Hank Smith: 00:02 Hello, welcome to FollowHIM Favorites. This is where John and I are sharing a single story to go with each week’s lesson. John, we are in sections 37 through 40 today. And I have a story for you. I hesitate John to tell you this story because it is going to be a display of my own humanness. Just bear with me John. When people say, oh, you work with John Bytheway, is he really that good? He is. He’s really that good. But when people say, John, you work with Hank, is he really that bad? He really is that bad. Alright. In section 38 of the Doctrine & Covenants, the Lord tells the saints it’s time to move to quote the Ohio. As I saw that, John, I remember a move that Sara and I had to make years and years ago. It was when we had three children, we have five now. We were moving from West Jordan, Utah, down to Mapleton, Utah because I had been hired to teach at BYU. John, you’ve moved before. Moving is stressful.

John Bytheway: 01:07 It’s rough.

Hank Smith: 01:08 You’re leaving this house, you’re trying to get that house all cleaned out and ready and you’re trying to have a system. So you’re, you know, labeling each box. But then people come over to help and they don’t care about the system. They’re just throwing things in. Then your dad comes over to help and he treats you like you’re 12. In fact, I remember my dad telling me what to do. Like you move that there. And I said, dad, this is my stuff. Right? This is my house. And he said, you just do what I tell you to do. And I did it, John. It’s like, I’m like, yes sir. And I started to do it. My sons are saying, do it again. Grandpa, how’d you do that? How’d you get him? How’d you get him to do what you said? So we finally get the house in West Jordan all done.

  01:49 We say goodbye to our life there, which we loved. And we moved down here to Mapleton. Well John, you know how unpacking is also very stressful. Packing it up and moving it, that was stressful. Well, getting it into the house is also a little bit stressful. And then they have people coming over to help and they mean well, but they don’t know where to put stuff. It’s just stuff is everywhere. And then kids, wouldn’t you know it, they get hungry. This is not a time to get hungry. You need to stop getting hungry. Yeah. It’s very selfish. We’re in the middle of moving this stuff in. You’re trying to be gentle. You can hear some things breaking. I’m just trying to get everybody on board here that, that my life was hard. So my children wanted to eat and they said, can we get pizza? I said, no, we’re not going to get pizza. That’s not healthy. We’ll cook up some hot dogs. I went to find the microwave and I couldn’t find it. I asked Sara, did someone bring the microwave in? And she said, it’s in the garage.

  02:48 Yeah bring it in and use it, but then put it back in the garage because we’re not going to use it. We’re going to get a new microwave. And I said, is this one broken? And she said, no, it doesn’t match. I gotta be honest with you. I was tired, I was stressed and I did not know what she was talking about. I thought she meant like a match.

John Bytheway: 03:09 Oh, I can’t light it.

Hank Smith: 03:11 Yeah, like you can’t light the microwave. I was thinking, I don’t think you have to light a microwave. I’m pretty sure you…

John Bytheway: 03:18 Don’t have to match a microwave.

Hank Smith: 03:19 It’s electric. Yeah. I’ve never had to light one before. She’s tired and I’m tired. And I said, what do you mean it doesn’t match? It doesn’t light? And she said, no, it doesn’t match. And I said, Sara, I, and my wonderful wife, we adore each other. John, I think she looked at me like, oh what? What did I marry? She says, well, just describe for me the exterior of the stove. And I’m like, what? She’s like, just tell me. And I’m like, it’s stainless steel. And she said, okay, next describe for me the exterior of the refrigerator. It had come with the house. I said, it is also stainless steel. And she said, and our microwave, I said, it’s white and I’m still John, not clued.

John Bytheway: 04:07 Yeah.

Hank Smith: 04:07 And she kind of looked at me.

John Bytheway: 04:08 Does it matter?

Hank Smith: 04:09 Yeah. Like how is this, how is this about lighting a microwave? All of a sudden it clicked. I’m like, oh, it doesn’t match. Oh you want, oh you want them all to be the same color. Oh, I said, we’re not getting them a new microwave because that doesn’t matter. John, I don’t know if you and your wife have ever disagreed on something, but that started a little bit of a war because she wanted to get a new microwave so all the appliances would match. I was not one of those people who thought that all the appliances need to match. I’m someone who thinks they all need to function.

John Bytheway: 04:46 Yeah. Does it work? Then it matches.

Hank Smith: 04:49 It works. Does it work? It matches the other ones that also work.

John Bytheway: 04:53 It matches because the other ones work.

Hank Smith: 04:55 The kids were like, are you guys fighting? We’re like, no, no. Mom and dad love each other. Eventually John, we decided to compromise and get a new microwave. Now. I know.

John Bytheway: 05:07 Hank. That’s not a compromise. Yeah, I know.

Hank Smith: 05:09 Yeah, I know. That’s not a compromise. Yeah. Yeah it is when you’re married.

John Bytheway: 05:12 But that’s a, that’s when you’re married. That’s a compromise. That’s right.

Hank Smith: 05:15 That’s a compromise. So I stop by the store to pick up this microwave. I go all the way in. It’s too expensive in my opinion. But I go to the front. I’m a little bit ornery. I’m tired. I am buying something I don’t think I should have to buy. I get it John. I know right now that this was probably a bad attitude. But welcome to our store. I’m like, just ring up the microwave. I get the microwave, I put it in the back of the car, it would barely fit. I took it home, I loaded it up the stairs, I almost fell and I set it on the counter with, Hey, here’s the new microwave. She of course was, thank you, you know, sweetie, I’m grrr. I went into a different room to do my very important things. I can hear her open up the microwave and she says to me in the other room, what did you buy?

  06:08 And I said, a microwave. And she said, well yeah, but this one’s blue. And I said, no it’s not. Look at the box. And she said, it doesn’t matter what it says in the box, the microwave is blue. I came out and looked at it and sure enough, you only saw the top of it. And I, sure enough, it’s blue. I kind of looked at her like I know what’s coming. She said, can you take it back? And I said, no I don’t want to take it back. I will tomorrow. She said, we need it tonight. I said, let’s just use the old one. And she said, I sold it. I’m like, no.

John Bytheway: 06:50 That didn’t take long.

Hank Smith: 06:52 I load it back up and my wife knows how difficult it is to take kids to the store. She says, Hey kids, you want to go with dad to the store? I’m like, you are doing this on purpose And of course my kids, you know, they’re little at the time are three. And yeah sure, let’s go to the store Dad. I load the microwave back in the car with the kids and I’m taking the microwave back to the store and it’s a long drive. And I was using my kids as therapists, right? I’m telling them how hard it is to be a dad and to buy microwaves and they’re your dad and it sounds really hard. And we get to the store. John, now I’m really upset. This is what made me think of it. Section 38, verse 39. The Lord says, beware of pride. Beware of pride. And John, I was not beware of pride I was just pride. There was no beware going on.

John Bytheway: 07:48 Yeah.

Hank Smith: 07:48 I am now frustrated and I’m frustrated enough that I can get a little bit ornery. I put this microwave on the customer service desk and this girl that was there said Hi, what can I do for you? And I said, the microwave’s blue. And she said, what? And I said, the microwave’s blue. It says stainless still on the box. The microwaves blue. Okay, I just need to get a new microwave. And she’s Oh, um, okay. Yes. Do you have your receipt? And I’m holding up my receipt for it, she starts ringing it up. And I think I was ornery enough that it brought her supervisor over. I know, I know everyone. I know you’re judging me. John Bytheway would never be this way. I promise.

John Bytheway: 08:32 You were also tending. You were also tending.

Hank Smith: 08:35 Yeah, I was tending and I was moving.

John Bytheway: 08:38 I’ve been there.

Hank Smith: 08:40 Thank you for validating me. The supervisor I guess, he comes walking over and he said, what’s the problem here sir? And you know, I’m not even going to look at him because I am a disgruntled customer and I do not want to have this conversation again. She kind of looks around and goes, oh well he bought this microwave. It’s supposed to be stainless steel, but it’s not, it’s blue. So we’re going to get him a new microwave. And he looks at me, oh, I’m so sorry sir. And I was like, yeah, I bet. I’m really ornery. He goes about 10 steps, John. And he turns around, he said, sir, did you take the blue cellophane off the microwave? And I said the what?

John Bytheway: 09:35 The what?

Hank Smith: 09:37 John, we hadn’t bought new appliances. It’s just not something we had done in our little family. Right? Hadn’t bought new things. And he said the stainless steel appliances, they come with a blue cellophane wrap on them. And he opened up the box and he said, oh yeah. And he pulled the blue off of the microwave and he held it right there in front of me. John, I don’t know if you’ve ever seen someone who was trying desperately not to laugh. It wasn’t him. It was the girl. It was the girl who I’d been so abrupt with. She is over there making faces because she just does not want to laugh. You can tell she’s, he’s looking away. She’s, you know, crying and he’s staring at me with this blue cellophane. I’m just looking up at him and John, you know me. I talk for a living. I had nothing to say. I had absolutely nothing to say. I’m just staring at this guy. One of my children chimes in, my oldest boy Mason. He says, wait, the microwave’s not blue. And I’m like, shush, shush. Dad, you said these people were so dumb. I’m like, yeah, I know. I know what I said. I know what I said. Just go over there.

  10:52 I didn’t know what to say John. So all I did was pick up the microwave and turn around and walked out. I walked out of the store. I got about 20 feet I think from the customer service desk. And I hear it erupt in laughter. Come here, come here. You gotta hear this. You gotta hear what this guy just did. No, that guy, that guy leaving with the kids.

John Bytheway: 11:14 Pull that, pull the hat down.

Hank Smith: 11:16 Yeah, I think my daughter was saying, dad, they’re laughing at you. I’m like at us, they’re laughing at us. So we put the microwave back in the car and we’re driving home. And John, I don’t think I need to tell you this, but guess who else thought it was the funniest story she had ever heard in her life?

John Bytheway: 11:35 Sara?

Hank Smith: 11:36 Yeah. About a half hour later I’m at home telling this story and she is crying. She’s crying and she said crying, she said, tell me again, tell me again. And I said, And she said, and then he just held it up for you? And I’m like, yeah, he just held it up for me. And she said, you must have felt so dumb. And I said, I did. I felt so dumb. She said, I can’t believe you thought it was blue. I said, Sara, you thought it was blue. And she said, yeah, but I’m not the one that took it back. We still talk about that story to this day. It has been a long time. I think it’s been 15 years since that happened. But we still talk about it today. And as I’m reading section 38 with the Lord saying, Hey, you’re going to move. This is going to be really hard. But remember, if you are not one, you are not mine. And beware of pride. I was not reading section 38. Apparently when we moved.

John Bytheway: 12:32 If you’re feeling blue, pull off the cellophane, pull off the cellophane. In fact, this laptop I’m using is blue. Hey, hey, how long has this been blue? How long has this been here?

Hank Smith: 12:44 After I told that story once, John, a woman came up to me and she said, it’s okay. I thought my washer and dryer were blue for two years. Okay, I’m not the only one. Beware of pride the Lord says. Thank you for staying with us for the entire story. We hope you’ll join us on our full podcast. It’s called FollowHIM. You can get it wherever you get your podcast. We’re, like I said, in section 37 through 40 this week. And we’re going to talk about this man, James Covel, who I’m sure is smarter than me, at least when it comes to appliances.

John Bytheway: 13:18 Your telling this story shows that you were aware of pride and because now you’re sharing it with us.

Hank Smith: 13:25 I am aware now. And guess what, John, today I can go upstairs and I can see the matching appliances.

John Bytheway: 13:33 Oh, what a feeling.

Hank Smith: 13:35 And she’s right. It does look good.

John Bytheway: 13:37 Not only do they work, but they match.

Hank Smith: 13:44 Come back and join us next week for another followHIM Favorites.