Where are the Bulls? A story of Fatherhood

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SWA Bona, my friends, Judy here.

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I'm your host today for the Creative

Spiritual Journey podcast where gee

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and I celebrate the joys, the lessons,

and the small wonders we discover

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along this journey we call life.

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we both strive to follow the savior and

share with you the things of our hearts.

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I'm here in South Africa serving a

mission with my husband for the church

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of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints.

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Gia is back home now.

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WA in the desert of Utah.

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Their visit went by super fast,

but it will be a cherished

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memory for a long time.

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i'm so glad you joined me today.

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Yay.

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This week is Father's Day.

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So happy Father's Day

to any father listening.

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Do you think there might be one?

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I hope so.

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Today's episode, where are the bowls?

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Not I.

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The cereal or fruit kind of bowls, and

neither the Chicago bowls, but bowls

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as in the big majestic elephant bowls.

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Yes, elephants.

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This is a true story turned

parable that explore something

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deep and dear to my heart.

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The influence of fathers.

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And now not just biological dads,

but every man who steps into a loving

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mentoring role shaping lives with

steady hands and spiritual strength.

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These the man of our lives.

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And yes, we're going to begin

the story in South Africa, in the

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bush field with the elephants.

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In the 1990s.

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Park Rangers were trying to

manage the booming elephant

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population of Kruger National Park.

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We saw when we were there the effects

of too many elephants on the land.

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The solution to help balance

the numbers, they relocated many

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elephants, to a nearby game reserve

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But they ran into a problem.

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The big bowls were too large and too

expensive to transport, so moving the

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young elephants was more manageable.

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So they left the old Bulls behind

moving teenage males, Now, any of you

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who have raised boys might be feeling

a little red flag right about now.

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So at first, the move seemed to go well,

but then something went terribly wrong.

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It didn't take long before reports

came in that the white rhinos.

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Who are peaceful, nearly blind animals

were being attacked and killed.

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These were not poachers.

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Rangers were shocked.

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They set up cameras and

what they saw stunned them.

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The young elephants were ganging up and

rampaging an attack and killing the white

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Ronalds, as well as other large animals.

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It was unprecedented.

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The young bulls were outta control.

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They had entered a hormonal

state too early, behaving

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violently and destructively.

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They were displaying sexual behavior

that no one had ever seen in elephants.

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I.

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Elephants are highly social

and intelligent animals.

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There is order to their herd, to

their family, and in the wild.

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The young males, they stay with their

mothers until their teenage years.

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Then they are pushed out of the herd.

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It can be quite sad where they leave

and walk alone until they find and

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join up with other lone older bulls.

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And it's with these old guys that

they learn how to be elephants, not

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through lectures, but through presence.

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The older bulls don't coddle or scold.

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They correct behavior.

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They lead.

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I.

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By examples.

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So what was missing?

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What went wrong?

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The older bulls, the mentors

and the fathers were missing.

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So the rangers came up with a few ideas.

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They got bigger harnesses, bigger

helicopters, bigger ways to transport

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the big, large, mature elephants.

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And within weeks, the aggression stopped.

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The young both calmed

down, the killings ended.

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Why?

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Because the fathers came home.

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We have a father's crisis

here in South Africa.

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According to a recent report, about 64.5%

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of South African children are not being

raised by their biological fathers.

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in the home.

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That's nearly seven in 10 children

raised without a dad's presence.

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How are they to learn to be man?

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So if you walk through the

corridors of South African prisons,

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you quickly notice a pattern.

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The uniforms are the same.

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The stories are often too,

but it's something deeper that

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echoes through these cells.

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And if you look at who ends up behind.

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bars, the connection is heartbreaking.

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In one, prison the chaplain shared

that half of the young man in prison

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had no father figure at all growing up.

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Not even an uncle, no male

mentor, just anger and silence.

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As Satan's attacks on the family

intensifies as it has over the years.

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There's a ripple effect in the lives

of our children, they not only,

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uh, find themselves in prison, but

there's early teen pregnancies,

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which just continues the cycle.

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the one thing that gives this

great hope is that the gospel

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of Jesus Christ can change this.

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I look at the young single

adults, we teach a marriage.

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Class here for them,

think celestial marriage.

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And I look at them as our hope that they

can break the cycle of Unwed pregnancies.

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They need to be the chain breakers.

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They need to bring the

father, back to the home.

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In the Book of Mormon, in Alma 53, we

read about the Strickling warriors.

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Now remember them, they were

exceedingly violent for courage.

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True at all times.

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And whatever things they

were entrusted in, yay.

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They were man of truth and soberness.

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And we often quote that they

had been taught by the mothers

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That if they did not doubt God would

deliver them, but we also know that

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they were taught by their fathers.

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If we back up to the beginning of their

story, their fathers were the man who

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buried their weapons of war for peace

and made a covenant never to fight again.

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Having changed heart.

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They not only buried their weapons of war,

but when the laminas came upon them, they

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laid down their lives these men that had

taught their children the importance of

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keeping covenants and for standing and

fighting for truth and righteousness.

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That's why these young men

even took up the sword.

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In defense of the people having never

fought because they were honoring

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their fathers, they were taught by

their fathers as well as their mothers.

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Our prophet.

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president Nelson said, quote

fathers, you are the lynchpin

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in the life of your family.

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You bear the priesthood of God.

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You are the means by which the

Lord brings his power into the

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lives of our family members.

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What a beautiful word, lynchpin.

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Do you know what that is?

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Think of.

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On Adore Hinge is the piece that holds

everything together in the family

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proclamation we read by Divine Design,

fathers are to preside over their

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families in love and righteousness, and

are to be responsible for the necessity

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of life and the protection of their

family in these sacred responsibilities.

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Fathers and mothers are obligated to

help one another as equal partners.

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Okay, my dear sisters, I know many

of you have to wear both hats, mama

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and daddy, nurture and provider

priesthood support and gospel teacher.

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Cleaning up the house,

cleaning up the messes.

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Maybe the bulls were absent in

your story, but here's the good

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news of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

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God fills the gaps.

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He will send the bulls, meaning he'll

send the bulls in the form of your

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neighbors, your bishops, missionaries.

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Grandpas uncles, and just dang good men

that can mentor and show your children how

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to be good boys, good girls, good humans.

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good Elephants I once heard Sharon

Huebank, who is the worldwide

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director of Latter Day Saint

Charities, say something so profound.

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Quote, . For such humanitarian aid

has been poured into Africa, in

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Wales, in food programs, in schooling.

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While these effects are noble and

needed, the real difference comes when

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we build temples because it's in the

temple that men become men of covenant.

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That's the real transformation

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Men who preside in righteousness

keep their covenants and

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serve in the name of Christ.

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Temples are beginning to

dot the continent of Africa.

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Well, actually all over the world,

in Ghana, three in South Africa,

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Nigeria, Kenya, the Dominican

Republic, and the Irish coast,

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They're not just buildings, they

are monuments of spiritual change.

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When a man enters the Holy House of God

and makes covenants, he walks out changed.

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And that change ripples outward into

their families, into our families,

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our villages, and through generations.

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The world is seeing the effect of

a father's absence, but the gospel,

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the gospel can show us how to change

the ending in Miah two verse 17,

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quote, when you are in the service

of your fellow beings, you are

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only in the service of your God.

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Apply it like this when

a man mentors a boy.

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He teaches him to pray, to

work, to apologize, and to keep

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his covenants how to be a man.

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He's not just helping that child, he's

serving God, and in that service, he might

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be saving a soul from walking in to a

prison cell President Gordon b Hinkley.

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Ah, don't you just love President Hinkley?

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He's like my favorite prophet.

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He said, quote, every boy.

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Needs a man he can look up to

and say, I want to be like him.

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and I would like to add every

girl needs a father as well

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that she can look up to and say.

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I want to marry a man just like my dad.

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So let's celebrate the good man in

your life, even if they're not perfect.

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Pray for the father the to

return home to our wards, to our

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families, to our neighborhoods.

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And remember your power to influence

with love, hope, and trust in

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Christ, pray for the spiritual

gifts needed to do your part.

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And remember our loving heavenly

Father whose love is infinite and

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eternal, is always there for us.

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cause no one walks alone.

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No one.

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and even those whose fathers never did

show up and were absent from their home,

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even you, you do not need to feel alone.

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And so I can't talk about the

importance of fathers without

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mentioning my own daddy.

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He has been gone since

: 2011

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There's just those moments.

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I wanna call and share some great

news with him or cry on his shoulder.

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He taught me to hug.

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He was a hugger, and I'm a hugger too.

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He was very friendly and open to people,

and I think that is the gift he gave me.

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And I wanna thank Eric, the father

of our children, He put his family

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first always and taught and led

by example of how to be a man.

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A man of honor, a man of integrity,

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Ah, he sacrifices for them.

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He loves them.

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He tries to set an example

of being humble and kind.

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He loves to build fires.

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He taught them how to enjoy nature

and appreciate God's creations.

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He honors his priesthood.

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I think he set a good example of a

faithful husband and faithful saint.

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And I wanna thank my sons

and my sons-in-law and tell

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'em a happy Father's day.

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That is so exciting to see

them being fathers and.

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Ah, what great fathers, each one of

them are in their own unique way.

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They're devoted, they are making

the sacrifices needed to be there

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to show up for their children, and

I couldn't be any prouder of them.

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Thank you for providing not only

their physical needs, but providing

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the security, the love, and the

guidance that they need in this life.

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And our youngest son

is going to be a daddy.

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what a joy.

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Him and his sweet wife are

bringing a new little girl into

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the world, our 13th grandchild.

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Happy Father's Day.

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And I can't help myself.

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I've gotta end this

episode with a dad joke.

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Okay.

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What did the buffalo say to his son

when he left to go and serve a mission?

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Bye son.

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Uh, if this episode brought

a little light to your heart.

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Would you do me a favor?

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Please like this episode

and share it with a friend.

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Maybe someone who could use a

reminder that good man still exists

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and that this journey is worth it.

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We've set a small but mighty goal

of reaching 100 listeners and with

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your help, we're almost there.

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So thank you for walking with me,

GUI, and I know your time is precious.

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Thanks for tuning in and

choosing to find joy.

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In the journey, and until next

time, I'll see you on the trail.