Hello Sister Robarts!
.....
I've been meaning to write you a long time
about your son. He is an amazing young man. Then again...you are his
mother. So, I am sure you are aware of how awesome Ben Robarts really
is. Like he said, our time at the MTC was "short" but really, we spent
the maximum time possible any elders could spend together in the MTC.
Between the dining hall, classroom, and dorm room, I probably spent more
combined time with Elder Robarts than some of my best friends.
There
were few dull moments spent with "Robarts". He has so many awesome
talents and abilities. At the same time, he is so humble about them! One
of my favorite things in the MTC was being on my toes, waiting to see
what new thing Elder Robarts would reveal about himself. Things like,
his sketch books, Sense of humor, wise views on the world, temple
traditions, and my personal favorite... The ability to play Beverly
Hills Cop on the piano flawlessly. Of course, those are just a few, but
they are some of my favorites.
One of my favorite things about
Elder Robarts was his incredible ability to FOCUS. And not only stay
focused on a particular item, but go back and forth between several
things and just stayed extremely focused. For instance... Every morning
Right when the Alarm went off, Elder Robarts would roll over, (he slept
on the floor 90% of the time haha), say a prayer, get out his
flashlight, and start studying Korean. That all happens in about 3
minutes. Now, I don't know about you but in the first 3 minutes of my
Morning, I'm hitting the "snooze" button for about the second time.
Also, our class/district was always super close. And sadly, we could
very easily get off task. Elder Robarts however, could manage to Study
the Gospel/Korean, and still chime in on our conversations from time to
time, unfazed. While the rest of the class was behind, He had gotten his
work done, and had a little bit of fun along the way.
My
favorite thing about Elder Robarts is his Christlike ability to
completely forget himself. He lives to make sure others are taken care
of. In the District, Elder Robarts and his companion Elder Forbes were
definitely the "Shepard's" of the group. They kept everyone together,
and kept the stress low. Elder Robarts made sure to write all of his
family members and friends. Even if it meant sacrificing huge amounts of
study time. Nevertheless, he always made it happen. (His letter to me
is a good example). The first week of the mission he stayed up late at
night, flashlight in hand, writing letters to everyone he possibly
could.. During week two, we were informed that staying up was a no no in
the MTC. Therefore, Elder Robarts shifted his schedule to wake up early
(sometimes 5 am) To write home. On top of that, he would study, pray,
and basically be ready to go for the day much before our entire floor
even woke up. It could easily be debated that Elder Robarts is Part
human/part machine. But, despite his personal "machine-like" drive, he
never lost his mentality that it is 100% about others. At the end of our
MTC experience, we had to teach our "progressing investigators" that we
"baptized" for the last time. They were fake investigators. They were
our teachers. Still, it didn't stop Elder Robarts from crying the last
time he got to teach them. You might think..why cry? these people are
fake! Elder Robarts had just gained so much love and respect for the
characters that our teachers merely portrayed, that it was difficult for
him to leave them. He views everyone he associates like a Child of God,
and treats them that way also. His passion for the message, and love
for others still inspires me daily.
So... I have officially
ranted. But I just want you to know that you have raised an amazing
son. I think the world of him, and he will be one of my role-models for
the rest of my life. Thank you for posting his weekly updates, and thank
you for sending me his letter.
Scott Gerszewski
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