Pappa Hardy's Musings on Life.

A lot of years ago we lived in student housing at the University of Utah. It was our second encounter with student housing, in a place called the East University Village. While living in that student housing complex we lived in a branch of our church called the University 2nd Branch. It was a branch consisting of primarily graduate students and their families. We were all young, all pretty much in the same boat, and we pretty much were all poor.

Well, approximately 2 months ago I was contacted by a member of that branch about attending a Branch reunion, 30 years after the Branch President, George Pingree, was released. Being the curious sort, I convinced Bonnie we should go. Man, what an experience. First, we were the only ones from the years 1977 to 1978 at the reunion. Second, most of the people who were there were long time members of the branch, us being there only one year.

It was a different experience. We knew no one, and no one knew us. The one thing that was interesting was one lady came up to us, called us friends, and then realized that she never knew us. There was some interesting backpedaling going on. I thought we would know somebody, but we knew no one. This was the first time since we have gone to reunions that we came up with a big zero. It was good seeing our old Branch President (they had no clue who we were) but that was it.

Recently our youngest son Michael gave us a brand new piece of news that he had just received. He told us that the last companion/District Leader that knew him had come home from his mission. I told him that the “Legend of Elder Hardy” would now begin to slowly disappear from the corporate consciousness of the Raleigh North Carolina Mission.

The same thing happened to me when I was a missionary in Taiwan. First, you come to be known as you were in the mission field longer, and then soon you were creating your own legend through the things that you had done while a missionary in your areas. Soon, you went home and as your juniors came on home, the legend of you was first enhanced, then disappeared as there was no one to hear the stories.

Bonnie and I went back to Taiwan four years later. We inevitably ran into Elders and Sisters out doing missionary work and the question would come up as to what we were doing there. We would explain that I had been a missionary, and then a cloud would come over there face, and then a sense of amazement and wonder as they would first think of the fact that you had “been here so long ago (actually on 4 years) and they would have never have heard of you.

I had a different experience as an Elder because I had been a Branch President and Concern Coordinator and had seen lots of old Elders names on membership records. That practice was long dead in the mission (having been able to get local leadership) and thus they had no idea of who I was. The legend of that Elder Hardy was dead.

I told Michael that the same thing was now going to happen to him. When Michael went back to North Carolina earlier this year, his legend was starting to die as Elders didn’t know who he was, but now the death of his legend will begin in earnest. It is an interesting experience to become a legend and then see it die. The Legend of Elder Hardy will die.

Strangely enough, my recent trip to Las Vegas made me think about the time when I was a missionary many years ago, far too many years ago than I want to think about (38 to be exact) when I was a young, bushy tailed missionary in Taiwan. How in the heck does Las Vegas remind me about door approaches.

As an missionary, we pretty well identified who we wanted to talk to who would likely to most willing to listen to our message. Then, we were taught on exactly what to say and how to say it when approaching our potential “contact”.

In Las Vegas on our most recent trip, as opposed to previous trips that I made there, they were trying to sell time shares to a “Consolidated Resort Enterprise”, a time share near McCarran International Airport call the “The Tahitian Resort”. Every casino, at every door and in places in between, was engaged in selling these time shares and the approach is inevitably the same. The hook was to get you show tickets or gambling money for a bargain price, that is, listening to a presentation about the time share.

They were experts at it. Too bad we couldn’t have them proselytizing as missionaries for the LDS Church. Who knows, maybe we would have to build more churches in Las Vegas to hold all of the converts as a result of their hard work.

Well, at least it seemed to be. The setting was right. Tonight I was sitting in the famed Mormon Tabernacle on Temple Square. The big, wonderful organ was there, and there sat a choir. It looked like the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, but it wasn’t. It was the Orem UVSC Institute of Religion Choir singing at the commemoration of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Samuel H. Smith, first official missionary in the history of the LDS Church.

My son Michael was there as a singer in the choir, and I was there both as a descendant of the Smith’s as well as a proud father watching his son perform. The choir actually did quite well. It was however a long drive into Salt Lake. I can’t believe it, but as I get older it gets harder for me to make these kinds of trips. I am really beginning to show my age. Michael did a good job, and I think we have one of my kids who make it into the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Who knows?

This week has been full for me. I have had my wonderful family here. While Bonnie is the mother hen of this group and loves them here all of the time, I manage to hide my feelings better than her and therefore I don’t voice them as often. However, I loved having all of my children here, save one who could not make it. We wish he could have been here with us.

Today was special. We had the whole gang in the house this morning, and we ran off to church for a double header. We had the blessing of Braxton Bennett Hardy, and then we had the opportunity to hear Elder Michael Hardy report on his mission.

He did good. He took 30 minutes or more and taught the gospel. That was special. I was so glad that he was such a good missionary. I am so proud of my boys. I am proud of that new grandson, and I am proud of my sons. They have done us good, each and every one.

We had lots of family there, and friends too. We were doubly and triply, and more blessed today. It was a wonderful day.

It was a wonderful morning, full of more and more blessings.

On March 31 I had a wonderful experience. Brother Ho Yu Chen, our good family friend, my former branch counselor, and now Area Authority 70, came to Salt Lake for conference. He had an extra ticket to conference since his wife and our dear friend Maggie could not come with him. As a result I wanted to take this opportunity to see him, have a reunion if you like, and attend conference.

I have attended conference 5 times before in the conference center. I got up early on Saturday and drove to Salt Lake, getting to the hotel where Philip was staying at a little after 9am. Downtown Salt Lake was a traffic mess. I moved along, we met up, and walked over to the conference center.

Once inside the center, it was a wonderful experience to talk with him, remember my mission and the wonderful family I have in Taiwan, and then listen to the opening conference session. It was a wonderful and powerful meeting. The music was inspirational and superb, the conference addresses were very spiritual and motivating (when else could I hear about a parable about a Cucumber), and then the meeting was over. At lunch, Philip offered an afternoon ticket to me as well.

This time I had the opportunity to talk to Elder George Nielsen, a friend of the Ho Family and the Elder who was involved in teaching and baptizing these wonderful people. We heard the dedication of the Tabernacle. The conference center, despite the fact that the action was taking place on Temple Square, was still totally full. It was another neat experience.

I will treasure this wonderful spiritual day for many years. For me, it was truly a Rocky Mountain Spiritual High. I will never forget my good friend. I hope to see him and his lovely wife again.

Sitting in front of the congregation has some advantages. Well, for instance, you are a lot closer to the speakers so it isn’t hard to hear them. You get to look into everyone’s smiling faces so you get to know them better and they, I believe, get to know you. Most of the time it means you know what is going on in the church.

However, there is one drawback. On a day like today, when you had a night like last night, it can be a real struggle. Last night, because of what I suspect to be a recurring ulcer now bothering me, I didn’t really sleep too well. In fact, you might say I was really tired today. There I sit, in front of everyone, with my first and greatest desire being to close my eye lids and let my body rest. That ain’t a good thing to do in front of the congregation, and usually also leads to new versions of family lore and laughter regarding dad going to sleep in church. I have to be careful each week to make sure that I don’t make a fool of myself.

Man, this being in the Bishopric can be a challenging event on a daily basis. I went in this morning, knowing that “possibly”, just “possibly”, I might have to give a talk at the Relief Society’s Visiting Teaching Conference on Tuesday night.

Then, the Bishop can’t make it to the Beehive House Sacrament Meeting, so all of a sudden, talk 2 becomes a reality, and I had to come up with that one in less than 10 minutes, when I still hadn’t even written talk 1.

Then, I find out that for Sacrament meeting next week I need to give another talk. Talk, talk, talk, talk, talk. That is all I seem to be doing, is giving talks. The church deserves better than hearing me talk.

Well, being in the Bishopric in our ward has finally paid off. The Elder’s Quorum in our Ward has an annual Steak Fry that they put on. It has a very good reputation, and because I am in the Bishopric we got invited this time. It was a very good meal. The steaks were excellent. Yes, finally, being in the Bishopric did pay off.

Well, my kids would be the first to tell you that during church (Our Sacrament Meeting) that we have a long history of passing notes back and forth. Since I have been in the Bishopric, that practice has stopped. Well, I would say, that perhaps the reason has stopped is that I am not there. Is this because I have been out of the loop, and that I am the real cause? Today was the Primary Sacrament Meeting program and as a result I had an opportunity to sit with the family, such as it was. Once I was firmly ensonced in the congregation, Julie started writing notes to me. I think I must be the cause. How do I help the family to overcome this great addiction. The only thing that I can conclude is that I am going to have to sit on the stand for the forseable future. I don’t think that is the solution, but I am not sure what is.