The man’s youngest son discovered Oversimplify on YouTube on his own around age eight, which made him an unlikely authority on eras of history that most people know little about. Now, he often says things like, “Can you believe people thought Czar Nicholas was so bad? Apparently, they haven’t heard of Leopold II of Belgium!”Continue reading “Purple Heart Funeral”
Author Archives: Gordon Laws
It’s a Test
Lauren’s parents live in the Boston area. On the night the young man and Lauren got engaged, they went to Granny’s house to call their parents. They had known each other for more than two years since they had served as missionaries together; she had come to his house at Thanksgiving, but he had neverContinue reading “It’s a Test”
If You Still Believe in God
The young man has been in the mission field for slightly more than two weeks. He has learned how to talk to people at doors and in the street. He has helped teach a handful of lessons, and he is progressing in the missionary study program. It is a mild day in November in Whittier,Continue reading “If You Still Believe in God”
Why Don’t They Call it Lawyer Pibb?
What do you call two thousand lawyers at the bottom of the ocean? Progress. What’s the difference between a lawyer and a shark? The shark doesn’t charge you after eating you alive. What do you say to a drowning lawyer? I have no idea. Good! The young man’s dad is a lawyer. Dad laughs alongContinue reading “Why Don’t They Call it Lawyer Pibb?”
There Once Was a Man from Boston
They are having family home evening, and the young man is sitting on the couch with Stephen and Ruthanne. They have moved past the lesson, and their parents are telling stories of their early courtship. “So your dad invited me over to dinner to meet his parents for the first time,” says the young man’sContinue reading “There Once Was a Man from Boston”
I Dance
They usually don’t tract mostly white neighborhoods, but today they have picked a well-off street near Colorado Boulevard. Almost no one is home, so mostly, they are just walking around, knocking, and moving on. The young man feels highly responsible to get Elder Davis teaching since he is still so young in the mission. AboutContinue reading “I Dance”
The No-Headed Lady
In the 1980s, the legends of both Ted Bundy and Gary Gilmore are alive and fresh in Utah and Salt Lake Counties, so it doesn’t help the boy that his grandmother’s house is insecure, creepy, and haunted. Insecure? The kids all sleep in an unfinished basement where wood scaffolding stands unfinished; the floor is coldContinue reading “The No-Headed Lady”
We Should Not Have Come Here
They have been tracting for a couple of hours in Armenian apartments in Glendale, CA. Mostly, they have heard, “No speak English,” or “We are first Christian. We know the God. We know the Jesus. We know everything.” They are close to lunch when they knock a door that probably has no one home–the shadesContinue reading “We Should Not Have Come Here”
Get Out of My Room, You Jerks
Their parents are out for their Friday night date. Ruthanne is on the couch knitting, and Stephen and the young man are settling in for the long-awaited confrontation. They have been playing a full season of Super Tecmo Bowl. They each have a team from the NFC and the AFC. Stephen has the Los AngelesContinue reading “Get Out of My Room, You Jerks”
The Resurrection Is a Healing
The man is at MD Anderson. He is pushing his father’s wheelchair through the halls toward a fountain. Lauren is walking beside the wheelchair. “I want you to know something.” “Yeah?” “I finally understand what you were saying about the blessing you gave me.” “I didn’t really want to give you that blessing. I feltContinue reading “The Resurrection Is a Healing”
His Smile Lit Up a Room and Other Things to Say at My Funeral 