Are you a Return Missionary? Here are some great resources I found!

I have been sharing lots of my favorite things lately, but I have been finding some really cool stuff about being a returned missionary, and by that I mean a super awkward human being of society. Hey you've got to own it right :)

lds.living has tons of really good stuff. I loved this article they wrote that says if RMs (return missionaries) understood this they'd be happier. It's talks about how you always have the highest hope for the people you meet and baptize into the church. You are hopeful they will stay active their entire lives and become the next Bishop or Relief Society President. That is not always the case, it is hard. I can attest to that. A lot of the people I met on the mission and who chose to be baptized have fallen away. It completely breaks my heart. I have never felt anxiety before, but I do for these people because I love them so much. It's tough, you worry about them every day and every night, I am not sure that will ever change. If you can relate to that, or have felt depressed or confused or sad about anything regarding the topic, check out the article, here is the link:

http://universe.byu.edu/2015/03/12/rms-keep-the-badge-on-their-hearts-think-back-to-mission-converts/

Now if you want pure gold, you will read this, it will make you a little teary-eyed and remind you of good times and.... not so good times! This is an article from Deseret News about 12 things every missionary remembers.

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/765671212/12-moments-every-returned-missionary-remembers.html?pg=all&clear_cache=1

One return Sister Missionary, wrote about how she felt about coming home. I am so glad that there are more people out there who feel the way I feel. Whenever I read articles like this I am reminded of what I am doing in my life. She talks about a lot of the things that I have thought about. I feel like I have now hit the point where I realize that I am falling short in a lot of things I should be doing. I read my scriptures every night, but when I am super tired I just pull out my phone and scroll through a little bit. Definitely not like I used to study. It bugs me that I do that, I always told myself I wouldn't but here ya go. Luckily, very very luckily I know I can change. Life is not going to get less busy (although I cross my fingers for one day that it won't be) but I will learn how to prioritize more productively. Here is the link to the article:

http://www.whatsoeverisgood.com/how-it-feels-to-be-a-sister-returned-missionary/

On a lighter subject, I have linked up to this blog before but I love how they decorated for their missionary's homecoming, it is sooo cute!

http://www.blogcrew.com/main-blog/2014/8/12/my-girl-is-finally-home?rq=missionary

When I started writing this blog for my class I had been home less than a month. Weird right. Time seriously never slows down it is the pits. I started looking into teachings the church had for us "awkwardies" (yes I made that up myself, has a nice ring to it) and reading articles and trying to improve who I was, now looking back on it I can see a little bit of how the advice works. It is always pretty tough when you are going through whatever your going through and trying to soak in the advice and teachings and apply them to their very best, especially because you don't want to let anyone down. I know I am that way, hindsight is much clearer and I can see that even though I was doing my best, and knowing I was falling short. I was doing okay. I go at my own pace whether that is super fast or super slow, it varies daily :) Here is some advice though for the Returned Missionary:

http://www.thereturnedmissionary.com/advice-for-returned-missionaries/

How cool huh, there is a whole stinking website on it :) Saweet!!!!!

This next article I found is great and a little funny. It was written at BYU about the Dos and Don'ts of helping missionaries adjust. They are really good. Some I am not a die hard supporter of, but what doesn't work for me may be perfect for someone else, and vice versa.... you pickin up what I'm puttin down? :)

http://universe.byu.edu/2015/02/19/blog-what-to-do-and-what-not-to-do-to-help-rms-adjust/

I could go on for a while, I mean there is some solid good stuff out there. But I will end with linking you to the best places of resource. lds.org and mormon.org there you can find answers and a whole lot of peace. I am grateful that we do not have to do this alone, no matter how weird we may be. We have so many tools to help us get by, but not only that, I am positive the Savior has helped one or two return missionaries transition ;) and he will definitely help you. I can say that because of the way I have felt his love and guidance in the past 3.5 months of being home.