Visitors

Three days before the end of my mission, I was sitting in the Falke family's living room in Turlock, California. I had spent many evenings in their home, but it felt different that day - I was going home. It was nothing less than a memorable, tear-felt goodbye. I gave a small lesson and shared a scripture in the Doctrine and Covenants, section 128, verse 22. "Brethren, shall we not go on in so great a cause?..." 

When I finished giving my thoughts, the father told me about the movie about Joseph Smith at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. The same scripture comes up on the screen at the end of the film, and you are left to sit and think about what you just watched, while listening to the sniffing all around you as others' eyes are brimming with tears along with yours.

The day after I got home, I went to that movie with my family. At the end, I was not only reflecting on the life of Joseph Smith and what I just watched, I was thinking about the Falkes and missing my mission. This is one of the many memories I have associated with this family.

Amy was a senior in high school when I served in their ward. She took us grocery shopping on "P" day once, doing some shopping for her mother as well. She left the spaghetti on her list for her last item to pick up. When we approached the pasta aisle, she told me she had a fear of buying spaghetti. It started when she got angel hair pasta once and nobody in her family likes it - and they gave her a hard time. From then on, she had a fear of getting the wrong kind and being made fun of again. I helped her pick the right kind out (even though she was more than capable of doing this for herself), and she spotted a five pound bag. Thinking that would more than make up for the mistake she made on her last venture of buying spaghetti, she reached for it. As she picked it up, she turned it seam down - and either punctured a hole in it herself or just affirmed there was one already, and there was suddenly spaghetti all over the floor and still pouring out of the bag in all different directions. I will never forget the look on her face when she said, "Now I really have a fear of buying spaghetti."

Russell was getting ready to leave on his mission at the end of mine, and he was ecstatic about it. He was called to serve in the Australia, Adelaide mission and left three months after I came home. They stayed at my parent's house the night before he went into the MTC. We took them to Cafe Rio, hiked Ensign Peak, and made a random dollar store trip with them.

This is Russell and Amy.

Amy's hair is like Encino woman, it's awesome. My mom asked her last night if she gets comments on her hair. Amy's response: "Yeah... most of them are positive." I love these people.