Passport Miracle

Mason's mission call came on the ides of June - the very next day we applied for his passport with the understanding that the paperwork would take four to six weeks.  Not knowing any better, we thought that even six weeks of processing time would still leave an ample emough cushion to get the passport and submit it to Salt Lake well before Mason's report day of September 17th.

So we didn't worry about paying for the expedited service (only an extra $60).

However...

A week after the mission call, we received a letter from the Salt Lake Travel Office explaining in order for them to get Mason's Visa processed in time they would need his passport and his Ghana Visa aplication in their office by July 14th!

Oh no!

Maybe, just maybe, if the passport people were quick we could still get it and turned into Salt Lake on or around July 14th. But we wanted to see if we could hurry the process.

So Daina called the national passport office to check the status of the application on Wednesday July 8th. The automated recording said, "We are experiencing high call volumes today due to the greater than average number of passport applications. Because of all the passport applications, processing times are being extended. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause."

Oh No!

Panic set in!  Lots of phone buttons were pushed until Daina got a worker drone.  "My Son! Passport! Status?! Help!"

He looked it up and said, "Well, it says that it is 'being processed.' The passport began process on June 23rd, so it's only been two weeks."

Hysteria started creeping into Daina's voice as she explained she needed it before July 14th.  His reply: "Ma'am, that's not going to happen. Normally it's at least a four to six week process but they are so backed up right now you are actually looking at ten to twelve weeks."

OH NO!

"Is there anything, anything at all we can do?" she asked. The customer service representative gave her the number to the San Diego Passport Office that can issue passports at a super expedited pace (eight days) and a super expensive price ($400) but it is done only by appointment.

Daina called. The first available appointment would be July 16th...

OH NOO!!

Daina hangs up the phone, turns to the family and says, "We need a miracle." We all knelt in prayer and continued in our individual prayers on our own.

But then...well, here's a timeline:
  July 7th - realization that we were messed up on getting a passport in time.
                - Prayed for a miracle.
  July 8th - More praying.
  July 9th - Continued praying.
  July 10th - THE PASSPORT CAME!  What wasn't supposed to arrive for maybe ninety
          days at the worst, twenty-one days at the best came in only three weeks!

Daina's testimony: Miracles are real. God is aware of each and every one of our seemingly small little lives. He loves us enough to perform extraordinary miracles for us. If anyone has wondered if Mason was really supposed to go to Africa on September 17th, don't wonder any more. His passport was applied for, issued, and received at our home in time to to send it to the Travel Office.