019: Daniel Shares His Story of Returning Home Early Due to a Broken Ankle and then Returning to the Field

Early Homecoming: Insights from Missionaries who Returned Early

While on his mission in Columbia, Daniel broke his ankle. He was able to serve for about six months before he realized he needed to go home and get it properly taken care of. He thought he'd only be home for a few weeks, but it ended up being 13 months as the surgery required for his ankle ended up being more complicated than anyone expected. Daniel felt a lot of failure for returning home early that also caused him to feel very anxious and depressed. He bears powerful testimony of the Atonement and how it helped him during this dark time. He also shares with me his experience of returning to a mission and how it is different than initially going out on a mission, as well as what life is like after completing the expected amount of time.
Daniel's blog post detailing his early return: https://elderdanielmortenson.wordpress.com/2017/06/26/one-year-later/

Daniel's blog post detailing his decision to return to the mission field: https://elderdanielmortenson.wordpress.com/2017/08/06/with-my-eyes-wide-open/