The Friend of Reason

Written by Sister Chalet Severson                   Nov. 25, 2010

When we were asked to tell our companions about a person who has shaped our life, I didn’t even need to think.  I knew exactly who that person was for me.   Her name is Candy Rendon.

She’s about ten years older than I am and has been an older-sister figure in my life since I was about 12.  We first met at church.  She was the camp director in my ward.  I had just moved into the ward and was a little on the quiet side.  Well…on the outside. Inside I was wild and rambunctious.  When I first met Candy, there was something different about her.  Not your normal leader.  She was way young, but was very grown up at the same time.  I don’t know what or why it was, but I instantly had a bond with her and knew we would be good friends.

Once camp came we went on a hike.  At the tail end of all the hikers was me, my friend Sam and Candy.  Candy, being the one trying to hurry us up, kept teasing us on how we were so slow and that we were young.  We should be faster than her.  Well, that’s all it took to bring the prankster out in me.  Once we sat down for a rest, I slipped a rock into her backpack.  This continued for about 10 more times as we continued our hike.  Once we were getting closer to the top, she was getting further and further behind.  The teasing now was aimed towards her and how she was so slow.  Once at the top, we all sat to eat our lunch.  She opened her back pack and found the rocks!  It then turned into dodge the rocks!  I was running, she was throwing.  We have been inseparable ever since.

Every big decision in my life, she was who I turned to.  She has been the voice in my head, the friend of reason.  I have always had her back and she’s had mine.  She continued on to become Young Women’s President and an even bigger influence in my Gospel life.  She was the person I wanted to be like as a young girl and now as I’m grown, I still look to her for guidance and a sister to spend time with.  I’ve lived with her right before my mission and was able to spend lots of time with her and her kids.  She’s an example to me.  She’s the definition of love and friendship.  She’s not just my best friend.  She’s my family, my sister.

Chalet Severson is third from left on front row.
Back row includes Elder Sorenson, Elder Stachowski, Elder Voss, and Elder Amussen
Front row, Sister Mimaki, Sister Shibata, and on right, Sister Harada

A Relief Society Angel

Sister  Anna-Lisa Clark

Sister Akahane, a part-member sister from the Matsumoto Branch who serves as the visiting teaching coordinator of the Relief Society, is in my opinion, the very kind of angel spoken of by prophets who goes about doing good.  She is the most active visiting teacher I have ever seen, visiting numerous less-active members, always with a gift of a food item in hand, often things she grows or makes herself.  She takes us with her by car occasionally and we too never leave empty hearted or empty handed.  She give us great meals at her home, jars of homemade jam, and bags of fresh huge apples.

My last week in Matsumoto, she took us to visit a non-member friend of hers whose name came up when we did fulfillment and follow-up with her.  Her friend welcomed us warmly and we had a great visit.   It turns out she had already read a good amount of the Book of Mormon that she had received from Sister Akahane.  I was impressed with how willing she was to get to know us because of the influence of Sister Akahane’s friendship.

That same week we visited a less-active sister who has at times heard and believed negative things about the Church.  Sometimes she was really hard-hearted, but as we worked with her, showed love and bore testimony, things improved.  When we last visited her, we were surprised as she pulled out the Book of Mormon, listened more attentively than ever, said she had been reading and even shared with us her conversion story.  We were wondering why she seemed so changed when she brought up a recent visit by her visiting teacher where they discussed recognizing the spirit and she had begun to think back on her experiences and had begun to find things that seemed like inspiration.  How grateful we were for those visiting teachers, one of which was our local ministering angel, Sister Akahane.

Sister Akahane’s husband (non-member) is a woodcarver by trade.  He carves all kinds of things, including statues and things for temples and shrines.  Lately Sister Akahane has been learning a little herself.  Knowing that transfers were coming up and that between me and Sister Mimaki I was the one most likely to go, she made and painted a little wooden pendant, carved in the shape of a flower, and gave it to me as a special gift.

What an honor!  I will treasure it as a reminder of her faith and example.  I pray it can help me remember her testimony that she shared so freely in word and in deed.