James

When James was a baby, he very rarely took a nap; maybe a catnap every now and then. When all of the other kids would sit and watch a movie or do a quiet activity, James would be exploring; seeing what kinds of things there were in drawers and boxes. One day when he was two I thought he was napping and a friend who lived behind me called and casually mentioned that James was playing in the street with a bunch of neighborhood kids. "No", I said, "he is taking a nap". Sure enough, he was outside. So the next day I purposely got on the phone and turned my back to the door; you guessed it, a few minutes later, there went two year old James sneaking out the front door! I was shocked at the audacity of this two year old boy of mine. I maintained that if we could channel all of his energy, some day he would be unstoppable.

Fast forward twenty years: He is a returned missionary married in the temple to a knock-out blond beauty (inside & out), an honor student on scholarship at BSU, in the student senate, in the Bishopric of his ward, and top salesman for his summer company, Gemtek. Energy channeled. Period.

But even more, he is the kind of young man that people just love to be around. He has this contagious smile and laugh that just light up a room. He is so fun to have conversations with about politics, religion, sports, life, and the latest hot topics. He is my buddy, my friend, someone I can confide in and someone I am proud of. Unstoppable.