Ode to Elder Wahlquist on His 70th Birthday

I planned to write an ode to Brent on this special day, but then I looked up the meaning of "ode."
      ".....a lyric poem typically of elaborate or irregular metrical form and expressive of exalted or enthusiastic emotion or a poem intended to be sung."  My poetry has always been of the "roses are red, viotlets are blue....."  type and it's hard to hear a song on a blog, so there will be no ode today.  However, I can express exalted and enthusiastic emotion for the man I have been married to for almost 46 years.  He is one of the best people I know.  He is wise.  He is generous.  He is kind.  He is faithful.  He is a great husband and father and grandfather.  He is forgiving.  He is nurturing.  He is encouraging.  Because of him, I have always known that anything is possible.  He is curious and loves to learn.  He is the best mission companion ever!

He is always willing to work in the kitchen and looks great in an apron.

He is very good at hauling things.

He has skills.  Here he is building a shelf in our YSA closet.

Because he is an excellent map reader, we never get lost and only rarely go down a one-way street the wrong way or get on the metro going the wrong way.  I follow along knowing that he will always get us where we need to go.  And it has been that way in our life together as well.

He took us on a mission.  This is a picture  taken at Cismigiu Park where Elder Russell M. Nelson offered a prayer to set apart the country of Romania for missionary work.

 

He takes me to wonderful places around the world.

Yes, this is the cute little guy before he started to grow tall and thin.  Don't you just love the "play pen?"



The man on the far right is the man I fell in love with over 46 years ago.  He is now 70 years old and even better than he was at 24.  These are his six brothers who are some of the other best men I know.

La Multi Ani, Brent!