Communication

There has been something greatly weighing upon my mind as of late. I just finished reading Doctrine and Covenants 4 again.

I remember the days of Priest's Quorum when we were trained about what to do on our missions and what virtues we needed to develop and behaviors to which we should be committed. And I am so grateful for that preparation of knowing scriptures and how to teach and be a good example and understanding the principles of the gospel. But there are a few things that I believe were missing from that training and have weighed on my mind ever since my first transfer in the mission field.

Communication is key. Let me share some of the annoyances that occur when lack of communication abounds. Every evening you plan with your companion for the following day and then on a certain day of the week you plan for the upcoming week. If this planning is not done with precision you are no longer communicating. Someone or both in the party are forced to be in some sort of the dark. Progress cannot be made. If questions aren't asked in the moment where are we going or what we were doing or even on the road tracking if someone doesn't know the direct path of the other and visa versa it can give way to confusion and frustration. It is the responsibility of companions to inform each other of their desires and capacities and thoughts. When they are walking side by side they need to tell each other where they are going. They need to inform each other of the very street they will turn or the very direction they should take.

I used to think that so much communication was annoying. With my siblings we seem to be of one heart and one mind and so I never needed to ask where we were going. We just went and we all knew. But with others communication is key. We need to ask questions. We need to give answers to unasked questions. And we need to keep others informed as much as we possibly can about what we have learned throughout the day, funny or not, enjoyable to hear or not, and we need to be eager to listen so that we can prevent this evil of lack of communication from entering any relationship.

Ahh... now I'm a lot more satisfied :).