The exodus continues

I’m feeling a little abandoned today. CB left for her big adventure in the US last weekend and The Boy has headed north for his rural general practice rotation. He’s literally in the outback, in a town of 800 people where, in order to get to nearby indigenous communities, he flies in a 6-seater plane. The hospital is staffed by two doctors. Yes, that's right, two. I’ve only spoken to him once since he arrived in Wyndham and it’s been a real eye opener. The first indigenous community he visited consisted of about 50 people who still use traditional methods of food collection subsidised by a small shop which doesn’t stock fresh produce. It’s literally flour, sugar, tea, tinned food and powdered milk - all highly processed offerings in my opinion. No wonder diabetes is at epidemic proportions in rural Aboriginal communities. But I digress.

The Drama Queen opens 'the package'.

The Drama Queen received her mission call yesterday. She’s been anticipating its arrival all week so when it finally came it was a welcome relief. I figured if she was to serve her mission in Australia she’d get Sydney or Adelaide and if she was to venture overseas it’s be to either Auckland or Salt Lake City. All of her friends were able to place their bets (one location only) while I, as the older sister was able to place two with the prize being a delectable ice-cream. I went with Adelaide and Auckland. She got Temple Square, Salt Lake City.

Official envelope.

It took us a while to get this out of her as she erupted in laughter while reading her letter before blurting out where she was headed. Apparently this location is a big joke amongst the Church youth who profess that girls who head to Temple Square (only girls serve their missions here) are glorified tour guides. I think it’s perfect. As a big sister it’s a big relief to me that she’s serving her mission in a relatively safe and friendly location in an English-speaking country. Plus she’ll have some excitement having to deal with all the anti-Mormon protesters. And she’ll be required to wear extremely modest clothing, which amuses me no end as The Drama Queen is rather trendy and likes to express herself through her clothing and accessories. Imagine J-Lo spending 18 months dressed like Barbara Bush senior. Hilarious.

The Chief inspects the guidelines.

On the positive side she doesn’t leave until early August so there is still time to enjoy her before she heads State-side. I’m also glad that The Boy will return with plenty of time before she departs. The Drama Queen had a teary moment when we dropped him off at the airport and it dawned on her that she may be gone by the time he returned. This way we get to say proper good byes. But it does mean that she won’t return until February 2011. Yes, that’s right, 2011. The Boy will have a whole year as an intern under his belt by then and I will have submitted my PhD thesis and will (hopefully) have a job. We may even have a mortgage and a token diamond. Clearly there will be no piece of paper without my mandatory witness *wink, wink*.

So I have three months left before I lose my baby sister for a year and a half. It’s still far away enough to feel surreal but I’m sure the reality of the situation will creep up on us quickly enough. Until then, I plan on creating enough happy memories to get me through.