We received a call about midnight that Elder Wirthlin quietly passed away as he went to bed.
I was surprised because we had just visited him before Thanksgiving. He was well without any acute illness.
Mom and I had had finished our temple assignment at 8 PM (they call that 'Early Release'). We called his home and said we had a fresh loaf of sourdough bread and could we come by and drop it off. We have tried to visit him every week or two since his wife passed away and those visits were dear.
When we arrived, he got up out of his chair himself and took steps across the room without any support. He hugged Mom and gave her a kiss on the cheek and warmly shook my hand.
I was impressed as to how well he looked. He was so alive. His eyes sparkled and we had the best visit ever. I told him he looked great and that was a clinical, not a social opinion. "Thanks Doctor, that was the best Christmas gift I could receive!"
Our conversations were always about the same things. We would talk about Austria where we both had served as missionaries. We would speak of our Pioneer Great grandfather and great grandmother and their resolute faith. We would speak of football and he would always say how he used to go up to the U as a young man and watch my Father run track and play varsity football. We would talk about the strength of our young members of the Church. It was always so great to visit him.
When we left he got up out of his chair again and took a few steps and invited us back soon. I had never seen him look so well in two years and this visit was the best.
We will have more to say about him. I will miss him. I had adopted him as an older brother years ago and he has been so close to our family. He was the kindest and most Christlike man I had ever known.. he will be missed by the entire church. Sorry to bear this news..
Love, Dad
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
I was so sad to hear that this morning. He was such a sweet man. I will always remember his last conference address. It was a great talk about dealing with adversity. I always looked forward to hearing him speak and I am sure we will all miss that.
We will all miss him , He gave the best talks. So sorry Dad - I know you will miss him even more, since he was not just an apostle and cousin to you but also such a close friend.
I remember the few times he visited us in MI and James will never forget visiting with him at McDonald's with you in WY
hey president wirthlin, thanks for posting that. I just barely heard the news. News seems to travel fast, even if you're on the 'other' side of the pond. I'm going to miss him, he is leaving behind a tremendous legacy though!
Dad I was sad to hear of his passing. He always gave great talks during general conference. Our anniversary is coming up and I was thinking of that when we went to temple square. He was so nice and met with us and gave us some great instruction. Well, he definitely lived a great life.
I was so sorry to hear the news about Elder Wirthlin. He will be missed. I remember him coming to the farm years ago. We worked so hard to get the fences painted before his visit. The last time I spoke to him was last October at your home when we had the family Halloween party. (He chuckled at Cathy & Pete's Sumo wrestler costume).
More than these personal memories, I will have the memories, messages, and spirit he has shared in his conference addresses.
Thanks everyone.. I will jot a few stories of his visits to our homes.
Elder Wirthlin is one of the most quoted of the General Authorities.
His funeral is Friday in the Tabernacle.
Love, Dad
I also loved to hear his talks. I loved his last talk "come what may and love it" and have thought of it often times since he gave it. My children always paid more attention when he was speaking because they knew he was your cousin and friend. He was a great man and leader. He was always so kind when he visited or talked to us. We will all miss him.
Post a Comment