Friday evening, I had made arrangements to go visit Brock Lovett. He and his wife, Debbie, had been my dear friends in Amarillo when I was a teenager (Brock) and as a young adult (Debbie). Brock and Debbie started dating after both of them served missions. Brock reminded me that I had told him that he better treat Debbie right or I would kill him...and he said I was not being funny. I don't remember that exactly, but I do know that Debbie had gotten her heart "broken" by another young man in our ward several months before and I didn't want Brock to be too casual as he started a possible relationship with her. They got engaged at the Gold and Green Ball in Lubbock that Gary and I attended a few weeks before we got married. I flew to Salt Lake to attend their wedding in the Salt Lake City Temple in June of 1978.
Debbie passed away the week before my dad did from a cancerous tumor around her intestines which didn't respond to a variety of treatments including some clinical research studies she took part in. It was a battle they fought for 2 1/2 years in Amarillo, in Houston, and lastly in Scottdale, AZ, before the decision was made to return home to Amarillo for the final few months of her life.
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| Debbie, their daughter Hannah, and Brock |
Although it has been probably 15 years since I last saw Brock and Debbie, stepping into his home and being greeted by him and his darling mother, Ellen Lovett was like stepping back into our young adult years. It felt comfortable and familiar. It was a lot of "remembering when..." as we talked about the unique place it was to be a teenager and a member of the Church in Amarillo. Fifty years had passed but it seemed more like just a few years since we had been together as young adults starting off in our lives. As a bonus, Stephanie, one of his older sisters, came into town on the way to Colorado and we got to share more memories with her. She had worked in Sambos with me and we had become close during that time.
Two highlights of the visit--
1. Brock commented that he never knew that it was hard for me to move to Amarillo until I mentioned it in my talk at the funeral. He said that it felt like we just all belonged there. That touched me and made me happy. It was a hard thing for me to move at 16 but I am glad I didn't make everyone else miserable about it.
2. I expressed my regrets about not knowing until about a month before about Debbie's declining health and I wasn't sure if I should reach out or not. I said, I wish that I had talked to her and let her know what an example she was to me. Brock replied, "I believe that Debbie heard whatever she needed to hear." Love you, my sweet friend, until we meet again!
Visiting with Brock, Stephanie, and Ellen just reminded me of so many great people who have made a difference in my life. I hope in the eternities I have a chance to visit with them all and remember the great times that we shared while on this earth. Do you think we will be too busy with eternal things to catch up on the "good old days" on Planet Earth?
While it is true that this world is amazing and filled with wonders, it is the people who make it all worth it.
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