By Christianne Salisbury
christianne@newsroom.byu.edu
The beginning of every semester brings a new crop of returned missionaries who have to adjust to life without the structure of the mission field.
Many returned missionaries have been through the awkward transition from a valiant servant of the Lord to a run-of-the-mill college student.
Mr. Keith Giddens, the mission president of the New Jersey, Cherry Hill Mission, said missions have a structured daily schedule and when missionaries enter a more relaxed or less structured environment it presents many challenges.
'Missionaries are used to dealing with eternal things and having the influence of the spirit every day as they focus of finding, teaching and baptizing,' Giddens said. 'When they start school they have to deal with temporal things.'
Teneal Gardner, who returned in August from the England London Mission said she had many fears when she returned to BYU.
'As a girl it was hard because most of my friends had graduated and the guys I knew were married. I had no life and no friends left,' Gardner said. 'It's a different season of life; you have to start building your life from scratch.'
Jesse Markham, who served in the Spain Barcelona Mission, said his biggest problem was holding conversations in English.
'It was hard to start thinking in English again, especially when I was nervous,' Markham said. 'It was also hard because I had to change my focus. I had to constantly remind myself that the mission rules didn't apply anymore - I could talk to girls.'
For those students who are involved in this transition process, wards, classes or extra-currular activities ease the transition.
Bethany Erickson, 21, a senior from Bountiful, Utah, majoring in business marketing, said she can tell a lot about the returned missionary by the adjustments he or she has to make.
'It's cool when a guy needs to adjust because he trained himself not to be distracted by things such as girls,' Erickson said.
Jenny Fenton, 21, a senior from Salt Lake City, majoring in English, shared her disgust at those who call returned missionaries 'strange' or in that 'weird stage.'
'We need to have more respect for them and commend them for valiantly serving the Lord and not judge them,' Fenton said. 'We should want those guys or girls who hold on to the mission principles because they love the gospel.'