Dad, Are You Awake?

There is so much content for Come, Follow Me this week. For only covering two chapters in The Book of Mormon (2 Nephi 1-2), there are so many rich doctrinal truths and principles we can learn. Lehi must have been quite the prophet and speaker. Someday when we have the original Book of Lehi again, it will be interesting to read his writing style and all the words he had to share. I am so thankful for the words we have from him through the record of his son Nephi. I enjoyed reading the scriptures as well as the manual’s insights in Come, Follow Me. All the podcasts were wonderful too. I especially enjoyed Follow Him with Hank Smith and John Bytheway. Their guest Dr. Lili De Hoyos Anderson is one of my favorites. She had so many insights and the Spirit was so strong listening to her share her own experiences. I actually cried listening to it, touched by what she was saying.

My parents and my siblings and our families meet once a month to have dinner and enjoy a discussion about Come, Follow Me. This month was my parents’ turn to teach the lesson and lead the discussion. I personally loved this as we discussed Lehi talking to his posterity and we had the opportunity to hear from my dad and mom to their kids and grandkids. It is something I love and look forward to each month. The responses and participation of the little children is fun to watch; we see their testimonies growing over time as we meet each month.

In 2 Nephi 13-29 it starts with “awake; awake from a deep sleep.” Lehi pleads with his posterity to be vigilant and well aware of what is going on around them. He warns them not to allow the adversary to slowly take control of their minds and their lives. Satan has no intention of allowing us to be free or to choose the Lord. He is working tirelessly to thwart our efforts to keep our covenants and follow Christ. If Satan doesn’t rest, then neither can we. Obviously, this doesn’t mean we can’t physically sleep — this is an analogy, a symbol, an illustration. But the message is clear: we cannot ever get complacent in living the gospel or keeping our covenants because the moment we do, we’ve already allowed Satan and his wily ways to creep into our lives. Yes, repentance is key and available to us daily; but vigilance is necessary.

The conference talk that came to mind (and I believe was mentioned in more than one podcast this week) is “Dad, Are You Awake” by Elder F. Melvin Hammond. This talk was given in the Sunday afternoon general session of General Conference in October 2002. I remember this talk for a unique reason based on an experience I had had with my dad only a few months earlier that year:

The Snowflake, Arizona temple open house was something I really wanted to attend. For my entire life, we’d only ever had one Arizona temple and that was in Mesa. It was exciting that we’d have another one. I was not in school at the time, just working, so I had made arrangements with my dad to drive up on a weekday and come back the same day. We had to leave rather early to make it work. My dad had church meetings that evening, so we were on a tight schedule. What I didn’t know was that my dad had not slept well the night before. He had his Diet Coke and some sunflower seeds to keep him going while we drove. I offered a few times to drive, but my dad was confident in his driving, and I didn’t mind being the passenger. I remember I slept some along the drive. As we were only 30 minutes or so from Snowflake, I asked my dad if he wanted me to read to him. We had been reading Harry Potter – not together, per se, but we happened to be on the same book. I started reading The Goblet of Fire as we drove. I hadn’t gotten but a couple of pages in when I noticed we were veering to the right a bit. I looked at my dad and he seemed fine. I saw a big truck coming in the opposite direction on the two-lane road and figured he was giving them space. But to my horror, all of a sudden, we passed over the shoulder line and started going 65 (or more) miles per hour over this rocky land on the side of the highway. The SUV bumped and jerked and rocked up and down, side to side, front and back. I knew we were going to tip over and die. I prayed out loud, “Please, don’t let us tip over, don’t let us tip over. Help us stop!” My prayers were answered. We never tipped over and eventually the vehicle stopped – three wheels jammed into big boulders and the fourth tire not much better.

We were in the middle of nowhere, our vehicle stuck, and barely catching our breath. I remember looking over at my dad. His face was one of shock and relief. I asked him what had happened. He said, “Well, I think I drifted asleep for a second.” I don’t recall what was said after that exactly, but I know my personality and I’m sure I gave him a hard time for it. I had offered to drive, after all. That truck that had passed by us came back to see if we were all right. They saw the whole accident happen. We left the SUV and got a ride with them into town. My dad had an aunt and uncle who lived in Snowflake at the time, so we went to their house. We borrowed a vehicle and went to the temple open house.

I have to say, I already loved the temple, but my sure testimony of the temple came from this visit. It wasn’t even dedicated yet, but as we entered those doors (bodies sore from whiplash and seatbelt burn, spirits stirred with worry and concern over the vehicle and what would come next), I could only feel the peace of Jesus Christ. I did not think once about the accident. I was able to feel a sure love of God and I knew that I was in His house. My dad knew several of the people helping with the tour, including his brother and his wife. We got a special side tour that no one else did as a friend took us to see all the rooms. We saw the bridal preparation room. As I looked at the picture of Esther, I remember thinking that the Lord knew me just as well as He knew Esther. He wanted to help me with my life and my decisions just as He did Esther in days of old. I didn’t want to leave the temple because it was such a wonderful experience, but eventually we did. As soon as we left, all the worry, pain and frustration from the accident returned to me.

My dad didn’t make it to his church meetings that night, but we did manage to get the vehicle fixed well enough to drive home (truly a miracle in and of itself, but the fact we had very minimal injuries was also miraculous). I have always been close with my dad — definitely a daddy’s girl — but I feel we bonded in a new way that day. Not only that, I am now a nervous passenger who has no shame in telling whomever is driving that they are veering or going to fast or whatever I think is off. So speak up passengers!

When I heard Elder Hammond’s conference talk and he said, “Dad, are you awake?” I busted up laughing. I was watching at my parents’ house and looked at my dad. He also laughed. It was a long-standing joke. But just like my mom always says, “There’s a gospel principle in that.” There is responsibility for parents, both dads and moms, to be awake spiritually to help their children see the pitfalls and challenges of life, to avoid catastrophe. But there is a responsibility of children to ask their parents whether they are awake — paying attention to what is going on in life and helping them to stay safely on the path. It is no coincidence that we are put here on earth in families. Each plays a role in helping each other to return back to Heaven. No parent is perfect. No child is perfect. But if we each are actively awake and walking the covenant path together, we can help each other become more Christlike.

Obviously, this phrase can be changed to say, “Mom (or Grandma/Grandpa/Aunt/Uncle/Bishop/Friend/Neighbor/Teacher), are you awake?” We each have a part we play as we walk the covenant path, holding to the Iron Rod to get to the Tree of Life and stay at the Tree. Even for those who literally or figuratively go off the road, we can help. We can provide help on the way back. We can guide them to the Tree, just as we had help to get to the temple that day. What are we doing today to stay awake and help others?