It happened two years ago. Right at the peak of
the mass exodus of sister missionaries from Provo, Utah...
It seemed like every single female was getting a
mission call - there were multiple opening parties every Monday and Wednesday
night - foreign destinations were the topic of every lunch date - ASOS packages
filled the mail trucks and littered the doorsteps of every apartment
complex - FB profile pictures were updated to your mission application
head shot...you remember how it was...
Well I was one of those girls. It was exactly 10
days after I had received my call to the Sweden, Stockholm mission. Kaitlin's
little sister (who had also just received her mission call) was in town
visiting/celebrating. She was craving Ben&Jerry's Half Baked so we made a
late night trip to Smith's.
You never really know what you're going to find
at Smith's...it's right in the heart of Provo. Most often you'll walk in and
see at least one person you know, or had a class with, or remember from your
freshman dorm... Or a homeless person, or an NBA star, or a famous Mormon
blogger, or the head of the BYU meth lab... You just never know...
We only had one goal with this shopping trip:
ice cream - Ben&Jerry's to be exact. The ice cream aisle was a straight
shot back from the front entrance of the grocery store. With the few steps it
took to get there, it wasn't long before I noticed there were guys blocking the
freezer door to the Half Baked ice cream we were after. I didn't know either of
their names, but one of them stood out. He was very handsome. And his face was
very familiar to me. It took me a few seconds to realize that I had seen him
before. Multiple times. Not in any sort of formal setting - just around campus
here and there. I only ever admired him from afar. Every so often I remember
seeing him with a person I knew, but I never took the effort into finding out
more about him.
So here he was: man unknown - man in black -
struggling to decide between two different brands of coffee flavored ice cream.
(I must note here that we were only here for Kaitlin and Paige: they requested
Ben&Jerry's Half Baked...but in fact, my favorite kind of ice cream is
coffee flavored ice cream, so obviously I was heaven sent to help him choose
which kind to get...)
To him, I was a mere stranger who really had no
business interfering in his affairs. In fact, if it were anyone else, I
probably wouldn't have said anything...but for some reason, he felt familiar to
me, so it didn't take much courage for me to speak up and let him know that he would
be truly sorry if he chose any other brand but Starbucks.
He turned around quickly, making it obvious that
he didn't even notice us standing there. It was probably extremely alarming
turning around to 4 girls surrounding you. He mumbled something about 'this
being fate' because he had no idea which one to choose...or something like
that...and he and his friend picked up their small cartons and walked towards
the check-out lines.
I didn't think a single thing of it after they
left. Kaitlin and Paige picked up their cartons and we, too made our way back
home and spent the rest of the evening just like any other weekend night with
just us girls. Tucked away in our apartment wearing who knows what and talking
about whoever we felt like and worrying and wondering about what would be
happening 6 months down the road...
I ended up marrying that boy from the ice cream
aisle. Somehow we ended up at the same party (invited by the same person) 10
days after our encounter at the grocery story and the rest is history. We saw
each other every day since then.
Family's were met...road trips and weekend
trips...
Grad school was decided upon...moves were
made...
A ring was bought...and a date set...
A summer was spent apart...and a wedding
planned...
A contract was signed...and a U-Haul was
rented...
I think back on that trip to Smith's pretty
often. I think about all the big events that led up to that one single trip to
the grocery store. I think about all the other places I probably could have
been that night if it weren't for all the things that had taken place in the
months leading up to mission calls and Paige visiting...
Just within those last 6 months before meeting
him:
- I felt prompted to extend my graduation date
- I felt prompted to turn down job offers
- I was broken up with
- I felt prompted to prepare for a mission
- Guys were broken up with
And I realized that…
If I never noticed him around campus, I would
have never recognized his face there in Smith’s.
If I never recognized his face, I would not have
helped him choose which ice cream to buy.
If I never helped him choose, I wouldn't have
peaked his interest at the party
If we never connected at the party, he wouldn’t
have gotten my name, or my number… He wouldn’t have ever seen me again… I would
have gone on to serve a mission… and yeah, I think both of us would have turned
out perfectly fine…but here’s the thing…
And I don't think Nate likes for me to think
this, but I think there was some serious Heavenly guidance going on in each of
our lives in the years before we finally met. It was too weird that we ended up
having tons of mutual friends. It was too weird that we hadn't met after living
within a few miles of each other for the 4 years I lived there. It was too
strange that it happened when it did - 10 days after receiving one of the most
life-altering letters I have ever received. It was too strange how easy the
relationship was from the very beginning. It was too weird how connected we
felt after only knowing each other for a week. It was too weird how I could honestly say I knew
I was going to marry him after only dating for a month.
Sometimes I wonder if Smith's was my only chance
at finding Nate. I feel like Heavenly Father gave me a super small window to
work with, but it proves that much more how perfectly God knows each of our
lives and how much He is involved, whether we wish to acknowledge it or not.
The months I spent preparing to serve a mission
were some of the best months of my life. Spiritually, I felt like I was at an
all-time high. I know that if I had not gone through the motions of preparing
to serve a mission for 18 months, that there is a large chance that I would not
have been exactly where I needed to be that Saturday night. There's a truth to
the many quotes that talk about being in the right place at the right time -
but there's also a lot of work that goes in to being capable of being in that
place exactly when you need to be. It takes being perfectly in tune with the
spirit and constant communication with your Father in Heaven. It takes humility
and sacrifice - but in return, it brings blessings and happiness beyond what
you could ever imagine.
I know now, that I needed to go through the
steps of preparing to serve a mission. I know that it helped me put my life in
order and become spiritually prepared to make some of the hardest decisions I’m
certain I’ll ever have to make. The best part about it, is that those decisions
ended up being so much easier to make with the Lord on my side.
love this! you guys have such a good story.
ReplyDeletealso now i want half baked...
this is a cute story! love it!!!
ReplyDeleteooooohhhhhh. Such a nice story!
ReplyDeletelove love love this post!