My friends are always telling me what a great storyteller I am. I don't see it, but they always say that. So I guess they must be right. Storytelling is an art; either you got it or you don't! According to my friends, I got it! (I still don't see what you guys are talking about!) Anyway. Here are some of my favorite stories. They aren't much, but you might enjoy them.
One time I was at this big banquet where I was nominated for an award. I didn't think I was going to win, which is a good thing because when I sat down in my chair my tuxedo pants caught on a sliver of wood which ripped a giant hole in the seat of my pants! Wow. Embarrassing! I bet you can guess what happened next: I won the award! And then I had to stand up in front of all of those people with a giant rip in the seat of my pants. I walked up to the platform to accept the award, and I was really sheepish. But I realized as I was walking up that my suit coat was long enough to cover the rip. Saved by a suit coat! What a great story.
One time I was walking on BYU campus - this is when I was an undergrad there - and I saw an old mission companion walking toward me. I panicked because I couldn't remember his first time. I always thought it was so lame to call people by their last names after your mission. But I couldn't remember his first name! What was I going to do? Suddenly, at the last minute I remembered: Brian. Whew!
A few years ago Lisa kept asking me to paint one of the kids rooms in our house. She was tired of the old color, and she wanted me to redo it. She had picked out a color she really liked at Home Depot. Well, as fate would have it, she went out of town for a weekend, and I thought it would be the perfect time to repaint the room and surprise her. So I did just that! When Lisa got home it turns out that I had painted the room the wrong color! Egg on my face! But Lisa just cocked her head, squinted, and said "Well, that color is close enough. I can live with it." I love that story.
Yesterday I was driving to work and I came to a four-way stop. Another lady got to the stop at the same time as me. I waved at her and said "Go on!" But she waved back at me, as if to say "No, you first." So I nodded my head and waved my arms to indicate that she should go. But she did the same thing at the same time! It was crazy. So I so "Go! Go!" in a really positive and encouraging way. And wouldn't you know it - she did that, too! Finally she just went. It was hilarious!
One time I was in a social gathering where no one really knew each other. So we played a getting-to-know-you game where we all sat in a circle and one by one everyone admitted something they had never done. I knew immediately what I was going to say: I have never seen Jurassic Park! It's a slam dunk, and it's true. But guess what - the person right before my turn admitted that he had never seen Jurassic Park! Which really threw me for a loop! So I had to think quick. I admitted that I had never seen High School Musical. No one acted like it was that big of a deal. I still think Jurassic Park is more impressive. But it got me through my turn, and I felt like people were able to know a little bit more about me.
If you have any questions about these stories or if you would like to hear them in person (they are GREAT LIVE) please don't hesitate to ask. I don't think I'm that great at telling stories, but my friends would beg to differ!
