General Conference Experience October 2012

 

            This past general conference presented a unique situation in that we had many empty seats to fill in sections 4 and 5 due to non-ticketed seats.  Thirty minutes prior to the start of the sessions of conference I found myself standing near the escalators inviting people to follow me down to seats nearer the front of the auditorium.  Everyone was excited to be closer to the general authorities of the church.  It was fun to see people have this opportunity. 

            As one woman with four children was approaching the escalator I felt that I should invite her family to sit in some of the available seats at the front.  She was very pleased to have this opportunity.  After she was seated one of her daughters need to use the restroom.  As she passed me she thanked me for the “great seats”.  She mentioned that her husband had recently died and that this meant a lot to her.

            After the session was over, Gwynne Nichols told me that after the meeting as the woman was leaving the session she stopped and gave her (Gwynne) a huge and thanked her again for the great seats.  She went on to explain that her husband was the pilot that died in a plane crash in Nephi about a month ago.  (The news had reported that he was the pilot who was helping a pilot from Canada learn how to fly a plane he had just bought.  He was unfamiliar with that type of aircraft and needed to learn how to fly it so he could take it back to Canada.  Her husband was just being a nice guy and helping a stranger get home, when the plane went down and both men lost their lives.)  This woman had brought her family to conference hoping to receive some strength and comfort by being in the presence of the prophet and the other general authorities.  She felt like she was truly blessed to be in such close proximity to the brethren.  Could she have felt the Spirit just as strongly in balcony?  Yes, I am sure.  But more importantly, the Lord was aware of her and her individual situation and wanted her family to have a “special” experience at conference.  It strengthened my testimony that the Lord knows each of us individually and desires to bless our lives.

Dave Roberts