Best Christmas present of all

It was a very different Christmas in the Kearl home this year with Dan's absence and the passing of my mom.  We went to Laura's house on Christmas Eve and she had invited the missionaries serving in Airdrie over.  We met an elder who was in the MTC at the same time as Dan.  He mentioned that he met an elder from Calgary who was going to Guam.  I showed him a picture of Dan and his face lit up when he said 'that's the guy'.  What a small world.  Little did Dan know that this Elder from St. George would be spending Christmas with his family in Calgary.  When I asked Dan about him, he remembered this guy too.
The biggest highlight this christmas was being able to phone Dan in Saipan.  We tried calling him on Christmas Eve (Christmas Day for him) with the phone number he gave us and received a message saying we had reached the sister missionaries.  We were dying thinking he had gave us the wrong number.  I told Scott and Emily to keep trying to call and hopefully they would at least have Dan's number.  After about an hour we got through and were overjoyed to hear his voice.  He could only talk for a minute because he was just leaving to go to a baptism.  We called the next day and were able to all talk to him for one hour.  Dan was very careful to monitor the time to make sure he didn't go over the allotted time.  I can understand now why missionaries are only allowed to call home twice a year.  I think he was feeling a little homesick after and it made me miss him more too.
Before hand I made a list of questions to ask him so I wouldn't forget anything.  While we were talking he was out on his balcony and was counting how many lizards crossed his feet.  He said his apartment was very small, just a little bigger than his walk in closet back home (an exaggeration, but it made the point).  He said the people there would die if they saw how big our house was in Calgary; many people there don't even have bathrooms in their home.  He loves island life and is used to the heat and humidity.  We all laughed when he told us that he drove a brand new Toyota Tacoma, just like his dad.
He told me how important the members were in missionary work and was getting after me for not referring more people to our missionaries serving in the Tuscany Ward.  He shared it was interesting to see all the work that is involved when a new stake is created.  They were calling a high council and high priests to serve.
It was so, so, so good to hear his voice and feel the enthusiasm he has for the gospel and for missionary work.  I could tell that in a very short period of time he had matured a lot and was humbled by the experiences he has had.  He expressed an enormous amount of appreciation for the blessings he has received in his life.  I love my boy!