Four months earlier Susan had written to say that she was engaged and would be married when she returned from a semester abroad in Hawaii. That word didn't come as a crushing blow to my mission work, but I would miss her company and friendship. I was excited to see my family and move on to other greater callings, but I was sad to see all I have worked for during the past two years come to an end and say goodbye to the many friends and associates I had made. In spite of any mixed feelings I may have had, they [the mission] still sent me home with a final dinner and goodbye.
My family came to the airport to welcome me home one week early, but they forgave me and came again the next week when I arrived. My mom came running out to meet me, but she had changed so much that I worried for a minute that a stranger was giving me a hug and kiss. The others had grown, Cari had married Mike and made me an uncle. The house and ward we're pretty much the same, but they [the family] had to struggle to find me a bedroom. Noel had returned a few months earlier and he was ready to help me with the transition. I wondered about Susan but didn't dare ask.
April 19th, as I was preparing my homecoming speech for the next day. Mom called me to the phone and to my surprise and delight it was that voice that I had been so fond of [Susan]. My heart jumped and I had to remind myself that she was engaged and probably only calling to invite me to the reception. She asked how I was and if she had missed my homecoming; conversation didn't come easy, but she did come up with some very good news that she was still single and no longer engaged. She asked if we could talk sometime later and not wanting to appear too eager I said OK. The rest of the night I had a hard time concentrating on my final preparations for the next day, but whatever nervous anticipation I was caused was more than compensated for in the next few months.
Our first date was to the Bountiful Library. I have to admit that I was rather dry and certainly no match for the witty and fun BYU men she had been dating. I had decided that modern music was unacceptable and I wouldn't let her listen when we were driving. I improved with time but Susan had to have great foresight and exercise much patience to bring me around.
Before my mission, Susan and I had tried to play tennis together since it was something I very much enjoyed. I gave her a tennis racket as a gift and to humor me she spent one afternoon on the courts at the Bountiful Rocket Park. Susan tried hard to do well but I was frustrated by her inability to connect the racquet with the ball, and she was upset to see that I wasn't enjoying the experience. Our relationship survived that encounter and I was hesitant to try our luck again. During my mission, Susan decided to learn some basic tennis skills so we would be more compatible when I returned. With the hope that tennis would become a mutually enjoyable pastime, Susan dressed up as well as any tennis-playing woman I have seen and we tried again. I was impressed that she could hit the ball, but more so that she was willing to go to all that work for me. Most of our time together was spent in those sorts of activities that we could do together and still converse.
One setback to our courtship was that I accepted a position back with the church offices and I would leave early to be to work at 7:00 AM. Susan on the other hand, found... Next Page
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