Growing Up

Elder Sylvester. That's Dwain La Vell Sylvester, from Pintura, Utah. He was Wayne's traveling companion coming home from Uruguay. He made an enduring impression on Wayne, and I heard a few things about him, among them his "skill" with the Spanish language. Like, "Sí, y los arbols."

Of course, it should have been ârboles. 

This is actually a direct quote, and it was typical of how Elder Sylvester did not quite "get" Spanish. (I probably wondered if he "got" English.) 

But now, especially, I believe he was a humble, unpretentious guy, and I'm guessing he was ready and receptive to the Holy Ghost, because the people overlooked his Spanish and seemed to love him. That's what Wayne remembered.

I met him once. Tall, thin, dark hair, friendly, a simple farm boy and hard not to like.

Perhaps I harbored some kind of judgment of him based on his language skills. Perhaps I thought he was not "as good a person" as I or as Wayne, not as smart. 

And that's what I was thinking of this morning, wondering if we are harsher and harder on people when we're young and as we grow up and grow older, we are kinder, more able to see their strengths and our own failings. Or, even better, we stop comparing and really accept people. Period. 

I'd like to think so.