I told her our exciting news she said that Salvador was her hometown as well. Not only did she grow up there, but she also attended UFBA for college. I was in shock and excitedly asked a million questions. Throughout the conversation, I felt so many of my worries and fears lift. It was not just happenstance that the two people I met that month from Brazil were both from Salvador.
A few weeks later, we were at our Stake Conference. The Stake President asked the audience for participation. A lady in our ward (and our neighbor) named Megan Graves, raised her hand and talked about her mission in Brazil and how it had impacted her. We had no idea she had served in Brazil, so after the meeting, we went and talked to her. After my two previous experiences, it should not have surprised me at all that Megan served her mission in… Salvador! We chatted for a few minutes, and she said if we ever had any questions, we should just ask.
When we went home to visit my family this year for Christmas, we had a big extended family breakfast. I was helping cook pancakes in the kitchen when my dad came in and said, “You will never believe it, but that guy sitting at the table is from Salvador!” Jonathon and I quickly went over and started talking to him. It turns out he is a good friend of my cousin, Tyson, from BYU-Idaho. Apparently, he has visited Travis and Joanna’s family often and just happened to be there for the breakfast. Jonathon and I spent about an hour talking to him. He said that the Bishop that helped to baptize him would probably be our Stake President while we were there, and he could give us his contact information. He was delightful, full of great information, and spoke amazing English. When we asked how he learned the language, he said that he just watched English television and movies (which is a very common response) so we are going to implement that strategy too. It was another of those “small world” moments when everything seemed to come together out of nowhere.
A few months ago, I had never even heard of Salvador, and now it seems that everyone around me is connected to that one place. I’ve felt Heavenly Father reach out to me through these four people to bring me the comfort and peace I need to move forward. Over and over again, these sweet tender mercies have confirmed to me that we are supposed to be going to Salvador, even though I know it will be hard. I have felt so much awe as the Spirit continually opens my eyes to God’s hand in our lives. I don’t know what is in store for us in the future or how the sabbatical in Salvador will play out, but Heavenly Father has proven to me that He knows us and will watch over our family, and I will trust Him.
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