Mom decided this week to go back through her journal and look at her and Dad’s story. She was impressed to do so by the Spirit because she feels like it’s important to have their story written down. I came home from school during the week to Mom sitting on the couch with her journal open. She was saying that rereading hers was a little embarrassing, and that made me curious for what my reaction to my past journals would be.
The one I ended up reading was from my freshman year at BYU. I found an entry from January 14, 2013 that I want to remind you of:
“Riley is such an incredible example to me! He goes to the temple every week (at 4:30 in the morning!) without fail. He can be pretty hard to wake up sometimes, but he always wakes up for the temple.
“He told me a story the other day. He was in P.E. and they were bowling. It was their last time they were going to be at the bowling alley, so Riley decided to treat himself to ice cream.
“There was a girl in his class sitting at the counter. She started raving about the apple beer there and how she loved it so much. She’s handicapped and didn’t really have the social grace that told her when to stop something like that. She finally got to the point and asked my brother if he would buy her an apple beer. Slightly irritated, my brother said, ‘No,’ and walked off.
“He was sitting at a table with his friends when he looked back to that counter where the girl was still sitting, hoping someone would love her enough to buy her an apple beer. Riley then decided that—you know what?—he wouldn’t miss the two dollars it would take to make this girl happy.
“He walked back up to the counter and asked the cashier how much the apple beer was. The man responded with the sizes and prices, and Riley asked the girl which size she wanted. She told him she’d been hoping for a medium.
“Riley ordered her a medium apple beer and the girl’s face lit up. When he went to pay the cashier, the man looked at him and said, ‘You know what? Don’t worry about it. I got it.’
“People are so good! I am so proud of my little brother and honestly wonder (and hope) that I would do the same had I been put in his position. I am so grateful that I get to learn from Riley.”
I had forgotten that story, but reading it again made me cry. I hope you remember that story and that you still live your life that way. Throughout my life I’m learning that being generous is always worth it. I’m grateful again that I keep a journal because it means I can find nuggets like this story that bless me and teach me years later. I love you, bud. Thank you for your goodness.
Love,
Cambry
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