Fold Your Hands Child

This Is Gospel

Emily Mason swallowed thickly as she clutched the thick white envelope in her hand, attempting to hide the shaking of her fingers as she met the expectant gazes of her parents. She forced a smile, hoping that her nerves would be mistaken as excitement, after all, anything else was simply unacceptable.

"Well go on, Emily. Open it! We're all dying to know where Heavenly Father has called you to serve." Eleanor encouraged, a smile fixed to her lips.

"I know I am. Maybe she'll be sent where we served. Wouldn't that be great, Elle?" Tom mused, smiling proudly at his daughter. "You'd be following our footsteps, carrying the torch."

Emily allowed a small chuckle to escape her lips as she nodded, though both actions came with uncertainty and reluctance. "W-well, let's see." She mumbled as she began to rip at the envelope carefully so as not to rip the documents concealed inside. The trembling of her fingers worsened as she unfolded the letter, the envelope dropping forgotten to the floor. As she flattened the thick stack of papers, she pressed it to her chest, closing her eyes tightly. To her parents it looked as though she was saying a word of prayer, thanking Heavenly Father for His will, but that wasn't the case in the least. Instead, she attempted to steady her nerves and muster up the courage to read her assignment. All the while, she regretted the day she sent in her application to the Temple in Salt Lake City.

After what felt like ages, Emily opened her eyes, but kept her gaze low, not meeting the eager eyes of her parents. "Here we go..." She said softly as she held the documents away from her chest, her eyes scanning the paper until they landed on the location listed in bold lettering. A gasp escaped her lips as anxiety gripped her senses. She expected this could happen, but she never expected it...Most Sisters were kept stateside, very few of them being sent out of the country. But it would seem that Heavenly Father had other plans for her.

"Well?" Eleanor asked, impatience edging at her tone. "Where is it?"

Emily swallowed thickly and met the gaze of her mother, holding it for a moment before she averted her eyes to her father. "Iceland..." She whispered hoarsely. "Gardabaer, Iceland."

No sooner had those words escaped her lips. Emily felt herself being engulfed in a tight hug by both of her parents. She could feel the tears of her mother soaking the fabric of her t-shirt as she stood rigid in place, too frozen to move let alone speak. All she could do was stand there in the embrace, listening to her parents praise Heavenly Father for His will and speak words of what she was sure was meant to be encouragement, but she didn't comprehend a single one of them.

"I don't want to do this..." She mumbled, though her words fell on deaf ears, for her parents were still blinded by joy. Emily felt as though their hugs were growing tighter and tighter until it all became too much and she pulled away, forcing herself to smile so as to not alarm her parents. That wouldn't be acceptable either. "I should...I should call the Bishop and let him know. He'll be wanting to announce it at church tomorrow." She said as she walked over to the table where the cordless phone sat on the base. All the while, she breathed deeply to try to calm her nerves.

"Oh, you know what, you're right! And after you talk to Bishop Klein, I want you to go upstairs and get ready. We're going to take you out to dinner to celebrate, Ems! Anywhere you want to go, you name it!" Ellie stepped over to her daughter and placed a kiss on her cheek before wiping away a few of her own tears. "Oh Tom, our baby is going to Iceland, can you believe that? She'll make us so proud, I know she will."

Tom smiled brightly and nodded in agreement. "She already does, Elles. Go ahead, Sweetie, give Bishop Klein a call, we'll be waiting right here."

Emily glanced back and forth between her parents, the phone gripped so tightly in her hands that her knuckles had turned white. Tears filled her eyes as she continued to glance at her parents, her shoulders shaking as she held back the urge to sob. "I...I.."

Eleanor frowned. "Oh honey, you don't have to call him now...Take some time to calm down, I know you're excited. We could go to dinner first if you'd like?"

Emily wanted to scream, but she couldn't bring herself to make a peep as she shook her head. She felt sick, knowing good and well that she couldn't do this. She couldn't go to Iceland, let alone in the two weeks they'd given her to report for her mission.

"Sweetie?" Tom asked in concern, "What's wrong?"

Both of her parents came to sit on either side of Emily, wrapping their arms around their youngest child. That was enough to break Emily from her frozen state as she bolted from the couch. "No..." She muttered. She had to put some distance between herself and her parents or she was going to suffocate in her own fear. "I..I don't want to do this. I don't want to go." She murmured, though with her back turned to her parents, she was unsure they had heard her. Taking a deep breath, she turned to look at them though she didn't dare meet their eyes. "I don't want to do this." She spoke louder, allowing her tears to slip down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, I just can't..."

And with those words, Emily dashed out of the house, leaving her parents concerned, confused, and shocked. But of course, their opinions were the furthest thing from her mind. All she could think was that she needed to get out of that house before she drowned in the tension. She knew it would be worse when she came home again, but for now the fresh air and the opportunity to clear her thoughts was all that mattered.