Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Recent conversation with Dad

He called me last week for my birthday. I know that I give my family a hard time but they really aren't too bad at remembering. So he called and told me Happy Birthday which somehow turned in a story. With Story-time Phil - this wasn't a stretch BUT this story had to do with how he remembers my birthday every year.

Apparently in November or December of 1989 (around the time that the Vegas temple was dedicated), Dad and Mom were asked to come to Vegas to be interviewed by L.Tom Perry. They had previously been interviewed by their stake president for possibly serving as mission presidents. So Mom and Dad had an interview with President Perry in which at the end, he said that was going to recommend them to serve as mission presidents. He said that if they were called they would know by the second week of January.

(Still wondering what this has to do with my birthday? - it does have a point, I promise). 

The second week of January 1990 passed without any calls. My parents were honored to have been considered but thought that they were not going to be called. 

BUT on January 22 (really the best day ever), my Mom received a phone call from Brother Allred who is President Hinckley's secretary asking to speak with my father.* Mom said that he was at work and gave Brother Allread the phone number. Then she hung up and called my Dad and said, "Don't take a bathroom break - President Hinckley wants to talk to you!" (The bathroom break warning was valid - Dad did take a lot of bathroom breaks). 

So Dad waited patiently by the phone. Brother Allred called and put him through to President Hinckley, who proceeded to give my Dad a small interview. He asked him how he was able to relate to young men - can he be patient? Can he be a good example? Would work allow him to take time off? He asked him all sorts of questions about his background and finally said that he would like to extend a calling for him to serve as a mission president for a Portuguese speaking mission. He said that the mission would be assigned at a later date.

So his mission president assignment is why he remembers my birthday every year. In all honestly I completely forgot they got that call on that day until he reminded me. But it was a really good day for my Dad. He was extended the calling to serve a mission with his wife and family. 

* This is the funny sidenote - Jacque had gotten her wisdom teeth out and was laying on the couch on this particular birthday AND Brother Allred had called but my Mom didn't answer the phone. One of the kids answered the phone and when he had asked for my Dad - the kid called out my Dad's name and put the phone down. Totally forgot about it. The poor man waited on the phone for a few minutes before my Mom happened to walk by and pick up the phone. She was sooooo embarrassed. Slightly funny but that is what I remember from that birthday day. 

Ps - this is Nikki - I have the January 22nd birthday. 

1 comment:

Amanda said...

That is a great story! The only way my dad remembered my b-day is that he knew what day it wasn't. He really wanted me to be born on the 7th, so my b-day would be 7-7-77. Every year he would say, I wish you would have come on the 7th then I would always remember your birthday. I would gently remind him that he always remembered it anyways.