On Saturday I was at the zoo, doing a something with some people, walking around with 2 friends, and I got a text from my husband. It said, "Women can now go on missions when they're 19. And men when they're 18." I instantly smiled and almost shouted, "Awesome!" Which, of course, made my 2 friends ask me what was so awesome.
And here's where I found myself stuck. These 2 friends are not Mormon. What do I tell them?
So I explained a little about missions and how young men typically go at 19 and young women have to wait until they're 21. Now that the rules have changed, more young women will be able to go. This is a great thing for everyone.
But this isn't all that needs explaining. The next part that I always tell people is about my Hyper Traditionalist church. I like being Mormon, no doubt. I believe it heart and soul. But we stay pretty far behind the times, you know? I mean, more equality for women? The nation caught that vision a while ago. Hurray for Mormons for finally figuring it out!
I mean, I'm pretty straight-laced. I don't do all that stuff on the Don't List and I usually do all the stuff on the Do List. But I'm not a Do What You're Told type. My life may look traditional, but I don't feel traditional. I ask a lot of questions. I'm not afraid to be bold. So sometimes the traditional-for-the-sake-of-being-traditional stuff really irks me. I feel like my church lags behind the modern age because ... because ... because ... huh.
And that's what kind of missionary I am. "My church just made a great call that's drasticly behind the times! ... I really like being Mormon, I promise."
On a related note, my Kids' Mission Fund suddenly needs an extra $10,000. Miciah heard the news and instantly said, "Great! I'm going."
I wish that they pushed the age for young men back instead of pushing everything forward. 19 is young and immediately after high school feels too young. Graduating high school and then leaving on a mission feels like it will exacerbate the problems instead of fixing them. But, Maybe there will be less pressure on kids that decide to wait. At some point people will self regulate, right?
ReplyDeleteSince missionaries go out young, pushing it to 18 makes sense to me. (If we want to send mature people, we should send 28 year olds, not 18 year olds.) I think it will aid a large group of people - the ones that have a year to kill after HS and so waste a year doing nothing / a semester of college that doesn't benefit them in the slightest. Colleges won't have to put them on hold for 2 years, because they can get that all out of the way beforehand. That means they can come home and do 4 years of college straight without needing to try to remember Chem 101 from 2 years earlier.
ReplyDeleteWill it create different problems? Probably. But I think it will fix a large set of them, too.
And colleges actually like applicants who are doing "gap" years and getting out to do service in the world before they start college. Getting some life experience. It looks good on the application. PS--Tamra--My friend passed this article on to me. Not sure if you've read it, but it's about two types of Mormons, Liahonas and Iron Rods. You and I are Liahonas. http://www.zionsbest.com/people.html (PS--I looked up the article and it's been published in a number of places, but this is an easy link to read it.)
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