Tuesday, January 29th, 2008

Fight the Good Fight

posted by lizzie    « 2 Comments »    tied to Uncategorized   

Last night I was talking to my friend Allison, who lives on the other side of the country. We were friends in high school and roommates in college and I realized as we were talking how much I miss our late night conversations and our mutual excitement at the start of each new semester. I hung up the phone, energized and grateful that we are still friends and that even though we have lived thousands of miles away from each other for the past three years, we can–and do–share special moments.

It was just after I hung up that I got a message from my mom about President Hinckley’s passing. Before the message finished playing, I was calling Allison back to tell her the news. It was a bitter sweet moment, one that I had imagined to myself several times over the past few years, but one that took me by surprise nonetheless. I was sure he would be around for another conference. While I was happy for him to be home with his wife, I was sad for us who will miss his wisdom and his humor.

This morning I got an e-mail from Allison reminding me of some experiences with President Hinckley we had shared: applying for the scholarship that bore his name, attending General Conference together when he said a special prayer for our country after 9/11, watching the devotional in the Maeser Building when he announced that Cecil O. Samuelson would be the new president of Brigham Young University. It was fitting, then, that we got to share the news of his passing despite the distance between us.

I am grateful for President Hinckley’s life, his example, and his legacy. I am happy for him to be back with Marjorie. There are few other people I know who so deserve to hear the words, “You have fought a good fight, you have finished your course, you have kept the faith.”

Comments

  1. Jess says:
    January 30, 2008 at 12:41 am

    I agree with everything you said Lizzie.

  2. Sarah says:
    January 31, 2008 at 5:38 am

    Lizzie, I think no one has commented because you made them all cry. You definitely have a thing for words, and I want to thank you for writing this. He certainly did fight the good fight.

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