November 15, 2006
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from a letter dated November 6, 2006
Dear family and friends,
In case I forgot to mention it last week, I have a new companion. His name is Elder Fillerup. He is from Cody, Wyoming. Cool stuff.
Yesterday I confirmed Jose and gave him the gift of the Holy Ghost. It was a wonderful experience. He even bore his testimony in sacrament meeting. His family was all there to support him, and his mom joined us for sunday school, promising to return next week.
Right now though I have another experience to write about. It is actually what happened a week ago from last Saturday on October 29, 2006. There is a man, here I will refer to him as “R”, who has terminal cancer. He is not active in the church, but we visit him fairly often to lift his spirits and sing Karaoke with him. That day we went randomly to do just that. His wife answered the door and said that he was sleeping. She invited us in and went to wake him. From his bedroom, she screamed for us to call 911. We did and rushed in. He was foaming at the mouth- a thick, white fluid. He was not responding. After following the instructions of the person on the phone, I asked his wife if I could give him a blessing. She was hysterical, but she agreed. The moment I placed my hands on his head, she became instantly still and calm. I quickly annointed with oil and practically in the same breath sealed the annointing and gave a blessing. It was short, but it came deep from within me. I’m not sure I was really registering what was actually going on. The paramedics were there in a split second and started asking questions and sticking tubes everywhere. Then they took him away as we comforted loved ones.
Tuesday he was home, but the doctors did not give him very long to live. To my knowledge he is still home, past the doctors expectations, but still awaiting a soon death. I have thought often of what might have happened if we hadn’t stopped by that day at that time. Would his last days with his family have been cut short? Prior to my mission, death was a foreign concept for me. In many ways it still is, but I have had many experiences that have helped me gain perspective on eternity. I have seen things that I think most people my age have not. (and, I have not seen things that most people my age have). Interesting things to think about.
I love you all and miss you,
Elder Embree
