And they say that age is just a number...

Who's "they" anyway?

Growing up, I've heard it said that when it comes to relationships, that age is "just a number."
The implications being, of course, that in courtships, the difference in age between people doesn't matter. Now, I've never really thought about age difference when it concerns dating because most of the girls I've dated or been on fun dates with have usually been my age (22) or a couple of years younger (19-21).

A few weeks ago, Kathy Benson, a fellow student in my physical science 100 class, came up to me after class and said she had some interesting news for me...

Before I go any further, I might add that Kathy is mother who's children are all out of the house and her husband is a Bishop in one of the (many) BYU wards. Anyway, one day she told me, "Fred! I have this friend that I really want you to meet. She's cute! She's fun! And I have told her ALL about you! What do you think?"

I replied, "Well Kathy, sounds good... Talk to her and let me know what's up..."
To be honest, I didn't think to much about at the time as I figured that the arrangement would never take place; either Kathy would forget about it or I would. And I know that I most definitely would...
This past Monday before class, Kathy walked up to me with her phone in hand and said, "Ok, Fred! Here's Mary Beth's number. She is expecting a call from you. This is now out of my hands. By the way, Fred, Mary Beth is 24 years old."
(Oh man... this is serious... I'm actually supposed to call her?! Freak! Oh man.... Um.... Wait! What?! She's 24?! Really?! Sweet!)

I replied, "Oh, ok Kathy. Sounds good...."

Kathy asked, "Fred, would you like to see what Mary Beth looks like?"

Hesitantly, I replied, "Yes..."

Kathy proceeded to log in to her Facebook account and show me pictures of Mary Beth...
I stared at the computer screen with my jaw dropped all the way to the floor...

Later that evening...

I thought about what I would say when Mary answered the phone...

"Hey Mary! This is Fred!"
(No, that doesn't work... I don't want her to think I'm some overly excited freak...)

"Hello, is this Mary Beth?"
(Of course it is, you idiot!)

"Hey! Mary Beth? Hi, this is Fred..."
(maybe that could work. perhaps a combo of the three...)

Now, I don't remember how the conversation went as far as what was said, but it suffices to say that it went well. Mary Beth and I talked for a few minutes and even shared a few laughs. A date was set and that is now what I await. Let's see what happens...

This morning when I woke up, I looked down at my phone and was surprised to see that I had received a text message from Mary Beth...
(Oh great, she must have seen what I looked like, on Facebook. Damn! She's probably texting me because she's no longer interested in going out on a date with me).

Hesitantly, I opened the text message. It read, "Ha ha ha. best message ever."
Confused, I thought for a moment about what she was talking about. I realized that she was referring to the voice message I had left her when I had first called her.

I replied, "Well thank you, ha ha. I tried pretty hard to leave a solid message lol."

She responded, "ha ha ha I can tell. BYU's English department is doing wonders for your speech!"
(Man, I haven't even met this girl and I like her. She's got a solid sense of humor...)

For the rest of the day, Mary and I exchanged some texts...
The date is set for Tuesday Feb 16, 2010...

I've heard it said that "Age is just a number..."
What are my opinions on this saying? Well, I don't have one...
Come Tuesday, however, I will know for sure...

Wow...

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So, it's been a few months since I've updated my blog... Where has the time gone? What's going on?

To those who are interested, I will attempt to answer those questions. However, I may omit some answers...

Well, October was a VERY interesting month...
A friend and I began dating steadily and said relationship ended shortly thereafter. However, our friendship remained strong. But of course, I messed up; I made a mistake and my friend was deeply hurt which caused me great anguish. Looking back at the time, I see now that I was a coward and acted as such. I've never felt anything for a girl as much as I have for this particular friend. Currently, I am fighting to fix things. It seems that I break things often...

I'm trying to be better... I really am...

Also in the month of October, I came down with the SWINE FLU... Would y'all (sorry, I served my mission in the South...) like to know what was even crazier?! I GOT SICK ON MY BIRTHDAY (OCT 23)! Needless to say, it was a miserable day...

Next was the month of November...
November was pretty uneventful except for the one fateful Sunday...
Let me make something clear. I've NEVER doubted my testimony about the LDS church. EVER. Nor have I EVER felt anger towards the Church or any of its members.
However, there was one Sunday where I left church both angry and offended. Let it suffice to say there was a lesson taught concerning certain doctrines and the way that the lesson was taught was inappropriate. I may also make it known that I was not the only person who felt this way that day at church. In an attempt to gather my thoughts, I drove to the Provo LDS Temple and sat in the parking lot. I called my mom and of course, mothers make everything better. Shortly afterward, my anger began to fade away...

Can someone tell me what historic event occurred within the LDS church in 1978?
Of course, it was that all men (regardless of race and if worthy) were allowed to receive the priesthood. It had been known among circles as the "Priesthood Ban." Prior to 1978, all African-American men and men of African decent were not allowed to hold the priesthood. Now to be clear, I'm not black. However, I am Dominican and as such, I have African decent in me (my dad is a black Dominican and my mom is a white Dominican). Had I lived before 1978, I would not have served a mission and I probably would have not be accepted to BYU. I have never questioned why that "ban" existed, albeit I've been curious. However, within a period of 2 weeks in November, I was asked by several different people (Mormons and non-Mormons) what my opinions concerning the issue were. It was then that I decided that I wanted to investigate the issue more. My Church History professor at BYU was kind enough to lend me a biography about President Kimball's (the prophet at the time of the revelation) life that was written by his son. Reading that bio answered some questions but also led to new ones...
Since then, I've dropped the issue...
Why?
I have a testimony of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Joseph Smith, and the Book of Mormon. That is all that matters.

December was a great month! Fall semester ended and I spent Christmas with my family! 'Nuff said.

Well, now its January and Winter Semester 2010 has started. Poli Sci 200 and 377 are taking up all of my time, but I truly love those classes. Physical Science 100 is hard (I've never been a man of science) and New Testament is VERY interesting. All in all, things are great and I'm moving forward with my life...

See y'all soon...