Where You Are Is Safe

My heart sped up a bit as I looked 300 feet straight down over the edge of the cliff. A little nervous about our resting spot, I inched closer to my five year old, Joseph, making sure he was within arm's reach.

While in Las Vegas with my wife's family for Thanksgiving a few weeks ago, my brother-in-law, Matt, took me, two of our boys, and one of their cousins climbing in Calico Hills, an enormous escarpment found in Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in the mountains just west of Las Vegas and only a short drive from his house.

We had made our way to our resting point by scambling up narrow ravines, climbing rippled layers of red sandstone, and hiking along the ridges of fossilized sand dunes. For the most part, the find-your-own-way hike allowed us to create a hike easy enough for the kids. However, a number of times we found ourselves in some steeper, class 3-type climbs that tested the boys and made this dad a little nervous.

On the way up, I followed behind Joseph in case he slipped. On our way back down, I went ahead of Joseph, offering help when needed, but truly trying not to be TOO overprotective. Having fallen behind the others, Joseph and I were alone for a moment as we descended a steep crack in the sandstone. As I tried to show him the safest way down, he said to me, "I step where you step, dad, because I know that where you are is safe."

Since we were on a man hike, I had to hurry and blink away whatever it was that had caused the sudden moisture in my eyes.

I was touched by his expression of trust. I was also struck by the analogy to our mortal journey through life. In all the difficulties of life, it is important to follow in the Savior's footsteps. He is the Way. If we go where He is, we will be safe.

However, the moment passed quickly. A few minutes later, we reached a flatter area where the terrain opened up, and my son's commitment to following in my footsteps was forgotten as quickly as I was in the relative safety and the excitement of wanting to race around like his cousins.

I was a little disappointed to be tossed aside so abruptly. Yet, I couldn't help but notice that the change in circumstances only broadened the metaphor I was experiencing. We can be so quick to forget Him when the trail smooths out. Even after experiencing His guiding influence, divine intervention, or broad-daylight miracles, it can be so easy to slip away from the path He walks when the fun of our friends' activities calls.

Looking back, I am grateful for the trust my son expressed to me as his father that day. I am even more grateful for the perspective my Heavenly Father offered me. May we commit to follow in the safety of the Savior's footsteps and have the dedication and discipline to walk where He walks not only when the path is difficult but when it is smooth.

A Toast

I'd like to propose a toast, a toast to health and family. It sure is amazing how your health can be an afterthought one day and then dominate all of your thoughts the next. What happened to the good ol' days of being sick just so you could stay home from school and watch Ferris Bueller's Day Off? On the bright side, having health problems is a fun and exciting way to appreciate good health and is also a great way to learn humility.
I'm very grateful for the built-in support group that families provide, and truly grateful for mine. As a wise man once said, "A family is a unit composed not only of children but of men, women, an occasional animal, and the common cold. So here's to health and family!

Go About Doing Good

It caught me off guard this season, as it always does, to see change that comes over people during the holidays. The Christmas spirit brings out the best in so many people. I was further surprised at how short lived that spirit was. The past month has been filled with Christmas carolers and well wishers. The news was reporting stories of people at Starbucks paying for the stranger behind them, and people were nice to each other. Then, on January 2nd, it all disappeared. I was snapped back to reality that day at work during an unpleasant encounter on the phone with a particularly disgruntled IT Director, who had apparently been the recipient of a large amount of coal for Christmas.

The Christmas Spirit is the Holy Spirit, or the Holy Ghost; the only difference is that more people naturally feel the Spirit at Christmas time. We should be feeling the spirit with that same intensity all year! We should be nice to people all year long! That should be our goal anyway. Don't be like the jerk on the phone. He'll get his.

President Faust gave a talk last year to the young single adults about keeping a high self-esteem. In it he mentioned that we should love ourselves enough to say "hi" to a perfect stranger. There is wisdom in this. People feel better about themselves when they are nice to others around them. It doesn't do a lick of good to be a jerk to anyone. You are only hurting yourself. So be nice to others. Try it. I dare you.