Drive-by drop off.

We dropped Andrew off at the Missionary Training Center in Provo today. It was another bittersweet experience.

We got to town early and had lunch with Linda and Don Montierth and their son who also entered the MTC today. Susan and Linda are both converts to Mormonism who have known each other since kindergarten. It is an amazing coincidence that we both have sons who went on missions on the same day.

When I was a missionary, the process for entering the MTC was that families escorted their children into a large auditorium and had a presentation directed by the MTC Mission President. At the end of the assembly, missionaries were directed out one door and families out another door. There was always sort of an emotional mass goodbye. Family members and missionaries were prone to buckets of tears.

Nowadays, you simply leave your missionary at the curb. We call it the "tuck-and-roll" method. You drive onto the MTC campus and are directed to the south/east sidewalk along the main street. There are dozens of 'stations' for dropping off the missionary. As soon as you pull up to the station you have been directed to, three or four 'Host' missionaries cheerfully greet you and begin pulling suitcases out of the trunk. In moments, there is a quick round of hugs and the missionary is led away to meet his fate. It all happens in such a happy, fast manner that it is over before you know it.

Susan came up with the best analogy Doing a drive-by drop-off is like pulling a Band-Aid off as fast as you can instead of as slow as you can. Fast may be shocking...but it is over before you really have a chance to get all worked up. Slow separations lead to anticipatory emotions and are a lot more emotional.

If you are ever doing a tuck-and-roll drop-off at the MTC, here are a few suggestions.

1. Arrive a few minutes before your assigned time. This allows you a few extra minutes of walking around with your missionary.
   
2. When you are there a little early, park in the lot directly to the East of the MTC. The lot is open all day to those dropping off missionaries. There is a very nice volunteer attendant who will explain the best way to drop-off your missionary.
   
3. Take most of your MTC photos before you get to the curb. You will be really rushed when you are dropping off your missionary.
   
4. Our favorite photo of outside the MTC is the gated entrance with the MTC name. You'll have to wait a few minutes for your turn, but it is fun to watch the other families do their photos. There is a happy buzz with dozens of missionaries and their families. (This is why you want to get there a few minutes early.)
   
5. Be on time...but not ON TIME. We rushed ourselves a little and realized after that nobody was verifying our exact arrival time. If you get to the curb within the 15 minute period before the next wave, you should have no problems.
   
6. Linger a moment to watch your missionary as he walks away. As soon as Andrew turned and walked away, I got in the car. I missed one last glance at my son as he disappeared. An extra few seconds would have been nice.

We are so proud of our son Andrew. The drive home was happy, but somber. We can hardly believe that the mission has started and that we have two years before we will see him again. We miss him already. This is the first time that Andrew has been away from home...really away from home. We hope that he will be resilient and faithful and will thrive in the MTC and in Houston.

Please keep him and all the missionaries in your prayers.