What a wonderful Labor Day weekend! Ethan came home on Friday afternoon, and he's been able to stay until now (early Monday evening). It's so nice knowing, that when he leaves, it won't be two more years before we see him again!
He came home for two reasons: us, and college football. Man, we made the most of it. Three Big Ten games in two days, lots of board game playing and even more really good food (pulled pork, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, cantaloupe, cherry delight and pumpkin pie with chocolate chip cookies as chasers :-)).
However, when we weren't eating, playing games or watching football, we were watching The Walking Dead, an AMC television show about zombies. John, Mark and I all watched it during the regular season, but with Ethan wanting to watch it, it became a family affair.
Without going into the entire show (which I could do!), I want to talk about one character, Daryl. While not one of the three main characters of the show, it's one of our favorites. He's the epitome of a redneck, complete with a southern drawl and a crossbow, his weapon of choice. While he appears very rough around the edges, we are discovering that he has a good heart. He is the man who thinks about others in a very round-about way and gets things done.
In testimony meeting yesterday, a woman got up whom John home teaches. She began her testimony by saying that President Kennedy was her home teacher and that he comes every month. A couple of months ago, she had expressed to him that it was hard for her to feel very happy while working as a nurse in the emergency room. Between the stress of the patients and the unhappiness of several of her coworkers, she would feel a lack of happiness, and a lack of the Spirit. So, John suggested that she start listening to recordings of Conference talks on the way to and from work. After all, John has an even longer commute than Sister Bluemell, and he has had many beautiful thoughts while driving and listening to Conference.
At first, she didn't think this advice would prove helpful. Driving home (and staying awake) at 3 a.m. is hard enough, but doing so while listening to Conference?
However, she was humble enough to listen, and she tried it.
Funny thing? It worked. She walked into work in better spirits, was able to handle the trials at work, and felt comforted as she drove home.
It was a beautiful testimony, and an even better testimony of the great man John is. He isn't always the "smoothest" character, doing things in a way that others might not, but he cares about every person that he meets. People, especially people in humble circumstances, can feel the love that John has for them.
I turned to Ethan immediately afterwards, and he said, "Daddy's like Daryl. He's a spiritual redneck who gets things done."
Amen to that, and amen to rednecks and testimonies.
He came home for two reasons: us, and college football. Man, we made the most of it. Three Big Ten games in two days, lots of board game playing and even more really good food (pulled pork, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, cantaloupe, cherry delight and pumpkin pie with chocolate chip cookies as chasers :-)).
However, when we weren't eating, playing games or watching football, we were watching The Walking Dead, an AMC television show about zombies. John, Mark and I all watched it during the regular season, but with Ethan wanting to watch it, it became a family affair.
In testimony meeting yesterday, a woman got up whom John home teaches. She began her testimony by saying that President Kennedy was her home teacher and that he comes every month. A couple of months ago, she had expressed to him that it was hard for her to feel very happy while working as a nurse in the emergency room. Between the stress of the patients and the unhappiness of several of her coworkers, she would feel a lack of happiness, and a lack of the Spirit. So, John suggested that she start listening to recordings of Conference talks on the way to and from work. After all, John has an even longer commute than Sister Bluemell, and he has had many beautiful thoughts while driving and listening to Conference.
At first, she didn't think this advice would prove helpful. Driving home (and staying awake) at 3 a.m. is hard enough, but doing so while listening to Conference?
However, she was humble enough to listen, and she tried it.
Funny thing? It worked. She walked into work in better spirits, was able to handle the trials at work, and felt comforted as she drove home.
It was a beautiful testimony, and an even better testimony of the great man John is. He isn't always the "smoothest" character, doing things in a way that others might not, but he cares about every person that he meets. People, especially people in humble circumstances, can feel the love that John has for them.
I turned to Ethan immediately afterwards, and he said, "Daddy's like Daryl. He's a spiritual redneck who gets things done."
Amen to that, and amen to rednecks and testimonies.
Thanks Mama! It expressed my feelings perfectly. I also think it's a good analogy because Daddy can always help people spiritually. No matter who they are or what kind of situation they are in, he's there to help. Darryl is the same way. It's a good thing to be compared to Darryl, Daddy!
ReplyDeleteIt makes me somewhat teary eyed being compared to Darryl because he is good in a quiet way. Thanks Cheese for making that comment and thanks Mommy for posting about me!
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