I had very poor styling products back then... blah.
All I can say is the 80's were worse.
“They are my memories I’ll remember them how I want to” ~ Judy Garland
In my previous blog post I spoke about the trip I made to Italy. When I started that post I was intending on writing about something totally different. But the words just flowed so I went with it and decided I’ll write several posts about the trip to Italy. As I laid in bed thinking about this time in my life for the first time in years I realized I made an error. Rather then just correct the single sentence I decided I would write another post...
When I graduated from High School I enrolled in the local community college, took classes there, but I had no clue what I wanted to study. My best friend and I went our separate ways and several of my other friends went to U of A (talk about misguided). At this point I didn’t think I would ever graduate from a university.
At the time I was working with a girl (she was a few years older) and she wanted to set me up with her brother. He was a return mormon missionary. Growing up around in Graham County I knew lots of Latter-Day Saints (LDS) kids so I did not think anything of it. I can not remember all the details (I’m not sure how important they really are). My coworker not only introduced me to her brother but her three younger sister’s one of them (the one closest to my age) and I became very good friends.
The great thing about the LDS church is the young adult life is pretty active. So through all of them I was introduced to a world I had never been apart of at a time when I really was looking for something. The church has pretty clear roles and direction for their young people, so it seemed I had direction again. There are a few of the local church leaders/members that really stand out in my mind to this day...
At some point I got baptized, moved to Mesa with three LDS girls (one of the sisters). After dating her brother for awhile we broke up, I dated a few other mormon boys. It just never really seemed like a good fit. Pretty quickly the girls I lived with started to get married and we all went our separate ways. Many LDS girls get married young, so around 20 years old (my roommates, off and married) I found myself looking for direction again.
It was not long after this that I went on that trip to Southern Virginia College (SVC) for Spring Break...
My feelings toward the mormon church are good. I found comfort and support at a time in my life when I was looking for it. There are a few friends that I met at that time that I still keep in contact with...
I wanted to talk about this time in my life partly because I never do. One friend who knew me before all of this asked me if I was embarrassed I had been baptized. The question caught me off guard but no, I’m not. It is not apart of my life today but it was a part of my journey and discovery of me and that I am ok with...
*This is not an invitation to send visiting teachers.*