too good to wait til' Friday!

Let me tell you a story about a woman and a missionary... a long time ago... in a land far away (if you can call Baton Rouge far away)... a young man was called to serve a Spanish speaking mission to the good people of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Elder Christensen had no idea what he was in for. He met my mother, baby sister, and brother while he spent nearly a year in their neck of the woods (he met AA and I too, over the summer while we were visiting). He, and his companion, had numerous Sunday dinners with my mom and lots of good conversation. My mom loved these boys and after they were transferred, she did her best to keep in touch.
It's been 10 years since she has spoken with JJ Christensen. He got married and their conversations became less and less. My mom moved and lost his contact information and he had lost hers as well.
Facebook is a great tool for finding lost connections and JJ found me just 1 week ago. He asked about my mom and I told him that she was coming for a visit. In the course of our conversation I learned that his home is less than 1 block from the Oquirrah Mt. Temple. Through coincidence of all coincidences, my mom had made reservations to attend the open house for Saturday morning. So JJ and I started scheming!
My mom commented after we took our tour about how cute the neighborhood was. So I said "let's drive through it". We did. I saw a house with it's door open and we stopped. I told her that we should go and see the inside of this home and she wanted NOTHING to do with it. She kept saying that she wasn't going to go to a stranger's home and ask to see inside. Then this "crazy man" came out and invited us in and my mom stood on the sidewalk and politely declined. As he got closer, she backed up. (I was laughing so hard inside!) Then she asked "do you know this man?" and I replied "Yup - and I think you do too".
She took a good, long look, and then it hit her. She started to cry and gave him a huge hug. She was stunned that he was right there, in front of her, smiling and laughing right along with the rest of us. The whole gang (Dennis too) was in on the surprise - and it was well worth the wait!
We visited for a bit and I think that even after we left my mom was still stunned at what just happened.
What a wonderful way to start our Saturday!